Chapter Text
~
It was far past midnight. The band had picked up, three-quarters of the townsfolk who had shown up were already gone, leaving to wind down for the night.
So then where was she?
Sci gulped to himself. Though his trademark soft grin was frozen on his face, his hands shook, clenched into tight fists.
Yet he stayed so still. His still, calm posture could fool anyone, so long as you didn't look at his hands.
Blue definitely hadn't noticed, as he stood next to his higher-up. He snacked on a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries as he bounced up and down as if his tiny little body couldn't contain the cheeriness coursing through his body. Sure, the princess was missing, but Sci just seemed so calm! Surely if he wasn't nervous about the situation, he shouldn't be, right?
(Y/N) had been teleported to asgore knows where almost an hour ago. No signs of her still being on the castle grounds had been found.
And the civilians were dancing. Laughing. Drinking. It was almost as if only Sci could see the guards running back and forth through the castle, searching through every nook and cranny in the palace.
For all they knew, (Y/N) was already in the next kingdom over, being locked away in some tower.
They hadn't even found the alleged brothers. It was too late. They hadn't prepared enough for this. It was all Sci's fault. He would never see his daughter again, and their bond had just become the strongest it had ever been.
How could he be so stupid? Did he really think this villain would give him time to prepare against his attack?
Sci heaved lightly, light tears pricking the corners of his eye sockets. Taking in a deep inhale, he looked up slightly, pushing the stream of tears back away.
"SCI? ARE YOU ALRIGHT?"
He froze, craning his neck down to look at his short friend. Blue was a solid two feet shorter than the advisor, being abnormally small, not just for a monster, but for a human as well.
Blue's records that were collected when he was hired as a guardsman state that he stands at 5'1", but looking at him, he seemed to be 4'10" at the tallest. He must've lied to make his height less shocking, though 5'1" wasn't much better in comparison.
"Hm? Oh, I'm just fine, thanks. This spring weather takes a hit on my allergies."
Blue simply nodded and returned to his joyful bouncing and strawberry-snacking, but not before giving Sci a calculated glance.
Sci let out a heavy breath, closing his eyes to feel a light, wet sensation between his non-existent eyelids.
This was really it, huh? She was gone. Never to be seen again. He considered for a moment calling off the guards and sending the remaining villagers home so he could return to his quarters and let out his bottled up emotions before he had to figure out what they're going to do about their endangered govern-
"Sci!"
Oh, great. He was already starting to hear her voice in his head. It was almost like she was still there.
"Sci, hey!"
....That one sounded....oddly realistic.
"Hey, I'm talking to you, silly!"
Sci turned his head towards the sound of her voice, his eye sockets being treated to the site of his lost princess running up to him as she dragged what seemed like some helpless, stunned skeleton behind her.
Without any control, the bookish skeleton broke into a sprint towards his daughter, arms open and ready to drown her in a hug.
She let go of her hostage, opening her arms in return to take in her relieved father.
He glomped her, the weight of his surprisingly heavy body knocking her back a bit, his head resting on her shoulder.
"(Y/N)! I thought you were already gone."
"Nope!" She paused, her eyes rolling to the side as if she were rewinding her memories of the night like a VHS tape. "Actually, I don't even think he's come up with the idea to do such a thing yet."
"Well, tell me what happened!" Sci said. He had taken her by the shoulders, lightly shaking her to get the answers out.
"Do you want the long version or the short version?"
"Uh, I'll take the short version now, but I expect to hear every microscopic detail later."
"Simply put, he took me outside to talk in private because he wanted to 'apologize', but it wasn't very genuine. He followed it up with another suggestion of us getting together, I declined. Shockingly, he didn't take it too well."
Sci snickered, catching his falling head in his hand. "Oh, dear."
"Heh, yeah. Things started to get out of hand until Ink came along and got rid of him!" She paused.
"Mostly. To my knowledge, he's still out there in the garden rebooting."
~
Horror stalked through the garden, grumbling to himself under his breath. When he saw the princess walk back into the castle, and without his glitching friend, he immediately knew his expectations for the night had become a reality.
He really should have spoken up when Error hatched his awful plan.
The heavyset skeleton groaned to himself, before looking up and around the garden, taking in all the lovely little details. He had to admit, (Y/N)'s garden was so much nicer than theirs. If you could call it that. Error's dorky little brother, Fresh, had been taking care of all of the gardening ever since their old gardener moved to a nearby kingdom to get married.
He....wasn't very good at it.
Horror walked further into the center of the garden, searching everywhere for Error.
"Error? Errrooooooooorrr! ERRO- GAHHH!"
Before he could even think about it, the pavement came flying at his face. He put his arm out to break the fall, letting out a soft "oof!" as he hit the ground.
"What in tha-"
He turned around to look back at the rock he had tripped over with an aggravated glare, only to find Error sitting on the ground with his legs spread out, shoulders tensed and keeping him from falling over onto his back.
Oh no. He was crashing. Again.
"S'rsly? This is tha third time this week. You've gotta stop workin' yerself up like this."
There was no reply. Only static noises, and what sounded like faint, distant screaming.
"Righ'. Well, let's getcha home, buddy."
He stood up onto his feet, brushing off his clothes. Horror rubbed his hands together before grabbing Error by the underarms, lifting him up to his feet.
The sudden physical contact must've snapped him out of it, because Error conveniently woke up while Horror was still helping him stand up.
"WHaT IN thE HELl DO yoU ThInk yoU'rE dOiNg?!?! leT me go, yOU dolt!"
Horror shrieked, dropping Error to the ground. "I-I'm sorry! You were sleepin'-"
"WhatEVER. YOu'rE tHe lEaST of My proBLems rIGHT Now, ANyWAy."
"I take it didn' go so well?"
"DaMn rIght IT dIDn'T gO WELL!" Error threw his arms up into the air in frustration. "aND I coULd've pRoBably GoTtEN TO Her iF IT WEren'T foR....HIM."
Horror froze, giving his friend a judgemental glare. "Yah, I dunno who 'him' is, but I'm guessin' that's not really all that tru- "
"I WoN't leT Him stop ME! i'll coME Up With anotheR PlAn tO GeT tO HER! I KNOw it! i WOn'T stOp unTIL i hAVE HER For mYSe-!"
"Error! Stop this! Whatever happened to 'giving her her space and respecting her decision'?" Horror yelled over him.
Error's angered expression softened, his arms lowering in front of him. He closed his mouth, running a hand under his chin as he thought to himself.
He let out a sigh. "yOu'RE Right. i'm sO soRRY for laSHINg oUT at yOu likE tHat, hORROr."
A genuine grin crept up Horror's face, his cheeks warmed. The two had always had a bit of a bromance. "Eh, it's whatever, man."
Error smiled back in response. "i guESS I'm morE cauGhT UP iN evEryThInG thaT HAPPeNed AFTEr that PeasANT sHoWed uP anD HumiliaTeD mE IN fronT Of HeR."
He thought back to the occurrence in question. Visions of a smug-looking skeleton taunting him as he fought him off filtered through his mind. He thought of the princess' face, how scared and confused she looked at him. His words echoed throughout his skull. He grabbed the sides of his head, trying to stop the vibrating thoughts from bouncing around. He cringed to himself.
"UGH, how cOULD I be So stupId? oF cOurse shE dOEsn't LiKe ME. I WoulDn'T waNT TO maRRY A GUY LiKE Me EitHeR." Error crossed his arms close to his chest, faint, yellow tears threatening to fall from his sockets.
"Don' say that!" Horror shouted, almost offended his friend would suggest anything of the sort. "You don' know why she rejected ya. She's a good few years younger than ya. Tha poor girl just migh' not be at that point yet."
Error sniffed, wiping away his tears with the sleeve of his tunic. "yEAh, i Guess. lEt'S JUSt gO HoMe nOW. fRESH aNd PApeRjaM ArE PRObABlY wORRiED abOuT uS, us StAYInG IN ToWn An extra DAy."
"An' when we get home, I'm makin' ya a cup o' hot chocolate," said Horror with a heart smile.
"yES! yoU aRE The BeST HencHMAN EvER!"
"I know, Error. I know."
~
Sci shook his head. "Well, I guess we'll have to send some guards out to make sure he's left the premises."
(Y/N) simply nodded in response. Sci turned his head towards (Y/N)'s new friend, or "Ink", as he assumed.
"And is this the man in question who stepped in?" He asked.
"Oh, yes! Sci, this is Ink. He came in and got Error to leave me alone." She gestured towards him, Ink still staring off into space with worry.
"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Ink!" greeted Sci, taking his hand into a handshake. The sudden touching was enough to wake him from his trance. He shook his head from side to side. His expression was once of fear and puzzlement, as if he had fallen asleep in once place and awoken in another.
"Huh? Oh, uh- nice to meet you, too," he responded, still trying to make out where he had suddenly been teleported to.
Sci chuckled. "I hear you saved Princess (Y/N) from that scoundrel, did you not?"
"'Saved' is kind of a strong word, don't you think?"
"Oh no! If it weren't for you, we don't know what that wicked king would have done!"
Ink let out an awkward laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, shucks....wait, did you say king-?"
"Indeed! Thank you for bravely stepping in!"
"Haha, yeah....it was nothing."
Sci cocked his head, staring into Ink as if he were examining him like a bug under a microscope. An already nervous Ink gulped, put off by the judgy look Sci was giving him.
Clearing his throat, Sci turned his attention towards (Y/N), who was watching the interaction before her with a pleasant smile on her face.
"Your highness? May I pull you aside for a quick minute?"
"Oh, of course!" She responded, walking over to Sci as he took her gently by the arm, leading her a few feet away.
"Blue?" said Sci. "Keep our friend entertained while we talk, please."
Blue's eyes lit up with excitement as he put his hand to his forehead, saluting Sci. He and (Y/N) giggled, seeing as Blue took every on every little order like an important mission.
The small, energetic skeleton turned towards Ink.
"HELLO THERE, NEW FRIEND! MIGHT I OFFER YOU ONE OF MY STRAWBERRIES?"
It only took one look at Blue's strawberry-juice-and-melted-chocolate-covered face for Ink to silently gag to himself.
"Uhh....no, I'm actually quite full, thank you."
"SUIT YOURSELF!" exclaimed Blue, before going back to his plate of treats.
Ink let out a sigh. How could he have been so dumb? Of course she was the princess! She was more lavishly dressed than any other maiden at the ball. That, and the guy he had clowned on was a king. And now, that guy was going to send his own personal army to hunt him down and have him killed for humiliating him in front of her. If monsters didn't turn to dust after they died, he would certainly have his skull hung above his fireplace like a taxidermy trophy.
But the princess. He flirted with her, and shamelessly, too! If she was any other regular girl in the village, the night could have had a chance of ending with Ink getting her to let him take her to dinner or on a picnic, but she probably thought he was such a joke for thinking he even remotely had a shot! She was laughing at him, after all. Maybe her giggles were less out of encouragement and more out of pity.
Ink cringed, slapping his hands on his face as he quietly groaned.
'It's okay, Ink,' he thought. 'You've hit rock bottom. Big deal. At least there's no way this could get any worse.'
"Brother! There you are, do you have any idea how long you were gone for?"
Both Ink and Blue turned in the direction of the new voice, Ink sliding his hands away from his face. Dream stumbled up the steps of the platform, his brown ones furrowed.
"Oh, hey Dreamy," Ink replied cooly.
"Is that all you have to say? You walked back in here with the motherloving princess on your arm!"
"ACTUALLY, IT WAS MORE LIKE HIM BEING ON HER ARM."
"Tomato, tomato. What was that all about?"
Ink's hands shot back up. "Ugh, I don't want to talk about it. The shame is too much to bear."
Both Blue and Dream looked at him with looks both different, yet similar to the other, displaying some kind of confusion.
Before either of them could ask what he meant, (Y/N) and Sci had made their way back over.
"It seems we've another new face!" exclaimed Sci. "What's your name?"
"The name's Dream!" he beamed. "I'm Ink's brother."
Sci's kindly expression immediately dropped. "B-brother?"
Dream's friendly smile remained on his face, his eye lights drifting to the side.
"Uhhhhhh, y-yes?"
"As in, you both came from the same parents and share similar structures of DNA?"
Dream stayed silent this time, his face slowly falling into a grimace. It was Ink's turn to step in.
"Yup! Twins, to be exact. Isn't that right, Dream?"
Dream stayed quiet, but sheepishly nodded in reply.
Sci folded his hands in front of his chest, bouncing up and down on the heels of his feet as he stuttered; "Then it really is true! You are the brothers we've been looking for all along!"
Both brothers looked at each other, their faces asking each other if they had any idea as to what the glasses-wearing skeleton was babbling about and why he seemed so happy about it.
"Pardon?" they both said, their voices matching up perfectly.
"Oh, the prophecy! You are the brothers from the prophecy!" Sci exclaimed.
"Prophecy?" This time only Ink spoke, Dream being unable to verbally communicate due to the utter shock and confusion was feeling.
It was Sci's turn to look at them both with bafflement.
"The prophecy? Don't tell me you haven't heard of the prophecy."
"We only moved here a few days ago, sir," said Ink.
"Well then, we must educate you! This prophecy is your destiny, after all! You must know it front to back!" said Sci. "Come, I'll lead you to the study. Blue, stay behind and order the guards to usher the remaining townsfolk from the building.
"Princess, you should get some rest. It's been a long night for you, I can only imagine your exhaustion!"
"Actually, I'd like to come with you to the study. This is my story, too," said (Y/N).
"Aren't you tired? These past couple of days had to have taken a toll on your mental health. You should get some sleep, and take the day off tomorrow."
"I'll be fine. I want to come with you," she reassured him.
Sci shrugged. "Fine by me. Well, come along then. The night grows older by the minute!"
~
"So, let me get this straight," said Ink, hunched forward in his armchair, hands wrapped around a small teacup filled with black tea. The warmth of the liquid kept him awake through the now admittedly late hours of the night.
The study was darkly lit, only the bright, hot orange embers of the fire in the fireplace providing any sort of light. Wooden, ebony bookcases lined the room, filled with books ranging in subjects from cooking, to arithmetic, to the arts, and to the names of countries of all of the mapped globe. A bay window sat at the end of the room, looking out onto the garden a story below them. Little, cream-colored cushions lined the window seat, assorted pillows resting on the top.
"The princess has been destined to be taken away by this 'Error' guy since the day she was born as foretold by the fortune teller-witch-lady who gave her life, and the only way to keep her from being doomed to live the rest of her life in a forced marriage is for my brother and I to go after her ourselves, but only if we work together?"
Sci held the cup up to his teeth, taking a delicate sip before setting it back on its little saucer.
"Precisely."
"And we'd be heroes?"
"Saviors, even."
Ink grinned. "Cool."
"Easy for you to say," joked (Y/N), a blanket wrapped around her shoulders as she sat crisscrossed on the floor in front of Sci's chair. She had turned away her cup of tea, which may have been a mistake on her end, accounting for her heavy eyelids.
"You don't have to be abducted by a psychopathic man because you don't want to marry him."
Ink snickered. "You got me."
The princess smiled back, hugging her blanket closer to her body.
"I don't know, this sounds kinda nerve-wracking, don't you think?" questioned Dream, who was also sitting on the floor, next to the fireplace. "If Ink and I mess up in the slightest, (Y/N) could be trapped there forever."
"Well, of course, it'll be no walk in the park. The oracle, however, did specify that the two of you together will be 'stronger than any army that could possibly be sent'. Surely, the two of you will succeed," said Sci.
"If the two of you agree to work with us on this, we will house the both of you here in the castle. I will have Captain Blueberry train you out on the green where our royal guard trains. He will be the best of teachers, I'm sure." Sci paused, before giggling to himself. "He did have quite the mentor, that 'Alphys'."
Ink's browbones furrowed. "Why move us in here?"
"King Error could strike at any moment. He has proven to be quite an unpredictable adversary. If he attempts to strike here in the castle, we'll have the two of you ready to fire back. That is, we'll have the two of you walking with the princess when she leaves the castle. Sort of like bodyguards."
Sci grinned devilishly. "Do we have an accord?"
"Yes," Ink said with an eager, ambitious grin that matched Sc's, hesitation far from evident in his tone.
Dream, however, was not so ready to commit himself.
"N-now, hold on. As much as I'd love to be of assistance, we have to consider ourselves," he said. "I mean, we could die, right? This is quite serious stuff."
Sci sighed. "I understand your hesitance, Dream. Like I said, this task won't be easy. But you have no idea how much you two matter to the fate of this kingdom. If (Y/N) is taken, not only will we have a sad kingdom, but one with a corrupted and falling kingdom as well. She is the only heir to the throne, and even I am ineligible to take her place."
He took a break, taking another sip of his tea. "I assure you that if you both do this great favor for us, you will be rewarded in any way you can imagine."
Shivering, he looked down at the princess, who seemed to be deep in thought. Her eyes looked cold and drowsy, like she could sleep for days uninterrupted.
(Y/N) looked up at him, feeling his gaze on her. Tiredly, she offered him a reassuring smile, before turning her head and closing her eyes.
"At the risk of sounding corny....the fate of our kingdom is in your hands," Sci finished, putting his back against the back of his chair.
Ink looked down at (Y/N), a soft smile stretching across his face. She looked so peaceful sitting there, even in a time when she felt the most stressed. His mind flashed back to earlier in the night, when he had first heard her voice as she pushed herself away from Error. Though it hadn't really crossed his mind, he found it admirable that she tried to deal with him herself.
He found himself start to get lost in thought once more. She had every right to be scared of him, and of what he could do to her, yet she fought him herself. She could have succumbed to him, agreeing to marry him to keep him from hurting her. Heck, she didn't even cry for help when he was physically restraining to keep her from getting away.
(Y/N) had every right to give up. But she stayed brave and held on until the end.
For the first time in what felt like forever, Ink felt something pounding in his chest. It wasn't his soul (he hadn't had one for years up until now). But somehow, this emotion didn't feel as passive, nor as artificial as they usually were.
He felt....passionate. A pulsing in him wanted to help this princess, no matter the cost.
He wanted to fight for her.
Ink looked back up at his twin brother, a pleading look in his eyes.
"Dream, please," he said. "Not just for the fame, or for the money. I want to do this for her. This is her life at stake, as well as the kingdoms. And that includes us, now that we live here."
Dream seemed taken aback by Ink's sudden pleas. Only a minute ago he was caught up in the title of "hero". But one thing was for sure. If it could make Ink want to do something out of pure selflessness, it must be worth the risk.
"O-okay. Let's do it!" said Dream, jumping up off of the ground, fists balled up in front of his face. "Let's kick this bad guy's bad guy butt!"
"Splendid!" cheered Sci, standing from his chair, folding his hands neatly in front of him into a diamond. "Oh, (Y/N), can you believe i- oh, my."
The three looked down to the ground, finding the princess on the floor, her eyes closed and chest rising and falling. Her eyebrows were lifted into a peaceful expression, the shadow of a smile on her lips.
Sci rolled his eyes. "I tried to tell her. I'm so sorry, gentlemen. I'm going to have to find someone to get her to bed. The last time I tried to carry her myself, I nearly threw out my back."
He cringed. "I need to start working out."
Dream giggled at his remark. "Well, Ink and I have to get home. It's so dark out, the quicker we get back to the house, the less likely we'll get mugged. Right, Ink?"
His glance trailed over to his brother, though he looked as if he hadn't heard him. His eyes were still trained on (Y/N), who was now rolled up in her blanket similar to that of a burrito.
"....Ink?"
"Hmm? Oh yeah," he said. His head turned in Sci's direction, but his eyes still would look between him and the princess.
"Y'know, I can get her to bed before we leave, if you'd like," he said.
Sci's face lifted into a grateful smile. "Oh, would you? Thank you so much, Ink. Her bedroom is just past this hallway, towards the center of the castle and to the back wall looking out on the garden. The doors are rather large, they're hard to miss."
Ink grinned in response. "Alright. We'll see you tomorrow then?"
"Sure, try to make it here around lunchtime, there's no rush! Thank you again! And good night!"
Sci gave the brothers one last smile before walking out the door and down the hall.
"Good night," the brothers replied in unison. Ink looked back down at the princess.
"You can go if you'd like, Dreamy. I'll catch up with you in a few minutes."
Dream snorted. "As you say, Ink. I'll give you and your new girlfriend some alone time."
Before Ink could rebuttal with a "She's not my girlfriend!", or a "Stars almighty, Dream!", Dream dashed out the door, his adorable, high-pitched cackling following him down the hall, slowly fading as he got further away.
Ink merely rolled his eyes playfully before bending down to pick up (Y/N) bridal style. He wrapped her arms around his neck to support her body, before standing up and letting out a small grunt.
She wasn't very heavy. Sci must've been really weak to not be able to carry her himself. Either that, or Ink was just incredibly strong.
Ink chuckled to himself. He flattered himself too much.
Making his way out of the study, the lights of the hallway had been turned out. The castle staff was surely asleep at this point, as only small candles lit up the halls. Usually, the walls of the palace were brightly colored a welcoming, but with the candles ominously lighting up the castle, it was enough to make the atmosphere feel somewhat eery.
Ink made his way through the corridors, coming across many doors that were labeled with names, presumably those of the servants who lived in the castle. Each door was closed, not a sound coming out of any of them. As he read off all of the nameplates to himself, he eventually came across the first open door, labeled "Blue".
Huh. Captain Blueberry must have had duties at night as well.
Finally, Ink came across the pair of large doors that Sci had told him belonged to the princess in his arms. Sitting outside of the door was Blue, who was on a cushioned stool. He, too, was sound, asleep, little snores coming out of his mouth every few beats.
Ink giggled to himself, seeing the strawberry and chocolate still on his face.
Lightly kicking the door in, he turned his back towards the door, slowly opening it. An elongated creak made itself known, making Ink grimace. He stopped, closing his eyes, praying he hadn't woken anyone. Luckily, not even Blue so much as tossed over the sound.
Ink let out a sigh of relief, before turning back around and into the bedroom. It was quite big, a massive, much-larger-than-king-sized bed sat on the right wall. A net cascaded elegantly down from the canopy, ready to keep (Y/N) safe as she dreamed throughout the night.
He made his way over to the bed, setting her down on the mountains of silky bedsheets that swallowed her form. A delicate smile made its way up her face, clearly satisfied with the comfortable bed.
Ink bent down to her level, looking closely at her face.
He felt so dumb for catching feelings so fast. After all, he understood that he had no chance with her. Princesses are meant to marry those of their stature, and he was far below her in terms of status.
Ink took the girl's hand in his, pressing her fingers against his teeth.
He couldn't help himself. She was just so....beautiful. Her eyes shined brighter than the most beautiful of stars, and he could catch a twinkle in them every time she turned her head. Her skin was so soft to the touch, silky just like her bedsheets. And her lips....ah, it didn't matter. Like hell he'd ever even get the chance to kiss them.
Ink shook his head. This was crazy. Princess or not, he had only known her for a few hours! He needed to get to know her first before he even let himself think of her that way.
....She was so pretty. Looking at her, he decided if he couldn't kiss her lips now, he could settle for a peck on the cheek. Standing up, he fixed her blanket for her before leaning down, placing a gentle kiss on her cheek. He looked back at her one last time, seeing that she had moved a bit in her sleep, her smile expanding as she held herself in a hug.
He smirked to himself, turning to leave the bedroom. Ink reached the doors, slowly closing them, being more cautious as to not let the hinges squeak.
Shutting the door behind him, he let out an exhale, satisfied with himself.
Regardless of his chances of winning her affections, he knew more than ever now that he had to fight for her.
~