#but she can't say no to luc when he asks her to go bug hunting 😔

[moonlit-tia]

Made my fields of mistria oc, Vesta, with this picrew by maetheellen! I got the template from here ♡

[underswitch-official]

Part 10

I go inside, and Hera says, "Do you smell that? Surprise! It's a butterscotch-cinnamon pie. I thought we might celebrate your arrival."

I lift my visor and reveal a beaming face. "I love butterscotch-cinnamon pie! My brother used to bake them all the time."

Hera smiles and says, "Oh, that's wonderful! I want you to have a nice time living here. I do not suppose you like eating snails, do you?"

I facetiously scrunch up my face and say, "Blegh, no! Hahaha! My uncle Jean-Luc used to bring escargot when he came over, and I always had a hard time keeping it down."

"Oh," she says, laughing, "okay. I guess I'll hold off on snail pie for now. Here, I have another surprise for you."

Hera leads me to the right and says, "This is it… A room of your own. I hope you like it!"

I look up at her with excitement and gasp, "Really? Aw, yeah!"

Hera chuckles and then realizes that she smells a tad bit of smoke. "Is something burning…? Um, please make yourself at home," she says before running to what I suppose it the kitchen.

I go inside the room and look around. At the foot of the bed, a box of toys. The voice returns and says, "*Look at these cool toys! They don't interest you at all."

With a sense of disappointment, I go explore the rest of the room.

On the floor shelf, an empty photo frame. It's really dusty…

Next to the shelf, a box of kids' shoes in a disparity of sizes.

Next to the box, a stool with a lamp. I turn the light on and off repeatedly for fun.

I notice that very homely music plays, and that when the light is off, the song is played by a music box. When the light is on, the song is played by a guitar.

I decide to take a nap later.

The song continues as I leave the room, and I go explore further down the hall. I find a mirror, and the voice says, "*It's you!"

I smile and go find Hera. On the way to the kitchen, I pass by her room. I peek inside, and decide to look in her drawers.

The voice says:

"*You peek inside…

*Scandalous!

*It's HERA's sock drawer.

*...

*Wait a minute, those aren't socks…

*You can't bear looking any longer, it's so gruesome."

I close it quickly and look around for something else to inspect.

I see a bucket by the door and go look in it.

The voice says:

"*Just a regular old bucket

of snails."

I decide that enough is enough and go find Hera. I walk to the living room and see her sitting on a chair. I decide to be silly and call her from behind the dining table.

"Hey, you silly child," she says after answering the phone. "If you want to talk to me, I am right here."

She hangs up and puts the phone in her pocket.

I go up to her and say hi.

"Hello there, little one!" Hera responds. "The pie has not cooled down yet. Perhaps you should take a nap."

I realize that I am tired and nod sleepily.

"Sweet dreams, my child," Hera says as I go to my room. I lie down on the bed and fall asleep quickly.

When I wake up, I see a slice of pie on a plate on the floor. I pick it up and slip into my pocket because I'm not ready to eat such and amazing pie.

I come back out to the living room and talk to Hera.

"Up already, I see?" She says. "Um, I want you to know how glad I am to have someone here. There are so many old books I want to share. I want to show you my favorite bug-hunting spot. I've also prepared a curriculum for your education."

I ask if I can sit on her lap.

"Oh, of course, Frisk! Come here."

Hera picks me up and sits me on her lap.

"Anyway, this may come as a surprise to you, but I have always wanted to be a teacher," she continues.

"That isn't surprising. I think you'd make a great teacher," I say.

"Really? Thank you for that, my child. I am glad to have you living here. Oh, did you want something?"

I nod and try to say that I want to stay here with her, but what comes out doesn't sound right at all.

"When can I go home?" I ask.

"What? This… this IS your home now. Um… how about I read a passage from this book I'm reading?"

I try to say sure, but what comes out instead is, "How can I exit the Ruins?"

Hera looks very concerned, mostly because I look surprised that I'm saying these things.

Instead of answering, she asks, "Are you okay, my child?"

I manage to say what I want to say, "Help me."

Hera's face is drawn with worry, and she takes me off of her lap and says, "I have to do something. Stay here."

I try to obey her, but something controls me, making me follow her. I go to the next room and down the stairs into the basement.

I catch up with Hera, and she says, "You wish to return 'home,' do you not? Ahead of us lies the end of the RUINS. A one-way exit to the rest of the Underground. I am going to destroy it. No one will ever be able to leave again. Now be a good child and go upstairs."

With that, she continues walking. Despite my strong desire to obey Hera, I continue following her.

Once again, I catch up with her, and she says more, this time with an aloof expression.

"Every human that falls down here meets the same fate. I have seen it again and again. They come, they leave, they die. You naïve child… If you leave the RUINS, they… EZRAAN… will kill you. I am only protecting you, do you understand? Go to your room."

I try to say that I want to, but Hera walks off before I can respond. Again, I follow her against my own will.

I catch up with her again, and she says, "Do not try to stop me. This is your final warning." She then walks off. I turn around for three seconds, then continue following her.

I reach a heart shaped room with a large door. Hera stands in front of it. I approach her. She says, "You want to leave so badly? Hmph. You are just like the others. There is only one solution to this. Prove yourself… prove to me that you are strong enough to survive."