Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Note: You'll see a short skit of me and Darkzdragon (my co-writer) before the story. We used to do these all the time before we stopped uploading on FF for a while. You're free to skip these to get into the chapter if you want. I just thought it would be a cute thing to add even though this is our first time uploading anything on AO3.

*Stasis Protocol Ending*

DarkFoxKit: Come on… it's time to wake up and get back to it. *Looks over the cryopod in front of her*

?: *Groans* Huh… what… how long has it been?

DarkFoxKit: Years.

?: I see… I've let them down then…

*The mysterious figure sits up, revealing themselves to be Darkzdragon*

Darkzdragon: To think it's been years since our last uploaded project. *Stretches out slightly, ice falling off his scales* But… I think I'm ready to come back, at least a little. Even if… we've currently retired two of the biggest series we worked on together.

DarkFoxKit: Well, I'm sure people are more than ready to have you back. I've grown rather cynical over the years, working with other co-writers, well, just two others anyway. One of them isn't very active while the other… has trouble with words to put it lightly.

Darkzdragon: Ah, well… Hope I can meet the expectations. Though this time around, I might try to have a bit more fun. Like with this little story of ours.

DarkFoxKit: With Deltarune's chapters 3 and 4 on the horizon, I think this is as good a time as any to finally put out the Undertale fanfic we've been working on for a while.

Darkzdragon: Specifically the second iteration, considering the first was considerably shorter and had a number of plotholes.

DarkFoxKit: I see that as any story that goes on for a while. Eventually plotholes and retcons will happen. The author or authors will start to forget the details of what they wrote.

Darkzdragon: At least with this one, we've done a bit better with that. Anyways *Looks at the camera* I am back to post this story, but this isn't a promise to reboot My Brother's a Ghost or Child of Mew. This story is an Undertale story. Any questions about other stories in the comments will be ignored.

DarkFoxKit: Or you can just see our answers as 'maybe' or 'don't count on it'. We will make an announcement or just post the stories as we go along.

Darkzdragon: One thing I ended up struggling with, the thing that kinda pushed me away from posting in the first place, was the weight of expectations of everything. From the readers, from Kit, from the stories themselves, and from myself. I've finally recovered enough to where I'm willing to post again.

DarkFoxKit: Let's see where this road takes us then. Sorry for the long intro, we hope you'll enjoy the story that has been many years in the making.

Sistertale: New Home

Chapter 1: Fallen Down

This is my last chance. After this… they're going to close off the area. By this time next year or the year after… the area is going to be completely flat and have new homes and shops being made. The magic of this place, the ability to grant a person a new life, will vanish. If I must be the last one to use it, then so be it. Anything's better than staying where I have been…

I had been hiking up this mountain for hours. The sun was starting to go down, and I was worried about being able to see where I was going once night arrived. I didn't bring any light with me… Coming here had been a last minute decision, so I was very ill prepared.

I tripped over a rock and stumbled into a tree. I hissed in pain as I rubbed my nose for a moment. I looked down to check if I had scraped my legs or got any cuts when I noticed there was a small pond of water nearby. A part of me wanted to drink from it because I was thirsty and hadn't brought anything to drink with me. Again, last minute decision… very ill prepared. I didn't think hiking up a mountain would take this long, but I severely underestimated the height of the mountain, and the time and effort it would take to climb it.

To think that the king was planning on having a single mage flatten an entire mountain… It was a bit terrifying to think of what magic users, especially royal wizards, were capable of. But as the king proclaimed, our lands needed to grow with our population and this mountain would become so much more.

I went over to the small pond to get a sip of water, glad to see that it wasn't stagnant or polluted. I had seen a few other ponds on the way up here… but a lot of them had trash floating around or just looked dirty. This one was quite clear, so much so I could actually see my reflection. And because it was clear, I was willing to take a sip. After taking a few sips of the surprisingly refreshing water, I started at the pond as it settled. Once the water settled I stared at my reflection.

I had shoulder length dark brown hair, my eyes were a hazel color, though I often squinted because of my somewhat poor eyesight. I currently was wearing a dark purple long sleeved shirt with two lavender colored horizontal stripes on it. I was wearing a pair of baggy blue pants, and worn out dirty sneakers. The sneakers used to be white, but now they're kind of brown from all the dirt.

If I'm to change… maybe I could have like… green eyes. Oh, maybe I could look Japanese? I thought to myself as I began imagining what I could look like in my new life. Maybe I could be one of those beast people that I saw in some of the light novels I read. Heh, I'm sure Mom and Dad would hate that~

I thought more about what could happen if the legends were true, and making it to the top of Mt. Ebott would grant me a new life. I could end up in a whole new world as a whole new being for all I knew.

Getting isekaied would be fun. I could become a hero, or be granted an overpowered cheat skill. Maybe I'll be reborn as an elf child. Or summoned? Oooh, maybe I could even become a kind demon lord like that little blue slime!

These thoughts were what kept me going up this mountain, I was determined to reach the top no matter what. I wanted a better life.

I cupped my hands in the water to scoop up some more water, still feeling thirsty after my previous sips. I continued to sip water until I felt satisfied. I stood up and kept moving up.

But I wonder… could I handle such a life? Would I be able to be strong enough to handle the hardships and get stronger? Would I be lucky enough to start out strong? Or… what if… what if the legends turn out to be false? That the mountain can't grant me a new life? I frowned before shaking my head. No, I can't let myself think like that. I already came this far. And even if they somehow manage to be false… I'll give myself a new life! I won't go home! I'll do what sis suggested and go chart my own path! But… seriously… I do hope that the legends are true.

I was only 12 years old, I wasn't sure if I would be able to live my own life on my own. Orphans didn't tend to do well in the world on their own after all. To be honest, I didn't have any life skills either. I didn't know how to cook, I could barely talk to people, and…

I shook my head. Let's cross that bridge when I come to it. I'm going to bet it all on this supposed magical mountain.

The sun was barely visible now, the sky was pink and dark blue at this point. I wouldn't be able to see much if I was still climbing. However, thankfully, I managed to reach the top of the mountain… Mt. Ebott. When I reached the top, however, I was surprised to see a large hole in front of me. I thought the only mountains that would have a large hole at the top were volcanoes.

I gulped. Mt. Ebott isn't a volcano, is it?

Curious, I walked over to the edge of the hole to look down for any signs of lava. There wasn't any smoke in the area, nor did it feel hot. It also didn't smell bad, like volcanoes apparently did. So maybe it was just a mountain with a big hole. Or it was once a volcano long ago and had not gone dormant but fully died.

I took a deep breath and let it out. My heart was pounding against my chest. This was it, this was the moment of truth. The legends say that those who managed to hike all the way to the top of Mt. Ebott, and bear their soul, would be granted a new life.

"Please grant me a new life!" I called out. "Please! Grant me happiness!"

I waited for a minute… maybe it took a while for it to do something. But the longer I waited, the more worried I became. I did bear my soul, but maybe it meant my actual Soul, with a capital 'S'. Unfortunately that wasn't something I was capable of…

I gave a sigh. "Now what do I-"

There was a sudden blast of air from the hole in the ground that pushed me backwards, to where I'd fall down the mountain. I tried to compensate and managed to regain my balance before the wind whipped up again and began to push me forward. It was almost like the mountain was breathing, an exhale at first, and now an inhale. I tried to move away from the edge of the hole, but I lost my balance from the strange wind. My eyes went wide in horror as I found myself falling down the hole.

It was a long way down. I screamed, but of course, nobody would be able to hear me. As I fell, my life began to flash before my eyes. I couldn't believe it… I was going to die, all because I tripped. I may have wanted a new life, but I didn't want to die.

Though at some point in the fall, I began to wonder… was this going to bring me to a new life? There was no truck-kun to isekai me. There was no crazy person running at me with a knife. Perhaps this is how the magic worked. Perhaps being pulled into the hole by the wind was my prayer being answered. I shut my eyes and prepared for the end. Either I was going to die, or I will wake up in my new life. Either way… my old life was going to end.

I felt the impact and blacked out immediately. The impact wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, but it still caused me to pass out.

… I began to stir. It was quiet… All I could hear was the slight wind howling that sounded far away. I could smell… what smelled like flowers of some kind. I groaned a little, feeling sore. I began to open my eyes, wondering if I was dead, or if I was… in a new life.

Huh…? My vision was a bit blurry at first, well more blurry than usual, but my sight began to clear up enough to allow me to see what was in front of me, or beside me.

I could see petals of some kind of golden flower.

"You dead over there?"

The unexpected voice made me sit up quickly, making me dizzy. I let out a yelp, shaking my head. "W-who's there?"

"Ahh so you aren't dead. And here I thought I'd be seeing a first."

I looked around, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from. I noticed I was sitting on a flower bed of golden flowers. Maybe that was what saved me.

"You know… I still haven't figured out if it's the flowers or the barrier that stops you fools from dying… Maybe it's a combination of both."

I got up to my feet, trying to figure out where that voice was coming from. It sounded like they were coming from down rather than up. I tried to look at the flowers, trying to see if the speaker was coming from there.

"I can't help but notice that it's always kids who end up here… And it's not regular enough to be any sort of tradition. So tell me, Squinty, what's your deal? What caused you to end up here?"

Maybe it was a disembodied voice that was speaking to me. I was either in the spirit world talking to an entity that I wasn't allowed to see, or this was some kind of guide towards the new life.

"Uh… excuse me, the one who speaks to me," I greeted as politely as possible. "I hope I didn't intrude, but I came up to Mt. Ebott wishing to have a new life."

"Ahh, so same reason as the 6 others then." The voice remarked. "So what drove you to it? You running away from something? Just seeking more? Hoping for a world where you can show off your kindness or justice or whichever one you got."

"Uh… Well," I hesitated for a moment, it was pretty personal to why I ran away, but the voice sounded like they had dealt with other people who had such reasons before. So maybe whatever I had to say wasn't anything that special. Maybe the voice was trying to figure out the best place to send me. "I left my home because I didn't like being there. I was hoping to find a new place to live and maybe, hopefully, thrive in."

"Didn't like being there, eh?" The voice repeated questioningly. "Were you in a poor household barely able to get by? Or were you in a household where you had tons of siblings and felt like you weren't ever seen? Or maybe you're one of the simple ones whose parents were just awful."

Simple…? "That last one," I admitted. I guess I really wasn't anything that special… but still, I don't care, as long as I can get away from them.

"Abusive?" The voice asked. "Controlling? Manipulative? Toxic? Criminal? Or something else? What was it that you were dealing with?"

"They were… controlling, toxic, a bit manipulative, and as for abusive… they didn't hurt me physically…" I answered.

"Huh, I can see where this is going," The voice muttered.

"Does emotional abuse count?" I asked as I remembered hearing my sister calling it that.

"Just emotional or also mental?" The voice inquired.

"I don't know… I guess both? I was called stupid multiple times in a variety of ways," I answered. I mean it's true, but still, I don't like being called that…

"You said controlling and manipulative, yeah?" The voice asked. "You can just nod or shake your head, cause I can see you."

I raised an eyebrow, but then again an entity that was going to take me to a new world would be able to see me even if I couldn't see them. "Okay."

I gave a nod to the voice.

"In what way then?" The voice inquired.

"Well uh…" I blinked as I tried to figure out how to answer. "I guess… they were incredibly restrictive… And they also tried telling me that when I grew up that I'd have to get a job and take care of them to pay them back for all the time they took care of me."

"Yeesh, that's a pretty bad couple of parents," The voice acknowledged. "So… let's say I did offer you the chance of a new life… what would you do with it?"

I was surprised by the voice's reaction when they said my parents were bad. I was normally told that my parents were the ones in the right, and how children needed to get a job when they grew up to take care of their aging parents. I was worried the voice was going to say the same thing and think I was being too dramatic or selfish. I didn't think they would actually… say my parents were the ones in the wrong. It gave me some hope that I really would get a better life.

"Depending on what it is, I would do the best I could to live a good life to the best of my abilities," I answered. "Like if I had to fight, then I'll try to get stronger. Or if I needed to do research for something, I would see if I could learn and study under the right kind of people."

"What if this new life is in a world of monsters and you would be the only human? And by monsters, I mean non-human, not anything else you might think of."

"Monsters? Wouldn't they just tear me apart or something?" I asked with a frown. "Don't they eat humans?"

"No, they do-" The voice started to respond before pausing. "Actually I can think of a couple who probably would… Just cause… they're them… But think of these monsters with the personalities of humans, they're just… well, not human."

"Couldn't I be one of them instead?" I asked. "That way I can just be a part of the monster community?"

"I mean you could always try, but I myself don't have the power to change your species," The voice answered. "There are a few ways I can think that you could alter your form. Some temporary, some… permanent."

"What ways would those be?" I questioned.

"There's about two that aren't morally grey or dark to permanently change yourself," The voice answered. "Option one is to have one of the species share some of their essence with you. Option two would be to find something akin to an artifact that would change you into one of the monster species. The one temporary one I can immediately think of is just dressing up."

Then the voice let out a sigh. "Unfortunately, option one can put a monster in danger of losing their physical form entirely. And option two is extremely unlikely as those kinds of artifacts are either long gone, broken by now, guarded as priceless tools, or buried so deep beneath the ground that you'd need to spend a few months digging to reach one if you find the location of one. The easiest, but darkest way of gaining a monster form, however, is to absorb a monster's Soul into your own. You will gain their form as well as keeping your human form. Or so I've heard anyway. But it's the darkest because you'd be snuffing out their life to give yourself a new form. Even then it's probably not that easy as most monster Souls will break before you can get to them."

I blanched at the idea of killing, let alone trying to absorb someone else's Soul. Not that I knew how to do that even if I wanted to consider such a cruel idea. The first option seemed to be the most likely thing if I wanted to turn into a monster, but…

"The first option, about a monster sharing their essence, would that fully transform me or only transform parts of me?" I asked.

"It depends on how much essence is shared," The voice answered. "The quickest and safest option of having them only share a bit of their essence over a few sessions will give you features of their species. But if you took the time and had them share essence with you over dozens of sessions, you would become more like them. Your Soul might even eventually change to match that of the monster."

So I could realistically still change what I was if I could find a monster I trusted to share their essence with me over time.

"So… is this the kind of world I'll be sent to?" I asked.

"I can let you go to that world, but it might be filled with hardships," The voice warned. "So your options are to take the risk and the hardships that come with them… or you can take the long route and wait to be reincarnated."

From what I knew, from what I read from light novels… all worlds, no matter what, would have hardships and risks of some kind. I wanted a new start, but I couldn't expect to have an easy life with everything handed to me.

"The second option would come at your current death, but you would have way more options upon reincarnation," The voice informed. "The immediate option is the only new life I can currently offer. But you'd be entering a world where at times it's… kill or be killed."

That sounded scary. I wasn't sure if that was the kind of life I wanted. But… I didn't want to just stay here and die. I also didn't want to go back. Nothing really waited for me back there… If the characters from the light novels could survive everything and everyone being against them, then surely I could survive living in a world of non-human monsters.

"I'll take it. I'll take the world you're offering me," I stated.

"Dawww, guess I don't get to show you my Friendliness Pellets then~" The voice snickered. "Alright then… I guess I should introduce myself properly."

There was a sudden burrowing noise from in front of me before a flower popped out of the ground.

"Hi there! I'm Flowey! Flowey the flower!"

I stared at the flower before me. The flower had golden petals like the flowers in the flower bed, but this flower had a face. It was talking to me. I… was surprised more than I probably should've been. After all, I heard some royal wizards were able to make inanimate objects come to life.

"Uh… hello, Flowey," I greeted a little hesitantly. Is he my guide to this new world?

"What, your awful parents not teach you basic manners?" Flowey questioned. "When someone introduces themselves, you're supposed to introduce yourself back."

"I was told not to give my name to strangers," I answered.

"Were you not also told not to climb mountains and believe in fairy tales?" Flowey questioned. "Besides, you're the one asking me to grant you a new life."

The talking flower had a point. It would be rude of me to not at least tell him my name.

"My name is Frizk," I answered.

"I take it you're dropping the last name out of spite?" Flowey asked with a grin. "A bit of revenge towards your parents, maybe?~"

"My last name doesn't matter anymore," I replied, trying not to blush at the implication of being petty. "They're not my family as far as I'm concerned."

"Alright, Frizk it is then," Flowey acknowledged. "If you look up and behind me, you'll faintly see the outline of a door. Head on over there and walk through. I'll meet you on the other side."

"Okay," I answered, getting pretty excited at the idea of going into a new world. What will I find there?

I walked down a corridor that led to the door, or at least some kind of arch that led deeper into the cavern. I saw a patch of grass up ahead, but it was pretty dark. I saw Flowey pop up from the patch of grass.

"Good, you can at least follow basic instructions," Flowey acknowledged. "So first things first, I'm not taking you to another world or anything like that. Your new life lies ahead of you, in what is known as the Underground. I'll be your friendly flower guide, making sure you don't make mistakes like trusting the wrong monsters."

"Oh, that's kind of you," I replied.

"Your first task is to get through Ruins," Flowey explained. "If you can make it through, you'll be able to find a place you can live in if you choose to."

"Really?" I asked, surprised.

"Yep, it's an old house that's no longer used," Flowey answered. "If you manage to reach that place, I can tell you more."

"Okay," I replied.

"Go on ahead, I'll meet up with you," Flowey stated before going back underground.

I walked forward, going through another archway. This time I came across what looked like a staircase leading up into another doorway. Instead of it being dark, it looked like I was inside of some kind of building… or maybe a dungeon. The walls and floors were all purple. I could see leaves on the ground. The place looked pretty old, but surprisingly, it wasn't falling apart.

I walked up the stairs and headed into the doorway. I stopped when I saw six pressure plates on the ground. There was a path with two of the pressure plates on it.

Flowey then popped up. "Oh I forgot one thing. Ruins is filled with traps and puzzles, so keep an eye out for the solutions and try not to get hurt. And if you manage to die… well… uh… Hopefully you'll be reincarnated into a better life."

"What? That sounds like something you should never forget!" I shouted.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Flowey said. "Just think of this as… a tutorial to a video game. It's not that hard."

I looked at the pressure plates hesitantly.

"You… have played a video game, right? Or were your parents so restrictive that you weren't allowed video games?" Flowey asked.

"I played video games!" I huffed. "It's one of the few things that kept me sane at my house… Also, while they did block a lot of TV channels, I did occasionally manage to find sites on my computer where I could watch some anime. So I'm not completely uncultured. I just don't want to step on something and have an ax swing down and cut my head off."

"This first puzzle isn't one of the dangerous ones," Flowey informed. "If I had to rate it, I would give this puzzle the 'baby's first puzzle' rating."

Flowey had brought out two vines to use air quotes.

"If you need to reset the puzzle, just go back to the previous room and come back in," Flowey instructed.

This… really did sound like a video game. I looked around for any hints, and I noticed a sign plastered on the wall. I walked over to the sign. I was worried at first that I wouldn't be able to read the language, but as I read the words… I was right, I couldn't read it. It wasn't written in English, or any language that I knew of. I didn't understand these squiggly lines and strange characters at all.

"If you make it to Home, I'll start teaching you how to read the language," Flowey offered as he popped out beside me. "But for now… this plaque reads 'Only the fearless may proceed. Brave ones, foolish ones. Both walk not the middle road.'."

What does that mean? 'Brave ones, foolish ones, both not walk in the middle road?' What does that have to do with the puzzle? I wondered as I looked at the pattern the pressure plates were in.

I saw that four of them were scattered around while two of them were on a white path. Then it began to click in my head. There were two on the straight line, while the others were everywhere else. 'Both walk not the middle road'... I wonder… could the middle road be the white path?

I stepped on the other four pressure plates, careful to avoid the ones on the white path. As soon as I did, I walked over to the lever on the wall, and pulled it down. As soon as I did, the door opened up.

"Congrats. This was the first puzzle ever designed by the monsters," Flowey informed. "Back when it was first made, it served two purposes. First, a door lock, as is obvious here. But the other purpose was that of a game. The monsters, back when they made this, loved to make and solve puzzles. They even held competitions to see how quickly one could solve a puzzle."

"That sounds… pretty cool," I said.

"Alright, let's see if you can solve the next puzzle," Flowey said before going back underground.

I walked ahead. The next room had a few bridges over some running water. There were some vines on the walls too. There was another sign, but since I couldn't read the language of this world, I decided to ignore it. I walked along the path, and saw a few levers. I wondered if I had to pull them in order. Well, Flowey did say that these puzzles weren't dangerous, so I might as well try them.

I pulled two of the levers down, but the third one was stuck. I couldn't pull that one down. It looked like it didn't matter, however, because the spike trap that was blocking my way forward went down. A little worried about the spikes popping back up, I ran across the deactivated spike trap.

I was in another area of Ruins, and was surprised to see… a dummy in front of me. Flowey popped up from the ground again.

"Ah, I can't believe that dummy is still here," Flowey muttered. "Well, I suppose now is as good a time as any to explain how a Fight works in the Underground."

"A fight?" I blinked.

"That's right. You are a human, so you can expect some monsters may want to put you into a Fight with them to test your strength, and see the power of your Soul," Flowey answered.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "The power of… my Soul? Why?"

"I'll answer that some other time," Flowey replied. "I don't want to overwhelm you with too much information. For now, you need to learn how a Fight works if you want to survive here. You'll have a choice between attacking, acting, using an item, or running away. When you get into a fight, you might see four boxes with the capitalized words 'fight', 'act', 'item', and 'mercy' in front of you."

The more I hear about this world, the more and more it sounds like a video game. I noted with interest. "So what should I do then? Do I fight the dummy? Do I gain experience points or something?"

"You could fight it," Flowey answered before looking between me and the dummy. "But would you really wanna bully someone defenseless? If you do, go for it. If you don't, well that's what the 'act' option is for. Either way, first you need to poke it. Let's see if he even wants to enter a battle with you or not."

"You're acting like it has a mind of its own or something, but it's a dummy," I pointed out.

"Yeah, and I'm a flower. Your point?" Flowey replied.

"You know what? I'll just do it," I grumbled.

I walked over to the dummy and poked it like Flowey said. I wasn't sure if something was supposed to happen.

"Uh…" I began.

"Oh, I should warn you that it might get a bit disorienting," Flowey warned. "Hopefully you don't easily get sick."

"What do-" I began to ask when I suddenly felt a little funny.

There was a sudden tingling sensation in my chest. I looked down at my chest to see a white glow coming from it. Suddenly, a small, cartoonish looking white heart came out of my chest. I let out a surprised yelp.

"Why is my heart out of my body!?" I shouted.

I thought I was going to die. I always heard that the heart was a vital organ, and without it, I would die.

"Calm down! That's not your organic heart, kid, that's your Soul!" Flowey spoke up. "I guess you've never seen what a Soul looks like before."

"That's… a Soul?" I blinked. "It's… so small…"

"Nah, it's about the size of a normal human kid," Flowey informed. "Though it looks like you've just got a regular ol' boring human Soul."

I pouted at hearing that. "You don't need to tell me my Soul is boring!"

"I just meant you don't have any color," Flowey explained. "That there's no hidden tricks going on with you. You're a standard human child. A white Soul is the standard color one would expect among humanity. I don't really get the process, but sometimes you humans will get some color onto the white which lets you do certain things. It's surprisingly not all that different from monster Souls."

"I… I see…" I noted. "I remember hearing that pure colored Souls were the strongest and rarest among mankind, but I didn't really understand what that meant."

"Ahh yeah, each color apparently relates to a very strong principle for the human," Flowey replied. "But enough of that for now. Do you see the four options I mentioned before? They should be close to you, around where a keyboard would be if you were standing at a desk. You might have to look down a little."

I had been so distracted with my Soul suddenly being outside of my body that I hadn't noticed that a menu of some kind had popped up in front of me. Flowey was right, there were 4 options, highlighted in orange. Fight, Act, Item, and Mercy. I hovered my hand over each option, and they lit up in yellow when my hand was over them.

I tapped the Fight option, and it showed me the dummy's name, and its HP bar. I raised an eyebrow at that. I tapped the 'Act' option, and the menu changed to just the dummy's name. I tapped on the name, and saw I had two options, I could Check it or Talk to it. I checked my Items, and I didn't have anything, so it was blank. No surprise there. I finally checked the Mercy option, I could either Spare or Flee.

"Okay, I checked all my options," I stated. "It looks like I can do something with each of them."

"So then, whatcha gonna choose?" Flowey asked. "Cause I'm not gonna choose for you."

I noticed something else, a yellow bar that was just over the 4 options I had. I saw the words 'LV 1' in front of the yellow bar, and the numbers 20/20 under the yellow bar. If I had to guess in terms of a video game, I'd say that it was showing my own HP bar and my level. If that was the case, the level made sense. I had no fighting experience. Though I was surprised that I had 20 HP instead of like… 10. 20 at level 1 seemed quite generous.

"Well? Aren't you gonna do something?" Flowey questioned.

"Ah, right," I said, realizing that I had been staring at my menu screen for a while.

I wasn't sure how I'd attack a dummy, and if it had a mind of its own, it would feel weird striking at it. I may as well see what talking to it would do. I… didn't really need to select an option to actually talk to it, but I figured I would do this properly. It felt like a rule of this world. I tapped the Act option, then selected the Talk command.

Something then compelled me to speak to the dummy. "Hello there, good day isn't it?"

"Ahh, choosing to act over outright fighting," Flowey acknowledged. "Good to know you aren't the type to bully the weak or defenseless."

My Soul suddenly went back into my chest, and the menu in front of me disappeared. I blinked, seeing that the Fight was apparently over.

"The Fight is over when your Soul goes back into your body," Flowey explained. "You can also try fleeing to force your Soul back in and run away. Though it's not guaranteed to work. Also, try not to run away without getting your Soul back in your body… as it could mean instant death."

"G-got it," I said nervously. "Uh, I noticed I had a level next to my HP bar. Is there any way to increase my level?"

"Level?" Flowey asked before thinking for a moment. "... Ah, you must mean LOVE."

"LOVE?" I blinked.

"I guess… LOVE would be the equivalent to a level in video games," Flowey answered. "The more LOVE you gain, the more your HP increases. And the more LOVE you have, the more powerful your attacks will be too. You gain LOVE by killing monsters and receiving EXP."

"So by doing that, I could get stronger," I noted.

"Additionally, besides LOVE and HP and EXP, there are items in the world that can boost your defense and heal you," Flowey added. "As well as items that can be used as weapons to defend yourself or go on the offensive."

"So they're like equipment and healing items," I remarked.

"Yep," Flowey confirmed. "Though unlike a game, you don't have unlimited inventory and can only carry as much as you can physically carry. That means whatever pocket space you got, whatever you can wear, and whatever you can hold in your hands."

Well that's… not much then. Maybe I can get a bag or something to store more items in… I noted to myself. "Wait… you said I had to kill a monster to increase my leve- I mean, LOVE?"

"That's right, that's how it works," Flowey answered. "There's no other way to increase your LOVE naturally."

My face scrunched up at that. There was no way to get stronger without killing monsters. I mean… in most RPG type video games, the player had to kill monsters in order to gain experience points to level up. So I guess that made sense… If I wanted to get stronger, that meant I would need to kill some monsters. Some of my most favorite characters had to do that in order to survive and get stronger. But…

"It looks like you're thinking a lot about this new system, huh?" Flowey spoke up, chuckling. "Trust me, it's not new. It's been there since you were born. You just never saw it until now. It might be best to keep to your morality, but it's up to you on if you really want to increase your LOVE or not. I'll be waiting up ahead."

I didn't get a chance to say anything before Flowey went back underground. I guess I could think about this later. I wanted to reach this place that Flowey mentioned first.

I walked to the next room. There was another long hallway to the next room. This one had a bit of a zigzagging pathway. I walked along the path to see what was up ahead when I nearly tripped over something white. Almost immediately, my Soul was back out of my body.

I blinked a few times before noticing something in front of me.

"Ribbit."

It looked like a frog of some kind. Its head bobbled a little, and I saw some eyes blinking under the frog. The four options, and my HP bar showed up again. I guess I got into a Fight with… a frog monster?

I hovered my hand over the Fight option. It didn't look like an intelligent creature, maybe it wouldn't be missed if I killed it… But it was giving me a cute, curious look. I hesitated over the Fight option. I then moved my hand over the Act option. I didn't see its name, it just had 'frog monster' on it. I tried to Check it.

'Life is difficult for this enemy.'

That was all it had said. It didn't tell me what this monster was, or what its attack or defense was. That was absolutely useless.

Before I could try something else, however, there was a white square outline that was around my Soul. I blinked in confusion. Then I saw what looked like little white… flies appearing in the box.

"Oh, crud. That's an attack field! Try not to get touched by the white flies!" Flowey's voice shouted from beneath me.

I yelped at the sudden warning. I tried to run, but my body wouldn't move. Instead, my Soul was the one that was moving. I was disorientated, and taken by surprise, so I didn't do a good job at avoiding the flies. I let out a hiss as I lost one hit point. It didn't hurt that much, but it still took me by surprise. My Soul blinked when it got hit, and the other flies weren't able to hit me for a brief moment. Then the box finally disappeared, and so did the flies.

I didn't have time to yell at Flowey for not telling me about this… attack field. I needed to end this Fight quickly. I didn't really know how to attack a frog, so I just used the Act command again. I had the option to Compliment or Threaten the frog monster. I pressed the 'Compliment' option to see what that would do.

I was suddenly compelled to speak. "You're an amazing hopper."

The frog monster seemed a little confused at my words, I wasn't sure if it understood me. But it began to blush and smile a little. I guess… it liked what I said even if it didn't seem to understand it. Maybe it sensed the intention behind my words.

The white box appeared again around my Soul. This time, however, instead of a bunch of flies, I saw a white frog there. I was a little more prepared this time. I was able to move my Soul away from the frog as it tried to jump at me. I was still at 19 HP.

I noticed the frog monster's… 'name' was now yellow. I wondered what that meant. Maybe… I could… end the Fight. I went over to the Mercy option, and saw 'Spare' was yellow as well. I pushed the Spare option. My Soul went back into my body, and the frog monster hopped away from me.

With the frog monster gone, I crossed my arms and glared at the floor. "Flowey! Why didn't you warn me about the attacks!? I could've died!"

"My baaaaad!" Flowey apologized with a cute stuck out tongue after he popped out of the ground. "Got so caught up in how well you're doing that I forgot to mention attack fields. Hey, but you did well with that Froggit."

Froggit? I guess that's what that monster was called. I noted. "That's quite an important piece of information to forget about! Is there anything else you need to tell me?"

"Uh… For Ruins, no," Flowey answered.

"You sure? You sure there isn't some big spiky boss monster I have to worry about at the end of the Ruins or something?" I grumbled.

"Nahhhh, there's no 'floor boss' for Ruins," Flowey answered. "It's also just 'Ruins', not 'the Ruins'."

"Uh-huh…" I gave the flower a suspicious look, that was twice now he omitted important information from me until it became immediately relevant when I had little time to prepare.

"Seriously, I promise I'm not omitting anything else important," Flowey swore before holding up a vine. "Flower's honor."

I sighed. "Fine. Is there anything more dangerous up ahead then?"

"You might find more monsters wanting to Fight you," Flowey answered. "But they're not strong, at worst, you might run into a Loox that tries to be a bully, but isn't very good at it."

I gave another sigh. "Okay… I guess I can handle that. Is there any way for me to heal?"

"If you find healing items," Flowey answered before looking around. "Though I could also heal you up at checkpoints. I know for a fact there is a bowl of candy up ahead."

"Wait, wait, wait, back up… checkpoints?" I asked. "What do you mean 'checkpoints'?"

"They're… places in the Underground where there's a lot of natural magic," Flowey explained. "At those points, I can use the energy to heal you. I figured since you're used to video games, I'd call them checkpoints. Though I guess you could also call them 'savepoints' since they can definitely save your life. I just didn't mention it before because you can't see them."

I guess I understood that, but… "This isn't a game though. If I die, wouldn't it be permanent?"

"Heh… well, if you do end up dying…" Flowey began before he gave a smile. "I guess you'll find out then. It might be better if you experienced it for yourself instead of trying to tell you. Though by saving your life, I more meant that you'd be able to heal even on the verge of bleeding out."

I raised an eyebrow. I wasn't sure if I should be worried or not. But it may be in my best interest to avoid dying.

"Oh yeah, since you couldn't read it. The hint for this puzzle has to do with the path you walked on earlier," Flowey informed. "Good luck~"

Flowey went back underground. I wondered if he enjoyed watching me squirm. I was getting that feeling from him.

I walked forward, and saw spikes over the water. I frowned. How am I supposed to get past this?

It was supposed to be a puzzle… so there had to be a solution. Flowey said that the hint was the path I walked on earlier. I quickly looked back at the path. I looked back at the spikes. I carefully moved closer to the spikes, and saw a small path of them going down. I carefully moved onto the parts where the spikes went down. I noticed only certain parts of the spikes would go down while others stayed up. I began to realize that the spikes that went down were following the same path from the pathway I was earlier on.

I got to the other side without any problems. I let out a sigh of relief, glad that none of the spikes came back up suddenly while I had been walking on them. I walked to the next room.

This room had a really long corridor. I walked forward. I was feeling a bit antsy, I didn't see any traps, puzzles, or monsters as I was walking. It was kind of creeping me out. I finally stopped when I reached the end of the long corridor and sat down. Come to think of it, I was still tired from climbing the mountain in the first place. I hadn't eaten in a while, and I only drank from that pond earlier.

"Oh, hey, question…" Flowey popped up beside me. "How do you feel about ghosts?"

"What?" It was a rather odd question to ask out of the blue.

"Are you scared of ghosts?" Flowey questioned.

"My dad always told me ghosts were actually demons…" I frowned.

"So… is that a 'yes'?" Flowey asked. "Or were you just answering my question with a non-answer?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I've never met a ghost," I replied. "They always looked scary in movies and ghost stories. So I guess, maybe I am? Why do you ask?"

"Just curious," Flowey answered. "Monsters in the Underground come in all shapes and sizes."

"... Are you saying there are ghost monsters?" I asked.

"One," Flowey replied. "And he's not too far ahead. His name is Napstablook."

"Okay… uh… is this… Nap…sta…blook…" I slowly said the name as I wasn't familiar with it, and it was kinda long. "... dangerous?"

Flowey snorted before shaking his head. "Sorry, Frizk, not gonna reveal all the secrets of Ruins to ya. You'll just have to find out for yourself. For now though… maybe I should go get you some energy from one of the savepoints."

"You can do that?" I asked.

"Well, I can, but it might be easier if you just walk a little further and get onto a pile of leaves," Flowey explained. "There's a savepoint right there."

"Alright, I'll walk to the pile of leaves," I said before I stood up and walked into the next room.

Sure enough, like Flowey said, there was a pile of bright orange leaves. I… didn't see a tree, so I wasn't sure where these leaves came from. But this world had its own set of rules it would seem. I walked onto the pile of leaves.

"So… right around here, right?" I asked the flower.

"Yep," Flowey confirmed as he reached up with a vine. "You're about to feel filled with energy and you'll be healed up. But that won't do anything for your hunger and possible thirst. But not to worry, I'm sure you'll find something to help with that soon."

Flowey then tapped my chest with his vine. I suddenly felt full of energy, and was no longer tired. "Whoa… that's… quite the buzz!"

I felt like I could keep walking for hours. Though I was still hungry.

"Good, looks like you're feeling better now," Flowey noted. "Go north from here, there should still be a bowl of candy."

"Candy?" I blinked.

It was dangerous to take candy from strangers, but… I was willing to take that risk. I walked north, like Flowey instructed. Sure enough, I saw a podium that had a large bowl of colorful looking candy.

"You can take two despite the sign saying 'take one', just put your free hand on the bowl to stabilize it," Flowey informed. "Though if you take any more, the bowl will fall over the moment you walk away, spilling candy all over. That just wouldn't be fair to anyone who wants more candy."

It was a bit odd that the bowl would just fall over like that for taking some candy. But then again I wasn't a professional at physics.

"It's a trick bowl designed to fall over if too much weight is removed from it in one go," Flowey explained, likely seeing my confused expression. "It's to prevent others from taking too much candy. It also works as a way to teach young monsters the importance of not being too greedy."

"Has it ever been knocked over before?" I asked as I took two pieces of candy.

"Oh plenty of times!" Flowey laughed. "An adult usually comes by and picks up the candy and the bowl, refilling the candy that was taken."

"Wow, they must be really generous," I chuckled as I looked at the two pieces of candy.

They looked kind of like jolly ranchers. I had a blue one, and a pink one. Though the wrapper didn't mention what flavors they were. I put them into my pocket.

"These candies heal me if I eat them, right?" I asked as that was how food items usually worked in RPGs.

"Yeah," Flowey confirmed. "If you concentrate really hard, you should be able to 'check' the candy."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Well… in other terms … you should be able to open another set of menus outside of battle to be able to check your items and your stats," Flowey said.

"Ah, okay, let's see…" I remembered in a light novel I liked to read, the hero character was able to focus to bring up a status menu. I tried to imagine something like that as I focused.

I saw a simple menu in the corner of my eye. It was black and white, and showed me 'Item' and 'Stat'. I had the menu move to the forefront of my sight so I could select 'Item'. I saw 'Monster Candy' in my inventory. I noticed that I could 'Use', 'Check', or 'Drop' the item. Obviously, I didn't want to use or drop it, so I selected 'Check'.

A text box appeared in front of me. 'Monster Candy- heals 10 HP.'

"Oh, that's pretty helpful," I noted. Helpful though basic.

I then selected 'Stat' to see what my stats were.

I saw my name 'Frizk', then under my name I saw my LOVE, and my HP. I saw my attack and defense stats, they were both at 0, though there was a parentheses next to them that read (0). I saw my EXP as well, which was also at 0. There was the word 'NEXT' under my EXP, which was at 10, which I guessed meant how many EXP I needed to get my LOVE up to the next level.

Under my not-so-impressive stats had the words 'ARMOR' and 'WEAPON'. For armor, I had 'Plain Striped Shirt', and for a weapon, I only had 'bare hands'. And finally, at the bottom of it all was GOLD. I had 0 of that as well.

I moved my stats back to the corner of my eye and gave a sigh. I really was a weakling. I had 0 in just about everything. I really needed to get stronger at some point.

"Well, at least I know how to pull up the menu when I need to," I said, trying to stay positive.

"Now, you've still got a way to go to get to Home," Flowey informed. "I'm gonna go ahead and get some things ready there. Try not to take all night."

"Well, thanks then, I'll try my best to make it to you," I replied. Home, huh? I guess that's where I'm going.

Flowey disappeared underground again. I walked out of the candy room. I saw a frog… a Froggit standing nearby. It looked at me. It didn't seem interested in pulling out my Soul and entering a Fight this time, however. Instead, it spoke to me.

"Ribbit, ribbit…"

I blinked. "Are you… trying to speak to me?"

"Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit," The Froggit kept going.

"Uh…" I sweatdropped. "I'm sorry, I don't speak frog…git. Anyways, I have to go, a friend of mine is waiting for me."

"Ribbit."

I made my way through Ruins. I ran into a few more monsters. There was this meek fuzzy little monster called 'Whimsun' who cried and ran away when I tried to talk to it. There was a gelatin monster that didn't really do anything other than wiggle around. Though their attacks were tricky to dodge. I decided to imitate the wiggling before sparing them.

There was a puzzle that involved me falling onto some leaves before climbing back up on the other side. I had to push a rock onto a switch to deactivate more spike traps. Then there was a large floor with a bunch of cracks. I fell pretty much right away when I tried to move onward. I fell onto some leaves though. I couldn't figure out this puzzle for a while, I kept falling, and I didn't know how to read the sign for a hint. It was quite frustrating. But I began to notice a pattern. The leaves seemed to be stacked in such a way that there was a path between them. Every time I fell, I would always fall onto the leaves, but never on the bare path.

I tried to memorize the path and started moving on the cracked floor that was like the path under it. Finally, I made it to the other side without falling. I gave a sigh of relief.

The next room had three rocks I had to push. The first two were easy, but when I tried to push the last one…

"Excuse me! Who do you think you are?!"

I jumped back in shock when the rock suddenly shouted at me. Unlike with Flowey, the rock didn't have a face, so I didn't know how it was even talking.

"W-wah!?" I shouted. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't know… uh… that rocks can talk!"

"Of course we can talk!" The rock huffed. "Is there something you wanted of me?"

"Uh…" I tried not to think too much of the implication of sentient rocks. "Could you… please move forward?"

"Forward? Very well." The rock answered before it moved towards the entrance I came through, away from the switch.

"Where are you going?" I frowned. "That's the wrong way!"

"You said forward, so I went forward," The rock answered. "Did you want me to go backwards?"

"... Uh… wherever, I just want you to move towards that switch," I pointed out.

"Oh, you want me to move towards the switch. Okay," The rock acknowledged before it moved a few feet towards the switch, ending up closer to it than it started but not on the switch.

"Why did you stop?" I asked.

"Because you wanted me to move towards the switch," The rock replied. "So I did just that, I moved towards it."

Is… this rock doing this on purpose? I frowned. "Can you move onto the switch please?"

"Ohh! That's what you wanted? Of course I can," The rock answered before it moved onto the switch.

"Thank you," I said before I began walking towards the spike trap that no longer had spikes.

However, when I got close, the spikes suddenly popped back up. I yelped as I stumbled back, not wanting to accidentally step on or fall onto the spikes.

What the heck happened!? I quickly turned around to see that rock had moved off the switch.

"W-what are you doing!?" I shouted. "Why did you move off the switch?! You could've gotten me seriously injured!"

"Did you want me to stay on the switch?" The rock questioned.

I took a deep breath and let it out. The rock was either very cheeky or very… oh… very dense.

"I want you to get on the switch, and stay on the switch. No moving off of it. Got it?" I said as simply as I could.

"But what if I want to go elsewhere?" The rock questioned.

I gave that some thought. "You can get off the switch after I've left the room."

"Oh, okay. You sure are giving me a workout," The rock remarked.

The rock moved onto the switch again. "Aren't things easier when you just ask clearly?"

"... Yes," I said, trying not to say anything else that the rock could take the wrong way.

I quickly walked over the spike trap before the rock could move off of the switch. Hopefully I wouldn't have to go back that way any time soon.

The next room had a mouse hole, and a wooden table with a piece of cheese that appeared to be… melted on it. It was an odd sight. I decided to just keep going.

I stopped when I saw a… um… bedsheet looking white ghost lying on some leaves. It was kind of blocking my path to the next area. I heard it making noise.

"Zzzzzzzzzzzzz…"

It's saying 'Z' out loud a bunch of times… it does know that's not how sleeping works, right? I frowned. Wait, is this the ghost Flowey mentioned? Something about Nap… uh… Nap… Nappy?

I walked closer to the ghost that I dubbed as 'Nappy', because no way in heck do I remember their actual name.

"Uh…" I began to say to them.

Suddenly my Soul was out of my body, and I had the four choices again. The ghost floated up in front of me, and I saw its eyes were watering. I didn't know how to react. I should be scared of ghosts, but… this one just didn't seem scary. It just looked sad.

I decided to try to Check this ghost. I saw the actual name of Nappy, it was Napstablook, but I wasn't sure if I would remember that.

According to 'Check', Napstablook at 10 Attack and 10 Defense. I was surprised, when I tried to check the Froggit earlier, it didn't give me its attack or defense. Maybe it was because I didn't know the name of the monster. And according to Check, this monster doesn't seem to have a sense of humor.

As if in response to that, Napstablook spoke. "oh, i'm REAL funny."

Now I had to survive whatever attacks Napstablook had. I was in the attack field, and Napstablook had tears running down his eyes. The tears then crawled up the square and began to rain down on my Soul. I yelped as I quickly tried to move away from the tears, but more and more of them kept falling on me. Some of the tears fell on my Soul. I hissed in pain, it felt like acid went through me.

I was down to 17 HP after that attack. Despite having 0 Defense, he only did 3 damage to me.

Thankfully the attack was over, so now I could try something. I had no way of being able to attack a ghost, so I tried to Act. I saw my options were Threat, Flirt, and Cheer. I rather not threaten him, he looked… depressed enough already. His tears were also really painful.

I tried the Flirt option just to see what that would do, I was morbidly curious about how I would flirt with a ghost.

"Hey there, cutie pie, wanna go out some time?" I flirted. What kind of stupid pick up line was that?

"i'd just weigh you down." Napstablook responded.

Napstablook attacked just like before. This time I was a little more prepared for the tears, though I came close to being hit again. I got grazed by one of the tears, unfortunately. I hissed, now I was down to 14 HP.

Well, flirting didn't help. I decided to try to Cheer. The option didn't force me to say anything, but I ended up giving Napstablook a smile.

"heh…" Napstablook softly said.

I was back in the attack field, and there was just a line of text there. "Really not feeling up to it right now, sorry."

So nothing really happened, apparently Napstablook didn't feel like attacking me there. Well, that was fine by me. It looked like cheering was helping, so I decided to do that again. This time, instead of a smile, I was compelled to say a joke.

"How does a ghost say good-bye?" I asked.

"How?" Napstablook asked.

"I want to seance you again," I delivered the punchline.

I wasn't sure if that would be insulting to a ghost or not.

"heh heh…" Napstablook chuckled softly.

It seemed like Napstablook liked it though.

Back in the attack field, Napstablook only cried a little bit, his tears were slow, and didn't climb over the square walls this time, so it was much easier to dodge.

I chose Cheer again. Though I didn't say or do anything this time, instead, Napstablook was the one who spoke up.

"can i show you something?" Napstablook asked.

"Oh, uh, sure," I answered, interested to see what he was going to do.

"let me try…" Napstablook said before he had his tears go up towards his head, which was… very weird to see, but the tears created a nice little top hat on his head, which was pretty cute.

"i call it "dapper blook"," Napstablook informed before slowly spinning around to let me see the hat on his head. "do you like it…?"

I couldn't answer, I was back in the menu. I guess I had to select an option before I could do anything. I selected Act and Cheer again.

"That's adorable! You're incredibly talented." I smiled, and I actually meant that.

"oh gee," Napstablook said before my Soul was put back into my body, signifying the end of the Fight. "i usually come down to Ruins because there's nobody around… but today, i met with somebody nice."

I saw the ghost was smiling a little. He must not have a lot of friends.

"I'm glad I got to meet with a nice ghost like you." I smiled.

"oh geeeeeeeeeeeeee…" Napstablook muttered before he started to become transparent.

"Wait, where are you going?" I asked, surprised that he was becoming transparent.

"i just realized i was in your way… so i'm going to get going," Napstablook answered. "byyyyyyyye."

Napstablook disappeared.

"Uh… okay, bye," I said. What a strange ghost monster, but he's pretty nice.

I continued walking forward. I saw a doorway leading into another room, but there seemed to be another room up ahead. I decided to check out the room first. There were a couple of spider webs. There was a small spider web, and a big spider web. There was a sign in front of each of the webs, but…

I sighed as I attempted to read each sign. While I couldn't read the words, I could see two pictures on each sign. On one, there looked to be a spider and a jug. On the other there was a spider and a donut. Underneath each sign, there were little holes in the webs that… perfectly matched the shape and size of the gold coins I had gotten so far. There were 7 slots on the one and 18 slots on the other.

That's right… every time I managed to successfully spare a monster, they left me some gold. Maybe as an apology for attacking me. Maybe I can use this for something. I noted to myself.

Judging from the amount of slots these webs had, I assumed that was the amount I needed to pay for the particular… item in question. I only had about 10 gold on me, so I couldn't afford the jug. I was pretty hungry, and the monster candies didn't really fill me up. I decided to put 7 gold on the spider web. Normally I didn't like to be around spiders, but since this was a different world, maybe these spiders were also monsters, so I needed to treat them with respect.

After I slotted in the last coin, a spider suddenly came down from above and took the 7 coins before retreating up to the ceiling. After a moment, it came back out holding a donut that it gently placed on the web.

"Ah… is that donut for me?" I asked, wanting to be sure before I took it.

The spider held up one of its front legs like it was holding up a thumb before it began to go back up into the ceiling.

I smiled, it was nice to see such friendly spiders. I carefully took the donut so I didn't mess up the web. It looked good enough to eat. I decided to take a bite, I needed something for my stomach. It tasted pretty good, it was sweet, but not too sweet. It had a satisfying crunchy exterior, like a hardened, yet the dough inside was still nice and soft. I blinked when I noticed some black specks inside the donut. I wondered if the spiders put sprinkles inside the dough. The donut did have a slightly chocolaty taste to it, so it was possibly chocolate sprinkles. Regardless I continued eating it as it was quite delicious.

Maybe I should save up for the jug. I could use something to drink too. I decided.

I went to the next room, where I saw more Froggit, though they didn't seem interested in Fighting me. They seemed to like to talk, but I still couldn't understand them. I decided to just keep moving, until I ran into another gelatin monster, and a cockroach-like monster.

The cockroach-like monster didn't seem interested in talking unless I spared the first monster. After that, the cockroach-like monster just started dancing and seemed to be at peace. When I spared him, I was surprised that they left me 13 gold, that was more gold than I had before spending it on the donut. I smiled, maybe I could spend some time grinding some more gold…

I went back to the spider webs. I now had 27 gold, enough for both the jug and another donut. I paid the 18 gold for the jug. I watched with interest as multiple spiders came out this time to take the gold coins. The same multiple spiders then brought out a good sized jug that had a lid clipped on top. The spiders showed me the juice wouldn't spill by tipping it over before turning it right-side up. I then paid 7 gold to the other web to get another donut.

With juice and a donut, I went on my way. I decided to drink some of the juice by taking off the lid a little. It tasted a lot like apple cider, it was a bit thicker than juice. It was sweet, and it reminded me of the donut. My thirst was nice and quenched. I then put the lid back on the pitcher.

Who knew spiders could have such a good service? I chuckled as I carried the jug, planning to drink the rest later.

I began eating the donut again. Because unlike Monster Candy, I couldn't fit it into my pocket. Well I could but I would probably have to squish the donut and get a ton of crumbs in my pockets. It was better eaten like this, and at least I wouldn't go hungry trying to reach this place called 'Home'.

I continued onward and saw some cracks on the floor. There was another spike trap ahead, so I had to find a switch or something to get rid of the spikes. They were likely under these cracked floors. I guess I better start checking them. Thankfully, when I fell through the cracked floors, I ended up landing on a soft pile of leaves. I wondered who put all these leaves here. Maybe whoever decided to make the puzzle like this. Maybe someone had the ability to fix the floors after they break.

There were stairs that led me back up, so I wouldn't be stuck down here. One of the rooms I fell into had a red ribbon lying on the floor. Curious, I picked it up. There was some dust on it, so it must've been pretty old, and the color looked faded too. I noticed there was a 'check' option for every item I picked up, so I decided to check this ribbon.

"Faded Ribbon. 3 DEF. If you're cuter, monsters won't attack you as hard."

That was… pretty funny. But this ribbon apparently gave me some defense, so it was like armor, I guess. It might be a bit dirty, but I may as well wear it. It was better than dying. I dusted off the ribbon before carefully tying it into my hair before moving back up. I went back up before trying to take the path again.

I fell down another floor I have yet to check the room of.

"You looks like you can use a friend!"

I blinked as my Soul suddenly came out of my body again. I saw a monster in front of me with a giant eyeball. I looked at my four options, and noticed my level… or LOVE, had yet to rise. I was still at 1. I hovered over the Fight option for a moment. If I didn't start fighting, I would never gain any experience points, and I could never get stronger… but…

I looked at the eyeball monster. I found myself hesitating. Maybe not yet, at least not until I could get a proper weapon.

I went over to Act, I saw the options Check, Pick On, and Don't Pick On. I picked 'check' first.

Eyeball Monster. ATK 6 DEF 6.

There wasn't much information on this eyeball monster.

"Quit staring at me…" The eyeball monster remarked.

In the attack field, I saw what looked like bugs going up one each side of the walls of the field. The attack was easy to dodge at least.

"Um…" I figured I should go with the most obvious action.

I chose 'Don't Pick On'. I didn't know what that would really do since I wasn't picking on him in the first place.

"Finally! Someone gets it!" The eyeball monster exclaimed.

I didn't do anything. I sweatdropped.

I noticed my current name for the monster was in yellow, so I did what I usually do in this situation, I went over to 'Mercy' and spared him. The monster left me some gold before dancing away, seeming to be in a good mood.

Okay, that was weird. But I guess that made him happy. I noted.

I continued the puzzle I was doing, still searching for that switch. I fell into another small room. I noticed some kind of… carrot buried in the ground. Hmm, it could be a healing item, and it's always nice to have food on me.

I walked over to the carrot, and grabbed onto the green vegetable part and pulled it out of the ground. I suddenly saw a face. That made me stop breathing for a second, because I thought I just pulled out a mandrake that I heard in stories.

"Eat your greens!" The vegetable monster shouted at me before my Soul was pulled out again.

I dropped the weird carrot monster before I saw the attack field again. There were white vegetables bouncing around, but they definitely hurt when they touched me. "Ow!"

I quickly selected 'Act'. I decided to ignore 'check' as that didn't tell me anything useful. I saw some… uh… interesting options. I could choose 'Dinner' 'Devour' and 'Talk'. The 'Dinner' and 'Devour' options were weird because… they seemed to be the same thing. I had no interest in eating a talking vegetable. I chose the 'Talk' option.

"Hey, so uh-" I began to speak when I was interrupted.

"Vegetables don't talk, dummy!" The carrot monster snapped.

I yelped as I was back in the attack field. I quickly moved around to dodge the attacking vegetables. When that was over, I was trying to consider my options. Talking didn't seem to work… Devour seemed to be a bit too… on the nose. Maybe 'Dinner' meant something else, like… I was inviting him to dinner.

Hoping for the best, I chose the 'Dinner' option. I started patting my stomach like I was hungry. I kind of was since I only had two donuts and some cider all day.

"Eat your greens!" The carrot monster shouted before being pulled right into the attack field.

However, this time, something was different. Carrots were dropping from the top of the field, but I noticed one of the carrots was green. Normally green was a good thing in video games. I decided to take a chance and catch the green carrot. I noticed some of my health came back.

When the attack was over, I saw the name on the carrot monster was yellow.

"You still look famished!" The carrot monster called out.

"Uh…" I wasn't sure if I could respond to it, since it didn't like it when I tried talking to it earlier. "What else do you want me to…"

I looked at my options again. "Hmm… I guess I could try the Devour option. I mean if it's in the 'Act' part of the menu, it shouldn't be anything too dangerous. Maybe it just meant he'd throw me more than one green vegetable."

That seemed logical, after all, the Dinner option just resulted in something harmless like that. It would be good to eat more vegetables after all. I chose the 'Devour' option.

Suddenly, my body leaped toward the carrot monster. I grabbed onto the carrot monster's body, I had no idea what was happening. But my mouth opened on its own and I suddenly took a bite out of the carrot monster's head. It all happened so fast that my mind was in shock by the time I realized my body was chewing on the carrot monster's piece before swallowing it. When I had control of myself again, I dropped the monster carrot in horror and shock.

"Good job eating your greens!" The carrot monster smirked.

"Wha-" I began to say when the carrot monster's head suddenly grew back like nothing happened, then it happily bounced away. "... What…"

Suddenly I lost my appetite. I decided that if I ran into another carrot monster, I was avoiding the 'Devour' option at all cost.

The next room I fell into, I saw a familiar ghost lying on the floor. "Napstablook? Is that you?"

"oh… hey…" Napstablook softly greeted. "how's it going…?"

"Uh… well…" I decided to skip the question since I was still a little traumatized from eating a piece of a living vegetable earlier. "Wait, why are you here? Did you fall down?"

"yeah… i uh… forgot the route," Napstablook answered.

"Couldn't you just… float?" I asked. "I saw you floating earlier."

Napstablook slowly blinked before sighing. "i'm such a failure… forgetting that i can just float… oh geez…"

I blinked, but before I could say anything, Napstablook let out a sigh. "oh well… see you…"

And the timid ghost disappeared again. I hoped he was going to be alright.

I fell into another room, and finally, I found the switch on the wall. I grabbed onto the lever and turned it down. I heard something like a click. I went back up and saw the spikes were gone. I moved forward. How big is this place?

I went into the next room. I saw some pillars, and 3 different colored switches. One was green, another was blue, and the last was red. There was a sign on the wall… but again, I couldn't read it.

I began activating the switches by random, hoping something would happen. But when nothing did, I began to grow frustrated.

"How do I move on!?" I shouted at the ceiling.

"Ribbit…"

I turned around, seeing some Froggits. I wondered if they were the same ones from the hallway I passed by earlier. I raised an eyebrow at them. They looked at me, then looked at each other. They gave a smile before I saw two of them hopped over to the blue switch, and the green switch. The one at the blue switch pressed it, then the one at the green switch pressed then. I blinked before I looked over at the red switch. The Froggits seemed to be waiting for something. I decided to chance it and pressed the red switch. There was a 'click', and the spike trap that blocked my way forward finally disappeared.

Did these Froggits come to help me? I blinked in surprise before I looked at the Froggits. "Thanks, you guys, I appreciated the help."

"Ribbit."

I may not understand them, but I could understand their intentions with how they gave me a thumbs up with their… webbed hand. I guess that was how they understood my compliments despite not understanding me.

I smiled a little, seeing how I seemed to be making friends here. It was an unusual but pleasant feeling for me. The Froggits hopped away. I decided to move on.

I saw another corridor that split into two different paths. I decided to go right first. When I did, I saw I was looking over some kind of balcony. I could see a small city over the edge of the balcony. It looked pretty cool, honestly, though also isolated in a way. I decided to head back, but not before tripping over something that caused me to stumble a bit.

I looked back at what I tripped over, and saw what looked like a knife at first glance. Surprised and confused at the presence of a random knife on the floor, I picked it up and studied it. I soon realized the blade was made of hard plastic.

"Ah… it's just a toy knife," I noted. "Hmm, but it sure looked real from far away… I guess I could keep it, just to scare a hostile monster away."

Having a 'weapon' in hand, I headed back to see what was on the other route. As I walked, I saw a tree with a lot of dead leaves under it. The tree itself looked to be bare. But what caught my attention was the building behind the tree.

"Howdy!" Flowey suddenly popped out in front of me. "Congrats, kid! You made it to Home without dying!"

"Do you like popping out of nowhere just to scare me?!" I shouted, having jumped back from Flowey's sudden appearance. "Wait… I made it?"

"Yep." Flowey answered before gesturing back at the building. "This is Home, it's also ironically my home."

I walked closer to the building. It looked pretty big, and I saw the door had a strange symbol on it. It looked like a sphere with wings, and three triangles, the right and the left pointing upwards, while the middle pointed down, were under the winged sphere. It looked kinda cool, though I wonder if the symbol meant anything.

"You live here?" I asked, surprised. "I thought you lived in that bed of flowers, because you're… well… a flower."

"Ahh yes, because all flowers are the same," Flowey sarcastically replied. "I can leave the soil, you know."

"No, I actually don't know that…" I sweatdropped.

"Right, I guess I haven't shown you that yet," Flowey acknowledged. "You played games, right? Ever play that one with the one monster that's like a tangle of vines?"

"Sounds like one of the monsters from that pocket monster game I like," I noted.

Flowey nodded. "I can pull my vines together like that and move around."

I blinked as I imagined Flowey walking around with two vines like feet.

"Well, I can do that, but I prefer not to. It's kind of painful to uproot myself and then have to root myself again," Flowey admitted. "That's why I prefer travelling underground."

"I see," I remarked. "This house… it's really just called 'Home'?"

"Yep. That's one thing you really should get used to down here… on the nose, obvious names," Flowey informed.

"Right… well, uh… are you the only one living in that Home?" I asked. "It seems like a pretty big place to be living by yourself in. Are there other flower monsters living with you?"

"No, there aren't any flower monsters, I'm just a bit of a special case," Flowey admitted. "Well, why don't you come in? You look pretty tired anyways."

"Yeah," I answered. Not only did I climb Mt. Ebott, I also made my way through Ruins to get here.

"Also, yeah," Flowey answered. "Until now, it's just been me living here for a while. Oh, by the way, I did notice your toy knife. Nice find."

"Oh, I was just using it to deter monsters from attacking me," I replied. "I don't think a toy knife is going to do much otherwise."

"Heh… if swung by a human on a monster, you'd be surprised," Flowey chuckled slightly. "Especially if you have the intent to hurt or kill…"

I frowned at that. "What?"

"Ah, nevermind, we'll talk more later," Flowey said. "Just come on into Home first before you pass out on the grass."

"Right," I replied before Flowey went underground, probably to go into the house.

I walked up to the door and opened it. The door squeaked, and was a little tough to open. It seemed like this door didn't get a lot of use. I supposed that made sense since Flowey didn't need to use the door to get in and out.

"Do me a favor, once you find a place to sleep, take off the ribbon. I'll take care of it for you," Flowey instructed. "Bedrooms and bathroom are to your right while the sitting room and kitchen are to the left. Downstairs is storage."

"Huh? Oh…" I blinked. I suppose it would be uncomfortable to sleep with the ribbon on. "Thanks. I hope I'm not intruding."

"You aren't," Flowey assured.

I walked around the Home. It had a nice living with a big arm chair, a couch, a coffee table, and an unused fireplace. There were some shelves of books. Though all of this stuff looked like they had been unused in a long time. I saw a kitchen near the living room. It had everything a kitchen would need, a trash can, a fridge, a sink, a stove, some counters and cabinets.

"There should be some food still in the fridge," Flowey informed. "If you're feeling hungry."

"Thanks. I had some snacks and…" I paled a little when I remembered what else I ate earlier. "Uh… yeah, I'll eat later." I wonder what flowers eat? I hope it's not just bags of soil.

Flowey popped up and looked at me. "Stand still. Gotta do something."

I blinked and stood still as Flowey suddenly extended a bunch of vines around me. After a few seconds, Flowey withdrew the vines. "Alrighty, looks like the PJs left by the previous residents should fit you."

"Were you… measuring me with vines?" I questioned.

"Huh, surprised you recognized what I was doing," Flowey acknowledged. "Yeah, that's exactly what I was doing. I used vines with thorns specifically at every inch so I could measure you."

"Well… thanks, I guess it would be nice to change out of these clothes," I remarked. "They're pretty dirty by now… Is there a place I could wash them?"

"I'll take care of them with the ribbon," Flowey answered. "Might even give your regular clothes some defense."

"Really?" I questioned. "Is that how this works?"

"You're in a place where magic is pretty strong and concentrated," Flowey chuckled. "You'd be surprised at what could be done here. Now how about you head to the bedrooms? They're to your right."

"Right, thanks," I said.

I walked to the hallway that had some doors. Out of curiosity, I looked at each of the doors. One of the doors was locked.

"Oh, sorry, that one's under renovations," Flowey apologized.

I wondered what Flowey was doing with that one. I checked the other rooms. They all looked pretty empty though, they just had the basic stuff like a bed, a desk, and empty shelves.

"The family that was living here moved out most of the custom furniture and items they had," Flowey explained. "Though being the borderline sickeningly kind and generous people they were, they left behind the basics for anyone who happened to pass through this place."

"That sounds pretty nice of them," I remarked, though Flowey looked annoyed by it. "At least it lets us stay in something quite comfortable."

I saw there was indeed a bathroom here, which was a relief. I could take a bath or a shower, and use an actual toilet.

"Do you mind if I take a shower before I sleep?" I asked.

"Why would I mind?" Flowey chuckled. "You do you, kid."

"I mean this is your house, and I'm a guest. I didn't want to be rude," I sheepishly replied.

"You have free reign over this place," Flowey informed. "So you don't need to ask my permission anymore, got it?"

I blinked, before nodding. "Okay, I understand. Thank you, Flowey."

"Good, now when you go shower, throw your items in the laundry basket in the bathroom so I can wash everything," Flowey instructed. "I'll bring you some new clothes you can wear once you're done in the shower."

"Thanks." I smiled.

I took a nice, warm shower. The water quality was nice, and the shampoo and soap were good. I was relieved to see there was shampoo for hair in the shower. My hair had been quite dirty. When I was done in the shower, I took the towel that was hanging over the curtains to dry myself, and then used it as a cover before I pulled back the curtains and got out of the shower. I saw what looked like soft, green PJs hanging on the door's hanger.

I went over to it. There was a pair of clean underwear as well, much to my relief. I put the underwear and PJs on. I wondered who the previous residents were, seeing how I was able to wear these PJs. At least they only had two arms and two legs to work with.

I dropped the towel into the laundry basket, then exited out of the bathroom. My body definitely felt tired now that I had relaxed. I went into the nearest door, I needed a bed to collapse onto. I yawned as I walked into a bedroom that had a twin sized bed. There was a lamp that was on right now. I went over to the lamp to turn it off, then I went over to the bed. I barely touched the pillow with my head before I was out like a light.

"Poor kid… Such an awful family… such a horrid looking future. Wow… is this really the only route to not suffering through life…? Man, your sister got off easy compared to you."

It felt like there was someone talking, but I was too relaxed to listen.

"Being compared to an elder sibling is never fun. For some reason some parents think that just because their first child was a success, their second one has to be just as successful or even more successful…"

The voice continued but I kept relaxing, thinking that the voice was just some kind of background noise.

"At least you remembered the stories she told you, huh? … … … Oh? Can you actually hear me? Interesting…"

Whoever was talking needed to get out of my room, because I could still hear them… it was rude to talk when someone was trying to sleep.

"Maybe there's a sliver of hope that they'll see the true sky after all… Though… Hmm. Looks like she still has to wake up. Good luck on that."

But I didn't wanna wake up… I just fell asleep.

"Though it seems you're having a hard time reading the monster language… I wonder if maybe… perhaps I might be able to give a little bit of an assistance, as long as I keep it subtle enough that you wouldn't notice it. Maybe, since you can hear me, I'll leave a little gift here. But you're gonna have to be the one to open it."

Suddenly there was a box floating in front of me and I realized that I didn't have my eyes closed, I was just in a blank expanse devoid of color.

"It might not last long though. After all, you only started hearing me once you reached this deep sleep state. Your mind will probably forget it before long, but it will hopefully help for at least a day or two."

I began to feel like this wasn't normal, but I found it difficult to question anything. I took the completely normal floating box, because there should be no reason why a box couldn't float. It would probably look better with color though. I opened up the box and I suddenly felt my head hurting.

"Yeah, sorry about that, but it'll pass. Imagine that… I'm just putting one of those temporary tattoos on you."

I shook my head. "What was the present?"

Normally I would ask who was even talking to me, but everything felt normal, everything was as it should be.

"You'll find out after you're done sleeping. Just tell ole flowerhead to take you to City and show you around."

"To City?" I asked.

"Yeah… Dad never was good at coming up with names… You'll find that's a running element of the Underground. I seriously don't know why Mom still lets him name things."

"Ah, so it was your Dad who named it. Alright, cool." I smiled, there was nothing strange about that. Dads always gave funny and uncreative names.

"Oh, and if you remember this next part, which I'm not sure you will, tell Flowey that I'm glad he didn't become evil after all these timelines."

"Okay, I'll tell him, Flowey's invisible friend," I replied.

"Uhh… Thanks. And… I guess… peace out, cause it's time to rise and shine. Rise and shine, kid."

Chapter Text

Darkzdragon: *Comes in wearing bunny ears* Happy belated Easter, everyone! Hope you had a fun day! Kinda funny that Easter happened on the same day as 'weed day'.

DarkFoxKit: Ooh, do you have any colorful candy eggs with you?

Darkzdragon: I do in fact *Holds out a basket full of colorful candy eggs*

DarkFoxKit: Hooray! *Dives into the basket of eggs*

Darkzdragon: Anyways, chapter 2… it's honestly still so weird-feeling to being posting again. It's nice.

DarkFoxKit: Yeah. I mean I've still updated a story or two from time to time, but it definitely had been years since I updated with Dark here. We're gonna have to get back into the swing of things. Oh, I should mention that the character being called 'Frizk' is intentional, it's not a misspelling of Frisk. We have a reason for changing the 's' to a 'z'.

Darkzdragon: Also, while we are getting back into the swing of things, as a reminder, we are not saying we will be posting anything related to Child of Mew or We Are Phantoms. And we might not go as hard with multi-posting like we were before. That was another big contributor to my burnout, having to juggle stories to post every week/every other week.

DarkFoxKit: So we'll try to take it easy with the updating. We've pretty much-

Darkzdragon: Ah buh buh *I held your lips* We have enough chapters as it stands to currently comfortably update weekly.

DarkFoxKit: *Pulls away from Dark's claw* Right, well, we'll let you guys get to the chapter. Have fun everyone!

Chapter 2: Conviction

"Rise and shine, kid! Wake up already!"

I snorted a little as I was shaken out of my sleep. I blinked open my eyes, feeling that groggy feeling. I… think I had a dream, it felt like it was pretty important.

I shook my head. "Uh… morning…?"

"Jeez, if you weren't human, I'd wonder if you were part Rock monster…" Flowey remarked.

"Heh… guessing I slept like a rock?" I chuckled. "I must've been more exhausted than I thought."

"Yeah, you did," Flowey confirmed. "I have some food in the kitchen if you're hungry."

As if on cue, my stomach growled. It had been a while since I had a decent meal. I mostly just had those donuts earlier.

"Oh, good, I am actually pretty hungry." I smiled as I got out of bed, until a faded memory popped into my mind. "Oh, uh, Flowey… is there a place called 'City'?"

Flowey blinked a bit before nodding. "Yeah, there is. I was gonna tell you about it later."

"Huh…"

"How did you know about it? You can't read monster writing, right?" Flowey asked.

"Not sure… I think I heard it in a dream or something," I replied. "Maybe I have a little bit of a foreshadowing power? That'd be a pretty cool power."

"Never heard of a power like that," Flowey remarked. "Oh, by the way, your clean clothes are over on the dresser."

"Oh, thanks for that! I never had a flower do my laundry before," I noted with interest. "Nobody would believe me if I ever told them that."

"I'm sure it'd be amusing to say the least," Flowey replied.

I walked over to the dresser and opened it up. I was surprised at how neatly folded my shirt and pants were. They looked a lot cleaner than they had in a long time too. I also saw the faded ribbon I had been wearing earlier. It was still faded, but it looked much cleaner now. I didn't have to worry about the dust getting into my hair anymore at least.

I picked up my clothes and noticed something was… different, aside from the fact they were clean. I decided to change out of the pajamas I was wearing to put my clothes back on. When I did, I decided to check my stat real quick. Flowey mentioned that washing clothes could cause their stats to rise, I wanted to see if that was true. I pulled up the menu and saw the clothes I was currently wearing raised my defense by 1. That was interesting. I looked at the faded ribbon I had in my hands, and decided to check that next.

"Washed Faded Ribbon. =5 DEF. If you're cuter, monsters won't attack you as hard. Recently washed and smells of flowers."

"Oh wow… you weren't kidding when you said washing clothes made them better," I remarked, impressed before realizing that Flowey left the room when I started changing. Huh… right, I guess it would've been kinda awkward if he saw me change. I guess I didn't think about it since he's… well, a flower, not a human. I used to change in front of animals at least. Then again, maybe all monsters are on the level of humans when it comes to intelligence? I mean… that rock could talk.

I shook my head and decided not to think about that right now. I tied the Washed Faded Ribbon back on my head. With that done, I left the room to head to the kitchen. I could use a good meal.

When I went into the kitchen, I was surprised to see an assortment of donuts, jugs of what would likely be cider, some kind of bowl of oatmeal, and a chocolate bar. These wouldn't I would call a healthy diet, aside from maybe the oatmeal.

"I apologize about the lack of variety," Flowey spoke up as he popped up from the kitchen floor. "But there aren't a lot of ingredients growing in Ruins. City just has the same stuff, like onions. Spider Donuts and Ciders are actually the best things around here."

"I know the donuts and ciders are good, but isn't it bad to just eat sweets all the time?" I asked. Though I guess it's better than soil and manure.

"Eh… it's not that bad," Flowey shrugged, or as much as a flower could shrug. "You're the first human to come here in a long time, so I hadn't thought about stocking up on other types of food much before you fell here."

I was still hungry, so I took some of the donuts and began eating them. They tasted just as good and fresh as when I bought the other two.

"So you wanted to know about City, right?" Flowey asked.

"Mm-hmm." I nodded as I continued chewing on the donut.

"City used to be the capital of the Underground," Flowey began to explain. "There's still stores there where you can do some shopping. There are monsters living there as well, those who refused to move again. If you want a comfy, cozy life, I'd recommend staying in this section of the Underground. Though, of course, there is a tradeoff to that comfy, cozy lifestyle."

"And that would be?" I wondered aloud.

"You'd only ever see the same people over and over for the rest of your life," Flowey answered. "The majority of monsters down here lives past Ruins. So if you stay here, there will be a limited variety to who you can see."

I frowned a little before I picked up a small glass cup and poured some cider into it. "I… actually don't know that much about this place… I mean the Underground in general. I thought it was a new world, because it… well, definitely feels a lot more different than the world I came from. I couldn't open menus, check my HP or levels, or stats, or anything like that until I came here."

"We're underneath Mt. Ebott," Flowey informed. "The Underground is the place where monsters were forced back by humans after the humans decided that we were much too dangerous to live side by side with them, despite us never showing any hostility towards them."

"That also sounds like some lore in a light novel I would read," I remarked. "So you'll have to forgive me for being skeptical about this not being a different world entirely. I certainly don't remember hearing about a race of monsters living in the same world as I did a long time ago in my history class." Then again I had trouble paying attention in history, the teachers just make it so… boring and dull. Still, I think I'd remember if they mentioned a magical race of people living with humanity a long time ago.

"I mean why would you have?" Flowey questioned with a small scoff. "It's no surprise that, after massacring a majority of our combined species and sealing us under the earth, the humans would also go on to erase any mention of us monsters. There's still probably some ruins of ours on the surface though. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the humans took over structures that were made by monsters just because we built structures way better than them."

I frowned. "I couldn't tell you either way. I never knew about monsters existing before, assuming we really are still in my world, just underneath it. But what about the whole menus and stats?"

"That's something that happens with humans when they're around a lot of magic," Flowey explained. "C- a… human friend of mine from long ago was just as surprised as you were about it when he first saw the menus too."

I raised an eyebrow, I wondered who Flowey's human friend was. He was about to say a name, but he stopped himself.

"Where do you think those video games you play get the idea from? Humans can't really check their Souls as easily as monsters can by just feeling them," Flowey went on. "Human minds create these 'menus' to give them an idea where they are in their strength and power. It helps them keep track of it all. Though if a human became skilled and attuned with their Soul enough, they wouldn't need the menu anymore. They'd also likely be able to use magic."

The more I listened, the more intrigued I was about this, assuming it was all true.

"I've heard stories about how back then, only human children needed the menus to understand it all, and when they got older, they didn't need the menus anymore. Of course, I guess since humans started doing magic differently these days, the menus are either lost or exclusive to those who are able to train in magic. Which is probably why you don't know about it," Flowey sighed.

Flowey wasn't wrong. I was never able to train in magic due to not being a part of royalty or nobility, nor was I a royal guard. My Soul hadn't awakened, and I was deemed to not have potential to learn magic by many.

"Though thinking about it, it could be humanity's fault that the menu system was lost," Flowey muttered. "I mean with them exiling us from the surface, our magic came with us. It's possible our passive magic as monsters is what gave humans access to the menu system in the first place."

"That… all sounds pretty fascinating," I admitted as I sipped the cup of cider. "In a way, it's like I jumped into a video game due to this menu system."

"Do you still believe you're in another world?" Flowey asked.

"Well… it's difficult to wrap my mind around the fact that this menu system is apparently supposed to be normal for humans if they were around magical monsters," I replied. "But I suppose… well… I don't think it really matters that much. It's a different world for me, and I've gotten away from the old one. But… there is one major issue if this really is the same world, just underground…"

"And that would be?" Flowey questioned.

"The reason why I ran to Mt. Ebott was because I heard it was going to get demolished," I answered. "And the government plans to build something over it. I don't know what would happen to the Underground if the mountain gets destroyed."

Flowey's expression darkened at that. "Great… so human greed is going to screw over us monsters again… No wonder so many monsters want nothing more than to break the barrier and wage war on humanity…"

"Sorry… I guess I didn't help with that…" I apologized. "Mt. Ebott had a legend that if you climb to the top and bear your soul, wishing for a new life, the mountain would grant it. I figured that would be my last chance to get a better life than the one I had."

"Ehh, don't apologize," Flowey dismissively replied. "If you hadn't, we wouldn't have known until it was too late. Now we can send word to the King and Queen that we have to find a way to break the barrier before then."

"About this barrier… what is it? I don't remember smashing into a barrier when I fell down here. Couldn't you guys just climb out or something?" I asked.

"Believe it or not, it's a one-way barrier," Flowey sighed. "You can fall in, but getting out is the issue. The royal nerds discovered that certain things can pass through the barrier going out, but no monster can leave. Humans could theoretically leave though, if their Soul was strong enough. That's mainly because humans were the ones who made the barrier in the first place. Seven human mages, each of a different color, came together to create a barrier to seal us 'vile beasts' away."

I raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess… the only way to break the barrier is with seven human Souls, right?"

"Was it that obvious?" Flowey asked.

"It just sounds like one of those 'collect the seven mcguffins to win' tropes," I answered. "... And you said 'theoretically' there about humans being able to leave. Has it not been proven?"

"Nope," Flowey answered before bringing a vine up to his 'chin'. "Thinking back, at least a few dozen humans have fallen since the barrier was put in place. Only a handful of them have had strong Souls, and those humans chose not to leave the Underground despite having the choice. I remember one of them saying that they'd rather live their lives out down here than go back up and serve the whims of the rich and influential who see anyone below them as mere tools."

I guess all the humans who fell down here had a reason to escape from the world above…. I sighed. Honestly, if given the choice, I'd do the same. That is if I find a reason to stay. I like Flowey enough, but like he said, Ruins is pretty small. There isn't a lot of variety of food here, and there doesn't seem to be a lot of monsters either. Do I really want to spend the rest of my life here? Besides, I don't think there's any wi-fi down here… As shameful as it is for me to admit, I gotta have some wi-fi if I wanna be able to keep watching more anime…

"Well… regardless, it sounds like the Underground is in danger if the government goes through with it," I noted. "You say there's a king and queen, right? Would they be able to do anything about it? I mean if monsters hadn't been able to leave the Underground by now, would they be able to leave when… the time comes? Even with the warning?"

"According to a belief, if we gather 7 strong human Souls, no matter the color, we could break the barrier," Flowey explained. "Most monsters believe that the royal nerds will find an alternative to this. Though secretly, the King and Queen do have 6 of the 7 required Souls. Those 6 were given to them by humans who fell in the past. Those humans, at the ends of their lives, chose to give up their Souls to hopefully give monsters a chance in the future."

Royal nerds? I blinked as I tried to piece together on what he meant. Does he mean royal scientists? What a funny way to call them. Was it the king who named them that or just Flowey? Wait…

"You guys already have 6 of the 7 human Souls?" I asked, surprised.

"Yep," Flowey confirmed. "6 strong Souls specifically. The rest of the human Souls, those that chose to give their Souls at the end, were unfortunately not strong enough to be useful. So those Souls were laid to rest with the humans."

"So they have to be strong Souls or they won't cut it…" I frowned. I guess that means my weak little Soul is out of the question. Not unless another human falls down here that has a strong Soul within the next week or two… Maybe if I get access to wifi of some kind I could try to contact Kris.

"I do have to warn you though, normally the best way to use a human Soul is extracting it from their bodies. So chances are, you may have to die if you wish to give your Soul up to the cause," Flowey warned. "Though the King and Queen, if they have their way, will ask you to wait till the natural end of your life."

"Well…" I hesitated. "No offense to the king or queen, but I don't have a good history with royalty… I don't know if I can face them myself. And besides, my Soul is weak, it wouldn't be able to help break the barrier unfortunately."

"Maybe, but there are ways to make your Soul strong. You're not stuck with the Soul you're born with you know," Flowey chuckled.

"Really? How can I make my Soul stronger then?" I asked.

"Well… there are several different ways, it also depends on the individual," Flowey answered. "But I suppose… The easiest and most general way to make your Soul strong is if you gain enough LOVE. It not only raises your stats, it definitely makes your Soul stronger, but…"

Flowey hesitated.

"But… I'm guessing a high LOVE comes with a price?" I asked.

"Well LOVE is an acronym," Flowey explained. "It relates to a specific way of dealing with monsters… Though… If you want to know, then you'll have to fight me."

I nearly choked on the cider I was drinking when he said that. "What? Fight you? Why would I do that?"

"Because I will only tell you if I am confident you can act on the knowledge," Flowey explained. "And the only way to know is to fight you. I need to see what kind of person you truly are, and if you would be willing to raise your LOVE before knowing the truth behind it, in order to make your Soul stronger to help break the barrier… or how willing you are to stick with your morals."

I frowned.

"But hey, I won't force you to fight me," Flowey said. "If you plan to leave Ruins though… it would be best to see how far you've come since you fell down here. Monsters may attack you more fiercely outside of Ruins, so you also need to prepare yourself."

"But if I stay here… won't everyone be in danger?" I asked in a worried tone.

"Perhaps, but you never know, another human could fall before then. They could have the Soul we would need to break the barrier. You don't have to do anything, kid. If you want to leave, and make your Soul stronger, that should be your choice," Flowey answered.

I didn't say anything for a while. I wasn't sure what to say. I… was never really allowed to make my own choice back home. So I didn't know what to say.

"I'll give you some time to think it over. When you're ready though… if you choose to leave Ruins, then go downstairs," Flowey instructed. "I'll meet you there for our fight."

"O-okay…" I replied.

Flowey went underground, leaving me to my thoughts.

I looked down at the table, sighing. "What should I do? I don't want to fight Flowey, but… staying in Ruins isn't going to help anyone. It'd get boring here for me, even if it is probably the safest place for me to be. I don't know how long I'd be able to live in a place like this. And there's no guarantee another human with a strong Soul will even fall down here before the government destroys the mountain. I… I need to make my Soul stronger… I have to help break the barrier if I want to save these people who had been wronged by humanity so long ago… This isn't fair to them… What would Kris do?"

I began to imagine what my sister would say if she was here with me.

"Why are you asking what I would do? I've told you time and again, you don't have to think like me or do what I do, no matter how many times Mom and Dad tell you that you have to."

"I know you would try to help break the barrier right away," I said to the Kris in my head. "But you have a strong Soul. It'd be easy for you. But what about me? I don't have the strong Soul to break the barrier… I can't just condemn everyone to death."

"Didn't that talking flower say that the royal scientists were researching other ways to break the barrier?"

"Yeah, but there's no guarantee they'll be able to find an alternative way before it's too late…" I frowned.

"Do you feel you really need to get involved though? I mean you said you can't condemn everyone to death, but like you also said you can't do much as you are."

"That's how it usually is with me though… I can't do anything because there isn't much I could do," I sighed. "It's true, my Soul is weak. If I tried to go to this barrier now, I wouldn't be able to do anything to break it. But… I'm sick of it. I'm sick of not being able to do anything. Surely there's a way I can help. If I must make my Soul stronger, then so be it. I don't want to be useless anymore. If I can save monsterkind, then… I can at least die happy knowing I did something with my life."

"But what if to save monsterkind, you have to become a monster? And I don't mean one of the denizens of this Underground."

"You mean…" I frowned at the implication.

"Think of the options when you get brought into a battle. Think of the one you haven't used yet. I think that may have something to do with what that flower was talking about."

The Fight option, the ability to damage, hurt, and maybe even kill a monster. Probably the only way to gain EXP to get LOVE.

"You also have to think of just how much hatred and emotion the mages of old put into making the barrier. To break it, it might not be as simple as gathering the Souls. It might take someone who has a strong enough conviction and willpower."

"I… I understand…" I said. "The best, easiest, and quickest way to get a strong Soul to break the barrier… might be to gain a lot of LOVE. But…"

"Does the end justify the means? Only you can answer that, little sis."

I nodded before standing up. I knew what I had to do. If… if I could fight Flowey, and gain some LOVE, I may be able to help free all of monsterkind from this place.

I packed some donuts away into my pocket, just in case. I went back to the room I had been staying in to pick up the toy knife I had found. Then I walked towards the stairs, heading down into the basement.

I had a goal in mind, but my heart was pounding. I didn't feel good about this. I wasn't sure if I would have enough conviction when the time came. But… I needed to do this, not just for myself, but for monsterkind. My grip on the toy knife tightened.

As I walked down the dark corridor, Flowey popped up in front of me. He looked somber himself.

"I can see that look in your eyes. You look like you've finally come to a decision," Flowey noted. "You aren't the first human to leave Ruins though. The others had similar convictions to help monsterkind, but they couldn't do much other than live among the monsters until their life expired."

Flowey went back underground. I kept going.

When I got further down the corridor, Flowey popped back up again. "The King and Queen are very kind people. They would never want to hurt you. But monsters outside Ruins have gotten restless, knowing they need only one more Soul. Many may not even realize they need a strong Soul for it to work, they just know they need a human Soul. That could be dangerous for you."

Flowey went underground again, and I walked forward.

Once again, Flowey popped up. "I don't know what you're thinking, but you have to be careful of your choice. Consequences can be quite nasty, you know. Still, if you have the conviction, it's important to see it through. Don't be like me… don't be a coward who couldn't go through with his convictions…"

I wondered just what was Flowey's story, but he went underground once more. I kept walking until I reached a door. The door was pretty big, it was a double door, with that symbol at the top. Flowey came up in front of the door.

"Well, I guess we're here then," Flowey said somberly. "It's time to see what you plan to do. Prove yourself that you're strong enough to survive."

The entire room went dark, and I found myself in the battle screen, something I was starting to become familiar with. Flowey was in front of me, waiting for me to do something.

I hovered over the Fight option for a moment, before I went over to Act. I… should at least check his stats first.

"Not attacking me from the start? At least you aren't rushing into this headlong," Flowey remarked.

"Flowey the Flower. ATK 80 DEF 80. A gold petal 'flower'."

I nearly sputtered at the stats. "What's with these crazy high stats!?"

Most of the monsters I checked before weren't even in the double digits, or if they were, they were in the early teens at most.

"If I was going to kill you, I would've already done it," Flowey pointed out. "My stats aren't everything."

Because it was now Flowey's turn, my Soul was in the attackfield. Flowey gave me a look.

"Sorry, but now it's my turn. Show me how well you can dodge," Flowey said.

White pellets came out from him, and they began raining down on me. I moved my Soul around to try to dodge the pellets. I got hit by one, though instead of losing all of my health, I saw I only took 3 damage. I was at 17 HP.

"Like I said, stats aren't everything," Flowey pointed out.

I didn't quite understand how I only took 3 damage there when his attack was at 80, but it was likely he was holding back so he wouldn't kill me.

Now it was my turn again. I hovered over the Fight option once more. I… I needed to do it… It was the best thing for everyone… surely.

I stopped and moved back to Act. I saw I only had one option, besides the Check one. There was the Talk option. I chose the Talk option.

I opened my mouth for a moment, but nothing came out. I couldn't think of anything to say. Talking apparently wasn't going to do anything. Unlike every time before, there was no guiding force making me speak. No words came out automatically. Am I going to have to do this manually?

"Are you confident? Or are you hesitating?" Flowey asked as his turn came around again.

Flowey, instead of throwing flower pellets at me this time, created vines from the walls of the attack field. The vines lashed out at me. I moved to dodge them. Some of the vines went all the way to the other side of the wall of the attack field. I got hit a couple of times. My HP went down to 11.

I stared down at the Fight option. I had a weapon, even if it was just a toy knife, I could strike at him. I wasn't sure if I would be able to kill him, but I should at least try to attack him. Kris wouldn't have hesitated at all. My hand shook over the Fight option though.

Come on, just do it! I snapped at myself.

I finally hit the Fight option. I saw Flowey's name and his HP bar next to it. I selected it.

A bar showed up in front of me, and a white vertical line was moving towards the center of the bar. The bar had three different colors on it. Red on the edges, yellow closer to the center, and double green at the very center of the bar. It was easy for me to figure out what I needed to do. I had to attack in the center of the bar. Which was what I did.

When I did, a red line struck down in front of Flowey, doing about… 55 damage. Wait…

"55 damage? Isn't that a bit much?" I asked.

"Nope," Flowey answered. "In fact, there was no willpower behind that strike."

"But you have 80 DEF," I pointed out. "What does willpower have to do with anything?"

"Like I said before, you'd be surprised what a human is capable of with enough intent and willpower," Flowey replied. "Come on, you gotta try harder than that if you want to fight for victory."

Flowey fired pellets at me again. I got hit. I was having trouble staying focused on the fight. I was down to 8 HP.

I went over to Items to eat a Spider Donut, I regained 12 HP, which put me back up to my maximum. But even so, I got hit by some of Flowey's vines, and that put me back down to 11 HP.

"It's like you're not even trying," Flowey said. "Kid, you need to fight if you want to get past me. Stop hesitating so much."

I frowned, but I pressed the Fight option and struck Flowey again. This time doing 60 damage.

"Better," Flowey remarked.

This went on for a little while. I began getting Flowey's attacks down, and started dodging them better. I was still at 11 HP. I strike Flowey again and again, and… I noticed something was wrong.

My attacks were doing more and more damage the more I attacked. His HP was down to half now. I went from 55, to 60, to 80, to 100 damage. The damage was jumping the more I attacked Flowey. I had a feeling that if I attacked him again, I…

Flowey kept standing his ground, however.

"Why are you hesitating? Aren't you confident that what you're doing is best for all monsters? That you're helping those in the Underground?" Flowey questioned.

But am I? I questioned myself. Is… helping monsterkind by killing them the best way to help them?

When it was my turn, instead of choosing the Fight option, I went over to Act and chose the 'Talk' option. This time I had something in mind to say.

"Flowey… if your HP goes down to zero… what will happen to you?" I asked.

"What do you think will happen?" Flowey asked in return with a small smile. "What happens in video games when enemies, or even your character, drops to zero HP?"

I lowered my head, hiding my eyes with the bangs of my hair. "Is there… really no other way to gain EXP for LOVE unless I kill you?"

"EXP. Execution Points," Flowey stated. "LOVE. Level of Violence. Those are the acronyms."

"Execution Points?" I frowned. "Level of Violence?"

I would say more, but it looked like that was the end of my turn. Flowey fired more pellets at me, though they seemed to have slowed down, making them easier to dodge.

I chose the Talk option again. "What do you mean?"

"Heh… exactly that. You kill a monster, you gain points alright, just not the nicer version called 'experience' points," Flowey answered. "Level of Violence shows how much violence you had when you killed the monster. The stronger the monster, the higher the execution points, and the higher your Level of Violence becomes. It's almost synonymous to experience points and levels in video games. But remember, kid, this isn't a game. This is real life."

For some reason, that reminder hit me very hard. I had… been treating most of this like a game, because of the menus and stats. It felt like I was in another world, a world like a game.

"When you have enough EXP, your LOVE increases," Flowey informed. "LOVE is a way of measuring someone's capacity to hurt. The more you kill, the easier it becomes to distance yourself. The more you distance yourself, the less you will hurt. The less you hurt, the more easily you can bring yourself to hurt others. The max LV you can get is 20. But by that point you wouldn't really be human anymore."

Flowey threw more pellets at me, but I was able to dodge them. When it was my turn again, once again, I chose Talk.

I frowned upon hearing that. "Why didn't you tell me that at the beginning? I could've actually killed someone to raise my LOVE, not knowing what it actually was."

"Because I didn't know what kind of person you were," Flowey explained. "If you were someone who would only ever see this world as a game. If you were someone who secretly harbored hatred and would gladly slaughter everyone if unleashed. Ironically, humans think that adults are the inherently violent ones… but it's actually the opposite. Adults are usually the more logical ones, less prone to outbursts of anger and violence. Kids however… they don't really have anything stopping them but themselves. Adults have laws to follow and expectations to meet. But… as adults say… kids are just kids, right?"

I looked down at the toy knife, seeing some of Flowey's golden petals on it. I had… hurt him pretty bad.

"But that's enough talking for now," Flowey spoke up. "We need to finish this fight. I'm not going to let you just flee and take the easy way out. You need to see this through to the end… one way or another."

I looked up at Flowey, he used his vines to attack me. I didn't really try dodging. So I got hit. I kept getting hit until I was down to 3 HP.

"Kid, what are you doing? You didn't even try dodging that time." Flowey frowned.

"I hurt you… this is the least I could do…" I answered back.

"So because you hurt me, you're just gonna let me hurt you in return?" Flowey questioned. "Who's that gonna help?"

"I guess just my conscience," I sighed.

"Whatever, it's your turn," Flowey replied.

I looked at my options. I dropped the toy knife I was holding. I didn't care anymore, I wasn't going to kill Flowey just to get stronger. There were other options, I didn't have to take the quickest and easiest one, especially if it turned me into a killer.

I went towards the Mercy option and chose to Spare Flowey, giving up my turn.

Flowey stared at me. "What are you doing?"

"What do you think? I'm done fighting," I replied.

"So that's it?" Flowey questioned. "Now that it's gotten tough, you're just going to surrender?"

"No… I'm not surrendering, I'm just not fighting," I replied.

Flowey glared at me. But when it was his turn, instead of aiming his pellets at my Soul, I saw his pellets were falling off to the side.

"You're sure about this?!" Flowey angrily demanded as I hit Spare again.

"Yup," I answered. "I had never been more sure in my life. Except maybe climbing Mt. Ebott."

"Are you sure?!" Flowey snapped as his face became obscured and suddenly dozens then hundreds of pellets began to circle around my Soul. "Are you really going to make it that easy for me to take your pathetic, weak, human Soul?!"

Flowey's face became visible again, but this time he had a horrifying expression, that of a bloodthirsty beast who had just cornered its prey.

For a moment, I got scared. It really looked like Flowey was going to kill me.

The Fight option appeared again.

"LAST CHANCE!" Flowey screamed.

I looked at Flowey.

"E-even if you are trying to kill me…" I said softly. "I can't bring myself to kill you, or anyone."

I moved away from the Fight button and chose to Spare Flowey again.

"..." Flowey stared at me, still using that creepy face.

Again, the Fight option came in front of me. I moved away from it and chose to Spare him once more.

Flowey's face turned back to his normal one, looking mad but also troubled. "..."

It was my turn again, he still had the pellets around my Soul. I chose to Spare him again.

"Very well…" Flowey said with a sigh. "You aren't lacking conviction."

At that, the pellets suddenly all turned green and swarmed towards my Soul. I watched as my HP suddenly went back up to 20, and any soreness or injuries I felt were gone.

Suddenly, my Soul went back into my body. The Fight was over.

"So… I didn't fail the test?" I asked.

Flowey shook his head. "No, you didn't fail. You didn't lack conviction but you also didn't show a thirst for blood. You have a conscience and the will to live. You don't want to give up your life, even if that's what would give us monsters the chance to be free."

I couldn't help but feel a bit of pride when Flowey said these things.

"Admittedly, you did hesitate quite a lot at first. But I suppose it was because you were coming with the wrong goal in mind. But when you figured out what you wanted to do, you showed conviction, and your determination to end the battle peacefully," Flowey added.

"Yeah…" I answered. "I thought if I wanted to save monsterkind, I'd have to kill some monsters to get stronger, strong enough to be able to break the barrier. But… even though I should've known, you telling me this wasn't a game, and explaining what LOVE and EXP really meant, it made me realize something. I'd have to give up my humanity and become a killer if I did that. I don't think it would be worth it. How could I truly say I want to save monsterkind if I go around killing them?"

"Because sometimes that's the mindset of humans…" Flowey sighed. "The mindset of 'What's a few deaths if it gets a better result for the rest in the end?'. The ends don't justify the means… that's a lesson that humans were struggling with even thousands of years ago. And a lesson that monsters have started struggling with in recent decades."

I gave a frown. "My parents have a similar mindset… And my sister has a strong conviction when she makes up her mind about something, but it isn't always… good."

"Sometimes even the best people have no choice but to do an awful thing," Flowey stated. "That sentiment is unfortunately going to be true for many in the Underground. They will see you as a chance to break the barrier, a chance to save all of monsterkind."

"I understand… I want to help break the barrier too if possible," I said. "Just not through killing anyone. After all… I want to also help you to be free too, you're my friend too. I… I honestly had a bad feeling if I kept fighting you, I would've killed you. So I stopped. I'm not killing you, not for anything."

"Some monsters in the future… might not be so forgiving, Frizk. You know that, right?" Flowey questioned. "That's one of the reasons staying in Ruins is the safest for you."

"Hey… you said my name again. You've been calling me 'kid' for a while," I noted with a small smile.

"You've managed to gain my respect," Flowey admitted. "But don't let that go to your head."

I gave a small sigh. "Well… I'll admit, I don't like the idea that a monster will try to kill me no matter what I do… but if I don't take that risk, there's a good chance I'll die anyway when the government destroys Mt. Ebott. And so will everyone else. I took a chance when I climbed Mt. Ebott, so… there's no reason not to take a chance trying to save monsterkind."

"If you want to reduce your risk of getting killed… we could always disguise you," Flowey offered.

"A disguise?" I asked. "Would that really work? Couldn't a monster just check my Soul and see I'm human?"

"Monsters don't just go around checking each others' Souls all the time," Flowey chuckled. "But with a realistic enough disguise and enough confidence, you could probably even fool the King and Queen."

"Well… I guess there's no harm in trying," I replied. "If it'll get me to the King and Queen a lot more easily without violence, I'm willing to try anything."

"Additionally, there is always the option of convincing a monster to share its essence with you," Flowey pointed out. "Transforming you into one of their own."

"Yeah… uh… no offense, Flowey, but I don't really wanna be a flower," I said sheepishly.

"I was talking about other monsters, kid," Flowey replied in a deadpan tone. "I'm a unique monster, as I can't share my essence."

"Oh…" I blinked for a moment. "Well… uh, maybe I'll think about that later. A disguise works for now."

In truth I wasn't sure if I wanted to have a monster share their essence with me. I didn't know what exactly that would entail, if it would mess up my Soul, and changing one's species always sounded very painful.

"Okay… well uh… you go back upstairs for now," Flowey instructed. "I'm gonna go around and get different disguise parts for you."

"Okay," I replied. "Thank you, Flowey."

I was in the living room part of Home while I was waiting for Flowey. I started to pick out books out of boredom, and noticed I was able to read the words. Huh... I wasn't expecting to be able to read a book from another world.

I blinked, now interested. I walked over to the unused armchair and sat down on it. It was pretty dusty, but comfortable. I opened up the book and began to read it. The book talked about how monsters were sealed Underground by 7 human mages, and how the monsters fled deeper into the Underground out of fear of the humans giving chase. They eventually came to this spot and built buildings here. The king called it 'Home'. The book's author even made a comment about how the king was a kind and mighty ruler, but he was terrible with names. I gave a chuckle at that.

But…

"Wow… I can't believe that humans screwed monsters over like that…" I frowned. "Actually, I guess I could… but surely there were some who were against it…"

I then remembered something Flowey had said earlier before. 'The ends don't justify the means… that's a lesson that humans were struggling with even thousands of years ago.'. Were… monsters sealed underground thousands of years ago? How long ago was this book written?

There didn't seem to be a year written on this book. I gave a sigh. "Well… I can't fault the monsters for hating humans after this. Though I can't help but wonder what caused the humans to seal the monsters away in the first place."

The only monsters I ever heard about were in bedtime stories, meant to scare children if they misbehaved. And of course, the generic monsters in video games. They were always depicted as scary, violent creatures that kill anyone they come across. Some were mindless beasts, others were manipulative, or just evil. But reading this old book, it felt like it was the other way around, that humans were the scary ones.

The saddest part was that it wasn't wrong. Humans were capable of doing many evil things, things that one would think only monsters would be capable of doing. I almost went down that dark road if I hadn't stopped myself when I did when I was fighting Flowey. That was a scary thought.

"If you're looking for picture books, they're on the lower shelf," Flowey informed as he popped up from the ground. "Unfortunately, when I checked last night, the language books weren't there. So I'm guessing the previous people who lived here took it with them."

"Actually, I seem to have gained the ability to read monster writing," I informed. "I'm not sure how or why though."

"Really?" Flowey blinked. "That's… How is that possible?"

"I assumed it might have something to do with being exposed to monster magic, like with the whole menu thing," I shrugged. "You know this stuff better than me."

"Nope." Flowey shook his head. "That's never worked."

I frowned. "Then…?"

"Let's not focus on that. It's obviously a mystery we don't know, and we're not really here to solve it. Since you can read monster writing though, that makes things a lot easier," Flowey said. "For now, I have some disguises that could help you blend in with the monsters."

Flowey pulled up a box with his vines and moved it over to me. The box was pretty big. When Flowey put the box down, I opened it up. I saw a lot of ears, tails, fur suits, paw gloves, and the like.

"There's rabbit, dog, cat, sheep, and fox options," Flowey explained. "Don't mix and match cause… it would look weird."

"A lot of cute options," I noted before grinning teasingly. "What, no Froggit costume? Or Loox?"

"There are, but those are full body costumes that you'd be stuck in until you found somewhere safe to take them off," Flowey nonchalantly answered.

"I think I'll go with the options you gave me," I said.

"Looking at you… I'd say… fox or dog would work well for you," Flowey remarked. "Rabbit might be a little bit cute."

"Why fox and dog?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"They're both the most detailed costumes, making it so it would be easier for you to blend in," Flowey explained. "They also have a nice bit of warmth to them, which will help with what lays outside Ruins. Fox has a nice fluffy tail, which could be used as a pillow if you needed to camp. Dog might be good because there are some dog monsters in the next region. And who wouldn't like a lovable little puppy monster?"

I gave a smile at the idea. I rarely felt loved back at home unless I did something to earn it. If I pretended to be a dog, I could be as affectionate as a dog without being judged. "Then I'll take the dog costume."

I began picking out the ears and white fur suit. I noticed a purple hat with cat ears poking out of it. For some reason I stared at it for a moment, feeling a strange sense of familiarity. I shrugged as I finished picking out what I needed from the box.

"Can I wear these over my clothes?" I asked.

"You'll have to go and try them on to see," Flowey answered. "Want me to put the rest of the way or are you unsure about the dog disguise right now?"

"Let me try it on first," I suggested. "I'll use the mirror in the hallway."

I took a moment to put the white furry suit on over my clothes. I zipped it up to my neck, and was relieved when the fur covered up the zipper. I put on the paw gloves over my hands and felt them click into place with the suit. Thankfully, despite it looking like a paw, it still allowed me enough dexterity to use my fingers. I put a headband on my head that had a couple of cute, white pointy dog ears sticking out. I had a little tail behind me.

"Looks like I'm gonna have to follow you to help you out," Flowey remarked suddenly.

"Hmm? Why's that?" I asked as I walked to the end of the hallway to look at myself in the mirror.

I looked pretty cute in the outfit. Even though my face was exposed, it could be easy to mistake me for a dog monster, I hoped, just with brown hair instead of a furry face. Luckily my hair did cover my real ears, so that would help keep others from asking why I had double sets of ears.

"Cause the zipper is on the back and I don't think you can grab it with those paws locked into place," Flowey explained. "I remember the previous occupants of this house once used that outfit on their unruly son to put her in time out. While there is dexterity, it's not enough to grab the zipper or small things. They actually once put mittens over the paws to make sure she couldn't grab anything."

"... O-oh… wish I knew that sooner…" I sheepishly said.

"You should be fine," Flowey assured. "Just be glad that I couldn't find the head, cause that would've affected your field of view and, if it's still set up how it was last set up, it wouldn't have let you talk normally. It would've turned all words into barks."

"I… don't think I would want to wear that," I sweatdropped.

"Yeah, he didn't like wearing it either~" Flowey snickered. "But that's what he got for mouthing off to his parents."

"Sounds like he misbehaved quite a lot," I chuckled. "But… uh… are you alright with coming with me? It sounds like you haven't left Ruins in a long time. Are you comfortable going out to the rest of the Underground?"

"Just so long as you don't ask me to come up to the surface too frequently," Flowey answered. "I'd rather not freeze my petals off."

"Freeze?" I blinked.

"You'll see when you leave through the door," Flowey chuckled. "I'll come up every once in a while to see how you're doing, but for the most part, you'll be on your own. I will also come up whenever its time to take you out of your suit."

"Okay, thanks, Flowey." I smiled. "I'll do my best out there."

I had my food packed away in a backpack Flowey gave me. I was able to carry more stuff now. Hopefully I would be good for a while. I walked downstairs and headed for the door. When I opened the door, I was surprised to see a small patch of grass, and an archway just ahead of me.

Flowey came up from the patch of grass. "Past here is the exit of Ruins. Be careful, once the doors shut, it'll be difficult to get them open again. The monsters in Ruins don't want to be bothered by monsters from outside. I can open it again, but it's a lot of effort and takes time. So make sure you have everything you want and need before you leave this place."

"Thanks for the advice," I replied. "But I've already packed up everything I think I'll need. I'm ready to get going."

"Good luck out there, I'll see you in the next area then, that is, if you don't die." Flowey grinned before he went underground.

"Was that a challenge?" I remarked before I headed to the archway.

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves, then I slowly pushed open the doors. The doors were heavy, so it took some effort to push them open.

When I finally got it open, I was surprised at how cold it was. It was bright too, it took a moment for my eyes to adjust. I started to see why it was bright. There was snow all over the place. I was thankful for the fursuit I was wearing. I stepped out, crunching on the snow. As soon as I did, the doors to Ruins closed behind me. I guess there was no turning back now.

Elsewhere in the Underground

"Just… need to… record these results…"

I grabbed a notepad and started jotting some things down.

"So… like I thought, the concentration was way too high… We need to figure out a way to reduce the concentration…"

I walked over to another area and began to look at some ongoing projects, writing down some progress notes.

I need to go check on Garden later. It might be time for harvest on a few of them. I thought to myself. I… also kinda wanna pass through Snowdin so I can go ask a favor of Sans. Though I'd need to bribe him for him to actually accept my favor. Maybe I could offer him a pass for three days paid vacation? It would be worth it… especially since he always comes through on finding new anime, manga, comics, and other sources of human history. Alphys and I could also use some extra… research supplies.

I then went over to yet another area of my lab and pulled up a camera feed on my computer. It looks like construction of New City expansion is progressing smoothly. It looks like the King approved my recommendation of working their way towards City instead of expanding out towards New Home. Thankfully with them cutting through the rock, they can easily carve structures out of the rocks while creating the tunnel.

I sighed to myself a little and pulled up another window. Right now there are many monsters wanting to expand their families but we only have so much room. They're saying they're okay with waiting, but I can tell that many monsters are getting worried they're going to Fall Down before they can produce any offspring.

"Um…"

I perked up when I heard a familiar timid voice speaking up from behind me.

"I hope I'm not interrupting something, but…"

"Alphys, you're fine," I assured the voice as I turned around with a smile, looking at the nervous yellow lizard monster. "While this is my lab, I've told you time and again that you can treat it as a second home."

"O-of course, Prin-" She began to say when I interrupted her.

"Like I've also told you time and time again, I prefer Royal Researcher if you're going to use a title, Alphys," I scolded the lizard. "Though you don't need to use titles with me when there's nobody around."

"S-sorry, I sometimes accidentally slip into that when something makes me anxious," The lizard I called 'Alphys', replied apologetically.

I frowned. "So what's got you anxious? Is Mettaton up to his shenanigans again?"

"Yes, but that's not it… I w-was looking at one of o-our camera feeds…" Alphys began.

"As you often do," I noted with a chuckle, knowing that Alphys was such an introvert that she preferred viewing other people's lives instead of having one of her own.

"Erm… well a-anyway…" Alphys remarked, blushing a bit. "I was looking at the one we put at the door to Ruins, j-just in case any humans were to come out of it…"

"The one that Sans likes to take a nap by from time to time?" I questioned. "The one in the bush?"

"Y-yes, that one," Alphys answered.

"So did a human come out?" I asked, feeling a little excited but also a bit nervous myself.

"U-uh… well… I'm… not entirely sure?" Alphys nervously answered, sweating a little.

"What'd you see?" I furrowed my brow.

"H-here, it'll be easier if I just showed it to you," Alphys suggested before she walked over to my computer. Just before she was about to put her hands on the keyboard, she stopped and looked at me. "C-can I use your computer for a moment?"

"Yeah, of course," I assured her. "I was just looking at the progress on the work being done at the edge of New City."

Alphys began typing on the keyboard, and she brought up the camera feed from near the door to Ruins. She selected a time period and I saw what looked like a small dog monster coming out of Ruins, but the head looked off from the rest of its body.

"Huh…" I remarked as I leaned in towards my monitor, putting on a pair of glasses I kept on hand to make sure my eyes didn't get strained. "That's definitely a new one. Looking at it… it doesn't look like a human. Besides the skin on its face. Could it be a member of one of the Undocumented species?"

Undocumented were monsters that were sealed away underground at the same time as all the other monsters, but for one reason or another, they hid themselves from the rest of monsterkind. Rumors had it that these monsters lived in sections of Ruins and Dark Ruins where nobody really passed.

"M-maybe. I'm surprised myself. Their face almost looks human," Alphys admitted. "It's possible they changed since they were last seen by your parents too."

"Maybe," I acknowledged. "Or they could've hid themselves even back then. Who knows, maybe their ancestors were some kind of monster-human hybrid."

"It looks like this might be a child though. Maybe they got lost?" Alphys wondered.

I furrowed my brow. "If they got lost, they likely wouldn't have left Ruins. Perhaps they're leaving behind their species? They could be the last of their kind and were told they needed to leave Ruins, or Dark Ruins, and find a species they could eventually mate with in order to continue their lineage."

I then snickered a little. "Or who knows, maybe a human was isekaied from another world and became a dog monster, but not fully~"

"C-come on, that only happens in mangas, light novels, and anime… w-we both know they're not actually human history." Alphys rolled her eyes.

"I mean… we don't know for sure, considering humans had magic powerful enough to seal us away," I countered. "Besides, neither monsters nor humans, at least before we were sealed underground, ever discovered if there were gods. If there are gods, maybe one of them isekaied a being from another world or gave a human a second chance… or maybe a punishment."

"W-well, either way, if they're n-not human, then we don't need to do the protocol for a human sighting. But… is there anything we should do for this unusual monster child?" Alphys questioned.

I gave a thoughtful look before shaking my head. "Nah, either the skeleton brothers or a native of Snowdin will find them and take care of them. I mean there's the whole dog monster family that might take the child in."

Alphys then gave a small chuckle. "Were you disappointed that they weren't a human? You seemed pretty excited at the prospect it might've been a human."

"A little," I admitted. "But it's been… what, 200ish years since the last human fell? The chances of it happening so soon aren't that high."

"Oh yeah, you were still a dream for your parents back then," Alphys chuckled. "So you never got to meet with any of the humans that fell down here."

I shook my head. "I was told stories, but never met them personally. Which is a shame since the last human could've been alive when I was born, but… he had that heart condition that… took his life just a year before I was born."

"Y-yeah… that's unfortunate. We don't have medicine to help humans when they fall ill…" Alphys frowned.

"At least we didn't." I smiled warmly. "Since then, the former Royal Scientist worked diligently to ensure we had ample medical supplies that could be used for any humans that fell. And you took up his legacy after his disappearance."

"Y-yeah, well…" Alphys gave a sigh. "I'll admit, if it weren't for you, Asria, I probably would've locked myself away… especially after the DT experiments…"

"The King and Queen understood that, while… it was quite horrific, you were trying to save so many monsters," I pointed out before gently putting my hand on Alphys's shoulder. "And I do as well. Additionally… locking yourself away wouldn't have helped anyone. Continuing to be a scientist is a great way to atone and make sure the same mistakes don't happen again. Besides, without your help, we wouldn't be making progress in figuring out a treatment for the volunteers."

Alphys gave a small smile. "You've definitely become my voice of reason."

"Hey, it was the least I could do, considering you ceded the role of Royal Scientist to me~" I giggled softly. "Even though on paper you're my assistant, I definitely consider you my colleague and my equal."

"Speaking of which, maybe you should take a break," Alphys said. "You've been working all morning, it's about time for a lunch break."

"Hm?" I blinked before glancing at the time and blushing a bit. "Oh… It seems I forgot to sleep… and eat breakfast…"

"Yes, yes you have," Alphys sighed. "You really need to take better care of yourself… a-and that's coming from me."

I sighed before nodding and taking off my glances. "I was actually thinking of heading to Snowdin earlier. Maybe I can stop by Grillby's for breakfast… er lunch."

"R-really? You want to eat there again?" Alphys asked, surprised.

"Well the only reason I was thinking of going today was because I was going to talk to Sans about… well it's not really important what we're gonna talk about, but I was gonna talk to him," I explained. "And I figured treating him to some Grillby's might be a good way to kill two birds with one stone. I get lunch and I get Sans in one place for long enough that I can talk to him."

"W-well, good luck. I'll… um, continue working on that human security system… j-just in case a bad human comes," Alphys replied.

"Just make sure not to activate on accident again," I warned. "I'd rather not have to climb on the exterior of the Core again to reach my balcony."

"H-hey, I told you-" Alphys began to respond.

"Yeah, that it was an accident~" I teasingly giggled. "That happened while trying to impress a certain aquatic monster~ Seriously, though, what made you think it was a good idea to show off the system before you installed an off button in your lab?"

Alphys muttered something, but thanks to my ears, I heard what she said, but I wanted to make her say it louder.

"Huh, what was that?" I leaned in and held a hand up to my ear, just to make Alphys repeat herself.

"I-I said that I thought I already had a failsafe system installed… and an off button… a-and besides… she liked it…" Alphys spoke louder sheepishly.

I rolled my eyes teasingly. "I'm glad she liked seeing me scrambling on the exterior of the Core."

"N-not that part!" Alphys huffed. "A-anyways, you s-should get going! M-maybe you can meet with that strange dog monster kid."

"Ehh, I'd rather not freak her out by showing up to greet her," I replied. "And I'd rather not change out of my work attire, especially now that I got the heated lining operational for use in Snowdin. I don't think any newcomer to the rest of the Underground would be all that comfortable around someone in a lab coat."

"I-I guess so… a-anyways, good luck with your talk with Sans. A-and maybe bring me back a bag of fries if it's not too much trouble," Alphys sheepishly requested.

"The regular fries or special fries?" I asked with a small smirk.

"You know what I'm going to say, right? Give me the special bits~" Alphys grinned.

"As long as you're prepared~" I giggled in response before I began to move around my lab, grabbing my wallet, keys, and Core ID.

"M-maybe sure you have your cell phone, a-and call your parents," Alphys reminded.

"Right, thanks," I acknowledged before I went back to my desk and grabbed my cell phone from the charging stand. "I'll call them on the boat ride over. Momma is probably gonna chew my ear off if she finds out I stayed up all night and missed breakfast."

"Again," Alphys added.

"Oh hush!" I lightly snapped. "At least I didn't pull a three-day again…"

"I-I really need to keep a better eye on you," Alphys sighed.

"Like I offered before, I would happily have another lab prepared for you in the Core if you wanted," I reminded Alphys. "That way you could have a secondary workplace. Besides, we have better air conditioning here, so your gal pal might like it more~"

"T-that's okay, I like w-where I am now… b-but I'll think about the offer more," Alphys replied sheepishly.

I made my way through the Core, heading out to Hotland. Normally the Core would be tedious to go through due to all the puzzles, and the royal guards stationed everywhere. But thankfully, Alphys and I came up with a way to bypass all of that using Core IDs. Core IDs were something that allowed us to use a straight path to the lab and the MTT Hotel. Core IDs also had different ranks that allowed for different levels of access throughout the area. The one Alphys and I had were admin rank, allowing access to the vital systems of the Core.

I tried to get through the hotel as quickly as possible though. It was a tourist hotspot, and I didn't like to be around crowds. I also try to hide my face so monsters wouldn't start to crowd me.

I really need to see if there's any progress on the bypass tunnel I requested for a while back… I thought to myself as I managed to get out of the hotel and made my way towards the elevators. If I could get a straight route from the Core to the elevators, I would be so much happier.

After a while of walking, I made it to the first floor of Hotland. I walked past Alphys's lab, which doubled as her home, and headed down to the river, where the Riverperson was. Nobody knew who or what this Riverperson was, they always kept themselves cloaked, and hid their face in a hood. We just called them the Riverperson. Though for ease, I often just called her 'River'.

"Hey there, River, could you take me to Snowdin?" I requested as I stepped into the boat.

"Hello there, Asria," River replied to me. "Of course, I live to take those who seek travel to where they wish to arrive."

"I'll probably have you take me to Garden later," I chuckled. "Though I might also enjoy the walk."

I noticed the boat itself didn't have a certain doggie head, which was a relief. River sometimes changed her boat, the one with the doggie head tended to make me a wee bit motion sick. While the boat began to move, I pulled out my phone and called up my Mom's phone number.

"Heyyyy, Mommy…" I greeted as I heard the call connect.

"Hello, my sweetie! How've you been? We hadn't heard from you for a few weeks now. You did get some sleep, right?" A gentle yet firm feminine voice spoke from the phone.

"I've been doing my best to take care of myself as always, Mommy," I replied, hoping I could successfully dodge the question.

"Uh-huh… you didn't get any sleep last night, did you?" Mommy replied in a knowing tone.

I let out a small sigh. "No… I got absorbed in my work again."

"Asria, if you're going to keep losing track of time, I'm going to have to send someone over there to keep an eye on you. Alphys can't keep going over there to make sure you get enough to eat and sleep," Mommy sighed.

"I know, Mommy," I acknowledged. "I'm trying to do my best. I'd rather not have a maid or something keep an eye on me… Have you and Daddy been okay since the last time I saw you?"

I then heard a familiar deep yet gentle voice. "Is that Asria on the phone?"

"Yes, dear, she finally called back," Mommy replied.

I put her on speaker for a moment to check my phone and felt a pang of guilt when I saw nearly a dozen missed calls from both Mommy and Daddy.

"Asria, I missed you. Alphys said you've been working yourself too hard," I heard Daddy say in a worried tone. "Maybe we should come visit you to make sure you have everything you need."

I chuckled. "I'd love to have you over for dinner one night, but I don't think you or Mommy would have the time to come over every day."

"We may be ruling an entire kingdom, but we still make time to make sure we take care of ourselves," Mommy replied. "Hmm, maybe you should start going out more, take a break from the lab, maybe even find yourself that special someone~"

"MOMMY!" I whined. "Please don't!"

"Oh, don't be embarrassed, Asria. I'm sure any monster would be happy to take your hand-" Daddy began when I interrupted him.

"Yes, but I wouldn't be…" I pouted. "I love my research and the work I'm doing to help the Underground. Taking time away from that… even for someone else… it's almost unthinkable."

"You say that now, but wait until you actually have someone else you're willing to spend your time with," Daddy chuckled lightly. "I used to think the same way until I met your mother."

I looked around, hoping we were getting close to Snowdin so I could be freed from this conversation. If there was one conversation I wished I could never have, it was the relationship conversation.

"But, Asria, you know that we just worry about you, right? You've been buried in work since you got that lab. I can't help but miss those times you would visit us, and enjoy my pie and your father's tea. You used to help me catch snails for the Snail Pie, and help your father water the flowers in the throne room," Mommy sighed.

"Yes, I know you've been worried," I acknowledged with a warm smile. "I just… feel like Alphys and I are close to a breakthrough on treatment for the…"

I paused and turned the speaker off before leaning in towards my phone and whispering. "DT patients."

"Even so, it wouldn't do them any good if you started melting from the pressure alone, Asria," Mommy scolded me. "Or getting sick from exhausting your body."

"I know…" I sighed. "Maybe I can come up with something to make sure I sleep. Maybe invent some kind of… device I can wear to buzz whenever it's time to sleep. It could be like one of those watches humans wear."

"Oh no," Daddy chuckled. "Sounds like our little Asria has entered inspiration mode again."

I stopped at this, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"I'll make sure to have Alphys help you with that just to ensure you actually make something like that," Mommy stated firmly. "But for now… where are you?"

I glanced around. "I'm passing by Waterfall on my way to Snowdin right now. I was planning on getting some lunch at Grillby's while also talking to Sans. Oh, speaking of which, would it be alright if I offered him a few days of paid vacation in return for his help?"

"Well… sure. I mean he tends to slack off anyways, but I'm sure he'd appreciate the paid vacation time," Daddy replied.

"Maybe you can help him with that sock that's been in his living room for the past decade," Mommy chuckled. "He still hadn't moved it the last time I went to one of his comedy nights."

"That's Sans for you," Daddy chuckled. "Oh, Asria, has there been any human sightings?"

"No humans, but Alphys may have spotted an Undocumented emerging from Ruins earlier," I answered. "They looked similar to a dog monster but had a furless face."

"An Undocumented monster left Ruins? How… unusual," Mommy remarked.

"Alphys and I were thinking they could be the last of their species…" I said with a small frown. "Considering it was a child that emerged from Ruins."

"Well, just be careful. We don't know what this new monster's intentions are," Mommy warned.

"Considering they emerged from Ruins, I'm sure Sans and Papyrus will at least check them out," I responded. "If Sans doesn't consider them an immediate threat, then maybe I can task the dog squad to check in on the child."

"I'm sure they'd be thrilled to have another puppy among their ranks," Daddy chuckled.

"Tra la la la, we are almost at Snowdin, Asria," River spoke up.

"Sorry, Mommy and Daddy, I've gotta hang up now," I informed my parents. "River says we're just about at Snowdin. And before you ask, no I'm not wearing snow gear, but I'm wearing my special lab coat that I installed heating elements into. So I'll stay nice and toasty. And yes, I am wearing shoes… even though I still think they're dreadfully uncomfortable."

"Just make sure you take care of yourself. Though I'm sure Sans and Papyrus will see to that. Oh, and try not to… get too much attention on you. Snowdin isn't used to having you over after all, the princess of monsters," Mommy warned.

"I'm not wearing a bright red suit and carrying a big bag of presents, Mommy, so I should be able to move around without drawing too much attention~" I giggled, making a jab at Daddy.

"T-that's just a side job to make sure monsters can enjoy the Holidays!" Daddy huffed.

I felt the boat slowing down. I could already feel the cold air of Snowdin.

"Be sure to call back soon, okay, Asria?" Mommy said. "Or so help me I will go into your lab myself."

"I promise I will, Mommy," I assured her. "I love you both, but I gotta go."

"We love you too, sweetie." Mommy replied.

"Good luck, and I love you too!" Daddy said quickly before I hung up.

After hanging up, I reached into my lab coat and activated the heating elements so I would be warm when I got off the boat. Hopefully with my white coat and fur, I can blend into the snow enough that not many people will notice me.

"Here we are," River said as she brought the boat to the river bank, arriving at a snow covered dock that I had built.

"Thanks, River," I gratefully said as I got out of the boat. "I'll see you later."

After getting out of the boat I began to take the path towards Grillby's. As I got close, I texted Sans that I was about to go to Grillby's and would treat him to lunch if he could arrive before me.

I walked towards the restaurant's door, and as soon as I walked in, I saw the familiar short skeleton monster wearing his favorite blue hoodie. He was standing just inside the doorway, even though I know that before I opened the door, I hadn't seen him inside through the door's window.

"Hiya, Asria," The skeleton greeted. "Didn't think you'd come to Snowdin today."

"I needed a break from work," I explained. "And some lunch. And I have a trade offer for you."

"Well, that sounds interesting, almost as interesting as that kid I spoke with earlier," Sans remarked.

"How'd that go?" I asked, figuring that either he or his brother would be the first people to meet the child. "Alphys and I saw the Undocumented child emerge from Ruins."

Sans gestured for me to follow him. I followed him to one of the stools near the counter. Grillby was a humanoid fire monster, a monster made out of entirely of flame. He wore a neat bartender outfit, and glasses. I sat down next to Sans, only to hear a tooting sound.

"I swear, no matter how many whoopie cushions of yours I confiscate, you always have more," I chuckled as I sat up a bit and pulled out the whoopie cushion that hadn't been on the stool a moment before..

"Or maybe a weirdo just decided to prank ya," Sans winked.

"You definitely are a weirdo~" I retorted.

"Can't argue with that," Sans chuckled. "Now, to answer your question, it went well. My brother was a little… annoyed that he has to deal with another dog, but they seemed to hit it off alright. The kid seems to be nice enough."

"No malice in their eyes?" I questioned.

"They're about as sweet as one could get, I almost had a toothache," Sans replied. "That much is obvious anyways. Though I'll probably watch and see what they'll do before they get here."

"That's good to hear," I said with a tone of relief. "Knowing you'll keep an eye on them makes me a bit less worried. Now then, onto other business. I'm treating you to lunch, so order up to 100 gold. Grillby, I'll have a light-grease burger and a side of fries."

"I'll have an order of double burgs and fries, Grillbz, and don't hold back on the ketchup," Sans ordered.

"Only if you actually eat the burgers and fries this time," Grillby replied in a language that only a few understood.

"No problem, I'll make sure to eat it~" Sans winked. "After all, it'd be rude to let my dear friend's money go to waste."

Grillby gave off a questioning aura before he began to move towards the kitchen door. "Very well. I will be back soon."

Grillby's body went through the door's cracks rather than opening the door.

"So, what is this about? You usually only treat me to Grillby when you want to request something," Sans asked.

"Well, I need you to use whatever skills of yours to get me some new anime, manga, light novels, and movies," I explained. "As well as a fresh stock of the special research supplies for myself and Alphys."

"You can just call them my 'shortcuts', it's easier and faster to say," Sans shrugged.

"Yes, but scientifically I can't tell whether you're bending space or time," I responded. "For all I know, you're travelling to parallel dimensions where events have occurred differently in order to get what I ask for."

Sans gave a bit of a chuckle. "Now that's a bit much, wouldn't you say?"

"Knowing you, I'd say it's not far off, Mr. Former-Royal-Scientist's child," I softly retorted. "I still have yet to get to half the amazing projects he was working on during his time."

"Perhaps we should move back to the topic at hand," Sans said. "What do you need my shortcuts for?"

I nodded at that. "Like I said, I need some new sources of 'human history' and the special supplies for myself and Alphys. In exchange, I'm willing to offer you three days of paid vacation and I'll take care of that sock that Papyrus has been bugging you to take to your room for who knows how long."

"Oh, I could also use some new crop seeds," I added. "So far we have wheat, corn, potatoes, tomatoes, soybeans, and rice. But there's still many more surfacer crops that we could still grow in Garden."

"Hmm…" I saw Sans closing his eyes, looking to be giving it some thought. "You got a big project going on?"

"A few," I answered honestly. "Afterwards, Alphys and I are going to need those 'human history' articles to relax. The special research materials are for one of our ongoing research projects."

"Ah, well, do be sure to let me know if I could throw another bone for ya," Sans chuckled. "Of course, when you leave to head back to your lab, I'm going to be quite bonely."

I softly chuckled at that. "I'm sure you'll manage, Sans, after all, you've got a strong skeleton."

"True. But how about you throw me one more bone before I do this request?" Sans asked.

"More than three days paid vacation and taking care of that sock?" I questioned with a soft chuckle. "Want me to get you some milk to help you grow up strong?"

"Nah, I already emptied and replaced your milk carton," Sans replied. "With the exact same amount that you had. What I want is simple. Just be sure to talk to my bro, he'd like to actually meet you, and more than just 5 seconds when you pass us by and say 'hi'."

"Just as long as he doesn't ask for my autograph on his forehead again…" I nervously chuckled. "I'm not someone famous like Mettaton, so I don't really feel comfortable giving out autographs. Especially when someone asks for an autograph on their forehead so they can see it every time they look in the mirror. He does know that mirrors don't work like that, right? Or was he expecting me to sign it mirrored so it would be the right way around when he looked in a mirror?"

"Papyrus can be quite eccentric," Sans chuckled. "But he means no harm. He just wanted to show you respect, or at least his version of respect."

"Well… considering I've never actually properly met him, I guess it's about time I did so." I smiled. "Maybe you can have him meet me at your place after I take care of your sock?"

"Sure, though he's currently on patrol, I'll be sure to let him know once he gets back to Snowdin," Sans stated. "Though you don't need to trouble yourself with the sock. After all, even if you put it away, who's to say another won't take its place?"

"I mean I could always set that section of the carpet on fire~" I teasingly joked. "That way the sock will always be warm and taken care of."

"At least it will be nice and toasty~" Sans grinned back.

Grillby came over, holding our food. He put my tray down in front of me. Then he placed Sans's tray in front of him.

I glanced at Sans. "I'll take a small amount of ketchup with my fries, Sans. Please don't dump out the whole bottle."

"That was only one time," Sans replied. "And it was a complete and innocent accident."

"Suuuure it was~" I rolled my eyes before looking at Grillby. "Before I leave, Alphys would like an extra large of the special fries to go."

"Just call me up when you're about to leave for home," Grillby instructed. "I'll have it ready."

"Thanks, Grillby." I smiled before I took a bite of my burger. This food always makes me feel warm inside. Wonder if it has any cold-resistance effects…? No! Stop, Asria! It's meal time! Not science time!

After Sans poured a reasonable amount of ketchup next to my fries, I began to eat some of the fries as well. Then I heard barking noises.

I turned back to see some of the Dog soldiers coming into the restaurant. I saw the two lover dogs, which I believe were Dogamy and Dogerassa. They were still in their armor, holding their huge axes. They were nuzzling each other's noses the whole time. Not too far behind them was the old dog monster who had trouble seeing things that weren't moving… if I remembered right, his name was Doggo. I soon saw Lesser Dog behind him, and Greater Dog behind him. Both of them looked a lot closer to regular dogs than the others, but in armor. Neither of them spoke Monster, they only barked. But somehow that made them cuter.

Y'know… Mom and Dad said they'd have a sword made for me at some point. Perhaps it's about time I follow up on that. I thought as I looked at the weapons and armor of the dog squad. Oh, crap! I also need to talk to Doggo about the procedure Alphys and I created to help with his eyesight!

I was about to get up when Sans placed a boney hand on my arm.

"Hey, now's the time to relax, not work," Sans reminded me.

"Right… Thanks…" I blushed before I took out a phone and wrote myself a reminder to talk to Doggo before I left Snowdin. "I really have a bad habit of keeping myself out of work mode. Momma got a bit angry at me early when she found out I didn't sleep last night."

"I don't blame her. You and Papyrus have a bad habit of never sleeping," Sans sighed.

"I did make progress though…" I softly said with a small frown. "The work that both your father and Alphys did… I may have figured out what went wrong… And have a hypothesis on a potential treatment plan."

I didn't say more and continued to eat my food. While Sans didn't show it, I knew that somewhere inside him he was happy that some progress was being made on helping the DT subjects. There was one time, not long after I became the Royal Scientist, that Sans told me about what his father did and how he feels that its wrong that his dad disappeared before he could undo the damage. It was one of the few times I had seen Sans drop his usual lazy mindset and nonchalant attitude.

Sans didn't say anything, instead he was eating his burgers, and gulping down his bottle of ketchup.

I heard some noises outside, but I ignored them as I focused on just the flavor of my food. Then I heard the door open.

"Wow… so this is Grillby…" An unfamiliar voice said.

"Grillby's," Someone by the door corrected. "That over there is Grillby, the flaming hot guy at the bar."

"Ah, I see… he really is hot, isn't he?" The new voice chuckled in a teasing tone.

"I love this kid's humor~" Sans grinned.

Kid? I questioned before glancing at Sans. "This someone you met recently? Or have you been hiding another jokester for a while?"

"There's an easy way for you to find out. It's called looking behind you," Sans replied.

"Y-yeah… but I promised Mom and Dad I would try not to get spotted by anyone…" I sighed before turning back to my burger. "Besides… just like Alphys, I'm not that great with new faces…"

"Hey, Sans, I guess I shouldn't be surprised you'd be here," The new voice was very close. "Papyrus did say you liked coming here."

"I'm here because my friend here offered to treat me to lunch," Sans chuckled.

I could feel eyes on my back, studying eyes looking me up and down.

"Ah… okay, is it a lunch date?~" The new voice teasingly asked.

"Nah, she's waaaay out of my league," Sans snickered. "It'd be like a rock dating a diamond, it would be way too tough."

"Aww, don't sell yourself short," The new voice replied. "Though I would like to know more about this diamond. Is she shy?"

Yes! I inwardly yelled while not turning around.

"Yeah, she's definitely a bit of a shy flower," Sans confirmed.

"A shy flower, huh? I know the type," The new voice joked.

"She's usually on her own, locked away in her lab," Sans informed.

"Y-you don't need to call me out like that…" I whined. "I'm just… passionate about my work…"

"Oh, so she speaks!" The new voice spoke up. "Ah, sorry, I'm just excited seeing all these new faces. I hope I don't make you too uncomfortable."

"J-just so long as you don't start poking me, I'll be fine," I replied before taking another bite of my burger.

"Would you like anything to eat?" Sans asked. "My friend here said I could order anything up to 100 Gold, so I've still got plenty I could order for you."

Sans! I wanted to shout. That wasn't meant for you to invite someone else to spend the money!

The new voice didn't say anything for a moment. I was too nervous to keep eating, so I was anxiously waiting for their answer.

"Ah… no thanks. I'm not hungry right now," The new voice answered. "Besides, I have to meet up with your brother soon. Don't want to keep him waiting."

"Just make sure he doesn't talk your ear off about Undyne," Sans replied. "No-ears isn't really a fashion you wanna follow in the Underground. I'm sure even Mettaton would love a pair if he had the choice."

"I'll be sure to keep my ears safe," The new voice chuckled. "Well, enjoy your platonic lunch date."

I heard the soft footsteps walking away.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. "I… feel bad… but… I just… feel awkward around new people…"

"Don't let it get ya down. But that's why I want you to talk to my brother. It will help you open up around others more, and Papyrus has a knack for cheering you up even when you feel down," Sans said. "Besides, you've seen him before, so he wouldn't be a new face."

"I guess you have a point," I acknowledged.

"If it helps, I've recorded the kid's adventure all the way to here. Maybe watching them on screen can help you feel a little more comfortable with them," Sans suggested, holding up his cell phone. "Just think of it as one of your 'human history' episodes, but it's happening… in a much more recent time."

I took his phone and sent the files to my phone. "I'll take a look at it later when I'm back at the lab. For now I should focus on my food before it gets cold."

"Sure, sure, enjoy yourself~" Sans grinned… though he was always grinning.

Chapter Text

Darkzdragon: *Has a cold towel on his head* Despite feeling under the weather today, I felt it was important for us to update.

DarkFoxKit: Poor Dark here has been doing a lot of work lately. And now he feels tired and has a headache. *Gives Dark some chicken noodle soup* But yeah, we want to try to upload weekly when possible.

Darkzdragon: *Takes the soup* We've also decided to… spread out a bit. Fanfiction has been feeling less active lately. We aren't leaving it, as I personally feel we're just in a slump of activity for fan fiction and that it'll pick back up again. Alsoooo *Glances at Fox* Even though it's early, happy birthday.

DarkFoxKit: H-hey, no need to mention that! I don't like it when people know I'm getting older. *pouts*

Darkzdragon: You might not like it, but I think it should still be celebrated. Cause it means you're still around and still alive.

DarkFoxKit: I guess that's a more positive way of looking at it. But let's move on, shall we? We're gonna be posting this story on another fanfiction website like Dark subtly implied. Not sure if FF will let us post the name, so I'll say that it's an Archive where we're free to post stuff Of Our Own, so if you'd rather go there to read it, feel free to. I'm still new to this website, so don't expect the set-up to be perfect or anything. I hope you guys enjoy the story either way.

Darkzdragon: Like I said before, we aren't leaving fanfic. We're just spreading out a bit in case something happens.

Chapter 3: The New 'Dog Monster'

Frizk's POV

A few hours earlier…

I just got out of Ruins, and was now walking through what appeared to be a creepy, snow forest. There were a lot of tall looking trees, but they were all bare. I couldn't help but feel like someone or something was watching me. I tried to shake off the feeling as I kept walking forward.

I saw a thick branch in front of me. I walked past it, but as I walked, I heard a loud SNAP from behind me. I quickly turned around, but I didn't see anyone. But I did see the branch looked like it had been snapped in two. I don't think I'm alone…

I started picking up the pace as I tried to walk faster. I heard a heavy foot step behind me. I turned again, but still didn't see anything. Getting more creeped out now, I began running. I didn't know who was behind me, but they needed to stop being so creepy. Still, just in case it was someone with malicious intent, I moved faster.

I stopped when I reached a bridge with a large looking gate in front of it.

I heard the footsteps coming closer behind me, slowly. I froze. I couldn't think, I couldn't move. I knew I wasn't going to get away from whoever this was. My heart was pounding against my chest. The footsteps stopped when the person was right behind me. I didn't dare to turn around.

"Kid… Don't you know how to greet a new pal? Turn around and shake. my. hand…"

I couldn't quite make out the voice. It just sounded ominous. I tried not to appear too afraid, after all, we were supposed to be fellow monsters… right?

I turned around. I saw… a shadowy figure looking back at me. I… didn't know how they did that, but I couldn't make out any features of them, just that they were almost the same height as me, and humanoid.

The shadowy figure held out their hand at me. I hesitated, but I held out my own hand. Surely this was supposed to be a normal greeting between monsters…

As soon as I grabbed the shadowy figure's hand, two things happened. The first, the shadowy figure was suddenly no longer a shadowy figure. They were a skeleton monster wearing a blue coat, and black shorts, as well as pink… slippers. The second thing that happened was the sudden sound of tooting.

I was stunned. My nerves were almost shot back there, and suddenly there was the sound of farting in my hand. The sudden shift in tension nearly gave me mental whiplash.

"Heheheheheheh… the old whoopee cushion in the hand trick. It's always funny. Anyways… you're a human, right?"

"W-w-ah, n-nooo, no, of course not," I quickly said, my heart pounding against my chest. H-how did I get caught so fast? Was my disguise not good enough!?

"Come onnnn, you can tell your new buddy, Sans," The skeleton… person in front of me stated.

"Uh…" I frowned, not sure what to make of this… self proclaimed 'Sans'.

"It's alright if you are," The skeleton, Sans, continued. "It's too much effort to tell anyone else."

"But I'm a dog monster," I replied. "Why would you think I'm human?"

"I've seen that costume before," Sans stated. "The second son of the king and queen wore it back when the Underground stopped at that door."

"The second… son of the king and queen wore this?" I frowned.

"He was adopted." Sans shrugged. "But to them, he was the same as a biological son."

Oh no… what if everyone recognizes this costume then? I wouldn't be able to fool anyone. I thought, troubled by this predicament.

"Surprised that relic of an outfit is still intact," Sans went on. "Thought the Whimsuns would've chewed it to pieces by now."

It took me a moment to realize what a Whimsum was. They were the moth-like monsters.

"So you know for sure I'm human, without a doubt?" I questioned.

"I could easily check your Soul if you keep trying to deny it," Sans shrugged.

I frowned. "Well… if I was a human, what would you do?"

"Nothing," Sans answered. "I just wanted to see if you were someone who tells lies."

"Well, I am wearing a disguise, you know," I deadpanned. "I'm not supposed to tell others I'm human."

"That's not lying, it's pretending to be someone else," Sans replied.

I gave a sigh. "Was that why you were being so creepy earlier? To scare the living daylights out of me to see if I would lie or not?"

"Heh, yeah…" Sans chuckled in response, owning up to it.

I hope the monsters outside of Ruins aren't all like that. I grumbled.

"I'm a jokester, always have been," Sans informed. "So when I saw a newbie, I knew I had to show off my skills."

"Well, you definitely gave me quite a scare there. I thought you were going to kill me," I stated.

"Nah," Sans replied. "I'm actually supposed to be on watch for humans… but it's too much work and I don't really feel like capturing you and taking you all the way to the royals."

Well… I guess being taken to the royals would be the quickest way to warn them about the impending destruction of their home. But… I shivered at the thought of talking to any royal, monster or human, face-to-face.

"Now my brother, Papyrus, he's a human-hunting FANATIC," Sans exclaimed before leaning to the side a little. "Hey, actually, I think that's him over there."

"Uh… you do know I'm trying to pretend I'm not human, right?" I pointed out.

"Yeah," Sans confirmed. "That's why I'll let you introduce yourself instead of introducing you."

"But-" Sans suddenly pushed me through the gate, that were too far wide to stop anyone.

"By the way, that was a gate that my brother made," Sans informed. "He thinks humans are hulking giants."

"That's a… strange thing to see humans as," I said hesitantly.

"He's never seen a human before, so he only knows what he's read," Sans explained. "He thinks that humans must be as big as old fluffybuns to have sealed us away down here."

I raised an eyebrow, I had no idea who Sans was talking about, but they must've been pretty big. I turned around and saw what looked like some kind of stand or… wooden station. And I also saw a pretty big lamp. Though before I could question the lamp, a loud voice shouted.

"SANS! Why are you not working at your station?!"

"Sup, bro," Sans greeted in a lethargic voice.

"You know exactly what's 'sup', brother!" The tall skeleton, who Sans said was Papyrus, shouted. "You're supposed to be at your station at all times when not recalibrating your puzzles! It has been eight days, EIGHT DAYS, since you last recalibrated your puzzles! For all you know, they won't even work if a human comes!"

"Well, I was busy meeting a new friend," Sans said.

"There's no excuse for-" Papyrus began to shout before he stopped. "New… friend? You made a friend? How is this possible?! I know everyone you know!"

"It makes sense you don't know them, after all, they are new here," Sans chuckled.

"Uh… hello?" I timidly waved.

Papyrus slowly leaned over to look at me. "Oh! Hello! I am sorry, I didn't see you there! Hello! I am Papyrus, Papyrus the Skeleton! I'm Sans's younger but more responsible brother!"

Papyrus was a really tall skeleton compared to Sans. He was wearing some kind of armor… or maybe a costume, I think. He had an orange cape attached to the costume. He had a funny and enthusiastic voice to him that just made it difficult to stay too wary of him though.

"Hello there, Papyrus, I'm Frizk… Frizk the dog," I introduced. "Uh… woof?"

"What?! Another dog?" Papyrus replied, looking to be sweating now. "Don't tell me you came out here just to munch on my bones!"

It sounded like Papyrus didn't get along with dogs very well. "Oh, no, I'm a dog who doesn't like bones."

"Guess you could say they're bad to the bone~" Sans said as he winked.

"But they don't look bad! They look like a child!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"I'm young, but I can take care of myself," I replied.

"GASP! Perhaps you are bad to the bone then!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Ah… well…" I decided to try to change the topic. "Sans said you were a human hunting fanatic. Any particular reason why?"

"A human?!" Papyrus questioned before looking around.

"She's asking a question, bro, not saying she saw one," Sans stated.

"I-I knew that!" Papyrus softly exclaimed in a way that made me think he was feeling slightly embarrassed. "Anyways, to answer your question, I seek to capture a human so I may join the Royal Guard. Perhaps I would even get assigned to guard the royal family if I captured a human!"

"What would you do if you managed to capture a human?" I asked.

"I would take them to the royal family, of course!" Papyrus excitedly answered. "All Royal Guard members are to find humans and bring them into the royal family while ensuring the human receives no harm!"

"Jee, sounds like the humans get… the royal treatment~" I grinned.

Sans's grin looked like it got wider at that.

"NOOOOOOOO!" Papyrus shouted. "NOT ANOTHER! Brother! You should not corrupt such a young child!"

"Hey, that was all them, bro~" Sans chuckled. "My funny bones had nothing to do with it."

"SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANS!" Papyrus yelled and began stomping his foot.

"Oh, hey, Papyrus!" I called out. "To help make it up to you, maybe I can test those puzzles you mentioned earlier?"

Papyrus instantly stopped, his foot still in the air as he looked at me. If this were a video game or anime… I could imagine there were stars in Papyrus's eye… sockets?

"REALLY?! Perhaps you can help recalibrate my lazy brother's puzzles as well!" Papyrus excitedly replied, holding his leg in the air. "Are you sure you wish to help!?"

"Well, we need someone to test them out to make sure they're ready for any humans that come here, right?" I replied. "I may not be human, but I did come out of Ruins. So I will be as genuine as you'll get until a real human arrives. Besides, you look like you really want someone to solve those puzzles I'm sure you've been working hard on."

"Hmmm… You have a point!" Papyrus agreed. "Then I shall accept your help! I'll be up ahead then! Nyeh heh heh!"

With that laugh, Papyrus ran ahead in an excited manner. It was rather cute, watching him run off like that.

"Thanks for cheering up my brother," Sans said. "You didn't even have to act like a human."

"Well… I didn't have to take off my dog disguise anyways," I said sheepishly. "But do you think I should pretend to be a human? … Wait… should I pretend to be a human, pretending to be a monster, but actually a human?"

My brain hurt now.

"Be a monster pretending to be a human. Since, like you said, you're a dog monster," Sans chuckled. "You're not a human acting like a monster. You're a monster who is going to be acting like a human for the sake of the puzzles."

"Right, and then play along to have your brother be happy that he can catch a genuine human? … Wait, I don't actually want to be captured though," I admitted.

"You won't be captured," Sans replied. "Because he thinks you're a monster, he'll likely disable the very last part of the puzzles, the capturing parts."

"Right, this is all just role play then." I smiled. "I can do that. I've always wanted to try that actually."

"Well then, have fun~" Sans chuckled. "After his puzzles, he'll probably try to introduce you to 'some of your own kind'."

"As in… dog monsters?" I asked.

"Yup. You'll see just how lovable and affectionate they are. I suggest you take notes, so you can act more like them around others," Sans said. "After all, you are a dog monster, right?"

"Yes, of course!" I replied back. "I'll prove that I'm not 'bad to the bone', I'm a good girl~"

"I look forward to it then. I'll catch up with ya later~" Sans replied before he walked… in the opposite direction.

Where's he going? I raised an eyebrow. Oh… well, I guess it's none of my business. Time to solve some puzzles!

While this may not technically be a game, I may as well have fun with it. Besides, apparently these puzzles were meant for humans. So it was only fair I 'tested' them.

I walked ahead. I saw some frozen ponds ahead. It looked like they would be quite the slippery ice though. I saw a box. I opened it. I raised an eyebrow for a moment before closing it. It just had some gloves in there. With my paws on, I didn't need gloves.

I decided to move on. I was looking around. I saw some kind of… ah, Snowdrake talking to a… Chilldrake. The Snowdrake seemed to be making ice puns, and Chilldrake snickered at them.

They looked at me for a moment.

"Uh… hello?" I greeted a little unsure.

I hoped the monsters didn't pull me into a Fight, they would know really quickly I was human.

"Sup." Snowdrake greeted.

"Not her temperature." Chilldrake joked.

"Ooh, that's a good one! I'll need to write that down! Ice to meet you, puppy!" Snowdrake

I blinked, before I started laughing.

"Hah! Laughs! See, Dad!?" Snowdrake grinned. "Oh wait, he's not here… dang it!"

"I told you that you had talent," Chilldrake replied. "Your dad don't know nothing!"

"Yeah! … Uh… by the way, are you new here?" Snowdrake asked me.

"You could say that," I replied. "I just left Ruins."

"Ruins? There are still monsters living there?" Snowdrake asked.

"Oh yeah, there are. None of them had ever stepped outside of Ruins," I answered. "But I got tired of living with my parents, so I ran away." Which is technically true.

"Yeah! Standing up to the man!" Chilldrake approved. "I like you already."

"I feel you, I did the same with my dad. He just never appreciates my sense of humor and thinks I have no talent," Snowdrake huffed.

"That's pretty awful," I sympathized. "But hey, maybe this will help. Your own name is a pun too~"

"Oh?" Snowdrake asked. "What do you mean?"

"Think about how many puns you can pull from your name alone. A Snowdrake, you're a drake in snow. You can serve yourself up in a snowcone. You can't be a snowman, but you can be a Snowdrake~" I winked. "And there's snow problem a strong drake like you can't solve."

"... My mind has been expanded!" Snowdrake smiled, beaming.

I giggled before I walked on while Snowdrake began practicing his new puns to his friend.

I found a snowman at the top of a cliff. I approached the snowman. "Wow, whoever made this snowman had fine craftsmanship."

"Why, thank you," The snowman said.

I jumped back, not having expected a snowman to suddenly talk. Then again, rocks could talk, so maybe I shouldn't have been so surprised.

"What's wrong?" The snowman innocently asked.

"Ah… n-nothing. You just took me by surprise," I answered.

"My apologies, I don't mean to surprise people," The snowman apologized. "Most folks think I'm just a snowman made by some kids, but no, I'm a monster just like you."

"Ah, well hello there," I greeted.

"Nice to meet you," The snowman greeted. "Thank you again for saying my body was made with fine craftsmanship."

"Of course, you're the best snowman I've seen," I complimented.

"Am I the only snowman you've seen?~" The snowman chuckled.

Well… I did try to make a snowman when it snowed. It didn't turn out so well. I sweatdropped. "Well, in my defense, there isn't any snow in Ruins."

"Ahh, you gotta point," The snowman acknowledged. "The best you could make there is probably a stickman or a leafman."

"Yeah. At least since it's always cold here, you don't have to worry about melting," I remarked. Do snow monsters melt though? I'm very clueless on monster biology…

"You got a point," The snowman replied. "Though sadly the ground around me has frozen, so I'm not gonna be able to move from this spot till someone comes and frees me. Though it's not so bad. I got a really nice view."

"Oh… that's too bad." I frowned.

"Like I said, it's not so bad," The snowman said. "But hopefully someone can help me move soon. It'd be nice to explore. Maybe even see that sky over Snowdin that the Royal Scientist developed."

"A sky?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Yep. Apparently the Royal Scientist made a really advanced doohickey that makes it so there's a sky above Snowdin that matches the sky of the surface," The snowman explained. "Some kind of projection. Apparently it's the actual sky above too, not just a simulation. I think she and her assistant managed to get some kind of device through the barrier to take pictures of the sky."

That sounds really amazing. I thought to myself in awe. "Maybe these Royal Scientists might be able to invent something to help you."

"There's just the one Royal Scientist," The snowman confirmed. "Their assistant was the Royal Scientist for a while, but she stepped down to take an assistant role. As for helping me out, maybe. Though I wouldn't wanna bother the Royal Scientist, cause she's already working on so much."

"I'll at least try to mention it to her if I see her," I suggested.

"That's very thoughtful of you, but don't worry too much about me," The snowman chuckled. "You should get going now, little puppy. It's not good to stand out in the cold for too long, at least for non-snow and ice monsters."

"Thanks," I said. "It was nice talking to you."

"Same to you," The snowman warmly replied.

I continued on my way.

As I was walking through the snow, the cell phone I had suddenly started ringing. Huh… I brought my cell phone with me, but I didn't think I would get any calls down here.

Curious, I saw an unknown number on the caller ID. I answered the phone. If it was someone from the surface, I could maybe try to tell them to talk to the government about destroying Mt. Ebott… actually, unless they're royalty, they probably wouldn't be able to do that. Maybe I could at least get them to hand the phone to my sister.

"Hello?" I spoke.

"H-how's it going? Hopefully you didn't get swarmed in the MTT."

I blinked as I didn't recognize the voice, yet they were talking to me like they knew me. "Uh… I'm sorry? Who is this?"

"E-Eep!"

"Wait! No!" I tried to stop them from hanging up, but it was already too late. "Darn it! If they were on the surface it's too late now!"

I tried to look for their number to call them back, but it seemed to have somehow deleted itself. Or maybe my phone somehow hadn't saved it to the caller ID. Either way, I wasn't going to be able to reach that unknown caller. At least I knew my cell phone worked down here, but…

I tried to call my sister with my cell phone, but it went about as well as I expected. There was no service. Then who the heck just called me?

Well, I wasn't going to figure it out by standing here. I put my cell phone away in my pocket and continued to move on.

I eventually saw a clearing that was completely devoid of snow. I saw those two skeleton brothers, Sans and Papyrus, standing on the other side. I… didn't remember seeing Sans passing me by, so I was a little confused as to how he got there so fast. But maybe I just missed him, or he took another route that I didn't see.

"Woof!" I spoke up to get their attention. "Hey guys!"

"Ahh! Hello! This is the first puzzle!" Papyrus greeted. "It is an invisible shock maze!"

"I think you missed a part of the puzzle, bro," Sans remarked.

"Not to worry, Sans! I shall explain it all to them!" Papyrus said happily. "For you see, with this puzzle, if you hit a 'wall', you will be slightly shocked by this electric orb!"

Papyrus held up an orb with his gloved hand.

"But, bro…" Sans started to say.

"Not now, Sans! I'm in the middle of explaining!" Papyrus exclaimed, cutting off Sans. "Now then! Doesn't that sound like fun? Because I think the amount of fun you'll have with this puzzle… is actually a small amount. I turned down the shock level since you've kindly volunteered though. At most, it will feel like a static shock. You understood all that?"

"Uh… yeah, but…" I began to ask.

"Okay, proceed forward then!" Papyrus smiled.

I walked a little forward. "But you-"

Even though I hadn't stepped into the maze yet, Papyrus suddenly jumped like he was shocked by something.

"Sans! What did you do!?" Papyrus yelled.

"Sorry," Sans said as he seemed to be leaning up against something. He stood up straight, ending the shocked state Papyrus was in. "Though, bro, why are you reacting like you got shocked? Shouldn't the kid be the one getting shocked?"

"That's right! Why was I the one being shocked!? What a mystery!" Papyrus said as he gave a thoughtful look.

"Yeah, what a shocking mystery~" Sans snickered.

"Uh… Papyrus, shouldn't the one holding the orb be the one going through the maze?" I pointed out.

"Ah! A brilliant deduction there, puppy!" Papyrus grinned. "Give me a second to get the orb to you…"

I watched as Papyrus walked through the maze. He left some rather obvious footprints as he did, which was amazing considering the area didn't have any snow on it.

"Now then, proceed pup- I mean… "Human"!" Papyrus ordered, using very obvious air quotes on the word 'human'.

For a moment I was a little scared he found out, until I realized he was playing along with the roleplay of me being 'human'... even though I am human… I took the orb before Papyrus ran back to the otherside, following the footprints he left behind.

With the orb in hand, I walked along the footprints. Just to be nice though, I stepped over to one of the 'walls'. Papyrus did say the shock wouldn't really hurt me. The orb gave me a small jolt. It made me flinch, but it was no worse than static electricity, like Papyrus said.

"Ouch. Got me that time," I said.

I 'accidentally' bumped into a few more walls before I finally made it to the end of the maze.

"Whew, that was quite tricky, but somehow I made it with only a few shocks," I said as I gave the orb back to Papyrus.

"So on a scale of 1 to 3, how would you rate the first trap?" Papyrus questioned as he pulled out a little booklet. "Is it a fitting first trap?"

"Uh… I'd say a 2. You might want to work on giving the orb to the human before going through the maze," I answered. "In fact, maybe you can make it so the maze entrance only opens once the human picks up the orb on this side?"

"Oh, that is a good suggestion!" Papyrus acknowledged before writing that down. "Are there any other ways you can think to improve the trap?"

"I'd say keep the jolt on low, since you want to catch the human, not fry them," I stated. "And maybe give them hints on how to get through the invisible maze. After all, a maze isn't that fun if you don't have an inkling on where to go without trial and error. I was just lucky."

"Hmmm…" Papyrus mumbled.

"Could you possibly make it so that until the orb is picked up, the maze is visible? So it challenges the human's memory?" I offered.

"Ah-ha! That is brilliant! You are one smart pup- I mean "Human"! Almost as brilliant as me! Nyeh heh heh heh!" Papyrus beamed. "You see, Sans? We could use more help like her~ Although I may need to talk to the Royal Scientist to help make that possible…"

"You could talk to one of the Royal Trap Makers instead," Sans suggested. "That way you don't need to bother the Royal Scientist."

There are Royal Trap Makers? I sweatdropped.

"Yeah, but they always want to chase after one of my bones for one of their traps…" Papyrus grumbled.

"I was talking about that bird one," Sans corrected.

"Oh yeah, she's stationed in the outskirts, isn't she?" Papyrus remembered.

"I think the lower Snowdin path," Sans answered. "She made all the traps there."

"Ahem…" I cleared my throat. "Hey guys, remember, a 'human' is here. Isn't it time to move on to the next puzzle?"

"R-right!" Papyrus loudly acknowledged. "Keep moving forward, "Human"! The next puzzle is one designed by my brother and knowing him! … … … It will be a complete and utter letdown…"

"Come on, bro, give me some credit. I've worked myself to the bone for the puzzle up ahead," Sans replied.

"Oh really?" Papyrus looked happy. "Then this next puzzle will surely confound you, "Human"!"

"Looking forward to it," I chuckled.

"Nyeh, heh, heh~" Papyrus laughed before he… moved backwards.

I raised an eyebrow, but laughed at how funny that looked.

"Yeah… when he gets excited… the laws of physics don't stand a chance…" Sans muttered with a chuckle.

Papyrus seemed like an excited child, even more than I was. I was enjoying hearing what he had to say next.

"By the way, you saw that weird outfit of his?" Sans asked.

"Oh yeah, I've been meaning to ask about that," I replied. "Is he supposed to be dressed like some kind of superhero?"

"Actually we made that a few weeks ago for a costume party that was being held by Undyne… a friend of our's. She was hoping to throw a party in one of the labs to help get her two favorite people to open up more. Though it was just me and Papyrus who showed up, and Undyne of course," Sans chuckled. "She says she wants to try again, but needs to work on her plans."

"Wow, sounds like it was a rough party," I said.

"Nah, it was fun. We enjoyed some bad cartoons, some bad food, even Papyrus was able to just hang loose." Sans grinned, though he seemed to always be grinning. "Though ever since then, Papyrus hasn't taken off that costume. He's been calling it his 'battle body'. Could be because Undyne said it looked as cool as her battle armor."

"... He does at least wash it, right?" I asked, a little disturbed at the fact Papyrus wore that thing for a few weeks at least.

"Yup, when he goes to shower~" Sans winked.

I couldn't stop laughing after that. I had only known Papyrus for like… 10 or so minutes, and I could already easily imagine him standing in the shower, singing a tune, while wearing that outfit.

"I've been thinking of asking Undyne to arrange a sleepover, just so Papyrus has to change into pajamas," Sans stated. "Although, knowing Papyrus, he would find a way to keep it on. But at any rate, I'll see you at the next puzzle. It's gonna be a doozy one, kid~"

Sans stood there, he didn't walk. I raised an eyebrow, but he seemed content with just standing there. Well, I guess he would move once he was ready. I walked on ahead.

I stopped when I saw a blue furred rabbit monster. He was quite tall, and he wore a bright yellow shirt with red vertical stripes, and bright red pants. He had one of those visors, he looked rather troubled by something.

"I don't get it… this temperature is perfect for something cold…" The blue rabbit muttered.

I walked up to him. I saw he was leaning on a cart, with a cute bright red and yellow umbrella.

"Sup, kiddo, want some Nice Cream?" The blue rabbit monster greeted when he saw me. "It's the frozen treat that warms your heart. It's only 15 gold."

It was cold, and I didn't really want something cold to eat. But I also felt kind of bad for him, seeing how he wasn't getting much business. Besides, I wouldn't mind trying this Nice Cream out, it sounded tasty.

"Give me a sec," I requested before I took off my backpack.

I unzipped one of the smaller pockets and took out a bag. I kept the gold the monsters had given me in Ruins when I spared them. Flowey also gave me some extra gold before I left, just to make sure I had some money on the road. I had about 250 gold in total.

I took out 15 gold coins, leaving me with… 235 gold left. I put the bag back into my backpack, zipped it up, and pulled the backpack back onto my shoulders.

"Here you go, sir," I said as I politely handed him the 15 gold coins.

"Thank you!" The rabbit monster gratefully said before he reached into the cart and pulled out a wrapped ice cream. "Here is your Nice Cream! Hope you have a wonderful day!"

"Thank you." I smiled as I took the Nice Cream, which was wrapped up in a cute, blue paper that had the picture of an ice cream on it. "By the way, sir, if you want more business… I've heard most people like eating cold treats when it's hot."

I remember enjoying things like cold lemonade and ice cream when it was summer. Maybe there's a hot place in the Underground he could go to better sell his Nice Creams. I thought to myself. But then again… maybe monsters are different? Maybe they prefer cold things in the cold? … Well, if that was the case, he'd have more business, right?

"Hmmm… that's a good point. Maybe I'll set up near the Hot Spring Baths," The Nice Cream salesbunny said. "Thanks, kid, I'll see if that'll help my business."

"Good luck." I smiled to him before I walked on.

I wonder, should I eat this Nice Cream now before it melts? I questioned. Flowey said monster food didn't spoil, but could they melt? Well, I guess I'll have to see, because I would rather not eat it right now. Ah, but I should check it first.

I opened up the menu and selected 'Check' on the Nice Cream.

"Nice Cream" Heals 15 HP

Instead of a joke, the wrapper says something nice.

Oh hey, there's some flavor text.

I put the Nice Cream into my backpack.

I soon bumped into Sans again. He was wearing a visor too. There was a snow poff next to him that looked like a snow version of the Nice Cream salesbunny's cart, including the umbrella.

Did Sans make that? I questioned.

"Hey, Sans… I don't think this is the puzzle, is it?" I asked.

"Nope! This is my shaved ice cart. Sadly I don't have any flavor syrups right now," Sans answered. "In the meantime, I'm thinking about selling some treats too. Wanna buy some fried snow? Only 5 gold."

"Uh… sure?" I answered, I wasn't against trying new things here.

"Did I say 5 gold? I meant 50 gold," Sans said, raising the price suddenly.

"... Yes," I replied to see what he would do.

"Really? How about 500 gold?" Sans grinned… well, grinned more.

Even though I didn't have enough, I wanted to keep going. "Yes."

"50,000 gold, that's my final offer," Sans said.

"I'd take it," I replied. "But I don't have the money for such expensive, high quality, amazing, rare snow."

"You don't have the money, huh? Well, that's okay. I don't have any snow~" Sans winked.

I looked down at the snow that was literally all around us. "... Yeah, you totally can't find any here."

"Like I said, this is shaved ice," Sans chuckled while motioning towards the cart. "Anyways, Paps is waiting for you ahead."

"Okay," I said. "Good luck on your… sales."

I walked forward. I found a large snowball along the way, there was a hole down the path. I started to push the snowball. It was surprisingly really light. Though it bounced off of the snow whenever I accidentally got it too far from the path. The snowball got smaller and smaller. I slipped on some ice trying to get the melting snowball into the hole. After some effort, I got the snowball into the hole, and a purple flag came up from it.

"Wah?" I questioned.

2 gold coins came out of the hole. I walked over to the coins and picked them up. "Wow… that was… worth it, I think."

I guess it's not every day I get paid just for playing a game. I chuckled to myself.

I kept moving forward. Sans mentioned Papyrus was waiting up ahead, but Sans was still standing near that snow poff. I raised an eyebrow, wondering if he wasn't going to be there when I got to his puzzle. I shrugged and moved ahead.

As soon as I did, I saw a piece of paper lying on the road. Papyrus and… Sans… were standing on the other side of the piece of paper.

Uh… wait… what? How did Sans beat me here? I literally just saw him before I walked over here. I blinked, feeling a little confused.

"You can only pass if you solve that puzzle," Sans informed.

"So, "Human"! I hope you're ready for…" Papyrus began before he looked at the piece of paper.

Papyrus gasped. "Is this… JUNIOR JUMBLE?! Brother!? How could you put out such an impossible puzzle?!"

I raised an eyebrow, wondering if they were actually serious. I was expecting a physical puzzle, not a… written one. I walked towards the paper and picked it up to look over it.

I squinted my eyes a little. I was able to read monster writing, but… for some reason, some of the words were harder to make out now.

"Um…" I began.

"Wait! Sans, they can't solve it! They don't have a pencil!" Papyrus spoke up. "It's double impossible!"

"Oh, you think so?" Sans replied.

"Uh…" I tried to circle some of the words I found with my nail, but my hands were covered with the paw gloves that didn't seem to have any actual claws on them.

I turned the paper over and walked over to Papyrus and Sans.

"I don't have a pencil…" I said, even though Papyrus just said that too.

"That's okay, "Human"! I think I can let you pass, since my brother put out an impossible to solve puzzle." Papyrus gave a bit of a glare to his shorter brother with his eye sockets. "We're supposed to be fair, Sans! The puzzles need to be solvable!"

"Whoops, my bad, guess I should've brought out the crossword puzzle instead," Sans chuckled.

"That would've been better," Papyrus agreed. "However we would need to ensure there's a supply of pencils nearby so the puzzles can be solved!"

"Aren't crosswords harder than junior jumble though?" I asked.

Sans held up a finger to his smiling mouth.

"Ah, nevermind, I was thinking of… something else," I quickly amended.

"There's nothing more difficult than junior jumbles!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Yeah, junior jumbles is very difficult, there was no way I could solve it," I agreed. Especially if I lose the ability to read monster writing…

"Nyeh, heh, heh, heh! You must be a very intelligent "human" then! I'll see you at the next puzzle~" Papyrus grinned. "And I'll make sure this one is actually solvable!"

With those words said, Papyrus moved on ahead, this time without breaking the laws of physics. A part of me was a little disappointed that he didn't.

"Thanks for saying junior jumbles was hard to appease my brother," Sans said gratefully. "He's always struggled at them, and stubbornly refuses to accept help."

"But why does he think crosswords are easier?" I asked.

"He mostly fills them in with Zs," Sans chuckled.

"Uhhh… that's not how crosswords work," I replied, raising an eyebrow.

"He doesn't know that." Sans laughed.

"Oh… he's such… an innocent soul," I chuckled.

"Yep." Sans nodded in agreement. "Anyways, best not keep Paps waiting."

"Right," I said.

I thought about asking Sans how he beat me here, but I decided not to and kept going.

"Oh, one more thing," Sans spoke up. "Just in case you run into it… or if you ever had to fight Papyrus for whatever reason, you should know about blue attacks."

"Blue attacks?" I asked. All attacks I've seen so far had been white. Except for when Flowey turned his pellets green.

"Yeah, when you see a blue attack, you stay still and it'll pass right by you," Sans answered. "It's like… well, I was gonna mention blue stop signs, but eh, that feels outdated. So instead, think of a giant, flesh eating lizard with huge teeth that can't see you if you don't move. Imagine that's a blue giant lizard. When you see the blue giant lizard, don't move."

Is he… referencing that famous dinosaur movie? Triassic something… Triassic Grotto, I think. I blinked, surprised. "Uh, well okay then. Thanks for letting me know about blue attacks."

"You're welcome." Sans smiled.

I moved on ahead, and saw another stand… or maybe station. I saw a sign next to it. I tried to read it.

"Absolutely no moving!"

I raised an eyebrow. What a weird thing to write. If one couldn't move, they wouldn't be able to get to the other side. I ignored the absurd sign and kept walking. Suddenly something popped up from the station.

"Is something there? Something moving?"

I frowned as I looked at the new monster. I was surprised to see it was a dog monster, the first one I had seen.

"Was it my imagination?" The dog monster questioned, shifting his eyes around.

He looked like a humanoid dog, his fur was mainly white, he had black ears. He wore a pink sleeveless shirt from what I could see, and he… had a red bone-like thing sticking out of his mouth.

"If something was moving, like say a human… I'll make sure to pin them down!" The dog growled as he jumped out of his station and stood in front of me. He took out two swords.

I was taken by surprise when my Soul suddenly came out of me.

"Wah!? W-wait!" I called out.

"A human Soul! I knew it!" The dog… apparently his name was 'Doggo', said. "There is a human here!"

I was suddenly in the attack field. Then I saw a blue sword coming at me. I was about to move away when I remembered what Sans said about blue attacks. I hoped he was telling the truth. I stopped moving and braced myself. The blue sword went through me, and I was perfectly fine.

"Huh… wait… where did the human go?" Doggo questioned, moving his eyes around like he was trying to find something, even though I hadn't moved.

I'm right in front of him, how can he not see me? I questioned. … Can… he… only see things that move?

It was my turn. I chose to Act, and Check Doggo.

Doggo- 13 ATK 7 DEF

Easily excited by movement

Hobbies included: Squirrels

I raised an eyebrow at the description. A random thing to say about the hobby part. Glad there wasn't a squirrel costume instead of this dog one.

"I know there's someone here!" Doggo shouted.

Once again, he had a blue sword try to hit me, but I stayed still.

"Hmm… maybe I was imagining it after all?" Doggo frowned, sounding grumpy and confused. "Or are those skeletons messing with me again?"

I had this urge to pet Doggo. I had a dog once… a very precious dog… I wasn't sure if a dog petting a dog was weird, but he didn't seem to notice my costume, just my Soul.

When it was my turn, I went over to Act. I immediately chose 'Pet'. Somehow, I was able to sneak up on Doggo and started petting him.

"Pet? Pet! Pet? PET!? Pet? Pet!?" Doggo yapped as he looked around in confusion.

I wanted to laugh at Doggo's reaction. He tried to attack me in the attack field, but it was still just a blue sword, so I kept still.

"I've been pet!?" Doggo questioned.

I giggled and pet him again, even though his name was yellow now.

"W-where's that coming from!?" Doggo shouted in confusion.

I decided to pet him one more time, just for giggles.

"T-there's no end to it!" Doggo whined.

Alright, I guess that's enough. I giggled before I chose the 'Spare' option, ending the Fight.

I ended up with 30 gold from that fight.

"S-s-something pet me… something that… wasn't even moving! I'm gonna need more dog treats for this!" Doggo woofed before he sank back down into his station. I heard the click of a lighter before seeing some smoke coming up from behind the desk.

Wait… is he smoking… dog treats? I questioned. … You know what? I shouldn't be asking…

I decided to leave Doggo alone to his… dog treats, and continue on.

I saw two more stations, side by side. There were a few signs here. One of the signs said 'His', the other sign said 'Her'. At least they were… simple. The sign in the middle was more interesting.

"Smell danger rating…" I squinted my eyes, trying to read the sign. "Snow smell - snowman, white rating. Can become yellow rating- Eeew… Unsuspicious smell - puppy, blue rating. Smell of rolling around. Weird smell - human, green rating. Must capture at all costs!"

Wow, if I didn't know that humans were meant to be taken to the royals, I would've thought these guys were out for human blood or something. Still, this might be a good sign to keep in mind…

I continued onward. I came up to something interesting. There was a note, a table with a plate of spaghetti next to the note, and another table with a microwave next to the table with the plate of spaghetti, that was next to the note. I raised an eyebrow at this before I walked over to the note to read it.

"Human (wink wink)", please enjoy this spaghetti! (Little do you know, this spaghetti is a trap…)

I stopped reading for a moment. Did he poison it? That doesn't seem like something he'd do, or want to do, or should be doing considering the royal's orders not to harm the humans.

I continued reading before realizing the 'trap' made more sense. (Designed to entice you! You'll be so busy eating it that you won't realize you haven't been progressing. Thoroughly japed again by the Great Papyrus!) Nyeh, heh, heh, heh! - Papyrus.

"Oh, Papyrus, you are such a lovable goofball." I smiled.

I walked over to the spaghetti. The spaghetti looked to be… frozen. I tried to touch the spaghetti, but it was hard and ice cold. There was no way I was going to be able to eat it like this. But… there was a microwave nearby. I walked over to it.

The microwave… was unplugged… so it wasn't going to work. Not only that, but for some reason all the settings on the microwave read 'spaghetti'. I think Papyrus has a weird obsession with spaghetti…

Well, since I couldn't heat up the spaghetti, or eat it, I decided to leave it there and move on.

I stopped, however, when I saw two monsters ahead. One of them was… ah, an Ice Cap. They had a beautiful golden pointy ice hat on their head. The other monster was…

I suddenly had this strange, irritated feeling when I looked at the other monster… one name came to mind… it was Jerry. I had never met him before, but one look at Jerry made me feel really irritated for some reason.

"Please look at my beautiful hat! Do you know what I went through to get this sparkly gold to stand out from the rest of my siblings!?" Ice Cap shouted at Jerry, who wasn't even paying attention.

"Dude, I don't care, your cap kinda sucks," Jerry replied.

"Yeah, well your games suck! And so do your livestreams!" Ice Cap shouted back. "Everyone agrees! My hat is so much better than you!"

The Ice Cap then saw me. "You! Puppy! You agree, don't you? That my cap is the best?"

"Uhh…" I blinked, not wanting to make the Ice Cap mad and potentially pull me into a Fight, I answered. "Yeah, it's lovely, very sparkly and shiny."

"See! Everyone agrees!" Ice Cap shouted at Jerry.

"You guys just suck," Jerry shrugged.

"... Let's just ditch this guy," I suggested, not even wanting to try to talk to someone like Jerry.

"Agreed," Ice Cap said before he began to walk away from Jerry.

"Whatever, this place is boring anyway, and so are you two," Jerry grumbled as we walked away from him.

When we got far enough away from Jerry, Ice Cap decided to talk to me.

"Do you really think my cap is amazing?" Ice Cap asked. "Or… were you just saying that to show Jerry how much he sucks?"

"I think your cap is definitely amazing. I've never seen one shimmering as fancy as yours," I said honestly.

"It took a lot of work to get it this sparkly!" Ice Cap proudly declared.

"I heard you said you had siblings?" I asked.

"Yeah, they've got hats as well. Though a few of them have yet to get their caps," Ice Cap answered. "An Ice Cap without a cap is like… just ice. It's horrifying."

I looked around, seeing more Ice Caps dancing around happily, showing off their hats to everyone they came across. I saw a blue one, a red one, and a green one. They were nice looking, but the golden one next to me had a certain sheen to him that the others lacked.

"I'll say that yours is definitely the shiniest one," I admitted.

"Thanks! I've worked hard to make sure I stand out from my siblings." Ice Cap smiled.

"But you know, it might be good to also just be yourself rather than trying to be the one to stand out," I said. "Sometimes trying to stand out makes it difficult for others to approach you. Even if you were just ice, I think it's nice just being able to talk to you."

"You're just saying that…" Ice Cap replied in an unsure tone.

"Heh, well I've spoken with a plain looking snowman, and we had a nice conversation," I said. "I also helped Snowdrake with his puns, and he was considered a failure by his dad. Perhaps you could also help your non-capped siblings by encouraging them? I'm sure they wouldn't mind their identity as much if you did, especially since you're the most stand out Ice Cap."

"B-but… doing that… would mean giving up my beautiful, glistening cap…" Ice Cap hesitantly pointed out.

"Why would you have to give it up?" I asked.

"Cause… they'd only accept help from Ice, not Ice Cap," Ice Cap explained.

"Then think about it like this, you were able to get a gold cap once, you could do it again. And this way, you can help your siblings either become Ice Caps too or help them realize they don't need to be to just love themselves," I replied. "You can show your siblings you're not afraid to just be yourself, especially since you were able to get the best cap of them all already."

"Do you really think so?" Ice Cap questioned.

"Of course. I mean look at me, I'm a dog with a furless face," I pointed out.

"True…" Ice Cap remarked. "Alright then. I'll… I'll try it."

I was surprised when Ice Cap removed their golden hat, they suddenly turned into an ice cube. I… hadn't expected that. I thought they would look the same, just without the hat.

"H-how… do I look?" Ice Cap… or… just Ice, asked.

I quickly covered up my shocked expression with a smile, and gave them a thumbs up. "You still look great. In fact, you look very cool~"

"Really? I'm still cool without my cap?" Ice questioned, still sounding a bit nervous.

"Of course. You can always put the cap back on later, right?" I asked, seeing how the golden hat was laying next to Ice. "So go ahead and show you're not afraid to just be yourself to your siblings. Being yourself is more valuable than any sparkly hat."

"Alright, I'll try… but… could you hold the cap?" Ice requested. "I'd rather not just leave it lying around for someone else to find."

"Okay, I'll hold onto it for you," I replied.

I picked up the golden cap… and it melted in my paw gloves. I was… not happy when I saw that.

"Oh! Oh no! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to melt it! I didn't know it was going to melt!" I apologized. "I-I'll try to find another cap for you!"

"It's fine," Ice chuckled. "I knew it would melt. I just didn't want my other siblings taking it. Besides, now your paws have a cute gold sheen to it. Like you got glitter in your fur. It makes you look fancy."

"Oh… well, thanks, I guess?" I replied, looking at my paws and fur, they did indeed look a little shinier.

"Thanks. I'll talk to my siblings now," Ice said.

"Good luck," I replied as Ice slid away. Huh… just be yourself, huh? If only I could take my own advice. I only knew what to say because I saw characters in anime say that before…

I decided to continue onward. I saw another station, and a blue feathered, anthropomorphic bird person leaning against it. She looked tired.

"Whew… made it. Not a minute late this time!" The bird monster sighed in relief. "I wouldn't want to be late on the first day of my new position! … Though… why did they shift around the sentry rotation, anyway? I thought we only did that if there was a human sighting… But I haven't heard of any sightings. Could we simply be running through a drill? I think I read about drills in the handbook."

I raised an eyebrow, wondering if this was who Sans and Papyrus were talking about earlier, about a Royal Trap Maker.

As if she just noticed me, she let out a gasp. "Oh! A cute puppy! Let me pet you!"

She came over and stopped just before me. "Sorry, I should ask if I can pet you before I pet you. So, can I pet you?"

"You like petting dogs?" I asked. Doggo seemed to react pretty cutely when I pet him, so maybe dog monsters like being pet?

"Of course! The feeling of dog fur on my feathers is amazing and dogs seem to like it too!" The bird excitedly explained.

"Well, I'm new around here, I just left Ruins," I explained. "So I'm a little pet shy right now." I rather not have someone mess up my hair and costume. But I guess I'll have to let someone pet me sooner or later, or they'll get suspicious.

"Oh, okay. Well I'm glad I remembered to ask then." The bird smiled. "My name's Martlet, by the way. I'm a member of the Royal Guard and I normally work the lower Snowdin route."

"I've heard about the lower Snowdin route from Papyrus," I noted. "Are you a Royal Trap Maker?"

"I am," Martlet confirmed. "One of the many skilled trap craftsmen. Not all Royal Trap Makers are part of the Royal Guard, mind you. And it was a very tough choice to become a Royal Trap Maker. The other option was trying out to become a member of the guards assigned to the Royal Family."

"I've heard Papyrus wants that job," I remarked. I know Kris…

I shook my head from that thought. "Is it a bad job?"

"No, not at all," Martlet answered. "It's simply very demanding. One can't let their guard down for even a moment if they are assigned to the Royal Family. Additionally, one member of the Royal Family reportedly needs someone to help make sure they take care of themselves."

"Really?" I blinked. "I would think they would have a servant or something to do that already."

"You'd think," Martlet chuckled. "But apparently she's quite stubborn when it comes to that stuff."

"Wow, I never heard of someone from royalty not wanting a servant at all," I said, genuinely surprised.

"Yeah, it's definitely not what I expected," Martlet chuckled. "Though I got to become a certified trap maker instead, which definitely makes me happy. Of course, a part of me still wonders what it would've been like had I tried to become a member of the guard assigned to the Royal Family."

"Hmm, well, it might be good you chose something you'd prefer, even if you think it would've been better to go for the higher paying job…" I said softly. "... And, uh, Papyrus wants to talk to you about some of his puzzles later."

"Hmm? I guess I could spare time for the kid," Martlet replied. "I've heard from Undyne that he really wants to become a Royal Guard member some day."

Kid? I know Papyrus can be childish, but is he actually a kid? I wondered. And Sans mentioned Undyne is their friend, but I don't really know much about her. Apparently she's part of the Royal Guard, maybe a high positioned one from what I'm hearing.

"Great, I'm sure he'll be happy to talk to you about fixing or tweaking some of his puzzles," I chuckled. "Speaking of which, I should get going. Papyrus is waiting for me. I'm helping with testing out his puzzles."

"Good luck, puppy!" Martlet happily responded.

"Thanks, it was nice talking to you, Martlet," I replied back as I waved to her.

I continued on, and saw a sign. I read it.

"Warning, Dog Marriage."

"... Wait… what?" I blinked.

"Yes, you read that correctly."

"Huh…?" I blinked, feeling like that thought hadn't been my own, but I couldn't quite confirm that.

Maybe the cold was starting to get to me. I walked on. I came to a bridge, and stopped in an open area. Two dog monsters approached me. They were wearing black cloaks, and were carrying… quite frankly, terrifyingly huge axes in their paws.

B-but this is fine, right? After all, they have no reason to attack a fellow puppy, right? … Wait, if those axes were meant for humans, then isn't that kinda going against the law of capturing a human harmlessly? I sweatdropped. Maybe they're more… combat soldiers than the capturing unit?

They both stopped as they were passing me.

"What's that smell?" I heard one of them say in a masculine voice.

Dogamy.

"What's that smell?" The other one asked the same question in a feminine voice.

Dogaressa.

"If you're a smell…" Dogamy began.

"Then identify yoursmelf!" Dogaressa demanded.

Greeeeeat, more blind dogs… I groaned.

Both of them ran in circles around me for a moment. Then they got close to me and started sniffing me.

"H-hey! A little personal space here!" I spoke up, trying to push their snouts away from me.

"Human? No? Dog? No? Smell… Ice Cap? But… not bragging about cap." Dogamy frowned.

"What is this… strange creature? Not a human, not a dog, not an Ice Cap…" Dogaressa remarked. "We… we must eliminate this potential threat!"

"... Crap…" I hissed.

I was pulled into a Fight. Despite my Soul being right in front of them, they still couldn't tell what I was. But they did pull down their hoodies, and started… nose nuzzling each other.

I looked at my Act options. I had a few here. First, I had to choose between Dogamy and Dogaressa. I selected Dogamy first. I could Check, Pet, Re-Sniff, and Roll Around. I decided to check. Not for the stats, but for any hints about how to spare him and Dogaressa.

"Dogamy- ATK 14 DEF 5. Husband of Dogaressa. Knows only what he smells."

"We were No. 2 of the nose nuzzling competition last year!" Dogamy bragged.

"Sadly we were only able to come in second place," Dogaressa sighed.

I wondered who came first then.

Suddenly, in the attack field, I saw two white little pomeranian dogs on each side. The dog on the left sended out circles of white and blue hearts. It was too difficult to try to squeeze between these hearts, but it looked like the blue ones counted as a blue attack. So I tried to time my movement over the blue hearts, but I moved a little too early and got damaged. I took 3 hits, so now I was down to 17 HP.

I decided to check Dogaressa next.

"Dogaressa- 14 ATK 5 DEF. This puppy finds her hubby lovely. SMELLS ONLY?"

Yeah, apparently they really are blind and can only identify smells… And I had at least 3 different smells on me, no wonder they were confused.

"Don't touch my hot dog!" Dogamy barked.

"He means me, of course~" Dogaressa smiled.

In the attack field, I saw two large axes taking up most of the room. I yelped as I tried to move, but I was caught by surprise and got hit. I lost 3 more health. I was now down to 14 HP.

Okay… don't panic, there's gotta be something I can… I looked at the Act and saw the 'Roll Around' option.

That was an odd option to have, until I remembered what that sign said about the smell ratings. The smell of a puppy was when someone rolled around.

I quickly chose the 'Roll Around' option. I then rolled around in the snow, hoping to cover up any other smell I had on me to smell more like an innocent puppy.

After I was done, the two dogs hesitated.

"Something smells different…" Dogamy said.

"We may need to re-sniff you," Dogaressa noted.

Though that didn't stop them from attacking me again. Though this time I was better prepared. The two white pomeranians were standing at the edge of the field, blowing out the circle of hearts once more. I did a better job at not getting hit by the blue hearts.

When it was my turn, I chose the 'Re-sniff' option. "Please sniff me again."

The dogs both got close and sniffed me again.

"What's this?" Dogamy questioned.

"D-did we attack a puppy?!" Dogaressa asked in shock and horror.

They didn't attack me this time, but the Fight wasn't over yet. They were hesitating, but they weren't completely convinced. Well… since petting worked so well on the last dog monster…

I grinned as I chose the Act option. I decided to do Dogaressa first, since she seemed the most shaken up right now, and Pet her.

I went up to Dogaressa and started petting her.

"W-wow!" Dogaressa yipped. "A dog that pets dogs? That's amazing!"

"Is that legal?" Dogamy questioned before whining a little. "W-wait, what about meeeeee?!"

"Oh, don't worry, you're next~" I winked, even if he couldn't see it.

I selected Act again, and this time I chose to Pet Dogamy. "Who's a good boy? Who's a good royal guard boy?"

"This is amazing! Pet by another pup!" Dogamy smiled as his tail wagged.

"Our world has been expanded!" Dogaressa smiled as well.

It looked like that did it. I saw both of their names were yellow. I was about to Spare them…

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a pair of bones flew into the battle, hitting Dogamy and Dogaressa on the head.

"Bad dogs," A familiar voice scolded. "You can't just attack a smell you can identify! Do you remember how many monsters have filed complaints with the King and Queen because you attacked them for not recognizing their scents?"

The two dogs whimpered.

"B-but Sans… we were trained to fight against scents we don't recognize!" Dogamy whined.

"You were trained to subdue scents you don't recognize, not eliminate them," Sans explained as he showed up. "If you two keep confusing your jobs for detergents… then perhaps you'll both need retraining."

"N-no, no we don't! Really, we're good dogs! We were just… overexcited! It's been so long since we got to really do anything!" Dogaressa quickly said.

"And because of that, you guys double teamed a kid who just left the Ruins earlier today," Sans informed.

"W-we didn't know they were a lost puppy…" Dogamy whined.

"We wouldn't have attacked them if we knew…" Dogaressa also whined.

Sans let out a sigh. "You guys… take the rest of the day off. If you do that, then I'll acknowledge you're good dogs."

"Thank you, Sans! You're too kind," Dogamy said gratefully.

"Yeah, please don't stop feeding us scraps!" Dogaressa quickly said.

"I'll think about it. Just don't forget to pay the puppy you attacked to at least make it up to them," Sans replied.

The two dogs came over to me, and just gave me 40 gold coins.

"Sorry for attacking you, weird puppy. But we'll try to be more careful next time," Dogaressa apologized.

"And you also helped expand our world, and for that we thank you." Dogamy smiled.

"Sure, I'm glad we could work things out," I chuckled before both of them left.

I looked at Sans. "Thanks for coming in, though I could've used your help sooner."

"Sorry, kid," Sans apologized. "But by the looks of things, you had things handled."

"You wanted me to pet them?" I asked.

"Well, if they think dogs can pet other dogs, maybe they can start petting each other, and maybe win the next nuzzling competition," Sans chuckled.

"Oh yeah, who won that competition?" I asked curiously.

"Old fluffybuns and his pun loving wife," Sans replied.

"... You do know that I don't know who those are, right?" I deadpanned.

"You'll figure it out eventually," Sans chuckled. "You're not too far from Snowdin now, you just got the little fluffball and big boy and the rest of Papyrus's puzzles. Since you're not used to time in the Underground, I should tell you that it's close to noon right now."

"Thanks. But, uh… are there any more blind dogs I need to be worried about?" I asked.

"Nah, just the playful ones," Sans snickered. "Go on ahead, I'll catch up with ya."

"Right," I said, knowing Sans somehow always gets ahead of me.

I continued onward. I saw Papyrus in the next area, seeming to be contemplating something. There were two blue Xs on the snow, and a big pressure plate that looked like a giant button on the ground. There was also a sign.

I walked towards Papyrus.

"Woof!" I barked.

"Hello, "Human"!" Papyrus greeted in response.

"Hey, so I made it past some of the dog guards," I said. "I take it that this is the next puzzle I have to solve?"

"But of course! But… how did you escape the last trap?" Papyrus asked. "And more importantly… is there any left for me?"

It took me a moment to realize what Papyrus was talking about. He must've meant that spaghetti 'trap'. I tried to think of how to answer him.

"Umm…" I hesitated before giving him a smile. "I ate it. I'm a… fast eater."

"Was it good?!" Papyrus excitedly asked.

"It was… definitely… cool," I answered. As in ice cold…

"Wowie! Nobody's ever enjoyed my cooking before!" Papyrus smiled happily. "I offered to make some food for the costume party, but Alphys very loudly declined! I guess she prefers ramen over spaghetti, which is absurd, ramen is just spaghetti without the marinara sauce!"

I decided not to tell him how wrong that was.

"Well, I, Chef Papyrus, will make you all the pasta you can eat once we're done here! As thanks for helping out with the puzzles!" Papyrus proudly stated.

I shivered at that. "N-no need for that, Papyrus… really…"

"Don't think anything of it!" Papyrus beamed. "A young pup like you should eat up so you can grow strong! Besides, by the time we're in Snowdin, it should be lunch time!"

Why did I lie to him? I inwardly groaned.

"Anyways, this puzzle should be simple for you. I'll wait for you at the next puzzle. Nyeh, heh, heh~" Papyrus laughed before heading to the next area.

I looked at the sign. 'Turn the X to Os, then press the switch.'

Okay, that was simple enough. I walked onto the X, turning them into red Os. Then I stepped onto the pressure plate. The Os turned into green check marks. I raised an eyebrow at that, but decided it wasn't worth questioning as I moved on to the next room.

I saw Papyrus standing there, and he looked a little flustered.

"Is everything alright, Papyrus?" I asked.

"I uh…" Papyrus hesitated. "Admittedly… I may have… messed up the puzzle a little. The puzzle should still be solvable, but… the previous solution is no longer possible. I shouldn't have tried to rearrange the snow, but who knew frozen snow would be so impossible to move?"

I looked at the puzzle. There were a lot more Xs now. The frozen snow on the ground made this look… complicated.

I tried to go across, but I noticed if I stepped on an O, it turned into a green triangle, completely messing up the puzzle.

Papyrus told me to just step on the switch to reset the puzzle. Which I did.

I spent a good several minutes trying to solve this puzzle, and I was starting to get frustrated.

"Would you like some help?" Papyrus asked.

"You'll definitely need to talk to Martlet later about this one…" I grumbled. "And get rid of the frozen snow."

"Oh? Did you meet the legendary Martlet?!" Papyrus questioned.

"Legendary?" I asked. "I met with… a Martlet. Apparently she had a job rotation or something that brought her up here." Was she really considered a legend, or is that Papyrus just overexaggerating? She was nice, but she didn't seem like a legendary person.

"She's nearby?!" Papyrus asked, even more excited. "I must go meet her later! Maybe I can even get her autograph! No, Papyrus, focus on the puzzle! Right, you wanted help, yes?"

"Yeah, maybe a little," I sighed. Truth be told, I was never very good at decently challenging puzzles…

"Very well. Then… there may or may not be a hidden lever very near," Papyrus informed as he shuffled towards a nearby tree.

I glanced over at the tree and walked over to it. I pushed the leaves out of the way. I saw what looked like a small lever, somehow installed into the tree. And a… small looking… camera.

"Why's there a camera in that tree?" I asked.

"Well, how else could the Royal Scientist's assistant keep an eye on how the puzzles are working without the cameras?" Papyrus replied. "Or when a human finally shows up?"

"You're saying the Royal Scientist put these cameras all over the place?" I frowned.

"Well, no, Sans did that part," Papyrus answered. "He was asked by the Royal Scientist's assistant to place them all over so they could keep a better eye on the Underground."

Well… that was kind of creepy. Now I knew someone was watching me everywhere I went.

"Does that include Ruins?" I asked.

"From what I know, yes," Papyrus replied. "But they only have a few select cameras there, not wanting to disturb the monsters there."

"Uh…" I frowned. "And… they didn't see… any human in the Ruins? Like… at all?"

"But of course not, if they did, there would've been an alert about a human sighting for the entire Underground!" Papyrus answered. "And I would've had to use this puzzle for real!"

Weird, how did they miss me then? It's not like I was trying to hide from any cameras while I was exploring Ruins… I raised an eyebrow.

"Although I've heard the connection from the cameras in Ruins has been intermittent lately," Papyrus noted.

I wonder if Flowey had anything to do with that… I'll have to ask him when I see him later. I wondered.

I was about to activate the lever, but I stopped. I looked back at the puzzle. "You said the puzzle is still solvable, right?"

"That's correct!" Papyrus replied.

I gave a challenging grin. "Now that I know there's an easy cheat solution, I'm going to try to solve it myself."

"I like that attitude, "Human"!" Papyrus smiled. "Nyeh, heh, heh, heh!"

I took a moment to look over the puzzle, trying to figure out the best route. I did a few trial and error… before it finally hit me. I took the perfect path to change all the Xs to Os. It looked beautiful by the time I was done. I smiled before I stepped on the pressure plate, turning the Os into green check marks.

"I did it!" I smiled. Wow, I can't believe I actually did it.

"Congratulations, "Human"!" Papyrus exclaimed. "You did it without using the lever! You must love puzzles as much as I do! You might love the next puzzle then, it might even be too easy for you. Nyeh, heh, heh, heh~"

Papyrus moved on ahead. "Next up is another of Sans's puzzles! Though this one is enhanced by the Royal Scientist's assistant!"

"It's not another Junior Jumble, is it?" I asked as I followed Papyrus.

"No, no… well, it was, but the Royal Scientist's assistant replaced it with something cutting edge," Papyrus explained. "It still counts as Sans's puzzle though, since he's in charge of that area and is in charge of maintenance for the puzzle."

I followed Papyrus to the next puzzle. I was surprised to see a bunch of… gray scaled tiles on the ground. There was a square looking machine with a lot of buttons on the other side. Sans was already standing there.

"Now, before Sans turns on the machine, I should explain the puzzle," Papyrus informed. "It's going to be a lot to remember, so pay close attention."

"Um, okay," I said. How difficult could it be?

"Okay, then listen up!" Papyrus began. "Red tiles are impassable…"

Papyrus continued on, talking about the rules of each color, but most of it went over my head. Blue means water, I think he said something about orange scent and piranhas? Or did he mean purple was alright with blue? What does green do again? Pink seems to be alright… wait, what's yellow? Electricity or the smell of lemons?

"Did you get all that?" Papyrus asked.

I began to sweat, but I didn't want to force him to repeat himself. "Uh… y-yeah…" Maybe I'll figure it out as I go.

"Great! Oh, and one more thing! The puzzle is also entirely random! Once Sans pulls that switch, not even I will know what the solution will be!" Papyrus informed.

"Are you… gonna be solving it with me? Because you're standing on the same side as I am," I asked hopefully.

"Nope! I will wait here and watch as you complete the completely randomized puzzle, that way I may take notes!" Papyrus proudly answered. "After you are through, Sans shall deactivate the puzzle and let me pass. Sans! Are you ready?"

"Yup," Sans replied.

"Then go ahead and activate it!" Papyrus called out.

"Ok," Sans said before he went over to the machine and pushed a button.

I gulped nervously as the tiles lit up with different colors. They shifted over and over, getting faster and faster. What's it going to be? Please don't be an impossible path!

I clenched my fists nervously until… it stopped. There was… a pink straight line, while the rest of the path was just the impassable red. I literally couldn't go anywhere other than straight forward.

"W-Wha?!" Papyrus questioned in complete confusion. "Sans! Are you sure you activated it right?! You didn't put it in maintenance mode, did you?!"

"Uh… maybe? Why? Was that a problem?" Sans asked, not seeming at all worried.

Papyrus raced across the straight line to check on the machine. I hesitated, wondering if I should cross it or wait until they gave me a proper puzzle.

"The machine isn't working anymore!" Papyrus shouted before sighing. "I will get in contact with the Royal Scientist's assistant so she can come fix this…"

Papyrus grumbled to himself before he spun around, slowly leaving the area. Seeing how the machine was broken, I just crossed the straight line to the other side. I looked at Sans.

"Did you… do that on purpose?" I asked.

"Nope." Sans shook his head. "I just turned the thing on like I was told. Maybe the assistant left the machine in maintenance mode last time they were here. Or maybe it just randomized to a straight route."

"That must've been quite the coincidence," I remarked.

"By the way, about that spaghetti from earlier," Sans said. "That's actually not too bad for my brother."

"The frozen… inedible spaghetti?" I questioned.

"That's probably the best one he's made yet," Sans informed. "He's… still a newbie chef. Maybe if he keeps it up, however, by next year he'll actually make something edible. Though maybe the Queen will finally start that cooking class like I suggested, so both Paps and Undyne can learn how to cook spaghetti properly."

"Should I even ask the story behind his cooking?" I inquired.

"Let me put it this way, just to give you an idea… whenever the two of them cook spaghetti, they do it dry and they throw in the box," Sans explained with a bit of a sweatdrop. "Undyne has nearly burned down her house numerous times."

"... Really? This Undyne… is she that intense?" I asked.

"... yep." Sans nodded.

"Should I be wary of her?" I nervously asked.

"Ehhh…" Sans replied while tilting his hand left and right. "Maybe."

"Great…" I sighed.

"Don't let it get you down, kid, you're doing great." Sans smiled. "I'm sure I can throw ya a bone when it comes down to it."

"Heh, now that's one bone I'm sure I'd want," I chuckled.

"You'll probably want to stay in Snowdin today," Sans informed. "And maybe get some waterproofing fur wash for that suit of yours."

"Well, I still need to make it to Snowdin," I replied.

"You're just about there," Sans informed.

"Awesome," I said.

Chapter Text

Darkzdragon: Man, that was a wild fight against Flowey last night when you were playing Undertale Yellow. At least this time we didn't forget you could dash.

DarkFoxKit: Yeah, but I still died numerous times to that Flowey. His attack patterns are so unfair and ridiculously unpredictable.

Darkzdragon: I mean that fight is designed with death in mind, considering the checkpoints. Though we never got through one of the sections when he was using his vines. I think it may have been the Waterfall section with the glowing shrooms.

DarkFoxKit: I guess. I wasn't paying too much attention on the areas he was chasing me in, I was more focused on surviving. But I did a lot better than the first time I faced him. I died a heck of a lot more there, trying to learn his attack patterns and the solution to each section.

Darkzdragon: Not to mention we completely forgot about your dash last time. Like you were playing hard mode/Undertale.

DarkFoxKit: I mean I wouldn't say hard mode, I just didn't utilize something the game gave me to ise. It's entirely possible to beat him without it after all.

Darkzdragon: Yes, but if a battle is designed with a mechanic in mind and you don't use the mechanic, that is hard mode. You are making things harder. So I think it counts. Regardless, now that we've done neutral, we can go onto pacifist.

DarkFoxKit: Yeah. Funny how I only did neutral purely because of lore reasons. But… we should probably get into the chapter now, I'm sure anyone who's reading this are waiting to get into it.

Darkzdragon: Right! Speaking of which, to anyone curious, this is not a typical Undertale story where we write out one of the three runs. We are going completely in our own direction with this. Creating new rules, mechanics, and more. Admittedly the story is a bit long so there may be unintentional plotholes and even possible retcons. If you notice any retcons, feel free to bring it up and we will answer what we intended and probably thank you for pointing it out.

DarkFoxKit: In case we didn't say it before, this is an alternate universe from the original Undertale story. It should be obvious by now if you've read this far, but you know, sometimes people want to get all 'technical' about things and be smart about it.

Darkzdragon: Now, please enjoy!

Chapter 4: Snow and Skeletons

Frizk's POV

I walked onward. I stopped when I saw another station, and another dog monster. This dog monster had tan fur, and wore armor. They appeared to be deep in thought as they stood in front of a pile of snow. I hoped it wasn't another blind dog that would attack me the second I moved toward it.

I walked closer to the dog monster. Its ears perked up as it looked up at me. It looked… almost like a real dog from the surface, rather than a dog monster. But it was humanoid, at least in terms of its body shape.

"Woof! Woof!" The dog barked excitedly at me.

The dog was giving me such a cute look.

Lesser Dog.

Apparently it was called 'Lesser Dog'. I could see why Martlet wanted to pet these cuties.

Careful when petting. It can be addicting.

Hmm, is it really that bad? I questioned… myself, I guess.

Lesser Dog happily ran over to me, and started licking my face with its tongue.

It must be happy to see a new puppy here.

"Ack! Stop! Stop with the face licking!" I yelped as I tried to push the dog off of me.

"Arf! Arf!" Lesser Dog happily barked as it jumped off of me, and then around me, wagging its tail.

"Alright… I can pet you if you'd like," I chuckled. "Just don't pounce me to the ground."

"Arf!" Lesser Dog responded.

Lesser Dog came closer to me, looking at me with anticipation. Could this dog not speak? I've only heard it bark.

I started petting it, and when I did… I saw its neck stretching out. I blinked. Uhhhh… is that normal?

I stopped petting Lesser Dog, and its neck stopped growing. He looked at me, tongue hanging out. It looked like it wanted more.

"Is your neck okay?" I nervously asked.

"Arf!" Lesser Dog barked before nodding.

"Well… I'll keep petting then," I said.

I continued to pet. Lesser Dog's neck stretched more and more. Surely there was a limit… It was still stretching… I… uh… think it hit the ceiling…?

Maybe you should stop.

Or maybe I should see how far this can go~ I grinned.

Many… many pets later… I couldn't see Lesser Dog's face. It had gone from the ceiling to down… somewhere….

You definitely have a problem….

I sweatdropped. "Uh… yeah, I'm stopping now." Wait… who am I talking to?

As soon as I said I was done… Lesser Dog's neck suddenly snapped back to normal, and it acted like nothing happened. He gave me a happy bark before it ran off nearby and started sculpting something in the snow.

"Looks like you're enjoying yourself, Frizk," Flowey chuckled as he popped up beside me.

"F-Flowey!" I jumped, not having expected him to show up. "How much of that did you see?"

"A lot," Flowey chuckled. "I've been watching you from where it's warmer. You look like you're having fun."

"Well, yeah, the monsters here have been pretty nice. Well, I did get attacked a few times, but it doesn't look like anyone… except Sans, suspects me of being human," I said.

"Oh, he doesn't suspect you," Flowey chuckled. "He knows for a fact. There's some… creepy things going on within him that lets him know things he shouldn't know and do things that make no sense."

"I have noticed he seems to be able to get to places before me, despite going the wrong way, or just standing there," I noted. "And he did act pretty creepy when I first walked out of Ruins. But other than that… is he really that creepy?"

"He's not someone you can really… comprehend," Flowey answered. "In fact, he… well, let's just say he kinda set me straight when I was going down a dark path."

Now I really wanted to know what was Flowey's story.

"Admittedly, it also led me to pretty much imprisoning myself in Ruins out of guilt," Flowey sighed. "So it's been a long time since I was outside of Ruins. It looks like some things hadn't changed, but some things did at the same time. It's kinda funny, I didn't think I could feel guilty after… ah, that's a story for another time."

"There's a lot I don't know about you, Flowey," I admitted.

"I'm not exactly someone who talks about his past very much," Flowey said.

"I guess… fair enough," I replied softly. "Oh, Flowey, I wanted to ask you… apparently there were cameras in the Ruins. Did you make it so the Royal Scientist and their assistant couldn't see me?"

"Yep," Flowey answered without a sign of regret. "I loosened the cables so they barely connect. So there's still a connection but it's not much."

"Ah, well, thanks for that," I said gratefully. "If they knew a human was here, it'd make things a lot harder for me."

"You know, I have been meaning to ask, but why go through the disguise route and take the long way to the castle?" Flowey questioned. "You want to tell the King and Queen about the demolition, right? Wouldn't it be easier, and quicker, to just let one of the Royal Guards take you to them?"

I shivered at the thought of talking to any royalty. "It's… not that simple, at least for me. Logically speaking, it would be smarter if I just let them take me straight to the King and Queen, but… I can't… I can't talk to them directly. Besides, I don't really know much about the King and Queen right now. I'd like to get to know them a bit before I get anywhere near them."

"So… you're scared of them?" Flowey asked. "But you're going there anyways, aren't you?"

"Well, sort of?" I said sheepishly. "I do plan to warn them, just… not directly… I figured it might be good to tell the Royal Scientist or something instead. They could inform the King and Queen, and then work something out."

"Why not just tell anyone else?" Flowey questioned.

"Then they'll know I'm human, and take me to the King and Queen… or kill me, depending on if they hate humans or not," I sighed. "I won't be able to tell them how I would know something like that without revealing myself. And I'm not sure if the King and Queen would listen to just anyone. I need to be sure it's someone high up enough that they'd listen to them."

"So… you're trying to find the perfect person who can talk to the King and Queen on your behalf, someone who won't care that you're a human, and someone who you can trust…" Flowey summarized. "Got any more requirements to add to this one in a million monster?"

"H-hey, it's not impossible. I mean I met with Sans, who doesn't seem to care," I pointed out.

"Yeah, but he wouldn't talk to the King and Queen on your behalf," Flowey informed. "He's too lazy."

"He's more of a… last resort," I said. "I'm sure even he wouldn't want to risk everyone in the Underground because of laziness if it came down to it. He seems to care for his brother at least."

"... Well, you have a point there," Flowey admitted. "With that point, I'm surprised you're not just telling Sans to do it."

"I just… like you said, had this funny feeling about him. It's not that I don't trust him, but I rather not bother him with this if I can help it," I sighed. "Besides, this Royal Scientist could help me. After all, most scientists don't usually act out emotionally. And since they're the Royal Scientist, they can definitely tell the King and Queen about the dangers. And I'm sure if I explain to them that my Soul isn't strong enough to break the barrier, they won't force me to meet with the King and Queen. Maybe I can even help them make something to break the barrier. Just trying to be optimistic."

"Well… hopefully you find that monster before long," Flowey sighed. "For now, I'm starting to gather snow, so I'm heading back underground."

"Okay, thanks for checking up on me, Flowey," I replied before Flowey went underground.

I looked up and saw Lesser Dog had made a ton of snow dogs, all with long necks, though a lot of them… broke off.

"Maybe you need a break," I suggested to Lesser Dog.

"Arf!" Lesser Dog nodded before it ran off somewhere.

I shrugged and continued on my way.

I… came up to an ice puzzle. There were Xs here, and a switch at the end. Oh joy, I love ice puzzles…

To make a long story short, I had to slip on the ice, fall down on a snow Papyrus, and a pile of snow with the words 'Sans' written on it, in ketchup, several times before I finally solved this troublesome puzzle. When I got all the Xs to Os, I managed to slip over to the pressure plate. A snow bridge stretched out to the other side.

This puzzle was awful because there was no Papyrus to make it fun. I pouted to myself as I slid across the icy bridge.

When I got to the other side, I felt a snow hat formed on my head… for a split second before it poofed away. That was weird.

I saw a path down, and decided to walk down to see what was there. I saw Sans standing there. I looked at Sans.

Sans kept grinning. "What's up?"

I waved to him before I walked on. And… I saw Sans again, in front of me…

"How's it going?" Sans asked.

"Wait, weren't you just…?" I pointed back.

"Don't know what you're talking about," Sans replied.

I furrowed my eyebrows before I walked back, and saw Sans standing there. I turned around, and walked to the other side again… Sans was still there.

"You're pulling a prank on me, aren't you?" I pointed out.

"What? Little old me?" Sans smirked.

I was about to say something when suddenly a weird… reindeer… moose monster came charging in. I yelped as I jumped back.

"NO! MORE! DECORATIONS!"

Gyftrot.

The monster… Gyftrot hissed angrily. His antlers had some cute little pine trees growing from it, but… there was also a photo stuck to its forehead, a barbed wire made out of… pipe cleaners, I think, and a small candy cane stuck to one of the trees.

Gyftrot looked in my direction. "Another child!?"

I stood still in anticipation.

"No! No more! I refuse to have any more youngsters try to put decorations on me!" Gyftrot shouted.

Before I could do anything, Gyftrot ran at me. I yelped as my Soul came out of my body, activating a Fight.

"Eh? What's this? That's not a monster Soul!" Gyftrot noted in shock.

"Nah, that's just an experiment my friend is doing," Sans spoke up, sliding into the Fight screen. "Temporarily flipped their Soul upside down. The Royal Scientist thought it'd be neat."

"... Bah, the Royal Scientist makes weird inventions…" Gyftrot grumbled. "Why not make a de-decorationfier!?"

I silently thanked Sans for covering for me.

"You could put in a request," Sans replied. "She's got a site on the Undernet to make requests."

"In case you haven't noticed, skeleton, I have no dexterity or fingers to type in the request!" Gyftrot huffed.

"Maybe I can help make him a little less grouchy," I suggested. "Maybe then he'll listen to reason."

"Knock yourself out, kid," Sans said. "I'll be here if ya need me."

Sans slid away from the Fight screen.

I checked the Act option, because I was never gonna give the Fight option another glance again. I thought about Checking Gyftrot, but it was pretty obvious what he wanted, and I rather not spend a turn checking him for some flavor text. I also didn't care about his stats.

I saw I could 'Decorate', 'Undecorate', and 'Gift' him. I didn't think he cared about a gift, and decorating was blatantly the wrong option here. So I chose 'Undecorate'.

I moved forward and took the photo off of his forehead. I noticed the photo was of Snowdrake and a bigger looking Snowdrake… that was probably his father.

"That's a little better…" Gyftrot said, though he was still grumpy.

During Gyftrot's turn, he was attacking me with snowballs in the attackfield. They were coming down pretty quickly. Luckily, I was able to dodge them all.

I undecorated Gyftrot again, this time removing the barbed wire wrapped around his horns. I was glad I was wearing paws.

Gyftrot was looking at me suspiciously. "That's a little better, but I'm sure you'll put something else on me soon."

Gyftrot created three giant presents at the bottom of the attack field, one of them was blue. They shuffled around and moved up at me. Unfortunately, the blue present kinda slid into one of the white ones, so I got hit. I took 4 damage. Now I was down to 10 HP.

I used my next turn to scarf down a Spider Donut, recovering 12 HP, that maxed me out.

I was able to dodge Gyftrot's next attack, which was more snowballs. That was easier to deal with than the presents. I then selected the Undecorate option again, removing the candy cane, which I saw had a tag that read 'I use this tiny cane to walk'.

Gyftrot looked very surprised. "A weight has been lifted…"

He sounded very relieved, so much so he wasn't attacking me anymore. I gave a sigh of relief too, as I Spared him, ending the Fight. Gyftrot ended up giving me 32 gold for my troubles. I now had 339 gold.

"I haven't felt this weightless in a while," Gyftrot remarked. "At least not all youths are delinquents."

"I'm glad I could help you with your… decorations," I replied. "And if you want, maybe you could ask someone like Papyrus to help you make that request to the Royal Scientist."

"That's… a good idea," Gyftrot acknowledged. "Sans, could you ask your brother to help me later? I'd like to stop people from decorating my antlers again."

"Sure, no prob, if it will get you to stop attacking children out of sheer annoyance," Sans answered.

With that out of the way, I decided to just… let Sans be and walked on. I saw a cave. I walked into the cave, but when I got inside, I just saw a large, double door in front of me. I tried to open it, but it was locked. I frowned, wondering what could be on the other side.

"This is one door that even I haven't seen behind," Flowey said as he popped out of the ground. "Every time I try to emerge behind the door, I end up back here."

"Wow, this is one mysterious door," I remarked.

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't bother with it," Flowey grumbled. "You should focus on your current goal."

"Fine, but I will one day return to see what's on the other side of that mysterious door," I huffed.

I walked out of the cave, and headed back to the path I was on earlier. I saw Sans… standing there again.

"Hey, kid, are you following me?" Sans asked.

I quickly walked to the other side, and saw Sans standing there again.

"You're giving me quite the workout," Sans remarked.

"And you're giving me quite the headache…" I groaned. "I'm just… gonna move forward…"

In the next area, I saw a lot of snow poffs, and a cute dog house. I walked over to the dog house, but it was empty. I saw a sign next to the dog house. But all that was written was 'woof'.

How very informative… I raised an eyebrow. Too bad I don't speak dog…

I walked on, only to be stopped by a cute little white dog that popped its head out of the snow poff ahead. It gave an adorable, high pitched bark.

"Awww, aren't you a cutie?" I squealed.

I got closer to it, and… suddenly, the dog stood up. I yelped as I jumped back, seeing the dog now towering over me. It had a large armor on, and it held a spear… with a doggy face on it. It wagged its tail at me.

"Wow… you're… a big boy," I noted nervously.

Greater Dog. And no, petting it does not make its neck longer.

Wow, am I getting… sassier lately? I blinked but got no response from… myself.

Despite the giant size, Greater Dog looked friendly. It lowered itself to me and started sniffing me. While it did that, I began petting the Greater Dog. Greater Dog's ears perked up as its tail wagged happily.

"WOOF!" Greater Dog barked, shaking the area a little.

Greater Dog was looking very excited, and I saw it pawing at the ground. "Oh, you wanna play? Alright, uh…"

I quickly made a snowball. "Fetch!"

I threw the snowball as hard as I could. Greater Dog took off after the snowball. The snowball went splat on the snow. Instead of bringing the snowball back to me, however, Greater Dog picked up a large chunk of snow in the area. My eyes went wide as it brought back all that snow to me.

"Wah!" I yelped as I jumped away from all the snow it tried to pile on me.

"WOOF!" Greater Dog panted happily.

"Wow… uh… great job with that," I complimented.

Greater Dog then walked closer to me, rubbing its head affectionately against my hand. I started to pet it. Its fur was silky soft. Greater Dog's tail wagged as it enjoyed my petting.

"You're not weirded out that a dog is petting another dog?" I asked, not sure if it could even talk.

Greater Dog answered by standing up straight, then… a normal looking quadruped white dog jumped out of the armor, and licked my nose. I blinked a few times before the dog hopped back into the armor, but its butt and tail were sticking out. Despite that, the armor moved on its own, walking away.

"Okay… that just happened," I noted. "But that was adorable!"

I giggled to myself as I walked forward. I soon came across a very long bridge. I was a little nervous about crossing it, but I pushed forward. I couldn't help but notice the bridge was… hard… and made of stone… and snow… instead of wood. Did… they just paint this pathway to look like a bridge? Seems… unnecessary but kinda nice.

I stopped in the middle of the bridge when I saw Papyrus and Sans on the other side. I hoped this was the last puzzle, because in all honesty, I was tired, hungry, and despite the fur suit, I was starting to get cold. I had snacks, but I didn't want to just keep eating sweets.

"Told you they'd be here soon, bro," Sans said to Papyrus.

"Yes! "Human"! You have come far! But this is your last and more dangerous challenge yet!" Papyrus announced.

Oh good, I'm almost done. I sighed in relief. "Alright, bring it on then."

"Behold! The Gauntlet of Capture!" Papyrus announced.

As soon as Papyrus activated a remote control, I was suddenly surrounded by spears, cannons, flamethrowers, spike balls, and… a small, white dog tied to a rope for some reason. I gasped, suddenly fearing for my life. There was no way these were fake. They looked far too real and dangerous.

"W-wait! Who messed with my puzzle?!" Papyrus shouted. "This looks more like a… a… Gauntlet of Deadly Terror!? Who did this?!"

"I think Undyne was here last week, saying something about touching up the last puzzle to Snowdin to make it more 'anime' and 'epic'," Sans answered.

"W-W-Well… I appreciate Undyne touching up my puzzle… b-but… this completely contradicts the point!" Papyrus exclaimed, seeming reluctant to talk bad about Undyne. "I am sorry, Puppy, but this is way too much. I'm going to disable it and reconfigure it to how I had it."

Papyrus pushed a button on the controller, and all the weapons, and dog, disappeared. I let out a sigh of relief. I thought I was going to die a very painful and violent death there.

"Whew…" Papyrus sighed in relief as well. "That was a close one."

I quickly walked across the rest of the way.

"So is that it? Am I done with the puzzles?" I asked.

"That is, unfortunately, correct," Papyrus answered. "Though once I have the puzzle set back up properly, I would be grateful if you would act as a human again."

"Heh, well, sure, if I have time," I replied. "But for now, I'd like to just rest and get some warm food. Also, this Undyne… is she planning to kill the human? Because that last puzzle didn't look too 'capture friendly' to me, at least capturing them alive and harmlessly."

"Nah, she just thinks all humans have superpowers," Sans replied. "She likely thought you'd slow time down and casually dodge each obstacle."

"That is correct! Only some humans have superpowers!" Papyrus exclaimed. "Additionally, since you are not a human, you could not possibly have those powers!"

Well… I mean, she's not wrong, but they're less 'superpowers' and more 'magic' and 'specially trained'... unless she means anime or something. In which case, no, that's not possible… I inwardly sighed. Then again, I didn't think magical monsters were real, so what the heck do I know?

"What do you plan to do now though,?" Papyrus asked. "You just arrived from Ruins, haven't you? Do you have a home to stay in? We do have an Inn at Snowdin, but… trust me, you won't be getting any sleep in that place… I've tried, well, when I wasn't too busy on duty of course."

"Um… I don't know yet, I have to see the town first," I replied. "But I need to get to the castle at some point."

"If you need to, you can crash on our couch," Sans offered. "Or you could use the guest room."

"That guest room is meant to keep humans in there when they've been captured," Papyrus huffed.

"Nah, bro, that's the garage," Sans corrected. "I'm talking about the guest room downstairs."

"WE HAVE A DOWNSTAIRS?!" Papyrus shouted in surprise.

"Yeah, bro, surprised you never noticed it," Sans replied. "The door to it is right near the front door."

"Wowie! … Somehow I never noticed that door," Papyrus chuckled sheepishly.

"You sure it won't be too much trouble?" I asked.

"So long as you don't mind occasionally listening to my brother and I jamming out," Sans replied before pausing. A moment later he pulled out a phone. "Oh, looks like I'm being invited to lunch. Paps, while I know you hate the place, could you point her to Grillby's? Poor kid could probably use a hot meal."

"But of course! I'm out of ingredients for spaghetti right now anyways… a pity…" Papyrus grumbled.

"Then I'll entrust her to you," Sans said before he started walking away.

"Oh, by the way, Puppy, once you are done eating, come by my house later! I would love to show you around, and be an awesome house host! … Or maybe just host? You'll be able to recognize it by the amazing skeleton standing outside!" Papyrus smiled.

"Heh, of course, it'll be the one with the hot skeleton in front of it~" I grinned back.

"And maybe then I can finally ask you if you have a name!" Papyrus excitedly stated, not seeming to notice my flirty compliment.

"Ah, right, my name," I said, realizing I never did tell him my name. "That'll have to wait for our first date then."

"A date?" Papyrus questioned. "Yes, a friend date! I will make preparations for that!"

"Of course. You are inviting me to your house after all, you even offered to cook for me~" I grinned. "I'm sure you'll be a lovely host."

Papyrus looked like he was starting to blush… somehow. Then suddenly, big eyes popped out of his eye sockets… somehow…

"Ahhhhh! A genuine compliment!?" Papyrus yelled before clearing his throat… if he had one. "Erm… well, Puppy, we uh… we can discuss this later. You should get something to eat now. I know you said you don't like bones, but you might start to get tempted to chew on one of mine. Grillby's is… this way."

Papyrus took my hand and walked me past a few buildings before stopping in front of one. "There you go. Keep going this way and you will see my home."

"Okay, thanks, Papyrus," I said in a grateful tone.

"Nyeh, heh, heh!" Papyrus gave his signature laugh before he jumped high.

I decided not to question it this time. I also decided to look around town. There was a shop, an Inn, a library… that had a sign that was misspelled. There was that restaurant called Grillby's… I was surprised to see a Christmas tree with presents under it. They celebrate Christmas here?

I walked over to the Christmas tree, seeing a bear monster shaking each of the presents to try to figure out what was inside it. I then saw a yellow lizard monster, wearing a striped shirt. They had four spikes at the back of their head. It looked like they didn't have any arms, or their arms were so small they were hidden under his shirt.

"Yo, are you a kid too?" The monster kid asked me. "Well, it's hard to tell, you're not wearing any clothes…"

"I'm a puppy," I answered. "And I'm new here."

"Well, welcome to Snowdin!" The monster kid happily greeted. "The coolest place in all the Underground! Heh, Sans taught me that one. My name is Spike, nice to meet ya!"

"Hello, Spike, I'm Frizk," I greeted.

"Frizk? That's a strange name for a dog monster. Normally there's the word 'dog' somewhere in the name," Spike noted. "Hmmm… maybe it's some kind of… version of 'fetch'?"

"Uh… sure, something like that," I replied. Come to think of it, all the dog monsters I met did have the word 'dog' in their name. "So what's the deal with the decorated trees and gifts?"

"It's a Giftmas tree," Spike explained. "Did you not celebrate Giftmas wherever you came from?"

I blinked. Giftmas? Is that different from Christmas? "No, I guess not. What is Giftmas?"

"It's a holiday that monsterkind originally founded," Spike replied. "Elder monsters used to give gifts to monsters and human children who had acted well throughout the year. It was easy for the elder monsters to figure out who had been good or naughty by looking at the Souls of the children. I think the humans made their own version to try and take over the holiday…"

"Really?" I asked. Come to think of it… I think Dad said something similar about our version of Christmas… he… usually likes letting his opinions known. "That sounds pretty messed up."

"Ehh, it's whatever," Spike chuckled. "Us monsters remember the origins and won't ever forget. Heck, Dad says sealing us away was the worst mistake humans could make, cause it allowed us to safeguard our traditions or whatever. Anyways, like I was saying before, the elder monsters used magic to find out who was good and naughty and gave gifts accordingly."

I see. That would explain the whole magical man who delivers presents to those who are nice, and coal to those who are naughty, and the flying reindeer. I noted to myself.

"Though even those who weren't good still received presents," Spike went on. "Those who were good would get things like toys and other items that could be used to have fun. Those who were naughty were often given things to help them be nice the next year, like brooms or cooking tools or resources to help their parents."

Come to think of it… I think it was the 12th or something when I ran away… I realized. I guess it is pretty close to Christmas, or Giftmas down here.

"But man, the only present I want this year is to meet with Undyne!" Spike spoke up, suddenly passionate. "Oooh, or maybe the Royal Scientist who made the pretty sky above!"

The sky? Oh, the snowman mentioned something about a sky…. I had been so preoccupied with everything that I hadn't looked up yet.

I looked up, and was surprised to see an actual sky above Snowdin. I could see clouds covering the sun, however, which explained why I didn't notice the difference in lighting when I came in.

"Wow, the sky looks… really pretty," I commented. "The Royal Scientist and her assistant must've worked really hard to make this happen."

"Yeah, they apparently had to collect a lot of items from the Dump to create something called… a rocket," Spike explained. "They took it to Ruins and launched it up through the hole in the mountain. Because the thing was made of only surface parts, it was able to pass through the barrier. If it had been made with monster parts, it would've been destroyed upon hitting the barrier."

"Wow, that was pretty clever of them… but, they… got all those materials from a place called the Dump?" I questioned. "How did they even get… surface parts in the first place?"

"Right, you've probably never heard of it," Spike realized. "The Dump is a place in Waterfall… the area past here, where items from the surface drop into. They're mostly trash, humans must've dumped their stuff into a river or something near the mountain, but there's some pretty good stuff in that trash. So the place has been called the Dump… Our King named it. Though apparently some call it 'the Treasure Trove' because there are parts there that have allowed for different advancements."

"Interesting…" I noted. I guess human pollution has some silver linings to it. "Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but I'm gonna get some food at Grillby's. I'm pretty hungry."

"Have fun at Grillby!" Spike responded before he began to walk away.

"Grillby? Not Grillby's?" I blinked. "Ah, whatever."

I walked towards the restaurant and opened the door.

I sighed as I didn't get to eat after all. But… when I saw Sans there, I was wondering if I could eat with him. I also saw the rest of those dog monsters there too. At least they looked pretty happy. But he had someone else with him. I couldn't see their face, but they were wearing a lab coat. I did see a little fluffy white tail, so they may have been a rabbit monster.

They were pretty shy, I guess… I thought about taking Sans' offer to eat with them, but I could tell his friend was tense. I decided it was best to just leave, I didn't want to make things more awkward. They had a lab coat… I wonder if they were the Royal Scientist?

I then laughed to myself. Yeah right, why would a Royal Scientist eat in a fast food place like that? They would likely have their own 5 star restaurant, or their own chefs to make their meals for them. Maybe it was the assistant? Or maybe the assistant has an assistant?

Whatever the case may be, I decided to head to Papyrus's house. Maybe he had some leftovers… edible food I could eat.

The house wasn't too far from Grillby's… yes, it turned out to be Grillby's after all. Thanks, Spike…

I saw the handsome skeleton standing in front of the house, waiting. "Hey, Papyrus, I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."

"You did not!" Papyrus beamed before looking at me with a small frown. "Is everything alright, Puppy? You seem to be under the weather."

"I… I guess I just feel a little left out," I admitted. "I was gonna eat at Grillby's with Sans, but he had a friend eating with him, and… she didn't seem to want me to eat with them."

"A friend with Sans…?" Papyrus questioned before giving a thoughtful look. "If they were trying to avoid giving you attention, it's possible it was the Royal Scientist assistant. She isn't all that sociable but will approach Sans from time to time to make some sort of deal."

"I guess. She wouldn't even look at me," I sighed. "I guess I can't blame her… I know what it's like not wanting to talk to someone you're not familiar with."

"Really? But you spoke with everyone you never met before!" Papyrus pointed out. "Including me!"

"Ah… well, I guess I have. But I didn't used to like talking to people I didn't know," I admitted.

"Well I'm glad you are no longer like that! I enjoy talking with you!" Papyrus smiled.

"Thanks. Let's forget about that, why don't you show me around your home?" I suggested.

"But of course! Have a look around, Puppy!" Papyrus beamed.

The house looked pretty cozy. It had the standard stuff a house would have. There was the living room, a kitchen, stairs leading up to the bedroom, and that door that led downstairs. I looked to the right, and saw a black rock sitting on a plate, on a table. There were some sprinkles on it.

"Why do you have a rock with sprinkles on it sitting on this table?" I asked.

"That rock is my brother's pet rock," Papyrus explained. "But he always forgets to feed it. As usual, I have to take responsibility."

So apparently rocks ate sprinkles. That was an interesting tidbit, I suppose.

I saw a sock, and a series of notes on it.

"Should I ask?" I questioned.

"Ugh… Just… Sans finding loopholes to everything, doing everything in his power to avoid taking that sock to his room!" Papyrus grumbled. "He can be so lazy, yet he puts in all his effort to be lazy too."

"That… sounds counterintuitive, yet also like Sans," I chuckled.

Since I was hungry, I headed into the kitchen. I was… surprised to see the sink. The sink itself was normal, but the cabinet under it was… so tall that it nearly hit the ceiling.

I turned to Papyrus. "Please… explain this…"

"Hmm? Oh, that just appeared one day," Papyrus responded. "If you close the cabinet doors like so…"

Papyrus closed the cabinet doors and the sink began to slowly come lower and lower until it was about the level of the other kitchen countertops.

"It will return to a normal kitchen cabinet," Papyrus finished. "It's quite the interesting conundrum, is it not?!"

"Uh… so you never figured out what caused this? Did your brother make it taller? Or the Royal Scientist?" I asked.

"Nope, neither of them did it," Papyrus answered. "It's been like that for… a few years now."

"... Could I investigate?" I asked.

"You could try. I was never able to get inside the sink when the doors were open," Papyrus replied.

I opened the door, the sink grew back to that tallness that it was earlier. I wondered if there was some kind of barrier blocking monsters from going through it. But when I went through, I was able to go in just fine.

I… walked into a cave, I think. I didn't expect to see… a shrine in front of me. There was a small white dog sitting in the middle of the shrine, winking at me.

I quickly turned around and exited the sink. I closed the door behind me, letting the sink shrink back down to its normal size.

"Puppy? Are you alright?" Papyrus asked.

"... I… don't even know what to say at this point," I replied. "Just that uh… looks like the cabinet has a lot of storage space."

"Oh really? That's good! I'll make sure to make use of that storage space then!" Papyrus beamed.

"For what?" I asked.

"My bone collections!" Papyrus grinned. "Especially if it'll keep all the dogs away from it. Thankfully, you're an exception since you don't like bones."

"Ah…" I sweatdropped. Papyrus is gonna lose a lot of bones…

I decided to pretend I didn't see that strange dog shrine, and went over to the fridge. I saw… a bunch of empty containers that were labelled 'spaghetti'.

"That's my food museum!" Papyrus stated proudly. "Every single one of those containers I had used in my cooking!"

"That's… great, but is there anything I can actually eat in there?" I asked.

"Yep, I got some food for you," Sans remarked as he walked in. "You didn't wanna eat at Grillby's, so I brought you back some food."

I may not actually have the sense of smell that dogs had, but my nose picked up on the scent of food. I rushed over to Sans, if my tail could wag, it probably would right now.

"You got some food for me?" I asked, surprised.

"Yep," Sans confirmed. "Got some burgers, fries, grilled cheese sandwiches, and more."

"Thank you so much! How much do I owe you?" I asked.

"Sitting through some of my bad jokes will be payment enough~" Sans smirked before he walked over with a paper bag and placed it down on the kitchen countertop. "And maybe some anime that Alphys let me borrow~"

"Dinner and a show? Sign me up!" I beamed.

"Wowie, Puppy is really happy now. I'm glad you made her happy, Sans, she looked pretty down earlier," Papyrus said.

"Of course, I'm always looking out for kids," Sans winked. "I also just like ribbing with them."

"Sans! Don't you dare start with the puns!" Papyrus yelled.

"Oh, Paps, we might be getting another friend staying over later," Sans spoke up. "Might want to prepare for that. Though she might not stay for more than an hour or two."

"Wowie! Two friends coming to our house in one day?!" Papyrus excitedly asked. "Next you're going to tell me Undyne and Alphys are also planning on stopping by!"

"Nope, just one friend this time," Sans chuckled. "Undyne would likely drop by unannounced."

I walked over, frowning a little. "Is this friend who's coming over the shy one I saw at Grillby's earlier?"

"That's right," Sans confirmed. "She's a bit shy, so she might be nervous around you. Heck, she might put on a disguise if she knows you're here. She's mainly coming over to hang out with Papyrus for a bit."

"Ah… well… I could always just leave… go somewhere else, or stay in the guest room or something while she's here," I suggested. "I don't want to make her uncomfortable."

"That's kind of you," Sans acknowledged. "We can try playing it by ear."

"Puppy, you shouldn't have to feel like you need to leave to make someone else happy," Papyrus said. "I, the great Papyrus, can set you up on a friend hangout! Help you two bond and get closer! Nyeh, heh, heh!"

"That's… sweet of you, Papyrus, really, but you can't force someone to bond with me if they don't want to," I sighed. "Look, I'm just gonna eat, maybe watch an episode of that anime, and head out for a bit. Hopefully she'll be done by the time I get back."

"Hey, bro, maybe give her your phone number so you can text her when she can return," Sans suggested.

"Oh, that is a good idea!" Papyrus smiled before he looked at me. "Would you mind if I gave you my phone number, Puppy?"

I gave a small smile. "Wow, not even on a date and I'm already getting your number~"

"Y-You do not need to tease the Great Papyrus…" Papyrus huffed.

Asria's POV

I took a deep breath before letting it out. I had been psyching myself up before the meeting with Papyrus. I had been warned he was excitable and was worried he might overwhelm me. After standing out here for a while, I finally felt ready enough to knock on the door.

Before I could knock on the door, my cell phone rang. I checked my caller ID to see it was Alphys calling me.

I picked up the call before pulling the phone to my ear. "Hey, Alphys, is everything okay?"

"Oh gosh, finally, I was able to reach you!" Alphys replied in a tone of relief. "I was worried something might've happened to you when my call got intercepted by someone else!"

"Your call got intercepted?" I repeated in confusion. "When did you try calling me?"

"About an hour or two ago, I think. I kept trying to call you, but my call kept getting some kind of weird signal interrupting it," Alphys answered.

"Ahh well your first call might've happened when I was walking through the MTT," I pointed out. "You know how… poor the interference is there. After that, I called my parents to talk to them. Then I was having lunch with Sans. The last one… I'm not sure why you weren't able to reach me then."

"Even then, I'm usually able to call you even when you go through the Core itself," Alphys pointedly replied. "I ended up calling someone else, somehow. I didn't recognize their voice. Though they sounded like a child."

"Hmmm… we'll have to take a look at the cell system then," I noted. "Could be there's a monster who ignored the signs and is hanging out on the cell tower again. That or my cell might need some maintenance."

"It's just weird. The last time something like this happened, it was due to a human's phone interfering with the signal of our cell tower," Alphys muttered. "Did a human dump a phone into the Dump recently while it was still active? That's unusual. But… no, if I had called that phone, nobody would've answered it… unless someone else picked it up. But I had been looking at the cameras in the Dump, I had not seen any cell phones there, well, not any that could've come from the surface anyway."

"I remember receiving a report earlier that one of those metal shipping containers got stuck in one of the rivers that leads to the Dump," I informed Alphys. "It's possible it could have tech inside it that's somehow redirecting calls. I'll have someone go to it later and see if they can't dislodge it. If there's tech parts inside, we might be able to build another rocket to get more pictures of the surface."

"I guess… but, uh… in other news, remember that strange human head dog monster we saw exit the Ruins? I've been watching her as she made her way to Snowdin," Alphys explained. "I kinda like her. She's been really friendly with the other monsters. She even talked to an Ice Cap and convinced it to take off its cap. Can you believe it?"

"Spying on monsters again, Alphys?~" I teasingly asked. "Though in all seriousness, that's definitely something. I'm surprised an Undocumented would do that for a monster it's never met before."

"Yeah, it is a little strange. She's also been petting other dog monsters. I've never seen any dog monsters pet another dog before," Alphys replied.

"Could be a strange tradition from the rest of her kin," I offered. "It's honestly a bit surprising that none of the dog monsters thought to pet each other up until now."

"I think they just thought it would be weird for a dog to pet another dog, so they just never tried it," Alphys guessed. "Well, I think she should be somewhere in Snowdin right now. I lost track of her though."

"My guess is probably at the inn or at some kind monster's house," I replied. "Anyways, I was about to finish my end of the deal with Sans. I'll make sure to bring your fries to you after I'm done."

"Thanks. Good luck," Alphys replied before hanging up with a click.

I put away my phone before I reached towards the door and knocked on it. No time for hesitation.

The door glowed blue for a second before it opened. I saw Sans leaning against the kitchen wall. "Heya, come on in."

"Thanks." I smiled before I wiped off my shoes on the doormat before walking in. "I hear there's a certain young monster here who's been looking forward to meeting me for a while."

"Nyeh, heh, heh, heh, you thought correctly!"

A taller skeleton zipped into view. He wore a shirt that read 'cool dude', and had basketball shoulder pads. He had a hat on his skull, and shorts.

"Remember, bro, no using titles," Sans stated before his brother, Papyrus, could speak. "She's just a guest right now, not anyone official."

"Well… I would prefer to talk to you with your appropriate title. But if you do not wish to hear it, then I will just call you by your name, Asria!" Papyrus stated. "Welcome to the house of Papyrus… and Sans too, I guess."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Papyrus." I warmly greeted, having seen him enough to feel comfortable enough to talk to him normally.

"Did you hear that, Sans? It's a pleasure to meet me!" Papyrus smiled.

"Yes, it certainly is," Sans chuckled.

"So, Papyrus, I wanted you to be the first to know that Sans has been given three days off from work," I informed before I walked towards the infamous sock and looked at it. "Additionally, my mother has asked that I help finally take care of this errant sock here."

"That sock? Well, you're free to try, but it may be a bit stubborn. I've already tried to get rid of it several times," Papyrus said while sweating.

I looked at the sock and smiled before I summoned a few fireballs above my head. "So… here's how it's going to go, Mr. Sock. You're gonna let me take you to Sans's room or I'm gonna set you on fire."

I waited a few seconds before I picked up the sock and began to carry it up the stairs, keeping my fireballs close by.

"When I put you down, you are going to stay in Sans's room until such a time as he throws you in the wash with the rest of his clothes or chooses to wear you," I explained to the sock, knowing that with Sans, it was possible his sock was sentient. "And if he chooses to wear or wash you, you will return to his room with the rest of his clothing and remain there."

I opened the door to Sans's room a bit, ignoring the fake flames flickering underneath the door. "If you fail to do so, I will come back with my mother and we will both teach you a lesson. And you will spread this message to all other socks and pieces of clothing in this house."

I placed the sock down gently. "Now stay."

I closed the door slowly before leaning over the railing to see if it, or another sock, had moved back.

"Wow, you sure showed that sock who's boss," Sans chuckled.

I smiled and dissipated my fireballs. "And hopefully all your other clothing."

"You are freaking cool, Asria!" Papyrus complimented me. "Nobody's ever been able to get Sans's socks to behave like that!"

"Well, like my mother tells me, sometimes laundry needs to be reconditioned and have its wrinkles ironed out~" I giggled softly as I joined them downstairs.

"Really? Then I need to start doing that with all of my laundry!" Papyrus grinned. "Nyeh, heh, heh, heh!"

Papyrus then stopped as he looked at me. "So, Asria… if you don't mind me asking… What's it like being the Royal Scientist?"

"Paps here always has that dream of becoming a part of the Royal Guard, and maybe a part of the Royal Family Guard," Sans explained.

"It's a lot of work, but it's worth it," I answered.

"Really? That's why I work hard every day!" Papyrus smiled. "Unlike my lazy brother, who can't even be bothered to make real puzzles…"

"Though unfortunately there's also often a lot of pressure…" I admitted. "The expectations of the Underground are placed on my shoulders. I often get asked questions that… I can't answer, like if I have made any progress on breaking the barrier or getting around it."

I walked over to the couch and slowly sat down on it, noting that I needed to help repair or replace the couch as it was quite lumpy and I could feel some of the springs weren't properly aligned. I also noticed that the couch was warm, like someone was sitting here recently.

It… couldn't have been Sans or Papyrus, neither of them had the proper body heat to make the couch warmer than usual. I then spotted some to-go bags from Grillby's in the kitchen and I figured that Sans might've placed it on the couch.

"Was there someone else here?" I asked, just to clear the confusion.

"Oh yes, you just missed our new friend, Puppy! … Who's name I still haven't asked… I really should ask them," Papyrus muttered. "Anyways, Puppy went out for a walk before you came."

"Puppy?" I repeated before looking at Sans. "The kid who emerged from Ruins this morning?"

"Yup, the same one," Sans answered.

"We offered her to stay here for the night before she continued on to Waterfall tomorrow," Papyrus explained.

"Ahh, well that's nice of you." I smiled. "I'm glad the kid can rely on the two of you. I hope you'll help them get used to the rest of the Underground."

"We'll do our best to help them adjust," Sans assured me. "Maybe even find them somewhere they can live."

"Yes, but…" Papyrus began to say, looking a little troubled.

"But?" I prompted.

"I just can't help but worry about her," Papyrus admitted. "She seemed troubled about something, and she's hiding it behind a smile. I'm an expert on these things because my brother literally can't stop smiling…"

"Well if anyone can get to the root of the issue, I'm sure you two can," I replied. "And if they really need help, Sans can get in contact with Alphys or myself."

"We should probably tell her about the Riverperson, it's faster than trying to get through the rest of the Underground on foot," Sans suggested.

"And rob her of an adventure? A chance to grow, and have character development?" Papyrus frowned.

"I'd say to give her a choice at the very least," I suggested. "Though if she's in a rush, I'd say maybe try to find out the reason for the rush."

"She mentioned something about going to the castle," Sans stated. "She may be wanting to speak with the King and Queen."

"Or meet someone living in the castle?" Papyrus suggested. "Oh… wait, what if when I told her what we did with humans, she became jealous and wanted to be adopted by royalty herself!? She did pretend to be human and test out all our puzzles after all!"

Pretended to be human? She might've just been humoring you, Papyrus. I pondered. "She could've also been going to New City. Or maybe she wants to meet Mettaton."

"Come to think of it, we never did ask her why she was planning to leave Snowdin. If she just wanted a home outside of the Ruins, she could stay here with us, so why keep going?" Papyrus wondered.

"Woaaaah, Paps, don't rush to decisions like that," Sans interjected. "Moving into a house with other people can be a big decision. If she wanted to stay here, I'd suggest we renovate the garage."

"Human Containment Cell!" Papyrus loudly corrected.

"Yeah yeah," Sans chuckled.

"Maybe I'll at least talk to her about it first…" Papyrus sighed.

Despite Papyrus's naivety, he also seemed logical too.

"Oh, Asria, when's the next sleepover?" Papyrus asked. "I need to show Alphys I know more of that anime language."

"Sleepover?" I asked before pulling out my phone and opening up the calendar. "Looks like we have it scheduled for New Years, so the 31st and 1st at Alphys's lab."

"Then I will be sure we are not late for that, nyeh heh heh." Papyrus smiled.

After a while of chatting, I had grown more comfortable with Papyrus. Then Papyrus looked at his cell phone. "Oh no! It's been an hour already! I must make sure Puppy is alright out there! It was nice talking to you, Asria! I look forward to the next time we hang out!"

Faster than I could blink, Papyrus rushed upstairs, then after a second, he came back out, wearing… that costume he wore during that cosplay party Alphys had a few weeks back. Papyrus grinned at me before he ran out of the house.

"Maybe you should hide that outfit," I said to Sans with a soft chuckle.

"Nah, Papyrus loves it. I wouldn't want to take that away from him. Besides, that costume will get bonely after a while," Sans chuckled back. "But what do you think of him so far?"

"He's…" I sighed. "Definitely too kind-hearted to be a combat-oriented Royal Guard. He could definitely be in the Royal Guard if he continues to train, but I wouldn't recommend sending him out on his own. Outside that, he's got a lot of energy and isn't as dense as people often assume he is. He definitely pays attention to his surroundings and tries to find the best in people."

"Yeah, Papyrus is a good boy. Which is why I always worry about him," Sans sighed. "He's the only family I've got left… and I worry he'll eventually face someone dangerous and… I would find his dust lying before me. I always worry about that, especially if a human comes. You've read the books… the real history books. You know how powerful a human is compared to us. If one human had the right mindset and intention…"

Sans let that sentence hang, because he didn't need to finish it.

"If… you want, I could offer you guys one of the new places being built between New City and City," I offered. "It would keep him out of danger."

"Nah… there's a reason why we no longer live near New City, or the Core for that matter," Sans sighed. "Plus, it's already getting pretty crowded."

"I… understand why you might not live near the Core," I acknowledged before smiling. "And… yeah, that's why the next places being built are more spaced out, to get rid of that crowding issue. Besides, Papyrus could use his strength for helping work on the construction. I can even imagine him wearing a hardhat on his head and one on each shoulder. But, if you guys don't want to move, I understand. There's… unfortunately not much I can do besides give you that offer to ensure he'll be in a safer environment."

"I appreciate the offer, Asria, I really do. But until that barrier breaks, we are needed here. Other than us, the only protection this place has are the K9 units, and… they're not exactly the toughest of bunch," Sans explained.

I let out a long sigh and leaned back. "I understand that, Sans, but… I don't know if I'm any closer to breaking the barrier. The only path so far that has a chance is the one your father was on before he vanished, and… I'm not ready to travel down that road just yet."

"Do you have any idea on what you might need to bring you closer to breaking that barrier?" Sans asked.

"Well… there is the chance we could wait it out…" I admitted. "Since the barrier was put up thousands of years ago, it's weakened a bit. Maybe in another… thousand years, it'll only take 6 Souls to break it. The humans who sealed us down here in the first place likely thought we'd die out before too long, so they didn't make the barrier with the intention to last eternity."

"Maybe not, but a thousand years is a long time, even in monster years," Sans replied.

"Yeah, I know…" I muttered softly. "Outside that… maybe once we… heal the victims of the DT project, we can find some results that would help us break the barrier. It could be that all we need to do is break a tiny hole in the barrier and the rest will shatter, similar to glass."

"Hmm, well… maybe you shouldn't feel like you need to bear that responsibility all on your own," Sans said.

"Unfortunately, that's legitimately part of the job description for Royal Scientist," I stated. "Figuring out a way to break the barrier is the second entry, just after 'you will not become a mad scientist'..."

"And where has that gotten all the Royal Scientists so far?" Sans pointedly asked. "It takes 7 Human Souls to break the barrier, strong Souls. Not just one."

"Well…" I frowned and laced my hands together. "The DT tests… actually had a secondary goal, one that Alphys wasn't aware of when she took on the project from your father. Your father was trying to isolate the DT and channel it into a vessel that could substitute one of the human Souls. He… thought that if he could amplify the DT that naturally exists within a monster's Soul, he could extract it. Unfortunately… amplifying the DT had unforeseen circumstances that resulted in the inability to extract the DT."

"Asria… let me be clear about this," Sans began. "You shouldn't mess with the DT tests anymore. Once you find a cure, it's best to let it rest. It's too dangerous to be used on monsters."

"Yeah… I know…" I responded with a sad smile. "After I got over the shock of the DT project… a part of me thought I could possibly extract it from the air or something. But I understand now that if I tried doing that… I'd create an unstoppable disaster. Creating a vacuum of that energy, even a small one, would have a rippling effect that would… essentially tear a monster apart from the outside. Heck, it might've even spread to the surface and done the same with humanity. DT is something that reality itself needs, and trying to mess with it is like trying to lick magma. Extremely dangerous, potentially deadly, and ill advised."

"I'm glad you understand that before it was too late," Sans said. "But, maybe things could be different if you had some help, maybe from someone unexpected."

"Papyrus?" I questioned with a half-hearted chuckle. "He'd be the last person I'd expect to show an aptitude for science."

"You'd be surprised," Sans winked. "But no, not Papyrus."

"Are you actually gonna tell me or are you gonna beat around the bush?" I questioned, a bit snippy because this was a topic that caused me massive amounts of stress and was not a joking matter.

"Eh, spoilers," Sans answered.

"Great… you sound just like River…" I muttered.

"But let me ask you something, do you think… if you met with a real, live human, they might help you get closer to breaking the barrier?" Sans questioned.

"If that actually somehow happened, which probably won't happen in the next few decades if history repeats itself on schedule, then it might," I answered. "Or it might lead me away from the answer. Just like you say, Sans, infinite possibilities, infinite chances of being disappointed."

"True, but I have a good feeling about this one," Sans chuckled.

"What, are you suddenly a seer?" I raised a brow. "Cause nothing has dropped into Mt. Ebott for the past… 35,275 days. And what fell in was a tree that got blown in during a windstorm."

"Just call it a hunch," Sans answered. "But I get the feeling that… nah, I think I'll wait this one out. It's more interesting that way."

"Well… that's helpful…" I grumbled before I stood up, feeling a bit peeved about Sans's vague answer. "I'm sorry, Sans, but I think the lack of sleep is starting to catch up with me. I'm gonna stop by Grillby's, pick up Alphys's order, then head back to my room in the Core to grab some sleep."

"You do that," Sans said. "Oh, and by the way, when you see an unusual white dog at your doorstep, make sure to call her a good girl for me."

With a wink, Sans walked into the kitchen, and… disappeared.

"Just don't forget your half of the deal!" I called out, knowing that even if he was gone, Sans would still hear me.

I then pulled out my phone and texted Grillby so the order would be ready by the time I got there. Following that, I left Sans and Papyrus's house. I couldn't wait to get home, where I could just stretch out on my bed, relax, and maybe switch on my monitors hooked up to the cameras. I hoped Sans had been joking about a white dog coming to my doorsteps, the Core wasn't a place for a dog, or any animal.

I stopped by Grillby's before heading back to River. River brought me back to Hotland without a delay and I went to the door of Alphys's lab.

"Hey, Alphys, I got your fries!" I called out as I stood in front of the camera with the insulated bag. "They're still crispy!"

The door opened and Alphys smiled. "Thanks, Asria. I appreciate it!"

"Of course." I smiled before yawning. "I'm planning on heading back to the Core now and going to my room. Will you keep an eye on the cameras in my lab to make sure nothing spontaneously catches fire? There shouldn't be anything volatile but… well, that hasn't stopped spontaneous fires from occurring in the past."

"You know I always do, especially after that one time…" Alphys and I both shivered.

"I still don't know how the lab got covered in ice and set on fire at the same time…" I rubbed my face. "There aren't any pipes just behind the walls that could've caused it!"

"Sometimes… magic can be weird," Alphys chuckled sheepishly. "Especially when mixed in with science."

"It wasn't even magic, otherwise the detectors would've gone off," I pointed out before shaking my head.

"Well, either way, just make sure you actually get some sleep, alright?" Alphys said, noticing my sleepiness.

"I will," I promised. "Meanwhile, you make sure you record notes after you eat those special fries. I had Grillby use the oil we got from the canola plants we harvested not too long ago. Oh, speaking of which, maybe activate the harvester bots. I was gonna go harvest myself, but… well, I gotta sleep instead."

"Asria, I've got everything handled. You go get some sleep, alright? Or I'm going to have to call your mother to pick you up," Alphys warned.

"Yeah yeah…" I dismissively replied. "Knowing you, you were already gonna ask 01 and 02 to make sure I at least got to the MTT."

"Hah! Nope! It's 03 and 04 I was gonna ask!" Alphys smirked.

I smirked back. "03 and 04 are on vacation, Alphys. They're at the Honeydew Inn~"

"... Just go to your room…" Alphys huffed, her cheeks blushing.

I snickered before I waved goodbye. I then started heading back through Hotland towards the Core. If anyone tried to stop me at the MTT… I wasn't going to do anything rash, but I definitely wouldn't be sticking around.

When I got to the MTT, I saw some monsters crowding around somewhere. They appeared to be looking at the TV plastered on the wall.

Must be a new episode of one of Mettaton's countless shows. I thought to myself with a chuckle, surprised that bot could keep up with the amount of shows he created.

"How could they jump that high?"

"I think he helped her with that."

"To dodge his attack?"

"Hey, it creates more suspense and drama. I'm all for it!"

Huh… did he get a guest star? I thought with a yawn, as I headed to the elevator. Poor monster…

After getting out of the elevator, I began using my Core ID to bypass all the traps and security measures, making my way towards my living quarters in the Core. The Royal Researcher role was honestly, quite lucky. Not only did they get two state of the art laboratories in the Core, they also had a warehouse to store things, and a modern living quarters with a kitchen, a dining room, a master and guest bedroom, and more.

When I finally made it to the door to my living quarters, I opened it up with my ID and stepped inside. I closed the door behind me and began stripping down as I walked, dropping my lab coat, then my pants, and shirt. I stripped down until I was in my undies, knowing the automated arms in the living quarters would take care of everything. I walked straight to my bedroom and fell face first onto the bed, crawling up a bit till my head was on the pillow.

I laid there for a while, going through different projects in my mind, until I finally fell asleep. I then immediately woke up a moment later, grabbed my phone, and sent a message to Dogamy and Dogaressa, as well as Doggo, that I wanted to see them some time in January to treat their blindness. I then flopped back down and went back to sleep.

About an hour before…

I was in the library. I didn't know how long that shy scientist assistant was going to stay, but I certainly didn't feel like walking around the snow for an hour. So, while I could still read, I decided to check out a book or two while I waited.

I found some of the books to be rather funny. But one book caught my attention. The book I was reading mentioned something that… worried me.

Monsters are made up of magic, while humans are mostly made up of water. Monsters are more attuned to their Souls, and can use magic a lot easier than humans. But humans, with their physical forms, are stronger than monsters. Their Souls can hold far more power than any monster. If a strong Soul approached a monster with the intent to kill… Well, let's just end the chapter there.

Are… humans really that much stronger than monsters? I frowned. I find that hard to believe… But they mentioned the Soul had to be strong, so… maybe not just any human is stronger than monsters?

I thought back on what I fought with Flowey, how my attacks had gotten stronger the more I attacked him, despite my attack power not ever rising during battle. I thought back on the whole Execution Points and Level of Violence he mentioned. Those were enough to make a Soul strong… but that was it. It didn't make the Soul good or pure, just strong. I didn't know if monsters had things like Execution Points or Level of Violence to worry about, but I shut the book. My eyes were getting a bit sore trying to read certain words.

I put the book back on the shelf and walked out of the library. I needed some air, even if it was underground… I walked past Papyrus and Sans's house, heading to the path ahead. I saw some mist making it harder to see what was up ahead, so I stopped here.

I checked my stats from the menu screen. While my LOVE stayed at 1… the rest of me stayed weak too. I said I would try to get a strong Soul without resorting to killing anyone, but… I didn't know how I could do that. I was always weak… even when I tried my best to get stronger, I could never measure up… to anyone's expectations…

"Puppy?"

I jumped when I heard a familiar voice. I turned around, seeing Papyrus standing there. "Papyrus? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be talking to your friend?"

"I already hung out with her." Papyrus smiled. "I'd like to hang out with you now."

"That's nice of you, Papyrus, but…" I sighed.

"What's wrong? You can tell me, Puppy," Papyrus asked, his voice sounding concerned. "If you're bothered that she won't hang out with you, I could-"

"No, it's not that," I said. "I just… I was just wondering… some things are going on, and I don't know how to stop it. I'm always too scared to do the right thing… I'm always too weak, too… much of a disappointment. I could probably traverse this whole Underground and still be the same weak, disappointing person that I am now. I want to get stronger, but I don't know how… but if I don't, I don't think I'll be able to help anyone."

"Well, if you want to get stronger, there's one surefire way to do so." Papyrus smiled. "Ask a friend for help and if they are a true friend they will not hesitate to assist!"

"Don't friends eventually leave?" I asked. "It's not that either of you had a falling out… life just happens, and suddenly you're left alone again… I don't want to end up relying on someone only for them to leave…"

Papyrus tilted his head a little. "It sounds like you had a rough experience before, Puppy, but I don't think that's always the case."

I gave a sigh. "My options are limited, Papyrus…"

"I don't think they are though," Papyrus disagreed. "These aren't Ruins, where when monsters leave, you likely won't ever see them again. You're in Snowdin, where you're bound to run into monsters again and again."

I let out a sigh. The Ruins and monsters weren't the issue here, but it wasn't like Papyrus knew that. I tried not to think back on the school I was sent to by my parents… but it was difficult not to, especially when talking about any friends I may have had back then… if they ever were really my friends to begin with.

"Sorry, Frisk, but I can't hang out with you anymore…"

"My parents want to take me to a better class, because they think you're holding me back."

"Good luck… and sorry… maybe when you're stronger, or can actually do something… we might be able to hang out again."

"Be friends with you? No, I would never be friends with someone so… pathetic."

"It's a miracle she's even at this school. From what I've heard, her parents aren't even rich, so they must've done some favors for the higher ups. Let's go, everyone, let's ditch the weak poor girl. Anyone who associates with her… well they'll be just as trash as her."

I hadn't noticed I started crying until I felt something tickling my cheeks. It was cold, yet despite that, my tears refused to freeze.

"Puppy…" Papyrus said in a surprisingly soft tone, something I thought he was incapable of doing.

I quickly rubbed my eyes to get rid of the tears. "Ah… ha, ha, I guess all this cold is starting to sting my eyes a little."

"I think those are called tears, Puppy," Papyrus observed, not fooled by my excuse.

I looked down, not giving a response to that.

"I won't leave, Puppy," Papyrus stated as he sat down on the snow beside me. "If you want to get stronger, I can help. If you just want a friend, then there's no friend better than the Great Papyrus~ If you want someone to talk to, I can… well I can't lend you an ear, seeing as I don't have one, but I can be here for you to talk to."

I kept my eyes down on the snow. "I… don't want to drag you down with my baggage though. You have your own stuff to deal with… trying to become a Royal Guard and all that."

"Do you know one of the main responsibilities of the Royal Guard?" Papyrus questioned.

"To… protect the royal family?" I asked. That's how it is on the surface at least.

"Surprisingly, nope!" Papyrus smiled widely before gently putting a hand on my head. "It's to protect and serve the monsters of the Underground."

"That's… um… noble?" I replied unsurely, I was also taken by surprise by the gloved hand on my head.

"You are a monster of the Underground," Papyrus pointed out. "If I help you, it would be like I'm a junior Royal Guard! Besides that though, I want to help my friend!"

"Your friend?" I asked, looking up at Papyrus.

It was a notion that Papyrus may have said before, but I took it more as a joke than anything. After all, nobody really wanted to actually be my friend, they just say it as a joke, or they didn't actually mean it. Or they do it to get close to me for an ulterior motive, like getting close to Kris.

But Papyrus… didn't really have a reason to get close to me. I was pretty much a nobody when I stepped out of Ruins as a 'regular dog monster'. While I didn't know Papyrus for long, he didn't seem to be the type to pretend to be someone's friend. Everything he did and said had a passion behind them that felt too genuine to be faked, and I had spent a lot of time with people who were good at faking what they really thought. So to hear Papyrus sit here, speaking in a rare, soft tone to me, declaring I was his friend was… surprising.

"You… really think of me as a friend?" I asked again.

"A friend and maybe even a future housemate if you choose to move into the guest room!" Papyrus beamed. "Who knows, maybe we could even be classmates! Ooh! If we become classmates, maybe we can come up with a secret handshake or something to make all the other monsters envious of our amazing friendship!"

Once again, I found myself questioning just how old Papyrus was. He looked like he would be an adult, given how tall he was. But I had no way of telling how old a skeleton would be.

"You wouldn't mind me living with you? What about Sans?" I asked. "I wouldn't want to burden either of you two."

"I'm sure Sans wouldn't mind!" Papyrus beamed. "Besides, when not at home, he's usually busy with his multitude of stations! Or he's…" Papyrus shivered. "Wallowing in the grease-trap that is Grillby's…"

I couldn't help but giggle a little. Even though this was a bit of an emotional moment, Papyrus seemed to have a knack for making things silly without it being aggravating.

"Well… I don't know about the whole 'living in Snowdin' yet. But I guess I wouldn't mind staying for a while," I replied. "Truth be told, trying to travel all the way to the King and Queen's castle sounds not only daunting, but scary… I don't know if someone like me would have the strength to make it there, and even if I did… I… don't know how I'd be able to face such important monsters."

"Which brings us back to the topic of training to grow stronger!" Papyrus smiled.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, if you don't think you have the strength to speak to the King and Queen, or even to get to them, then we must improve your strength!" Papyrus declared. "If this was one of Alphys's animes, it would call for a training montage!"

'Animes'? Maybe he is a child… I wondered. "Would a training 'montage' even work though?"

"A montage? No. We'd have to actually train," Papyrus answered. "Believe me, I tried doing a montage before to become a Royal Guard, but it didn't work. Thankfully we have time as I am currently on break from school!"

I guess they have a Giftmas break here. I noted. "I guess we could try, but… there's something you should know. I can't use magic."

"You can't?" Papyrus asked, looking surprised.

"No… Heh… weird, huh? I'm a monster who can't use magic… I wonder what that makes me?" I sighed.

"That's fine." Papyrus smiled. "Not all monsters excel at magic! Some focus on other skills like science, engineering, and things of that nature. Some monsters, even strong ones, can only use a tiny bit of magic. And sometimes the weakest monsters can use the strongest magic."

"I get that, but I can't use magic at all," I sighed. "Trust me… I've tried…" Oh boy did I try…

"Well… perhaps it's not that you can't, but that you just never had the right reason for it," Papyrus offered. "One thing that you might not know about magic, due to living in Ruins all your life until now, is that magic is usually an expression of feeling. The stronger one feels about something, the stronger the magic can be. I can't say for sure, as I am not a teacher, but perhaps you just never figured out what brings out that feeling for you."

I don't know. In my school the teacher never spoke about using magic to express ourselves… magic was used for other things… I sighed to myself. I don't know if humans use magic differently from monsters. I don't know if it would work the same way. Even the books in the library stated that humans can't express themselves as easily through magic like monsters could…

But Papyrus was trying hard to comfort me, for that, I was grateful to him. Usually when I told someone, other than Kris, that I couldn't use magic, they would just apologize and walk away from me. Or in my teachers and parents' case, start yelling and 'correcting' me on how to use magic.

I gave Papyrus a smile. "Thanks, Papyrus. I appreciate your encouragement about this. But until I can actually use magic, maybe the training can be more for my physical strength?"

"Of course!" Papyrus beamed. "It might even help you with your magic later on! A stronger body can make it so you have a larger reserve of energy to use magic."

"Great, then…" I began before hesitating. "Uh… how are we doing this?"

"Nyeh, heh, heh, heh! Not to worry, Puppy, you can't spell 'prepared' without several letters in my name!" Papyrus grinned before standing up. "We can do what Undyne did for me! … Except the cooking part, I don't think you're tall enough to work the stove right now. We have ourselves a Battle. Not just the Soul kind of battle that most monsters have, but a real battle with our physical forms and our Soul!"

I raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

"Well, Sans told me you've been in a few Soul Fights with some monsters in Snowdin Forest," Papyrus remarked. "And you may have noticed that both of you take turns to use your magic… uh… well, you can take turns to do something with each other, and you see your Soul during the fight, right?"

"Yeah, I have," I confirmed.

"That's what's usually called a Soul Fight," Papyrus explained. "It's how monsters duke it out without actually hurting each other."

"Uh… really?" I asked. "They… don't have a chance to… you know… kill each other?"

If that was the case, maybe I wouldn't need to worry about killing them if I had chosen the Fight option.

"Precisely! It's only bad if one of them chose to strike at their body instead of just using their magic on the other's Soul," Papyrus answered.

"Strike… at their body?" I frowned.

"Of course. A Soul Fight between monsters is just meant to have both sides show off their magic to the other. If the other's Soul starts to get weak, the magic stops working on them," Papyrus answered before he frowned. "Though I don't think it would work well with a human's Soul, because of the very nature of the Soul being far too different from a monster's Soul. However! Since you are an adorable monster, you shouldn't need to worry, even without the ability to use magic!"

"Uh…" I began, not sure how to explain my situation without giving myself away.

"As for the whole striking at their body, not to worry, during a regular Soul Fight, it's impossible for monsters to actually attack the other's body. The attack field is there to ensure that doesn't happen, not even by accident," Papyrus explained.

"... And… what if a human got pulled into a Soul Fight with a monster?" I asked.

"That… uh… actually, I'm not sure. I had never seen a human in a Soul Fight before," Papyrus answered sheepishly. "You could probably ask my brother, he may have seen a few humans in a Soul Fight."

Apparently the attack field stops a monster from directly attacking the other. But it doesn't do that for a human. I was able to attack Flowey even with the attack field. I thought to myself. I wonder if it has anything to do with the 4 options I see during a Soul Fight.

"But, getting back to my point, a Soul Fight is just a battle between Souls," Papyrus spoke up. "What I'm suggesting is a sparring match between our physical bodies, but with the powers of our Souls. This way we can still use our own traits while battling."

"I'm afraid I don't really understand," I sighed.

"The Great Papyrus will try to explain it to you then!" Papyrus said, sounding more happy about explaining it than annoyed. "You know how in a Soul Fight, you're able to move around the attack field freely? As well as use your mag… well, just the first part anyways?"

"Yeah?" I replied.

"And how you're able to act in a certain way?"

"If you mean like talking, or petting someone, then yeah."

"Well, a Battle is where you do all that, plus with your body this time," Papyrus explained. "This way, it's not just your Soul gaining the experience from the Battle, but your body as well. A Soul Fight is just the safest way to fight against another monster, because a Battle could lead to things going wrong. Like hurting yourself, or hurting your sparring partner. But it also leads to much greater growth."

"I… I think I get it now," I said. "I guess I never noticed, but yeah, when monsters take my Soul out, I think my body stops moving until the Fi- err, the Soul Fight is over."

"You mean other monsters, yes?" Papyrus questioned.

"O-oh, yeah, of course," I quickly said, realizing my mistake.

"Also, just to be sure you understand, as far as I'm aware, up until now you have only ever been in Soul Fights, or Fights if you truly wish to shorten it," Papyrus summarized. "A Battle is something you have yet to experience in this world, which is a good thing for a child like yourself."

"... Aren't you a child too?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, but I am an older child!" Papyrus beamed. "Though in truth, if I could be like any child, I would wish to be a genius child like the Royal Scientist! She is less than two centuries old and already graduated from college and became the Royal Scientist through her own merits!"

Two… CENTURIES? That's considered young to monsters? I thought to myself in shock. … The books did say monsters were made of magic, but still, I didn't think that meant they would have such absurdly long lifespans. Maybe that's the price we humans have to pay for having an actual physical form and stronger Souls compared to monsters, much shorter lifespans.

Admittedly, this did make me a little envious. But still… maybe having such a long lifespan while being trapped here isn't such a good thing. But… still… what do monsters consider to be adult age then for two centuries is still considered young?

"Puppy, are you alright? You look quite shocked," Papyrus asked. "Then again, I guess it is quite shocking to hear someone so young being the Royal Scientist."

"Um… y-yeah, that is… shocking," I replied. "How old are you, Papyrus?"

"I am 412 years old!" Papyrus beamed while holding his fist against his chest proudly.

I squinted my eyes at him. That… doesn't tell me how old you actually are in human years… maybe he's 12 then? … That's about how old I am though.

"What about you, Puppy?" Papyrus asked.

"Uhhhh… how old do you think I look?" I questioned.

"Looking at you…" Papyrus tilted his head a little. "Perhaps nearing 200? If I had to guess… in your 170s or 180s?"

Since I didn't know how old an adult monster was, I would have to gauge my age around his numbers, or his guesstimate anyway.

"You're right, I'm actually 182 years old," I said, picking one of the numbers around his guesstimate.

"Wowee, so I was close!" Papyrus excitedly replied. "You and I both have a few centuries to go before we're close to adults. My brother, Sans, is nearly a full grown adult at 694!"

I… didn't know why, but I felt a small shiver going down my spine at that number. Well, at least it's not triple 6.

"Wait a minute, we got side tracked!" Papyrus realized. "I'm supposed to be helping you train!"

I chuckled a little. "Okay, then what's the goal for the Battle?"

"Let's see…" Papyrus pondered. "How about until we are tired? Of course, if we sustain an injury, we will stop at once. The usual goal of a Battle would be to defeat the other opponent by knocking them out, keep going until they have nothing left, or making them submit to defeat. But because it is your first Battle, I do not wish to push you too hard. We will start with something easy."

"Sounds good to me." I smiled. "How does one activate a Battle?"

"Normally it takes not only the consent of both parties to activate, but a little bit of magic to bring their Souls out as well. But since you currently lack the ability to use your magic, the Great Papyrus will do it for you!" Papyrus grinned.

"Oh… well, when- wait!" I yelled when I felt my Soul coming out of my body.

It was already too late, my Soul was floating just outside of my chest.

"Okay, so now we just-" Papyrus began to say before he loudly gasped.

I blinked and looked at Papyrus, who was just staring.

"Puppy!" Papyrus shouted. "YOUR SOUL!"

Chapter Text

DarkFoxKit: Okay, Dark! It's time for another day of updates. … Dark? … Dark…. What are you doing over there?

Darkzdragon: Oh uh… Just um… *There was smoke coming from the doorway he emerged from* Trying to cook some breakfast? It's been a while since I made anything.

DarkFoxKit: … Why is there smoke coming from the doorway?

Darkzdragon: Uh… no reason? The kitchen is definitely not half on fire right now.

DarkFoxKit: … Do I need to call the fire department?

Darkzdragon: N-No, no… I can handle it.

DarkFoxKit: *We heard something heavy falling over from inside the kitchen* Riiiiight. I'm going to step outside then while you do that. And take my phone with me.

Darkzdragon: Okay! Hi, readers! Hope you enjoy the chapter! *Turns to run back into the kitchen* WHERE DID A FIRE DEMON COME FROM!? AND WHY IS IT NAMED YALDABAOTH!?

DarkFoxKit: *Coughs as she leaves the house* Well then… while Dark is handling that chaos… you guys just go on and enjoy the story- *There was a loud explosion* … I'll get back to you guys once the situation is handled.

Chapter 5: Bonetrousle

Frizk's POV

"Puppy!" Papyrus shouted. "YOUR SOUL!"

"P-Papyrus, I can explain!" I quickly said, though I didn't really know how to explain.

"IT IS UPSIDE DOWN!" Papyrus yelled in concern.

"Uh…" I paused for a moment before realizing Papyrus just gave me a shovel to dig my way out of this hole. "Y-yes, it's upside down!"

"DOES THAT NOT HURT?!" Papyrus loudly asked.

"It… um… it doesn't hurt! That's… because I… am a unique monster!" I announced, trying to sound a lot more confident than I felt. "A… monster with… um… an upside down Soul!"

"THAT IS SO COOL!" Papyrus shouted with sparkles in his eyes. "TO THINK I WOULD MEET SUCH A UNIQUE MONSTER!"

How… does he suddenly have eyes? I questioned. "Y-yeah, it's… really neat. But let's not tell the others about this, okay? They'll probably think I'm weird." Maybe… the eyes are magic? He did say magic is how a monster expresses themselves.

"But of course! I will keep quiet about this! But for now, let us get into our Battle! Nyeh, heh, heh, heh!" Papyrus smiled, looking cheerful.

I noticed something under my line of sight. Looking down, I saw the 4 options like I would in a Soul Fight. Only, there wasn't an attack field this time. I could move around more freely.

I tapped the Act option, and checked Papyrus.

"Papyrus- 20 ATK 20 DEF

Likes to say 'Nyeh, heh, heh'."

"Nyeh, heh, heh! Come on, Puppy, you gotta move around!" Papyrus said as he moved around a bit. "If you stay in one place, you become an easy target."

It was strange, having to stay on the move. I had gotten used to Soul Fights where we stood still until it came time for dodging.

"Alright, prepare yourself!" Papyrus spoke up.

I saw a few bones coming up from the snowy ground and were coming right at me. They were slow, but it still surprised me. In an attack field, the magic attacks looked a lot… smaller and less intimidating. I quickly moved to the side, avoiding the bones.

"You are good at dodging, Puppy!" Papyrus complimented me. "As expected of a canine!"

"T-thanks," I replied. It's not like I did much, I know you're going easy on me. Which makes sense since you probably wanna see what I can do.

"Would you like to try attacking now? Or would you like to just practice dodging for now?" Papyrus questioned.

Attack him? I frowned as I thought back to Flowey. "I'll work on dodging for now."

"Understood!" Papyrus beamed. "Just let me know if you want to try out an attack! I can make a bone dummy for you to attack if you want. It might trigger your canine instincts!"

"Heh, that might be… interesting," I chuckled.

I saw my 4 choices came back. I chose Act again. I saw I could 'Flirt' and 'Insult' Papyrus. I wasn't going to be a big meanie head and insult him. But I was curious to see what 'Flirt' would do.

"Hey, Papyrus, I have never seen any bones as sexy as yours~" I flirted.

"Of course you have not! My bones are one of a kind!" Papyrus responded, making me unsure if he understood I was flirting with him or not.

"I was flirting with you," I bluntly stated.

"Oh, well then I am flattered, but I feel we are both too young to consider such a thing…" Papyrus softly responded as he looked away, his cheeks somehow turning red. "I-if you wish to focus on dodging… you can just skip your turn, Puppy. Besides, I-I have… very high standards!"

Papyrus summoned more bones from the snow that slowly moved towards me. I moved aside, avoiding them.

"You're right, you are the Great Papyrus after all, and I have zero redeeming qualities," I replied.

"Oh no!" Papyrus yelled. "That humility… it reminds me of… myself! You're meeting all of my standards!"

"Wait, seriously?" I blinked.

"W-we'll… talk about this later! For now, let's focus on the training!" Papyrus quickly said.

I grinned. "Hey, flustering the opponent is half the battle."

"That is true! You are already learning much from this Battle, Puppy!" Papyrus beamed. "Now it's time for you to experience my fabled blue attack!"

Papyrus summoned a bone in the air this time, floating over me. Then he summoned a bunch more bones, but they were all blue. Remembering how blue attacks worked, I stayed still as all the bones went past my body like they were just projections.

Then all of a sudden, my body felt heavier and I fell to my knees from the unexpected weight. I noticed the outer parts of my Soul was now blue. For a moment, I thought I suddenly gained color in my Soul, but Papyrus didn't seem shocked about this.

"I coated your Soul with blue magic, increasing gravity on you. That's my blue attack!" Papyrus explained. "In this state, any physical activity you do will be boosted by the gravity! This is a good way to get stronger more quickly."

… Is this… like with that popular anime, where the main protagonist uses gravity to get stronger? I grumbled before I pushed myself onto my feet. Well, this just got a lot harder… but… if I can get through this, then maybe… "Okay, bring it on."

"That's what I like to see!" Papyrus smiled.

I chose the 'Mercy' and 'Spare' option, allowing me to skip my turn.

Papyrus summoned some short bones from the snow, coming towards me. I moved back a little and tried to jump over the bone. Despite having heavier gravity on me, I was able to jump higher than I normally could.

"I saw you picking some options, Puppy," Papyrus noted. "In a Battle, you can just focus on the idea of skipping your turn instead of pressing anything! That's one of the benefits to a Battle versus a Soul Fight. A Soul Fight forces you to do something on your turn. In a Battle, the options allow you to see what you could do, but you aren't forced to pick any of it."

"Huh… okay, thanks for the tip," I replied. Maybe monsters have these kinds of options too then, not just humans.

Papyrus began summoning more bones now. Some bones were small, and some were taller. It probably would be wiser to try to side step these bones, but I noticed Papyrus would have the bones follow my movement. So the best option was to try to jump over the incoming bones. I tried to jump over both the short and long bone, but I had a limit on how high I could jump. I managed to jump over the short bone, but I came back down and ended up hitting the longer bone.

"Ow…" I hissed.

I lost 3 HP. I was down to 17 HP.

"Was that too painful, Puppy?!" Papyrus asked in a concerned tone. "Oh gosh! I forgot to ask this at the start, Puppy! How much HP do you have?!"

"You can't see it?" I asked. "And it wasn't too painful, I've had worse."

"I can see your bar, but I can't see the number," Papyrus explained. "And I saw I just did a small chunk of the bar! How much HP do you have? You need to tell me the number, Puppy, otherwise I will stop this Battle now."

I could tell that Papyrus was freaking out because of his concern for my health and safety. It was… kind of nice.

"I have about 20 HP in total," I answered.

Papyrus's jaw dropped open. "I really should have asked before the Battle began! From now on, my attacks shall only do 1 damage! We will need to work on your HP soon, Puppy!"

"Uh… I…" I hesitated.

"What's the matter?" Papyrus asked.

"I was told that my HP would increase if my LOVE increased… but that seems… you know… wrong," I answered.

"Oh no! That's not the only way!" Papyrus exclaimed. "There are other ways to get more HP, Puppy! If HP could only be increased through LOVE, us monsters would all be weak!"

I furrowed my brow at that. "Papyrus… how much HP do you have?"

"I have 680HP," Papyrus answered.

"Whoa! That's a lot of HP!" I said in surprise. Then again he's 412, I shouldn't be that surprised.

"From what I understand, it's only slightly above the average of monsters in our age group," Papyrus responded before frowning. "To think that your growth was so stunted… it's… saddening. I shall redouble… no… I shall requadruple my efforts to help you grow stronger!"

I wonder if humans naturally have less HP than monsters? Then again… I didn't even know we had HP to begin with. I noted. "Heh, well, if I'm able to raise my HP without increasing my LOVE, I'm all for it."

"Of course! I'm sure Sans will even help!" Papyrus beamed.

"Okay, but are we still gonna continue the Battle?" I asked.

"Yes, of course!" Papyrus answered. "But the moment your HP gets to 5, tell me and we will stop at once."

"Yeah, I think I prefer that over dying," I replied.

"Do not worry, for I, the Great Papyrus, have a lot of self restraint! Nyeh, heh, heh, heh!" Papyrus stated proudly before moving back to his side of the battlefield.

The Battle continued. I still needed to use the Spare option since I hadn't been sure how to concentrate enough to skip my turn yet, but hopefully I would be able to do that soon.

Papyrus began to summon more bones from the ground in a tricker way. He also made some bones float over to me instead of on the ground, where I had to stay down. Admittedly, it was a lot easier to move around as a regular Soul than trying to move with this gravity magic on me, especially with my body. My body wasn't used to moving around that much, so I was tiring out rather quickly.

Which led me to another discovery. While in a Soul Battle, I only had to worry about losing HP to whatever magic attack hit me. But I noticed when I started to tire out, my HP dropped by 1 every time it got to my turn. With the tougher movement, and trying to dodge the bones with my actual body, I was getting hit more and more as the Battle went on, until eventually…

I dropped to my knees.

"... I… I think that's enough, Papyrus… my HP is low…" I spoke up, feeling ashamed I had to call it so soon after we started.

"You did well!" Papyrus smiled before he waved his hand and the blue around my Soul vanished. "Once you have rested up, we can do this again. After we do this a few times, you should notice a change in how your body feels."

"Ah…" I looked up at Papyrus in shock.

"What's the matter, Puppy? Do I have something on my face?" Papyrus asked. "Because I assure you that I didn't put any MTT brand beautifying cream on me today."

"N-no, it's not that," I replied. "I just… didn't expect to hear such praise when I hardly did anything." Normally, I'd be met with disappointed answers or ridicule for not being able to last that long in an activity or something…

"You didn't do nothing though," Papyrus pointed out. "You dodged many of my attacks while under my blue effect. That was quite a lot! Especially for your very first Battle."

"So… I did good?" I asked as I took Papyrus's gloved hand.

"No." Papyrus shook his head, causing me to feel a little disheartened. He then beamed at me. "You did great!"

I was lifted to my feet, blinking at his answer.

"Puppy, I can't expect you to be able to dodge every single one of my attacks perfectly, especially without any prior training or experience. That wouldn't be fair to you, and that doesn't help you grow at all," Papyrus stated. "But don't worry! If we keep this up, I'm sure you'll be able to do it. I believe in you."

I… I didn't know how to react. The words 'I believe in you' echoed through my mind for a few seconds. It was… a shock to hear those words… but in a good way. Nobody… had ever believed in me, nobody ever said they believed in me. Even Kris never truly believed I could do anything, which was why she felt she had to watch over me for as long as she did…

"Nyeh heh heh! I can tell my words have made you feel happy, and that makes me happy!" Papyrus nyeh-heh-hehed.

I suddenly hugged Papyrus. My body shook a little. "T-thank you… Papyrus… you have… no idea how much… I needed to hear those words…"

"You are very welcome." Papyrus smiled before patting my head before taking on a softhearted tone. "If you do wish to repay me, then perhaps you could tell me your name so I don't have to refer to your description anymore. If you don't want to, that is fine, and I will gladly wait until you are ready."

"Oh… yeah," I said, remembering that Papyrus didn't know my name. "My name is Frizk… spelled with a 'z', even though it's pronounced like an 's'."

"Well, Frizk, it is a pleasure to properly meet you." Papyrus smiled.

I smiled back at Papyrus.

Third Person

Papyrus picked Frizk up in his boney arms after having fallen asleep. Frizk relaxed as Papyrus carried her. Frizk had been drained by the Battle, which was to be expected as it was her first time. From the looks of it, Frizk probably felt safe enough to relax in Papyrus's arms. One could say it was pathetic, but it was also kind of cute in a pet sense.

Papyrus walked back to his house, still carrying Frizk. He kept carrying her until he opened the door to the guest room. The guest room itself was pretty small, but it had all the comforts one would need in a house. There was a bed, a table, a shelf with a few books in it, and a small, old yet functional looking TV.

Papyrus laid Frizk down on the table. "Sweet dreams, Frizk."

Papyrus headed back upstairs, leaving Frizk to sleep. However, before he could leave, another entity appeared by the door.

"Looks like you brought her back, bro. What happened? She looked tired," Sans asked.

"We had a Battle," Papyrus informed. "She expressed an interest to grow stronger. But… brother, I must ask, should we really be doing this?"

"Be doing what?" Sans asked. "Wait, don't tell me… you figured something out you think you shouldn't have?"

"There has never been a monster with an upside down Soul before, has there?" Papyrus softly questioned.

Sans didn't give an immediate response, which was all Papyrus needed.

"Do you feel obligated to protect them?" Papyrus questioned. "From the monsters… the Royal Guard, the King and Queen?"

"... The kid showed reluctance to be taken to the King and Queen," Sans answered. "It might be best not to push her to go see them."

"I… do understand, brother," Papyrus acknowledged. "I think there is another reason to perhaps… keep her from everything to do with royalty, both the guards and the family."

"Oh? What makes you say that, bro?" Sans asked. "What about your chance of becoming a part of the Royal Guard?"

"I shall still become a Royal Guard, brother, of that I am sure." Papyrus smiled before his smile faltered. "However… some words of the fourth human's memoir sticks out to me. The part where they expressed the gratitude and love that Queen Toriel and King Asgore gave to them, but part of them felt… trapped in a sense. They could only explore certain places, only see certain monsters. If… if the words are true, then a human joining the royal family only obtains a life of isolation. I would not wish that upon Frizk, especially since she seems to relish the idea of freedom. And… despite her young age, seems to be burdened by significant scars upon her mind."

Sans gave out a sigh. "I had a feeling there was something more going on with the kid. It sounds like she opened up a little to you, bro. Not that I expected anything less from the Great Papyrus though. But… knowing what she is… there's a good chance we could get into some hot water by the King and Queen if they find out we kept this information from them."

"Yes… especially since… because she is portraying herself as a monster child, she will have to attend school once it starts back up," Papyrus added. "Trying to hide her from school would not work. And taking her to school would be dangerous, especially if Queen Toriel decides to visit. I do not believe Frizk's disguise would fool Queen Toriel."

"There is one thing we can do," Sans said. "We could just homeschool her."

"But… wouldn't that raise more questions?" Papyrus asked in confusion. "I am still a student and you are… relaxation motivated."

"If you ask me, bro, it might be a good idea to leave it up to her. We can figure out the details when we come to it," Sans replied. "She may be trying to figure out what she wants to do as well."

Papyrus nodded. "Because she is going as a canine right now, I shall respect her decision and continue to treat her as such."

"It'll also be good to act like we don't know about her… special status. Though if it comes down to it, if there ever comes a time her identity gets found out, we should let her know she can turn to us for help," Sans explained.

"Agreed!" Papyrus exclaimed. "And speaking of help, you are going to help me to help raise her HP! I know monster methods may not work for her, but it wouldn't hurt to try! If someone found out about her current HP, it would be an instant giveaway!"

"You're telling that to someone with only one HP," Sans chuckled.

"Well you're special," Papyrus pouted. "Not everyone can be a glass cannon, brother."

"Not everyone can have just brittle bones like mine," Sans agreed. "But I digress. It's true that humans naturally have less HP than most monsters, at least the ones who had never trained to fight or increased their LOVE. I can't say for sure if the monster method would work, but I'd say it must have some kind of impact, since I remembered the last human who fell was able to get stronger by training with the King and Queen's royal guards. Though their LOVE was also a little high, so it's difficult to tell if it actually worked or not."

"Perhaps we can ask the Royal Scientist or Alphys for input on a hypothetical situation to settle a disagreement?" Papyrus suggested. "They might be able to figure out a way for a human to hypothetically gain more permanent HP."

"Hmm…" Sans gave a thoughtful look. "Maybe. It couldn't hurt to ask, besides, I did make a deal with the Royal Scientist. I'll be paying her a visit soon anyways."

"The benefits of being friends with the Royal Scientist!" Papyrus grinned. "You sure you're okay with helping Frizk get stronger? I don't want to force you to do something you are unwilling to do, brother. Even if I get on your case for being lazy quite often, I don't want to force unwilling effort out of you."

"I appreciate the concern, Papyrus, but I'm alright," Sans replied. "Tibia honest, the kid made a lot of monsters in Snowdin Forest happy, and she put up with some of the more blind dog monsters who smelled her true scent without hurting them, and Gyftrot. So I at least owe it to her for that, and for being your friend."

"Argh! Why do you have to ruin a heartfelt moment with your puns?!" Papyrus shouted.

"It's who I am, don't let it rattle your bones, bro~" Sans winked.

"ARGHGHGHGH!" Papyrus foamed from the mouth.

Asria's POV

"Just a little longer…" I whined as I felt a soft, metallic prodding against me. "Lemme sleep in…"

The prodding wouldn't stop, and kept going.

"Come onnnn… can't I rest a little longer…?" I pleaded.

"You specified you wanted to wake up at 9:00 AM. It is now 9:05 AM, because you requested to sleep in for 5 more minutes," A robotic voice answered back.

"Can't I get five more minutes then…?" I grumbled, though I knew at this point I wasn't going to be able to get back to sleep. Really need to find some time to finish up its personality matrix…

"Negative. You said, and I quote, 'Don't let me sleep in for more than 5 minutes. I have much to do and would rather not sleep in again.' End quote," The robotic voice stated.

"Fiiiiine… fine…" I grumbled before I pulled the cover off of me with a huff. "Can you at least get the shower started so it's not cold when I get in it?"

"Of course, Princess or Scientist Asria," The robotic voice, which was a work-in-progress artificial intelligence that Alphys and I had started working on after seeing it in a few different anime.

"Just… Asria…" I grumpily corrected before I sat up and swung my legs out of bed.

I forced myself to stand up before making my way to the bathroom. "Any important updates in regards to the experiments I asked you to keep an eye on? I don't need progress reports that the machines would've already taken."

"Nothing too significant," The AI replied.

"That's good to hear," I replied in a tone of relief before I fully disrobed and stepped into the already-running shower.

I took my time cleaning my fur. Not only was it important to ensure that I didn't contaminate any work or get contaminated by work, but it was just a part of the routine that had been drilled into me from when I could first remember.

After showering, I dried off, got dressed, and went to have breakfast. While having breakfast, I texted Alphys to let her know I was awake, in case she was waiting to contact me about anything.

I got a text message back almost right away.

'Can I call you?' The text asked.

I texted back a thumbs up in response.

After a moment, my phone began to ring and I picked it up before putting it on speaker.

"Were you able to get enough sleep?" Alphys asked.

"Yeah, I was able to sleep," I answered before giving a small yawn. "What'd you need to talk about?"

"I was just wondering if you'd like to look at some of the… erm… camera feeds on that human-faced dog monster. It looked like they were having an emotional breakdown earlier, and Papyrus helped them train using the Battle method. It's rare we see that method being used outside of Royal Guard training," Alphys replied. "I have to admit, it's kinda cool, especially since the child was able to dodge some of Papyrus's attacks while being weighed down by his gravity magic."

I paused to wrap my mind around what Alphys had just said. "Uh… yeah, do you want me to come to your lab to watch it? Or would you want to come over?" Papyrus helped that child through a Battle? I really don't know Papyrus well then.

"Isn't tonight our anime night?" Alphys asked. "We could treat it as such. Meaning it's your turn to come over to my place."

"I was more meaning to ask if you wanted me to come over immediately," I clarified.

"Well, I'm fine with waiting till the usual time. Especially since you're usually too busy doing other projects," Alphys answered. "But… well, maybe this is as good a time as any for a day off?"

I frowned before sighing a little. "I should probably take a week off soon, as I can practically feel Mom calling me to remind me I shouldn't work all the time, but I need to wrap up some of the ongoing projects first. If you give me a few hours, I can wrap up some of the projects that require supervision. Also, are you sure you wanna do anime night at your place? I don't mind having you over again."

"Thanks, but we also need to feed… them today too. I'm sure they'd like to see you again, it's been a few weeks since they did," Alphys replied.

I blinked before silently scolding myself. "Oh geez, I really have been caught up in work. I thought it's only been two weeks… Yeah, I'll make sure to wrap up the projects as quickly as I can and head your way."

"Alright, I'll be waiting," Alphys replied before hanging up.

After Alphys hung up, I sent a text to Grillby, asking him to cook up the routine meal but add something special since it was close to Giftmas. I got a flaming thumbs up text message in response.

After I was done with that, I decided to get to work on what I needed to do. I had until 7 PM to do what I needed to. Once I was done with breakfast, I got dressed and headed to my door. When I opened it, I was about to walk out, but stopped when I remembered Sans's warning. I looked down and saw a small little dog sleeping just in front of my door.

"Well hey there, doggo," I chuckled as I stepped over the dog. "Gotta watch out where you sleep. I could've tripped over you."

The dog opened its eyes, then wagged its tail at me. "Woof! Woof!"

The dog had some kind of envelope in its mouth.

"Oh, is that for me?" I asked as I kneeled down beside the dog and held out my hand.

The dog spat the envelope onto my hand. It gave another bark, then it scurried away without a care in the world.

I looked at the envelope to see who sent it. It just had the picture of a bone on it.

"Is this… from Sans?" I asked aloud to nobody in particular as I stood up and carefully opened the envelope before pulling out a letter.

'Heya, Asria. I just wanted to let you know, I'll be over today. I have the important new history discs you and Alphys wanted~'

Did he also remember the other supplies? I wondered as I flipped the letter over to see if there was any more. He's the only one who I can trust to discreetly get them… So I really hope he didn't forget. I once considered asking Muffet for help, since she can make pretty much anything with her spider silk… but Muffet is Muffet…

'I doubt you'd want me to say what else I'm getting you in this letter, considering anyone could read it.' The rest of the letter said.

"Ahhh, good, he didn't forget," I acknowledged with a sigh of relief before folding the letter back up, putting it back in the envelope, and tossing it inside my home before closing the door.

I made my way to the lab, using my ID as always to get past the puzzles and roadblocks that led to my main lab. On the way, I gave a friendly greeting to any of the Core workers who I passed, always quickly checking each one to make sure they were wearing all their appropriate safety equipment.

While Alphys and I had done a lot of work to make the Core safer, there were still hazards all around. There were pipes running hot, pipes that were so cold that it could give someone frostbite, moving platforms and sections, and many more hazards. The Core was, in itself, one giant puzzle that was constantly shifting and changing to ensure the power generation remained stable.

While my labs, warehouse, and home were isolated from the moving parts of the Core, I did still have to be mindful of the hazards as I made my way there.

Thankfully the trip to my lab was quick and uneventful. Once I got inside my lab, I got right to work on the different projects. Some of the projects were ones that I just had to activate to get started, as these were projects I couldn't just leave running while I wasn't here. Others were simply jotting down notes after making observations.

However, the projects that I wanted to get out of the way most before my vacation were ones that would directly impact the lives of either a specific monster or multitude of monsters. There were two projects in particular that I hoped to get done before the end of my work day. One was to create a system to help an immobile monster species gain the ability to move. Another was to find a way to create invisible safety barriers that could be put in locations that had falling dangers, like parts of Waterfall and Hotland.

The first project was one that I had, unfortunately, been unable to find time for as I often received more urgent requests. Because of this, I only had ideas in my mind about what could work. The monsters in question were the immobile mushroom monsters who, once rooted, were unable to go anywhere for the rest of their lives. While they could technically be dug up and replanted elsewhere, this still relied on the kindness and assistance of someone else.

One idea was a platform of some kind that could house the mushroom and supply nutrients to it. The biggest issue I had run into with brainstorming was finding a way to give them mobility while also not cutting them off from their food source. I also had to keep in mind that the mushroom monsters were incapable of withstanding certain environments and needed protection measures to make it so they could survive in those places.

The other project was farther along, as there were already examples of invisible barriers within the Underground. In parts of Hotland, there were invisible platforms that somehow naturally existed in parts. Another example of invisible barriers was the shock-wall maze within Snowdin that was under Papyrus and Sans's patrol areas. However, because those used electricity as the barrier, they weren't safe.

I had been working on different prototype devices that could be set up in a chain to create a barrier of sorts. The issues that I was facing was creating a small enough footprint for each section and making sure they didn't randomly connect to one another or, science forbid, cause each device to connect to every other device, creating an impassable area.

I was also hoping that whatever I made would stabilize the ground of wherever I put them, as I didn't want the paths in Hotland to grow any smaller, nor did I want any more of the bridges breaking like they have in Waterfall.

By the end of the day, I managed to complete a prototype version of a 'mech suit' for the mushrooms while jotting down more ideas for miniaturization of the invisible barrier devices.

I finished writing in my notebook, and looked up to see I was standing in front of Alphys's lab. I hadn't even realized I was on the move until I was standing in front of Alphys's lab. The doors slid open, and Alphys walked over to me.

"... I was… uh… waiting for you to finish writing," Alphys sheepishly informed me.

"I…" I blinked before facepalming. "I did it again… I was so in the zone… that I went into autopilot."

"And you wonder why the Queen wants to send a royal guard to look after you," Alphys chuckled.

"Hey, I had to prove myself to get the position by going up against Undyne…" I pouted. "I figured I could take care of myself. Besides! I got here without a scratch!"

"The uh… corner of your lab coat is on fire…" Alphys muttered.

"WHAT?!" I shouted before looking down at my lab coat to see that indeed one corner was aflame.

I quickly used a bit of magic to put out the flame, glad that my lab coat was made out of a material that had a slow-burning property.

"Seriously, I'm starting to think Heats intentionally throws an ember my way any time I pass him…" I grumbled.

"You did forget his name during last year's Science Fair at the Monster Academy.… he tends to hold grudges with that," Alphys pointed out.

"ONCE! And I apologized over and over!" I argued before grumbling. "Also… why does Mom continue to let Dad name things? He's horrible at it! Seriously… I feel like I still owe that school a better name…"

"Well, maybe you can write some names down and show it to your parents when you visit them this Giftmas," Alphys suggested before narrowing her eyes. "... You are going to visit them, aren't you?"

"Yeah, of course," I confidently replied before blinking. "How far off is it again?"

"Today is the 21st, so you have about 4 more days to prepare," Alphys answered.

"Wut…?" I blinked more, my expression likely turning very very basic at that realization. "Well uh… good thing I decided to take the week off?"

"You forgot what day it was again…" Alphys sighed.

"H-hey, you do the same!" I huffed.

"Only sometimes," Alphys countered. "You forget the date so much that I'm surprised you don't think it's still the middle of summer."

I grumbled but didn't say anything because I knew I couldn't argue with Alphys on that.

"Now, how about you come inside? It can't be comfortable for you to stand out in the heat," Alphys suggested.

"Did Grillby already deliver the order for them?" I asked as I walked inside.

The doors slid closed behind me, and I welcomed the air conditioning.

"Good job on remembering to wear shoes today," Alphys remarked as I took my shoes off in the doorway and put on my comfy lab slippers. "As for your question, yes, Grillby had Mail Whale deliver it all."

"I'm glad that you found an alternative use for the UGPS, as I can't imagine life without their delivery services." I smiled.

"Yeah, it'd be troublesome to have to call in a Royal Guard whenever we want something delivered," Alphys chuckled.

"It also means we don't have to try our hands at the… very dangerous field of teleportation," I added, shivering a bit as I remembered all the ways that fiction showed how teleportation could go wrong.

"Best leave that to Sans for now," Alphys agreed with a chuckle. "Now then, I put everything that's been recorded, and highlighted, on a disc, like a DVD. So we can totally watch all the cool stuff that you missed out on."

I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Is it really that cool? I mean you've seen Royal Guards train with Battles every day, especially Undyne."

Alphys's cheeks turned very red when I mentioned that last part. "W-well that's different! The Royal Guards are meant to train f-for battle! U-Undyne especially, b-being the Captain and all! B-besides… I need to make s-sure she doesn't g-get too hurt f-from her training."

"Uh huh…" I nodded before leaning in with a mischievous smile. "In that case… tell me, why did we have to install the most modern and high definition cameras in the area where Undyne trains?~"

"B-because! … She's… so intense that only the most modern and high definition of cameras can pick up her movements!" Alphys excused.

"Oh? I guess that would explain why I've caught you watching her movements in super slow motion~" I grinned.

"A-Asria, please! W-we're not t-talking about how hot Un- I mean, how cool Undyne is!" Alphys quickly said, stuttering more.

"Awww, but you look so interested in talking about that~" I teased. "Your tail is wagging like a little puppy~"

"The dog child!" Alphys spoke up so loudly that she was practically yelling, causing me to giggle softly. "The dog child is our point of interest right now! The reason why I say it's different is because she's not only new here, but she's a child, and yet she's learning how to Battle. How many young monsters do you know below the age of 500 who would be this willing to train to being a Royal Guard? … Besides Papyrus?"

"Does Spike count?" I questioned.

"He admires the Royal Guard, but he's not training to be one right now, he has to finish school first," Alphys answered.

"You sure about that?" I asked before I walked over to Alphys's computer and began typing on it, pulling up a video of Spike in a Battle with a Rock monster. Spike, because he lacked arms, could only headbutt the Rock.

"Okay, fine, he did Battle, but not with someone else who's also training to be in the Royal Guard," Alphys pointed out.

"I will concede that point," I acknowledged before giving a thought. "Why would a newcomer enter a Battle on their first day into the rest of the Underground though?"

"I am not sure, but perhaps watching the Battle will give us some insight?" Alphys offered.

I nodded at that. "You have a point. I guess we should pop it in and watch it. We gonna go to the screening room or do it right here?"

"The screening room, of course. Oh, didn't you say Sans sent you some files of the dog child coming out of the Ruins and exploring Snowdin Forest?" Alphys asked.

"Yeah, I thought I forwarded it onto you…" I replied before frowning and pulling out my phone. I swear, if I wrote up the email with the files attached but didn't hit 'send'... I'm gonna…

"One moment…" I said to Alphys as I placed down my phone, went up the escalator to her room, grabbed a pillow, and screamed into it. After I felt satiated, I pulled the pillow away from my face and called down to Alphys. "It's on the phone! Feel free to transfer it to yourself!"

"... Uh… okay. I'll be in the screening room when you're done… uh… beating yourself up," Alphys replied.

I went down the escalator and grabbed my phone from the desk, seeing that the files had been sent, before I went to join Alphys in the custom screening room we built. It was pretty much a private movie theater with everything we could want. There was a soda machine, popcorn maker, snack stand, really comfy chairs that could recline, a load of those super soft bean bag cushions that felt like you might never escape them, and a massive screen with a high tech projector.

Alphys popped the disc into one of the machines, a DVD player, that was hooked up to the projector. She then went over to the popcorn maker.

"Want some popcorn and soda?" Alphys asked.

"Yeah… extra butter…" I sighed as I went over to the comfy chair and plopped down before reclining it. "And maybe a box of those candies we got in the recent 'Dump Rush'.

"Heh, okay," Alphys replied.

I took a moment to just relax. It had been way too long since I just relaxed like this. I waited until Alphys came over with a large popcorn bucket, and a large cup filled with the fizzy goodness.

"I'm surprised you suggested we do this first instead of me going down to check in on everyone and give them food," I remarked as I took the popcorn bucket and large cup.

"I fed them late last night, and I figured you would need some R before we feed them today," Alphys answered.

"Ahh, okay," I replied, a bit glad that I would get some time to relax before I went to see them.

While it wasn't ever a hassle or struggle for me to see them, feed them, and interact with them, it was still also a good idea to be relaxed when I went as they often picked up on things most monsters would overlook. And I didn't want to give them the impression that something was wrong by being even a little stressed from all the work.

"I appreciate it then," I finished. "Anyways, let's get watching."

Alphys picked up the remote and started up the DVD player. The projection turned on.

Alphys and I watched as we munched on our popcorn and drank our soda. I saw that dog child coming out of the door to Ruins. They looked around curiously and cautiously before they stepped outside, and the door closed behind them. Then as they were walking, I saw Sans following them in the shadows, kinda just being creepy. Whenever the dog child looked back, Sans would hide. Then Sans went and stepped on the branch, scaring the fur off of that dog child.

"Okay, I can get wanting to pull a prank, but did Sans have to act like a creepy stalker there?" Alphys questioned.

"Maybe he wanted to see how the kid would react to something startling?" I offered. "Test their fight or flight reflex?"

"Ugh, if he ever did that to me, I'd probably get a heart attack," Alphys shivered.

The dog child eventually shook Sans's hand, and the shadows uncovered Sans's form. The tension between them finally melted away. Unfortunately, the security cameras, as advanced as they were, didn't record any sounds. The only thing I heard were some sound effects that Sans likely added after the fact, like footsteps, and… the whoopee cushion sound when the dog child shook his hand.

"That's so like Sans…" Alphys grumbled. "At least it seems the whoopee cushion trick calmed the dog child down from Sans's creepy stalking thing earlier."

"Yeah, he's always subverting expectations," I chuckled.

The video went on, showing the dog child meeting with Papyrus before he and Sans went ahead. Sans going in the opposite direction. The dog child seemed confused about that, though I didn't blame her, if one didn't know Sans, they would be confused.

The dog child moved on in the forest. I saw them meeting and chatting with other monsters in the forest, like Snowdrake and Chilldrake. The dog child also seemed to be interested in a random snowman on top of a cliff. Then they did the invisible electric maze puzzle.

"Wow… Papyrus really needs to stop forgetting to put the orb on the entrance side of the puzzle…" I chuckled while shaking my head.

"Yeah, but it's amusing when he does get shocked," Alphys chuckled.

"I'm more talking about him leaving an obvious path on the ground," I pointed out.

"That too!" Alphys laughed.

The dog child pressed on. I saw them going past Sans's… puzzle, which was just a piece of paper with some child puzzle on it. They didn't even have a pencil.

"You know… if I knew Sans wasn't going to skip it, I would send him to do a refresher course in puzzle making," I remarked. "Cause… while that is technically a puzzle, it's not a proper Underground puzzle. It's just a brain teaser that is meant to be done at home."

"Well… it does fit Sans's lazy nature," Alphys remarked. "And his loophole on things."

The dog child continued on, and they came across Doggo's station. Doggo had eye problems, he could only see things that were moving. It was during a training accident during a Battle, and I was trying to work of a way to fix that. He jumped out when he saw the dog child moving.

But what confused me was why Doggo stood there, surely he would've been able to smell that dog child was only a puppy.

"Neither of them are moving here," Alphys remarked. "I think Doggo initiated a Soul Fight. Unfortunately the cameras can't pick up Souls."

Despite Doggo and the dog child being in a Soul Fight… the dog child did something that wasn't… natural in a Soul Fight. They were able to pet Doggo's body.

"Wut…?" I blinked. "How peculiar. Did they somehow choose an option that caused their body to move inside the Fight? I know that the Act menu can at times cause one to perform an action. But most monsters usually just go with Magic."

"That's just it, that's another reason why I've been interested in studying this dog child." Alphys grinned. "They seem to be capable of touching a monster's body despite the attack field being there."

"Maybe it's because of whatever species they are?" I pondered. "Or maybe the way they were raised taught them a certain Act move that allows them to bypass the attack field. There… were reports in the past of some monsters honing their skills and developing fight techniques to bypass the safeties of a Fight. Back in the time before we were sealed, when monsters would fight over domains and treasures."

"Perhaps, but that was during ancient times. The art of doing such a thing has been lost. Your parents may still know about it, but even they haven't used it in thousands of years," Alphys pointed out. "It would be quite the miracle for a monster child of this generation to be able to do something like that."

"But what if the child is a descendant of a family that had such a skill long ago?" I offered before looking more closely. "Or maybe they have some kind of… innate trait…"

"Why do you think they have an innate trait?" Alphys questioned.

"They aren't using Magic, at all," I responded. "I remember some research done by the first Royal Scientist that theorized that some monsters had what were called 'traits' which granted them abilities in exchange for their ability to use magic. It was something that was believed to have come about by cross breeding between monsters and humans, as traits are usually a human thing."

"Exactly, this is something only a human should be capable of, but… I don't think any of the humans that fell down here ever thought of… you know… having a child with a monster…" Alphys pointed out.

I shook my head. "The theory was that one of the potential causes of the war was that a large group of humans were disgusted by the idea of cross breeding and wished to wipe us out along with those who were already cross breeding."

I stood up and placed down the bucket before walking over to the screen and looked closely at the human-like face. "Perhaps this Undocumented is a descendant of one of those crossbred families."

"Well… if that's the case, I'm surprised the human DNA and trait lasted that long," Alphys remarked. "I mean we've been trapped here for… a really long time, even by Boss Monster standards."

"I'm… actually not surprised," I stated before turning around to Alphys. "Think about it, what is one of the core pieces of information we know about humans? It's the fact that their physiology is stronger than us. Even in low concentrations, the human DNA might still be potent enough to cause one or two obvious human features to appear on a multi-generational crossbreed monster."

"That's…" Alphys began before blinking. "You know, that would be really cool, but… are you sure you're not overthinking it, just a little bit?"

"Well I have to overthink it," I pointed out. "We aren't sure what the case is, and we need to come up with different theories. If I were to underthink it, I might say that… oh, that's a human in a costume. But there are no records of a human falling. Even with spotty service, the equipment would've detected a human falling, even if not caught on camera. So unless that equipment was tampered with, which is impossible unless you're able to fit into really tight spaces, there's no way in hell it's a human."

"While I get what you're saying… it's just…" Alphys hesitated. "I don't know how much you know about the crossbreeding thing, but it was deemed a failure. The bodies of the offspring couldn't last very long with both the physical and magic properties being together in that way."

"Just because all known cases of it were a failure doesn't mean there aren't unknown cases of success," I pointed out before gesturing to one of the walls filled with many many plastic cases. "Think of it this way, in many of the things we have seen, there are creatures that are half human and half creature. Heck, in some of the actual human history found, there are stories of mythological beasts like centaurs and mermaids. How can we know for certain that there isn't some sort of half-human half-monster hybrid that was never reported?"

"Well… I guess you got me there," Alphys chuckled sheepishly.

"I'm not trying to say that this is the answer, I'm just trying to come up with theories on what could be the possible answer," I explained. "I mean… the closest we've seen to a hybrid is Dalv. He's almost entirely human in appearance and matches almost perfectly to the human legend of vampires."

"Oh, Asria, we never paused the video," Alphys pointed.

I looked back at the screen to see Dogamy and Dogaressa were now upon the dog child. Like with Doggo earlier, they went in for an attack rather than leaving the dog child alone.

I frowned and went back to my seat. "I hate to say this, but… as they are, they're unfit to be Royal Guards. They've gotten so reliant on their sense of smell that if they smell anything new, they immediately deem it as hostile. I don't know if I ever told you this, but there was a report from an Icecap that claimed they were attacked because they made a new cap out of frozen hot chocolate instead of regular ice."

"I think Sans said he was gonna punish them for it," Alphys remarked.

"I sent them messages that I wanted to see them after New Years to help them, and Doggo, with their eyesights," I informed. "I also sent the messages to Lesser and Greater Dogs, since both of them can still see and they'll pass along the message. I warned Greater Dog and Lesser Dog that if Doggo, Dogamy, and Dogaressa failed to come to the appointment, I would have them temporarily removed from active duty."

"Tough but fair, we can't keep having them attack innocent monsters," Alphys agreed.

I watched the two dogs and the dog child stand there. At least Dogamy and Dogaressa didn't pull the child into a Battle. They could've killed them. But like with Doggo, the dog child was able to move up to the two of them and pet them… after rolling around in the snow of course. I did see Sans coming in to scold the two of them.

Despite being attacked by 3 of the Royal Guards, the dog child continued on. The dog child solved the X and O puzzle. They even solved the one Papyrus kind of… changed and messed up, I was impressed they had the willpower to do that.

After that, they came up to the color tile puzzle. That one was something Alphys and I came up with for a complex puzzle. Papyrus was with the dog child, and he was moving his mouth… so I could only guess he was explaining what each color tile did.

"Do you think we might've made this puzzle a little too complicated?" Alphys asked sheepishly. "I doubt a human, who would be new to the Underground, would be able to retain all that information at once right away."

"Alphys?" I raised a brow. "Need I remind you of the Sans Effect?"

"Eh?" Alphys blinked.

"The effect in which stuff around Sans never goes to plan," I reminded Alphys before pointing at the puzzle as it began to randomize. "I'll bet you… one of my limited edition plushes, that the Sans Effect will somehow activate."

"Y-you're on!" Alphys smiled.

We looked at the screen, waiting a few more seconds as the randomizing got faster and faster, until… it was just a straight line to the otherside. Papyrus actually spun around across the puzzle.

"The Sans Effect," I stated as I pointed at the straight path. "I almost want to test how many times Sans starting the test would cause it to create a ridiculously easy to solve puzzle. And I know for a fact it wasn't in maintenance mode because maintenance mode would've changed every tile one color at a time before creating an all-pink floor."

Alphys started laughing. "Okay, admittedly, that was really funny! I actually can't believe something like that even happened!"

The dog child moved on. They soon found Lesser Dog, looking to be trying to make something with some snow. Lesser Dog perked up at them and happily barked. I had no doubt in my mind that Lesser Dog pulled the new dog child into a Soul Fight, he and Greater Dog always loved doing that with new monsters they met.

"At least Lesser Dog noticed the newcomer was a puppy," I pointed out. "Since Lesser Dog went forward with intentions to play, not attack."

"I wonder if the dog child will pet Lesser Dog too," Alphys remarked. "You know how Lesser Dog has that strange power to increase the length of his neck if he gets pet."

"Yeah… I still don't know how that works…" I admitted.

The dog child did indeed pet Lesser Dog… and they wouldn't stop. Lesser Dog's neck kept getting longer and longer. Admittedly, I had never tried to see how long Lesser Dog's neck could get before. This… broke all the records. And the dog child was still petting Lesser Dog.

"That… uh… doesn't look… healthy?" Alphys nervously said.

"If only there was a hole in the roof of the barrier…" I chuckled in an attempt to cope with what I just saw. "We could pet Lesser Dog until his head poked up to the surface."

"I-I'm not entirely sure how… ethical that is," Alphys chuckled sheepishly.

Finally, the dog child stopped petting Lesser Dog, and as soon as the Soul Fight was over, Lesser Dog's head snapped back to normal, like nothing happened. It didn't even look painful, Lesser Dog just looked excited as he started building snow dog after snow dog.

"At least his neck didn't get stuck that way," I remarked.

"I… won't even question it…" Alphys sighed.

"With monsters, it's usually best not to," I noted.

The dog child walked to the ice puzzle next. It was a simple puzzle, just a little annoying with how slippery the ice is. The dog child fell down a few times trying to do the puzzle. Luckily the snow was thick enough to make sure their fall didn't hurt them. The dog child never gave up, and eventually they solved the puzzle, creating the bridge to the otherside.

"So, I have to ask, why is this dog child doing all these puzzles?" Alphys wondered. "Aren't the puzzles meant for humans to go through? Monsters are only supposed to test them out to make sure they're still working, but not go through all of them."

"They're from Ruins, so they might be a puzzle enthusiast," I offered. "Or maybe they're helping out Papyrus and Sans with testing them?"

"They did seem to like talking to Papyrus, who is definitely someone who likes testing out the puzzles," Alphys noted.

After the ice puzzle, the dog child-

"Wait, I think we missed something the dog child did when I was in the middle of my… for lack of a better word, rant," I realized. "Alphys, can you rewind a bit?"

"T-to what?" Alphys asked.

"I remember seeing them talking to an Ice Cap, but I wasn't paying attention at the time," I replied. "I feel like something happened there that I'd like to see. I was focused on the Undocumented at the time."

"Okay," Alphys replied before she picked up her remote to rewind the video.

Alphys stopped when we saw the Ice Cap and Jerry.

I shuddered. "I still don't understand the… innate hatred of Jerry I have. I've interacted with him maybe… three times? But I hated his existence from the very beginning."

"I think it's Jerry's magic to just annoy anyone who sees him," Alphys theorized.

"It's a good thing he wasn't around before we got sealed away…" I sweatdropped. "If Jerry was around back then, he might've been a singular cause for the war."

Alphys snickered. "That would be quite sad in reality, but funny to think about."

I shook my head before looking at Alphys. "Go ahead and hit play before I succumb to the urge of throwing a fireball at a projection of Jerry."

Alphys nodded before she pushed play. From the look of the dog child's face, they were already annoyed by Jerry as soon as they saw him. The Ice Cap was a lot more shiny and grander than the other Ice Caps, I was actually impressed, and I had seen multiple different colored Ice Caps. This one had that gleaming gold light to them.

The Ice Cap and the dog child ditched Jerry, which, I was grateful they did so Jerry didn't have to be on screen anymore. The two of them just talked, however, and without any sound or subtitles, there wasn't much we could get out of the conversation. I asked Alphys to fast forward a little until something happened. She stopped and hit 'play' when something… very unexpected happened.

"Did… did that glimmering Ice Cap just… take off their cap?" Alphys questioned in shock.

"Dang… that child must have a way with words," I noted. "If they were able to get Ice Cap to take off their cap by choice."

"S-should we be worried?" Alphys asked nervously. "H-having a silver tongue… I-I mean a lot of anime's greatest villains have s-silver tongues after all."

I gave a thoughtful look before shaking my head. "So far, they haven't shown any actions that would make me think they have villainous intent. They seem a bit mischievous, but not malicious."

Alphys nodded. "Y-yeah, they do seem to be nice. I'll get us back to where we last left off."

Alphys fast forwarded the video until we got back to the ice puzzle. The dog child went south of the patch to see Sans standing there. The dog child gave a wave to him before they walked forward, only to see Sans again right in front of them. I didn't blame the dog child for being taken by surprise at that, and confused. They looked back at where they saw Sans initially, only to see him there again. They walked back to the other path, and saw Sans there as well.

"W-wow, Sans really loves messing with new monsters," Alphys commented.

"It's kinda like a right of passage," I chuckled. "I remember the first time I met Sans back at the castle. He almost had me convinced there were like… 5 of him that were really well coordinated."

Alphys chuckled. "Y-yeah. If I hadn't heard about Sans before meeting him, I would've been very confused as well, and thought I was going crazy."

"I mean, you probably wouldn't have been as confused, considering you were lucky enough to work with his father for over a century," I pointed out, feeling a bit envious that I never got the chance to meet the amazing Royal Scientist, W.D. Gaster.

"W-well, that…" Alphys paused. "I mean he didn't have the ability to teleport yet."

"Yeah, Sans gaining his Shortcut ability is still a mystery I hope to solve," I chuckled. "But still, working with his father, you had at least a basic understanding of how gifted his children might be."

Alphys gave a thoughtful look, but she didn't give a response to that.

We turned our attention back to the screen where the dog child looked like they were about to talk to Sans when suddenly, Gyftrot came running on the screen, looking very angry. I frowned when I saw the barbed wire made of pipe cleaners, a candy cane, and someone's photo stuck to the poor monster's head and antlers. Gyftrot ran at the dog child, probably thinking they were going to decorate him too. Though it looked like it was another Soul Fight. I noticed Gyftrot's expression changed a little for a moment. He went from angry and annoyed, to shock, before Sans said something to him and he was back to his annoyed look.

"Huh, look, the kid is undecorating Gyftrot despite being in a fight," I noted. "Definitely thinking it's possible they have a unique ability."

"Yeah, and they're nice enough to help Gyftrot too," Alphys remarked.

"Still…" I gritted my teeth a bit. "Dad made it clear that people were to stop decorating Gyftrot, but they still don't listen. I think it's about time you and I do something to help Gyftrot. Maybe make him some kind of anti-decoration forcefield."

"Actually, I think Sans even wrote that request for Gyftrot," Alphys said. "Have you checked your latest batch of mail?"

"I have been checking, yeah… but there's a lot to go through. Especially…" I frowned, trailing off.

"What's wrong?" Alphys asked, pausing the video.

"More and more recent requests… have been for me to step down and give the Royal Scientist position back to you," I informed Alphys, knowing that there was no way I would be able to hide it.

"You should just burn those with your magic," Alphys sighed. "They won't do you any good."

"The issue is that it's not just the mail in requests but the blog requests," I explained. "And… I have an obligation to read each request sent in. That was a promise I made to the people when we instituted the system."

"And we've already made it clear that we're not having you step down and giving me back the Royal Scientist title," Alphys replied.

"Doesn't mean people aren't gonna ask for it…" I sighed before looking down a bit. "And all those requests… it has occasionally been taking up so much of my time to get through them that I can't read every request in one day. And with new ones arriving all the time… sometimes I forget to read the old ones."

"Maybe I should add a feature to the AI in your home. To filter out requests that you can't do, or at least the ones that want you to step down," Alphys said. "At least for the physical mail. For the blog requests, I could create an algorithm to filter out those requests for you to step down and put them in a separate folder."

"I… I'm not sure," I responded, extremely hesitant. "I don't just want to ignore those messages and requests… It would feel like ignoring the monsters themselves."

"Asria, you have to think about your own mental health. There's only so much you can do. And if these monsters are going to ignore what you said, then it's only fair you ignore them," Alphys grumbled. "Even after all the good you've done, they still can't see past the fact you're a child and you were given a position that most believe only adults should have. I wasn't even a very good Royal Scientist. I ignored all of their letters for a long time after the DT project went horribly wrong. If you hadn't… if you hadn't come when you did… I doubt I would be in a good place right now."

I let out a long sigh. "Once my break is over, I'll redouble my efforts to getting through all the unread requests and messages. In fact… I'll set out a few days to focus on them."

Alphys tilted her head a bit. "A few days after your week-long break? Considering it's the 21st, that would mean you'd get back on the 28th. A few days after that… Asria… are you trying to get out of the New Years Ball?"

Dangit… caught red handed… I grumbled.

"Even if you tried to bail, you know your parents won't let you, right? And if they send Undyne after you… heh… you're not getting out of it at all," Alphys chuckled. "Besides, you may be the Royal Scientist, but you are also still the Princess of Monsters."

"Fine… but you're coming too…" I grumbled. "If I have to go, so do you."

"Why do I have to go? There's no law in saying the assistant has to go," Alphys replied.

"Why did you buy that nice dress a few weeks ago?" I asked. "Other than the New Years Ball, we don't have any other big event going on for a while."

"... I-I just… t-thought it… l-looked pretty… that's all," Alphys hesitantly answered.

"Uh huh… Well while there might not be a law, I'm giving you a direct order as your boss that you have to come with me." I smiled. "And if I'm going to be stuck in a stuffy, ridiculously unprofessional, non-utility dress, so do you."

"B-but… n-no way, you know I can't deal with a large crowd!" Alphys quickly said.

"Undyne will be there," I reminded Alphys. "And in her uniform, not her armor."

Alphys's eyes went wide as she went silent for a good minute. I saw her cheeks heating up. I could definitely see her imagining Undyne right now in her uniform. I saw that big, goofy smile on Alphys's face as her body started to vibrate a little.

"O-oh, Undyne… you are looking so, so hot right now…" Alphys muttered dreamily.

Then Alphys looked at me and seemed to remember where she was. "O-oh… oh gosh… d-did… did I… uh… s-say that… outloud?"

"Hm? Say what?" I asked, acting like I Alphys didn't say anything. "You were silently staring off into space for a good minute." Least I can do for you since you made me feel better.

"T-thank goodness!" Alphys sighed in relief. "Um… let's uh… g-get back to the video."

Alphys pushed 'play' on the remote.

After the dog child took off all the decorations, Gyftrot looked relieved, and walked away. The dog child talked to Sans for a bit before they moved on, though not before looking at the two paths again to see Sans still there. The dog child found a dog house… I knew the dog child was in Greater Dog's territory.

I was right when the big dog himself rose up from the snow. I couldn't tell if they were in a Soul Fight, however, because both of them were moving around a lot. The dog child spent some time playing with Greater Dog, and Greater Dog was enjoying himself. Eventually, the dog child pet Greater Dog, though his neck didn't extend, thankfully. After that, Greater Dog actually hopped out of his armor to lick the dog child's nose. Greater Dog didn't often leave his armor while on duty, so that was cute to see. Then Greater Dog hopped back into his armor… backwards, and it still walked just fine.

"I think Greater Dog was really happy to see another canine monster," Alphys remarked.

"Key word there is 'see'," I noted.

"Still sour about Doggo, Dogamy, and Dogaressa attacking the dog child?" Alphys questioned.

"Yes, yes I am," I confirmed.

The dog child continued onto the bridge that should lead them into Snowdin Town. However, apparently there was one more puzzle they had to go through. Papyrus was talking to them about it, I would imagine. But then, when Papyrus pushed the button on a remote control, deadly looking weapons appeared around the dog child. Spears, torches, spike balls, an actual cannon, and… a random white dog hanging from a rope.

The dog child cowered in fear, and I definitely didn't blame them. I would be terrified too. Papyrus, thankfully, put the weapons away quickly, allowing the dog child to safely cross the bridge.

"What… the heck was that?" I questioned before looking at Alphys. "Hey… uh… did your Undyne-tracker place her near Snowdin?"

"Yeah- I don't have an Undyne tracker!" Alphys quickly said.

I raised a brow and looked at Alphys.

"S-she told me she was going to visit Papyrus and Sans in Snowdin last week," Alphys explained. "Though I didn't know she tweaked the last puzzle. She must've thought humans were capable of dodging or blocking actual weapons."

"That or she wasn't trying to capture the human…" I sighed.

Alphys frowned and fidgeted uncomfortably. There had been an event centuries ago, one that had unfortunately altered life for monsterkind. Because of this event… well let's just say many monsters didn't look too favorably on humans. Undyne was… she was a tough cookie who, even though she was very expressive, didn't really let many know her true feelings.

"L-let's just be glad there isn't a human here," Alphys said.

"True," I agreed.

The dog child had made it to Snowdin, but the video cut from there. It skipped to the dog child talking to Papyrus on the road towards Waterfall. The dog child looked sad and troubled about something. I wondered if this was after I had visited Papyrus and Sans's house. They did say that the dog child was staying with them.

"Looks like Papyrus is trying to cheer up the child," I noted, seeing Papyrus's unusually soft expression.

"I wonder what was troubling the poor child." Alphys frowned. "Maybe they miss their home in Ruins? The family they left behind?"

"If they have one…" I muttered. "Or it might've been the cold shoulder I gave them at Grillby's."

"Would that have bothered them to this point though?" Alphys wondered.

Then Papyrus and the dog child stood up. Papyrus began summoning bones to aim at the dog child. It didn't look like Papyrus was using his gravity magic on them yet, so they were able to move away from the bones with ease. But when Papyrus used his gravity magic, the dog child had a lot harder time moving. They also had to jump over Papyrus's bones instead of just weaving through them. The dog child was definitely giving it their all, even though they had trouble moving, and didn't seem to have any magic of their own. Eventually, the dog child got too tired to keep going, and Papyrus ended the Battle.

For me, the Battle had been short. Even though I wasn't a fighter, I knew I would've been able to last against Papyrus, even with his gravity magic, a lot longer. But this dog child clearly didn't have any battle training before, and they didn't seem to be able to use magic either.

"Wonder why they agreed to a Battle with Papyrus…?" I pondered.

"I'm not sure, but Papyrus said something here that seemed to resonate with the dog child," Alphys said as she pointed at the screen.

I saw the dog child tearing up as they hugged Papyrus. It was strange that their tail never wagged, but it did look like they were happy.

"Now if that didn't scream 'anime protagonist', I don't know what does!" Alphys grinned. "Clearly, this is their training arc!"

"At least the start of it," I chuckled, being a fellow anime nerd. "I wonder if they have an injury… Their tail hasn't wagged at all, so perhaps their tail can't wag."

"I doubt it was from the Battle, their tail never wagged, or moved, throughout the entire video," Alphys pointed out. "And Papyrus is good at holding back when he needs to."

"Oh, I know it wasn't from Papyrus," I acknowledged. "I'm wondering if they sustained it in Ruins or were born with it."

"I guess we won't know unless we get a chance to study them up close and personal," Alphys replied. "I'll keep an eye on them though."

"Maybe, if you want to get a closer look at them, we could send an invite to the New Years Ball to Papyrus and Sans so they'll bring the child," I suggested.

"O-oh… m-maybe… b-but I don't know… w-what do I say? H-how should I greet them? W-what if they think I'm weird?" Alphys questioned as she spun around in a circle.

"Greet them normally," I responded. "If they think you're weird, that's good. Cause you are weird, Alphys, in a good way~"

"T-they may not think so though…" Alphys frowned. "A-and what about y-you? You'd have to greet all the guests that arrive anyways."

"I don't actually have to greet all the people," I pointed out. "Just those my parents want me to meet. After I'm done with that, I'm gonna do what I've done every year I've been forced to go… find a corner to hide."

"Ah… a-about that plan…" Alphys nervously brought up as she popped the DVD out of the DVD player. "Um… your parents… uh… they may have… mentioned that… they want you… t-to be more… um…"

"Don't say it…" I grumbled. "I'm not interested in that stupid thing… I'm still way too young."

"N-not that, they want you to be more active in the ball," Alphys corrected. "They… don't want you to just hide yourself in the corner after the 'meet and greet'."

"Yeah well… they're forcing me to go, so… in the words of Papyrus… nyeh…" I grumbled.

"W-well… I can kind of see where they're coming from… a-after all, while you do try to listen to monster requests, you don't… talk to them face-to-face very much, if at all," Alphys explained a little nervously. "T-they're worried… how this will affect the kingdom's morale if you grew up to be an anti-social queen…"

"Well that's silly, since I don't ever plan on being Queen," I replied. "Not like Mom and Dad are ever gonna need replacing."

"B-but you are their only heir, a-and it took them… a very long time to have another child after…" Alphys stopped.

"Asriel, yeah," I acknowledged with a sigh. "But… the way I see it, if nothing bad happens they're gonna be around for plenty of more millenia."

"Even so, as long as you're alive, which I hope you will be able to grow up and stay alive for a long time to come, they will age, and their time has become limited in this world," Alphys reminded me.

I shook my head. "Please don't phrase it like that, Alphys… it makes me feel like I'm actively killing my parents just by existing."

"I'm sorry. I guess that explains one of your bigger projects though," Alphys remarked.

I frowned a bit. "Yeah… that's one project I really hope to perfect. If I do, it won't only help my parents, but all other parents. It'll help those monsters who are scared of having children feel a little less scared."

"It's also why I try not to train or get stronger or do anything that would possibly increase the drain on their magic…" I admitted.

"I don't think you have to worry about that. The magic is natural, it doesn't matter if you strain yourself or get stronger," Alphys replied. "But, uh, let's change the subject. We should probably go feed them now."

"I can take care of it, Alphys." I smiled warmly. "I know how uncomfortable you get around them."

"N-no… I can't keep trying to avoid them, it's my fault, and my responsibility," Alphys replied before sighing. "I just… wish there was a way to make things right…"

"It's not just your fault, Alphys," I assured her. "Your old boss was also working on the project."

"Unfortunately, after the Core incident, not a lot of monsters can remember him all that well," Alphys sighed. "It's a miracle we even remember that much about him. But still, it was me who injected them with DT."

"I still wonder what happened to him and why so many monsters have forgotten him…" I frowned. "Evidence of his work is everywhere, and almost all his notes remain. Back to the conversation we were having though… If you're sure, then you can come. But if you start feeling uncomfortable, don't push yourself."

"Asria, please, who do you think feeds them when you're not around? At least give me some credit," Alphys replied. "We're the only ones who know about… them."

"Besides Mom and Dad," I added. "But… yeah… I guess you got a point. I just don't want you pushing yourself."

"Come on, I'm sure they'll be happy to see you, especially Endogeny," Alphys said. "Just… watch out for the slime."

I chuckled at that. "I don't mind their slime~ We'll also make sure to check on the monsters in stasis while we're there."

Alphys and I headed back to the lab. She led me to the elevator with a 'bathroom sign' next to it. Though that elevator didn't lead to a bathroom. It was just a guise for guests. The real bathroom was behind another door.

"When you're ready, we'll head into the elevator," Alphys said softly.

I nodded and headed in, followed closely by Alphys.

Chapter Text

Darkzdragon: … crud…

DarkFoxKit: What is it?

Darkzdragon: *Rips self away from Fantasy Life i* We forgot to update for a whole week!

DarkFoxKit: Considering you burned down our house last time, I'm not surprised. Then you ended up getting sucked into Fantasy Life i.

Darkzdragon: *Pouts* I said I was sorry about burning our house down! … again.

DarkFoxKit: I know you're a dragon, but can you please stop burning down our house? You're lucky we have special help to make sure they can reverse the damages.

Darkzdragon: It wasn't even my flames that did it! It was just what I was cooking caught fire! But… yeah… looks like the next house will be made of mainly stone, at least for the kitchen. At least this hotel is comfy.

DarkFoxKit: So yeah, let's hope the next house is more fireproof. Anyways, we should get the chapter up now. The readers are waiting.

Darkzdragon: Sorry for the weeklong wait, everyone, we seriously lost track of time and only realized by Thursday we forgot to update. Instead of updating then, we wanted to stick to our schedule.

DarkFoxKit: We won't promise it won't happen again, but we'll try to stick to the schedule for as much as we can. Now, no need to wait here any longer, go ahead and head to the chapter.

Chapter 6: Monster History

Frizk's POV

I woke up in the guest room of Papyrus and Sans's house. It was… nice. It reminded me that this whole thing wasn't a dream. I didn't wake up to parents yelling at me to get out of bed, or having to go through another day with them trying to 'train' me. It was nice and quiet.

I sat up from the bed, and Flowey popped up suddenly.

"Howdy," Flowey greeted.

I yelped and flinched away. "You really need to warn me when you plan to pop out of the ground!"

"I can't help that's how I appear," Flowey replied. "Moving underground is just the easiest way to go. Normally I wouldn't want to come into this house, but I realize it's been a while since I checked on you."

"Well, I'm alright, for the most part," I said, rubbing the grogginess from my eyes. "I had a… bit of an emotional breakdown with Papyrus, and we ended up doing a Battle."

"Yeah, I saw," Flowey informed. "Mettaton's been spreading it on the Undernet and MTT Network."

"Huh?" I stared at Flowey. "What? How? Who's even Mettaton? Weren't we alone when we were talking? What's the Undernet? Do you mean the internet?"

"Undernet is the Underground version of the internet," Flowey answered. "Mettaton is a TV personality in the Underground. And only the Battle was shared."

I frowned. "I still don't know how they captured our Battle though."

"There are cameras all over the Underground," Flowey explained. "Remember?"

"Oh…" I said as I remembered Flowey mentioning that before. "... There isn't any in the house, is there?"

"Nope. Only public places and government facilities have indoor cameras," Flowey answered. "The King and Queen passed a law that forbade cameras in private establishments and homes."

"Well… I just hope that the Battle doesn't cause monsters to start getting curious about me," I sighed. "I wore this dog outfit to blend in, not to stand out more."

"That's just how it is, Frizk," Flowey chuckled slightly. "It's unusual for a kid to get into a Battle with someone. It's normally only used by the Royal Knights during training."

I frowned.

"Do you regret doing that Battle with Papyrus?" Flowey asked.

"I… well, no, no I don't," I answered. "I think I needed that. I just wish it wasn't published on the inter- the Undernet, or shown on monster TV."

"I could change things for you if you wanted," Flowey offered.

"I don't think you'd be able to just erase everyone's memories of it," I grumbled.

"You're right, I can't just erase everyone's memories and the footage," Flowey admitted. "However, I can undo it from ever happening."

"Okay, now I'm confused. How can you just undo everything? You said it yourself, you can't erase everyone's memories and the footage," I questioned. "Isn't that the only way to 'undo' it?"

"You know how I told you that I'm a unique monster?" Flowey questioned.

"Yeah, though you never went into detail about it," I replied.

"Well I have the ability to…" Flowey gave a thoughtful look. "I can save and quickload like a game, but I can't quicksave. So if something happens that shouldn't or we don't want to happen, I can quickload to that point where I last saved. Unfortunately, or fortunately, there are no autosaves and there's only one save slot."

I stared at Flowey as my brain tried to process what he told me. "... Huh?"

"What? Have you never played a video game before or something?" Flowey frowned. "I thought we talked about video games before in Ruins."

"N-no, I just…" I frowned as I tapped my forehead for a moment to make sense of this. "... You… just told me you could save and reload like… a video game? As in… all of reality?"

"That's right. Well, think of it as like rewinding the clock in real life," Flowey answered.

"Uh-huh…" I squinted my eyes. "... Menus, stats, levels, experience. I know they're technically Level of Violence and Execution Points, but it still works like an exp and leveling system… and now you're telling me you can save and reload? Are we… sure this isn't a video game world?"

"Yeah, cause this world does have consequences," Flowey informed.

"You can seriously… just save and reload though?" I asked. "Then… if I had killed you back there, couldn't you have just… reloaded and be fine? Or does it not work if you're dead?"

"True, I could've," Flowey answered. "Death doesn't stop it. In fact… you weren't the first human I had to Fight against before leaving Ruins. Some of them did actually kill me, but I reloaded, and gave my judgement to them."

The Fight really was a test then. I was relieved to know that I wouldn't have actually killed Flowey even if I did, but… it was for the best that I stopped on my own. Because even if it happened in a timeline that never happened, I still did it.

"Why didn't you tell me that before?" I asked.

"It wouldn't be a test if you knew you couldn't kill me," Flowey answered. "And I didn't feel it was necessary to tell you yet. But now an opportunity has risen here. If you don't want monsters' attention on you, I could reload. I'll make sure you keep your memories so you know what will happen."

I blinked as I thought about it. I wasn't sure if this was another test, to see if I would take the easy way out.

"Why give me this opportunity though?" I asked.

"Heh… who knows? Maybe I'm just bored and I want to see what you'll do," Flowey answered.

"... How far back would we go if I did choose for you to load back to your last save?" I questioned.

"Back to when you entered the Snowdin proper," Flowey replied. "As in the town."

That would mean if what Flowey said was true… then everything I had done in Snowdin, my talk with Papyrus, how we bonded over the Battle… it would all be gone.

"Um… well…" I hesitated. "Maybe I'll take a raincheck on that reload thing. It sucks, but I think I can power through a little bit of… fame. I don't want everything I did since I arrived in Snowdin to be erased."

"You do know that if I don't quickload, or as I call it Reset, then you'll likely get an invite to school soon," Flowey informed. "One that you can't decline."

"What?" I frowned. "School? This is the first time I'm hearing about this. I mean… I know monsters go to school, Papyrus mentioned it before, but what do you mean I'd have to go to school? Don't I need parents or guardians to enroll me or something?"

"Nope." Flowey answered. "All child monsters go to school. The Queen made it a law that all children had to receive a basic form of education."

"Of course…" I sighed. Royalty always screws me over… "But I'm not a monster. I'd never be accepted there… I can't do anything a monster can. I can't initiate a Soul Fight. I can't use magic. I'm not even really a dog monster at all…"

"I mean… as far as everyone else knows, you're a monster," Flowey pointed out. "If you wanna know more about school, you can probably ask Papyrus."

"Yeah… I may have to," I sighed. "Um… Flowey, don't make a save just yet then, okay? I'd like to know more about this school first. I'd rather not go back, but…"

"You want the insurance," Flowey finished.

"It's… not too much trouble, is it?" I asked.

"Nah, truth be told, I hadn't used my power to Reset in a long time. I've only used it when I died," Flowey answered. "I've just been saving out of habit, and more for your sake."

"You… care about me that much?" I questioned.

"Course, kid," Flowey replied with a cocky smirk. "That's what your friendly Flowey is here for. I am supposed to be your guide in this world, after all."

I gave a smile. "Thanks, Flowey."

"Just try not to die on me, Frizk," Flowey said. "Otherwise I may have to reload to save you, and that could lose a lot of progress. I'll give you the choice of when to Save."

"How?" I asked.

"I'll set out these yellow stars in certain places that only you can see," Flowey explained. "When you want to Save and heal, just touch it and I'll be there. I'll give you some healing pellets and make a Save."

"Wow, really?" I inquired, impressed.

"Sure. Just remember though, even with this ability, some monsters may still keep bits and pieces of their memory, so it's not completely consequence free," Flowey warned. "There was one monster I knew before who seemed to remember pretty much everything. But… well… he's gone now."

"Oh… that's pretty sad." I frowned.

"Oh, he's not dead, he's literally gone," Flowey explained. "He was there one day and not there the next and no monster knows what happened to him."

"That's…" I furrowed my eyebrows. "If this was a game, I'd say he was deleted from the files entirely then."

"Yeah, it could be something like that," Flowey replied. "I wouldn't think too much about it though. Anyways, you should talk to Papyrus about the school, and decide what you want to do. I'll be rooting for ya, buddy."

Flowey gave a wink at me before he went underground. When he did, he left behind a glowing, yellow star. That must've been the 'save points' he mentioned.

I decided I would test it later, since I didn't need to right now. I looked at my stats to see where my HP was at. I was surprised to see I had 30 HP, but my max HP was still at 20. Where did the extra 10 come from?

Maybe Papyrus did something to temporarily increase my HP. Well, I had a lot of questions to ask him anyway.

I went upstairs and opened the door.

"Mornin', kid," Sans greeted. "Paps should be back in a bit. I made sure to send him out so he wouldn't disturb your 'unnecessarily long, 7 hour nap'."

"What? He does know that's sleeping, right?" I questioned. "Does he not sleep?"

"It's… complicated," Sans answered.

I shook my head, that wasn't what I needed to figure out. "Hey, Sans… uh… it seems my HP increased when I woke up, but my max is still at 20. Is there any reason why?"

"Ahh yeah, that happens when you get a good rest," Sans answered. "It's temporary health that's usually half your max health."

"Oh, okay, well that's good to know," I replied. I guess I didn't get it when I slept in Ruins because I was already drop dead tired by that point. "So, um… Papyrus mentioned something about school when we were talking. And I was wondering, would I have to go to this school too?"

"Hm? What brought the question up?" Sans questioned in response.

"Well, if I'm going to be living here for a while… wouldn't I need to get an education at some point?" I inquired.

"You got a point," Sans admitted. "Normally, yeah, you'd have to go to school. But if you don't want to, I can make sure you don't have to. Though that would require Paps and I to become your teachers, since you do still need an education."

"And you're sure that's okay?" I asked. "I don't want you and Papyrus to get in trouble on my behalf."

"Ehhh… We could pull some strings," Sans answered. "It would ultimately be your call, but first, you might want to at least take a look at the school."

"Where is this school? Snowdin doesn't seem to have one," I asked. "Unless it's in the library, or there's more to Snowdin than what I saw."

"There's two main schools in the Underground," Sans replied. "There's the one in New City, but the closest one is in Waterfall."

I blinked.

"Right… you're not familiar with the Underground," Sans remembered. "When you go past Snowdin, you'll end up in Waterfall. Past Waterfall would be the Dunes, though there's no path leading there very easily, so usually you'd just end up in Hotland. After Hotland is the Core. And finally, after that, you'll reach New City and New Home. So yeah, it's quite far, at least when you don't have shortcuts like me."

"Right… shortcuts," I said as I looked at Sans. "But in any case, is one school supposed to be better than the other?"

"Nope," Sans answered. "They both have all the same resources and options. The one in Waterfall was built to cut down travel time. Of course, the King and Queen don't go there as often due to how far it is."

"Then if I had to go to a school, I'd go to the one in Waterfall," I said. "It's… less likely I'd be caught as a human…"

"True, but at the same time it might be the more dangerous one if you do get found out," Sans informed. "Considering the school in Waterfall is near the Royal Guard fort."

"The Royal Guard fort?" I repeated in a questioning tone.

"Yeah, Fort Rainfall because it's partially built in the zone of Waterfall where it's constantly raining," Sans informed. "Like the school, a location for the Royal Guards was built in Waterfall to cut down on travel time."

"Ah…" I sweatdropped. "It kinda feels like going to school is just a bad idea all around…"

"Probably, though it's no better than training in public for a Battle with a hopeful Royal Guard-in-training," Sans said.

"Ah… right…" I sighed. "I… didn't know it was going to be such a big deal."

"You couldn't have known," Sans chuckled. "Honestly, if you actually wanted to be safe, going to school in New City would probably be better. While the King and Queen do visit it occasionally, though it's usually the Queen who visits most often, they aren't always there."

"But like you said, it's far," I pointed out. "How would I be able to travel there every day and get there on time?"

"Well, I could take ya," Sans chuckled. "Like a parent taking his kid to school~"

I couldn't help but blush. It didn't cross my mind to think of Sans as a possible parent, or at least a legal guardian. But it would be nice to have someone like Papyrus as a sibling I suppose.

"Don't worry, I'm not officially your father or anything. I'm just helping you out," Sans assured, seeming to notice my slight discomfort. "After all, you helped out some monsters while in Snowdin Forest, and you befriended Papyrus. Despite his positive outlook, he doesn't have a lot of friends. He's got a very big and loud personality and this, unfortunately, scares a lot of monsters away."

"Really? I find him easy to get along with," I said. "In fact, I rather like his personality. I find it to be endearing."

"Yeah, but not a lot think that way about him," Sans sighed.

"Oh, I see." I frowned. "Is that why he wants to be a Royal Guard? So others would want to be his friend?"

"Can't say that isn't part of it," Sans snickered. "But he mainly just wants to help monsters out and be like his hero, Undyne."

"I need to meet with this Undyne character, I keep hearing a lot about her," I said.

"Not sure if you should meet her," Sans replied. "Though if you stay here long enough, it'd be inevitable. She likes to visit Papyrus and give him cooking lessons."

"Cooking lessons?" I blinked. Oh yeah, didn't Papyrus mention something about cooking lessons before? "Wasn't he training to be a Royal Guard, not a chef?"

"It's complicated," Sans chuckled before sighing. "In truth, Undyne is trying to get Papyrus to get more involved with cooking to keep Paps safe, even though Paps really wants to join the guard. I think Undyne is considering making a position within Fort Rainfall of a Royal Guard Chef, as a compromise of letting him become a Royal Guard member but also keeping him safe."

Sans then looked at me. "Ah, but we should be talking about you. School doesn't start until after New Years, so you have time to think about it."

"Okay… but why do you suggest on going to school instead of being homeschooled?" I asked.

"I'm lazy and Paps is still a student," Sans quickly answered. "It'd be hard to convince monsters that we're enough to give you a proper education."

"Oh, I see," I sighed. "I guess that makes sense…"

"Hey, don't worry about it," Sans said. "I'm sure you'd fit right in."

"But it's a school for monsters. I'm… you know… not really a monster myself." I frowned. "I don't think I'd be able to fit in much at all. I can't use magic, wouldn't that alone be suspicious?"

"Nope." Sans replied. "Magic is one of the possible classes you can take, but it isn't required. The required classes are language, writing, mathematics, human history, monster history, and either a culinary class or a gardening class."

Language and writing? … That might be a problem if my ability to read monster writing wears off… I frowned at the thought.

"Considering you've never gone to school, you'd probably be tested to see if you know the written language at all," Sans noted. "And if you don't, that'd be another required class. You'd probably be surprised by how many monsters don't know the written language. Oh, and one of the classes that's being considered for a requirement course next year is some sort of science related class."

"That's all well and good, but maybe I should look at the school first, like you said. I… don't have a lot of good experience with my last school," I grumbled. "But I want to try to be fair about this one. The monsters here have been kinder to me than anyone else I knew back on the surface."

"Yeah… sadly that seems to be the trend with those who fall down here," Sans admitted. "If you want, I can take you to both schools before Giftmas. The schools should be empty and with my shortcuts, we'd have free reign. We could get you some of that… what is it that the kids before all loved… 'good good chocolate milk'?"

"Wha-" I began to ask when I had this strange, almost overpowering desire to take him up on the offer. "Uh… sure? But wouldn't it be better to go there when the school is open so I have a better idea of what it's like for the students?"

"We can do that too," Sans replied. "But going when it's empty will let you see what sort of facilities the school has, what the classrooms are like, and stuff like that. I'll tell you right now, the schools you're used to likely don't hold a candle to our schools."

"Frankly any school with a better community would be leagues better than the one I went to…" I said softly.

"It's not just the community," Sans stated. "Trust me."

I gave a small smile. "Well, if you're not busy right now, maybe we can go look? I have to wait for Papyrus before I can begin my training anyways."

"Right now?" Sans grinned. "Pretty sure you aren't ready."

Sans gestured to me, and I looked down, seeing the costume's fur was all messy. Not only that, but I had a pretty bad case of bed head.

"You rolled around in the dirt and snow with Dogamy and Dogaressa, not to mention Greater Dog dumped all that snow on you, and licked you," Sans chuckled. "Besides, when was the last time you ate?"

"Right… I guess I got ahead of myself," I chuckled sheepishly. "Uh… do you… have something I could wash my costume in? And my clothes?"

Sans tilted his head at me before smiling and nodding. "Yeah. Might even be able to improve your costume a bit so that tail of yours actually wags."

"Really? But my tail isn't even attached to me, how would it wag?" I questioned.

"Science and tech," Sans answered. "If you go back downstairs, there are other doors in the guest room. One is a bathroom where you can shower or take a bath. While you're washing up, I'll take your clothes and costume and give 'em a bit of an upgrade. While I might not be a scientist or inventor, I did learn a few things from my pops."

"Oh!" What Sans said reminded me of something. "Speaking of science, is there any way I could let the Royal Scientist know about something? … I have a request for a snowman." And another thing.

"Yeah, 'course. I can show you the Royal Scientist's website later," Sans answered. "There's a section for questions and concerns as well as one for requests."

"Okay, thanks." I smiled. At least I won't have to go to the Royal Scientist myself to warn them. This will make things a lot easier.

"Wait, does the Royal Scientist read all the requests, questions, and concerns?" I asked. "It wouldn't matter what I wrote if they skip over it."

"Don't worry, the Royal Scientist isn't the type to ignore any monster's request," Sans reassured, winking. "In fact, pretty sure she's got a problem where she refuses to ignore what's sent to her."

"Ah… I can see that being a problem. But as long as she reads everything, then we should be good," I said in relief. "But first… I need to get cleaned up. Uh… but with my clothes and costume being washed, what would I wear for the time being?"

"Hmm…" Sans tapped his chin. "I should be able to figure out something for you. I've got some spare outfits that should fit ya. I'd just recommend staying downstairs till I bring your clothes and costume back."

"Alright, thanks, Sans." I smiled.

I was able to take a nice, warm shower, after getting help from Flowey to get out of the costume. I was glad to be able to clean up after the long day on my way to Snowdin yesterday. Sans laid out a white t-shirt, and black shorts for me. They were a little loose, but I was able to wear them just fine. My clothes were still being washed, and Sans was doing something with my costume. I hoped he would be finished with it before Papyrus came in.

I couldn't help but notice the toilet was very… clean. Maybe they were just good at maintaining it, or… um… I wasn't sure if skeletons really needed to use the toilet. But at least they had one. Wait, did I even need to use the bathroom yesterday?

I was sure I ate a pretty good meal yesterday, yet I hadn't felt the need to use the bathroom. I hoped it wasn't a health issue. I decided not to think about it right now.

When I was done in the bathroom, I went back to the guest room where I saw the door was already closed. The last thing I wanted was for some monster to walk into the house, come downstairs, and suddenly see me without my fur coat.

I waited for a little bit before Sans walked into the room. "Oh, you know, maybe I should bring a computer down here. That way you won't get too bored when you're waiting here. And maybe a new cell phone too. The one you have now may not work down here."

"Yeah, I noticed it wasn't getting any signals. Though I think one monster called me by mistake," I replied.

"That's weird," Sans remarked. "Lemme ask, do you care about the contacts on your old phone? Cause I could just straight up give you a new phone in exchange. But if you wanna keep your phone, I can temporarily lend you a phone while I upgrade what you have."

"You can… upgrade my phone?" I blinked. "And there is… one contact number I want to keep."

"Well in that case, I could just transfer the contact to the new phone," Sans offered.

"Yeah, that might be for the best. Though… my phone is probably the newest… human phone to come down here, right?" I asked. "Wouldn't it be best to send it to the Royal Scientist to have it looked at? You know, after you… delete everything on it?"

"That's up to you," Sans said. "If you want, I could just lose it in one of my shortcuts. It'd still be your property."

I thought about it for a moment. The phone was probably one of the fewest kind gestures I had from my parents. It was the only thing that kept me sane after Kris left.

"If you don't mind, I would like to keep my phone," I said. "If you could upgrade it where I can use it down here though, that'd be great."

"Alright, then do you want a spare phone for now or do you wanna wait till I upgrade your phone?" Sans questioned.

"I can use a spare phone for now," I replied. "Just in case I might need it."

"Then I'll take your phone and be right back," Sans responded.

"I left it on the table," I pointed.

"Thanks." Sans smiled before he went over and grabbed my phone. "I'll pop a laptop onto the desk for now so you can play some games like Mew Mew Blaster."

"Uh… okay, but what about that website you mentioned before?" I asked.

"You should be able to find it pretty easily on the Undernet," Sans replied. "The Royal Scientist made sure to make it easy to find. Just use the search engine."

"Okay, thanks." I smiled.

There was a pinging sound, and suddenly a laptop appeared on the desk. Did he… actually pull that out of hammer space?

"Enjoy, kiddo~" Sans winked before he left the room.

I went over to the laptop. I pushed the power button to see if it would actually work. The laptop started to boot up.

"Oh, and there's a minifridge in the closet with some food for you!" Sans called out from upstairs.

I blinked. Papyrus didn't mention a minifridge. Did Sans also pull that out of hammer space?

I went over to the closet as the laptop was booting up, and opened the door. There was indeed a minifridge there. Out of curiosity, I opened up the minifridge to see what was in there. Instead of cool air, I was greeted by warm-hot air. Inside the 'fridge' was a quiche, some burgers and fries, an omelet, and donuts that looked freshly glazed. There were also a few packaged cinnamon buns. It was a pretty nice collection.

I took out a burger, it was already warm enough to eat. "Wait… why is the minifridge so warm? Won't the food spoil at this rate?"

"Monster food doesn't spoil," Flowey said as he popped out beside the minifridge.

I jumped back, nearly dropping the burger at Flowey's sudden appearance. "You really need to stop doing that!"

"Admittedly it's pretty fun to watch you flinch back at my appearance," Flowey snickered.

I grumbled before realizing what he said earlier. "Wait, what do you mean monster food doesn't spoil?"

"It's not made with ingredients that spoil," Flowey replied. "All the ingredients are magic, and magic doesn't spoil. Look at me, I've never wilted."

"... Huh? You mean… I've been eating magic this whole time?" I questioned in surprise.

"Not the type of magic you might be thinking of, since human magic is waaaaay different from monster magic," Flowey answered. "Actual ingredients are pretty rare in the Underground, so monsters needed to use magic to make their own food. I have to say, I'm impressed, some of the humans that fell here got sick the first time they ate some monster food. It took a while for their bodies to adjust to it. But you seem to take it just fine."

"I didn't even know the food was made of magic to begin with," I remarked.

"Oh, another thing you don't know about monster food is that you don't need to use the bathroom when you eat it," Flowey stated. "Because it's made of magic, it kinda just… vanishes after it's digested."

"I don't know whether that's grosser than normal digestion or not," I grumbled.

"Eh, you get used to it. Personally I think it's better to not have to worry about bathroom needs," Flowey remarked. "At least I knew… someone who thought it was nice to not have to worry about it."

"I guess," I said. "But why do monsters have toilets if they never need to use them?"

"Depends on the monsters," Flowey chuckled. "The K9 unit has a large toilet in their kitchen that they drink from. Others have it for other reasons. It's mostly cause if a human comes down, they might need the toilet. And better they use a toilet than damage the environment."

I frowned. "I… hope Papyrus doesn't expect me to drink out of the toilet."

"I don't think you need to worry about that," Flowey chuckled. "So, have you thought about the school situation?"

"I… told Sans I'd look at the schools first," I answered. "I have a choice if I want to be homeschooled or not, though it'd be easier on everyone if I did go to one of the schools. I can't say I really want to go to school, because I don't like school… and I'm worried someone will recognize me as human, or I end up in a Soul Fight as part of the class project or something. I wouldn't be able to hide my Soul."

"Well, hey, if you're that worried about it, you could always Save, and have me Reset. Being caught wouldn't be any fun after all, especially after all the effort you went to hide yourself," Flowey suggested.

"I guess," I sighed.

"You're still not sure about this power, huh?" Flowey replied.

"I haven't seen it in action yet," I admitted. "And I'm just nervous about the whole thing in general."

"If you wanna test it, we could do something simple," Flowey offered. "Though it would require me making a Save."

"Would it make a difference if I did something else upon entering Snowdin?" I asked. "Monsters would still know I'm here."

"Maybe?" Flowey shrugged using vines. "You could ask Papyrus to train you where there aren't any cameras. You could try to talk to that person you avoided. You could do any number of things differently. The issue is thinking of the what if also brings into account that things might not go according to plan. And you also can't redo things. You had the heart to heart with Papyrus already, and it would be hard to replicate something so genuine."

"Yeah…" I frowned as I thought about what Flowey said. "Okay… let's go ahead and set up a Save here then. I want to keep what I've done up till now."

"Very well," Flowey said. "Okay, I'm done Saving. Now the question is, what will you do as a test?"

It could be something simple like dropping an item on the floor… but that was too simple. It would be too easy for Flowey to maybe blind me for a second and just put the item back where it belonged.

"My recommendation is letting out your frustrations a bit~" Flowey smirked.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Smash something," Flowey answered. "Break something. Let out the built up feelings from when you were on the surface."

"I… I don't know…" I frowned hesitantly.

"Like I said, I can Reset and undo the damage," Flowey pointed out. "If you want… I can show you first~ In fact, I'll do just that!"

Suddenly a bunch of white pellets appeared, circling the laptop Sans just gave me. Instantly they plunged towards the laptop, crashing into it and causing it to move around. The first few pellets caused a few cracks and dents, but then the laptop started to come apart. By the time the last pellet hit, the laptop had been reduced to little bits and pieces.

It was a massacre. "Jeez, did you have to go that far?"

"And nowwwwwwwwwwwww…" Flowey began to say before I started to feel a little nauseous and lightheaded.

There was a bright light which faded after a moment.

"There ya go!~" Flowey beamed.

I blinked a few times, trying to steady myself from the nauseous feeling, and the bright light. I looked over at the laptop and saw it was perfectly fine and ready to be used.

"Whoa…" I went over to the laptop to check for scratches or any sign of damages.

The laptop looked to be untouched, as if the pellets never hit it in the first place.

"Now do you see?" Flowey asked. "Of course, that's just one little laptop. It might be easier to see if something big happens. But I think it might be best to wait and see what happens before doing something like that."

"Yeah," I agreed. Either Flowey has the ability to fix destroyed objects really well, or he actually did reset the timeline to that Save point. "That's… so cool. It's like getting a second chance if something goes wrong."

"Yep!" Flowey beamed. "The ability to undo accidents, mistakes, and things of that nature. But I gotta be careful, otherwise I can make it so things can't be undone by Saving. And like I said, some monsters may retain bits and pieces of their memories before the Reset, so if you try to reset over something mean you said to them, they may still remember that."

"Right, I'll try to keep that in mind." I smiled, feeling excited at how useful of an ability my friend had. "I'll also try to be careful to only use it when I need to."

"Good! Now then…" Flowey smiled. "You enjoy your breakfast, I'll be around."

Before I could respond, Flowey went back into the ground. Flowey didn't seem to like to stick around for very long, but as long as he talked to me every once in a while, and used that ability when needed, then I was fine with it.

"Everything okay, kiddo?" Sans asked as he suddenly knocked on the door. "Thought I heard another voice coming from your room."

I actually hadn't been sure about telling Sans about Flowey. It, quite frankly, never crossed my mind until now. Well… Flowey wasn't here, and I doubted he wanted to announce to others that he was able to do something like Reset time to a certain point. That never went well in anime or video games.

"Everything's fine! I was just checking out some videos on the laptop, the volume was pretty loud. I'll be sure to turn it down," I answered back.

"Aight, well I'm working on your costume right now," Sans responded. "It should let you have a little bit more dexterity and make that tail wag. I'll also see if I can't figure out how to make the thing clean itself so you don't have to do laundry every day."

"Wow! You can do that?" I asked in surprise. "That's amazing! And that would be helpful too."

"Of course. I won't go into details, but let's just say science, technology, and magic are beautiful things to combine, if combined well of course~" Sans replied.

I heard Sans's footsteps walking away and I gave a small sigh. I'll keep Flowey and his powers a secret unless he says otherwise. I don't want to get him into trouble.

I looked at the laptop. I may as well look for that website now. I saw an icon called 'Undernet'. I clicked on it, and a browser window popped up. The first page that loaded seemed to show a picture of a castle, likely the one the King and Queen lived in. The website seemed to be called 'Sanctuary'. I wondered if this was the name of the castle or just the website.

I moved the cursor around, which looked like some kind of… stretched skull head, to the search bar and typed in 'Royal Scientist Website' before hitting enter. I was brought to a page that looked similar to the search engines I was used to, showing a list of different results. The first one I saw was called 'Circle of Science'. The description said that it was the official website of the Royal Scientist.

I clicked on the link, and it took me to the website. It showed a picture of a laboratory, in a place that I wasn't familiar with. There also seemed to be pictures of a giant metal rubix cube lit up by some kind of red lighting. There were links at the top of the webpage: 'Home', 'Info', 'News', 'Contact', 'Ongoing Projects', and 'Completed Projects'.

I moved the cursor over to 'Contact', and clicked on it. I was brought to a page on the site that explained what the contact page was for, how the Royal Scientist did their best to read every message, and things like that. At the bottom there were three more links: 'Requests', 'Messages', and 'Feedback'. Though for some reason, the 'Feedback' option seemed to be greyed out right now.

I decided to click on the 'Requests' link first. I wanted to give the request for the snowman first. Then I could… probably put in my own request. I was taken to a form where there were different fields: 'Location', 'Name (Optional)', and 'Request'.

I decided to start simple. For 'Location', I typed in 'Snowdin Forest', and for 'Name'... I didn't know if the snowman had a name. I should've asked… but I hoped the Royal Scientist may know what I meant. I hadn't seen any other snowmen on my way to Snowdin after all. So I put in 'Snowman the Snowman'.

For the 'Request' part, I typed in 'Snowman is stuck to the ground. He can't move on his own and the snow around him has turned to ice. Please help Snowman find a way to move, and maybe prevent them from melting if possible if he travels. He wishes to see the world and not be trapped in one place anymore. Thank you.'. After I read over the message a few times, just to be sure I had everything, I hit the 'Submit' button below the form. After a few moments the page went to a drawing of a cute little cat-like creature holding a thumbs up while winking. Below the drawing was a textbox that read 'Thanks for your submission!'.

Now that I finished giving the Request for Snowman, I clicked on 'Request' again. This time it was my own.

For 'Location', I put in 'Snowdin Town', for name, I left it blank since name was optional. I did think about putting my name in there, but… I didn't want her trying to look for me to ask how I would know about… what I was about to type.

'I have a very important request to make. It's a simple one, but it's very urgent. I have gained information from a reliable source that the humans from the surface are planning to flatten Mt. Ebott, which would likely destroy the entire Underground, and the monsters-'

I stopped typing and backspaced 'the monsters' part.

'-we would all be in danger, unless something is done soon. I don't have an exact date on when it will happen, however, I can only assume it will be soon. I send this to you in hopes that you will be able to look into it and do something about it. Please help.'

I re-read the message to make sure I didn't put anything incriminating. I took a deep breath and let it out before I clicked on the 'Submit' button. Well, that's it. All that's left to do is wait.

I was wearing the new and improved dog costume that Sans just finished upgrading. I was surprised by the upgrade. The moment I put it on and looked in the mirror, it looked way more realistic than it had before without changing any of the details.

"Wow, this is amazing, Sans," I complimented the skeleton as I looked myself over in a full body mirror.

The tail was… quite… strange. I thought Sans was gonna put some kind of machine in the tail part where it would wag on its own or something. But instead, he somehow made it so the tail magically synced up with my body through… he said proximity to the base of my spine. Like some kind of wireless connection.

Through this connection, the tail was somehow not only able to wag on its own, but also send feedback of the wagging to me, so I could actually feel the tail wagging. And even more, I could actually control the wagging. It wasn't just the tail either. The ears that were on the headband also seemed to work on the level. I was able to move them with just a thought. I could make the ears perk up, flatten them against my head, or just have them twitch.

"I think I'm starting to see how a real dog monster used their tail and ears," I remarked.

"Yeah, this should also help you unlock your inner dog~" Sans winked.

"Does this also give me the ability to run on all fours?" I asked.

"Nope, unless you wanna take the risk of hurting yourself," Sans responded. "Though if you wanna run on all fours, you can make a request to the Royal Scientist for that. She's actually made a few quadruped suits for bipeds that let them feel the suit, like what I did with yours, but keep their limbs safe."

"Nah, I was joking when I said that," I replied. I also don't want to bother the Royal Scientist with something as pointless as that.

"The Great Papyrus is home!" I heard a familiar voice announcing as the door opened up.

"Hey, Papyrus!" I greeted, feeling the tail actually wagging.

"Well hello there, Frizk!" Papyrus greeted back before looking at my tail. "Wowie! Look! Your tail is wagging! Maybe sleeping in the home of the Great Papyrus helped to heal you!"

"Oh, it definitely has. I didn't realize how tired I was until I…" I paused as I just realized what may have happened last night. "Uh… passed out… on you."

Now I was embarrassed. One didn't just pass out on someone like that, not outside of anime. My tail stopped wagging, and my ears lowered.

"Worry not, Frizk!" Papyrus beamed. "I should have known better, since you traveled all the way from Ruins to Snowdin in such a short amount of time. Not only that, but you also got into many Fights and solved all the puzzles, at least the ones that weren't broken. It would've taken its toll on anyone!"

"Y-yeah, of course," I chuckled sheepishly.

"I was busy… tweaking that last puzzle. It really shouldn't have been a death gauntlet," Papyrus explained. "Not to worry though, it is now nice and safe for any human that crosses there now!"

"You're amazing, Papyrus." I smiled.

"Nyeh, heh, heh, heh, but of course!" Papyrus grinned. "And I couldn't have done it without your help, Frizk!"

"I didn't do much, but I appreciate the praise," I replied. "By the way, it seems I may be going to school once the New Years is finished."

"Oh really?! Maybe we really will be classmates after all!" Papyrus celebrated. "Nyeh heh heh! I can see it now! Papyrus and Frizk, best friends and classmates!"

I gave a smile. If Papyrus was going to be there, then maybe going to school wouldn't be so bad. "Which school do you go to?"

"I go to the school in Waterfall," Papyrus answered.

All the more reason for me to go to that one then. I thought to myself.

"But before that, would you like to begin our training?" Papyrus asked.

"Oh, yeah, but, uh…" I hesitated. "Could we possibly go somewhere… where there aren't any cameras?"

"Hm?" Papyrus questioned before giving me a thumbs up. "Of course! I can find a place where we can privately train!"

"Great, thanks." I smiled.

I followed Papyrus down the path that would lead us out of Snowdin.

"I've never been this way before," I said as I watched a large ice cube being carried down the river stream.

"Not to worry, Frizk, I, the Great Papyrus, will be with you!" Papyrus reassured me. "There's only one place I can think of that wouldn't have any cameras, besides inside houses of course. But this might also be a good chance for you to see some of Waterfall yourself."

"I guess," I replied.

"Just stay close to me, it gets foggy around here," Papyrus warned.

Indeed, there was a very thick cloud of fog in this area. It was hard to see. I took Papyrus's gloved hand to make sure I wouldn't get lost. We kept going until the fog began to clear.

"The fog there is the boundary between the cold air of Snowdin and the warm moisture of Waterfall," Papyrus explained, likely thinking I didn't know the science behind fog because I was 'raised in Ruins'.

I noticed the snow started melting the further we went. We soon came into a cavern-like area. There was no snow here, though it was still pretty cold. I saw a blue, glowing flower, and… a station. I saw Sans standing at the station. I know Sans never went past us, must've been his special shortcut. I then… couldn't help but wonder just how powerful his shortcuts were, when I noticed there was snow on top of Sans's station that wasn't melting.

"Heya, kid," Sans greeted. "Lemme know when you wanna see the schools. In the meantime, I'll be around, totally doing my jobs."

"Argh! Sans! You need to stop slacking off!" Papyrus grumbled. "What about the station you set up in Hotland?"

"Which one?" Sans asked with a wink.

Of course he's got multiple. I chuckled.

"Ehhh… I'll get around to them," Sans replied.

"Let's leave him be," I said. "We've got to focus on finding our training spot."

"Oh right you are, Frizk!" Papyrus agreed.

We continued on. We saw a small waterfall with rocks falling from it. There was a bridge under that led to a single blue flower.

"That's a lot of falling rocks," I noted.

"Eh… it's actually a puzzle Undyne made," Papyrus said. "You're supposed to dodge the rocks, or you get knocked onto the bridge below."

"That… sounds painful." I frowned.

"It's not so bad… uh… most of the time," Papyrus sweated.

"Why not keep the puzzle shut off until it's needed?" I asked. "It's not like there are any humans here."

"The puzzle unfortunately has become a bit of a perpetual cycle due to magic," Papyrus explained. "To end the cycle, someone would have to intercept all the rocks and move them off to the side. As when the rocks drop down into the void below, they reappear at the top."

"Huh…" I blinked as I curiously tried to look at the abyss below, seeing the rocks disappear into the darkness.

"Be careful, I don't want you falling down there. I'd rather you not get caught up in the cycle," Papyrus quickly said. "Come on, it's not difficult to get past this. Think of this as part of your training!"

I nodded. "Yeah. Compared to your bones, these rocks should be easy."

"Exactly!" Papyrus beamed. "If you wanna make it a little trickier, I can always turn you blue~"

"Uh, let's save that after I get better at dodging your attacks while blue," I suggested.

"Nyeh heh heh! Alright!" Papyrus excitedly replied.

Papyrus and I had to time our movements just right. I noticed that the rocks fell by two, but sometimes four would fall. I waited until after the four rocks fell before racing across, stopping for a second to let the rock in front of me fall before getting to the otherside.

"Nice job there, Frizk!" Papyrus praised.

I smiled. "At least we got past it."

We moved on until I saw a patch of grass that looked tall enough to hide in. Papyrus and I walked through the grass. Thankfully I could still see Papyrus, but I was completely buried in the grass.

"This spot won't work," Papyrus informed. "While the grass conceals us, this is on a main path and the concealment could be a double edged sword. Let's keep looking!"

I wondered how far we needed to move in to avoid the cameras.

"There's one place that's hard to get to in Waterfall that could be perfect, but I think we should keep a look out for alternatives before we reach there," Papyrus stated.

"Why's that?" I asked as we came across a river leading towards another waterfall. There was a sign in the middle of the river, and another pathway to the right. I saw strange looking budded plants not too far away. There was also a bell on the wall, and some kind of… glowing writing on a plaque.

"To get to the location you have to go under a waterfall, complete a puzzle, and not mess up the timing otherwise you'll get washed down the river," Papyrus explained. "So if we can find somewhere suitable before then, we can use that instead."

"All this trouble just to find a place to train in private…" I grumbled.

"Besides, there is something about the place that… gives me shivers," Papyrus added. "There's a wall of… remarkably reflective crystals that… when looking at it makes me feel like I'm not alone."

"Really?" I frowned. "Maybe we should try looking for an alternative then…"

I looked at the strange plants that were on the ground.

"What are these plants?" I asked.

"Ahh, those are a remarkable species of plant that was cultivated by the King!" Papyrus beamed. "The names of these amazing plants are Bridge Seeds! They act a bit weirdly as they only properly deploy when you align 4 in a singular row or column. Oh, and they have to be in the water."

I blinked. "So are they used for some kind of puzzle then?"

"They're used for getting across the rivers," Papyrus answered. "If you mess up, you can ring that bell over there. It automatically puts them back in this state. They are and aren't used for a kind of puzzle. They are planted nearby because when the surface goes through a really stormy season, anything built in these channels gets washed out. Bridges have been built using every material from wood to metal and all of them have succumbed to the torrent. The seeds provide a guaranteed way to cross the water at any time and they double as a fun puzzle."

"I see…" I remarked. "Shall I try them then?"

"Go right ahead!" Papyrus smiled.

I picked up one of the Bridge Seeds, it made a little squeaking noise, it was kind of cute. I looked around for a moment before putting it on the edge of the water. It floated to the other side on its own before it stopped. I picked up another Bridge Seed and put it on the water. But the path I chose was too narrow, I couldn't fit any more Bridge Seeds. Realizing I messed up, I went over to the bell and rang it. The two Bridge Seeds on the water teleported back to the default place.

I squinted my eyes a little. I picked up the first Bridge Seed and walked down to the wooden bridge. I faced north and put the Bridge Seed down, letting it float all the way to the otherside. I did the same with the other 3 Bridge Seeds. As soon as the last one touched the third Bridge Seed, all four of them suddenly bloomed into large, pink lily pads. They formed a vertical bridge, but the way the path was designed, it allowed the bridge to connect from one end at the bottom, to the other at top.

"Interesting choice!" Papyrus remarked. "I would not have thought of placing them in such a way!"

"I'm just glad it worked." I smiled.

"Oh, would you like to try making more bridges?" Papyrus asked. "I believe there may be a secret area around here."

"I did notice a path leading ahead," I remarked. "If I were facing the waterfall, I'd say it's to the right."

"Nyeh, heh, heh, heh! A very astute observation!" Papyrus beamed.

"Maybe it might let us find our training spot," I chuckled. "But didn't I just use the Bridge Seeds to solve the puzzle here?"

"Here's a trick~" Papyrus grinned before going over to the bell. "If you ring it twice in quick succession…"

Papyrus rang the bell twice in a second. Instead of the bridge I made disappearing to respawn the Bridge Seeds, four new Bridge Seeds just suddenly appeared.

"Wow, that's handy," I whistled.

"The King had to make sure we would always have a way to make a bridge in case the original seeds got washed away or lost," Papyrus informed. "Or if we just wanted to make more bridges."

I carried the new Bridge Seeds down, having them float to the other side of the river, until all four of them touched, creating another lily pad bridge.

I looked at the lily pads, wondering if these things could actually hold my weight. I carefully stepped onto the lily pad. I was surprised at how stable the flower was, and how firm it felt under my shoes.

"These wondrous seeds are quite amazing," Papyrus remarked as he stepped onto one and began to jump on it a little. "The King once used hundreds of them at once to help monsters who were trapped during a really bad flood to move everything they had. In fact, they're so incredible that until the flood subsided, a temporary town was built on the platform made of the Bridge Seeds. With temporary homes, shops, and everything. That way the citizens didn't have to move away while their homes were being rebuilt."

"That's incredible. Does that temporary town still exist?" I asked as we walked across the lily pads.

"Unfortunately, no," Papyrus said while shaking his head slightly. "Floattown was only around for about a year after the flood."

"Ah, that's too bad. But I'm glad everyone managed to get back home safely," I replied as we stopped onto the cavern floor.

"Indeed!" Papyrus beamed before stepping off beside me.

There was just a bench here, and a single blue flower next to it.

"Papyrus, what are those blue flowers?" I asked.

"Oh, right! You never would've seen them in Ruins!" Papyrus said in shock. "These are Echo Flowers. We passed by a monster who provides a much better explanation about them than I ever could give."

I raised an eyebrow. "Echo Flower?"

"Um, well… they're flowers that repeat the last thing they hear over and over, until someone speaks something else to them," Papyrus explained. "However, some Echo Flowers infused with words that carry strong emotions or magic will retain the words for a long time."

These Echo Flowers act like a voice recorder? I blinked as I walked over to the Echo Flower out of curiosity.

When I got closer, I could hear words, and a familiar voice coming out of the flower. "I just wasn't ready for the responsibility."

I was about to say something, before I remembered what Papyrus said about the Echo Flower re-recording its words if someone spoke near it. I didn't want my voice recorded.

I walked over to Papyrus. "Was… Sans here?"

"Hm?" Papyrus questioned. "Why do you ask?"

"I thought I heard his voice coming from that Echo Flower," I pointed at the Echo Flower.

Papyrus frowned before going over to the Echo Flower and touching it, causing the voice to play again. Papyrus frowned even more before he started looking around.

"SAAAAAAAAAAAANS!" Papyrus suddenly shouted. "How could you do something so heinous?! So dastardly?! So villainous?!"

"What is it?" I asked, wondering what the heck Sans did to set Papyrus off.

"I-I can't even speak of it because of how horrific it is!" Papyrus exclaimed, though a part of me felt that Papyrus was just being overdramatic.

I raised an eyebrow before I saw Papyrus pointing at the bench. Curious now, I looked over at the bench. I didn't see anything out of the ordinary, it was just a bench. Then I noticed something under the bench. I bent down to see what it was. I reached my arm under and grabbed onto something. I pulled it out to see what it was.

"Uh…" I stared at the thing in my hands. "What is this… a pie…?"

"It's a quiche, Frizk!" Papyrus spoke up. "It's been abandoned! Look at how sad it is! It's been psychologically tormented!"

I stared at the quiche. I didn't get it. It didn't have a face or anything. I guess Papyrus was just being dramatic.

"It was abandoned! It was forgotten! It was hidden! All because Sans couldn't be responsible enough!" Papyrus exclaimed.

I furrowed my eyebrows, feeling very confused. It was just… quiche… food… Sans could've just eaten it.

"Um… if it would help you… and, uh… the… Abandoned Quiche to feel better, I could take it with us," I suggested.

"Are you sure?" Papyrus asked in concern. "This is not a responsibility you should take on lightly. You are a child yourself, after all, so one would not blame you for being unwilling to take responsibility."

Wow, he's taking the whole abandoned quiche thing way too seriously. Unless I'm missing something and this quiche is actually some kind of monster baby? I frowned. "Um… so I, uh… take it that we shouldn't eat it?"

Admittedly, if this was a monster baby, I probably should've worded that better.

"Hmm… so long as you take care of it before you eat it, all should be fine," Papyrus answered after a moment of thought. "But eating it as it is now will likely only restore a little HP and may leave you feeling abandoned yourself."

I don't understand monster food. I inwardly groaned. "Well, let's get going."

I stopped for a moment when I saw a yellow star at the corner. Flowey must've come and left it for me when we were looking at the Abandoned Quiche. I went over to the yellow star and touched it for a moment. Flowey's face showed up, but he didn't come all the way up from the ground. He gave me a wink before going back underground.

"Rescuing an Abandoned Quiche fills you with Determination."

What…? I began to question the weird 'thought' that popped into my head there. Maybe it's another video game thing… Some kind of… Save acknowledgement. Well, as long as it works, I guess I can't complain.

"What are you doing over there?" Papyrus asked me.

"Oh, was just giving a small, silent pep-talk to the quiche," I answered.

"Awww, that's awfully kind of you!" Papyrus beamed. "Now… shall we continue looking or would you prefer I just take you to the spot I know of? We're quite close to the spot I know of without any cameras and plenty of room to move around. But like I said, it can be a pain to get to."

"Let's at least see this spot," I suggested. "At the very least, we could get one training session done there."

"Just… please be careful," Papyrus requested.

I walked behind Papyrus as he led me back to where we were. We crossed the bridge we made on the river, and surprisingly, the waterfall lifted up like a curtain when Papyrus went through it. I was taken by surprise at that. I walked up to the waterfall, seeing it lift up like a curtain again. I slowly walked through, watching the waterfall go back to normal after I went past it.

Huh… must be magic. I shouldn't question these things anymore. I thought to myself as I followed Papyrus through this darkened room.

"Up ahead is a puzzle," Papyrus stated, reminding me of what he said before. "Then after that, once we have completed the puzzle, we will have to hop from platform to platform to get to the other side. The issue is the platforms are like a time based puzzle themselves. If they disappear under you, you'll get washed to the previous room."

"That does sound troublesome," I noted. Though the hopping from platform to platform makes me think of a certain popular video game character. "How would I be able to jump across those platforms? They're not too hard to jump, are they?"

"They get hard towards the end," Papyrus answered. "But perhaps if we watch them for a bit, you'll get the timing down."

Papyrus and I stopped when we saw what looked like a giant lantern sitting in the middle of the pathway. I saw a plaque of writing behind the lantern, likely meant to explain the puzzle. I walked over to the plaque, but… I could only make out a word or two…

"Light… path…"

That was all I could get before the rest of the words started turning into gibberish.

"What's the matter, Frizk?" Papyrus asked.

"O-oh… it's…" I hesitated. Should I tell him?

Papyrus had never judged me for what I couldn't do, unlike… other people I knew. And I knew lying wouldn't work. I had seen it blow up in characters faces many times in anime, or even a regular cartoon show.

"I… I can't read… that well…" I admitted softly.

"Oh? But I thought I saw you reading just fine before," Papyrus responded in a confused tone.

I thought of what to say. I could claim I had help, but how could I explain it? I didn't even know how it worked myself. I could tell him I could make out a few words, which was true, but… with the understanding of the words fading, I felt I would be lying.

"I… I had help," I finally said. "Before I left Ruins… I think a monster cast some magic on me to help me read. But because it's been a while, the magic must be wearing off."

"Oh, I see. Well that was nice of the monster, but it doesn't help you learn anything!" Papyrus remarked. "Not to worry, Frizk! There are plenty of young monster children that don't know how to read. I'm sure the school, or even I, could help teach you how to read our amazing writing!"

I couldn't help but give a smile. "That'd be great, Papyrus. It'd be nice to be able to read on my own."

"Well then, I will make sure to mention it to my brother! He and I can help you study at home on top of learning at school!" Papyrus exclaimed before frowning slightly. "Should you choose to go to school that is. I don't wish to influence your decision. For now though, onto the puzzle! Like you read, the sign does say 'Light' and 'Path'. But the full sign is 'Light the path in the right order, or you'll lose your way'."

"I see…" I said as I walked over to the lantern. "Maybe we're supposed to light the lantern. But how? I don't have fire magic, and I'm pretty sure you don't, unless you've been hiding it."

"I think the lantern lights itself, you just have to touch it," Papyrus answered. "Give it a try."

I wondered why Papyrus wanted me to solve the puzzle, but maybe it was because I had been willing to do all of his puzzles back in Snowdin Forest.

I moved closer to the lantern. I tried to look for a switch or something on it to light it up. But when I touched it, a bright flame suddenly appeared in the lantern. This surprised me enough to make me jump back a bit, not wanting to get burned.

"Don't worry, Frizk, the flames are contained within the lantern," Papyrus assured me. "Puzzle makers know better than to create such a dangerous environment without making the dangers easily visible."

"Need I remind you of the last puzzle in Snowdin Forest?" I pointed out.

"... Okay, but that one was the odd one out!" Papyrus quickly said. "And I fixed it, so it's not dangerous anymore! Now instead of death weapons, the puzzle shoots harmless peanuts. Giving the human a chance to practice their dodging skills, and maybe get to eat a tasty snack while dodging."

"What if they're allergic to peanuts?" I asked.

"... OH NO! I HAVEN'T THOUGHT OF THAT!" Papyrus yelled in horror as eyes popped out of his eye sockets.

"We can… tweak the puzzle later… again," I chuckled.

"Maybe we can use pretzels!" Papyrus brainstormed.

While Papyrus was thinking about how to tweak his puzzle, I was moving on ahead to check for other lanterns. There was another waterfall that had more rocks falling. Just in case, I decided to see if there was anything behind this waterfall too. It was a good thing I did, because when I got close, the waterfall opened up like a curtain again, and there was a lantern behind it. I touched it to light it up. Then I walked to the other side of the small waterfall river, seeing another lantern. I touched the lantern to light it up.

I looked around. I didn't see any more lanterns.

"Frizk! I think you did it! Come back over here!" Papyrus called out from the other side, sounding excited.

I rushed back to where Papyrus was. I saw that there was a new lit up path on the ground that led to a little wooden pier. I walked to the pier, following the lit up path, and saw that there were a series of platforms that were appearing and disappearing seemingly randomly. Towards the end, it looked like the platforms were practically blinking in and out of existence every second.

I had seen puzzles like this in video games, where you had to time your movements and jump from platform to platform before they disappeared. Normally, though, there was a halfway point that was always there. But with this, it was a straight shot. I saw that if necessary, I could jump back one or two platforms in some spots to get to the next cycle ahead, but I wouldn't have any permanent safe space between here and the other side.

"Once you get to the other side, you will see a lever," Papyrus informed. "When you pull that lever, all the platforms will appear and stay there until we leave the area. When we leave the area, the entire puzzle resets, platforms included."

"Wow, I can see what you mean about this being inconvenient," I said. "But… I'm sure I'll be able to get through it."

"Nyeh heh heh heh, I know you can!" Papyrus grinned. "Though, if you do fall, I will stay here so the puzzle doesn't reset."

"Alright," I replied. "Here I go then."

I moved across the platforms. The first few ones weren't too bad, I was able to jump onto them just fine, but… when I got to the second to last platform, I mistimed my jump. The platform disappeared, and I fell into the water below with a SPLASH. I felt the water pushing me somewhere. I managed to keep my head above water until I ended up back in the room with the Bridge Seeds.

Water dripped from my dog costume. I looked down, seeing the fur was wet, but surprisingly, I didn't feel all that wet myself. The costume didn't feel too weighed down by the water, just the fur part. I wonder if Sans made this costume waterproof too?

I headed back to behind the waterfall. Papyrus was still there, he seemed to be thinking about something. I let him be as I tried to do the platform puzzle again.

I fell… tried again… fell, tried again… when I got to the last platform, it disappeared so quickly that I actually jumped too early. I jumped before the platform reappeared, and it was back in the water for me. I was getting frustrated, but I refused to give up. I was going to get across those platforms, darn it, even if I caught a cold later.

"Are you sure you want to keep trying?" Papyrus asked me when I came back after the 10th time. "Maybe we could go somewhere else."

"No… I can do this," I said. "I just… have to time it right."

I took a deep breath and let it out. I needed to be calm and patient, rushing through was only going to make me fail again. I jumped onto the platforms once more. I managed to make it all the way to the last one. This time… this time I jumped right before the platform reappeared, landing on it. Then I quickly jumped off, getting on solid ground. I gave a sigh of relief before I went over to the lever Papyrus mentioned, and pulled it. There was a CLICK sound, and the platforms all appeared at once.

"Congratulations, Frizk! You were extraordinary!" Papyrus cheered as he rushed over the platform bridge. "Hopefully solving such a tricky puzzle helped you with your dodge skills a little!"

"Heh… yeah… just hope I'm not too tired for our training by the time we get to this spot," I replied. "I'm going to have to dry my fur…"

"We're actually just about there," Papyrus informed. "As for drying your fur… why do you not shake out? I've seen many of the K9 unit doing just that before."

"Uh…" I hesitated. "Yeah, I'll give the shaking a try."

I shook my entire body. I wasn't sure if it would actually work since this wasn't actually my fur, nor was it technically attached to my body, but I had to try something. I didn't want Papyrus to get too suspicious either. Surprisingly, as I shook off, I could feel the costume getting a bit lighter as the water was shook from the fur. For a moment, I actually felt like a dog. While it didn't completely dry off my- the fur, it definitely helped.

"Ah, that's much better!" I smiled before seeing that Papyrus looked a little wet. "Ah… oops… I guess I should've tried doing that from further away."

"It's fine!" Papyrus beamed. "I definitely needed a shower after all the work I did this morning!"

I snickered, Papyrus seemed to turn just about anything into a silver lining. I noticed a yellow star nearby. Seeing how I wasn't sure what was up ahead, and I would rather not do the entire puzzle again, I went over to the yellow star and touched it. I didn't see Flowey this time, but I heard a thought in my head again.

"After finally completing a tough puzzle, you're filled with Determination."

When I felt like that was a good enough acknowledgement that Flowey saved my progress, I walked on with Papyrus following me.

As we walked, I saw these strange crystals on the wall. There was a pink one that looked solid on the wall. There was also a cyan crystal not too far ahead as well. Though despite being crystals, I couldn't see anything reflecting off of them. The crystal walls looked to be very cloudy for some reason.

The further on we walked, the more uneasy I began to feel. I was starting to see why Papyrus mentioned feeling uneasy in this place. I saw more crystals on the ground as we kept walking.

"This area up ahead has a lot of room to train in," Papyrus informed. "But… there's this… entire wall made of crystal that always gives me the heebie-jeebies."

I was about to ask when we came up to a bunch of pink crystals jutting out from the ground. And a crystalized mushroom for some reason. I saw a pickaxe in one of the crystals. I wondered if there had been monsters mining here, but left the pickaxe behind for some reason. However, what had my attention was the giant pink crystal wall ahead of us. There was also a sign there, but when I tried to read, I couldn't make out anything.

I stared at the reflection on the wall. I paled as I stared at my reflection. The reflection… didn't have my dog costume on. It just had my striped shirt and pants. What was even creepier was the fact I had no face in the reflection either. I couldn't even see Papyrus's reflection. I quickly turned to Papyrus to make sure I wasn't alone.

"Frizk? Is everything alright…?" Papyrus asked as he came over.

"P-Papyrus… why… can't I see your reflection?" I asked. "A-and why is my reflection… faceless? And…" Where's my dog costume!? If Papyrus looks at my reflection, he'll know I'm human!

"You… cannot see your face?" Papyrus frowned before looking at the wall. "Perhaps we should… step back. This wall is made of crystal that contains a high amount of magic. It may be dangerous if we get too close."

I frowned as I looked at my faceless, costume-less reflection. I knew I should listen to Papyrus… but… something was pulling me toward the mirror. It was like I was in a trance almost. I walked closer to my reflection.

"F-Frizk, we really should go," Papyrus spoke up.

I snapped out of the trance I was in, and sighed. "Y-yeah, okay."

I backed away from the mirror… and noticed my reflection wasn't moving anymore. I stopped, a shiver went down my spine as my reflection just stood there, motionless. "P-P-Papyrus… w-what does it mean when a reflection… stop moving?"

"Let's just get out of here, Frizk," Papyrus replied. "We can discuss this later."

However, as we were moving away, my reflection suddenly ran out of the crystal mirror and charged straight at me. I barely had time to react when I was suddenly pulled into a Soul Fight without warning.

I had closed my eyes before I had been pulled into the Fight. When I opened them, I saw myself staring at a crystal being in the shape of me.

"Am I you? Or are you me?" The reflection asked in my own voice.

The attack field appeared before I saw something that made my blood turn cold. It was something I hoped to never see again. Just above me and this… reflection of myself, I saw the 'fight meter', the thing that showed up when I chose the 'Fight' option to attack Flowey. I was taken back by this, and I saw the reflection creating a toy knife in its hands before striking at me. I let out a yelp as I felt pain, losing 4 HP. I was now down to 26.

"Frizk! I hope you can hear me!" I heard Papyrus call out, but I couldn't see him anywhere. "I can't help you in this fight, but I won't leave your side. From what I remember of the legends of the mirror wall, you have two choices on how to defeat it. The specifics change from monster to monster, but there are always two options."

"Papyrus, that doesn't make any sense! What do you mean 'two options'?" I questioned. And does it work with a human!?

I still didn't really understand what I was looking at, or why I was fighting it.

"I can't tell you, Frizk! If I knew, I would!" Papyrus loudly responded. "For some it's been they need to let out their frustrations or accept that they're angry. Others are that they need to express themselves properly or admit they're not in a relationship or situation they want. It's… really complicated and it depends on the person."

I frowned as I looked at my options. I wasn't sure if I could even fight it myself. I looked at the Act options. I could Check, Love, Think, and Feel. I needed a better understanding of what I was up against, so I tried the Check option first.

"?- ? ATK ? DEF. No data is available."

That was… not at all helpful. Even the 'Check' menu had no idea what this thing was.

The attack field expanded, and suddenly, red lightning-like strikes moved quickly throughout the attack field. The red turned white. I tried moving away when one of the red lightning-like strikes tried to hit me, but I ran into one of the white ones. I yelped as I took another 4 damage, bringing my health down to 22, I was about to lose the rest of my temporary health. I noticed the reflection's feet started to turn white for some reason. I looked at my Soul, and, for a second, I thought my Soul was starting to awaken when I saw a little pink dot in the middle of it. But when I squinted my eyes at it, I realized it wasn't just a solid color… it looked sparkly, like a crystal.

Wait… don't tell me… the more I get hit, the more my Soul gets… crystalized? I frowned. W-what will happen if my entire Soul gets crystalized?

"Who do you want to be? Who are you now? Will you really be happy with either answer?" My reflection asked in my voice.

There was something just incredibly creepy to see and hear myself talk back to me. I wondered if this counted as 'insanity'.

It was my turn again. I looked at my Act options. What am I supposed to do?

I chose the 'Love' option. Surely something would happen if I did that. However, when I tried showing some love… it felt like there was nothing even there.

I was even more confused. There was something there, clearly, but my Acts were acting like there wasn't.

The attack field duplicated itself, and suddenly, I saw a duplicate of my Soul on the other side of the second attack field. When I moved my Soul, both of them moved in perfect sync. I couldn't even tell which one was supposed to be my Soul. Then my reflection summoned mini-heads of itself to attack me with… some kind of… magic, I guess. It was aiming mostly at the Soul on the right, but some of the strand magic went to the Soul on the left. I tried to multitask, but that caused the Soul on the right to get hit. Another 4 health lost, and now I was down to 18 HP.

"Frizk, I can see you flinching, so I can only guess you're taking some hits," Papyrus remarked. "Perhaps… Perhaps you should try and flee from the fight. It might let you get away!"

"O-okay!" I replied back.

I quickly went to Mercy, where I usually had the option to 'Spare' or 'Flee'. My heart stopped for a moment when I didn't see the 'Flee' option.

"... Papyrus, I can't flee!" I shouted in a bit of a panic.

"W-what?! That's… Oh jeez…" Papyrus remarked. "W-what should I do? Should I get Sans?! He might be able to help with his shortcuts. But… I don't want to leave you."

"I-it's okay, I'll try to figure this out," I said. "Just hearing your voice is helping me stay calm."

"But what should I do, Frizk? Should I go get help? Or would you prefer I stay here?" Papyrus worriedly questioned.

I wasn't sure what to do. But I didn't want to be stuck in a battle with… this reflection version of myself. I didn't want to be left alone, but if we didn't get help soon, I didn't know how much longer I could last in this battle. Papyrus wasn't able to help me right now anyway.

"Go and get Sans," I finally decided.

"Alright. Just… maybe don't do anything! Bide your time until I return!" Papyrus called out.

Would that even work? I questioned.

I couldn't hear Papyrus anymore, so he either went quiet, or he left.

As I tried to wait for Papyrus, I started to lose HP. The crystal on my Soul began growing the longer I waited. I was down to 17 HP.

"You can't just keep hiding," My reflection stated. "You can't keep running away. Do you really think Kris would behave like this? Do you think she'd be proud of us? For being such a… pathetic weakling."

I lost another HP, I was down to 16.

"Leave Kris out of this! She's not here!" I snapped.

I tapped the Act button, and chose 'Think'. I thought back on how I had treated others… but my mind was blank.

"You're right, she isn't here," My reflection agreed. "Because if she were, she wouldn't be struggling. We were never anything like her. She would've already solved this and she would've done so without getting hit. You were so bad at being human that you chose to become a monster instead. And you're even failing at that."

"I don't have to listen to you!" I snapped again.

"You're right," My reflection chuckled. "You never listened to yourself in the first place. So why would me being in front of you change that?"

I chose 'Act' again, and this time chose 'Feel'. I reached out to the mirror and touched the smoothness of the crystal. I wasn't sure if that did anything, but at least I wasn't met with 'but there was nobody there'. Maybe I was getting somewhere.

"Haven't you figured it out yet?" My reflection asked. "I'm not just your reflection. I'm your thoughts, the ones you keep buried. I'm the feelings that you hide. I'm your true desires. It's why I'm stronger than you. It's why I'm not wearing some… ridiculous looking costume. You don't want to be someone else, you don't want to be a monster. You want to be a strong human. You wanna show your parents that they're wrong about you. You wanna show Kris that you don't need her protection any more."

I frowned. The words the reflection was saying weren't wrong… I was only disguising myself so the monsters wouldn't attack me, or take me to their rulers. I wanted to get stronger, like the protagonists from the isekai anime. They always end up becoming powerful towards the end. And yet…

"You remained weak," My reflection finished. "Even now, you're waiting for others to come rescue you from a situation you're too weak to overcome on your own. You aren't the protagonist. You aren't even a part of the protagonist's party or friend group or whatever. You're the pathetic damsel in distress, crying out for someone to do all the work and rescue you."

Anger began to fill me as my reflection kept hitting my nerves.

"I'm not weak!" I snapped. "I managed to make it through here, didn't I?"

"With Papyrus's help," My reflection pointed out. "And who knows, maybe Sans made that costume boost your abilities slightly. There's no way in hell you'd normally be coordinated enough to complete that platforming section."

I was back in the attack field, now it was a square. There were 3 other Souls next to mine. One of my Souls was being targeted with a reticle. I didn't understand what that meant, until 3 exclamation marks appeared on the 3 Souls, while one didn't have that. Suddenly, lightning flashed on where the exclamation marks were. I let out a yelp of pain as the Soul with the reticle got hit. The crystallization progressed more, and the reflection was becoming more white.

Realizing what was going on, I quickly moved my Soul, the one with the reticle, to the safety area. But I got confused at one point, and I got struck by the lightning again.

When the attack was finally over, I was down to 8 HP. I was having some trouble breathing. I hovered over Items to get something to heal me.

"I knew it. Weak, always needing to rely on healing consumptions," my reflection said. "The real protagonists would keep going no matter how hurt they are, until they win."

I gritted my teeth. "I'll show you how weak I am!"

I went to the Fight option, and took out the toy knife I had on me. An attack meter was presented to me, just like when I fought with Flowey. I timed it in the center of the meter, and a red strike hit the reflection. I did about 10 damage to it, nearly doing half of its HP.

"So this is what strength is to you?" My reflection asked with a scoff. "You sure you're not gonna be a little wimp and give up at the last second again?"

"I…" I hesitated.

"Are you sure this is strength and not you just lashing out? Throwing yet another temper tantrum?" My reflection continued grilling me. "Are you sure that you have what it takes to be strong? Do you even deserve the chance?"

I was back in the attack field. My reflection did what I did to it, trying to attack me with a toy knife, or at least a replica of it. I saw the attack meter above, and it struck my Soul. I tried to move away, but when I did, the attack field began to shrink. My reflection continued to attack my Soul. I got struck. I was down to 4 HP. But the attack was over, and it was my turn again.

My Soul was nearly all crystalized, and the reflection was almost all white. I could probably end this now if I attacked it again, however. It looked like it had the same amount of HP I had.

"What's gonna happen if you lose, hm?" My reflection inquired. "Are you going to become my reflection?~ Am I going to replace you?"

"Stop it! I don't know what you are, you can't just replace me!" I shouted. "Why are you doing this anyway?"

"Because you aren't," The reflection cryptically answered. "Because you can't. Because you won't."

I frowned at the cryptic answer.

My reflection then chuckled. "Look at it this way. If I do replace you, I won't hesitate to do what's in my heart. I'll work hard to achieve what you only dream of. I'll do what you've always wanted to do but have been too scared to do. So… maybe it won't be so bad a thing to become my reflection."

I hovered over the Fight option. I should just end this now, get rid of this haunting reflection. But…

"Do it. Kill me." My reflection grinned. "Or are you too scared?"

I couldn't… I… would I be killing myself?

"Maybe you should just cry out for help," My reflection remarked. "If you're too weak to do anything on your own, why not lean into the role you've chosen for yourself? Be the damsel in distress. Cry out for a knight to come rescue you."

I looked over at Items, and chose it. When I did, a sudden stillness came over me. I couldn't move my Soul on the items.

"Awww, is someone paralyzed with fear?" My reflection asked. "Or… are you giving up?~ Or maybe, just maybe, your Soul is no longer your own."

Suddenly my Soul moved around on the different options, even though I wasn't doing anything.

"Oh, seems you're just one attack away from becoming me~" My- Frizk smirked.

"This is…" I began to say.

"I'll give you one more chance," Frizk replied. "Can you stop me?"

I looked down at my options, seeing her Soul on the Fight option. I somehow managed to move it to Act, and selected 'Think'.

I thought about what brought me to the Underground… I decided to give in. Frizk would do a better job than I ever could.

"Don't you want to stop me?" Frizk questioned. "Or have you accepted your fate?"

I was only a shell of a person… I was never really…

"Stay determined… please…"

What… will happen to me if I give in though? I don't… I don't want to die… I don't want to just become a reflection to someone else…

"But you were so willing to get isekaied," Frizk pointed out with a soft chuckle. "Weren't you ready to die then? Weren't you hoping to become someone else?"

"Maybe… maybe that's how I wanted things to be… but… I don't want to give up my identity to you," I replied before I forced the Soul to move again despite not being my turn anymore.

"What are you-" Frizk began to question.

"Goodbye," I whispered.

I pushed the Fight button and struck… at my own Soul, breaking it apart.

emmanoah333: Darkzdragon: We definitely did our best to try and make the introduction of the characters interesting. We also wanted to try and maintain what kept the skeleton brothers and so many other characters so special. While there might be some tweaks to them, we did try to capture the personalities as best we could.

The awkwardness that Frizk is feeling and the worry of her identity being discovered was quite fun to explore, and still frankly is. And while the two brothers can be lighthearted they do also know when to be serious.

EvelynM2: DarkFoxKit: Thank you.

Wafflecat1024: Darkzdragon: I mean unfortunately that's often the truth for both their world and our own. In their world, the mindset was part of what led to the war in the first place.

DarkFoxKit: Indeed. People often have that mindset, which is unfortunate.

Chapter Text

DarkFoxKit: Okay, sorry about the lack of updates. I got sucked into Deltarune's newest chapters.

Darkzdragon: At least our rebuilt house didn't become a Dark World.

DarkFoxKit: I probably would've finished both chapters already if I hadn't been so… stubborn with trying to beat a certain boss. For the sake of not spoiling this for anyone reading this, let's just say it took me over 6 or so hours to finally win.

Darkzdragon: And she was down to one last Revivemint.

DarkFoxKit: Quite frankly, I'm surprised I was even able to save one Revivemint in that fight… but perhaps we should stop before we accidentally let something slip.

Darkzdragon: Awww, okay. I was tempted to give some kind of fake spoiler. Like… the secret boss is really quite cute. But I guess I'll hold back.

DarkFoxKit: Someone's feeling trolly today. Anyways, let's get on to the chapter. No new reviews this time, so… we'll see you guys in the next update.

Chapter 7: To Love Oneself

?

"Wowie, buddy, I really thought you were a goner for a minute."

Everything was dark, yet a familiar voice spoke through it.

"Ingenious move at the end there~ By becoming their reflection, you were able to strike at their Soul before it fully became theirs."

It sounded like a one sided conversation.

"Hey, don't worry, you may be dead, but you can still speak."

"... What…? What happened to me?" A soft, high pitch voice asked.

"You died. Didn't I just say that?"

"I know, but… I didn't… am I… still me?"

"Well that depends, who do you think you are?"

"I'm… Frizk, aren't I?"

"Are you?"

The high pitch, soft voice didn't give a response.

"Sorry, not asking to make you question yourself, I just wanna be sure."

"I… nearly gave into the reflection… it became so close… to replacing me. I… I don't know what would've happened if I hadn't attacked the Soul when I did…"

"Nothing would've happened."

Suddenly there was a yellow flower in the middle of the darkness with a light shining down on it. "Another second, I would've Reset, or I guess for your game lingo I would've Loaded the last save."

"Yeah… but wouldn't that just prove the mirror's point? That I rely too much on others to save my own skin?"

"That mirror is just you. Anything that it said came from your own heart and mind. You've been looking at it as a separate entity, when it really isn't. That's what was causing you to lose the Fight against it."

"How… how do you know that?"

"Cause… the bonehead made me fight myself to show me how much of a jerk I was being in the past. I used to be a bit of a jerk… actually a huge jerk. I… can't feel the way you feel. And because of that, and the curse of immortality, I… did everything. Spoke with everyone in every way I could. I helped and hurt. I healed and killed. I became… so cut off from my morality. A couple humans ago, I was forced to be where you were, facing myself. I was forced to face both sides of me actually… so you got lucky. You had a one on one, I had a one on three."

"I… don't really get it… but it sounds like you had quite the bad time."

"Yeah, definitely," Flowey responded as he looked towards me. "And it helped me. I may not have regained all my feeling, but… I think facing those three… has helped me to regain a bit of it."

I realized that I was still me, and I was still talking to Flowey. "You think… I might be able to face that reflection? … Face… myself?"

"Well, if you feel you're not ready, you could always leave before coming into contact with the mirror," Flowey replied. "You don't have to face it."

Wouldn't that just be running away again? I frowned before catching what I was thinking. That… sounds like something the reflection would've said… So everything that reflection said… really did come from me?

"I'm… I'll be honest… I'm worried about the reflection taking over me again…" I sighed.

"I'll stop that from happening," Flowey promised. "But for the time being, you should probably stay away from that mirror till you know a bit more about the Underground and Fights and all that. You can take it on later when you're ready, and you might even get a boon from defeating it. After all, what better way of getting stronger than accepting or defeating yourself?"

I gave another sigh. "... I guess… Though like you said, maybe I'm not ready to face myself yet."

"You aren't," Flowey confirmed. "Not yet. But that's why you were there with Papyrus in the first place. Don't let the words of your reflection hurt you too much. Just remember one universal constant. You're your own worst critic."

"Then I guess… I should stop worrying so much on who's watching us train," I said. "We'll never get anywhere if we're always looking for a place to hide."

"That place can work," Flowey offered. "So long as you stay away from that crystal wall. You could also probably ask Papyrus to take you to a secluded part of Snowdin Forest. There's cameras along the main path, but they aren't scattered throughout the forest itself."

"I'll see what our options are," I said.

"Oh, one last thing. When I Reset, nobody but you will know what happened," Flowey stated. "Because nothing did happen. Papyrus will be there like nothing has changed. So keep that in mind."

"I figured as much, but thanks for the warning," I replied. "Heh, I'd truly be dead if not for you."

"You would, but I didn't do the last strike," Flowey pointed out. "Whether you realized it or not, you do have the ability to be strong within you."

I didn't know what to say to that, but I decided it was best not to argue.

"Okay, get ready then," Flowey said.

The area slowly turned white… and then…

I was suddenly standing near the smaller crystal walls, and Papyrus was standing next to me. Although Flowey had told me he would Load me back in, it was still quite a shock to find myself back here. I looked around for a moment to make sure nothing was amiss.

"Everything alright, Frizk?" Papyrus asked.

"P-Papyrus," I said, almost running to hug him, but I remembered what Flowey said.

"Yes?" Papyrus asked before looking down at himself. "Do I have something on me?"

"Ah… no, but…" I gave a sigh. "You know, maybe this isn't such a great place to train."

"Are you sure?" Papyrus asked. "The area up ahead has a lot of room to train in… though we should stay away from one of the walls. It's a wall made entirely of crystals that has always… given me the heebie-jeebies."

It was deja vu hearing Papyrus said the same thing the first time around, at least regarding the crystal wall.

"While that may be true… wouldn't it be dangerous to physically train in an area that has a potentially dangerous zone? One of us could accidentally bump into it," I pointed out. "And the puzzles getting here would be too tedious to have to go through again every time we want to train."

"Hmm… you have a point…" Papyrus acknowledged before he began to rub his chin. "Where else could we train then…? I don't want us to train too far from Snowdin."

"Isn't there any place in Snowdin Forest where we could train?" I questioned. "I'm sure I haven't seen everything the forest had to offer, right?"

Papyrus gave a thoughtful look. "Well… there are a few areas in the forest we could possibly use for training. I chose this place because nobody really ever comes here. Training in the forest, while safe from the surveillance system in most areas, would bring up the risk of some monster coming upon us."

"Honestly, that's probably not so bad," I replied. Especially compared to facing myself again. Dying is freaking painful. Though… could I say I technically committed su- I think it's best I don't think about it too much. "You could always say you're training me to be part of the K9 Unit or something."

"Yes… but…" Papyrus frowned. "I'd like to pick somewhere that… Jerry can't get to…"

"We… could always ditch him?" I suggested.

"Yes, but if he finds our training spot, he might bug us or claim the spot as his or something…" Papyrus grumbled.

I began walking back to the bridge. "Let's just head back, we can figure it out when we're out of here."

"Would you like to go look for a spot first or would you like to go with Sans to check on the schools?" Papyrus questioned. "I'd understand if you needed a break after the puzzle. Even I, the Great Papyrus, need to catch my breath after some puzzles."

School… I frowned at the reminder.

I had been willing to go to monster school, especially if Papyrus was going to be there… but the reflection Fight brought back some… bad memories. I wasn't so sure anymore.

"Let's… look for a spot first," I suggested softly. "I have time before I have to look at the schools."

Papyrus nodded. "We could look near the door to Ruins or we could look near the door to Dark Ruins. Though I hesitate with the latter as there are stories of monsters going missing in the forests near the entrance to Dark Ruins."

"Dark Ruins?" I questioned, having never heard of that part of Ruins.

"Oh? I'm surprised you never learned about Dark Ruins," Papyrus remarked. "How about we walk and talk? The way to get out of here is to stand on the head of the monster in the water there. He's a ferryman and he enjoys his job."

"What…?"

Papyrus walked over to a small pier that I didn't notice before. I followed after him, and saw a small, purple looking… face, sticking out of the water.

"Hello there, Ferryman!" Papyrus warmly greeted. "Will you take us as far as you can towards Snowdin?"

"Sure, just 3 gold for the ferry," The… Ferryman replied. "6 gold for two, sound fair?"

"That… sounds fair," I replied.

"Why don't you go first, Frizk? I'll be right behind you!" Papyrus grinned.

"Okay," I said. "So… uh… do I actually step on your… face?"

"Yep!" The Ferryman confirmed.

This… person was a monster, maybe stepping on his face would summon a boat of some kind. I carefully hopped off of the pier, landing on the monster's face. Suddenly, I was underwater. I almost panicked, but before I could even think about drowning, I was back on the surface of the water. I quickly ran onto the pier to get off of the monster.

"Wait here, I'll get your friend," The Ferryman said before going back underwater.

"What? But…" I was about to point out that we came back to the surface too fast, there was no way we could've gone anywhere else in that time, but…

I noticed Papyrus wasn't here, and… I was back at one of Sans's stations at the entrance to Waterfall. "... How?"

"Ferryman is a strange guy," Sans remarked. "Half the time I wonder if he's got his own underwater shortcuts. Or maybe his… uniqueness gives him a superpower."

I looked at Sans for a moment. Are there any other monsters with shortcuts I should know about?

Papyrus and the Ferryman popped up from the water, and Papyrus stepped off of the monster, and onto the pier.

"Thanks for stepping on my face. Here's 3 gold for each of you," The Ferryman said.

"What?" I questioned as the Ferryman tossed 3 gold coins onto my hands. Aren't we supposed to be paying you?

"Thank you, Mr. Ferryman!" Papyrus gratefully said.

"Should I even ask?" I said to Papyrus.

"Nyeh heh heh! Don't worry about it, Frizk! Monsters outside of Ruins can act strangely from time to time! Ferryman just so happens to be one of those kinds of monsters!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Right… well, let's get going then," I said, deciding it was best to just move on.

"Where ya off to, Paps?" Sans asked.

"We are going to Snowdin Forest!" Papyrus excitedly answered. "The one place in Waterfall was not right. So we are going to try and find a clearing in one of the forests!"

"Want a shortcut?" Sans offered.

"Well… it'll get us there faster, right?" I replied.

"It would, but I don't condone laziness too much…" Papyrus grumbled.

"Just think of it as a special offer, Paps~" Sans winked.

"Fine," Papyrus relented.

"Anywhere in Snowdin Forest you want me to drop you off in particular?" Sans asked.

Papyrus gave a thoughtful look. "Perhaps one of the clearings with the different levels of rocks, a little stream, and distance from any other monsters? Though at the end of the day, I simply am looking for an area which would provide ample space for training. Perhaps somewhere we can not only Battle but do regular training, like the Royal Guard does."

"I see," Sans remarked. "Well, there might be an area I could think of. It'll be pretty isolated and I think it's quiet and wide enough for a private lesson."

"Is it Jerry-proof?" Papyrus asked, adding on that condition.

"Jerry can't even access that part of Snowdin, so don't you worry about that, bro," Sans assured with a chuckle.

"Excellent! Then we shall take it!" Papyrus beamed. "If it proves a good enough area, we may even be able to build it out a bit! Maybe even make you your own home, Frizk! We can name it Frizk House and decorate it with pictures of those strange curve trees with the big leaves and maybe even a turtle!"

"A house might be overdoing it," I sweatdropped.

"What? You wanna live out of our basement forever?" Sans chuckled.

"How about we just see this place first before talking about building a house?" I suggested.

"Fair enough," Sans acknowledged before he stepped out from behind his desk. "This way."

Papyrus and I followed after Sans. He led us back towards Snowdin. The moment I blinked, I felt a shift around us before we were suddenly in the middle of the forest.

"Here we go," Sans informed.

I took a look around. We seemed to be in a largish area surrounded by pretty dense trees. There was a little creek running through the center of the area. There were also rocks that had varying heights. It definitely seemed like an ideal to train, but…

"You're sure there aren't any cameras here?" I asked.

"Yep," Sans confirmed. "The only reason a monster doesn't live out here is because it's a hassle to get to if you don't know the route."

"So… how are we getting back then?" I questioned.

"That is indeed a good question," Papyrus acknowledged. "Brother, do you plan to show us this route?"

"Nah. I'll just set up a shortcut to the house," Sans replied. "Too lazy to walk all the way back. Just uh…"

Sans slowly walked over to a pair of trees. Sans reached into his pockets before he pulled out a ketchup bottle and began to squirt Xs on both trees. "When you wanna head back, just go between the two trees."

"You can set up a portable shortcut?" I blinked, surprised.

"Yep." Sans grinned. "Anyways, best get back to work before Paps chews me out."

"I appreciate you actually heading to work, Sans. Maybe all of our hard work has inspired you to actually do your jobs!" Papyrus grinned.

"Nah, just got another mouth to feed," Sans pointed out. "Can't slack off as much as I'd like to anymore."

"I can pay for my own food," I spoke up.

"You're a kid, bud, nobody's gonna accept a kid paying for themselves," Sans responded. "I appreciate the willingness though. I'd just rather our family not get a bad reputation for forcing a kid to pay for themselves after taking 'em in."

I wondered if maybe I was just being a burden when I decided to stay with Papyrus and Sans.

"Hey, don't sweat it, kid," Sans said. "You got people who care about you after all."

I gave a small smile. "Thanks, Sans."

Sans nodded to me. "Just make sure you both get home before it gets too late. I rather you didn't freeze out here. And since I get the feeling you'll be spending most of the day training, I'm gonna let you know we're going to school tomorrow."

"Ah… I guess it would be better to do it sooner rather than later," I remarked.

"But of course! If you'd like, Frizk, I can also give you the grand tour! At least with Waterfall's school, that's the only school I've been to," Papyrus added.

"Thanks, I appreciate it," I smiled slightly.

"Also best to do it before Giftmas," Sans added. "New Year won't be far behind and school will start not long after that. Well, with that, I'll leave you two to it! Just be careful, unlike Soul Fights, Battles are a lot more dangerous. Training accidents affect the body, not just the Soul."

"Don't worry, we will be sure to stop if things become too serious!" Papyrus reassured.

I nodded. "We'll try our best to make sure we don't get too hurt during the training."

"By the way, so the two of you don't freeze, I started a fire over there for ya," Sans remarked, causing us to turn around to where he was pointing.

Like he said, there was indeed a small fire there surrounded by stones. As I turned back, I saw that Sans was gone.

"How very thoughtful of him!" Papyrus loudly and gratefully remarked.

"Yeah…" I said softly. Sans is very… mysterious. Though I guess it's kinda cool to have someone like him as a guardian. "Hmm…"

"Well, shall we get started on our training, Frizk?" Papyrus suggested.

"Yeah, let's do it." I smiled.

"Then let us start with some stretches to make sure we're limber," Papyrus instructed. "Then we can move onto the training."

I raised an eyebrow, wondering if skeletons could get 'limber'. But it was high time I stopped questioning things involving Papyrus and Sans. The laws of physics didn't seem to apply to them very often.

Papyrus and I spent a few minutes doing some stretching exercises. Once we were satisfied, we started the Battle. Papyrus initiated the Battle, and my Soul appeared just outside of my chest. Without hesitation, Papyrus applied his gravity magic onto me.

"Here comes my attack!" Papyrus announced.

Just like before, Papyrus summoned bones to come at me. I had a better understanding of what I had to do, so I timed my jumps to avoid the bones.

Papyrus began to get trickier with his bones, some of the bones were followed by blue bones, making me have to go still, but also watching out for the next non-blue bone just after it.

I managed to jump over a particularly tall bone, but I didn't jump high enough, and fell on top of it. I tripped on top of the bone and fell onto the snow. When I did, my toy knife slipped out of my pocket. I blinked as I looked at it, and took it into my paw-like mittens.

"Oh? Is that a keepsake from Ruins?" Papyrus asked as he curled his right hand into a fist, stopping the bones in the middle of movement. The bones were still there, they just weren't moving towards me anymore.

"Ah… yeah," I replied. "I found it in Ruins."

"Would you like to put it to the side? Or do you need to tuck it away somewhere safer?" Papyrus questioned.

"Well…" I frowned a little as I thought back to how I used this very weapon on the reflection, and used it to end my own life. It's surprisingly dangerous for a toy…

"Oh, you know…" Papyrus suddenly said. "Since you don't have magic to use right now, perhaps you can use that."

"Huh? Use it? Papyrus, I rather not strike at you and accidentally… you know, hurt you," I pointed out.

"Not on me," Papyrus chuckled. "I meant on my attack. You're good at moving around and dodging, but just dodging can only get you so far. Unlike a Soul Fight, you are not simply dodging with your Soul. In a Battle you can counterattack against the incoming attacks. Some attacks you can slice in half, some you can block, others you have to dodge or remain still. Some are easy to defend against, some are harder."

I blinked as Papyrus explained. Using the toy knife to counterattack against attacks wasn't something that ever crossed my mind.

Papyrus continued. "And, while I am about to tell you this I would ask you to wait until I say you're ready, you can use your environment around you. For instance you could climb up rocks to get away from the lower attacks, or hide behind sturdy ones to let them take the impact of the attack."

"Oh, wow… I can see why Battles aren't used very often. They're a lot more complex," I remarked. Then again, that is how most people fight on the surface. Real life battles aren't the same in video games after all. A lot of factors need to be considered.

"They also introduce a risk to nearby monsters, buildings, and things like that," Papyrus added. "A Soul Fight isolates you in the Fight. A Battle doesn't restrict or isolate you at all. Your attacks, if dodged by your opponent, could continue and possibly hit a monster behind them."

"That's true," I said.

"It's why only the Royal Guards train in Battle," Papyrus said. "Soul Fights could be useful for fighting with a dangerous human, but sometimes it's not possible to get a human into a Soul Fight. And it'd be wise to train our bodies as well as our Souls and magic; as it's the best way to gain HP, Attack, and Defense without raising our LOVE or EXP."

I nodded, it was why I wanted to train using the Battle method with Papyrus in the first place.

"If only we had a waterfall here," Papyrus remarked, his attacks still frozen before glancing at the creek. "If there were, we could do what they do in those animes to train our minds and our Souls. Sitting under the ice cold waterfall as we meditate. Steeling out bodies and minds."

"Hey, Papyrus, just letting you know, anime doesn't need an 's' in it," I corrected.

"Nonsense! Animes is the plural of 'anime'!" Papyrus firmly exclaimed. "Adding an 's' is how you make things plural!"

Oh you cinnamon bun, I can't help but enjoy your preciousness. I grinned. "Well, we may not have an ice cold waterfall, but we could always go to Waterfall and train under a waterfall there."

Papyrus shook his head. "Training under those waterfalls can be dangerous, as items will occasionally fall from the surface. Apparently, and this is a secret, there is a very very large metal box that fell from the surface in the upper sections of Waterfall."

"Uh, okay? Well, regardless, we should get back to training here. You say I can use this toy knife to counterattack your bones?" I asked.

"Indeed!" Papyrus confirmed. "Just remember what I said before, some attacks will act differently to counterattacks. In order to help you become great yourself, I will let you figure things out yourself!"

"Alright, then I'll give it a shot." I smiled.

Papyrus unclenched his hand, sending the bones at me again. I clenched the toy knife's handle before I swung it at the bone in front of me. There was a red strike on the bone, cracking it, though the bone was still able to come at me. I jumped to dodge it. So I needed to hit the bones more than once.

I struck at the next bone coming at me. I struck faster this time, doing more than one. I didn't have to worry about an attack meter this time, I could swing the toy knife as much as I wanted. The bone cracked and cracked until it shattered. That was cool, but more bones were still coming at me.

I jumped and ducked, avoiding most of the bones, then struck at the bone in front of me until it shattered. Okay, I think I'm starting to get the hang of this.

"I'm going to add in a few blues now," Papyrus informed as he brought up his hand.

Like all the other attacks, the blue bones began to move towards me. Like the white bones, I tried to strike at the blue, thinking only I needed to stand still in order to not get hit. But as I tried to strike the blue bone with my toy knife, it went right through the weapon and proceeded to hit me.

"Here comes more," Papyrus warned.

I saw more blue bones coming at me. So trying to strike at those wasn't going to do me any good. I decided to just stand still, it seemed like the best way to dodge the blue ones. I held my blade out in front of me defensively. The moment the blue bone hit the tip of the toy knife, it shattered.

"Nyeh heh heh! I'm glad you learned our lesson on blue attacks!" Papyrus celebrated. "Now then, would you like to try out some orange attacks?~"

"You have orange attacks too?" I asked, surprised. "Wait… with those… are they gonna be the opposite of blue attacks and I'd have to move to avoid them?"

"Nyeh heh! Quite astute!" Papyrus replied. "Indeed! With orange attacks you want to move through them. Standing still will only get you hurt!"

Papyrus summoned a few orange bones and had them come at me. I didn't use the toy knife yet, I wanted to see what it was like to dodge it first. I moved from side to side as the orange bone went through me.

"You can actually charge straight through orange attacks," Papyrus informed. "Orange attacks are most often used in sync with blue attacks to throw you off. After all, if a fast moving blue attack is coming at you, you will go still. But then an orange attack comes right behind it or even faster and makes you panic whether you move first or stand still."

"Okay, that's good to know," I replied.

After Papyrus finished explaining, he had the orange bones move toward me again. This time I ran at the orange bones, bringing the toy knife in front of me. I didn't think the toy knife would do much, since it only managed to shatter the blue attack when I stood still. However, my toy knife quickly destroyed the orange bones as I ran through them.

"... Wow, this is a strong piece of plastic…" I muttered as I looked at the toy knife.

"It isn't the strength of the weapon, but the weakness of the attack I used," Papyrus explained. "If you can properly identify an attack and exploit its weakness, you will be less likely to fail at any Battle."

"Weaknesses, huh?" I noted with interest.

"There's another type of attack that you will only ever see in Battles," Papyrus informed. "Reinforced attacks. It's exactly like they sound, they are attacks but much more durable. Though that can only be done with regular attacks."

Papyrus sent out one bone at me. I tried to strike it down, like with the others, but this one hardly even cracked by the time it reached me. I had to abandon attacking the bone, and jump away from it.

"With reinforced attacks, you will need to either attack multiple times, use a strong attack against it, or do as you did and get out of the way," Papyrus explained. "They will often look different from regular attacks. For instance my reinforced attacks look greyish. I will summon a regular and a reinforced attack and hold them still so you can spot the difference."

Two bones sprouted from the ground and stood still. I looked at the two, studying them. I could see the differences now. The bone on the left was a lot brighter, while the bone on the right was darker, looking more grey. It wasn't easy to notice when it was coming at me earlier, but the differences looked more obvious together.

"I see now," I said.

"There are other types of attacks, mostly a combination of attacks," Papyrus said before he sweatdropped. "But we should wait until you're ready to advance to that lesson. You're still getting used to Battles in general, and learning how to counterattack with your weapon. So I will only really be using basic attacks and colored attacks for the time being."

I nodded. "Thanks, Papyrus. I appreciate this."

"You are very welcome, Frizk!" Papyrus beamed. "Now then, are you still able to continue or are you getting tired? If you are getting tired, that is fine and we can either head back home for lunch or rest by the fire that Sans so kindly made for us."

"Let's continue a little more," I answered. "I want to try to get better before tomorrow."

"Alright, but don't push yourself," Papyrus replied. "There's still plenty of time today and we can rest if you grow tired."

We continued on for a little longer. I was determined to get better at dodging, and using the toy knife to counterattack. However, eventually, I noticed my HP was starting to drop even when I didn't get hit. I guess that was a sign that I had to stop.

"Let's take a break," I spoke up. "I'm getting pretty tired."

"Would you like to go back for some food or rest by the fire?" Papyrus asked.

"Let's rest by the fire," I suggested. "There's something I want to talk to you about anyways."

"Then let me make us places to sit!~" Papyrus grinned before he held out his hand.

Suddenly bones came up from the ground, forming seats near the fire. I looked at Papyrus, who was gesturing to the smaller bone chair for me. I couldn't help but chuckle a little before I sat down on the smaller bone chair, while Papyrus sat on the bigger bone chair.

"Now, what is it that you'd like to talk to the Great Papyrus about?" Papyrus asked.

"Well, I was wondering… would they allow monsters younger than adult to join the Royal Guard?" I asked.

Papyrus gave a thoughtful look before shaking his head. "There are records of young monsters joining the Royal Guard in the past. However, those monsters had to prove themselves and get approval by the Captain, Lieutenant, and either one of the royals or the Royal Scientist. So it is possible, but to become a Royal Guard member would require serious time and dedication, Frizk. It would also require you to go to school."

"Is that what you're striving for?" I questioned.

"There are many goals that I, the Great Papyrus, am striving for!" Papyrus grinned. "And yes, one of those goals is to become a member of the Royal Guard. However, I am a young monster and as such I have other dreams as well. Joining the Order of Royal Trapmakers. Becoming a skilled smithy. I've even, on occasion, humored the idea of becoming a second aide to the Royal Scientist or an aide to the current aide!"

"Wow, sounds like you have a lot of things you wanna be," I chuckled.

"But of course! With my many talents, it would be a waste to only strive for one goal! Nyeh heh heh heh~" Papyrus grinned. "Not only that, I do not wish to simply choose one path for myself! I wish to take a look at each possibility before I decide! And who knows, maybe in the end I won't choose any of my current aspirations. Or maybe I will choose multiple."

"But aren't you worried that if you wait too long to choose one thing… you'd be too old to do anything?" I asked. "And you'd just end up as a burden to someone else?"

Papyrus shook his head. "If I worried about what could happen, I believe that would stop me from trying out different things now. No matter what happens, I know that I will feel some sort of regret. Regret that I didn't try something sooner, or that I didn't try a different version of something I did try. Life is full of fears and regrets, Frizk, but you cannot let that fact stop you from trying at all. Otherwise your whole life will become one big regret… the regret that you never tried anything."

"Wow… that's pretty deep. I kind of envy the way you think though. You feel like the world is your oyster and all, and you're not afraid to try something new, even if you may not be good at it," I said softly. Like cooking. "I've always been afraid to try something new, especially when I'm not good at it. And… I'm not good at a lot of things."

I came to Mt. Ebott to get away from my life. To get away from myself. I was hoping to be taken into another world in another body, to become someone else. That's what my reflection was talking about. I sighed. In a way, I guess I got my wish. But I'm still me.

"But I want to improve, I want to get stronger," I continued. "I want to be able… to be someone others can rely on. That's why I've been interested in taking up the Royal Guard career."

"Then the first step would be to take a look at school," Papyrus informed. "Then join school. Then continue our training. And once I feel you are ready, I shall introduce you to Undyne, the Captain of the Royal Guard."

"Really?" I asked. "You're not worried that I might end up hurting myself, or that I'm too young for this?"

"Oh, I am definitely worried for you," Papyrus responded. "However, instead of stopping you out of fear, I will support you and help reduce the causes of that worry. And I will also encourage you to take risks, to pick up new hobbies and skills even if you end up not being good at it. Because that's another thing, Frizk, failure is a part of life. You can only grow and learn if you fail, fall, and get hurt. By trying around someone you trust, they can help to make sure it's only hurt and never worse than that."

"That's… not how I heard it…" I mumbled.

"What?" Papyrus asked.

"Failing…" I said before sighing. "Doesn't that just make you a failure?"

Papyrus gave a thoughtful look. "It only makes you a failure if you stop trying. Just because you have fails on record does not mean you are a failure. One only becomes a failure if they stop trying after they fail."

I heard what Papyrus was saying, but it was difficult to wrap my mind around it. Still, he had a good point. Nothing would ever change if I gave up before even trying.

"If you were a failure, we wouldn't be talking. If you were a failure, you wouldn't be walking," Papyrus pointed out. "If you were a failure, you wouldn't have continued to try that platform section in Waterfall."

But I did run away from that mirror… I inwardly sighed. "I guess."

"One last thing, if failing at something does stop you, you might be a failure at that time," Papyrus continued. "However if you choose to, after any amount of time, try to take on that challenge again and succeed, you stop being a failure. You just need one victory or success, eventually, in order to not be a failure."

"That's an interesting way to look at it," I chuckled. "I guess I sort of do the same in video games."

"I am speaking from experience on that last one," Papyrus informed. "The first time I tried cooking… I set Sans's favorite sweatshirt on fire. After we put out the fire, I ran up to my room and swore I would never cook again. But Sans eventually coaxed me out of my room and told me that failure isn't an excuse to stop trying, that one can only succeed if they continue to put in effort. At the time, I didn't know what to say. I thought he would be angry, I thought he would yell, but instead he was the one apologizing to me and telling me everything was okay."

I felt something in my chest well up and tighten a little when Papyrus told me how Sans encouraged him despite messing up so badly that he burnt Sans's favorite sweatshirt. If I had done that with my parents, I… I shivered.

"Let me be clear, Frizk, no matter if you mess up, make mistakes, or do anything 'bad', I will always forgive you and continue to support you," Papyrus genuinely said to me with a kind smile.

"Thanks, Papyrus… I… I really do appreciate it… I've never had anyone who really believed in me, or encourage me to try something," I admitted.

Papyrus's magic eyes suddenly appeared and bulged from his head. "T-That means I'm the first! Yes! Another first for the Great Papyrus! Nyeh heh heh!"

I couldn't help but chuckle, he was easily excitable and impressed, but there was just something so heartwarming about that, that I couldn't help but smile and feel a warm feeling in my chest.

"Yes, you're indeed great, Papyrus." I smiled. "Maybe we can both work hard together to become Royal Guards too. Two young monsters, in training to be Royal Guards. If a young monster is able to become a Royal Scientist, then surely we can become Royal Guards too."

"That's the spirit, Frizk!" Papyrus beamed. "It'll be hard, but I'm sure you can do it if you put your mind, heart, and soul into it! … The metaphorical soul, not your actual Soul. I don't know how well that'd go for you if you put your actual Soul into it."

I laughed. "Don't worry, Papyrus, I knew what you meant."

"Good! Then are you rested enough to continue?!" Papyrus challenged me in an excited tone.

"Yeah, let's keep going." I smiled, feeling more motivated than ever to train hard.

I had two reasons to become a Royal Guard. The first being that I meant what I said to Papyrus, about wanting to get stronger, and becoming someone others could rely on. The second was so I wouldn't be a burden to Sans, and whoever else may want to take care of me. I didn't want to be a burden, not again, not in this new life I was granted with. Of course, it also may be because I wanted to be like those isekai protagonists, but… who wouldn't want to be like them?

Asria's POV

"-ou definitely need to record that for me for later," I said into my phone.

I was on my way back to my home, or more specifically I was on my way to my previous home, New Home. I had been on the phone with Alphys on the way there, wanting to have some kind of excuse to not be bothered by any monsters. I took the more secluded routes that I could, but I still passed by dozens of monsters.

I was currently talking to Alphys about some anime that the transceiver on the surface was receiving, a new show. The transceiver was actually a part of the machine she and I had built out of only surface parts and materials. It not only served as an easy way to get new anime, but it also helped us track atmospheric conditions, radio waves, and was the main source of visuals for the artificial sky in Snowdin.

Because the transceiver, as well as the rocket that got it to the surface, was made of only surface parts, we were able to get it through the weakest point in the barrier, the former volcanic cap of Mt. Ebott. It was the hole that all humans had fallen into, and because of that, they had unknowingly caused the barrier to become weak in that zone. Not only did it allow us to send things out, but it also showed the theory of the Royal Scientist before Alphys, W.D. Gaster. He theorized that, due to a lack of maintenance, the barrier trapping us underground had been growing weaker over the millennia since it was put into place.

With the barrier growing weaker, it was possible that within the next few centuries, it would only take 6 human Souls to break the barrier. However, that was something I wanted to think about later. Right now, I was returning home to see Mom and Dad, the Queen and King of the Underground. Not only was it almost Giftmas, but I knew that Mom and Dad were likely currently up to their neck in preparing the invitations to send to every monster in the Underground.

"I'm tempted to send up a new, higher power transceiver so we can get even more shows," I added. "Though… we're definitely gonna need some better parts. Speaking of which, I should probably figure out a time in January when you and I can go take a look at that shipping container to find out what's inside."

"I'd say just after school starts, it will be more empty there so we can go without worrying about a crowd," Alphys replied.

"True," I acknowledged. "Though there isn't much risk of a crowd right now considering it's in upper Waterfall, where the water flows from. There are also Royal Guards stationed nearby to keep anyone from getting close."

"Well, you never know when some crazy kid tries to sneak past them to pick up a present for their sibling or parent," Alphys sighed. "It happens more commonly than you'd think. There aren't any Royal Guards that can truly stop those-"

"I put Dohj in charge," I stated, cutting Alphys off at the end.

"Ah, the grumpiest dog to have ever lived. Undyne did too good a job with her," Alphys chuckled.

"Yeah, but she does get the job done," I pointed out. "And it wasn't just Undyne, her family definitely helped whip her into shape. The Lieutenant comes from a long line of Royal Guard members. I believe she's the 7th generation."

"Yeah, I guess so. It's just unfortunate that Dohj felt like she had to harden herself more because of…" Alphys hesitated. "Well… you know…"

"Yeah… well, it sucked," I admitted, thinking back to the incident that happened before my time. "Mom and Dad were… shocked but also enraged. They couldn't, and probably still can't, believe a human with nowhere to go would be driven to such an extreme. There was no sign of what pushed them to this."

"The only thing we know was that the human child kept saying they had to do this. And that 'they' would be proud. So the human child likely had a reason… not one we know, but a reason…" Alphys replied softly. "But still… to think one human child could cause that much damage… if they hadn't been stopped by your mother and father, the Queen and King, who knows how much damage they could've caused?"

"Don't forget Gerson," I added. "And… the kid Mom and Dad were taking care of at the time. Kindness, if I remember correctly."

"Yeah… it's too bad you never got to meet with her. I'm sure she would've loved to be your big sister. Maybe she'd even take some of your parents' fussiness off of you too," Alphys chuckled. "Or she would've spoiled you even more. She was just the kind of person who adored monsters, and especially young monsters."

"Yeah… I definitely would've liked to meet Mona," I said with a small smile. "My parents told me about her when I was growing up. Anyways, I should probably hang up, I'm just outside the doors to the royal blacksmith shop. Gotta stop there first to grab my crest before I head up to see Mom and Dad."

"Alright. Oh, and Asria… try not to procrastinate your visit too long," Alphys replied.

"I swear, I'm just gonna pick up my crest then I'm going right up," I promised. "I'd rather not have Dad or Mom sneak up on me from behind again cause I nerded out with the smiths."

"Heh, okay. Have a good time with your parents. I'll stop by during the party to give you a present I've been working on~" Alphys chuckled before hanging up.

"Hey, Solomon! I'm here to pick up my crest!" I loudly called out as I opened the insulated door to the royal blacksmith shop.

I was just about to step in when a crossbow bolt whizzed past my head and hit the corridor wall.

"You gotta stop scaring me like that, girlie!" An older but strong voice called out from inside.

"And you gotta stop pointing your ranged weapons at the door while you're working on them, you big oaf," I bantered.

"What, and rob my customers a chance to learn how to dodge?" A grinning old man said as he came out of the shadows, showing sharp yellow teeth. "Welcome, Asria~ I got your crest all nice and shiny, and waiting for ya."

"You know, to this day, I still can't believe a family of aquatic monsters were so stubborn to try and live in Hotland that they adapted to the heat…" I shook my head as I walked over, noticing that the entire shop was empty besides the old man before me. My guess was that the forgemaster, the man in front of me, let everyone off early for the holiday. "Seriously, if you were anyone else, I'd question how you could stand the heat in this room."

The old man in question was almost fish-like, he had red scales, and webbed looking orange ears. He had yellow sharp teeth, and yellow eyes. However, while he looked like an aquatic being, he didn't like water too much. Instead, he preferred to swim in molten magma.

"It's a good thing too, because being able to swim in magma allows me to gather all the materials I need to craft weapons and armor," The blacksmith grinned widely.

He definitely had a point. Because of his family, previous Royal Scientists were able to get metals and other materials that were of much higher quality because they came from the liquid-stone of Hotland.

Solomon walked over to one of his counters and picked something up. He walked back over to me and put down a precious looking item in front of me. It was a small crest, about the size of a small pin. The shape of it was a standard kite shield and on it was the Delta Rune of the Royal Family and the Kingdom of Monsters. This was something that had been granted to me on my 50th birthday by Solomon.

This crest was a focus for my magic, allowing me to summon my signature weapon. At first I had only been able to make a staff and a small sword. But as I grew stronger, as I trained, as I learned to defend myself and the Kingdom, my weapon evolved.

I took the crest and pinned it to my lab coat before smiling. "I can tell just from looking at it that you not only repaired it after last time, but you upgraded it."

"You should've known better than to try and take on Undyne and her Lieutenant at the same time," Solomon chuckled.

"Yeah, well… I was challenged and I couldn't back down," I admitted. "I managed to beat the Lieutenant's ass, but… still only managed to get a draw with Undyne."

"You're strong, there's no doubt about that, but still, you shouldn't get too reckless," Solomon remarked.

"Yes, I know," I grumpily acknowledged. "While they might not have thrown down the gauntlet, they challenged me by making light of my work as the Royal Scientist. So I had to defend my honor."

"Heh, I didn't know you would Battle someone because of that, especially considering how… they're not the only ones who don't think highly of you as the Royal Scientist," Solomon noted.

"They openly questioned my work in public," I informed, making Solomon suddenly narrow his eyes. I then let out a sigh. "If I didn't know any better… I think they wanted me to challenge them. Knowing Undyne, she likely wanted a fight to show the public that I wasn't just a 'helpless nerd'."

"Yeah, that sounds like the Captain of the Royal Guard," Solomon agreed. "And she likes keeping you on your toes. She's always been quite a hot head, despite being born and raised in Waterfall, since she was a little guppy."

"The main reason I challenged them was because Dohj took it too far," I informed. "She said my work so far had 'all been mere spectacle to amuse the masses, but in truth I wasn't getting anything important done'."

Solomon gave a frown. "Dohj lost a lot of her spark… I wouldn't take her words to heart."

"I don't think it was necessarily malicious…" I admitted. "She apologized to me afterwards. I think in the moment she just… latched onto Undyne's words and lashed out as well to get some of the frustrations off her chest."

"I suppose we all need something like that. At least you were able to hold your own. The crest should work a lot better now, and won't break as easily," Solomon assured.

"Good." I smiled. "Maybe I can finally beat Undyne~"

Solomon raised an eyebrow at my comment, before he wrapped an arm around my neck and started giving me a noogie. "Oh yeah? Well maybe I should take that crest back now before ya break it again!"

"I'm kidding, you old fart!" I yelled as I tried to break free of his grasp.

"Good. Now run along, I need to finish up before Giftmas gets here," Solomon replied with another grin.

I huffed and straightened out my fur. "Make sure to patch the wall where the bolt landed. I'm not covering up for you this time."

"Awww, but you're so good at it," Solomon pretended to pout.

"Yeah, well I think it's about time I let you clean up your own messes…" I rolled my eyes before I headed to the door of the blacksmith shop. "Oh, and, I know it goes without saying, but make sure to spend some time with your family before the ball. And let me know if your kids need some extra gifts. I'm probably gonna have way too many this year… again."

"My kids are already spoiled. The Royal Knights give me good business. But sure, I let ya know~" Solomon winked. "Oh and if you see my aquatic family at any point, let them know that if my cousin ain't a coward, he'll finally have that smith-off with me before this time next year."

I rolled my eyes, knowing how competitive Solomon was with his distant cousin, who specialized in armor smithing.

"If I see him, I'll let him know," I chuckled before I closed the door and headed towards the stairs that led to New Home.

"I'm home!" I called out from beside the tree in front of our house, not wanting Mom and Dad to attack me with their love in the doorway.

The door opened up immediately.

"Asria, you should come into the house." I heard Mom's voice say.

"I'll come in once you assure me you and Daddy won't hug me to death," I said, standing beside the tree. "And definitely no tackle-hugs from Daddy."

"That was only… last year, I've learned from that!" Dad's voice grumbled.

"Have you, Daddy? Or are you waiting for me to put down my guard?" I questioned, knowing that Dad often had trouble with holding back his love.

"I have him on a leash this time, dear," Mom assured me. "If you don't come in, I will come out to you."

I… wonder if she's serious…? I wondered before I headed towards the door. I kept my guard up as I walked inside, hoping my dodge skills had gotten good enough to get past the hug-tackle.

As soon as I was inside, the door closed behind me. I saw Mom and Dad towering over me. Both of them smiled.

"Welcome home, Asria." Mom greeted me.

"It felt like it had been a century since we saw you home!" Dad smiled, looking like he was being restrained.

Wonder if Mom's using magic. I pondered before smiling. "Yeah, well I've been pretty busy at both labs. The renovated Core labs have been working great for me. And Alphys and I managed to do some repairs to the hidden lab below her lab. They're all in good spirits, by the way, in case you were wondering. I made sure to pass along the gifts and messages from their families. And no, I still haven't told their families any of the true details. Just that, until I can be certain, they have to remain under supervision as they are currently the only cases of Fallen Down who have stood back up."

"That is thoughtful of you, Asria. It's good that you're trying so hard for everyone… though I can't help but worry that you're pushing yourself too hard," Mom remarked.

"I don't want to leave them completely in the dark… like Alphys was doing," I admitted. "I don't blame her, though. It's… a lot. As for pushing myself hard… yeah, I know I am, and I won't try to hide it, but… I've got a lot of ideas and can't test all the ideas at once. I get caught up in what I'm working on. And before you ask… yes, I completed it."

I revealed my right wrist where there was something akin to a watch. "This'll start buzzing when it's time for me to go to sleep. If I ignore it for an hour, it will automatically send a signal to Alphys and you guys."

"That's good, I'm glad you're taking steps to take better care of yourself," Mom approved.

"Oh, Asria… it seemed like only yesterday that you were a tiny toddler, stumbling around, learning how to walk. And look at you, a Royal Scientist, helping all of monsterkind with your ideas and inventions, all before you even grew your horns out," Dad listed. "I'm very proud of you and your accomplishments, Asria. But I can't help but feel like we're no longer spending time together ever since you moved out to the lab."

I huffed at Dad pointing out that my horns hadn't grown out. It was one of the few things about me that I felt self-conscious about and was a weak point to me.

"Gorey, you know Asria is sensitive about her horns," Mom lightly scolded.

"Ah… I didn't mean to…" Dad frowned.

"It's fine, Daddy," I assured with a smile. "I know you wouldn't say something like that on purpose."

"Why don't we head into the kitchen? I've cooked your favorite meal, Asria~" Mom smiled at me. "At least it was your favorite before you started living on a diet of pizza, ramen, and Grillby's."

"Spicy snail pie?" I asked before blushing. "And you should know I eat more than just those three things. I do eat eggs, I eat salads, and more. And the salads I eat are usually from the crops grown in the Garden."

"Oh, you know your mommy's just teasing you," Dad chuckled. "I also have the gingerbread house kit for when we're ready to build the gingerbread house."

"Okay, that sounds fun, and I'm totally gonna make something great this year." I smiled. "I'll show you what this mad scientist has been scheming for the last year. And who knows, maybe I'll finally have the best gingerbread house, Mommy~"

"We shall see, neither you, nor Asgore, have beaten my gingerbread house yet~" Mom grinned, showing her familial competitiveness. "And spicy snail pie is for dessert."

"Awww, but it's so good that it can be a meal. It's not even super sugary," I pointed out with a small pout. "But if that's the case… But if that isn't the favorite of mine that you made… You must've made that dumpling-ball soup, spinach squares, and roast turkey?"

"But of course, it wouldn't be a special family dinner if I didn't make your favorite~" Mom smiled.

"And here I thought turkey was normally saved for Giftmas dinner," I chuckled.

"We're saving ham for Giftmas this year," Dad said.

"Ooooh, sounds delicious!" I beamed. "Oh, Mommy, if you want, I can show you some new spices I cobbled together from listening to some of the cooking shows from the surface."

"That would be wonderful. I'm always up for trying new recipes in my cooking. Living a long life tends to make one crave something new," Mom chuckled.

"There's this one type of pepper that's apparently grown in popularity on the surface recently," I informed. "And doing some research, I discovered it's a really spicy pepper called 'ghost pepper', not like the ones we grow down here. I managed to synthesize the spice form of it based on some cross-referencing with different sources I picked out through the transceiver."

I saw Dad's blank eyes as I was talking. Mom seemed to have a better understanding, but she seemed a little lost in the conversation.

"Ahh, sorry, I got so into the zone I switched back to nerd-speak," I apologized. "Let's just say that through a very spotty connection to the surface's internet, I was able to make my own version of ghost-pepper spice."

"Then it will be nice to try it out," Mom said as we walked into the kitchen after I took off my shoes and dropped down my bags.

My nose was hit by the delicious aroma of a home cooked meal, something I hadn't had since… well, my birthday.

"Yep… definitely missed this…" I sighed as I sat down. "Oh, Solomon didn't say 'hi' but I know he'd want me to say 'hi' on his behalf."

"Well, it was nice getting an unofficial 'hi' from Solomon," Dad chuckled.

I looked at the chairs around the table. There were always 4 chairs, an extra one that was always empty. I figured it was likely due to when they had 2 kids a long time ago. But it always struck me as odd that even after all of this time, they kept the 4th chair. Maybe it was in hopes that another human would fall and become part of our family.

"You know, I don't think I ever told you two this.… But when I was younger and you guys told me stories about Mona, I'd imagine her eating with us at the dinner table." I smiled as I reminisced. "I only brought it up now cause Alphys mentioned her while I was talking to Alphys on the way here. It's still such a shame I was never able to meet her. But… at least I am able to care for her Soul now."

"Ah… yes, we definitely miss Mona, and it would've been nice if you two had been able to meet," Dad said with a sigh.

Mom came over, carrying the large roasted turkey.

"It's such a shame that humans live such a short life compared to us… She actually taught me a few things about cooking," Mom informed. "Though I taught her plenty of other things in return. She was actually the one who taught me how to make those special ginger cookies I only make for your birthday."

"Dang, so in a way she found a way to share her love with me," I noted with a warm smile before glancing down the hall towards the room that had once been hers. "Thanks, elder sis. Anyways, before we eat, I should go wash my hands."

"Of course, I'll help set up the rest of the food on the table," Dad said.

I stood up and walked to the hallway. I stopped for a moment, looking at the door that led to one of the two bedrooms Mom and Dad never touched. The first belonged to my eldest brothers, Asriel and Chara. The second belonged to Mona. The rest of the humans that became part of our family didn't feel like they deserved to live in New Home, so they lived on other floors of the castle.

I headed towards my bedroom and peeked inside, noticing it was pretty much how I left it… a mess. I promised to myself that this time, this time, I would definitely clean up my room before leaving. Though… a part of me doubted that would actually happen.

I headed towards the bathroom and went inside to wash my hands, noticing that Mom and Dad were getting low on the special fur shampoo and conditioner I made for them to give their fur an extra regal sheen.

When I was done with that, I headed back to the dining room. I saw the food was all on the table, and Mom and Dad were waiting for me. My mouth was already watering at the sight and smell of the food. My stomach let out a growl.

"Have you finished washing your hands yet, dearie?" Mom asked.

"Course I have, Momma," I chuckled as I took my seat. "I wouldn't just walk to the bathroom and not wash my hands. I'm a scientist, I know how important proper hygiene is."

"Great, then let us enjoy our meal together!" Dad smiled.

We began eating. Even though it hadn't been that long, considering how long I live, it felt like it had been an eternity since I ate a nice, home cooked meal like this. A part of me that I quickly silenced made a note to install some cooking skills into the AI.

"So did anything big and exciting happen lately?" Mom asked.

"Other than that Undocumented I mentioned before, not really," I answered. "I don't want to bring up work, cause I know once I start talking I'll be talking till our food goes cold. But to give a summary, I think I'm closer to helping the amalgams with separation. Outside of work, Alphys and I have managed to binge a few more series. I was able to give Mettaton some advice for his show and resort. I also taught a few lessons at both schools before winter break began. It felt kinda weird, since I was teaching monsters that were around my age and some older. Oh, I got my upgraded crest back from Solomon. I'll probably test it out tomorrow in the castle training grounds."

"Sounds like you've been busy." Dad smiled.

"What about you two?" I asked them, appreciating a chance to eat more.

Mom and Dad rarely talked about what was going on in the kingdom. Mostly because I rarely talked to them while I was working. Around Giftmas time was a rare exception from that where Mom and Dad would normally tell me about the goings-on of the kingdom, the work they've been doing, and all the issues they'd worked to solve together. However, something seemed off this time.

"Well… a lot of monsters are concerned about overpopulation, and how the Underground is starting to feel a little cramped lately," Dad explained.

"The schools are doing well," Mom said. "Though I've heard from Sans that there might be a new child joining soon. The issue is they're nervous about fitting in."

"Well, Dad, in regards to your problem, we might currently have a bit of an overpopulation issue, but if the workers follow the plan I set out, we should have new space for a few hundred thousand monsters within 3 years. After the 10 year mark, I think we'll have space for at least a million new monsters. I know that it doesn't solve the current issue, but I do hope that it will alleviate some stress knowing that we are actively working on it. Oh, that reminds me, I'm actually making some progress with restoring Dunes to what it used to be. It was… definitely tricky, but we finally managed to break apart the massive Swelterstone that was uncovered, so the temperature is slowly coming back down."

"Oh, Asria, you're always working so hard to help everyone," Dad said. "Your mother and I have been trying to work things out as well. You shouldn't feel like you need to put everything on your shoulders though, you're still quite a young monster."

"I know you two are trying." I smiled. "But your jobs mainly deal with the politics and going-ons of the Underground. As the Royal Scientist, it's on my shoulders to fix the environment and other issues like that. While it's hard work, it's work I'm proud of."

"Let's not focus on work right now. Let's focus on just enjoying this meal as a family again," Mom suggested. "Tomorrow, we will work on the invitations. Then on the 24th, we'll have our annual Giftmas party. Then on the 25th, you and your father will go out yet again to surprise all the children with gifts."

"Oh, speaking of which, there's something new to add into our routine, Daddy." I beamed. "Though it'll have to be a secret till Giftmas morning!~"

"I look forward to this new addition to our routine then," Dad chuckled.

It was rare that I thought about just relaxing, or doing things for the fun of it. It actually felt nice to unwind and not have to worry about the next big project, at least for the time being.

The next day, I was spending time with Mom to write out the invitations. Mom insisted that despite the amount of monsters in the Underground, that we hand write each and every invitation to the New Years Ball. Dad was getting his presents ready for our delivery on Giftmas Day. He always had a lot to give out to monsters, Snowdin was especially popular for the presents, they always had a Giftmas Tree ready, even in the middle of summer.

I couldn't wait to show Dad my new invention that I made just for Giftmas. I had put a lot of time and work into it and even stole a few ideas from other projects, like the false sky of Snowdin.

Mom was still writing invitations when I saw the next one on my pile, addressed to a certain… annoying monster. I shivered at the idea of Jerry being at the ball, he would definitely ruin everybody's day. I knew Mom would try to be fair by inviting everyone, however I knew there was no way in hell I was gonna let Jerry come.

I knew Mom was baking gingerbread cookies while we were writing out the invitations, so now was the perfect time to deal with this invitation. I wrote up the letter and put it in an envelope before placing it on top of the empty envelopes. I then sniffed the air.

"Do you smell something burning?" I asked.

Mom's eyes went wide. "I better go check on the cookies. I'll leave the rest to you."

Mom got up and quickly ran into the kitchen, leaving me alone with the invitation.

I looked at the invitation and frowned before I grabbed a nearby flower and picked a loose petal from it. I then rubbed it beneath my nose a little. I felt a sneeze come on and set fire to the envelope containing the invitation to Jerry before sneezing, acting like I set it on fire by accident.

"Oh jeez! Oh no!" I called out, making sure all the other envelopes were scattered by my sneeze.

"Wha-what happened!?" Mom asked as she ran back into the living room, seeing all the envelopes scattered. "Are you alright, my child?"

"I'm fine, Momma… but I uh… burned the envelopes on that pile…" I frowned. "They were all empties… but I still feel bad for ruining the envelopes."

Mom frowned. "Strange… are you coming down with a cold? You normally don't lose control of your fire magic with a sneeze unless you were sick."

I shook my head. "I think that the smell of cookies starting to burn irritated my nose…"

Mom looked at me for a long moment. Even though I had been the Royal Scientist for 43 years, Mom always seemed to know how to see through me.

"The gingerbread cookies weren't burning, dear," Mom finally said. "But let's clean up, I think we're just about finished writing out the invitations."

I nodded and started to pick up the invites, glad I wasn't going to have to see Jerry at the ball. "I can promise you I'm not getting sick, Mommy. There was some smell that irritated my nose to the point of sneezing."

"Yes, well, just to be on the safe side, I'll be making you a bowl of chicken noodle soup, and making sure you get a warm bath, and head to bed early tonight," Mom stated. "I want to make sure you're nice and healthy for tomorrow."

"Fiiiine!" I grumbled. "No point in trying to argue."

"Good girl~" Mom smiled.

So I ended up having to eat a bowl of chicken noodle soup. It wasn't so bad though, Mom always knew how to make great tasting meals, especially after Mona helped her learn how to use certain spices. It wasn't chicken ramen, but it was still a very hearty and filling meal. Though it was… embarrassing when Mom decided to help me take a bath. Her excuse was to make sure I was okay, and to scrub my back fur since it was difficult for me to reach back there, at least without some kind of tool to assist me. I believe Mom just wanted an excuse to take care of me again while I was here.

Mom even picked out the light pink, teddy bear footed pajamas for me to wear for the night. I hadn't worn these pajamas in a couple of decades now, yet it still fit me like a glove. It was a bit embarrassing, but it beat wearing itchy and ugly Giftmas sweaters.

It was still too early to sleep, however, so I decided to watch some TV. I was curious to see what Mettaton was up to, or if there was any news going on in the Underground lately. While Mettaton was the big star in all of the Underground, other monsters started using the cameras to show what had been going on in other places of the Underground as 'news'. I made a silent note to start rolling out the upgraded cameras sometime in late January, so we could finally get sound on the surveillance cameras and get higher quality cameras into the hands of monsterkind.

"It looks like Mettaton is doing well for himself. Though I really wish he would give Eric a chance to co-star in one of his shows."

Mettaton was doing another episode of 'Magical Robot Girl', where he would act as a 'regular robot girl' by day, and transform into a 'magical robot girl' to fight evil forces by night. It was totally a rip off from an anime though. But since this was all going on Underground and not the surface, Mettaton was free to rip off all the anime shows he wanted.

I decided to switch to the news channel to see if anything interesting was going on. I saw a two headed red snake monster, using its tail to hold a microphone to one of its heads. They were just outside the Monster Academy of Waterfall.

"We are coming to you live from Waterfall. Schools are still on break due to the holiday, though it seems some families are complaining about the school not accepting their children as students due to the school being completely full. Are parents going to rampage to get their children in school? Stay tuned to find out!"

"I… feel we need to work on that…" I remarked before I called out to Mom. "Hey, Momma! Did you know about the Waterfall school being completely full?!"

I waited a few seconds while I heard Mom's footsteps coming to my room. She stood at the doorway with a small frown.

"I know about it. It was something I had been talking to the school staff about yesterday before you came home," Mom admitted.

"Well if you need any help making a bigger school, let me know." I smiled. "Though… perhaps this would be a good opportunity to continue work on that 'bigger on the inside' technology I've been toying with…"

"I'd rather you didn't use a prototype on one of the schools," Mom sighed. "And as for making the school bigger, we've tried expanding it already, but the area in Waterfall is already at its limit. Any bigger and the structure will start to fall apart from being so closed in on the walls."

I frowned. "Mom, do you really think I'm so foolish that I'd use a prototype on something like a school?!"

"Of course not, but I do hope you won't be too hasty with it," Mom replied. "I know Undyne would be quick to use it to solve the problem. But how long will it take for you to make something like that, and make sure to test it so it's safe to use?"

"Well… it could take a few months if I make it a main project," I answered. "Though I could also do a few other projects at the same time to try and find the best solution to making the school bigger. Perhaps I can find a way for us to expand Crystal Spring Hollow. Or maybe we could use some methods similar to the housing projects of digging out the stone and carving it into buildings as we go. Though that last one would take longer to complete… For expanding the Hollow itself, I could try coming up with some new tools that use magic to make it easier to break the rocks instead of having to rely on pickaxes. If I remember right, there's a surface tool known as a jackhammer which-"

"My child," Mom spoke up, interrupting me. "You are going on a tangent again."

"Ahh, sorry…" I sheepishly chuckled. "The magic tools to expand the Hollow could be done by sometime in late January with work starting not too long after. The space-expansion device might take longer. Maybe till April or more likely May. Off the top of my head, those two projects seem like the most viable and quickest."

"Alright. Don't feel you have to rush, we will try to work something out until you're able to make the gadget you need to expand the school safely," Mom replied.

"Mom, when it comes to messing with the laws of dimensions and space, I'm not gonna cut corners," I chuckled.

"For now, we will try to provide shortcuts for those living in Snowdin and Waterfall to the New City Monster Academy," Mom informed. "The ferrywoman will be a great assistant, but we can't just rely on her alone to get monsters to New City quickly as she can only take them as far as Hotland. Some of the royal guards will try to help escort the students to New City as quickly and safely as possible, especially the aquatic or cold monsters that can't withstand heat so easily."

Maybe I could make some kind of burrowing system to set up one of those… 'subways' that are in some anime and video games? I pondered, thinking back to one of my favorite games where the main transportation of the protagonist was the underground subway. It would have to be big and sturdy enough to support some kind of vehicle. But having a transport system in the Underground that goes in a loop from Snowdin, to Waterfall, to Hotland, to New City would be a huge boon to the Underground.

"Oh dear, it seems I've said something to get you in a brainstorming mood again," Mom chuckled, pulling me out of my deep thinking. "What is it this time?"

"A transport system that would go to Snowdin, Waterfall, Hotland, and New City," I answered in short. "I'd definitely need some specific tools to accomplish it. Though… considering the technology behind the Core and Mettaton, it shouldn't actually be that hard to make. If I start it after my break… I should be able to get it done by June."

"A transport system, huh? I believe Mona mentioned something like that too," Mom remarked.

I nodded. "It's like… one of those school buses in the books from the surface. But instead of on the surface, it's underground."

"If it is possible to make something like that here, then your father and I will do what we can to help with the project," Mom replied. "It would allow students to be able to go to either school with ease, and we may be able to build another school."

I smiled and nodded before starting to think of what it would take. "It might also be a bit of an economic surge. I'd need resources from the mines. Metal workers. Manual laborers. And a new type of worker to operate the system."

"We'll set up a meeting for the workers in the mines then," Mom said.

I gave a little bit of a nervous look.

"After you tell me everything you need me to say to them of course," Mom corrected.

I let out a sigh of relief. "Good. Thankfully I can talk to Solomon and he can talk to the metal workers and craftsmen on my behalf. Oh, the people who will operate the system will have to at least know how to read and have a minimum level of eyesight."

While I was discussing things with Mom, I didn't notice a familiar face show up in the background of the news, at least not until much later…

Frizk's POV

I was frowning as I stood next to Sans and Papyrus. We were standing in a section of the Underground I wasn't that familiar with, but I knew it was somewhere in Waterfall, given the rivers that flowed through the cavernous area, and the waterfalls on the walls, as well as some of the echo flowers in the distance.

We were looking at a rather large building. Though the area was wide and tall, the building took up most of the space here. We saw there were a few other monsters here. Apparently we weren't the only ones with plans to look at the school for a new student. But we were told by a school staff that the Monster Academy in Waterfall was completely full at this time, so no new students could be admitted until further notice.

I was a little taken back that the school was literally called 'Monster Academy'. That would be like naming a school back on the surface 'Human Academy'. But ignoring the name, this was a different problem altogether.

"Welp, looks like you won't be going to the same school as Paps…" Sans muttered.

"I… I could always drop out and sign up for the school at New City," Papyrus offered.

"In the middle of the school year?" Sans replied. "You know that's not allowed, Papyrus. You have to finish your school year before you can sign up for another one."

"Well… maybe this isn't all bad! I mean Frizk was able to make friends with other monster children quite easily, right, Frizk?" Papyrus asked. "I remember you talking to Snowdrake and Chilldrake on the way to our puzzles, and you even convinced an Ice Cap to take off their cap. Not just anyone could do that!"

"Uh… well…" I frowned.

"While she can't sign up for this school, at least we can look around so the kid can get an idea of what school is like outside Ruins," Sans pointed out. "I simply asked the staff if there was an opening in case Frizk chose to go to school."

"That's right! The layout here will be very similar to the school in New City!" Papyrus agreed. "So you can get familiar here and still know where to go there! That is if you still wish to go."

"Yeah," I replied. "We came all this way, we may as well look around."

Truth be told, my motivation of going to school had dropped considerably when I found out I wouldn't be able to go to the same school as Papyrus. It was weird, when I was in Ruins, and stepped out into Snowdin Forest, I felt like I could talk to anyone. But thinking about interacting with new monsters in a school environment… it made me feel very nervous… like when I had to go to school back on the surface.

I followed Sans and Papyrus as we entered the building. The school had corridors and classrooms like the school back at my former home. It was surprising, I guess I was expecting something more… magical than an ordinary looking school. Then again, the school I went to taught magic as well… so maybe it wouldn't be very practical to have the corridors and classrooms switching around every 5 minutes or so, or twisting dimensions to make it hard to move from one classroom to the next.

Peeking into a few of the classrooms, I was surprised to see how well stocked they were despite being cut off from the surface. There were things I could recognize from the elite classrooms at my old school as well as things that I couldn't quite figure out. There were also entire classrooms dedicated to things that would normally be unheard of at other schools.

There was one classroom that was filled with a few beds and had glowing crystals on the ceiling providing the light. There was another classroom with glowing stone patterns on the floor that almost looked like one of those cliche magic circles from video games and anime. Another room seemed to be like an indoor greenhouse with individual growing tables instead of desks.

There were more rooms that reminded me of what I had seen at my school, like a woodworking shop and a metalworking shop. There was a surprisingly large library with tons of different books. Some of the books were out on open shelves, while other books were in tough-looking locked cases. Considering monsterkind and their innate ability to use magic, my guess was that the locked off books were magic books that could possibly prove dangerous for anyone learning from them. There was a gymnasium, but there was also an outdoor gym area that seemed to double as a training field for fighting.

"What do you think so far?" Sans asked as we entered the cafeteria. "And do you prefer strawberry or chocolate?"

My mouth watered at the word 'chocolate' for a second. "Definitely chocolate."

Strawberries were nice and all, but I was always just 'eh' to them.

"Alright~" Sans smirked before he pulled a couple small cartons of chocolate milk out of his jacket pocket. "Here you go."

"Thanks." I smiled as I took one of the cartons of chocolate milk. "And I think it looks pretty nice so far. I take it that the more gifted students would have the better looking classrooms?"

I opened up the carton and began to drink the chocolate milk. It tasted sweet, a little… different from the chocolate milk I used to drink at my former home. Not bad, just different. I wasn't sure how to describe it. I guess the fact it didn't fill my stomach definitely changed how it tasted. If monster drinks didn't go directly to the stomach, then…

I was getting more curious how monster food… and drinks worked exactly. It would be cool if they taught something like this in the schools here.

"What do you mean by more 'gifted' students?" Papyrus asked. "Do you mean students who get more gifts from Santa Claus? Or maybe more gifts on their birthday?"

"Ah, no," I replied, trying not to laugh at Papyrus taking what I said literally. "I meant students with… better talent? Or… better skilled? Students that are considered to be prodigies or geniuses."

"Uhhh?" Papyrus frowned.

"Hey, Paps, how about you go look around for other places to show Frizk while I talk to her and enjoy this delicious chocolate milk?" Sans suggested. "She looks like she could use a little break."

"Of course! The Great Papyrus will find the best places to show our new puppy friend! You'll get to see the best of what the schools have to offer here, even if it's not this one exactly! Nyeh heh heh heh!" Papyrus smiled before he ran off, as full of energy as ever.

Sans sat down near me before chuckling. "Kid, unlike whatever you dealt with on the surface, there's no 'honors class' or 'elite class' or anything like that. All students get the same treatment and access to the same things no matter the background, upbringing, skills, or wealth."

"Really?" I questioned, finding that hard to believe. "But why? I mean wouldn't it be better to focus on the students that have natural talent and skill in what they're doing? The ones who don't… well, it's not like trying to teach them will help them get better…"

"Whoever taught you that should be ashamed of themselves…" Sans sighed. "Down here, it's actually the opposite. The monsters who struggle get more attention, while those that can succeed on their own are given free reign to continue their studies unsupervised. Teaching the 'untalented' can help them get better."

I wonder about that… even with Kris's tutoring, I could never… I hesitated on that thought.

"I get it though, it's going to take more than words to convince you of something that you've never got to experience for yourself," Sans said. "Especially when you were taught the opposite for the longest time. It's another reason why I believe coming to school will do you some good."

"Even though I'm not…" I paused for a moment. "... a… regular monster?"

This was supposed to be a school for monsters after all, not humans. There could be things taught that only a monster could do after all.

"While it's true that you aren't exactly… like everyone else, I still believe you could do good here," Sans replied. "The teachers aren't going to make you fit into a perfect little box in order to grade you based on a flawed system after all. Monsters come in all shapes and sizes, with different types of magic. No monster is truly the same as another."

That was true, monsters had a lot more diversity than any human I knew. Though that still didn't stop me from feeling unsure.

"One last thing…" Sans began to say. "Your lack of human magic might actually be a benefit to you here."

"Why's that?" I questioned.

"Cause it might make it easier for you to learn monster magic," Sans answered.

"Monster magic?" I tilted my head. "I thought it wasn't possible for a human to learn monster magic."

"It's difficult, yeah, especially if the human already has human magic," Sans acknowledged. "But not impossible. Another kid like you before, one that was adopted by the royal family, actually became so well versed and skilled with monster magic that she was able to show up some of the pros."

I wonder if that kid had a natural talent for learning monster magic… I thought to myself. I doubt I would ever be able to do something like that.

"That's quite impressive," I said with a small smile.

"She were a bit like you as well," Sans went on. "She started off with… maybe one human spell, to create a ball of light. Actually two, cause she also had a low-level healing spell. From what I've heard, it was actually more of a challenge to learn magic because the way humans use magic and monsters use magic is different, despite human magic having originated from monsters."

"So she started in the negatives as opposed to zero," I remarked. Sounds like she might've been like an anime protagonist.

"A bit, yeah," Sans confirmed before poking me. "But that was her. You're you, kid. You'll only know if you can or can't learn monster magic if you put in the effort and try for a while. Though you only have to try if it's something you want. Nobody is gonna require you to know magic, not even here at school. While magic is an inherent part of monsters, not all monsters are capable of actually using their magic."

I raised an eyebrow. Sans telling me that nobody was going to require me to know magic made this sound not so much like a school. Because the only schools I knew always required something, and if the student didn't have it, they were punished for it. I mean I guess I should've figured monster schools would be different, but… I wasn't sure how much different it would be.

"You're probably thinking 'there's gotta be some requirement to go to school'," Sans guessed as he looked at me. "And you're not wrong. There is one requirement to go to school down here. And to not beat around the bush, I'll just tell ya that it's the desire to learn."

"Isn't that what schools are supposed to be? A place to learn?" I asked.

"They are supposed to be that," Sans agreed. "But I get the feeling the one you went to was… a lot more selective about it."

"Also, stop reading my mind," I huffed.

"Not reading your mind, just making guesses from what I've heard 'bout the surface," Sans answered. "Considering you haven't made any jokes about this place being unlike a prison, my guess is that you didn't go to any ordinary surface school and went to one of the more… 'special' schools like in Alphys's anime, where you're there if you're an elite or have a lot of money or royalty or whatever other nonsense."

"Something like that…" I sighed.

Before Sans could reply, Papyrus came running back. "I have returned! And found a few places you may want to see, Frizk!"

I gave Papyrus a smile. "Well, lead the way then."

It turned out, the place Papyrus wanted me to see was the field outside. There was something like grass covering the cavernous ground, though it seemed to be native to the area. There appeared to be a lot of toys here, mainly things like sticks and balls.

"This is where a lot of the canine monsters loved to hang out during their free time!" Papyrus grinned. "No canine could resist playing fetch, or with a good ball! I shall treat you to such a game, Frizk!"

Before I could react, Papyrus threw a toy stick at me. It pounced off of my forehead. Thankfully it was harmless, but I just stood there, looking down at the stick.

"Yo, bro, perhaps you need to show Frizk what you wanted her to do," Sans suggested, though I could hear him holding back a snicker. "It's possible the kid never played fetch in Ruins, what with it being so cramped."

"Oh! Of course, I should've expected that!" Papyrus sighed. "Do not worry, Frizk! For I, the Great Papyrus, will show you how to indulge in a game of fetch!"

It… wasn't that I didn't know what to do… I just… didn't want to pick up a dog toy with my mouth and bring it back to Papyrus, especially if other dog monsters had the toy in their mouths prior.

"So, Frizk, all you gotta do… is take the stick in your paw and toss it," Sans instructed, struggling to hold back his laughter. "And yell 'fetch'."

I raised an eyebrow, because I was sure I had to be the one to… Oh, I get it, playing a little prank on Papyrus, are we? I'm down for that.

I picked up the toy stick then I threw it as hard as I could. "Fetch!"

I watched as Papyrus suddenly started running after the stick without any hesitation.

"So, in case you're worried about hygiene, the stick, ball, and rest of the toys automatically clean themselves with magic," Sans informed. "We take health very seriously down here, especially since we can't get any health benefits from the sun like humans can get on the surface."

"Ah, I see," I remarked. Wait, does that mean they lack doctors and medicine too?

Papyrus ran back over, holding the stick in his mouth… err… jaw… teeth.

"Nyeh heh heh, see? Just like that!" Papyrus grinned as I took the stick out of his… teeth.

I grinned as well as my tail wagged a little bit. "Then let's play a little bit more."

"Yes, of course!" Papyrus said.

I tossed the stick again. "Fetch!"

Papyrus didn't hesitate to run after the stick on all fours again. He grabbed the stick with his teeth and ran back over to me. I rubbed his skull as I took the stick.

"Good boy, Puppyrus~" I praised while also making a pun.

"You're enjoying this way more than you should~" Sans snickered.

"Don't tell me you aren't," I replied before I tossed the stick again.

"Oh, I'm definitely enjoying it," Sans responded. "Though perhaps you should start acting a bit more like the species you're acting as. I'm not saying you have to sniff any butts or anything, but be a bit more playful. If you don't act like a dog, you'll probably draw attention to yourself."

"You're right. All the dog monsters I've met so far had quite the playful nature, especially Lesser and Greater Dog," I agreed. "I just… rather not play fetch if I could help it, at least with me being the fetcher."

"Then probably best to avoid this room during school hours," Sans replied. "Though, you shouldn't knock it till you try it. It can be quite fun."

Chapter Text

Darkzdragon: Uh… Kit…? I know you've been really into those Deltarune theory videos, but uh… you should take a break.

DarkFoxKit: What are you talking about?

Darkzdragon: It's uh… Monday? So it's time to update Sistertale.

DarkFoxKit: Oh… it's Monday… wasn't it Friday last I checked?

Darkzdragon: Yeah… you've really been in the rabbit hole of theory videos, speculation, and all that. Heck, you weren't eating so I managed to get a hold of Mew and she's been teleporting food into your belly to make sure you don't keel over from starvation.

DarkFoxKit: Oh it's not that bad! … And anyways, we're posting Undertale stories, not Deltarune. *Looks at a picture of Deltarune* One day… one day…

Darkzdragon: *Nervously sweatdrops* Uh… maybe… maybe not. Anyways, wish the readers a good chapter and then lets get you away from the computer so you can eat on your own and maybe get you a shower.

DarkFoxKit: *Hisses when Darkzdragon tries to pull her away from the computer*

Darkzdragon: Enjoy the chapter, readers, I'm gonna take care of this… feral fox.

Chapter 8: Giftmas with Monsters

Frizk's POV

The school tour was pretty interesting. From what I had seen of the school, it was similar, yet also very different from the school I went to before. I hadn't seen any of what Sans or Papyrus told me in action due to the school being closed during the Holidays and whatnot. I hoped that maybe the school in Waterfall would have an opening by the time classes resumed, because I would rather not get so close to where the royalty lived… And having to go to a new school without someone I knew, like Papyrus, being there with me was just an awful concept.

Truth be told, I think it was easier for me to interact with monsters when I saw the world as more of a video game. But… I guess doing something familiar, and kind of ordinary, like going to school, reminded me of… what I was like when I was living with my parents…

Sans took a shortcut back home, where I could give my thoughts on the matter.

"So… what do you think?" Sans asked.

I hung my coat on the coat rack as I walked over to the couch to plop down. "I think… at least from what I saw and heard about… the monster school seems… almost too good to be true. But… it's still school, right? So… I guess I'm just a little… skeptical. And… is the other school… the one at New City, also full?"

I hoped that the school at New City was also full, which would give me the perfect excuse to wait until next school year to enroll in the same school as Papyrus.

"Nope, the one in New City is actually on the low end of enrollment," Sans answered. "The school there was originally built to be the only school in the Underground, so it was built big. Around… 4,000ish students could go there at once. Though right now I think only around 900 are enrolled throughout the different grades. Oh, and it's one of those kindergarten through high-school situations. Unlike Waterfall which is just middle school and high school. And while I know you didn't ask, college is usually more of a work-study kind of thing. If you have a passion, you sign up to learn from someone who has experience instead of just sitting in a classroom and learning the principles."

"Okay…" I said, though I didn't know too much about college itself, since I never did a lot of research on it. I was just trying to get through middle school. Although, with how monsters age, I'd be an old lady by the time I could get into college… and that's a maybe.

"Are you worried about going to school without Papyrus?" Sans asked.

"Kind of, yeah," I admitted.

"You could always be homeschooled, Frizk! Nobody would blame you for not wanting to dive into a new school without a friend by your side," Papyrus suggested.

"Won't that make things harder for you two?" I asked. "Didn't royalty make it so young monsters had to attend school?"

"They had to receive some kind of education," Sans answered before frowning at Papyrus. "Though, Paps, she does have a bit of a point. I can teach her, but you're a student and can't exactly teach her yourself. I also got my work."

"I guess that would be a bit of a problem…" Papyrus frowned a little.

"It's okay, Papyrus," I spoke up, smiling a little at him. "Like you said, I was able to talk to those other monsters in Snowdin Forest pretty easily. I'll be alright at this new school…" Probably.

"That's the spirit, Frizk! Always look at new challenges in a positive light!" Papyrus smiled. "Keep that up, and you may become a great Royal Guard yourself one day, just like the Great Papyrus! Nyeh heh heh heh!"

"Woah woah woah, hold up," Sans spoke up before looking at me. "Kid, are you serious? Is what Paps said right, that you wanna join the Royal Guard?"

Oh… right, I guess we never discussed it with Sans… I realized with sheepish look on my face. "Well, it's… more of a goal to strive for, a kind of… motivation source. Since I'll likely be living in the Underground… the rest of the Underground… for a while, I figured I might as well take advantage of my new ability to see my… um…"

I glanced at Papyrus for a moment. "... To train with Papyrus, and learn more about how magic works and stuff… to become stronger, and someone others can look up to. I figured being a Royal Guard would be a great way for me to keep training, and be of some use to monsterkind, our kind."

Sans slapped his face with a boney hand. "Kid… are you serious? Cause… no offense, but joining the Royal Guard will be even tougher for you than it'll be for Paps due to your… Soul condition."

"I… figured, but I still think it would be something worth working toward," I replied.

"I… We'll need to talk more about this later," Sans stated firmly.

I frowned, though it seemed Sans didn't seem as… enthusiastic with my decision to potentially join the Royal Guard as Papyrus was.

"For now, you should probably go take a shower and get some rest," Sans said. "Tomorrow will be Giftmas Eve, and I'm sure you and Papyrus will want to get up early for that."

"Yeah, of course," I replied. I wonder if he's going to talk to Papyrus about this…

I walked down to the basement.

Third Person

"Sans, it's not like you to deter someone's decision like that," Papyrus noted.

"Paps… she's a human… wanting to join the Royal Guard," Sans pointed out. "She can't join, as anyone with at least a basic understanding of what human Souls look like, will instantly recognize her as a human the moment she's in either a Fight or Battle."

"I know… and I have yet to tell her that since she seemed so… enthusiastic about it," Papyrus replied. "And she doesn't know that I know she's human either. But still… I didn't want to discourage her from doing what she wanted to do."

"But does she actually know what it means to be a Royal Guard?" Sans questioned. "Cause if she's only going off of what you told her, she's gonna be in for a rude awakening. Sure, they're peacekeepers and all that, but they're also the Underground's police force. They're the ones who have to stop monsters from fighting. They're the ones who put their own Souls at risk in order to make sure the Underground doesn't fall to chaos."

"I did warn her that it'll be very difficult, and not something to be taken lightly," Papyrus answered. "But she seemed pretty determined anyway, so I couldn't bring myself to stop her. And I get the feeling trying to stop her may do more harm than good… But, well… I know you're more cautious about things than I am, Sans. If you feel like you must tell her in detail why it's a bad idea because of what she is, then maybe you should follow that feeling. Out of respect for Frizk's wishes, I can't let her know I know she's human until she's ready to tell me herself."

Sans rubbed his face. "I… If she's dead set on becoming a Royal Guard, I can try talking to Tori about getting the kid a unique position where she won't be assigned with other guards. Or maybe… I could talk to her and ol' King Fluffbutt 'bout rebooting that 'Junior Guard' program we had a while back."

"Sans! Come on, I know you're pretty close with the royals, but at least address the king with some respect!" Papyrus grumbled. "I think King Fluffybuns just sounds better than Fluffbutt. And at any rate, if you could bring back the Junior Guard program, that would be wonderful! Because now I would have even more of a chance to join the Royal Guard without having to wait for another century or two!"

"Heh… yeah… that might be our best bet… The Royal Guards would have less of a reason to put Frizk into a Soul Fight or Battle that way," Sans said before sighing. "But it's still going to be risky… it would be more of just delaying the inevitable. The kid would be like a ticking time bomb, it won't be a matter of 'if' but 'when' they discover she's human…"

"Though… in a manner of speaking, anything Frizk does in the Underground will carry that risk, Sans. The only way it won't is if we locked her in the house for the rest of her life, and that's just… no way to live," Papyrus said. "Unfortunately, no matter how good her disguise is, she can't change her Soul."

"Dad probably would've known of a way…" Sans muttered under his break before sighing. "There are ways we can bring down the chance of her getting into a Fight or Battle. As right now those are the only two ways, short of her taking off her disguise in public, that anyone could figure out her identity. We don't have to lock her up in order to do that. Just keep her away from the more rambunctious monsters and keep her out of any conflicts… which will be hard if she does end up having to go to school in New City."

"And even if we kept her here, it'd only be a matter of time before Undyne came for a visit," Papyrus pointed out. "She'll eventually see Frizk, and… you know how extreme she can get when she meets with someone for the first time. She may even accidentally initiate a Soul Fight with Frizk."

"That's true, if a monster gets too wild, sometimes their magic will initiate a Soul Fight to avoid potential damage," Sans sighed.

"And you can't keep Frizk away from everyone all the time, Sans, it's just not practical," Papyrus added. "Eventually she'll have to go to school, or explore on her own, and meet up with someone who may want to challenge her just because. It's just part of life, and it wouldn't be fair if we tried to keep her from it because we're worried she'll get exposed."

Sans rubbed the back of his skull. "Maybe I can ask Asria to whip up something that prevents the kid from getting pulled into a Fight or Battle without consent. Like some kind of… forcefield or barrier or something… I'm gonna be seeing her tomorrow anyways, so I do have a chance to ask."

"Great! Too bad she can't just make something to make Frizk's Soul look like a regular monster Soul, or just make it appear upside down… well, upside down for a human Soul," Papyrus commented. "It'd probably be easier than trying to prevent her from being pulled into a Fight without consent."

"I'll at least bring up the possibility," Sans said. "It's up to Asria if she can or wants to do that. And with all the projects she's been working on, it may take a while before she gets to it without a good reason…"

Sans gave another sigh at that. "Which means the risk is still going to be there until Asria can make something."

"Well… if you're that worried about her getting exposed, Sans…" Papyrus started as he started thinking. "Maybe you can also test her after our training?"

"What do you mean, Paps?" Sans questioned.

"I mean… look at it this way… since there's a high chance Frizk could get exposed, then we should help her prepare for that day. I can help her learn more about magic and how to dodge or counterattack, and when that's finished, you can Fight or Battle her yourself to see if she's able to handle herself when she gets exposed," Papyrus suggested.

"You want the kid to fight… me?" Sans questioned before letting out a long, loud groan. "Do I have to?! That sounds like so much effort…"

"And talking to the Royal Scientist, the King, and Queen, about reinstating the Junior Royal Guard program, as well as the project for avoiding Fights or hiding one's Soul, isn't?" Papyrus asked.

"That's just talking, talking doesn't require much energy…" Sans huffed.

"Come on, Sans! You wanted to make sure Frizk can handle herself in the lion's den, right? What better way to do that than to test her yourself?" Papyrus replied. "I know you can easily rival Undyne and even the Royal Scientist if you actually put effort into it."

Sans grumbled. "Tibia honest, bro, ulna make a promise like that."

"Sans! This is no time for your bone puns!" Papyrus snapped. "I'm not asking you to train with her or anything, just to Fight or Battle her once, so you can see for yourself if she's ready to go on her own."

"I'll think about it," Sans answered. "Though seriously, I'm not gonna make any promises right now."

"That's fine, because I, the Great Papyrus, am an excellent judge! If you won't, then I will," Papyrus stated with confidence. "Nyeh heh heh! Honestly, brother, the suggestion was more meant for you rather than Frizk. But I'll see if she's ready to take on the Underground herself by the time school starts back up, and I'll let you know if she's up to the task!"

"Well considering school starts in a little over a week… I wish you luck, bro," Sans replied.

"Not to worry, Frizk has been learning and improving rather quickly, I'm confident she'll have what it takes by then!" Papyrus smiled. "But you know, if you're still worried, at least let her know why you are. I don't want her to get uneasy with you because you refuse to communicate with her."

"I'll do it before New Years," Sans informed. "No way I'm dropping all that info on the kid before Giftmas."

"I understand, just make sure you actually do it before it gets too late," Papyrus replied.

"For now, I'm gonna head over to Grillbys', I need some fries and ketchup after that news bomb," Sans remarked.

"Ugh… one of these days that greasiness is going to cause your bones to get fat…" Papyrus grumbled.

"What can I say? I don't have the spine to eat anywhere else~" Sans winked and laughed as Papyrus groaned.

Sans walked out of the door, either walking to Grillbys' or taking a shortcut there.

As soon as Sans was gone, a familiar gold flower popped up in front of Papyrus.

Flowey's POV

"Hey, seems like you've got your work cut out for you, huh?" I chuckled. "Golly, talk about having two different worlds on your shoulders."

"It'll be worth it, Flowery!" Papyrus said with confidence. "I'm sure once Frizk gains the confidence she needs, she'll be able to come out of hiding and convince the rest of monsterkind that she's a good human, and maybe even-"

"Ah, but that's just it," I said. "She's the 7th human Soul that's needed to break the barrier. Not to mention the damage some of the humans in the past had caused when they came down here. Things are going to get hectic if Frizk shows herself to the Underground. That's why I gave her that dog outfit. And by the way, it's Flowey, there's not an 'r'."

"Ah, so it was you who gave her that outfit," Papyrus remarked. "But… I'm surprised… you said you wouldn't leave the Ruins anymore… and we've only been talking to each other between the door to the Ruins and Snowdin Forest. Of course, I wanted to keep you up to date with what's been going on… so I'm surprised to see you here now, after a century of locking yourself in Ruins."

"I didn't intend to come out," I admitted. "But… I guess the kid grew on me, and I couldn't help but become curious. The way she handled herself when I had her Fight against me… she could've killed me, you know. She came close. She would've discovered what it's like to raise her EXP and LOVE. But, when she saw my HP was getting low, she chose to stop and spare me instead. The other humans who came into Ruins before… well… they weren't quite as aware of their options. They were convinced there was only two ways out of the fight, kill or be killed."

Papyrus frowned. "But why would you let her kill you? I don't want you to die, and I'm sure you don't either. And… it wouldn't be good if her EXP and LOVE got raised at all. I wasn't there when it happened, but apparently humans can get… addicted to raising their LOVE."

"Of course I wouldn't have just let it happen," I spoke up. "But… I wanted to know… I wanted to see what she would do. I have to say, she definitely caught my interest. That's the only reason I'm out of Ruins now, I'm keeping an eye on her too. Had she 'finished' me, I would've just let the flower head die while withdrawing into my roots until I sprouted once more. I'm not easy to kill."

"That's a relief then," Papyrus sighed. "It's definitely good to see you again after talking to a door this past century. Does that mean you're going to visit again more often?"

"I don't know yet. I'm fine with talking to you and Frizk once in a while, but…" I frowned. "... I still have some things I need to work out before I can… talk to anyone else. And your brother's blatant disregard of space-time kinda freaks me out."

"He does tend to prank people across space and time too, even though I keep telling him not to do that," Papyrus huffed.

"Yeah… um… one question," I said, sounding a bit hesitant.

"Ask away!" Papyrus encouraged.

"Was it true… what you said about the Royal Scientist being a Boss Monster?" I asked.

"Ahh, yes, you wouldn't know, having been behind the door to Ruins for at least a century," Papyrus acknowledged. "It is indeed the truth. After many attempts to have another child, King Asgore and Queen Toriel were blessed with a daughter."

Papyrus then frowned. "The Queen had gotten pregnant a few times among all the attempts… but unfortunately those children did not live to see the Underground… Because of this, there were thoughts that if the King and Queen ever did have a child, the child would not be allowed any freedoms as the King and Queen would've wanted to keep their new child safe. Thankfully, the Princess was given the freedoms that all the other children of the King and Queen were given."

Papyrus then glanced at me. "They didn't give her any extra privileges though. She studied at school like all the other monsters and put in all the effort and time it took to become the youngest Royal Scientist in monster history."

"I see… I guess it's only natural that the King and Queen would want another child after their first one…" I stopped for a moment, not wanting to finish the sentence.

"First ones," Papyrus corrected. "And, since you were in Ruins, I should also tell you the King and Queen made a proclamation the day their new child was born. They declared she was not to be seen as a replacement for Prince Asriel, as he and Prince Chara held special places in their hearts."

"Heh, of course they would say that," I chuckled. "But regardless… it seems there's a lot I missed since my self imprisonment… Why did the other Boss Monster infants die though? And why was this princess the only one to live?"

"They were… miscarriages," Papyrus softly answered. "By the time the Princess was about to be born… the King and Queen didn't have high hopes. Some believed that after the passing of the princes, Queen Toriel's Soul had made her unable to give birth to a new child."

"And it was only recently that she was finally able to give birth again? Well, recent in monster years anyways," I remarked. "I guess her Soul took that long to heal from the loss of her two first children. I can't blame her for that…"

"Is everything alright, Flowey?" Papyrus asked in concern, noticing my melancholic behavior.

"Yeah… just… thinking 'bout things," I answered.

"Well I am here if you need to talk," Papyrus supportively replied. "Though… if you wish to hear my opinion… I don't think that Queen Toriel's Soul has healed. Perhaps it has gotten better, but… losing both your children so close together… I don't think there's any monster who would be able to heal and truly move on from that."

"I guess that's why their new child has been a… blessing to them," I replied. "Maybe I should at least take a look around to see how much has changed since I was last here."

"It might be a good idea," Papyrus encouraged. "You might even get to see grown up monsters that you knew as children when you were last out and about."

"Maybe," I said. As long as Frizk touches a Save Point, I can always just save their progress no matter where I am in the Underground. If I have to Reset to save her, then I will. "I'll see what's been going on for myself then." Maybe even see this new princess to boot.

"Of course!" Papyrus beamed. "Have a good time! And I do hope to see you again soon!"

"Yeah… and maybe fix the floorboards after I leave. Wouldn't want Sans to come home and see a big hole in the floor," I chuckled.

"But of course!" Papyrus grinned. "Who do you think maintains this wonderful house?"

"Of course, you are the Great Papyrus after all," I replied. "I'll be seeing you later then."

I went back underground where I could travel easily. I needed to see with my own eyes… if this Royal Scientist truly is the child of Toriel and Asgore. It felt… foreign, hearing that they had another child, especially… after all this time.

Asria's POV

It was the morning of Giftmas Eve, the 24th of December. Mom and Dad had left to go take all the invitations to the New Years Ball to the UGPS. Because of this, I had the house to myself. And like I did every year, I grabbed some of the gifts from under the tree and walked down towards the bedroom.

For as long as I could remember, I had this tradition that some would call weird. I would go to the bedroom of my eldest brothers and the bedroom of Mona. My parents rarely ever went in, but I didn't like the idea that just because they were gone, they weren't involved with the holidays. I had already gone to Mona's room, having brought her Soul home from the true lab and placed it on her bed. I then placed down a present for her on her bed and read her one of the stories from her bookshelf. I would then give her an update of the Underground, what had happened since I last 'talked to her', and just try to make her Soul feel included in the holiday.

After Mona's room, I headed to the room of my eldest brothers. I paused outside their door, taking a deep breath. Mom and Dad had rarely spoken of my brothers, as even now the deaths of their first children greatly affected them.

Once I had gathered myself, I knocked on the door to the bedroom I was in front of. I knew I wouldn't get a response, but it was still rude to barge into a bedroom without knocking. After waiting for a few moments, I entered and bowed my head slightly.

"I'm sorry to intrude, but I've brought some presents." I smiled before I raised my head.

I walked over to each bed, placing down one of the wrapped presents. My tradition was that I would grant them a present and then open the present for them come Giftmas morning. I would then display the gifts somewhere in the rooms or add it to their collections.

I then went to the bookcase and grabbed one of the books I hadn't read in a while before I sat down on the floor, not wanting to invade their space more by sitting on their beds or chairs. And then, like always, I read to them. After the first book, I read another, figuring that just one story wasn't enough. After I finally felt I had read enough stories, I did what I did with Mona and began telling them about updates of the Underground.

I told them of the massive Swelterstone in Dunes finally being broken apart and how the denizens of the sands were hoping that tourism would see an uptick as the temperature got back to normal. I told them about the ideas I had for future projects, past projects I had completed, and things of that nature. I then told them about new shows, books, and things that we'd gotten either through Waterfall or the spotty surface signal.

I even told them about the Giftmas surprise that I had made just for Dad, one that would make him even more like Santa Claus.

"I… am sad that we never got to know each other…" I softly said. "And I'm sorry that Mommy and Daddy won't come visit you. But… just know that you are still a part of this family, even if you are no longer with us. They still love you and, even though we've never met, I do as well. You might not believe it, but you two are part of the reason I became the Royal Scientist in the first place."

I chuckled quietly. "Just by existing, the two of you raised the hopes of the Underground. You two were the symbol of coexistence between monsterkind and humanity. I… I have to work hard to try and follow your example, to try and have a positive impact on the Underground. I know I'll never get anywhere close to your levels, but… I won't stop trying."

"And…" I frowned. "I'm sorry if you two are watching over the family and think I'm just… a cheap replacement for you. I know I won't ever be to Mom and Dad what the two of you were. I'm their child, yes, but… I'm not either of you two."

I only had an old family photo to go off of my eldest brothers. It was faded and hard to make out, but I tried my best to restore the original image without damaging it. I saw my eldest biological brother, Asriel, standing and giggling next to my eldest human brother, Chara, who covered his face with flowers. Chara seemed to be quite the shy type, like me…

"You two were the light of Mom and Dad's life," I continued. "And when you passed, they lost that light. I… don't even hold a candle to the two of you. And… I'm fine with that. I will never be either of you. I'm me."

I had a feeling if Alphys was here, she would argue about that. But Alphys never met my eldest brothers either. In fact, most monsters I knew weren't even born when my eldest brothers were around. I gave a small sigh. Sometimes I wish I could build a time machine, but that was out of my capabilities. Time travel wasn't even a proven fact, just a concept. The best I could possibly manage was some kind of… alternate dimension machine.

I looked at the two empty beds. They used to be quite dusty before I started visiting, and maintaining, the room. I could just imagine the two of them sleeping in the same room, and playing with their toys. Of course, they both died as children, so I wondered if their Souls would have remained as children no matter how much time passed.

"Anyways… I uh… I'll see you two tomorrow when I come to open your presents." I smiled as I stood up and headed for the door. "Hopefully I picked out good gifts for the two of you. Love you two."

I wondered if it was possible to love someone I had never met… but this feeling I had whenever I visited their room, and Mona's room… it couldn't all just be in my head. Perhaps I could feel the love my parents had for them whenever I visited their rooms, or when I looked at Mona's lonely Soul in her glass container. For Mona's sake, I could never touch her Soul directly, or I risked absorbing her. Though I occasionally decorated her Soul, and when storing her Soul, I would usually place her around things she loved in life.

I stepped out of the room and slowly closed the door behind me before putting my head up against the door. I hope that wherever you two are, you are happy. I hope that… despite everything, you two are in some kind of Heaven or afterlife.

Flowey's POV

I looked at the new young Boss Monster as she walked out. I had come to New Home to see her for myself. I watched as she got all sentimental about two children who died a long time ago. I wasn't sure what to expect when I found her, but it certainly wasn't this sentimental monster child.

She kept talking like she was expecting someone to hear her. I'd call her crazy if I hadn't already done something like that myself. Sometimes I would talk to the flowers at the edge of Ruins… like I was talking to an old friend, in hopes they would hear me somehow.

But that was because I knew them. This girl didn't know the two who had died a long time ago. It sounded like Toriel and Asgore never really talked about them either to her. So she likely didn't know much about them. So why? Why does she act like she loves them? She's never met them. She's only seen vague, old photos of them.

I turned around after she left the room, and saw all the new toys, books, and other things that we… that they certainly never had when they were around. The room looked to be well kept and clean. I looked at the wardrobe for a moment, before I had a vine come out of the ground to reach up and open the wardrobe. I saw new clothes. Some were old, some were a little more recent, and some seemed to be brand new. There were different varieties of clothes rather than the green and yellow striped shirts the two used to wear when they were alive. Some looked to be sweaters with snow or Gyftrot theme, some looked like new pajamas, mostly footed pajamas, some looked like bathing suits, probably meant for swimming in Waterfall.

I closed the wardrobe and gave a sigh. "Great, she acts like we can even enjoy all this stuff she's wasting her money on. It would be better if she just gave this stuff to charity or something instead. These nice things are just gonna rot here forever, what is that princess scientist thinking? Maybe she is crazy."

But my knowledge of this… Asria was very limited. While her sweet, sentimentalism was a little sickening, I also couldn't help but… get a warm feeling that I hadn't felt since I woke up as a flower when I watched and listened to her prattle on like she was actually talking to her long dead brothers.

Even after all this time… someone still cares… I found myself thinking. "Heh… wonder how she would feel about Asriel if she knew what he had been doing since his supposed death…"

I glanced at the presents on the bed. Wait…

I used a vine to grab a present and moved it closer. She isn't spending money on us. I don't know if I should call her a cheapskate or not. But… these presents are addressed to her. Has she been giving up her presents for all these years?

I furrowed my eyebrows. "But why? Why give up your presents for those who had died long ago? I just… don't understand it… there's no point in doing that. You shouldn't deny yourself your parents' love and gifts for those who have been gone for a long time… Are you an idiot? Who's going to appreciate all those well crafted toys? Those written books? And those knitted clothes? It's not like spirits can wear stuff!"

Not even the old Asriel would've been that sentimental. This was just ridiculous and nonsensical. Maybe she feels like she doesn't deserve them? Or… nope. Can't wrap my head around that craziness. Though she does at least have one thing right, she barely holds a candle to the two. No way some dainty princess could ever be as amazing as the two were.

I would've smashed my face into the wall if it didn't risk Asria coming back in to investigate the noise. Okay, I have to cool it before I expose myself. I wouldn't want to Reset and have Frizk asking me what the heck happened. Now that she's touched a Savepoint, and experienced a Reset herself, she'll be likely to remember my Resets now.

I took a moment to take a deep breath and let it out. "This new princess… I should observe her more. I want to find out what makes her tick, and how she's the only new child Asgore and Toriel were able to have since the death of their first children. This should prove to be interesting, just like Frizk."

That thought led into another interesting thought.

"What would be even more interesting is if Frizk and this princess were to meet. Especially since Frizk seems to have a problem with royalty," I grinned, somewhat warping my face a little. "I would love to see what would happen then~"

I quickly returned my face to normal. It was a habit that was difficult to break when I started getting into my… less than pleasant mindset. I had been in Ruins for so long that having something new happening now had gotten my interest. I didn't want to upset the bonehead again and have to go for a second round with that creepy crystal wall.

For now, it would be best if I just watched from the shadows. I won't do anything rash until I have all the information I need.

Frizk's POV

I yawned, feeling groggy as I got up from the bed. It had been 4 days since I fell down here. It still felt like a dream. Of course, I did my usual morning routine, brushing my teeth, combing my hair, getting cleaned up, and putting my dog costume on before touching the Savepoint Flowey left for me, just for extra reassurance, then headed upstairs.

When I was walking into the kitchen, I saw a familiar boney figure by the fridge, not that I would see anyone else besides a boney figure here.

"Morning, kid," Sans greeted. "You came up here at the perfect time. Was just about to make some pancakes."

"Oh? I didn't know you cooked," I said, surprised.

"I dabble," Sans chuckled. "Though don't let Paps know, cause he takes pride in being the only 'bone brother' that knows how to cook. Even if his cooking is…"

Is cooking inedible spaghetti considered 'knowing how to cook'? I thought as I raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah…" Sans finished. "Pretty sure you humans might classify his earlier dishes as weapons of biological warfare."

"That bad, huh?" I couldn't help but chuckle.

"The third time he cooked, I swear he somehow made it radioactive," Sans replied. "The pot had melted, the utensils melted. Heck, even the table we put it on began to melt."

"Oh gosh, what did you do with it?" I asked, curious now.

"Fed it to Jerry." Sans smirked.

I blinked a few times. I had only met Jerry once, and yet, apparently he was just universally hated by everyone. I had no idea how someone like that could even exist.

"Nah, but seriously, I dropped that thing into the magma at Hotland," Sans chuckled. "For a whole month, the temperature in Hotland was up by 10 degrees."

"Did anyone notice?" I asked.

"Yeah," Sans answered. "Undyne loudly complained about it because she wasn't able to visit the Royal Scientist of the time. One step out of Waterfall and she was like a fish outta water."

I couldn't help but laugh. I never met Undyne, but Papyrus had told me a lot about her. Apparently she was some kind of fish or aquatic monster.

"She was so pissed she threatened to fight the magma," Sans added. "Though I think she was partly delirious at that point."

"Yeah… I think heatstroke can do that," I chuckled.

When I was done laughing, I noticed that Sans was flipping pancakes while talking to me. The frying pan he was using appeared to be floating a little, and had a blue aura around it.

"Fun fact, monsters without fire magic have to rely on this interesting gemstone unique to the Underground called Swelterstone to cook," Sans remarked as he lifted up the pan a bit more, pointing at a glowing pad that looked like an ordinary cooking element. "When you aren't cooking with it, another stone, a Glacialstone, is slid beneath it to cancel out the heating."

"You use gemstones to cook?" I blinked, surprised. I guess monsters don't have gas stoves or electric stoves to cook with. Either that or they never thought of it. "Wow, I didn't know there were stones that could radiate heat, or cold."

"There are a few other stones down here," Sans informed. "There's one that simply smells like apples. I think there's also a super rare cinnamon one that was discovered in Far Barrens, a section of the Underground that is super far away and is actually ruled by another royal family that existed before the barrier."

"There's another royal family?" I asked. Great, there's more of them…

"Yeah," Sans confirmed. "They're a family that used to live in some far off mountains. They used to be the rulers of the skies."

"Used to be?" I blinked.

"Before we were sealed away," Sans pointed out.

"Ah… right." I frowned. Beings of the sky being forced to live underground for who knows how long… they'd probably never want to see a human again.

"Is that guilt I see on your face?" Sans asked. "You have nothing to feel guilty about, you know. Us being sealed away wasn't your fault. It's not like you were one of the seven who made the barrier in the first place. Nor were you one of the humans that were slaughtering monsterkind before the barrier was put up."

"Not unless you count the reincarnation theory anyways," I remarked.

"Even if you do count that theory, which is possible, you aren't guilty for choices made in your past life," Sans responded. "Even if you remember that life, it's a life that's been lived. You are not them and you won't ever be them. You are who you are now and they don't get to choose what you do."

Sans then moved the frying pan over to the counter, without touching it with his boney hands, and moved the pancakes onto an empty plate. "Since I wasn't sure what kind of pancakes you may like, I stuck with plain. You can pour some syrup onto the pancakes if you'd like."

I gave a smile. "Of course, that's just fine."

I took the plate of pancakes, and a bottle of syrup, and sat down at the dining table.

"But Sans, is it true that the barrier can only be broken with 7 human Souls?" I asked as Sans sat down as well. "I've only heard about it from… someone else, but I don't know too much about it."

"As far as we know, the barrier was created by 7 humans, and thus, it would take 7 human Souls to match that kind of power in order to break it," Sans answered. "Or at the very least, something equivalent to 7 human Souls. Monster Souls wouldn't work though, because the unfortunate truth is that monster Souls are much weaker than human Souls."

"How though? What makes human Souls that much stronger than monster Souls?" I questioned.

"You're more physical than us," Sans answered. "You're made up of flesh, bones, blood, water, nutrients, cells, and more. Monsters can bleed, but we don't have as much of a reliance on it as humans. Our existences are almost purely magic. Do enough damage to a monster, their form will break. Do the same amount of damage to a human, they're hurting but not necessarily dead."

"Yeah… I think I read that in one of the books in the library," I said softly.

"Librarby," Sans corrected.

"Hah, hah." I rolled my eyes.

"In any case, there's more to it than just physiology, but it is one of the major factors," Sans remarked. "The Royal Scientist before the current one, and even before the one who stepped down, was doing research on human Souls and what makes them so powerful. But…"

"But what?" I asked, noticing Sans stopped.

"It might be best if you didn't know," Sans sighed. "Some knowledge is dangerous to have."

I frowned a little. I wondered what Sans knew about human Souls that I didn't. I was curious, but I also didn't want to dive into something I may not be ready to know either. I had seen what certain knowledge could do to a person… it wasn't pretty.

"I will say, human Souls, despite not being born with magic, are inherently stronger than monster Souls," Sans informed. "If a monster dies, the Soul often breaks before anything can be done with it. There are a few rare instances, like the boss monster and royal monster species whose Souls remain for a time after. But human Souls… if the human dies in the presence of a monster, the human's Soul can remain around forever. Or at least for a really long time if not properly contained."

I remembered Flowey saying that the monsters had 6 of the 7 human Souls they needed. From what I heard, there was a long interval between each human that fell. Meaning a human could live out the rest of their lives in the Underground, die of old age, and a new one wouldn't fall into the Underground until years later. So it made me wonder how long the first human Soul had to wait while being contained. Meaning that unless someone decided to look for me at Mt. Ebott and fell in like I did… I may be the only human in the Underground who holds the final key to everybody's freedom.

"As for what happens to a Soul once it breaks, who knows? They go to the afterlife? They get reincarnated as someone else? They just cease to exist altogether? It's hard to say," Sans shrugged. "It's not something I really think about."

"Hmm…" I picked at my pancakes for a moment. "Do you think I should… turn myself in?"

"I don't think you should," Sans answered. "Not until you see what the Underground has to offer. That way you can make an informed decision about what you wanna do."

"I guess, but the fact of the matter is that I am the last human Soul that you need to get out of here," I sighed. "It just… it doesn't feel fair to keep you all trapped down here just because I was too scared to contribute to breaking the barrier."

"Yeah, but even if we did have the 7th Soul, we aren't entirely sure of how to break the barrier," Sans explained. "The whole 'seven Soul' thing is just a theory put forth by the original Royal Scientists who were studying it when it was brand new. It's not like if we get all seven Souls, the barrier will miraculously disappear."

"Maybe," I said before I remembered the other reason why I wanted to get stronger, it was so my Soul could get stronger too. "Though with how my Soul is now, it probably wouldn't be much help anyways."

"Don't sell yourself short, kid," Sans said. "Maybe your Soul isn't as powerful as the 6 being kept in the containers now, but maybe that's a good thing. At the very least, it'll keep you from feeling like you need to take responsibility for breaking the barrier."

"Heh… yeah, I guess that's true," I chuckled. "By the way, where's Papyrus?"

"He's out," Sans answered. "He realized this is your first Giftmas outside Ruins and wanted to stock up. Since it'll just be the two of you tonight, he wanted to get board games, video games, a stocking with your name on it, some Giftmas themed clothes in your size, and stuff like that."

"I've never had Giftmas in Ruins either," I chuckled.

Sans raised a brow. "Dang, don't tell Paps or he might explode."

I snickered at that image before I realized what Sans said. "Wait, it'll just be us two?"

"Yep." Sans confirmed. "I'm going to a Giftmas party. 50/50 chance I'll be back tonight. Might sleep over there."

"Oooh, a Giftmas party, you say?" I grinned. "Dang, Sans, didn't take you as a party kind of guy. Thought it might be too much work to have to mingle with people and such."

"It's a small party I'm invited to every year," Sans explained. "Pretty sure I'd get thrown in jail if I refused."

"Really?" I blinked.

"Yeah, I'm close friends with Queen Toriel," Sans informed. "Because of this, she usually invites me over on Giftmas Eve to tell awful jokes and terrible puns. Last year I got a hole in my jacket from a peeved off fishlady who didn't appreciate my sense of humerus."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa… back up a bit," I quickly said as I stared at Sans. "You're… close friends with the queen?"

"Yep," Sans confirmed.

"That's… wow, I didn't know that," I said, trying to process this information.

"She makes it a point to come to comedy club night every month at Grillby's," Sans stated. "She's actually not half bad at telling jokes."

"The… queen of monsters goes to a comedy night to tell jokes?" I questioned, still trying to wrap my mind around such an absurdity.

"Yep." Sans nodded.

"Are you yanking my chain?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I don't quite have a leash for you yet…" Sans chuckled.

"You know what I meant," I huffed.

"What? Did royalty from the surface never take a break from their duties to just be people? Have some fun, let loose for a bit?" Sans asked.

"None that I've ever seen," I admitted. "All the royalty I've seen or met always acted regal, important… impossible to approach without the right credentials and such…"

"Sounds like humanity has gotten a lot worse since monsters were around," Sans remarked before glancing at me. "Sounds to me like they're a royal pain."

"Well, humans exist all over the world. I've only been in one small part of it," I admitted. "So I can't speak for all of humanity from my experience alone. But where I live, and the culture we have… it's not exactly easy if you aren't born with a certain amount of talent and skill… although, it's also not easy even if you were born with those things…" Kris is proof of that.

Sans sighed at that. "So humans continued to get greedier and greedier after they sealed us away, huh? Where only the rich and influential are allowed to gather up the valuable and powerful 'toys'?"

I wanted to argue against that, but he wasn't wrong. It was also the only life I really knew growing up, so it was difficult for me to tell there was something wrong until someone else pointed it out.

Sans frowned. "Makes me wonder what humanity did with the other monsters around the world… Hopefully at least some of them were lucky and got sealed away like us. Rather not think we're the last bastion of monsterkind in the world."

"There are other monsters outside of here?" I asked, surprised.

"Back in the day, at least from what I heard, monsters were as widespread as humans apparently are now," Sans explained. "What I'm saying is that those monsters in other parts of the world could've also been sealed away beneath a barrier, which would be preferable to them having been wiped out, or even worse enslaved, by humanity. Though considering you never heard of monsters outside of stories, I'm guessing the enslavement thing didn't happen, or if it did it was hidden."

I frowned. "If it is, it isn't known to the rest of the world. Unless I truly have been isekaied in a completely different world when I fell down here, and I know absolutely nothing about the surface."

"Well, there are easy ways to test if this is your world or not," Sans chuckled. "What year is it?"

I told Sans the year, to which he nodded. "Okay, now is today Giftmas Eve on the surface?"

"Yeah, it was December when I ran away to Mt. Ebott and fell," I answered. "Although I don't remember the exact day."

Sans nodded. "Is there a singular sun in the sky and a singular moon that orbits the planet?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

"And are there 9 planets, including this one, in orbit around the sun?" Sans questioned. "Two closer than us, one after us, then the gas giants? With Pluto at the end."

"Yeah, though Pluto hasn't been considered a planet these days," I answered.

"Dang, poor Pluto," Sans remarked. "Guess that means only 8 planets now."

"So far it sounds like this is my world, but… it could still be a world similar to mine. I mean I certainly didn't have the ability to look at my stats or HP, or look through menus before coming down here," I said.

"That's mainly cause you're in the presence of magic," Sans explained. "The barrier doesn't let anything of monsters out, including magic. So all that magic from monsters that have passed is still in the air."

Yeah, that's what Flowey said too. I sighed. I'm only hoping that there's a chance, however small, this is a new world, because if it isn't…

I imagined all the monsters here being crushed as the government destroyed the mountain. Though… maybe there would be some kind of miracle. To many, Mt. Ebott was a cursed place where no human was meant to walk. It's why there hadn't been any buildings put up in the area for who knew how long. Maybe someone would talk some sense into the royalty of the kingdom… maybe even Kris. But then again, maybe that was why the government wanted to destroy it. Destroy a threat, so it couldn't be a threat anymore… I just hope they'll be too scared to actually flatten the mountain… Maybe they'll think they'll release the full brunt of the curse…

But I couldn't rely on a miracle stopping them. I just hoped the Royal Scientist got my message and was thinking about what to do to save monsterkind. I… I would keep working hard to make my Soul stronger… just in case we might eventually need to use it as a last resort to get everybody out.

"Hey, don't look so glum and serious, Frizk," Sans spoke up. "That kind of look just invites trouble. Relax, it's Giftmas Eve, we should be having a good time during this day."

I nodded and gave a smile. "Yeah, you're right. No sense in worrying about the 'what ifs' and the future state of the world right now."

"Yeah, instead you should be worrying about what kind of toys Paps might get you~" Sans snickered. "Maybe some chew toys. I know he might give you a wrapped up bone."

"... I hope Papyrus doesn't actually expect me to chew on those. That would hurt my teeth…" I frowned.

"The bone you can probably just hide or bury," Sans responded. "The chew toys are usually those soft squeaky toys."

I wondered what it would be like to play with dog toys though… I would rather play video games, but it might be interesting to see what I could do with the chew toys.

"Whatever he gets you, try not to think too hard about it," Sans stated. "Dogs enjoy life more when they don't think about it."

"Heh, well I guess I should act more like a dog," I chuckled before frowning. "Oh… I just realized… I haven't gotten you or Papyrus anything."

"Paps will probably say your presence is your present to us," Sans replied. "Though for me, you got me the gift of having someone to keep Papyrus occupied. He can be a handful when he gets lonely and bored."

I gave Sans a small smile, though… I still had 342 gold when I fought with monsters, maybe I could at least spend them for a couple of gifts… maybe I should get one for the Royal Scientist too, as a 'thank you' for all the hard work she was doing for the Underground. Or maybe a 'sorry' gift for putting more pressure on her. Then again, she's the Royal Scientist… anything I get for her would be peanuts compared to what she would likely get…

"Don't worry about buying stuff for us," Sans firmly stated. "You're a kid and you should save up that money. That way you can get stuff you want or need. You may be living with us, but I haven't decided if I'm gonna give you an allowance just yet."

"I could get an allowance?" I asked. "Like the kids from TV shows?"

"You never got an allowance?" Sans questioned.

"Hmm… I guess I sort of got something like that, but not from my parents," I replied. Kris did try to give me some spending money when she could.

"Yeesh, well yeah, I'm considering giving you a monthly allowance," Sans answered. "To spend on what you want. Oh one thing I forgot to mention, school lunches are free to students."

"Really? That's good then," I said. I had to pay for my school lunches. "When do you leave for this party?"

"Some time in the afternoon," Sans replied.

"Ah, so I have until then to spend time with my bonely father~" I teased.

"SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANS!"

"Uh oh. You trigger Paps's pun sense," Sans remarked with a snort.

"Oh gosh, how does he do that?" I asked, also snickering.

"It's his superpower, he cringes whenever someone tells a pun," Sans answered. "The worse the pun, the more easily he can sense it."

"Then I guess I have a dry sense of humor, it should be buried with the rest of my skeleton." I grinned.

"One could say… bone dry~" Sans grinned back.

"STOP PLAGUING MY LIFE WITH YOUR BAD PUNS!" We heard Papyrus shouting from across Snowdin.

"We should probably stop," Sans chuckled. "Rather not get noise complaints from the neighbors again."

"Just one more," I begged.

"Alright, one more. Lay it on me," Sans said.

"You taught me how to make bone puns, I guess that makes you my bone daddy~" I smiled.

"OH MY GOD! STOPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP! SANS! STOP CORRUPTING THE CHILD WITH YOUR INFLUENCE!"

Papyrus busted down the front door, parts of it still hanging on the hinges, but the rest of it was in splinters on the floor.

"What can I say, Paps? She just likes jokes and puns as much as Tori does~" Sans winked.

"No! I forbid it! Frizk! You are forbidden from the cheap humor that is puns!" Papyrus proclaimed.

"Aww, come on, Papyrus, no need to get boned out of shape," I snickered.

"You… really should stop…" Sans whispered as Papyrus began to stomp his foot. "Otherwise you might not have a room to return to for a little while."

I snickered. "Alright, alright, I'll stop. I was just on a roll."

I could hear the floor creaking slightly with each stomp from Papyrus. After a little bit, he settled down.

"You done with your shopping, bro?" Sans asked.

"Well I was, brother, but now I must go get a new door…" Papyrus answered. "The things I purchased should be here by the time I get back with a new door. In the meantime…"

Papyrus stepped outside before a bone wall appeared where the door was. "That should hopefully keep out the cold!"

"Wow, I didn't know you could utilize your bone magic like that," I remarked, impressed.

"You can do all sorts of things with magic, Frizk, especially solid magic like bones! Nyeh heh heh heh~" Papyrus grinned proudly. Even though I couldn't see him, I could tell he was grinning.

"So is it like a door or more of a wall?" I asked.

"It's a wall," Sans answered. "But I can turn it orange if you need to go out."

"Of course I can do the same," Papyrus said. "Which is good considering you'll be gone for most of the day at the Giftmas party. However, I need to go purchase the new door! So I will go do that at once! Call me when you are about to leave, brother!"

"Will do," Sans replied.

Papyrus walked into the bone wall. He stepped back before turning the bones orange, then he moved through them, before the bones turned back to white.

The Giftmas party reminded me of what we were talking about before the subject got derailed.

"What's it like… having a party with royalty?" I asked.

"Not that much different from a normal party," Sans responded. "We aren't doing it in the ballroom or anything like that. We're just having a small party at their house. It's usually only 6 or 7 people there, two of them being the King and Queen."

"Huh, so it's a private party then?" I remarked.

"Yep," Sans confirmed. "It's one of the few times they use the addition they had built to their home. The separate dining room and living room."

It made me wonder what kind of job… or jobs… Sans had. Maybe I was thinking too much. After all, monsters seem to have a different culture than the one I grew up in.

"Well, I hope you have fun with them then." I smiled.

"Of course, it's usually a pretty good time all around," Sans replied. "I trust that you and Paps will be good while I'm gone. Oh, and one more thing, no training during Giftmas. Understood?"

"What? Why not?" I whined.

"Cause it's a holiday," Sans answered. "Even the Royal Guards need to take a break during that. Those on shift are the ones who already took their holiday break."

I pouted. "Alright, fine, no training during Giftmas."

"If I hear you did any training, I won't hesitate to get a leash and harness for you," Sans warned. "And I can tell if Papyrus tries to hide anything from me."

I sweatdropped at the warning. "Alright, alright, I get it. Jeez, no need to be such a stiff bo- I mean, don't worry so much, alright?"

"Sorry, kid, can't comply with that. My newest job is to worry about you," Sans pointed out.

I couldn't help but smile a little at that. "Well, thanks. But we'll be alright."

"Heh, at least Paps will have someone to spend Giftmas Eve with this year," Sans remarked. "Other than the monster kids near the tree."

Asria's POV

"It's almost time, the guests should be arriving soon," Dad said as we were in the kitchen, taking the freshly baked cookies out of the oven.

"I took care of final decorating in the living room and dining room," I informed, glancing at the door in the usual living room with Mom and Dad's chairs.

The door was usually concealed by magic when not in use. It went to a separate large living room connected to a large dining room, that way our house wouldn't become cramped.

Dad was wearing a red T-Shirt over his large body, and blue pants. It was rather casual for the king of monsters, but then again, he wasn't being the king right now. Mom was wearing a purple dress that was similar to the robes she usually liked to wear, only this one had the picture of a giant snowflake in the middle rather than the Delta Rune symbol. I wasn't allowed to wear my lab coat here, so instead, I wore an outfit that had been designed for me by a friend from Dunes.

She had an excellent sense of taste as she had designed a winter themed kimono with snowflakes, snowmen, and a serene blue sky. I always wore something fancy around holidays, as the parties I went to were always small and I knew who was coming. This kimono was brand new, though. It was designed by my friend and made by Muffet.

The doorbell rang, meaning the first guest was already here.

"Sounds like one of the guests got here a little early," Mom chuckled. "Asria, dear, why don't you answer it? I still have to get the cookies ready."

"Alright, Mommy!" I answered before I went to the door and opened it.

I smiled when I saw it was Alphys. Since she lived the closest to New Home, it made sense she'd be the first one here… well, other than one other guest, but I wasn't surprised he wouldn't be the first to show up.

"H-hey, Asria… Hello, your Majesties. I-I hope I didn't c-come too early this time," Alphys chuckled sheepishly, carrying a gift that looked like it may be a box.

The gift itself seemed to be wrapped up in some pink paper with an anime cat girl on it. I grinned, Alphys had kept that wrapping paper since we found it in the Dump a few years ago. Yet she decided to use that wrapping paper for a present this year.

"It's fine, Alphys, you are a bit early, but that just means you can help with the final preparations," I chuckled. "I'm sure Mommy would love having you help frost a few of the cookies. You were always a great artist."

"I-I'm not that good, but I appreciate that." Alphys blushed.

"When it comes to frosting, you are definitely quite talented, Alphys," Mom called out from the kitchen.

"Must be from all those times you made pancakes in the shape of Undyne's face~" I teasingly remarked.

"N-now's not the time to discuss that!" Alphys quickly said, her face turning red.

"Why don't you come on in and make yourself at home, Alphys?" Dad suggested before he walked over and placed a Giftmas hat on my head, the red one with a white pom at the top.

"T-thank you, your Majesty!" Alphys quickly said as she walked into the living room.

"Alphys, we've been over this, you can just call us by our names," Dad pointed out.

"In fact, this year it's an order!" Mom called out from the kitchen.

"Dang, you finally got her to use her queenly powers," I noted with a slight snicker.

"Uhhh… should I be worried?" Alphys chuckled sheepishly.

"You spend a lot of time with Asria, you're pretty much her best friend. You're practically family," Dad chuckled.

"Oh… you know… we just share a lot of similar interests, your Ma- I mean… Asgore," Alphys sheepishly replied.

"It's more than just common interests, dear," Mom said as she came out of the kitchen with a tray of cookies. "If your interests weren't already known, I might've tried playing matchmaker between the two of you~"

"MOMMY!" I loudly whined. "Like I've said a thousand times, I don't have any interests in dating! I'm still a young monster and I've got too much on my plate to even think about dating."

"Oh my gosh?" Alphys looked a little stunned before she smiled. "Toriel actually ships us? So that's what it feels like!"

"MOM, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" I exclaimed before groaning.

Alphys smiled. "Come on, Asria! You've always wanted to be shipped by someone, haven't you? Isn't it cool? Especially since we both have a list of shipping other mon-"

"No I haven't!" I huffed. "And my list of ships is just me trying to get you to talk to her! Though… tsunderplane and the drake might be good together…"

"I already talk to her though." Alphys pouted.

"But have you actually talked to her?" I questioned. "About your feelings?"

"A-Asria, please! There's too much going on for me to talk to her about that! Besides, she probably doesn't feel the same way," Alphys sighed.

Yeah… no. Everyone can see you both like each other. You are just… both so dense. I sighed to myself.

"Soooo… who did you ship yourself with?" Alphys grinned.

"Oh! Does Asria have an interest in someone?" Mom popped her head in from the kitchen to ask.

"Who would it be?" Dad questioned.

"I shipped myself with my work…" I huffed. How do these two even know what shipping is? Last I checked, Dad thought shipping was about actual boats. I glanced at the yellow lizard and narrowed my eyes a little. Alphys, what did you teach them?

"What? I just upgraded their phones… and by that, I mean completely replaced those old bricks with new phones," Alphys said when she saw my eyes narrowing at her. "What they did with those is out of my control."

I grumbled a bit more.

"Like I said, Mom and Dad, I don't have any interests outside of work right now," I firmly stated. "There's only a few monsters I am comfortable with, and they're pretty much spoken for. Sans isn't interested in relationships cause he's gotta take care of his brother, Alphys and Undyne are bound to be together, Muffet is… Muffet, and… well my friend in Dunes is… she's in a weird position with me…" Mainly because of… the DT tests…

"That is why we're hoping you'll step out of your comfort zone a little more for the New Years Ball this year," Dad said. "Even if it's not for dating, at least making a new friend would be good for you."

"That's unlikely…" I muttered. "The ball is the last place I'm gonna make a new friend…" All those eyes on me… all those people…

I visibly shivered.

"How about we don't think about that right now?" Alphys spoke up. "I brought some anime DVDs we could watch during the party. I picked the family friendly Giftmas specials of course. They're quite the classics! Oh, I should put my gifts under the tree."

"The tree's right over there, Alphys," Dad pointed out.

"Thank you, K- Asgore." Alphys smiled as she walked over to the decorated tree, placing the gift she brought down. "Now, about those cookies."

It was nice having Alphys over. She was the monster I was always the most comfortable to be with, mostly because I spent the most time with her. Because she was the former Royal Scientist before me, and is currently my assistant, it was difficult not to spend a lot of time with each other. Though it also made things harder when she blatantly ignored the signals Undyne gave whenever she was around.

I watched as Alphys began frosting the cookies, using different color combinations to really bring the cookies to life.

Then the doorbell rang again. The next guest was here. I went to answer, since I knew it was going to be someone I knew and was comfortable with.

"Coming!" I called out when I heard the doorbell ring again. Then again a second later. Must be Undyne.

Then the doorbell began to ring repeatedly until I opened the door.

"Hey, Undyne," I greeted before I even saw her, knowing that nobody else could get so… worked up while waiting for someone to answer the door.

"Hey, Princess Punk! About time you opened the door! I was just about to have a one-on-one battle with this door that was standing in my way!" The tall, humanoid fish spoke up loudly.

"I'm pretty sure this is the one door that would actually win the battle~" I chuckled. "Mom and Dad got a bit tired of you accidentally knocking down the door and got a magic door that is pretty much indestructible."

"Now that sounds like a challenge I'll have to take up one day! Fuhuhuhu!" Undyne smiled.

I rolled my eyes before patting the door. "You poor thing… I'm sorry I doomed you."

"Please don't challenge the door, I rather not have to ask Asria to make an actually indestructible door," I heard Mom grumbled.

"Oh, hey Toriel! I was just kidding, I'd only do that if the door challenged me," Undyne replied.

"Alphys is already inside," I informed before stepping out of the way, not wanting to get moved by Undyne.

"Then what are we standing around here for!? We're not garden gnomes!" Undyne all but yelled before she ran into the living room. "Hey, Alphys!"

"Ah!" I heard Alphys yelp. "H-hey, Undyne!"

I snorted. Poor girl got jumpscared. Still tempted to make Undyne an armor set that's designed around Mew Mew Kissy Cutie, just to break Alphys.

Undyne was a strange case for me. I tended to not like loud, hot headed types of people. Yet Undyne was one of my close friends. She wasn't someone I always hung out with, but she would visit Alphys's lab often when I was around.

At first, I wasn't all that comfortable when Undyne visited, but she pretty much took my cold shoulder treatment as a challenge to become my 'bestie'. Somehow… it worked. I couldn't explain how exactly, but Undyne managed to worm her way into my heart. She was also one of the three monsters who helped teach me how to fight with a weapon. The first two were Dad and Grampa Gerson. But Undyne eventually became my third teacher. She was definitely good at intense training.

Though when it came to Alphys, Undyne usually softened up around her. It was a rather strange duo, the two couldn't be anymore different from each other, yet they made the perfect match. I was more surprised Undyne hadn't just bluntly confessed her love to Alphys, since that seemed like an Undyne thing to do. But I guess even Undyne had a weakness when it came to certain topics.

"Oh, Gerson wanted me to let you all know that he wouldn't be coming this time," Undyne informed. "I saw him on the way here."

"Did he say why?" Dad asked, sounding disappointed.

"Something about some kind of new collection he's working on?" Undyne responded in an unsure tone.

"Even in retirement he still hasn't stopped working," Mom chuckled. "That sounds like him. Maybe he finally took on the challenge Asria set for him to create a museum."

I blinked. "When did I make that challenge?"

"When you were still quite young," Dad explained. "Gerson always brought trinkets over and explained the history of them and you told him that he should take all that knowledge and put it in, and I am quoting here, 'a big house for all the treasures'."

"Oh jeez…" I muttered, blushing slightly. How old was I? 20?

"And he took it personally." Undyne grinned.

"U-um… Undyne… where did you get that shirt?" Alphys asked.

I just noticed Undyne was wearing a black shirt with some kind of cool looking boy on it. The boy seemed… familiar, like I had seen them in an anime before. But I couldn't remember which anime at the top of my head.

"Do you like it?" Undyne smiled a genuine smile. "I asked Muffet to replicate this cool looking torn shirt I found in the Dump last week. I thought you might like it."

"Y-you definitely look really h-ho- c-c-cool in it, Undyne!" Alphys stuttered.

"Ahh… young love…" Mom hummed in the kitchen, which got both Alphys and Undyne flustered.

Before the conversation could continue, the doorbell rang again. I went to open it, and saw a tall humanoid spider monster standing there.

"Ahuhu, good evening, Dreemurrs. It seems I am fashionably late," The humanoid spider chuckled. "I did bring some donuts to eat if milk and cookies aren't enough of a treat. If you're too full, you can always save it for the next day, I don't mind~"

"Hey there, Muffet." I warmly greeted. "How have sales been since you brought down the prices and expanded to not only pastries and drinks but clothes as well?"

"Oh the sales have been through the webs, my dear~" Muffet smiled. "By mid spring this coming year, we should be able to afford that limo to help the spiders in Ruins to get out."

"The offer is still on the table to relocate them in style without getting a whole limousine for them," I chuckled softly. "Besides… not sure how a limo would get to Ruins when there's only two doors in and out. Unless the limousine is also spider sized, in which case… I should probably check who you're hiring cause you might be getting ripped off if you need all that gold."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about it, Asria. But I appreciate your offer. This just has been something I've been doing long before you were born, and I feel like I should see it through to the end," Muffet replied. "Call it a 'spider's pride'."

"Well at least let me take a look at the deal…" I softly pleaded. "I don't want you to spend all that hard earned money on something that should only cost half the price. You spiders are much too kind hearted to be taken advantage of."

"Like I said, don't worry so much, dearie. Your parents already agreed to help me out with this too," Muffet reassured me.

"That's good." I smiled. "Oh, by the way, I've made a new catalogue of human fashion and will have it sent to you before the ball. You should be able to make a killing selling cutting edge human fashion."

"Oho, you'll definitely need to show it to me before I leave~" Muffet grinned as she walked into the living room.

I was surprised that Muffet was carrying a present box in each hand, except the last one, being the box of donuts she mentioned.

Muffet set the presents down by the tree and joined in on the conversation with everyone else. Undyne, Alphys, and Muffet were here… Grampa Gerson wasn't coming today… so that just left one more monster.

"Yeah! Let's watch Santa Claus kill the zombies with his Giftmas spirit!" Undyne grinned.

"He doesn't kill them, he teaches them about Giftmas," Alphys explained.

"Oh… Then are we at least gonna watch the one where those three wicked spirits haunt the crooked old man who forces his employees to work on Giftmas?" Undyne questioned.

"That's called-" Alphys began to say when she was interrupted.

"I do believe we should watch the one with the spiders in it~" Muffet smiled.

"What kind of Giftmas movie has spiders as the main show? Isn't that more for Halloween?" Undyne questioned.

"How about we draw straws to decide what movie to watch?" Dad suggested.

"We could watch them all," I chuckled. "Though we can still draw straws to pick which one we watch first."

"Yeah! I like that idea!" Undyne grinned.

"Sounds good to me," Sans suddenly spoke up as if he was there all along.

I looked and saw Sans standing behind the couch in the holiday living room.

"Hey, Sans, glad you could finally join us." I greeted. "You were the last person to show up."

"Honestly, Sans, can't you just use the door like everyone else?" Mom grumbled. "I can't tell you how many dishes I ended up breaking because you suddenly showed up out of nowhere without warning."

"Sorry, Tori," Sans apologized. "Bad habits are hard to kick. I'll make sure to move the shortcut to just outside."

"I still hope you'll help me understand how that works at some point," I stated. "If I could somehow replicate your shortcuts with technology, that would solve so many transportation issues."

"It's a trade secret technique," Sans chuckled. "Anyways, I guess I'm the last one here, right? So let's get this party started."

The Giftmas party was going well. Alphys was eating popcorn and some cookies while watching a movie, Undyne was attempting to impress Alphys by lifting the entire couch Alphys, Sans, and Muffet were sitting on. Mom and Dad were having a nice chat together, Mom was sitting on an arm chair while Dad was sitting on a giant bean bag. While I wasn't much for social gatherings or parties, a small, private party with monsters I was comfortable with like this was always nice.

I was getting more food in the kitchen when Sans appeared before me.

"Hey, Asria," Sans greeted. "Figured I would talk to ya while we're practically alone."

"I get the feeling this isn't about what chips you want me to grab for you?" I guessed.

"Nah, I have plenty of popcorn to pick from. Chips are for later," Sans replied. "I figured that maybe I should wait until after the party, but chances are, you'll be doing your own thing tonight, and I wouldn't want to bother ya. So it's probably better to bring it up sooner rather than later."

I placed down the plate I was holding and looked at Sans. "Alright, then we can chat."

Sans and I decided to sit down on some seats in the kitchen.

"Well… I guess I should start with… Papyrus and I are watching over the new dog kid who came out of Ruins not too long ago. They didn't have anywhere to go, or anyone else to watch out for them, and they are pretty young to be taking care of themselves," Sans explained. "But even though they're still new to… the rest of the Underground, they've already got some pretty high ambitions. They're already thinking about joining the Royal Guard, and have been training with Papyrus almost non-stop for the past few days."

"Considering the Battle with Papyrus, I figured there was something going on between you guys and the Undocumented," I acknowledged. "Though… to think a kid is already considering the Royal Guard despite having emerged from Ruins not too long ago… they definitely need to learn more about the Underground. While I won't deny that it's a lofty goal, I will say maybe they should take a look at their other options. I mean they're still a kid, so they shouldn't choose their life path so quickly."

"That's what I thought too, but they seemed pretty determined about it," Sans sighed. "I get the feeling… the life they had before is what's pushing them to make this decision. But I can't just force them to pick a different path, that's more likely to have them rebel and push even harder. So… the best thing I can do is try to help them out the best I can. They're going to be starting school after the New Years Ball, and I'm hoping by then, they'll learn enough to pick something else to do in their life. They probably just don't know what they can do at the moment, and just see the Royal Guard as their best path."

"You might not be able to stop them from picking the Royal Guard, but perhaps you could help…" I paused, thinking of the human saying I heard in a recent show. "I think the humans say 'pump the brakes', as in slow down a little but not fully stop."

"Yeah… Papyrus said something similar, which is why I'm even doing this to begin with," Sans replied. "Anyways, do you remember the Junior Royal Guard program that we once had? Where some of the students can get chosen to be apprentices of some of the higher Royal Guards?"

"I… remember something of the like, yeah," I acknowledged. "It was like how the humans have boy scouts and girl scouts programs to help teach them skills that could help them to survive." Or, in the girl scout case, make really delicious cookies?

"Yeah… and you remember why it was… taken away?" Sans asked softly.

"There were a couple reasons," I acknowledged. "Drop in enrollment in the program leading to less and less numbers. People finding other interests than the Royal Guards and leaving the junior guard program. Though… I guess the biggest issue was the father of justice coming down and… well… Like the last human parent that fell, they weren't peaceful."

I saw Sans actually shudder. Though I could easily understand why he did. The first parent had apparently come down when Sans was still a child. Since it was so soon after Bravery's death, monsters hid the moment that the human was detected. The man made it all the way to the lab and apparently wreaked havoc. It was the Royal Scientist of the time who stopped that human, Sans's father.

"The Royal Guard tried to peacefully stop the man, and all was going well… until news of their child's death reached their ears…" I sighed. "The man lashed out… and… sadly one of the first targets of the man was a Junior Guard who had been helping to serve drinks and snacks to the man while he waited. I… think that was the first time Undyne actually… snapped a bit. Because she didn't just… kill the man from the nonpublic records that I've read… she… made him pay for killing a child inside Fort Rainfall."

"The saddest part is that both parties were equally to blame for that…" Sans sighed. "But the man was vilified for killing the child. He likely didn't know his strikes would've killed them. He was just lashing out of anger and grief when he found out about the death of his child."

"One of the few children who didn't live out their lives with Mom and Dad…" I softly sighed. "But… they followed their own sense of Justice to the very end and helped us obtain our 6th Soul. Too bad though, they would've made a great peacekeeper…"

"But even though that had happened a while ago now… I take it your parents are still against bringing back the Junior Royal Guard program?" Sans asked.

"I wouldn't know," I responded. "It hasn't been brought up in any official meetings, nor have we talked about it casually. I could try bringing it up. I can't say how they'll react, but… I don't think they'll react poorly."

"Yeah, let's hope not. Despite the incident, there are a lot of kids who want to become Royal Guards. It's not hard to imagine why, the kids admire them, especially the Captain," Sans chuckled.

"Royal Guards have been having a bit of a resurgence in popularity lately," I noted. "One or two good ad campaigns on MTT TV and I can almost guarantee a few dozen applicants for the program. Maybe I can finally convince Undyne to let Mettaton shoot a show about daily life for a Royal Guard. Mettaton has been looking for new material lately."

"Just get Alphys to help you with that," Sans chuckled.

"Hey, Alphys!" I called out. "Can I have a quick word with ya?"

"Uh… c-can it wait for like… 10 minutes? This is the emotional payoff!" Alphys called back.

"Yeah, it can!" I chuckled loudly. "I'll just be decorating these Mew Mew Kissy Cutie shaped cookies in the meantime!~"

"No faaaair!" Alphys whined.

"There is one more thing I'd like to ask you before we bring Alphys here," Sans said. "Is there… any possible way, theoretical or not, for someone to… disguise their Soul?"

"What do you mean?" I asked. "That's not really something that gets brought up."

"I suppose not, there hasn't been any real reason to," Sans admitted. "But let's say… a monster wanted to disguise their Souls around humans, pretending to have a human Soul as well. Or say a human wanting to disguise their Souls to look like a monster Soul. Would such a thing be possible?"

I raised a brow before giving it some thought. While it wasn't something I thought of doing before, it was something that was similar to one of the projects to break the barrier that I had been working on. I had been hoping to find a way to simulate a 7th human Soul to try and break the barrier. With… quite a bit of reworking, I could potentially come up with something that made one's Soul appear inverted to its normal state. Though if a human were the one to use it… I would also have to make that Soul appear white, as monster Souls didn't have any color.

"I… can try, but I make no promises," I replied. "It'd probably just be easier to whip up something that stopped a Soul from being brought out to where it could be seen."

"That was the next thing I was gonna ask you if the first one was too tough," Sans admitted.

"Hmm… Sans, is there something going on that you don't want to tell me?" I asked. "It's just these questions seem a bit… too specific to just be out of curiosity. And I don't take Papyrus for the type who would want to keep his Soul hidden or disguise it. Is there something wrong with that Undocumented child?"

Sans didn't give a response at first, which was already concerning. Then he gave a sigh. "Something like that… their Soul isn't exactly… normal among monsters. They're worried it's going to cause problems if someone brought them into a Soul Fight or a Battle. Which, as you know, is fairly common among children at school."

I furrowed my brows a bit at that, running through the different possibilities of how this child's Soul could be different. I had heard of very very astronomically rare cases where a monster's Soul was somehow a color despite being a monster Soul or having a strange orientation because of a weird way or circumstance they were born in.

Hell, I knew of one monster race that moved to the far reaches of the Underground that had Souls that would invert every full moon. Those monsters were the basis of the human's werewolf mythology. Though unlike the myth, the monsters were normally werewolves and would become 'human' on the night of a full moon, even without direct access to the moon. Since this Undocumented child was a canine monster, maybe they were related to those types of monsters. Or some kind of… branch, considering the human-like face.

"Asria, are you lost in your thoughts again?" Sans asked.

"Yeah, I am, I'm just trying to think about what circumstance we might be working with," I explained. "Before I make this for you, I have a few more questions. Does the kid have any level of magic?"

"The kid doesn't seem to be able to use any magic, or their magic is still dormant," Sans answered.

That was already intriguing. Most monsters would be able to use some kind of magic even at the age of infancy. Even monsters that have trouble using magic would still show some level of magic before the age of 30. The Undocumented Child looked like she was in her early 70s at least.

"Do they show any signs of growth or does she seem like she's just been getting by?" I asked. "By that I mean does it appear if she was raised or does it look like she's been fending for herself within Ruins? Easiest way to tell is if she has a high or low HP."

"She did talk about having parents before," Sans admitted. "Though she didn't say much about her life before leaving Ruins. She is currently at LV1 with only 20 HP."

"As would be expected of a- I'm sorry, did you say 20HP?" I questioned when that info finally sunk in. "So while she had parents, she might not have known them for long… Otherwise her HP would've naturally been higher. Unless… she was somehow cut off from the magic of her parents from birth? That would possibly explain the lack of current magic…"

I stood up and began to pace a little as I thought this over. So I could try to create something to protect this kid from unwarranted fights, make it so she has to consent to a Soul Fight or Battle… Though… maybe I should also make it so that it draws in excess magic particles from the air to try and help kickstart her magic and help her HP go up?

"Sans, how would you feel if I made something that helped the kid to absorb magic from the air?" I questioned. "It could help them gain the ability to use magic."

"Well…" Sans looked hesitant, which was odd since that would help any monster child that had their growth stunted from the lack of magic from their parents.

"I would make sure it starts off incredibly slow," I assured Sans. "Even monsters are susceptible to the addictive sensation of suddenly or quickly gaining a chunk of power. I wouldn't want the poor kid to grow up to be a murdering psychopath cause they learned that gaining power feels good."

"That's not what I'm worried about, although I am thankful for you reassuring me that the kid wouldn't get addicted to it," Sans said. "It's just… I don't know how something like that will affect them because of their… unique biology."

Sans looked like he was trying to think of something else to say. "How should I put this… I don't know enough about the kid to know if something like that is safe for them."

"Sans, even if they were human, it would be safe for them," I pointed out. "Any being is capable of magic as long as they have the will and knowledge to use it. Though if you're really unsure, I can start with just the device to stop them from being brought into Fights and Battles against their consent."

"Yeah, okay. I think the kid would like a chance to try to awaken their own magic and raise their HP themselves before getting help to do that," Sans replied. "Though… if you can make something to attach to the first device, I won't turn you down. That way I can just stick it on if I see them needing it."

"Okay…" Alphys spoke up as she walked into the kitchen. "The emotional scene is done. What did you need me for?"

"I need your help with convincing your girlfriend," I stated with a teasing smile.

"She's not my girlfriend!" Alphys quickly stammered.

"Not yet~" I snickered softly. "Though in all seriousness, I would like your help with convincing Undyne of something."

Alphys raised an eyebrow. "What exactly do I need to convince Undyne to do?"

"Well Mettaton has had something on his wishlist for a while, and Sans asked me to talk to Mom and Dad about something, and I figure why not tackle both problems at once?" I began to explain. "I want to convince Undyne to let Mettaton shoot his 'Daily Life of a Royal Guard' show, one he's been asking me to help him get approved for a while. If we get the show improved, the Royal Guards' popularity should skyrocket. With their popularity skyrocketing, I could make a case to Mom and Dad about reinstating the Junior Guard program."

"Oh, I see… has Mettaton ever talked to Undyne about it himself?" Alphys asked.

"Of course he has," I responded. "But Undyne being Undyne replied that she didn't want his cameras around her fort. If you talk to her, though, I'm sure she would be willing to work out a compromise with Mettaton."

"B-but if Undyne didn't want Mettaton to film around her fort, w-what makes you think I-I could do any better at c-convincing her?" Alphys timidly asked.

"Aww, come on, Alphys, couldn't you just throw a bone at the angry fish?" Sans chuckled.

"You could also try and help explain to her that it could help her with her dwindling recruit rate down the line," I informed, knowing that the recruitment rate for new Royal Guards had been quite low lately, despite the slowly growing resurgence in popularity.

"Uh… I-I mean… I could at least… mention it to her," Alphys answered. "W-would that… uh… s-suffice? I c-can't promise anything though…"

"It's good to not make promises you can't keep anyways," Sans remarked. "All we ask is that you try to talk to her."

"Though if you somehow manage to succeed, I'll let you get first dibs on whatever Sans got us in the most recent restock of our special research supplies," I offered, knowing that giving Alphys an incentive would help her. "I'll also cook a new human dish for you myself. Using the ingredients from Garden."

Alphys gave a look of interest. "... Well… when you put it that way…"

Alphys walked out of the kitchen for the moment. "Undyne, can I talk to you in the kitchen?"

I chuckled and looked at Sans. "Mind bringing us back to the couch so my assistant can complete her mission?~"

"Yep." Sans smiled before looking at Alphys. "Good luck."

Chapter Text

DarkFoxKit: It's been really hot lately.

Darkzdragon: Tell me about it… I feel like I'm melting up here near Chicago. I went shopping earlier today and it was 100 degrees. It's hotter here than in FLORIDA.

DarkFoxKit: Gotta love summer, am I right?

Darkzdragon: *Grumbles in 'Extreme Heat Warning'* Stupid heat wave… On the bright side, my AC unit was serviced before summer so I know it isn't gonna give out on me unless something suddenly breaks. And if that happens… well I have a friend at an HVAC company who will drop everything to help.

DarkFoxKit: It's a miserable experience to have no working AC during the summer time. You might as well leave the house and go somewhere else.

Darkzdragon: I hear Antarctica is great this time of year :P

DarkFoxKit: Heh. Yeah, I'll bet it is. Anyways, I guess we've rambled on long enough, let's go ahead and get into the chapter.

Chapter 9: Presents

Frizk's POV

It was just Papyrus and me for Giftmas Eve. Sans said he had a 50/50 chance of spending the night with the royals. That was fine with me, I usually spent my Christmas Eves and Days at home anyway, in my room. Sometimes I would get some neat presents from Kris, and even my parents if I was lucky.

But this was the first time I was spending Christmas away from everyone I knew. I wasn't sure if monsters celebrated Christmas the same way as humans did, or at least the ones I knew. Papyrus, like he said he would, quickly got a replacement for the front door. That was something that would've taken my parents days if not weeks to do if they had a 'quick fix' or 'temporary solution' in the meantime.

"It is time, Frizk!" Papyrus exclaimed from the kitchen while I was in the living room. "It's time we show off our gingerbread creations!"

Over the past hour, Papyrus and I had been working on gingerbread creations. He said that Sans used to do this with him and that was a tradition he wanted to experience with me.

I was thankful that Papyrus bought the gingerbread at the local store rather than trying to bake it himself. The gingerbread creations were already cooked, we just had to carve them, shape them, and decorate them.

"Alright, I'm ready, Papyrus!" I called back.

I put a rag over the tray of gingerbread cookies I had been working on, and picked up the tray before walking towards the kitchen. When I entered the kitchen, I looked around for the small rag-covered creation of Papyrus. But instead I saw a large cloth covered shape beside Papyrus. It was just as tall as he was, maybe even a little taller.

"Want to show yours first or see mine first?" Papyrus asked.

Since I knew Papyrus was likely gonna go overboard with his creations, it was in my best interest to be the 'opening act'.

"I'll go first," I answered. "I remember only doing a gingerbread creation a few times at school when I was very little. So my creations may be a bit crude."

"Nonsense! As long as you put in your effort, whatever you made is a masterpiece!" Papyrus exclaimed. "And anything beats the last time I got Sans to participate. He made an 'unpainted gingerbread road'. It was just a sheet of gingerbread without any decorations. Not even any frosting!"

I couldn't help but laugh. That sounded like Sans, and a… creative way to make something without actually making something.

"Alright, here are my creations," I said before slowly taking off the rag on my tray.

"Oh? You made multiple? I can't wait to see!" Papyrus excitedly replied before I pulled the rag off the rest of the way.

I had some flower shapes, crudely carved as they were. I colored them with different colored frosting. There were some star shaped, I mostly used yellow and white frosting for those. And the last few were in the shape of a cartoon heart. I colored one red, and the other pink. In retrospect… maybe I should've put the heart shaped cookies upside-down, and used white frosting instead, since they looked a little too much like 'human Souls'. Though in my defense, I didn't know Souls looked like cartoony little hearts until very recently.

"Wow, you put in a lot of effort!" Papyrus noted as he looked over what I made before pointing at the star-shaped cookies I carved out of the gingerbread sheet. "What are those?"

"These are stars," I answered.

"What an interesting shape!" Papyrus exclaimed. "I always thought they were just colorful little spheres! To think that the sky is filled with these strangely shaped stars!"

"Well… these are more… uh…"

I paused when I saw the twinkling expression in Papyrus's eyes.

I… don't think I can break his poor heart by telling him the truth… I thought to myself. That's what school is for.

"Well, they're probably not the most accurate representation, but yeah," I said, coming to a compromise.

"Ohhh, so they're just what you think the stars look like? I thought that with you living in Ruins, you might've seen the stars through the hole the humans drop from," Papyrus responded.

"It's hard to see what stars look like from far away," I explained before glancing outside. "I'm sure even with that sky up there, you can't really see the stars as anything more than a twinkling light."

Papyrus had a thoughtful look before nodding. "I guess that makes sense. If they were close, the world would be really hot. The poor humans on the surface would need so much sun block!"

That would be an understatement. I sweatdropped. "But yeah, I just did the little decorations. I got into the zone though, and wanted to make more."

I felt my costume's tail wagging a little. I was a little embarrassed, while Sans did a great job at syncing the costume's tail up with me, it got a little difficult to hide how I was feeling.

"Well what you did is excellent!" Papyrus smiled. "Now then, are you ready to see what I, the Great Papyrus, have made?!"

I grinned. "Show it to me, Papyrus, I can handle it!"

"Let me introduce you to the Great Cookiepyrus!" Papyrus exclaimed before he removed the cloth covering what he made, showing off… well… him but made of gingerbread and frosting. It was so detailed that… I wondered how he managed to get all of it done in the hour we had taken.

"Wow!" I was actually impressed and blown back a little from it. "That's amazing, Papyrus! It looks so lifelike!"

"Nyeh heh heh heh! The Great Papyrus has done it! I have impressed you, Frizk!" Papyrus smiled.

"I'll say, you could enter this thing in a competition and you'd win hands down!" I replied, staring at the 'Great Cookiepyrus'.

"I might have to do just that!" Papyrus beamed. "Tomorrow's tomorrow, as in the 26th, Queen Toriel will be holding a gingerbread competition at the castle! The winner gets a bunch of gold and a prize of free cooking and baking classes for a year with her!"

I still didn't know much about the queen, but it sounded like she was… at least a decent person. She seemed to like Sans, and comedy.

"Do you have to have some kind of qualification to enter that competition?" I asked. "I mean it's being held by royalty after all."

"Nope!" Papyrus beamed. "Anyone can join. Though the catch is you have to create something fresh and can't just bring in what you already made. Though you can recreate it. Maybe you should come and watch! Or possibly even participate!"

"Ah… nah, my creations wouldn't stand a chance in a competition," I sheepishly said.

"Come on, Frizk, you need to have more confidence in your skills!" Papyrus replied. "And maybe if you did win, you could ask the Queen to find a spot for you in the Waterfall school?"

Haaaah… me talking to the Queen? Asking her for something? That sounds like quite the funny joke. I cynically thought to myself.

"Besides, Frizk, it would allow me to show you around New City and show you where the school is," Papyrus offered. "And we could also go clothes shopping for you."

"I don't mind going with you to the competition, but I rather not participate in it myself," I said. "I… have… a lot of anxiety when it comes to competitions."

"Well… I won't force you if you don't feel like you're ready," Papyrus softly said. "However, I ask that you try to keep an open mind?"

I gave Papyrus a small smile. "Of course, Papyrus. And… you mentioned something about clothes shopping?"

"Indeed!" Papyrus nodded. "While not all monsters wear clothes, I figured that going to at least look for clothes that might fit you could be a fun activity. You might enjoy wearing clothes over your fur."

Ah… I blinked as I looked down at my costume.

While I was wearing my normal clothes under the costume, I wasn't wearing any clothes on the costume itself. I must've appeared like a naked monster to everyone else. Come to think of it, even the dogs at least wore armor.

So I practically walked around in the nude in front of all these monsters for the past 4 or so days since I've been here… That's totally not mortifying at all… I grumbled. Although I worry if I wear too many things, I'll start to get really hot if I go anywhere outside of Snowdin… Still, it would be really weird to show up at school naked.

"You're right… I guess I was just used to not having to wear clothes in Ruins that I never thought about getting any," I said.

"Then that is what we shall do before the competition!" Papyrus beamed. "There are many options for clothing. Though the highest quality clothing is unfortunately out of budget unless one of us wins the competition. It is made by the Spider Queen, Muffet, who uses only top quality spider silk to create nigh-indestructible clothing. Heck, some of the outfits are indestructible as she lowered them into magma, left them there for an hour, then pulled them back up to show nothing had happened to them."

"That's… quite the powerful thread then," I replied. Spider Queen? I guess there are spider monsters, I remembered seeing them in the Ruins. I also bought some of their donuts and ciders. "Well, I don't need anything high quality, I'm just good with a t-shirt and… maybe some pants."

"Well we will see," Papyrus responded. "Oh and while Muffet is the spider queen, she only rules over the spiders. To everyone else, she's just another monster with a great taste in fashion and quite skilled with making food."

"Heh, you know, if you do win this gingerbread competition, perhaps getting some lessons from the two queens would make your great spaghetti so great it would be out of this world~" I grinned. Or at the very least, edible.

"And perhaps you could learn something as well!" Papyrus beamed. "Now then, shall we go watch some movies while enjoying our gingerbread creations? I'll let you eat my head!"

"Eat your head?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Yes! But you must first pass one trial in order to do so~" Papyrus grinned. "You must be able to cut the head off!"

"Cut… the head off… myself?" I blinked.

"Indeed!" Papyrus confirmed. "While we might not be able to train, you can at least show how your skills have been improving! Sans can't complain, since you're just helping to cut the dessert!"

"Well, I only have a toy knife and that may not be good enough to cut through thick gingerbread," I remarked. "Do you have a cookie cutter or something I can use?"

Papyrus shook his head. "As long as you have the desire to cut the head off, it doesn't matter what you use. You could use a piece of crumpled up paper and still cleanly cut the head off."

"Seriously?" I blinked.

"Nyeh heh! Of course. It's made of monster magic, meaning it works on the same principle as fighting an actual monster," Papyrus explained. "And this way, we can work on your precision without actually hurting anyone."

I've said it once, and I'll say it again, monster food is weird. I thought to myself, and I thought, for just a moment, I heard a very faint echo of a child's laughter.

"You can also learn of the different types of weapon attacks available to you," Papyrus added. "For the toy knife, you can slash with the blade, stab with the tip, and bash with the side of the blade or the top. In this case, you'll be wanting to focus on slashing."

"Okay," I said as I took the toy knife out of my inventory.

"You know, I couldn't help but notice how you're able to make the toy knife appear and disappear, despite not having any magic," Papyrus remarked.

"I wouldn't call it magic…" I said. "More like pulling it out of a bag and putting it back in when I'm done with it."

"It still is magical," Papyrus chuckled. "Some monsters are capable of doing the same without actually using magic. The King can summon this amazing trident! And the Queen has a few different options of weapons, though most commonly she is seen with her staff whenever she trains. The Captain of the Royal Guard has mastered spears while the Lieutenant specializes in both swords and spears."

"Really? Huh… I guess I never thought about it that way," I said as I looked at the toy knife.

"I think the former Royal Scientist actually used a crossbow whenever she was required to show her combat capabilities," Papyrus added. "I usually summon a bone, though I do have one other weapon. However my secondary weapon does take quite a bit of effort and energy to summon and maintain, so you likely won't see it for some time."

"Maybe you can show it to me at some point, because now you have me curious about it," I replied.

Papyrus gave a thoughtful look before smiling. "Very well. If you impress me, I shall show you my secondary weapon! Perhaps I'll even show you my secret move!~"

"Would that be your special attack then?" I grinned.

"Nope! My secret move is one that is surprisingly inspired by Sans," Papyrus answered before clasping his mouth. "Forget I said that!"

Well now I'm really curious. But maybe Papyrus can show it to me during our next training session. Until then, guess I'll wait for the surprise. I chuckled. "Alright, let's see if I can cut the head off."

I looked at Cookiepyrus.

"Focus on the idea, the desire, to cleanly slice the head off," Papyrus instructed. "Guide your thoughts and energy into the toy knife. When you feel you are ready, strike."

Okay… here goes! I ran at Cookiepyrus and struck at the base of the neck.

The toy knife… bounced off of the Cookiepyrus. "Uh…"

"Your aim was good, Frizk, but your intent was… not in the proper mindset," Papyrus explained. "You need to focus. Think of it… like a game, where you're charging up your attack. And think of you being able to cut through the gingerbread with one strike!"

I looked at Cookiepyrus again. I tried to slice through its head once more, but the toy knife bounced off.

"You must have faith in yourself, Frizk," Papyrus said after the second failure. "You must be confident that you can do things if you try. If you already think you're going to fail at anything you try… then I must put into question your desire to join the Royal Guard. If you think you cannot do it, then why set yourself up for the failure?"

I frowned as I looked at Cookiepyrus again. "Well… it's not that I don't think I can do it, Papyrus, it's just… how can I bring myself to cut down such a cute skeleton?"

"I appreciate the flirt, Frizk, but please do try to be serious," Papyrus responded. "Humor and flirting can be good for dodging stress, but this is one situation you must face head on if you hope to succeed in the Underground."

"I was being serious…" I sighed. "It's just… looking at it, it looks like you, Papyrus. Trying to come up with the intent to cut it down feels like I'm trying to cut you down…"

"You aren't cutting it down," Papyrus informed. "You aren't cutting me down. You are simply cutting a dessert so that we may both enjoy it. It does not have a life to it. While I cherish your concern, you can't live life in a constant state of worry."

Heh, tell that to my dad… I humorlessly chuckled.

"Okay," I said. "I think I've got it now."

"Before you try again, take a deep breath and focus," Papyrus instructed. "This may even help you learn magic later on. Center yourself and gather your thoughts."

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I focused on the gingerbread creation before me. I will be able to cut this big dessert, and Papyrus and I will be able to enjoy it together. You're not going to stand in my way anymore.

I gripped the handle of the toy knife and ran forward. With a bit of a battle cry, I cut through the neck of Cookiepyrus with one, swift strike. The toy knife cut through it like hot butter.

After a moment, the head slid off of the body, and landed on its hand.

"Goodness, Frizk!" Papyrus exclaimed before looking at me with a huge smile. "That was amazing! To think you have such a hidden strength within you! Just look, you even managed to nic the wall behind Cookiepyrus!"

"Wait, what?" I asked before I looked at the wall behind Cookiepyrus.

Sure enough, there was a very small cut on the wall.

"Wow… how did that even happen?" I blinked.

"Because you didn't set a backstop for the attack," Papyrus exclaimed. "A strong enough attack will continue until it runs out of energy unless a stopping point is set in the mind of the monster using the attack. It's how many tunnels have been dug over time. Strong monsters are able to even control the shape and direction of the strike, so one could create a spherical tunnel by striking the stone, or they could create a spiral. Some monsters even use attacks in non-combat ways because they can control the shape their attack takes."

I wonder if my attack seemed strong because I'm human? I wondered with intrigue. The books did mention humans were stronger than monsters, so that could've played a role in that… I'll have to keep that in mind if I ever had to fight someone for real.

"Thanks for the lesson, Papyrus, though we should probably save the rest for later. Sans might get mad if he knew what we were doing right now," I chuckled sheepishly.

"True," Papyrus acknowledged. "Now, would you like some milk with your gingerbread head? And would you like me to warm it up at all? The cookie. Though I guess I could do the same with the milk if you wanted it."

"Huh… you know, I've never had warm milk before. I'd like to try it." I smiled.

"Then I shall warm up some milk for you." Papyrus smiled. "But what about the gingerbread head? Would you like that warmed as well?"

"Yes, please. And what about my gingerbread cookies? You wanna eat those too?" I asked.

"That would be lovely!" Papyrus beamed.

I found myself waking up from sleep. I didn't realize I had fallen asleep, or when I did. I was lying on the couch, and slowly sat up. I didn't see Papyrus, but I saw I had a blanket on me. Papyrus must've put the blanket on me when I had fallen asleep. I was… embarrassed I fell asleep without noticing like that, I didn't intend to fall asleep either. But… it also felt nice. Papyrus was such a caring person… I wouldn't mind officially being adopted into this family.

I realized I should probably head down into my room, I needed to brush my teeth and take a shower before I went to bed for the night. I rubbed my eyes to try to get the grogginess out of it, and stood up from the couch. However, as I was getting closer to the door, since that was where I had to go to get downstairs, I heard a bit of a commotion coming from outside.

Curious, I opened the front door a little to take a peek outside. Since it was night, the sky above was currently dark, so it was hard to see. Thankfully, my eyes were already adjusted to the dark, so I was able to make out something.

"How are you liking the sleigh so far, Santa?~" A soft, feminine voice giggled in the near distance.

"It is very lovely, and it gets us to where we need to be at quite the good time, my little helper~" A deep yet gentle voice replied.

I squinted my eyes to try to get a better look. I stuck my head out of the door.

"I'm glad you like it~" The feminine voice giggled again. "Me and my helpers worked on it throughout the year to perfect the design and performance of it. And the reindeer were the perfect final touch~"

"You did well with the reindeer, my adorable little helper~" The deep, gentle voice replied with a chuckle.

By now, I slowly stepped out of the door to see who were out there. I was able to make out a large figure in the dark. They were huge, so much so that they were as tall as the decorated Giftma Tree in the middle of Snowdin. It looked like they had a pair of large horns on their head. But I also saw they were wearing a big, red and white suit, and a large Christmas, or I guess Giftmas, hat over their head.

What…? Is that supposed to be… the monster version of Santa Claus? I blinked, not sure at what I was seeing.

I saw someone else moving next to the… monster Santa, they were a lot smaller, shorter. They were wearing… kinda like a Japanese version of Santa's normal attire. Instead of a red coat with white fuzz, the smaller being was wearing a red kimono with white fuzz accents.

Strange, I was expecting an elf to be Santa's helper, not a… Japanese child. Though it was possible they weren't meant to be an elf, but a second lesser-Santa.

"Oh? Seems like a naughty little child is still up~" The feminine voice chuckled before glancing my way. "Go back to sleep now, little one, you will receive your presents come morn~"

I saw the face of the female voiced figured, or… perhaps not. They seemed to be wearing a mask, one that appeared to be in the design of a fox. It seemed to have a small shine to it and looked quite solid. It looked quite beautiful and graceful, especially in the moonlight. Though I was still squinting my eyes to make sure I was able to see some details on the fox mask. I wondered if there was a fox monster behind that mask. Though I guess it would've been redundant to wear a fox mask. I couldn't see the rest of their head though, as they were wearing a hood that only allowed the mask to be seen.

Then again, I wasn't really sure what I was looking at in the first place. Apparently there was a monster version of Santa Claus, and a Japanese fox… smaller 'Santa' in the Underground. Or maybe I was dreaming, this definitely felt surreal.

"Shoo shoo, off to bed," The female fox-Santa said. "Unless you want to receive a piece of coal instead of a gift?~"

Seems they also use the child story version of Santa Claus too. I noted. Though I shouldn't be standing out here in the cold for too long anyways.

I just gave a silent wave to the female fox-Santa before I went back into the nice, warm house. I still wasn't fully convinced that it wasn't a dream though. Maybe I should wait until tomorrow morning to take a shower, and just plop on my bed.

Asria's POV

I glanced at the skeleton brother's house.

"That child, I believe they were the Undocumented," I remarked before I glanced at Dad through the mask I was wearing to help hide my identity. "We should make sure to leave a present for them."

"Oh? The new monster who recently moved out of Ruins, correct?" Dad replied. "What's their name?"

"I'm… not sure…" I muttered. "I never asked Sans."

"Ah… well, I'm sure we can put a dog sticker on the present to indicate it's theirs," Dad suggested. "The other K9 Units know to only take the presents with their own names on them."

I nodded. "That's a good idea. Once we place down the group gifts, do we want to drop off any front door gifts? Or are we just piling them up out here?"

"We can do a few door gifts, especially for monsters that can't move around as easily," Dad replied.

"Oh, that reminds me, I should go run over a present to Snowman," I remarked. "I'll go do that while you drop off the door gifts. Then we can move onto Waterfall."

"Thank you very much, my little helper~" Dad smiled. "Meet me back at the tree once you're done."

I nodded and reached into the present bag before grabbing a present for the Snowman. I figured that with his lack of movement, he might want something that would let him see the other parts of the Underground. I also knew that some kids liked to mess with him, so I made sure to make it theft and tamper free.

"Hello, Mr. Snowman," I greeted after I made my way to him, knowing that he never slept. "I come bearing a Giftma gift from Santa."

"Oh me, oh my," Snowman replied in a surprised tone. "I didn't expect to get anything from Santa! This is such an honor!"

I smiled before I brought over the present. "Inside is a device to let you see other areas of the Underground. It doesn't need batteries as it absorbs magic from the air. Only you can use it, and if anyone tries to take it from you, they'll get a nasty, but nonlethal, zap."

"Oh my, thank you so very much. Maybe that request my new friend sent is finally going through," The snowman said in a cheerful tone.

"A request?" I questioned before shaking my head, knowing my mask wouldn't come loose. "No, Mr. Snowman, this isn't about the request. Was the request for the help of the Royal Scientist perchance?"

"Yes, though I didn't want to bother the Royal Scientist," Snowman answered.

"Ahh, well I'm sure the Royal Scientist will help when they can." I assured with a chuckle. "While they are trying to help all of monsterkind, they also try to help individual monsters. So I'm sure a request from you won't be a bother. Though I would give them some time, as even Royal Scientists take the holidays off."

"Of course. I am a patient snowman, I don't mind waiting. It's nice just to have my voice heard," Snowman replied with a smile. "I'm happy to have made a new friend, and this wonderful present. Thank you so very much."

"You are very welcome," I softly chuckled. "Though before I go, do you need help opening the present? I don't want to give you a wrapped box that you can't open."

"That would be most appreciated," Snowman answered. "It might be different if I had wooden sticks for hands, but alas, I'm only the head and body of a snowman."

I gave a thoughtful look at that. "Would any sticks work if I add them to your body? Or do you need specific sticks?"

"Any sticks work, as long as they are long enough to stick out of my body. My magic can turn them into arms and hands," Snowman answered.

"Then give me just a moment." I smiled as I placed down the gift in front of the Snowman before going into the nearby trees to find suitable sticks.

I looked around a bit to find the perfect sticks, and once I found them I returned to the Snowman.

"Are these good?" I asked. "I made sure to get slightly longer sticks not just because they need to be stuck in your body, but because I figured you can't exactly bend down."

"Yes, those should be perfect," Snowman replied. "I appreciate your thoughtfulness and consideration."

"You are very welcome." I smiled before I walked over and helped give Snowman his new arms before handing him the present. "I should be going now, but I'm glad I was able to help. If someone takes away your arms or does other mean things to you, please let the Royal Guard know. Just because you're a snowman doesn't mean you're any less a monster than anyone else down here."

"You are too kind. You remind me of my new friend." Snowman smiled as he moved his new arms around a little before he took the present from me. "Have a Merry Giftma."

"To you too." I smiled behind my mask before waving goodbye.

I headed back to Snowdin, and saw Dad by the Giftma tree. He was humming a tune.

"I'm back, Santa," I greeted as I skipped over. "I helped not only deliver the present but give Snowman a pair of arms."

"Oh that is so kind of you, my little Claus~" Dad smiled. "I finished putting all the gifts under the tree, as well as delivered some at the door steps. We should move on to Waterfall now, unless there's anything else we need to do here before we move on to the next area?"

"Have you been checking your list?" I questioned. "Did you make sure to deliver all the presents?"

"Of course, I've checked it twice, like always," Dad replied. "Is there anything else you'd like to do though?"

I shook my head. "Nope, we're on a schedule. Thankfully it seems we're a little ahead right now."

"Then let's get back on the sleigh," Dad suggested. "If we finish early, we may be able to treat ourselves before heading home."

"Oooh, sounds fun~" I smiled before getting back into the sleigh.

Dad and I finished delivering all the presents to all the monsters in the Underground, or at least the ones we could get to. I was pretty tired when we made it back home. I had hoped we would finish early since we had such a good start at Snowdin, but Hotland was experiencing a rise in magma geysers tonight, so it took a little while to get our sleigh safely across Hotland, and that ended up putting us behind schedule. Thankfully New City was the first location we hit up before going to the rest.

I had all but passed out as soon as I flopped on my bed.

Huh… I found myself staring at the door looming over me, the door closest to the stairs. I always passed it by without question, but… why?

"You know Mommy and Daddy says not to go into that room, right?"

I frowned as I looked at a human girl who was floating beside me. The human girl had long black hair, her eyes were green, she wore a green dress, and pink stockings. Though she wasn't… a real human, she was just a friend of mine that I would talk to from time to time, though nobody else could see or hear her.

But why? I pouted. Is there… danger inside?

"I don't think so, but… I think this room just holds something painful for Mommy and Daddy," My ghostly friend replied softly.

If it hurts them, why keep it? I asked. If it hurts, get rid of the hurt… right?

"Because it's also important to them," My friend answered. "Just like I was when I was alive. And just like you are now to them."

I frowned again. Then… should I just… go?

My friend floated up to the door, and seemed to be thinking. "You're… what… 17 years old now?"

Yeah… I answered softly, or more accurately silently, with a nod.

"That means you're about 5 or 6 years old in terms of human age," My friend noted. "Hmm… I guess maybe you're old enough to at least see it. I don't want you to get in trouble, but you deserve to know… why this room hurts Mommy and Daddy so much, but why it's also so important to them."

Maybe… if I know, I can help them? I asked.

"I don't know… I tried for years to help them myself…" My friend sighed. "Sometimes some wounds hurt so much… they just… don't heal, even over time… But don't let that stop you from trying. You have a good heart, Asria. And just you being here is already healing a wound that hadn't been healed in a long time."

I nodded and reached up, trying to grab the door knob. But… I was… too short. I had always been a bit on the short side, or a 'late bloomer' as Mommy called me, but this was just downright annoying. I huffed and went down the hall to my room before grabbing my step stool and bringing it over to the door. I placed down the step stool and got up onto it before reaching for the door knob, able to actually grab it this time.

I turned the door knob and when the door came free, I pushed with all my might.

I managed to get the door to open. The door squeaked, showing that it hadn't been opened in a long time. I was worried Mommy and Daddy would hear it, so I tried to hurry.

"Be careful, Asria, you could fall. Just come down from the stool and squeeze inside," My friend warned.

I nodded and carefully got down before squeezing inside, hoping the door wouldn't close behind me. I coughed a little as I managed to get into the room. The air was really dirty tasting.

You coming, Monmon? I asked as I glanced back at the door.

"Heh, I'll be right behind you," Monmon replied.

Monmon phased through the door before I began to look around. It was dark, but I was able to see in the dark pretty easily. It was mostly the dust that made it hard to breathe in here.

There were two beds, one on each side of the room. There was a wardrobe, a dresser with dusty pictures on them. There were a few big plush toys on the wall. I stepped on an old looking, half finished coloring book, and there were a few crayons on the floor. I immediately pulled my foot off the book and frowned.

Did someone stop in the middle of drawing? That's such a waste… I pondered while frowning. They should've finished drawing! Or at least put away their book and not just leave it on the floor…

"Perhaps they may have intended to come back to finish the drawing," Monmon pointed out.

I looked at my friend. Was this your room, Monmon?

"No, my room is down the hall behind the bookcase. Actually, Mommy and Daddy had this room closed even when I was just adopted," Monmon answered.

I guess that makes sense, since you'd only have one bed and this room has two. I responded before frowning more. Did… Mommy and Daddy have kids before?

"Well, they had me before you," Monmon chuckled. "They adopted the other human children that fell down here, at least… the ones who made it to them alive. But… if you're asking if they had a biological child before the other human children…"

Monmon frowned. "That's… something you should ask them yourself… it's not my story to tell."

Bio… logical? I repeated.

"Right… 5 or 6, not 17…" Monmon muttered to herself. "It means having been born by Mommy and Daddy through the good type of love and not adopted, which means getting taken in and made a part of the family."

"Ohhhhhhhhh! Okay!" I acknowledged aloud before I began to look around more.

I walked over to the dresser that had the dusty pictures. When I opened the first drawer, there was a lot of dust. I coughed a bit. But I managed to see two necklaces, and a rusty looking cutting thing.

These items didn't mean much to me, so I closed the drawer. I looked at the picture and picked it up. I tried to use my robe to wipe the dust off so I could see the picture. It worked well enough. I was able to make out the picture.

I saw two figures standing next to each other, and two larger figures behind them. The large figures were cut off on the picture, so I could only mainly see the two small figures.

Those must be Mommy and Daddy, I thought as I pointed at the large figures. "But… who are these?"

I saw one of them looked like me, but older. I think he was a boy based on the fact he was wearing a shirt and not a dress. He was looking happy with how he was smiling. He was holding onto a bunch of flowers in his hands. The figure next to him… I wasn't sure, but they looked kind of like Monmon… I think. They had shorter hair, though I couldn't really see their face, it was covered by some flowers. It looked like they wore a single striped shirt and pants. They may be shy, since they were hiding their face from the camera. Seeing as how the shirt was similar to the boy-me, I guessed that they were a boy as well.

"With how dusty everything is… they must've been here long before my time," Monmon replied. "If you want to know more… you'll have to show Mommy or Daddy that picture and ask them about it."

But then they'll know I came into this room… I frowned.

"I know. But… they shouldn't keep something like this hidden from you…" Monmon answered back softly.

Do you think I should talk to them? I asked, trusting Monmon as she was always a great influence on me and gave good advice.

"I think you should decide this on your own, Ria…" Monmon replied. "This isn't something I should influence you on. And you could get in trouble if you admitted that you came into this room without their permission."

Hmmm… I… think I should talk to them then. I replied. Maybe… talking about it can make them happier? I want Mommy and Daddy to be happy.

"If you feel that way, then go for it. I'll support you however I can." Monmon smiled.

I smiled back as I took the picture with me, and headed to the door. I was glad it was still open, because it would be difficult to try to get up to the doorknob again.

I found Mommy sitting at her favorite chair, next to the fireplace in the living room. She was reading another book.

"Mommy…?" I spoke up, holding the picture behind my back. "C-Can I ask you about something…?"

Mommy looked up from her book to look down at me. "Of course, my child. You can ask anything you want."

"Uh… who… Who…" I frowned, feeling nervous. "Who lived in the room by the stairs, Mommy?"

Mommy didn't say anything for a while when I asked. She closed her book and frowned. "Asria… why would you ask me that?"

"C-Cause… I realized… I never gone in… and…" I began to respond before glancing over at Monmon. "I… got curious… and went in… and… found this…"

I brought the framed photo in front of me and held it out. "Who are they, Mommy?"

I… was worried I made a mistake. When Mommy looked at the photo, I saw tears falling from her eyes.

Oh no! Monmon! I made her sad! I thought with worry. What do I do? How do I fix this?!

"Calm down, Ria," Monmon spoke up in a calm voice. "Just wait. Mommy needs a moment to… process what she's seeing."

It was… hard to wait, because I didn't like seeing Mommy like this. She put her hand over her mouth for a moment before she took the framed photo from me. "Asria… I… these two are…"

Mommy paused for a moment before shaking her head. "I… wanted to wait until you were older… but… heh… no… actually, maybe it's best I did not keep waiting, or I may have never told you… Wait here a moment, my child, I will get your father… we need to talk about this."

I frowned before going over to my small chair and sitting down as Mommy got up and walked away. I'm in trouble… I'm in so much trouble… Mommy's getting Daddy…

"She didn't say you were in trouble, Ria," Monmon pointed out. "She's just getting Daddy to talk about this."

She said 'we need to talk about this'. Which she usually says when someone's in trouble… I pointed out. Like when she says 'we need to talk about this' to Daddy and then talks loudly with him.

"That's normal in any relationship… ah, you're too young to worry about that now," Monmon sighed. "Don't worry, Ria. I know our Mommy, I know when she's angry or disappointed in something I… or in this case, you did. She's worried, not angry or disappointed. So don't worry, maybe what they have to talk about is… serious, but I don't think you're in trouble."

I-if you're sure… I nervously replied, kicking my legs a little. You'll… stay with me no matter what happens… right?

"Of course I will, don't worry, Ria," Monmon promised.

Not long after Monmon said that, I heard Mommy and Daddy's footsteps coming towards me. I wish I could squeeze Monmon's hand right now.

I saw Mommy and Daddy come into the living room. Daddy looked worried as he was holding the framed photo I gave to Mommy earlier.

"So… it's true? You saw this in the room near the stairs?" Daddy asked.

I gulped and nodded. "Y-yes, Daddy… It was hard to see… and there was a lot of yucky dust… but I did find it on the bed table."

"Even though we said to never go into that room?" Daddy frowned.

"Gorey… every one of our children always looked in that room at some point," Mommy sighed. "I think it's best if we just told her straight up instead of trying to prolong it… It's never worked out for us anyways."

Daddy sighed as well. "Very well…"

Daddy sat down on the nearby couch, looking more tired than I had ever seen him.

"Asria…" Daddy started.

"Y-yes, Daddy?" I replied nervously.

"I'm sorry. Your Mommy and I didn't want to… make you sad about what… happened, a long time ago," Daddy said softly.

"Why would I be sad?" I asked before frowning. "You and Mommy are the ones who seem sad…"

"What happened back then is painful… it's why we wanted to shield you from it for as long as we could," Mommy admitted. "It's why we don't tell our other children the truth until they discover it on their own…"

"But… perhaps now is the best time to tell you about it ourselves, before you become too curious and discover… what happened back then," Daddy added. "I'll admit… what happened back then… almost cost us… our love for each other."

I tilted my head. "But I thought Mommy's and Daddy's love for each other was in… in…"

"Infinite," Monmon provided, saying the word slowly so I could pronounce it.

"Infinite," I finished with Monmon's help.

"Of course, it's been a lot stronger now than ever." Daddy smiled as Mommy smiled back at him. "But… even we aren't perfect, sweet heart…"

"We better start from the beginning, Gorey," Mommy said.

"Right…" Daddy sighed. "Okay…"

Daddy took a deep breath before he began the story. "A long time ago… back in the year 1XXX… a human child fell into the Underground."

I blinked. I had, recently, learned about dates and years with Mommy's education, so that year in particular… that was… so long ago that I couldn't understand how anyone could've existed that far back.

"That human was the first to fall into the Underground since we were sealed away after the Great War between monsters and humans," Daddy explained. "They were hurt from their fall, and called out for help. One monster heard their call, and ran to check on them. That monster was called Asriel. Asriel found the fallen human and helped them, taking them back home to their parents."

"The parents helped heal the human child's wounds, and soon, the parents ended up adopting the child," Mommy continued. "The human child revealed their name was Chara. Asriel and Chara soon became close, they were the best of friends, as well as brothers. The Underground was full of hope, many believed that Chara's fall was a sign that humans and monsters could co-exist with each other."

So far, I liked the story.

"Don't worry, if you miss any of this, I can tell you again later," Monmon assured, knowing that I might have trouble with remembering everything.

"So… that room belonged to Chara and Asriel?" I asked.

"That's right. Asriel was our son, just like you are our daughter," Mommy answered.

"Chara was the first human child we adopted into the family," Daddy added. "For a time, it was like a miracle. We were so happy, we were so full of hope, that one day we will get out of the Underground, and be able to coexist with humanity again."

"But then…" Mommy frowned, looking like she didn't want to continue with the story.

Daddy looked at Mommy. I noticed Mommy was shaking.

Daddy let out a sigh. "... One day, Chara fell incredibly ill. We didn't have the necessary medicine to cure a human from sickness, so the best we could do was give them healing magic to numb the pain for them. Chara held on for a while, he was quite the stubborn child. But… we knew unless a miracle happened, Chara wasn't long for the world. He gave us one request… to see the flowers in the village he grew up in. But… there wasn't anything we could do. The barrier kept us from getting to his village."

Daddy paused, looking like he was lost in his head.

"Chara…" Mommy finally said after she calmed down a little. "Chara… died. And Asriel… who had been by his side the entire time… absorbed Chara's Soul."

"Absorbed… his Soul…? But don't Souls… vanish?" I questioned in confusion.

"Normally, yes," Mommy answered. "A regular monster Soul would disappear as soon as their bodies turn to dust. However… a human's Soul is… very strong. It's able to continue existing after death. In fact, a human Soul doesn't seem to disappear so long as it's taken care of, or if the Soul chooses to… move on. So… a monster could easily absorb a human Soul once the human themself is… unable to keep the Soul."

"So… if Asriel absorbed Chara's Soul… does that mean the two of them became one?" I tilted my head.

"In a sense, yes," Daddy replied. "We don't really know what happens to the other Soul once it gets absorbed, it's not something that… usually happens. We didn't see Asriel do this, however, we only saw the aftermath… From what we know, after Asriel absorbed Chara's Soul, he used the power of the two Souls to cross the barrier, and headed to the surface… the world of the humans."

"Chara's body had been moved from his bed," Mommy continued for Daddy. "So… we think that Asriel was taking his brother to get buried by the humans, or perhaps to bring Chara to the golden flowers he wanted to see. But… Unfortunately something happened. We… believe that Asriel may have been attacked, because he was a monster. And… he came back."

"But as he returned, with Chara's body, he… collapsed and turned to dust…" Daddy finished. "He managed to get back here, with Chara's body… and some of the golden flowers that now fill our throne room. We saw… Asriel's body turn to dust right before our eyes."

I furrowed my brow slightly. "So… Asriel and Chara… both died? And you were hiding it… cause it could've hurt me? Knowing I had older brothers?"

"That, and how they both died," Mommy said. "It was… something your Daddy and I… could never heal from. Before we had you, Asria… the only children we had in the past centuries were adopted human children. I had been unable to… carry anymore children of my own since that horrible day…"

"But… that doesn't make me sad," I replied. "It makes me happy to know I had brothers, and they gave you happiness. And… if Asriel and Chara were one… before Asriel turned to dust… maybe their Souls reside within Daddy's flowers. The same flowers all around… keeping an eye on us, and making us happy."

"Oh, Asria… you have such a positive mindset…" Daddy chuckled. "I… wish I could've said the same for myself. When… our children died, on the same night… I was about to do something incredibly foolish and rash."

"What were you about to do?" I asked. "And why would it have been itchy?"

"No, not that kind of rash. He meant he was about to do something quickly, without thinking about it," Monmon explained.

"Ohhh… you meant a different kind of rash…" I acknowledged. "Ignore the last part."

Mommy and Daddy raised an eyebrow at me, but Daddy decided to continue.

"I was… about to make an announcement to the entire Underground," Daddy began. "I was about to make perhaps the biggest mistake of my life. I was… going to declare war on the humans. I was going to make it a law to kill any human that fell into the Underground, whether they were man, woman, or even child. I would kill them and har- take their Soul in order to break the barrier, and then use the Souls to destroy the humans on the surface for taking away our children."

It was… difficult to imagine Daddy doing anything like that.

"Mommy and Daddy were under a lot of… emotional distress… err… they were very sad and angry at the same time," Monmon attempted to explain.

"S-so… instead of getting sad… Daddy got angry…?" I summarized. "Really really angry instead of… crying out his sadness?"

"Sometimes men try to hold in their sadness, and lash out in anger instead," Mommy said. "I was… admittedly not… feeling good myself. I was definitely crying… but…"

Mommy looked at Daddy for a moment, then she looked at me. "I could tell your Daddy was about to do something he shouldn't."

"Not only you, but… our oldest friend as well," Daddy added. "Your Grandpa, Gerson, also noticed something off about me."

"I… will admit, I was hesitant to talk to your Daddy," Mommy stated. "But when Gerson came over and… grabbed your Daddy away from the podium and pulled him away… I gained the strength to speak."

"Gerson in… not nice words asked me what I was doing," Daddy explained. "And… in my anger, I shouted at him. I told him everything."

"Thankfully where we were, away from the podium, the sound didn't travel well," Mommy added. "After your Daddy was done getting everything out, I spoke what was on my mind."

"When both of us were done, Gerson, for the second time in our lives, gave us an order," Daddy explained. "He told us that we needed to step away from the throne for a while and let ourselves grieve, feel the pain of our loss. Cherish what we still had. Help each other."

"If Gerson hadn't been there and done what he did…" Mommy frowned. "Things… may have turned out very differently. I would love to say I would've stopped your Daddy, but… I don't think I would have. In the moment… I was… just as angry. And… a part of me wanted… your Daddy to say what he was going to say. A part of me wanted the humans to pay…"

"But…" I spoke up. "Things didn't turn out differently. Daddy didn't say that bad thing and you were able to look after the humans who came after."

"Yes, we did." Mommy smiled a little. "I'm glad we were able to look after the humans with love, rather than LOVE… heh, get it?"

"Yes, Tori, we know you love your jokes," Daddy sighed. "In any case, it was a blessing to be able to care for the human children that fell down here, and let them live out their lives rather than… just taking their Souls as soon as they came down here. Though it is… unfortunate… because they were basically raised in a giant cage for the rest of their lives… We did what we could to make sure they were comfortable, and live a good life. Some of the human children were able to make friends with the monsters. Others… had a harder time."

"We even had a few adults who fell and chose to live in the Underground for the remainder of their lives," Daddy added. "They helped us make some advancements in things like safety."

"At one point… the incident happened…" Mommy frowned. "Ah, but you're too young to be hearing about that."

"But… we should at least tell her something about why humans… are also dangerous to monsters," Daddy said to Mommy. "Just in case…"

"Human's Souls, because they're just all around stronger than monster Souls, makes it so a human could do a lot of damage to a monster," Monmon explained. "Even by accident, a human could seriously hurt or even kill a monster."

I frowned, not sure how to process that kind of information. It was difficult to believe there was a species out there that could kill us so… easily.

"So… because humans are stronger… they can accidentally hurt us…?" I questioned aloud, not meaning to ask it aloud.

"Asria? How did you…?" Mommy began before frowning. "Did you already figure it out when we said human Souls were stronger than monster Souls?"

"Oh, no. Monmon was explaining it to me," I answered before pointing where Monmon was.

"You mean… your imaginary friend?" Daddy blinked.

"Yep." I smiled. "She's really smart!"

"Come on, Ria, you know that they think I'm just from your imagination…" Monmon grumbled. "And I'm not that smart, just… more experienced."

You're smart, Monmon. I firmly said. Why else would your room be behind a bookcase?

"Well… at least you understand that humans are dangerous if they have bad intentions," Daddy said.

"But just because a human could be bad, doesn't mean they are all bad," I noted. "Just like one monster can really really suck, but the rest of monsterkind is nothing like Jerry."

"I'm glad you understand that, Asria." Daddy smiled.

"Wait, what was that about Jerry?" Mommy asked.

"Uh… nothing?" I sheepishly smiled. Right, Mommy doesn't like other monsters talking bad about Jerry, even though he's… Jerry.

I heard Monmon laughing.

"Well, I believe Asria took that much better than we thought, Tori," Daddy chuckled.

"C-" I began to ask before frowning. Would it be wrong to ask this…?

"Just ask them," Monmon encouraged.

"C-can I… clean up big brother Asriel and Chara's room?" I asked. "It… isn't nice to leave it all dirty."

Mommy and Daddy looked at each other for a moment, before Daddy stood up and walked over to me. He handed me back the framed photo of… my eldest brothers.

"You know… it would be nice for Asriel and Chara to have a clean room again," Daddy said.

"Yes… I… I wanted to forget about the pain… so I kept their room closed and untouched… but seeing them again, even in just a photo… it reminded me how much I missed them," Mommy admitted. "It wouldn't be nice if they saw their room now… they would probably think we forgot about them."

"We focused too much on the bad memories…" Daddy sighed before looking at me. "But our little child here reminded us that just because one thing is bad, doesn't mean all of it is."

"Yes… we're definitely blessed to have such a thoughtful child like you, Asria." Mommy smiled as she stood up and walked over to me, giving me a hug. "Now then, how about we go clean Asriel and Chara's room together?"

"Heh, way to go, Ria, I knew you could do it." Monmon smiled at me. "I'm sure Asriel and Chara would be grateful for this too."

I woke up to the smell of pancakes, and voices of people talking somewhere outside of my room. That dream… no, that memory I had… Why did I have that memory now? It's been so long… And Monmon…

At some point, I stopped hearing Monmon's voice.

"Monmon… are you… Still there…?" I called out with my mind. "I'm sorry I forgot about you… I guess… I took Mommy and Daddy's words too much to heart… And… in the process, I might have hurt you."

I waited and waited but sighed when I didn't hear anything in response. Maybe she chose to forget me as well…

I sat up in my bed, kicking my legs over the side. "Did… I really hear Mona back then? How? Was it her Soul power? The power of Kindness?"

If Monmon really had been Mona, which… she was, she had told me so back then when I first heard her voice… then… Why did I stop hearing her voice? It wasn't like I stopped trying to include her during family holidays and traditions… Was it because I stopped treating her like my imaginary friend? Or maybe because… at some point I wondered if she was imaginary… and figured that I had to grow up.

Unfortunately, my memory of when I stopped hearing Mona's voice was very hazy. Trying to force the memory made my head hurt. I know we didn't have a huge fight or something cliche like that. It was… around the time I started my career as the Royal Scientist. But that was all I could remember.

Was there something I did as the Royal Scientist that hurt Mona? Did I… hurt her Soul? I frowned. I know the DT extract came from the Souls… but… I was always gentle. And… Mona said that Alphys had been a bit rough but she understood why. That was back when I was still studying to become the Royal Scientist.

Maybe I should try looking at Mona's Soul after I opened up the presents, and everyone went home. This was bothering me now, and I wanted to be sure Mona's Soul wasn't… cracked or anything. I knew I would have to wait though, cause there was no way I was gonna be able to leave my room and not get spotted immediately.

I took off my outfit, which Mom had apparently done before while I was asleep, as I was now wearing some regular PJs. I then put on some casual clothes from my closet, which was a pair of sweatpants and a black tank top. After I was dressed, I left my room and was immediately greeted by multiple voices.

"Mornin…" I groggily replied as I made my way to the group dining room, seeing that the regular living room-kitchen table was filled with presents awaiting to be opened.

"Good morning, my sleepy head child~" Mommy greeted.

"Morning," I greeted again. "The run was a little behind last night because of some geyser activity in Hotland."

"Yeah, your father told me all about that," Mommy replied. "You two had quite a long night."

"But it was worth it." Daddy smiled. "All the children, and even adults, are always happy to receive gifts every Giftma morning. After breakfast, I want to show off the sleigh that Asria made for me."

I heard a yawn before I turned around, seeing Alphys groggily walking over to the table. Grabbing a cup and filling it with coffee from the pot on the table.

"Mornin, Alphys." I waved. "How was your sleep?"

"It was… probably better than most of my sleep schedules," Alphys answered. "Undyne left early, all excited about talking to Mettaton about her script."

"Oh? Sounds like things went well then." I smiled.

"When I told her I would be there, providing food, and using the cameras to film, she was all for it," Alphys explained.

I looked at Mom and Dad. "There's something in the works I'll tell you about later. But I think Mettaton might call later and thank Santa for the Giftmas gift."

"Of course." Daddy smiled.

"Looks like Muffet and Sans already left too," Alphys noted.

"Sans said he needed to get back soon, because he's looking after a new child," Mommy explained. "I was surprised, I didn't know Sans had a child."

"And Muffet probably opened my gift for her at the crack of dawn," I chuckled. "Meaning she's probably neck deep in new clothing designs."

"Guess I'm the last guest left," Alphys chuckled sheepishly. "Probably doesn't help that I'm a late sleeper."

"It's nice having you here though, so stay as long as you like, Alphys." Daddy smiled.

"T-thank you, you're too kind," Alphys said. "But I should be getting back soon anyways. I'll probably leave after breakfast, and after Asria opens my gift~"

"Alphys, come on, you should spend a full day outside your lab for one," I pointed out. "It won't kill you. And we gave them food in advance. They gave us their okays to take the holiday off."

"I-I know, but shouldn't someone check the cameras to see if a human came into the Underground?" Alphys asked.

"If a human comes to the Underground, we'll get an auto alert on our phone," I responded. "Besides, come January, I'm gonna be working you hard. We're gonna be replacing the entire camera network in Ruins. Replacing the cables too, cause I'm sick of not having any signal there."

"Oh, wow, we haven't been to Ruins in over 40 years," Alphys remarked. "I wonder if anything's changed since then. Do you think we should also send up a new rocket?"

I gave a thoughtful look. "Probably not to the first part, it's Ruins. As for the rocket… Yeah, if we can put together a new and improved one. Maybe something to get a better internet signal through the barrier. But, we probably shouldn't talk more about work, otherwise we might get scolded by Mommy."

"You definitely will," Mommy stated in a firm voice. "Now you two, eat your breakfast."

"Y-yes, ma'am," Alphys quickly said.

I enjoyed my breakfast slowly. It was going to be a long time before I could enjoy a home cooked meal like this after the New Years Ball, which I was still dreading.

When breakfast was finished, Alphys and I walked over to the Giftma tree so I could open my presents. I opened up Sans's gift first. I blushed when I did… he gave me a set of socks. Though there was something inside the socks… I saw a small glass container that contained small pebbles of minerals.

"Huh… are these… gemstones?" I wondered as I took a closer look. "Or perhaps… a new material Sans discovered?"

"That's just like Sans, giving you a joke present, while hiding the actual gift under it, or in it," Alphys remarked.

I unrolled the sock and read a small note written on the sock after 'IF FOUND, PLEASE RETURN THIS SOCK TO MY BROTHER, SANS! -The Great Papyrus'. It said that this was a new type of mineral that I could possibly find to the south of Hotland and Sans could take me there if I wanted more.

Well, I was definitely gonna need to examine these minerals later. For the time being, I went over and grabbed a small bag from the kitchen before emptying the contents of the sock into it.

When that was done, I put the sock back into the box to return to Sans later. I opened up Muffet's gifts next. She gave me some new clothes, a few treats, and a few rolls of threads, cloths, and fabric. The set of threads was probably to let me try making clothes of my own if I ever felt like it.

I opened up Undyne's gift next. It was… a boulder?

"Ah, that's your very own 'stress boulder'," Alphys explained. "Undyne says it's great for lifting or just punching when you feel stressed or angry, and words don't help you release it all."

"Uh… thanks…?" I responded in a tone of confusion. "How many of these does she think I need? She's given me one every year since I became the Royal Scientist."

"Undyne's… not usually one for giving a variety of presents," Alphys chuckled sheepishly.

"I don't suppose there's a boulder store where I can return this?" I raised a brow. "I mean… I appreciate the thought, but… not sure where to put this."

"I'll take care of it," Alphys volunteered. "But… there's one more gift you have to open first."

"Of course, gotta save my bestie's present for last~" I smiled before I pulled over the present and began to open it.

The present itself was pretty small, so I was curious what Alphys got me. I slowly unwrapped the Mew Mew wrapper, trying not to tear it at all. Inside was a small box.

"Is there gonna be a smaller box inside the box?" I chuckled as I examined the box.

"N-nah, I'm not Sans," Alphys chuckled sheepishly. "I just wanted to make sure the… thing I made didn't get jostled around too much."

"Is it sensitive?" I questioned as I stopped moving the box around.

"I made sure it's pretty tough, so it wouldn't break easily. But, you know, I didn't want it to look scratched up or anything before it got to you," Alphys replied. "Go ahead and open it."

Sounds like it might be a new gadget if it's something that could be scratched up. I noted before I started opening the small box.

"Is this…a Keimo?" I asked, remembering how excited we got about the animated series we had recently uncovered. A Keimo was a magic creature that could bestow powers upon the people they chose, they were usually pretty small and resemble real animals. Though they could've also been monsters too.

What I was looking at looked like a silver little cat-like creature. Its head was pretty big, its body looked small. It had a tail. It had three long antennae-looking things. One of the antennae was coming out of the top of its head, while the other two were on its cheeks.

"The Keimo of Destruction, Annihilation, and Obliteration?" I questioned before chuckling.

"I-I was thinking about using the Keimo of Creation, Purification, and Light, but I thought… cat was cuter because it reminded me of Mew Mew more," Alphys answered sheepishly.

"Well, maybe we can create that Keimo later~" I giggled before looking at the Keimo I was holding. "This is really cute."

"Y-yeah… I left it unpainted though, I figured you might want to choose the color yourself," Alphys explained.

So that's why it's silver. I realized. Its like the model kits we sometimes find in the Dump. Except Alphys took care of the building here.

I smiled and nodded. "I'll definitely pick out the perfect design for it. No offense to the show, but I don't think I'm going to go pure black."

"Heh, I figured you'd say that," Alphys chuckled. "I did put some cutting edge technology and magic into it. So that way, when the AI is finally completed, she'll be able to do a lot of things with this little body. It's able to levitate around like the Keimo in the show, use magic to move things, even speak to you. Still working on going through solid matter, but when I do, that Keimo likely won't be the first to get it."

"Yeah, going through matter would be a major breakthrough," I chuckled. "It could open up a lot of options for us, like exploring new regions to expand into."

"Sans did allow me to use some of his magic too, so the Keimo might be able to use gravity magic, as well as some bone magic. I'm not sure if it'll be able to teleport though," Alphys informed. "That might be a feature the AI will have to explore on her own, among other things. The Keimo's able to learn as well, so it'll be able to pick up new magic instead of being limited to whatever I put into it. The whiskers can act as detection as well, so if you want it to find someone, you just need a sample of their magic and it'll be able to locate them no matter where they are. For finding something, just describe the object and it can find it."

"Wow, you really went all out on this." I smiled, truly touched and grateful for the gift. "Definitely makes me feel glad I went overboard with your gift as well. A gift that you'll find when you return to your lab."

"Of course, I wanted to make sure your gift was extra spec- W-what?" Alphys blinked. "W-what kind of gift did you get me?"

"Do you really think I'd answer that?" I raised a brow with a smile. "I know it's one you'll like."

"N-now you have me anxious and excited!" Alphys grumbled.

"Oh, I do have another gift that your first gift will give you," I informed.

"O-oh no, you're gonna spoil meeeee!" Alphys whined. "C-come on, I'm supposed to be spoiling you! Not the other way around!"

"Well the second gift is one I've been meaning to give for a while," I explained. "I finally got everything together after a LOT of hard work, to arrange the second gift."

"I really hope it's… not something too embarrassing…" Alphys blushed. "B-b-but I look… forward to it?"

I couldn't wait to hear Alphys's reaction to what I got her.

While Alphys was watching another movie she had brought yesterday, having decided to stay with us for the day, and my parents were cleaning up the dishes, I decided to take this time to head back into my eldest brothers' room. I also knew that Dad would show Mom the sleigh after they were done, so I had time on my hands. It was… time to open their presents.

Like always, I knocked on the door and waited before telling them I was coming in. I then entered and wished them a Merry Giftma before giving them a bit of a run down of the sleigh run and the morning. I did vent a little about how Undyne got me yet another stress boulder and how I was getting to the point of saying something.

"Sorry, enough about me," I sheepishly chuckled. "It's time to open up the presents that I picked out for you two. Hopefully they're good ones. Now, who first? Asriel? Or Chara?"

I closed my eyes and began to pick between them.

Flowey's POV

What… is this girl doing? I had been watching from the shadows and under the floor to what the family was doing during Giftma Eve and today.

I was back in my… in Asriel and Chara's old room, when I heard that girl knocking. I quickly hid under the floor before she came in.

"Looks like you're going first, Chara," The girl remarked before going over to Chara's bed and picking up the present. "Which is fair, cause I think Asriel got to go first last year."

… 'Asriel' didn't even know you existed last year. I grumbled mentally.

I came up under the bed the girl was sitting on. I noticed she wasn't putting her full weight on the bed, as if she felt she wasn't fully welcome to sit down, which she wasn't. This wasn't her bedroom or her bed, so why was she even here in the first place?

I looked up, trying to see the gift she was unwrapping for Chara. I was… curious, and I did wonder what she decided to give to Chara, even though Chara was… gone. This girl was weird, giving the gifts from Asgore and Toriel to two children who had been… long gone.

"Wait… did Mom and Dad figure out I've been giving them presents?" The girl questioned. "This is… the flowers Chara asked for, as flowers, in a wreath, and a shirt with their design. Instead of the green with yellow stripes, it's green with stripes of the golden flowers. There's… no way Mom and Dad would've picked this out with me in mind. Don't get me wrong, Chara, they're lovely, but I like cherry blossoms more."

I rolled my eyes and moved under the bed that used to belong to the idiot prince. It's not like Chara's here to listen to you prattle on about this. What are you even gonna do with that shirt anyway? Chara's not here to wear it, and even if he was… he's probably just a Soul now.

"There's… magic coming from the flowers…" The girl noted as I heard soft rustling. "Is this… to stop them from wilting? It looks like it. How bout… I put the wreath-crown on the pillow and hang up your new shirt for you, Chara? Then I can decorate the room with the flowers before opening Asriel's gift."

Whatever imaginary voice spoke to her while she was talking to absolutely nothing but air must've told her to do it, because that was exactly what she did. I watched in silence as this girl was putting the wreath-crown on Chara's pillow, and hung the new shirt next to the wardrobe.

Great, another shirt to collect dust… how awesome… I inwardly grumbled.

"Wonder what you would've liked wearing it…?" The girl remarked with a soft sigh. "It's too bad all I have to see you is the picture… where you're hiding your face."

I frowned and gave a silent sigh. Chara never did like seeing his own face… not in pictures or in mirrors…

"Though… maybe it was symbolic…" The gift said even softer before glancing at the door. "Considering… the truth of your illness. Don't worry, I still haven't told Mom and Dad. I'm… not sure how to break it to them…"

I looked up. What? Does she know? How?

Though it wasn't like asking myself that was going to give me the answer. I should just keep watching her.

"Of course Mom and Dad's magic didn't work…" The girl softly chuckled as she continued putting flowers around the room. "Only high level medicine… and maybe even surgery could've fixed you."

I looked down. She clearly knew what actually happened to Chara back then.

"I still can't understand why though…" The girl sighed. "And I can't get why you chose… that method specifically. Did you want a slow death? Were you trying to punish Mom and Dad? Asriel? Or… yourself?"

Stop asking questions you won't have the answers to! I inwardly shouted.

I summoned my pellets behind her, but hesitated. I… I didn't want to revert back to my… old ways. This girl… she clearly cares about Chara enough to ask these questions. While I couldn't quite understand it myself, because she had never met Chara, I knew that was nothing to kill her over. I de-summoned my pellets before she could see them.

"I… don't think it was any of that…" The girl went on. "You loved Mom and Dad. You loved Asriel. If you didn't… you wouldn't have taken that picture. You wouldn't have played with Asriel until the day you passed… You wouldn't have colored in any of the pages of those coloring books if you didn't care…"

Even though… I couldn't feel things like love… I felt sadness. Remembering Chara, and what we used to have before… everything went wrong.

"I… know it seems weird I'm bringing this up…" The girl sighed. "But… I had a dream last night… well more of a memory. Of when I was 17, when I first came in here. And… how Mom and Dad were hurt by the loss… but… didn't want you to feel like they forgot you. To think… both Dad and Mom were tempted to wage war on humanity… to kill all the humans that fell… because of what happened to you two… when you became one."

The girl looked over at my… Asriel's bed, where I was hiding…

I saw her walking over to the bed. I stayed low in case I had to go under the floor.

"Sorry, Asriel and Chara… I probably shouldn't be bringing down the mood," The girl softly chuckled. "It's Giftma day after all. I should just… help you with your presence and give you your space."

The girl carefully sat down on the bed, once again not putting her full weight on the bed.

"I don't know why I picked out this box, but there was something in my gut telling me it was for you, Asriel," The girl stated before chuckling. "Which is surprising, considering how heavy it is. Anyways…"

I heard her unwrapping the wrappers. I looked up in curiosity.

"Oh… wow…" The girl muttered in shock. "Did… Mom and Dad get these from… Yeah, here's Solomon's crest…"

I heard a sliding metallic noise.

"Mom and Dad told me a story about you always wanting to be a knight to rescue the monsters…" The girl chuckled. "But instead of a sword and shield or a lance… you wanted to be a twin-sword knight. This is… I recognize the design. This was one of the drawings in your sketchbook. These were your dream weapons."

I went underground to move to the other bed so I could see what she was holding. My eyes went wide when I saw the two blades. Those looked awesome.

"These are… wow, Solomon put a lot of work into these," The girl noted before tilting her head. "Is this that whole 'you should send a knight to the afterlife with proper weapons' thing he told me about at one point? Cause these are definitely proper weapons. Anti-rust enchantment, sharpness enchantment, fire enchantment on one, ice enchantment on the other, anti-theft enchantment, and… a Soul-bond enchantment. Did… Mom and Dad have a sample of Asriel's Soul? Cause this enchantment is already complete…"

Did they? I don't… recall… it's been too long… I thought to myself. It… it doesn't matter. Asriel is dead, and doesn't have a Soul anymore. Those cool looking swords are going to go to waste. I can't exactly use them as a flower, they would weigh down my vines too…

"I'll… be right back," The girl said. "I'm gonna get some tools from my workshop here to properly mount these weapons onto the wall beside your bed, that way you can look at how awesome they are whenever you're laying down."

The girl left the room, leaving the swords leaning up against the side of Asriel's bed.

I gave a sigh. "That girl is… far too sentimental… Why does she care about two people who died long before her time? Oh well… I guess when she goes back to that workshop of her's, she probably won't be coming back here any time soon…"

I looked up at Asriel's old bed. "... Heh… if only you grew a spine before you went out into the village… maybe things could've been better…"

Chapter Text

Darkzdragon: I swear, if those neighbors don't stop launching fireworks BEFORE the 4th… I'm gonna turn them into a firework.

DarkFoxKit: Now, now, we don't want you going on a rampage turning people into fireworks. We also shouldn't let what they're doing spoil our good day.

Darkzdragon: I'm a dragon… rampaging is kinda in my DNA. That and hoarding riches. Besides, it's super distracting having heard it for the past 3 nights now and knowing it's gonna continue for the next two weeks. They don't just do it in the lead up of the 4th of July. They also do it for like a week or two afterwards because "'murica!" or some flimsy excuse to release their inner pyro.

DarkFoxKit: I just don't want to have to deal with the police at our doorsteps if you go on a rampage. Also, try not to set our house on fire again.

Darkzdragon: The house is completely 100% fireproof this time.

DarkFoxKit: Let's hope so. But we should get these people onto the chapter now before they see you rampage.

Darkzdragon: Have fun! And hopefully this chapter won't mess up AO3's chapter system again cause last week was weird. Chapter 9 got posted as 8 and then 8 became 16 and then a bunch of duplicate chapters appeared on our end. We fixed it, but like I said, hope it doesn't happen again.

Chapter 10: Human Souls

Asria's POV

I just finished mounting the double blades over Asriel's bed. Now there was one more thing I needed to do before I could truly relax. Mom and Dad were still distracted, so this was still a good chance. I headed to Mona's old bedroom, which had a bookcase in the way. Considering Mona was the one who made this bookcase in the first place with the help of Alphys's predecessor, it seemed wrong to remove it.

I reached up and pulled the books in the order that Monmon had taught me before the bookcase slid out of the way, revealing the door. I knocked on the door and waited a moment.

"Hey… Mona?" I called out. "Can… can I come in…?"

I waited, hoping that I would hear a response from Monmon, or as I now knew, Mona.

I didn't hear a response and sighed. "Okay… well I'm coming in anyway."

I opened the door and stepped inside, seeing the container with the green colored Soul sitting on Mona's bed. After I entered, I closed the door behind me and walked over to the bed before sitting down next to the container.

"Monmon… Mona… why did you stop talking to me? And… how did I forget that you used to talk to me in the first place?" I asked as I looked at the green Soul. "I… Did I do something wrong?"

I took a close look at the green Soul. I couldn't see any cracks on it, and the glow coming from the Soul wasn't dim, meaning it wasn't out of energy or anything like that. It looked as healthy as any human Soul would be.

"Did I hurt you?" I asked before pulling out a handheld scope with light on it that doctors apparently used to look in a patient's ear. However I used it to take a closer look at the Soul to see if there were any cracks at all. "Did I… cause you to hate me?"

Unfortunately, other than trying to find a physical wound, or judging from the glow the Soul emitted, I didn't know how to tell what a human Soul was thinking. Unlike monsters, human Souls were… difficult to read.

"I wish I could remember how we started talking in the first place…" I sighed. "Maybe I could use that method to make contact with you again…"

I saw some light emitting from the Soul… the light seemed to be moving against the glass.

I reached out and put my hand on the glass, knowing the container would stop me from absorbing the Soul. For some reason… this felt familiar… but something was still missing.

I tried to think of what it was and… by gut feeling alone, I began to let out a tiny flow of my magical energy into my palm, the palm touching the glass.

I only started realizing what I was doing when the container started to glow white. I quickly stopped, because I didn't want to risk breaking the container or somehow absorbing Mona's Soul.

How did it get so bright… with so little energy though? I questioned. Was that Mona's doing?

I wondered if… maybe monster magic being close to a human Soul may have caused that. I knew so little about human Souls though… it was dangerous to try to experiment like this.

Try to think scientifically… I coached myself. What could have created that glow. A reaction between my magic and Mona's Soul. Mona's Soul absorbing the magic and creating light as a byproduct. My magic somehow being amplified by Mona's Soul. Wait… Amplified…

I furrowed my brow and began to rub my temples. Amplify… via Souls. That was… Wasn't that the basis for the DT Tests? And to a lesser extent, Chujin's work? Using the power of a human Soul to revitalize a Fallen Down monster or, in Chujin's case, granting the Boss Monster gene to regular monsters.

I went from rubbing my temples to rubbing my face. But… why does it feel like I'm missing something? Like something is staring me in the face and I can't see it?! Gods damnit, Mona, I wish you were here to tell me how stupid I'm being before telling me what I'm missing!

The light on the container started to dim, and the green Soul in the container… started to dim as well. My heart stopped when I saw this.

No. No no no. Please don't. I thought with panic as I looked at the Soul. Did I actually damage Mona's Soul this time? Did my magic do something to her?! Oh gods… how do I explain to Mom and Dad if I messed up?! I'm so grounded… no… not even grounded. If I messed this up… not even my Princess status will save me from being thrown in the dungeon!

I had gotten up off the bed and began to violently pace back and forth.

The light Mona's Soul was emitting was still dim, but it wasn't getting any dimmer, which… was a good sign, I hoped.

But why did it try reaching out in the first place? Why was it my instinct, my gut feeling, to channel energy into my hand? Why… are my memories of Monmon so fuzzy? I know I was young, but still… I feel like I should know how she and I met. I frowned as I continued to pace, though much less violently and rapidly than before.

"Asria?"

I jumped when I heard Alphys's voice by the door.

"Are you… okay? You've been in here for… an hour," Alphys asked in concern.

"I…" I was about to answer when I realized what Alphys said. "What?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, you didn't want anyone to notice you came in here, right?" Alphys nervously said.

"No no, not that, did you say an hour?" I questioned. "I… only came in… like 10 minutes ago. Less even. Probably closer to 5."

"Oh dear, you must've lost track of time." Alphys frowned. "What were you doing?"

That's… "I was… trying to see if I could communicate with Mona's Soul," I explained, not really feeling like telling Alphys about my childhood friend right now.

"C-communicate? With a human Soul?" Alphys questioned, looking surprised. "W-why? Nobody's been able to communicate with human Souls before."

"It… looked like it wanted to," I answered before explaining how the Soul had focused its light up in one spot before pushing against the container, though I left out what I did after.

"I… hmm… guess that's possible. Mona was the most recent child to have been raised by your parents," Alphys remarked.

"Most recently passed," I noted. "There was one who lived with Mom and Dad for like… a day or two before moving to the Wild East."

"Yeah, they really wanted to stay with the monsters that helped them, and in return, help the Dunes recover from that giant Swelterstone," Alphys acknowledged.

"It's too bad that the kid passed away saving a bunch of miners from a rockslide…" I sighed. "He probably was the only kid I could've actually met had he still been alive."

"Y-yeah… Ceroba was… probably the most heartbroken about it, having lost her husband and… c-child… not long before the kid…" Alphys looked down.

"Don't forget, Alphys… there's still hope for the first two," I optimistically reminded. "As for how Ceroba is doing after the last kid… while I know it ate her up, according to Starlo, the kid helped her heal and gave her the tools and friends to cope with his death."

I remembered Dad telling me how it felt like time had stopped for him when he saw Martlet, Ceroba, and Starlo walking into his garden while he was watering his flowers that day, only to see Ceroba carrying a container with another human Soul inside it. While the Soul of Justice hadn't lived long… he had a profound and lasting effect on the Underground. Pretty sure Clover was one of the few humans that Undyne didn't inherently hate.

"It's too bad, we'll probably never meet another human as pure as Clover and Mona were again…" Alphys sighed. "Souls that pure are… almost too good for this world, you know?"

I nodded. "I know what you mean. Kindness and Justice… those two truly exemplified all the best aspects of both."

"W-well, we should get off of this subject. We're supposed to be spending the day together, enjoying ourselves, right?" Alphys said, hoping to change the subject to something lighter. "Or did you want to spend some more time with Mona? I mean… trying to communicate with a human Soul may be impossible, at least without further research. But the Souls are too valuable to… you know… research thoroughly."

"I…" I paused and looked at the container. Do you want to be left alone, Monmon?

There was no response, not even a small bit of light. The Soul just floated there, still dim.

"Think I'm done for now," I said with an inward sigh, really hoping I hadn't done something horribly wrong that I couldn't remember. I mean seriously… how did 5 minutes turn into an HOUR?! What the hell happened to me?!

"You look… bothered…" Alphys frowned.

"I mean… like you said, I lost track of time," I pointed out.

"W-well, hey, don't worry… if you really want to communicate with Mona's Soul… maybe when a human falls down here, we might be able to do more research on their Souls. It's a lot less risky to research a living human Soul than the Soul of one that has passed, right?" Alphys suggested optimistically.

"Yeah, you got a point," I acknowledged. "Though… I guess I was hoping to make it work with Mona so I could talk to Mom and Dad for her."

"I understand, it would be nice to be able to talk to the human Souls. Oh the things they could tell us about their time and their world." Alphys grinned. "Come on, I think Mona might want some time to sleep. The dim glow might mean she's just tired."

So even Alphys noticed the dimmer glow. But she didn't seem to be alarmed about it, then again, maybe she was hiding her worry to not worry me.

"Yeah… talking to her for an hour straight must've taken all her Patience, despite being Kindness~" I joked.

"Hah, I think you've been hanging out with Sans for too long." Alphys rolled her eyes.

"Nah, I think I can blame Mom for that one~" I giggled before glancing back at Mona's Soul. See you later, Mona. "Alright, let's go. We can play some games or watch some TV, your choice since you're the guest."

Frizk's POV

I took a nice, warm shower that morning. I put on my dog costume, and headed upstairs. Papyrus was… already awake. I woke up pretty early today, so I couldn't help but wonder if Papyrus just… didn't sleep.

"Good morning, Frizk!" Papyrus waved to me. "Isn't this exciting!? Santa Claus came last night!"

"Ah… so it wasn't a dream then," I remarked.

"A dream?" Papyrus asked.

"I heard some commotion last night when I woke up from the couch," I admitted. "I looked outside to see… what looked like Santa Claus, and a… Japanese… smaller Santa Claus."

"You SAW SANTA?!" Papyrus exclaimed before tilting his head. "What is… Jape a knees? Is that some kind of humor?"

It took me a moment to process what Papyrus was asking. "Ah… uh… it's…"

I quickly looked around for a distraction. "Oh, look! Is this present meant for you?"

"What? A present just for me?!" Papyrus questioned, taking the distraction instantly.

I let out a small sigh of relief as Papyrus picked up the present.

"Wowie! You're right! I, the Great Papyrus, shall open it!" Papyrus announced.

I watched as Papyrus ripped the wrapper with his boney hands. At least he wasn't wearing his 'battle body' today. He actually wore some casual clothes. Which… was odd to see on a skeleton now that I thought about it.

Papyrus's magic created sparkly eyes in his eye sockets.

"What did you get?" I asked curiously. I hope it wasn't a pile of bones or something…

"Santa… has given me… sunglasses!" Papyrus showed me a box of… rather large looking sunglasses.

"Uh… that's… great?" I replied with a questioning tone.

"It's just what I was hoping for! Now my pal will match me in my cool dude shades!" Papyrus beamed.

His… 'pal'? He can't be talking about me, those sunglasses look too big for me… I raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, right, you wouldn't know," Papyrus realized when he looked at me, probably noticing my confused look. "Let's just say that my attacks are gonna look even cooler, nyeh heh heh~"

"Right," I said. "Whatever makes you happy then."

"Looks like there's a gift here for you too," Papyrus remarked as he looked at a note. "Apparently the K9 Unit found it, realized it wasn't for them, and dropped it off here because they know we're caring for you!"

I walked over and looked at the note, seeing a bunch of paw prints in ink. They all looked… exactly the same to me.

Can Papyrus read… paw prints…? Is that even a thing to read? I questioned. Maybe I shouldn't question it. It is Papyrus.

"Santa actually brought a present for me?" I asked. "But… why? I mean I just got here, how could Santa even know I exist?"

"Santa knows all Monsters in the Underground! He has a list and checks it thrice before Giftma and twice while delivering gifts!" Papyrus excitedly replied.

"Is that so? Doesn't he only deliver presents to good boys and girls?" I asked. "What about the naughty ones?" I remember the fox Santa saying something about getting 'coal', but I was like… half asleep, so I only remember bits and pieces of what she said… if that was a 'she'...

"Well naughty children do get gifts, but they're gifts that serve a purpose instead of are for play," Papyrus answered.

I couldn't help but laugh. "So they're like… being told, indirectly, from Santa to do community service!"

"Of course. Someone naughty needs to learn from their mistakes," Papyrus confirmed. "If one simply gets nothing, they won't really learn."

"I guess that makes sense," I replied. Well, I might as well see what Santa got me. If it's a bunch of coal… I know what I'm putting in the fireplace tonight.

I tore off the wrapper. I saw a box inside. I opened up the box to see a shampoo set for… fur… I uh… maybe could use it in the washer for my… costume. But there was more than one present in the box, catching me by surprise. I picked up what looked like a humanoid goat plush toy. It had a cute pink robe with that symbol on its chest. It didn't seem to be a chew toy either, thank goodness. And there was… a book. Judging from the illustration on the cover, it looked to be a child's book, but… uh… I couldn't read anything on it.

"Oh?" Papyrus gave a thoughtful look at the book. "Why'd they include a language book? Ahh! Perhaps it's because they knew you're going to be starting school in the next year and wanted to make sure you knew all the language!"

So it's a language book? I thought with interest. "Hmm… Sans never said I couldn't study books during Giftma… so maybe you can help me learn some of these… letters before he gets home?"

"Oooh! A devious loophole for the sake of learning!" Papyrus exclaimed. "I, the Great Papyrus, approve!"

"I don't mind it. Go ahead and study your heart out, kid."

I jumped when I heard Sans's voice was right behind me. "GAH! Sans!"

I shouted as I turned around, seeing the bone head. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack!?"

"Give you a heart attack? Never," Sans replied. "Though scaring ya, I don't mind~ It's gonna take more than a scare to kill ya, kid."

"Oh my gosh, Sans! Don't even joke about that! You appearing out of thin air is rude enough, but appearing right behind them like that is just crossing the line, brother!" Papyrus huffed. "You're not getting any of our gingerbread cookies tonight as punishment!"

"I managed to cut a big one." I smiled.

"Awww, c'mon, Paps…" Sans pouted. "Well, I guess that means I'll just have to enjoy the treats I brought with me instead of sharing them."

"Nyeh heh heh, there's no way those treats are even a comparison to the Great Papyrus's treats!" Papyrus confidently said.

"I'll make sure to let Queen Floppyears and Muffet know you said that," Sans remarked.

I raised my eyebrows. I knew the Queen was apparently some kind of cook, given the gingerbread competition's prize was having cooking lessons from her, and gold of course. But I didn't know who this 'Muffet' was. Wait no… she was the one Papyrus mentioned last night. But… didn't he say something about her being a clothes maker?

Papyrus gave a dramatic gasp. "No! Don't you dare! Their treats are too delicious for words!"

"Welp, if you're not gonna share yer gingerbread, I'm not gonna share the treats I brought back home," Sans casually replied. "Guess I'll head on up to my room now."

"Sans! That's not fair! You were the one being rude earlier!" Papyrus huffed.

"It's not rude to prank someone, Paps," Sans argued. "Besides, the kid can handle a jumpscare or two."

While Papyrus and Sans were arguing, I looked at the goat plush toy. It looked cute. I wondered if this was based off of a monster, or if it was a cartoon character that was popular among the children here. Or maybe it wasn't a goat, maybe it was a horned rabbit with floppy ears. I wasn't too sure.

"Hey, can I put this in my room?" I asked the two, stopping their argument.

"Of course you can, it is yours after all, kid," Sans chuckled.

"Great." I smiled. "I don't want this toy getting dirty or torn. It looks like it's pretty high quality."

"Really? That's what you're worried about? Aren't kids your age supposed to play with toys, not preserve them?" Sans asked, sounding a little surprised.

"Well, yeah, doesn't mean I should mess it up," I replied as I held onto the plush doll. Even the robe feels smooth and softer than silk. Wait… when did my feeling in the suit get this good?

I looked at Sans for a moment.

"Merry Giftma, kid~" Sans grinned, having noticed my surprised look as I was stroking the plush doll with my paw.

Papyrus and I spent a good majority of the day trying to teach me how to read with the language book. We spent so long on it that my eyes were starting to hurt. It didn't help that I had to squint a lot to see the letters.

"Maybe we should stop, it's not good for your eyes to strain it so much like that," Papyrus suggested to me.

"Agreed, kid," Sans said as he walked into the room. "So, I've been on the phone all day and got one more Giftma gift for you. You've got two options. One, get glasses. Two, get a laser eye procedure from the Royal Scientist's aide which has already been tested and cleared to be used on all beings with poor eyesight."

"Wouldn't both options involve me seeing a doctor?" I asked.

"Yeah," Sans replied. "Honestly, kid, I want you to choose option two. If you want to become a member of the Royal Guard, you can't have bad eyesight."

I shivered at the idea of having… any surgery. So many things could go wrong…

"Brother, you are scaring poor Frizk," Papyrus remarked.

"Yeah, I can see that by the tail, but if she's serious about becoming a member of the guards, she has to overcome that fear," Sans bluntly replied before looking at me. "Though lemme ask, what specifically about option two is making you scared?"

"Just… the risk of surgery…" I replied.

"It's not like the doc would be cutting you open," Sans explained. "From what I understand, laser surgery uses light to make you see better. It's a permanent fix, unlike glasses, hence why I suggested it. And the aide said that if you decided today, she could take you right away."

I gave a small sigh. "I… need some time to think about it."

"Alright, kid, but try not to take all day," Sans requested.

"Sans, maybe it's time you talk to her about the whole… Royal Guard thing," Papyrus suggested.

"What? You haven't talked to her 'bout it?" Sans questioned before groaning and rubbing his face. "Whydya always leave the hard stuff to me, Pap?"

"Because, you know I… sometimes don't always explain everything the right way," Papyrus answered. "And you wanted to be clear about why you were worried about Frizk joining the Royal Guard."

Sans let out a long sigh. "So you want me to be the bad cop. Got it."

"You have to admit, Sans… you are pretty good at that," Papyrus pointed out.

"Just because I'm good at it doesn't mean I always wanna take that role…" Sans grumbled. "I'd rather be the cop at his desk outside the interrogation room, napping at his desk."

"Um…" I spoke up, reminding the two I was still here. "I know you were worried about me joining the Royal Guard. I know that it's going to be a big responsibility, and I would have to train every day, but…"

"Do you know what it means to be a Royal Guard though, kid?" Sans questioned. "Do you have even the slightest idea of what their duties entail?"

"From what I know, they're meant to protect the royal family from any danger," I answered.

"That's your first mistake," Sans informed. "Despite the name, it's not the royal family they protect. Sure, the King and Queen have protectors, but the Royal Guard is an organization formed by the King and Queen to serve the Underground."

"Okay…" I said. "So they… help a lot of people, like cops?"

"Yes and no," Sans answered. "Yes, they do the good stuff like helping monsters and keeping the Underground safe. But they also stop monsters who fight back, monsters who decide they don't like the system anymore, monsters who rebel against the crown. Not only that, they are the ones tasked with dealing with the humans that fall, in cases of peace or hostility. In the case of hostility, it's on the guards to end the life of the human… cause out here, outside of Ruins… we have only a few prison cells. And we're not looking to fill em up."

Heh… well… I was sort of right, about them being like the cops…I thought to myself. Actually… this doesn't sound all that different from the Royal Guards back in my world… whether that's in a different world or the surface above us. But… instead of just serving the crown and nobility, they protect everyone.

"And there's honestly a bit of discourse within the Royal Guards, if I'm being honest," Sans went on. "There are some guards who believe that instead of capturing the next human to fall, like all the others, they should just kill the human and collect the final Soul. The other side, is of course, the ones that are against it, following the rules laid out by the King and Queen."

I stayed quiet as I listened to Sans.

"So if you joined them, you'd be getting right in the middle of that and would be forced to pick a side. The two sides get along fine otherwise, but it's about humans in particular that there's disagreement," Sans continued. "And… there's bound to be a Fight that could easily start up. You know what would happen if you were in the middle of that, don't you?"

I looked at Sans and frowned. I understood what he was saying. It was… very dangerous for me to join the Royal Guard. Not only was it a big responsibility, but I could very easily get discovered, and cause a lot of chaos and mayhem in the Underground.

"I'm not telling you 'no', cause that usually makes kids want things more," Sans informed. "I'm just trying to make sure you're as informed as you can be about the Royal Guard."

"Thank you for that, Sans, I really do appreciate it," I said.

"So what do you plan to do?" Papyrus asked. "Do you… still want to join the Royal Guard?"

Knowing I had to get eye surgery, I would probably eventually have to get it even if I chose glasses, and I had to worry about being discovered while working for the Royal Guard, it was starting to sound less appealing. And yet… despite that… I was still determined to go through with it. I couldn't say why… maybe it was because… I felt this was my second chance in life, and I didn't want to waste it being just a boring civilian. Besides, this way, I could be closer to the one person in my life that I truly idolized.

"I'm still going to join," I finally answered.

"Kid… are you sure?" Sans asked.

"Yes, I am," I replied.

"Then… answer me this… why? Why do you want to be a Royal Guard so badly?" Sans asked.

"... It's… a goal I want to reach, for myself," I said. "And I want to be stronger."

"There are other ways to get stronger, kid, are you sure you want to commit to the Royal Guard now before even learning about those other ways?" Sans questioned. "Are you dead set on the Royal Guard?"

I sighed. "I don't mind seeing what my other options are. But… I do at least want to set the Royal Guard as my main goal for now. After all, Papyrus has more than just one plan in mind himself."

"That is true," Papyrus agreed.

Sans sighed. "Fine… Just so long as you're making an informed decision, I can't complain."

"Thanks, I really do appreciate it, Sans," I said in a grateful tone. "I understand the dangers… but I don't want that to scare me off of my goal. If it did… well, then I really wouldn't be fit to be a Royal Guard in the first place."

"I like your mindset, Frizk!" Papyrus grinned. "Maybe now that means you'll also take on other new challenges, like getting that laser eye surgery, and joining the gingerbread competition tomorrow!"

"Ah…" I sweated a little at the reminder. "Right…"

I looked at Sans, and gave a sigh. "... What time should I go over?"

"If you're ready, I'll call them and take you over the moment they're ready," Sans answered. "Does that mean you decided on it?"

"Yeah," I said. "It's like Papyrus said… I need to face new challenges if I want to be a part of the Royal Guard."

"Alright, then lemme call the nerd up~" Sans snickered before he pulled out his phone. "I shouldn't be too long."

Sans began to walk away, going through his phone before holding it up to his head.

"Hey, Fi. Yeah, kid said they're on board with the corrective laser surgery," Sans said into his phone. "When should I drop by? Yeah? Alright, we'll take Riverwoman over."

I hope I don't regret this… I thought nervously to myself.

"Would you like to try on any clothes before you go?" Papyrus asked.

"Probably shouldn't, considering we're going to Hotland," Sans said while holding his hand over the phone. "Yep. Kay. See you in a half hour."

Sans hung up before putting his phone back into his pocket. "I mean you can try on clothes, but you might be better off as you are when we head to Hotland."

"Hotland?" I blinked.

"A land that's hot," Sans responded. "It's in the name, like most places in the Underground."

"Okay… I guess that's a pretty straightforward name," I chuckled. "Since we have time, how about we just watch TV till we have to leave?"

"Sounds good," Sans responded.

"When you two leave, I'll hold down the fort. Don't worry, Frizk, you'll be in good hands!" Papyrus promised with such a sincere tone that it made me believe him.

"Thanks," I replied.

I had always been a bit of a crybaby, and I didn't like going to the doctor's too much. The doctors always hurt with their shots, and their comments about my health were… annoying. I also didn't like the mandatory check-ups on my Soul's power. Well, it was more like magical power, to see if I had awakened mine. I didn't know if it was an actual Soul check-up. I never had any though, even a late bloomer would've awakened their powers by now… if they had any.

I hated being compared to everyone else around me, especially my peers. My eyesight hadn't been the best either, and it had started to deteriorate over time.

I remembered crying whenever I had to go to the doctor's. Yet… look at me now, following a skeleton, getting on a boat with a mysterious cloaked figure, and heading down the river, just to go to the doctor's. Maybe I really had lost it. My dad would be screaming his lungs out right now. Probably mostly about the living skeleton and the cloaked figure… and getting on a boat with them.

The trip down the river was rather quiet. I almost sensed a bit of a tense atmosphere between this… cloaked figure and Sans. I wondered if they knew each other or something.

The boat soon came to a stop. I followed Sans off of the boat. I was about to ask Sans what that was about, when the heat suddenly hit me.

"Oh… my gosh… it really is hot!" I shouted.

I soon saw why it was so hot. There was magma all over the place! How could anyone stand to live here!?

"Like the name says," Sans chuckled before glancing at the mysterious figure. "You know, other people say the Riverwoman tells fortunes, but she's strangely always quiet around me."

"Ah… how… interesting," I replied, though I wasn't exactly concerned about that right now, since I felt like I could melt at any second. "Can we… go to this lab now, please?"

"Want me to carry you?" Sans chuckled before holding out a hand. "Or do you want me to take you for a walk?~"

I blushed. "I-I can walk! I just… need to get somewhere cool quickly."

"Well, take my hand," Sans instructed. "The path is currently a little precarious for newcomers, so I want to make sure you are safe."

If I wasn't so hot, I would wonder if Sans would try that whoopee-cushion-in-the-hand trick. But at this point, I didn't care. I took Sans's hand. There wasn't anything this time, other than Sans beginning to lead me. We went up stairs out into an area with even more magma and narrow rock paths. To the right, there was a giant white cube that seemed to be resting on the magma.

"That's where we're going," Sans said, noticing me looking at the cube-like structure. "That's the lab of Dr. Alphys, or Fi. She's the aide to the Royal Scientist."

"Okay," I replied. What a strange looking lab, but who am I to judge? As long as it has air conditioning, I'm good.

Sans, with me still holding his hand, walked over to the door. Sans rang the doorbell on the side.

"Hey, Fi, open up before the kid collapses!" Sans called out.

I was definitely sweating up a storm. My costume was going to stink…

The doors slide open. I saw a… yellow lizard wearing glasses, and had a lab coat on. Was that… who I saw back at Grillby's?

"Alright, come on in," The lizard quickly said.

I wasted no time rushing into the lab.

"I already got the procedure set up," The lizard informed before leading over to a garage door which slid open and revealed a high-tech looking room. "J-just go ahead and sit down. Then open your eyes as wide as you can. The machine will scan your eyes to see what we're d-dealing with. Uh…"

I heard the sound of a paper flipping. "Once the machine gets all the data, it will give a warning that the procedure is about to begin before it begins. While the procedure is happening, some magic will be gently applied to keep your eyes open. Now tell them that they'll be fine as it's been tested a hundre- Oh, t-t-that's not a p-part I'm sup-pposed to read a-aloud…"

Now that I had time to cool off and think properly again, I looked at the lizard. I saw her reading from a couple of flash cards. She was… very awkward. It was kind of… cute in a way.

"Before we… begin… could I take a moment to… prepare myself?" I requested.

"O-Of course… I-I could use a moment a-as well…" The lizard muttered, probably embarrassed they read out part that wasn't meant to be read aloud.

She seemed to be easily flustered, in fact, she kind of flinched when I looked at her. She… is able to do this without messing up, right?

Well, that was what my backup plan was for.

I walked over to a glowing star I saw when I entered the lab. At least I could have Flowey Reset in case something went horribly wrong. I touched the glowing star, hoping Flowey saved my progress here.

"The fact your eyesight has a chance of being completely fixed fills you with Determination."

"Huh?" I looked down. "Flowey?"

"What?" Flowey very quietly asked.

"What was that weird comment about?" I asked.

"I didn't say anything," Flowey answered softly.

"... If you didn't, then who-" I began to ask when I turned around, expecting to see someone there. But there was nobody there. Weird… I know I didn't just hear something out of thin air…

"You okay, kid?" Sans called out front across the lab. "If you're having second thoughts, we can head back home. I ain't gonna force ya."

Well, at least that's my chance to back out if it does actually go wrong. I realized. Everything is set up, so… this should be fine.

"I'm okay," I said. "Just nervous is all."

"I-I-I assure you, t-t-the machine has been tested m-many times before!" The lizard called out. "I-it will t-take care of everything b-both quickly and safely. I-I'll be watching over the procedure, b-but the machine is d-doing all the heavy lifting."

"Thanks for the… assurance," I said after taking a moment to think of the right word, hearing the lizard being all awkward was making me feel awkward. "I… uh… I'm sure you've got everything handled there, Doctor!"

I decided to try to be more like Papyrus and encourage the awkward lizard.

"I-I'll do my best!" The lizard called out. "N-now, when you're ready… c-come and have a seat."

"Okay," I said, seeing how the lizard was stuttering a little less, so I took it as a good sign.

It's okay. If something goes wrong, Flowey will Reset over it. I told myself so I wouldn't be a nervous wreck.

I went over to the procedure room, and sat down on the chair. Sans seemed sure that the doctor wouldn't discover I'm human while she's doing the procedure, so I probably don't have to worry about that… Buuuut just in case… I have a friend who could undo everything if needed. Everything's fine… everything's fine…

I was starting to wish I had Papyrus next to me right now. But neither he nor Sans could be here for this.

"You'll be fine. Don't forget that Papyrus will be waiting with more treats for you when you get home."

My thought was… strangely comforting me right now, but I decided to take what I could get.

"P-please o-open your eyes as wide as possible," The lizard called out.

I let myself relax as I began doing as the doctor instructed.

I was… sitting on a couch, I think. I had to keep my eyes closed after the laser eye surgery for about an hour or so. I didn't like being blind, even if it was temporary. But I trusted Sans to keep me safe, and Flowey to Reset if anything bad happened.

"How are you holding up, kid?" Sans asked me.

"I'm alright. I don't feel any pain," I answered.

"Good, well we'll wait here till your eyesight returns," Sans assured me. "We're not in a rush."

"Okay," I replied. "Thanks."

"Hey Fi, got anything to eat while we're here?" I heard Sans asking. "I might have to take home something for Paps."

"Y-you can check in the fridge, I usually keep some noodles or something there," I heard the doctor answer back.

I sat there on the couch, a little bored. I couldn't watch TV like this… though it would be nice if there was one running just so I could listen to what was going on at least. I wondered if there was a remote control nearby I could use to turn on… maybe a TV that may or may not be in front of me. I started to feel around the couch.

"H-hey… uh… what are you doing?" I heard the doctor's voice from nearby.

"Ah… I was just wondering if there was a TV nearby I could listen to while I wait," I answered.

"TV?" The doctor asked. "Ah, I guess you must've seen the TV at Sans and Papyrus's house."

"... Yeah," I replied, realizing Ruins may not have a TV.

"U-um… w-well, I uh… c-could see if I c-could at least… have my cell phone play a video for you…" The doctor nervously asked.

"Um… thanks, but… could I talk to you for a bit? If that's alright with you?" I requested.

"O-O-O-O… Yes…" The doctor nervously replied.

"Why are you so nervous around me?" I asked. "I mean I understand being awkward around people, but surely you've had patients before, right?"

"W-well… I don't… n-normally do face to face meetings t-these days…" The doctor admitted. "I-I'm usually on t-the other side o-of a c-c-computer screen…"

"So… do most… uh, people just not get sick enough to need to come in physically?" I asked. "Or are there other doctors for that?"

"Y-yeah… u-usually," The doctor answered. "O-oh… F-for t-t-the latter that is. T-There a-are doctors who h-have been trained in m-medicine who usually take c-care of most m-monsters. M-monsters can g-get sick though. And, w-while rare, w-we c-can even bleed. I-isn't that right, S-Sans?"

"Do you really gotta keep bringing it up?" Sans asked with a sigh.

"W-well it's one of the f-few stories y-your father ever told me about you," The doctor replied.

Monsters can't normally bleed? I wondered to myself. I… know very little about monster biology. I just know they apparently don't have a physical form like humans do… but wait, how can they not have a physical form? I see and touch them all the time. They felt pretty physical to me. I hope the school I go to will actually explain it more…

I decided to change the subject to try to keep things from getting awkward. "So you work under the Royal Scientist, right?"

"T-that's right," The doctor answered.

"What's it like?" I asked. "Is the Royal Scientist a nice person to work with?"

"T-That's a…" The doctor paused. "Y-yes… and n-no. M-M-Mostly yes, though! The R-Royal Scientist is very d-driven, kind, and c-creative. B-but sometimes… the work c-consumes them. T-the reason I-I say 'no' is b-because… the Royal Scientist s-sometimes… has issues w-with work balance, and t-that often becomes my problem. I-it's not a b-big 'no', mind you. I-it just isn't all s-sunshine and r-rainbows."

"I see, the Royal Scientist sounds like quite the workaholic then," I remarked.

"W-Well… I u-understand why… being the former Royal Scientist…" The doctor sighed. "All t-the pressure to find an answer to b-breaking the barrier… the worry of what comes next… m-making sure the Underground doesn't e-explode or c-collapse in on itself… t-taking care of the n-needs of monsterkind… the b-basic necessities of the Underground like supplies… a-and so much more…"

That all sounded very… daunting. "All by themselves? Shouldn't that be something the King and Queen be doing too?"

"T-The King and Queen a-are in charge of p-politics and the m-morale of the kingdom," The doctor explained. "It's on the Royal S-Scientist… to answer all the questions… a-and s-solve all the problems… t-that words and l-laws can't f-fix."

Well, dang, and I thought becoming a Royal Guard was going to be hard. That doesn't sound like something only one monster should deal with… I frowned to myself. But… maybe it's how monsters deal with things? I can't say I really understand the monster culture all that much. Still though… I don't feel good about leaving everything to one monster, even if they were some sort of god. But… wait, didn't Papyrus say the Royal Scientist is still young? That's even worse.

"W-we're closer… t-to unravelling the m-mysteries of the b-barrier," The doctor went on. "B-but… m-most m-monsters don't t-think about w-what comes n-next… The Royal Scientist i-is working hard to create t-things to make sure we h-have a secure and s-safe route outside… I-in a way, the Royal Scientist is t-trying to c-create a b-barrier of their own o-once we leave… f-for the case that the h-humans are… violent…"

Heh… the closest human settlement is probably my hometown… I bitterly thought to myself. The monsters… may not like it there.

"It's… good to think about what could happen once the barrier is broken," I said. "This Royal Scientist sounds like quite the genius."

"T-that's… partially true," The doctor replied. "The Royal Scientist is a genius… b-but n-not a b-born genius. T-The Royal Scientist… spent… m-most of th-their childhood… studying. T-they actually… are… much w-weaker than monsters their age… in many r-regards. T-their magic is… not as d-developed as it c-could be. T-they're physically strong, a-agile, and d-dextrous… but they s-spent most of their time l-learning."

I mean they're a scientist, I don't expect them to be strong or anything like that. Their main thing is that they're super smart, and able to come up or make stuff that most could only dream about. I thought to myself. Definitely not something I could ever do.

"They're still pretty amazing for taking on such a big responsibility," I said.

I heard the doctor whispering something to Sans, and I heard Sans chuckling before whispering something back.

"O-okay…" The doctor softly muttered.

I felt something brushing against my arm.

"What's that?" I asked.

"S-SORRY!" The doctor yelped. "I-I-I-I-I-I WAS J-J-J-JUST T-T-T-T-TRYING TO P-P-P-P-P-P-PET YOU…"

Goodness gracious, this lizard's got quite the lungs on her!

"It's okay! You could've just asked," I spoke up, hoping to calm the very, easily started doctor.

"I-I… asked S-Sans…" The doctor muttered.

"You could've just asked me, since I'm the one you're petting. Unless you were planning to pet Sans," I replied with a snicker. "I'm sure he'd be pettable~"

"W-Well then… c-can I… p-pet you…?" The doctor asked.

Oh my gosh, she really is awkward. I inwardly laughed. Well, I've… never really been pet by someone else. Though I guess I did pet those dog monsters in Snowdin. Maybe I should see what it's like.

"Yeah, go ahead," I answered. "Just be careful not to rub me too hard."

"I-I'll be g-gentle…" The doctor assured.

I felt a nice, rubbing sensation on my back. It definitely felt nice, my tail wagged a little from it. The doctor then began to scratch my fake dog ears. While I could feel stuff more through the costume… the ears weren't one of them. I remembered the dog monsters leaning into my hand when I scratched behind their ears, so I leaned into the doctor's hand so she wouldn't get suspicious. I felt her rubbing my head next. It… really did feel kind of good. She wasn't rubbing too hard, and she was even scratching it slightly.

I'm starting to see why the dog monsters like being pet. This feels really nice. I thought as I felt my body melt in relaxation. Or maybe it's the costume? I have no idea what Sans did with it after all. But if it helps me be more dog-like, then that helps.

"I-I am g-glad you l-l-like the petting," The doctor said.

"Of course, what dog doesn't like being petted?" I smiled.

"Heh… right. Well, I'll go ahead and get that cellphone to play a video for you," The doctor replied, sounding a little less awkward around me.

At the least, I was able to break the ice a little.

Asria's POV

It was getting late. So I decided that I should turn in for the night. I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed when Alphys had to leave early because she got a call for a patient in need of eye surgery. I couldn't fault her for that, when a monster needed help, it was important to help them.

Mom and Dad had fallen asleep earlier. Mom was sleeping on her favorite reading chair, and Dad fell asleep on the couch with the TV still going.

This was a nice Giftmas, with its… ups and downs. I was still worried about Mona's Soul, but other than the dim light, it didn't look like anything else changed.

I was heading to my room when my cellphone began ringing. I pulled it out and looked at the caller ID on it, to see if it was a number I recognized. I saw a picture of Alphys's face and her name. I clicked the answer button before holding the phone up to my ear.

"Hey, Alphys," I greeted.

"Hey, Asria, I… uh… You know that Undocumented monster child? She was the patient I saw today," Alphys began to explain, her voice sounding a little jittery.

"Oh? " I asked. "So that was the patient Sans called about."

"Y-yeah. She needed laser eye surgery. I guess staying in Ruins for a long time might've degraded her eyesight. She and Sans went home earlier, and I… managed to get a small sample from her fur," Alphys explained. "I decided to try to analyze the fur to see if it could tell me what kind of magic, dust, or genes she may hold…"

Alphys hesitated, seeming to be unsure of how to proceed.

"Alphys… did you… ask for a sample…?" I questioned as I reached up and gripped the bridge of my nose.

"W-well… um… n-no, I didn't," Alphys admitted. "But dog fur comes off easily when you pet them… I didn't… think it would be a big deal…"

"Alphys… what did… we say about consent…?" I asked with a sigh.

"L-look, I can apologize later, but you need to hear this," Alphys replied, sounding a little urgent. "I… I think there might be something wrong… w-with the Undocumented child. B-because according to my analysis… the fur… doesn't hold any genes or magic. I mean it has magic, but it's more magic that's in the air, nothing that would come from a living monster. It's almost like… the dog monster is… a toy, and I don't mean a living monster toy a ghost took over, I would've at least seen ectoplasmic residue on the fur."

"Well, we shouldn't jump to the conclusion that something is wrong," I responded to Alphys. "It's possible the sample you got wasn't of good quality or, if you got it from petting, it was already loose and lost the connection to the magic."

"It shouldn't have lost connection to magic that quickly…" Alphys replied. "Is it even a dog at all?"

"Of course it's a dog, Alphys," I stated. "What else could it be? An anomaly from another universe? I haven't finished any of my dimensional devices yet, so that's not possible. Look, Alphys, I'm not scolding you or angry or anything, I'm just saying that you got one sample, and good scientists will find further data before reaching a conclusion. For all we know, the kid might just… not show magic in the same way we do. Or that sample wasn't actually theirs. I mean, don't pups sometimes play with toys? What if the fur you collected was from a toy they were playing with? There's too many variables and unanswered questions right now to reach any solid answer."

I heard Alphys give a sigh. "You're right. I shouldn't jump to conclusions. I was looking forward to knowing a little more about this Undocumented child… … … Wait… I forgot to ask her her name!"

"Did Sans not tell you the name of the patient?" I questioned. "Isn't that like… line one of the form we wrote up?"

"He just kept calling her 'kid'... It's… been a while since I had a real patient, so I… kinda… forgot about that…" Alphys sheepishly replied.

"Alphyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyys…" I groaned softly, not wanting to wake my parents.

"I-I was pretty nervous, okay?" Alphys sighed. "A-anyways, uh… that's all I wanted to tell you… so, um… have a goodnight."

Alphys hung up quickly before I could say anything.

Dang. She hung up before I could tell her about painting the Keimo. I sighed. Speaking of which, I should go check if it's dry.

I headed into my room, where I left the Keimo to dry after painting it in my workshop. The Keimo was mostly black, but I made its paws white, and the tail tip white. I also made its inner part of its ears white. Its mouth was white too. I thought the Keimo would look nicer if it had some white on it rather than a solid black color like in the TV show. I didn't paint the eyes, because Alphys had informed me the eyes were meant to have its own light up colors when it was activated. I hadn't activated it yet, I wanted to save that for tomorrow.

Though, as it was dry now, I went over and grabbed a scrap of yellow cloth that I got from Mom's fabric basket and tore it before tying the torn piece around the Keimo like a scarf. I smiled, noting how the paint on the head kinda made it look like the Keimo was wearing a helmet or hat of some kind.

I smiled as I admired my handiwork. Now all that was left was to test it when I activate it tomorrow. For now, I decided to get some sleep. I patted the Keimo on the head before I went to change into my pajamas. After I changed, I brushed my teeth in the bathroom in my room before laying down on my bed, which was right next to my desk.

I looked up from my pillow, seeing the Keimo sitting on my desk. Thanks, Alphys. I really appreciate the gift you gave me. And… I'm sorry for tiring you out, Mona. Goodnight… Monmon.

Frizk's POV

When I woke up the next morning… everything was… so clear. It was so strange… I had gotten used to having pretty bad eyesight, so whenever I woke up, I got used to the blurriness. But now… wow, it was like I was in a whole new world… in a more metaphorical sense this time rather than a literal one.

I took some time to get used to this… new, clear, crisp room. I walked over to the Savepoint star.

"Hey, Flowey?" I said.

"Hmm?" Flowey came up from the ground.

"Wow… I can see you so clearly now," I commented. "I think that laser eye surgery worked."

"Good for you then. Maybe it'll be easier for you to learn to read monster writing now," Flowey said.

"It's just so weird, I'm not used to being able to see this clearly without having to squint or wear glasses," I said.

"I'm sure you'll get used to it before long," Flowey replied.

"Oh… I never asked, but how was your Giftmas?" I asked.

"It's… whatever. I don't exactly celebrate it," Flowey sighed. "Monsters in Ruins don't exactly have a Santa Claus."

"Oh…" I frowned. "But you're not in Ruins anymore… so did you at least get something?"

"Nope." Flowey answered. "Santa isn't even aware I exist, so it's hard to expect a present from the jolly fat man."

"Well… would you like some treats then?" I asked. "It isn't fair that you don't get anything, even if Giftmas had passed."

"Why'd you want to give me something?" Flowey questioned. "I'm a flower, it's not like I need anything. Heck, I don't even need light and water like most plants do."

"You may not need anything, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't get something, right?" I asked. "Technically I didn't need to get the eye surgery. Besides… I know you're a flower, but aren't you able to eat anything?"

"Oh, you needed the surgery," Flowey stated. "Had you gone with the first option, I can guarantee you that bullying would've ensued once you started school. With how bad your eyesight was, you would've needed to wear ridiculously large lenses, straight out of an anime."

"Don't make this about me," I said. "Can you eat or not?"

"I… I've honestly never tried," Flowey admitted. "I've got a mouth, but I don't know if I can chew."

"Well, why don't we try it?" I suggested. "The worst thing that could happen is that you can't swallow, right?"

"I suppose," Flowey said.

"Great. I'll check the minifridge for anything we can try," I said as I went over to the closet.

I opened up the minifridge. "Alright, let's see here… Hmm… no… too big… too… liquid-y… too chewy… Ah, maybe this?"

I took out a small, chocolaty brown looking sphere. "A small piece of Monster Candy?"

"Is that the one from Ruins? Cause if so, I'm not a fan of licorice," Flowey responded.

"Licorice? Is that what this is?" I blinked before I popped the Monster Candy into my mouth. "... It doesn't taste like licorice. It tastes like… chocolate?"

I had a sudden tingle go through me, and I found myself enjoying the Monster Candy… a lot more than I probably should've.

"So it's not candy from Ruins," Flowey acknowledged before glancing away. "Wonder where that bonehead got that candy then."

I took out another piece of Monster Candy. "Here, go ahead and try it then."

"Alright," Flowey said.

I saw one of the floorboards starting to move a little.

"Ah, maybe don't bring out the vines," I quickly said. "How about I just drop it in your mouth?"

"I…" Flowey frowned. "I'd rather not have someone else's hands near my face. Just… put it on the floor in front of me instead and I'll bend down and eat it."

I placed the Monster Candy on the floor. Flowey bent down and grabbed it into his mouth. He bit down and chewed it a bit before swallowing.

"Eugh… Milk chocolate…" Flowey remarked after swallowing. "I prefer non-bitter dark chocolate."

I raised an eyebrow at that remark. "You know, it's kinda strange that you have a preferred taste."

"Why's that?" Flowey asked.

"Didn't you say you didn't know you could eat until now?" I asked. "How would you know what you'd like or not?"

"Just because it's the first time I've eaten doesn't mean it's the first time I've tasted something," Flowey pointed out. "Besides, tasting is mostly smelling."

So you had stuff in your mouth before, but you never swallowed? Or maybe flowers could taste things with more than just their tongue… then again, flowers didn't usually have tongues… so maybe… He just said tasting is mostly smelling, so maybe he flipped the script and became a flower that smelled other things? I thought to myself. "It's good to know you can at least eat and taste. Do you like gingerbread?"

"I like the smell of it," Flowey replied.

"Smelling can help, but it's different to actually taste it," I remarked. "Well, Papyrus is gonna be making a lot of gingerbread for today's competition, I figured I could snag you some if you like them."

"Don't worry about me too much," Flowey responded. "Though maybe you should make a save just before the competition starts."

"Ah… well, I'll make a save just in case something happens, but I won't use it to cheat my way to victory," I said. "I would rather not have to go through the eye surgery again."

I touched the yellow star before me.

"Knowing Flowey can taste and eat, and that he may like gingerbread fills you with Determination."

"Okay, seriously, I can't be the only one hearing that!" I grumbled.

"What are you talking about?" Flowey asked.

"I swear, every time I touch a Savepoint, I hear… someone mentioning something that 'fills me with Determination'," I said, looking around for the voice. "Is Sans playing a prank on me?"

"Sans can't see these Savepoints, and if he was here, I wouldn't be," Flowey pointed out. "Maybe you need more sleep or something, Frizk."

I frowned. I'm sure I'm not going crazy. I know I heard a voice…

"Frizk? Are you awake yet?" I heard Papyrus's voice coming from the door as he knocked. "We shouldn't start too late, the competition requires us to be there at 2 o'clock sharp! I have a light but energetic breakfast here that was prepared by Grillby. He and I don't normally see eye to eye, but he makes an excellent breakfast meal for competitors of all kinds."

I wasn't wearing my dog costume, so I called back out to Papyrus. "I'm awake! Just getting ready!"

"Nyeh heh heh, very well then, I will meet you in the kitchen!" Papyrus replied.

"Well, hope you have fun at this competition," Flowey said.

"Thanks," I sighed. "I'm… honestly not really into the whole competition thing… I'm only doing it because Papyrus really wanted me to, and… I did say I would try out challenging things to prepare myself for the Royal Guard."

"Just remember, if something bad happens, you can always ask me to reset~" Flowey chuckled. "I'm not sure all the monsters will play fairly with such a big, important competition like this."

"Heh… well, I'll keep that in mind, Flowey," I said.

After getting cleaned up, and back in my dog costume, I was in the kitchen with Papyrus. We ate our breakfast rather quickly, so we would be prepared for the competition.

"So is this competition for anything specific? Like a gingerbread house? Or just anything we can make out of gingerbread?" I asked.

"One creates what they can create," Papyrus answered. "We're judged not just on the work, but also on how we act and do the work. This means someone who comes in and makes an entire gingerbread kingdom with extreme levels of detail isn't guaranteed to win. There have occasionally been themes though. However, themes are only revealed at the start of the competition, if there is one."

"So we'd have to be prepared for anything," I remarked. "Have there been any cheaters at this competition before?"

"Unfortunately with any competition, there's bound to be cheaters…" Papyrus sighed. "However, we will not stoop to those levels!"

"Yeah, there wouldn't be much point to winning if you had to cheat to win," I chuckled. I learned that the hard way before… never again.

"If you would like, on the way there we can talk about ideas, if there isn't a theme," Papyrus offered.

"Would you make another Great Cookiepyrus?"

"Mayhaps!" Papyrus beamed before shaking his head. "Though I probably shouldn't as I created my likeness for last year's competition."

"How did that go?" I asked curiously.

"I got 3rd place," Papyrus answered.

"Who won?" I questioned.

"The Spider Queen herself, Muffet," Papyrus replied. "Though I guess that shouldn't be a surprise, she does specialize in sweets… She has been asked to sit out this year."

I chuckled. "I guess it wouldn't be fair to the other monsters if she entered and kept winning, huh?"

"Precisely," Papyrus chuckled. "She was only in it for the gold, she didn't need any lessons from the queen."

Heaven knows you need it though. I thought to myself. At least for meals anyways.

"So do you have any ideas of what else you'd want to make?" I asked.

"I do have some ideas, but I would like to hear from you," Papyrus responded. "What do you think might win a competition?"

"I don't know, I'm not really sure what I could make to win an entire competition," I sighed. "The only thing I could think of is just a fancy gingerbread house."

"Come now, Frizk, you're a child!" Papyrus exclaimed. "Use your child's imagination!"

"My child's imagination? Come on, that's something only younger kids would have… and you, I guess?" I grumbled.

"You are young though, so you should still have it!" Papyrus countered. "All you need to do is let yourself imagine!"

"Uh, well…" I looked at Papyrus for a moment. "Maybe a big bone dragon that wears a scarf and jacket like you and Sans? And make it so big that you could actually ride it."

Papyrus stopped for a moment.

I frowned. "... Are you okay-"

"WOWIE! THAT IDEA IS MAGNIFICENT!" Papyrus yelled before looking at me with stars in his eyes… eye sockets.

I gave a sheepish chuckle. "I mean that is… imaginative, but I don't think that's something we could realistically make. We would need a whole lot of ingredients, I'm not sure we'd have the gold for that. And it would take way too long to make something like that."

"Oh, no need to worry about ingredients and gold," Papyrus chuckled. "The competition provides everything. This is to ensure someone doesn't bring in anything that would give them an unfair advantage."

"Okay, but there's still the issue of taking too long to make. I would think a competition would have some kind of time limit, right?" I said. "And… do you even know how to make a large dragon out of gingerbread?"

"Well I've seen a few dragons before, in books. And two or three when they were visiting from Far Barrens," Papyrus answered. "As for a time limit, there is one, but if we give it our all, we may be able to succeed."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Frizk, don't worry so much. All that matters is that we try our best," Papyrus said. "Remember to keep an open mind and have fun! The Royal Guard will have competitions like this all the time, but much more… physically strained."

I sighed before nodding. "Okay, I'll try."

"Great! For now, let's go shopping for some clothes!" Papyrus smiled. "You definitely want to dress to impress, make a good first impression and all that."

"Right," I said. Rather not go to this public event while 'naked'. It would also explain why we left at 9 when the competition only starts at 2.

Papyrus and I spent a good while picking out clothes for me. The shop mostly sold food and trinkets, but they had a good amount of clothes as well. I tried on some overalls, some T-shirts, a few sweatshirts, I really liked the blue and pink dinosaur hoodie. I also tried on a few dresses, but it was awkward to wear over this dog costume.

After we bought some clothes, Papyrus paid the rabbit lady, and we headed back to our house. I took a moment to decide which clothes to wear over my costume. I decided to wear a T-shirt with cute little bone patterns on it, now I could match my boney companions. I wore some baggy pants, I needed to make sure the costume's tail was able to stick out comfortably. I forgoed wearing shoes, however, since I was technically already wearing shoes while wearing my costume, it would be awkward trying to wear shoes over that.

It was almost 2 by the time we were ready. I followed Papyrus out of the house quickly, not wanting to be late.

"Where is the competition taking place again?" I asked Papyrus.

"At the castle," Papyrus answered. "Do not worry, Frizk, we will make it with time to spare."

The castle? This will be my first time going there… I thought nervously. "Are we taking the ferry?"

"Yep, but do not worry, I brought something for you," Papyrus informed before he held out a popsicle. "Eat this on the ferry ride over to Hotland and it shall grant you a heat resistance buff."

I blinked as I took the popsicle. Well… it's magic food, so I guess that makes sense.

The ferrywoman was at the pier, Papyrus and I quickly got on the boat. I noticed the boat had a dog head this time… Has that always been there?

"Off to Hotland?" The ferrywoman asked.

"Yes, please!" Papyrus answered.

"Then we are off~" The ferrywoman replied, sounding more lively than when I rode the ferry with Sans.

The boat then… suddenly sprouted four legs and began running across the river like… a dog… I yelped as the boat was bouncing up and down with quite the speed.

"Tra la la, beware of sabotage. Sometimes a sticky substance melts instead," The ferrywoman said.

"What?" I asked.

"She sometimes says these strange things," Papyrus said to me. "I wouldn't pay it too much mind."

But she said 'beware of sabotage'. That's kinda worrying. I frowned. And what's with this weird boat!? Why is it running like a dog?

The dog boat started to slow down, and I began to feel the heat.

"Tra la la, we have arrived," The ferrywoman stated.

I quickly began eating the popsicle as I hopped off of the strange dog boat with Papyrus. I hoped I wouldn't melt. I finished the popsicle quite quickly, and… the heat wasn't as bad anymore. Even with my new clothes, I wasn't hot.

"Wow… I think the popsicle's working," I said in awe. "How long does the heat resistance last?"

"One hour," Papyrus answered. "I have another one ready for the trip back."

"Great, that's a relief. Thanks, Papyrus, I don't know what I would do without you." I smiled.

"Nyeh heh heh, well you can't spell 'prepared' without several letters in my name~" Papyrus grinned. "Now stay close to me, Frizk. I'll take you on the fastest route to the castle. Hotland usually has a lot of puzzles for human capturing, but since we're not human, we can just take the direct route."

I nodded as I followed Papyrus. Papyrus led me to an elevator that was labelled 'R1'.

"You know, I never did figure out what the 'R' stood for," Papyrus said. "Undyne guessed it meant 'Red' since the lights are blinking red. Though that didn't explain the 'L' on the other elevator."

Doesn't it just mean 'Right' and 'Left'? I raised an eyebrow. "Hmm, I don't know, guess some things will always just be a mystery."

"Personally, I think L used to stand for Lime, but the lights were replaced with red ones, as they only had so many lime colored lights," Papyrus theorized. "Dr. Alphys said they're for Left and Right, but that only makes sense from one direction. If you are heading from the Core towards Hotland, the 'Right' elevator is on the left and the 'Left' elevator is on the right."

"Let's not think about it too much," I said. "We don't want to be late."

"Right you are, Frizk!" Papyrus agreed.

We entered the elevator. I saw Papyrus going over to some buttons on the wall in the back. I raised an eyebrow. What kind of elevator has all the buttons in the back?

Papyrus pushed the 'Right Floor 3' button. The elevator doors closed. My heart sped up a little as I felt the elevator move. I was always worried about being trapped inside an elevator. Thankfully, the elevator reached its destination without issue, and opened the doors.

I followed Papyrus out, and we walked across a cliff. We were pretty high up, so I tried not to look down. I saw quite a few monsters milling about. Some volcano looking monsters were trying to hug some rope-like monsters with a fiery head. I was surprised to see an airplane looking monster turning its nose at them.

An airplane monster… I definitely didn't expect that. I chuckled to myself.

We reached an area that was cooler at least. Papyrus and I stood in front of… some kind of large looking building.

"Is this a hotel of some kind?" I asked.

I saw some words in front of the building, and to my surprise… they were English letters; 'MTT'. Though I didn't know what 'MTT' meant.

"It's not just a hotel," Papyrus answered. "It's a full on resort and spa. It used to be a hotel… oh a century and a half ago? But the owner, the fabulous and amazing Mettaton, chose to change up the place and even expand it!"

"Mettaton? You mean that square robot who's always on TV?" I asked.

I had seen Mettaton on TV a few times, he was the only one I would see on TV.

"Rectangular, and yes," Papyrus confirmed. "He is such a multi-talented genius! He does drama, romance, action, horror, news, documentaries, and more! How he manages to fit all that into his already filled schedule is truly a mystery!"

"So we have to go through here to get to the castle?" I asked.

"That's right," Papyrus answered. "We also have to get through the Core, but once we're through, it should be easy to get to the castle."

"Jeez, all that just to get to one place?" I sweatdropped.

"The castle does need to be guarded," Papyrus reminded. "Though in truth, there used to be other routes to get there that were much more convenient. However, shifting magma flows, crumbling rock bridges, floods that spread far beyond Waterfall, and more wiped out those other routes."

"Yikes," I said. "That's definitely inconvenient."

"Indeed, but we make do with what we can." Papyrus smiled. "There is a quicker way, there's an elevator that should take us straight to New City, it's easier to get to the castle from there. But the elevator is… always in use, so we usually have to take the long way."

"Really? Who's using that elevator then?" I asked.

"Nobody really knows," Papyrus sighed. "Some think that the Temmies are somehow both in the elevator and not in the elevator… as well as something about acid, a radioactive particle… and a detector? Others think that the elevator is under maintenance and nobody thought to put up signs. And others believe that only certain monsters can use the elevator, but there are no signs of this."

Papyrus and I entered the resort. I saw a lot of different monsters here. Though I was looking at the fountain. There was a statue of that Mettaton fellow, but it was spraying water… outside of the fountain.

"What?!" Papyrus exclaimed. "The elevator is not in use?!"

"Huh?" I blinked as I looked at the elevator, seeing that it was open.

"What sort of miracle is this?!" Papyrus gleefully questioned. "Come on, Frizk! We must take advantage of this opportunity!"

"Is it safe to ride in?" I asked nervously. "What if the reason why it's always in use is because it traps whoever uses it?"

"It is safe," Papyrus assured. "It wouldn't be in operation if it wasn't safe. Let us go inside and look."

I suppose if worse comes to worst, I can ask Flowey to Reset… if he can hear me in an elevator. I gulped nervously before I got into the elevator with Papyrus.

"Hmmm… it looks like some of the buttons are blocked out right now," Papyrus noted. "But the button to take us to the ground floor of New City seems to be working. From there we can walk to the castle."

I watched as Papyrus pushed the button, and the elevator door closed. Just like the last elevator, it vibrated and moved a bit, before it stopped and opened the doors.

"Huh, that didn't take long at all," I remarked.

"Of course not, this is a high speed elevator that is used on occasion by the King and Queen!" Papyrus grinned. "Now then, come along, Frizk. And please stay close. The city is filled with monsters and its easy to get separated."

I stepped out of the elevator with Papyrus. It did look like we were in a proper city. There were streets, buildings, street lights… and a whole lot of monsters. I decided it was in my best interest to take Papyrus's gloved hand. I didn't want to risk getting separated and lost here. Papyrus didn't seem to mind me holding his hand.

Despite being a road here, there didn't seem to be any vehicles. There were just monsters, of all shapes and sizes. Many of them were walking or running to get somewhere, some were flying. I saw many of them talking on a cellphone, or talking to each other. It kind of reminded me of my hometown a little.

We kept going, passing by a big, yet lovely looking tree. I was surprised that the tree had cherry blossoms blooming. I didn't think cherry blossom trees could survive down here without any sunlight, let alone thrive. Though it seemed to be the only tree here.

Papyrus and I headed up some stairs. The colors started to fade into gray and white. I blinked as I looked around at the scenery. It was like looking at an uncolored coloring book.

"We're almost there!" Papyrus said excitedly.

We kept going until we came up to another large looking building. I was surprised when I saw the building. The color was different, but… it looked familiar. The building itself was something I hadn't seen though. The closest I saw was the castle of the nation's king that I saw on the field trip when I was younger. We got to explore the outside of it. It was a massive… castle, there wasn't really another good word to describe it.

"Is that… the castle?" I asked.

"Yes. At the very top is the home of the royals and the throne room," Papyrus answered. "The competition is held in the lesser ball room on the second floor. The grand ballroom on the 15th is where the New Years Ball occurs. You can see the 15th floor from here as it incorporates balconies and free transitions from indoors to outdoors."

I looked up, the castle was definitely tall. There was a lot of space here. The ceiling of the mountain looked to be very high in this area.

"Are you intimidated?" Papyrus asked me when I had been quiet for some time.

"A little bit," I admitted. The last time I was near a royal's castle… I didn't see Kris again…

"Well do not worry! I, the Great Papyrus, will be here for you!" Papyrus beamed.

I looked up at Papyrus and gave him a small smile. "Well… we might as well go in. We don't want to be late. We still need to sign up!"

"That is correct! Let us go!" Papyrus smiled.

I followed Papyrus into the castle. It was… definitely a castle, though it looked more… medieval then the one I had seen.

"Don't judge the King and Queen too harshly for having out of date decor," Papyrus softly said. "They simply do not wish to spend funds on updating the looks of this place. Especially as those funds could be better spent on the public."

"I think the medieval look makes it look cooler in a more retro style," I replied. And more intimidating, but I won't mention that part. "If this were a movie set, I bet you and Sans could be the skeletons locked in the dungeon or something."

"But Sans and I are law abiding citizens!" Papyrus gasped. "Why would we be locked away?!"

"Hmm, maybe instead of being locked away, you'd rise from the grave, bent on revenge for those who left you to rot away!" I said dramatically. "... You know I'm kidding, right, Papyrus? I was mainly talking about a TV show… that Mettaton could probably do one day. Like a zombie horror movie or something."

"O-oh!" Papyrus acknowledged while glancing away. "It would be an honor to be part of a show or movie with Mettaton… but as far as I am aware, he only has two that he would ever share the screen with. And I do not mean the King and Queen."

I followed Papyrus up the stairs. "Who are the two he shared the screen with? And why not expand the actors? There's a lot more he could do with more actors."

"Mettaton's closest friends," Papyrus answered. "They both help him with the music in his shows and movies. As for why he doesn't use other actors…"

Papyrus leaned down and whispered. "I think that Mettaton is worried that sharing the screen with others would be less attention on him. I believe he is afraid of being overshadowed or forgotten. Not much is known of his past, other than he has two close friends."

"Isn't he a robot that someone built though?" I asked. "Or… is he a robot monster?"

"He is a robot, and he seems to be a monster as well," Papyrus answered. "He has all the personality of a monster. He was built by the doctor you saw yesterday, Dr. Alphys. She built him when she was still the Royal Scientist."

"Wow, that's… really impressive," I said. The scientists in the Underground are definitely something, that's for sure.

"But let's not worry about that right now, let's focus on the competition," Papyrus said. "Because we have arrived!"

Papyrus gestured to an open doorway that led into a very large, well lit room. Inside there were already dozens, if not hundreds, of monsters scattered about the place. There seemed to be flying cameras moving about the room which made me feel a bit self conscious. Though I realized a yearly event like this would probably be good for Mettaton.

Papyrus took my hand and led me towards a table near the doorway where there were a few monsters sitting behind a desk.

"Hey there, Papyrus!" One of the rabbit monsters from Snowdin greeted.

"Welcome back!" A cardboard box with a sock puppet head warmly welcomed us.

"You planning on taking first this time?~" A weasel looking monster grinned.

"Of course!" Papyrus gleefully and confidently replied. "Now that I have a helper!"

"A helper?" The rabbit monster asked.

"Oh, you adorable little bean. Arentcha just the cutest?~" The weasel monster cooed.

"What's their name?" The box… sock puppet monster asked.

"It is Frizk," Papyrus answered.

"Alright, Papyrus and Frizk." The sock puppet monster remarked before holding out a piece of paper with a cardboard hand. "Here's your spot confirmation. Make sure you two wear your stickers."

"Thank you very much." I smiled as I took the piece of paper.

"You should let me, Frizk," Papyrus stated as he kneeled down beside me. "That way you don't get your fur caught on the sticker-badge."

"Oh yeah, that would be quite troublesome," I chuckled as I handed Papyrus the stickers. "I guess just stick it on my shirt."

Papyrus nodded and peeled off one of the stickers before carefully placing it on my shirt. "There you are."

"Thanks, Papyrus." I smiled.

"But of course~" Papyrus grinned before he put his own sticker on his chest. "There, now we have registered!"

"Great, now what?" I asked.

"Now we go over to the area on the paper," Papyrus answered. "Each participant or team gets their own area that is just for them. We'll go to ours and wait until the Queen comes out."

I nodded before I followed Papyrus. As we were walking I noticed a square area marked off by tape on the floor. In each area there were supplies, a small kitchen station, and an area that looked like it was for display. Each of the small kitchens were made up of counters, cupboards, cabinets, two stoves, and two ovens. I noticed that at each of the corners of the taped off area were a number. At least monster numbers looked to be the same as English numbers.

Papyrus and I headed to the area with the number 24 on it, as that is what we had been assigned..

"Looks like this is our spot," Papyrus said.

"Wow," I said as I began to look around the little kitchen.

I saw the cupboards and cabinets were chocked full of ingredients for gingerbread making. We definitely had plenty to work with.

"Feel free to look around, but leave everything where they are for the time being," Papyrus instructed. "We may be disqualified for simply moving around the items in the cabinets."

I nodded. "But wow, this is so cool. We get our own little kitchen to work in."

"Of course, each participant gets access to the same tools as everyone else," Papyrus explained. "That way one can ensure fairness. Teams can work together, such as sharing or trading ingredients, letting an extra stove top be used, and things like that. However, directly interacting with another team's gingerbread or gingerbread creations in any way is grounds for immediate disqualification."

"Is that what the cameras are for?" I asked. "To see if anyone's cheating?"

"Well, maybe, though they're mostly there so people at home can watch the compet-" Papyrus began to say when he was suddenly interrupted.

"Oh look, it's the skeleton who comes in 3rd and 4th place every year."

"Planning to try to get 2nd place this year?"

I frowned as I saw two monsters approaching us. One of them looked to be a green python looking snake, the other appeared to be a dark purple rat monster. They both wore fancy looking clothes, and jewelry. It kinda showed they may be either wealthy or nobility. I guess even monsters worked in a system of 'the rich thrives'.

"Well, 2nd place wouldn't be bad, but I plan to aim for 1st place, of course! Nyeh heh heh!" Papyrus responded like they weren't teasing him.

"Oh? And why would this year be any different? Muffet isn't here, so that means we'll be taking home all that sweet, sweet gold~" The rat monster giggled.

"Oooh, who's that tasty looking little morsel next to the skeleton?" The snake monster grinned as she looked at me.

I flinched back when she looked at me. Her eyes… they reminded me of some people I knew… not very good people.

"Aww, looks like I scared the poor little doggy," The snake monster giggled.

"That's not very nice. Frizk is new here, and you shouldn't scare her like that," Papyrus scolded.

"Oh, she's new here? Then she should learn about how things work here," The rat monster pointed out. "Don't cross us, mutt, or… accidents may happen."

"Watch. Your. Tone." Papyrus said in a cross tone as he stepped in between me and the rat monster. "You may say what you will to me, but you will not threaten the child. Nor shall you insult her. Am I clear?"

I was surprised, I had never heard or seen Papyrus get angry before, he was usually always so positive and cheerful.

The snake and rat monster both hissed in annoyance.

"So the skeleton does have a backbone," The rat monster grumbled.

"Fine, we'll leave you alone… but don't expect to win," The snake monster hissed.

The two of them walked and slithered away. I had a bad feeling about them.

"Sorry about that, Frizk," Papyrus apologized. "Those two are Rattles and Cheddar, they managed to sell a lot of items that monsters want, and they ended up with a lot of gold. Though I'm afraid all of that went to their heads, and they get snippy with anyone that they think would take away their power or spotlight."

I guess there are monsters like that here too… I frowned. "We should be careful around them then."

"I agree, but let's not worry about them, Frizk, we're here to have fun." Papyrus smiled, going back to his friendly, positive self.

"Yeah," I agreed before looking down, noticing a yellow star.

I hesitated a little, but I felt like… this was important. I touched the yellow star. Flowey was being awfully considerate here, or maybe he just wanted to keep tempting me to use his power to win. But either way, it was probably best to have a Save here… just in case.

"Despite the threats of Rattles and Cheddar, you're filled with Determination."

How right you are, mysterious voice. I was definitely determined now.