#i am aware that i am probably sticking my hand into a metaphorical bucket of piranhas here

[winterinhimring]

Unpopular Harry Potter opinions:

"James Potter and the Marauders severely bullied Snape" and "Snape taking that pain out on Harry was ugly and inappropriate" are statements that can and should coexist.

"Publicly exposing someone and mocking him is not a funny prank" and "calling your best friend a slur is wrong even under stress" are statements that can and should coexist.

And, finally, "[Character] did something genuinely wrong and would face consequences for it in a just world" and "[Character] ultimately chose to do the right thing and should be recognised for that" are statements that can and should coexist. (James, Severus, and Sirius are the ones I had in mind as potential names to substitute for [Character] but really that could fit a lot of people.)

[as-breakable-as-glass]

It was dark. Glass was getting used to coming to awareness in the dark, at least in his dreams he was. “Dings.” Gaster turned at the sound of his voice but didn’t even get the chance to open his mouth before Glass was talking. “I think we have a way to get you out of here old man.” Now Gaster was speechless, mouth still left gaping as his hands stumbled over signs. ‘What?... How? When did you discover this? And… who?’ “Heh, don’t forget the where and why. “A… friend apparently got their Gaster out of the void using the machine their Sans had-” “Will this be safe?” Gaster cut in. Glass raised an eye ridge but shrugged anyway. “That’s what I’m trying to figure out.” “Ss- Glass.” ‘I do not want you to use it in the chance it starts drawing in energy like before.’ Glass gave a loose laugh. “I knew you’d say that. And believe me old man I don’t want to take the risk either. That’s why I’m still checking the machine out. Other than that, all there is to do is wait.” Gaster nodded, relaxing again somewhat though he still looked worried and deep in thought. “How long…?” “To wait? I don’t know, once I’m sure it’s not going to explode when I flip a switch.” “No… when was the last time you dreamed of me?” “Ah, about a week” It was always hit or miss with these dreams. Sometimes he would go to sleep and dream nothing at all; most of the time he would see dust and bloodstained snow. But then there were the times like these when he got lucky. Glass didn’t know how they worked, and now that the excitement was wearing off, he was once again aware of the fact that he still had no proof that these weren’t hallucinations. By now it really didn’t matter if they were real or not anymore. Now there was a chance he could get him out. After repeating the answer a couple times with his hands, Gaster nodded. “Time… is strange here. It could have been seconds since I last saw you.” He shrugged and smiled thinly before getting that spaced look again. It was… a freaky look on him honestly. The Dings he knew was always thinking and you could always see the gears moving through his expression. “What do you plan on doing when you get out of here Dings?” He prodded. Gaster looked back at Glass, surprised. “I… I have not thought about it.” He admitted, still a slow smile was beginning to spread over his face at the thought. “I suppose I would have to get in touch with my old colleagues, let them know I am back from the dead.” A weak chuckle and a sigh. “After that I am unsure. “Can you tell me about them?” “Who, the guys we worked with?” He nodded. “Alright.” Glass shifted his feet and thought for a moment. It had been a long time since he’s talked about the lab guys, even longer since he’d seen any of them. He decided to start with the basics. “The guys back at the lab were nice enough. Some were complete idiots and got their jobs by luck I swear. Others were smart. They were kind, rude, jumpy, confident; there were a variety of characters there.” He smiled when one specifically came to mind. “Do you remember Ether? Short, black cat monster; kind of hated your metaphorical guts? You thought she was after your job for a while. She wouldn’t stop criticizing your projects even once they were cleared by the king. She was also a real stick in the mud when it came to Core management; which you put her in charge of. Heh, your reasoning behind that are beyond me. “She… was good at her job.” “Didn’t make her any less of a- Hey you remember!” It was such a small thing, remembering an old coworker, but for Gaster it was huge and Glass couldn’t help but feel proud of his old man. “...A bit.” Gaster admitted slowly. ‘She did not like it when I brought you and Papyrus to work with me.’ Glass chuckled. “Yeah she thought we were distractions to you and the other scientists. She was always watching to catch us when we broke the rules. I guess she was okay when I grew up and she realized that I was still going to be coming around, but she had something against kids.” Gaster paused, his eyes getting a far away look as he concentrated. ‘I remember she once stormed up to me... soaking wet?’ He looked at Glass half questioning and half accusatory. He knew that look. Glass cursed inwardly. Out of everything he had to remember that. “Heh, well there’s no harm in an innocent prank.” It had only been water after all. ‘Perhaps. But I think she would have been more kind if you hadn’t antagonized her.’ He signed. “Nah she was like that before I was old enough to balance water buckets on doors. She had it coming for her.” He looked at Glass. Even when stooping slightly, he barely reached Gaster’s shoulders. ‘How did you get the buckets-?’ Yep. Now was the time to change the subject. “Anyway there’s also Griz. He was one of your assistant engineers who had a knack for electric magic. He was alright. He showed Papyrus the blueprints of his machines to keep him occupied. Pap was really into that as a little kid before he became interested in healing magic.” ‘Papyrus.’ “How is he?” Gaster was quick to move on and Glass wasn’t sure if he was letting it slide or he was just easily distracted now. “Good. He changed his name to Gen when I started going by Glass and is training to be a royal guard in Snowdin. He’s even getting sparing lessons from the captain herself, Undyne. “She’s uh, she’s interesting, but Gen likes her at least. She lives in Waterfall so Gen goes there a couple days a week for his training.” ‘Snowdin…’ “Who else do you see there?” “Well there's Bun, the lady who runs the shop and her sister runs the  inn we stayed at the first couple days in Snowdin. Gen trades her healing items in exchange for other things like books, spare clothes sometimes, ingredients, and other stuff, but otherwise we don’t see her that often. “Heh, there’s also a hot bartender there. Literally, he’s made of fire. Grillby runs the only bar and restaurant in Snowdin. He doesn’t talk much, but I don’t know, I kind of like that about him. Doesn’t force conversation. Uuh I don’t see that much of him either. He’s always working and I only stop by Grillby’s if I have to. “Then there's the whole canine unit. I hear they’re regulars at Grillby’s and they’re almost always around when I go in there. “Honestly Gen would probably be better at describing them than I would since he sees them the most, but they seem alright.” Glass shrugged a bit. “Gen would probably be better at describing just about everyone in Snowdin. He likes to chat with whoever he run across in the streets and when they part, he always seems to end up knowing half their life story because of how many questions he asks them. “It sounds like a wonderful place.” He shrugged. It was, wasn't it? Glass never though to much about the small town they lived in but it was...nice. It would be nice to show it all to Gaster again. It would be just like when they were kids except their roles would be reversed. He and Gen would be the ones showing him around town and introducing him to old forgotten, friends instead. It was a weird prospect to think of, but Glass found himself actually looking forward to it. He was looking forward to showing the old man how to live again.

((Yaaaaay! At least I know for a fact that I didn’t post this one yet. Obviously this takes place after the first one and after Glass’s party since he received a working version of the time machine by @justanotherpasafrisk‘s Frisk as a birthday gift.

Also! the various random monsters named in Glass’s reminiscences are all ocs I made on the spot. I tried to give them creative nonhuman names but I am the absolute worst at naming things X,D You all saw a bit of Ether already. I think I’m going to use her again sometimem.))