#just needed to type it out somewhere and tumblr oddly felt like the one safe space to do that

[kloppinthekop]

[yanderecandystore]

TUMBLR DIED BEFORE I COULD FINISH BUT imagine the collector unsuccessfully attempting time and time again to trap a ( albeit disguised ) god that turns out to either be much older/wiser or much stronger then he is. chaos ensues

Hey boo! Don't worry I got your ask. Tumblr can be so rude sometimes, all you need is your WiFi to drop one bar low and all that you have done is gone in an instant.

This may be a little different than what you expect, but I still hope you enjoy it!

TW/Tags: Smoll caos with a hint of potential fluff/angst (because I'm feeling soft, kay? 🥺) // God complex coming both sides, so there is a lot of sassiness // I think that for the sake of this headcanon, reader will be an humanoid-looking god // I'll give the reader the ability to choose which type of entity and title they have, but that may cause a little bit of disimmersion when it comes to reading, so yeah just an warning.

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

This has nothing to do with the headcanon, but Papyrus is the best skeleton boy you'll ever meet [Yandere!Eldritch OC x God!Reader - Headcanon]:

So, I would imagine that your first encounter would be very, very interesting.

I'm gonna let you choose which type of god you're in this headcanon. Are you one of the greek gods? Perhaps an african god? One of the various entities in Asia? Or are you completely different from all of them? Are you a cosmic entity that just so happens to look like a human? It's up to you darling.

You, [Y/N], were simply walking around a garden you grew to appreciate. At first you thought that receiving this type of gift wasn't really needed, but having buildings built in your name and glory it's pretty flattering. A whole garden built in your image, the statues fit this place perfectly, the only thing missing is the shrine that the humans are currently building.

What a lovely day, right? Yet, the sound of something being pulled out of the ground with immense force made you realize that there was a newcomer to your garden.

Maybe you're familiar with the white masked creatures from the beyond, or may be not. Maybe you just see them as a strange monster that has started to… steal the trees in your garden? You can't tell whether to laugh or to take great offence to this ridiculous sight.

A being tall and grand as the sky above, stealing plants from your garden, but to what cause exactly? What is their gain? One can't help themselves but to be curious over such a fascinating sight.

Your approach to the situation is one of pure mischievous nature, but not letting your guard down, as you aren't so sure what this stranger is capable of doing just yet.

"- Well, hello." You try to take their attention out of your beautiful flowers. He wasn't picking one by one, he was taking the entire bush and… Consuming them? There is an immense amount of light every time he puts them behind his mask, what could be underneath that if not a face?

"- Oh! Greetings." He says turning his head to look at the direction of the voice, only to be met with a little human greeting him. He still doesn't seem to be really bothered by your presence, as he continues his activities as usual.

"- Gorgeous flowers right?" You ask, still wondering if he realizes that none of these plants are his.

"- Indeed, it's beautiful specimens such as these that need to be guarded somewhere more safely, don't you think?" He asks, although his whole time is pretty distant from the present conversation. He probably does think you're just an ordinary human.

"- Yeah, I sure think that the owner of the garden is taking good care though." You respond, hoping he has some sort of sense to understand that he is in a private area, taking things that aren't his.

"- Well, they seem pretty lonely over here, and besides, I haven't seen anyone taking care of them." He probably already noticed what you're doing, trying to make him feel bad for taking them away. But honestly, he didn't saw anyone here to take care of them, so it may as well be from no one.

And if it is from no one, is his now.

"- Are you perhaps the owner of the garden?" He asks, now paying close attention to you. You seem to be an upper class human, lavishly adorned by those jewels and fine silk, it would make a lot of sense of you were the owner of such an extravagant place. Are you perhaps made at his entrance into "your territory"?

"- Maybe I am, maybe I'm not, why the curiosity?" You ask while making your way to seat down at one of the stone benches near the creature.

"- Just wondering why you're so interested in my presence. I guess I'm not wanted here." He was going to go back to… Wherever the hell he is from, but you decided to stop him right there.

"- Wouldn't it be rude for you to leave without making an proper introduction to the host? And hey, what kind of host am I if I let you leave this place while having such an unpleasant experience?" You make a little sign to tell him to seat with you. I mean, metaphorically, he can't really seat at that tiny little bench with you.

This interesting encounter lead to an surprisingly interesting conversation between two beings that are very similar yet aren't fully aware of it. The Collector sees you as a really intelectual human, almost so close to understanding his own feelings towards the other creatures around him, and you think he could be just another kind of monster with an oddly endearing superiority complex.

The type of "yes, sir, I do shiny like a thousand stars" it's strangely very entertaining to watch. You're both art lovers, and seem to have an great fascination with the living creatures around you, even if they're a "beneath" you two.

If only this conversation could least longer, if only he could held his hoarding erge, but he couldn't.

"- This conversation has been the best I had in eons!" He squeals in excitement.

"- Yeah. The feeling is mutual." You say being completely honest. Although, he didn't think you were being serious on each word you said.

"- I think we'll have a great time when I put you in the jewel box." He starts to stand himself up, his legs making mechanical noises that almost overpowered the sound your voice when you said:

"- Uhn…. The what?" You asked genuinely confused about this turn of events.

"- Oh! Well, I like to call it jewel box but if you want an precise description is an pocket dimension containing my vast collection!" He says absolutely eccstatic about this! His hand starts to go towards your small form, successfully picking you up in a really gentle way.

"- An collection? Of what exactly?" You decided to go with this just out of curiosity. This is starting to become concerning and interesting!

"- Of living creatures such as your beautiful little self." He answers, but without waiting your response, he pulls his mask slightly to the side as an strong amount of light hit your eyes making you temporarily blind.

He thought he had managed to transport you with the plants he had stolen to his little storage dimension, yet he was proven wrong when he heard an voice say:

"- Wow! That was…. An interesting and short ride! Absolutely terrifying!" When he turned around he saw you adjusting yourself as you speak. Man, who would've thought being transported to another dimension would be like this?

And of course, he is shocked. How??? How did you do that? How did you managed to get out? Have you even went inside??

He was starting to check his mask to see if he could feel anymore new cracks, or if the mask was damaged in any way. Luckily for him, his mask hasn't been damaged at all, yet he was still left with unanswered questions.

"- H-How?" This is the first time in his life he has ever stutter, he felt so confused and afraid because he couldn't understand what the hell just happened!?!

You turned your head to look at him, your once welcoming mischievous face wear a more serious expression, almost an scorn.

"- So, this is what you meant by loving the "lesser creatures"? The ones that can't protect themselves from the almost of power you harbor? You capture them and put them in your personal little playground?"

You asked him, scolding him as you came forward to his towering form. You looked straight up at his eyes. Or more accurately, his masks holes for eyes. He is so shocked at this outcome that his first reaction is to distance himself from you, walking back in desperation.

If any of his kind saw this pathetic display, they would probably laugh at him to no end.

"- I should have known better than to trust someone so soon. I should have banned you from my garden, but now? I'm kinda glad I got to see your true nature-" You didn't stop your march towards him. You only stopped when he was corned by the mountain against his back "- You vile mons-" You were cut off in the middle of your rant by a large hand picking you fast as he tried once again to shove you into his light. Into his dimension.

He needed to confirm he hasn't went insane. No, no, this couldn't be possible, it had to be impossible!

How can you stop the teleportation midway and go back like nothing happened???

"- Were you listening to anything I said?" You once again appeared near him, clearly mad at his futile attempts of imprisoning you.

He… Is shaking. Uncontrollably. His body is shaking in such a pace that even the mountain behind him seem to be suffering from the earthquake caused by his sudden shaking.

You weren't understanding what was happening, and before you could try to get some answers his whole body freezed the moment an crack was audibly coming from his mask.

He was getting so, so stressed over this predicament. He needed to calm down. He needed to understand what was happening and who were you to be able to do this to him!

"- I.. I have underestimated you." It's all he managed to say. It's all he could process at this moment.

"- Well, I guess I did as well." You thought he was only another monster hanging around your garden. You didn't expect such powerful abilities being used to harm others.

Your later encounters were, well, kinda bittersweet at first. He kept stealing jewelry and kidnapping habitants of your world. You did try to fight him, but you soon learned that he was essentially a walking bomb. A cosmic one at that. To kill him, you need to break his mask, breaking his mask causes an immense explosion that will consume everything around it, and then turning all that mass into a new star with a new solar system.

And there is a slight possibility of him rebirthing with the star and the new planets. You were considering consulting other entities to create an weapon capable of destroying his kind without causing too much destruction. You have yet to decide your next move.

You two had, interesting encounters. No fighting, no trying to harm or to trap one another. Just… Talking. Just like you two did in your first meeting.

As the centuries pass you notice how he still wants to keep you in his little playground, which still disturbs you to no end, but at least he has stopped picking more victims to his dollhouse. His attempts are still futile and naive, yet, you can't help but feel concerned about his cracks in his mask. Not only the possibility of it breaking causing an massive massacre against all that you love and care about, but- You can't help but be worried about him.

You have soon learned what the cracks means to his kind.

"- Hey, look, stop- Sigh, stop trying… Please." You try warning him, not wanting to see him overstressed again.

He looks at you, and although his mask doesn't show, you feel that he is looking at you with confusion and tiredness. He knows you're just like him, so it makes sense that you can't be trapped inside his dimension.

Is, kinda of a thing about his kind. There is an common understanding that if you love something, you put it where no one will be able to harm or take it away. They can't physically put each other inside their pocket dimensions, but saying that you do it for them if it was possible is kinda an emotional phrase to them. It's an weird equivalent of "I love you", but they aren't aware of how this types of feelings work, so whenever they say it, is supposed to be really special.

Even if to the majority of the universe, it sounds incredibly concerning and possessive.

He just- He just really wishes he could take you with him, to keep you with him.

He doesn't understand why, he just really wants to, and the frustration of not being able to is killing him (literally).

"- Why are you-" He tried to muster an question, but he feels so weak and pathetic that he can't even ask you why you care about him. You interrupt him, shushing him up in hopes of it easing his mind.

"- Just, please, don't say anything. Don't think about anything. You'll get yourself hurt if you do."

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

Jesus Christ, I'm really sorry if this isn't what you were waiting for anon, I'm really sorry but I still wanted to share it so here it is- 😭

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

[excaliefur]

Anne’s Deathday. Part 1

Heyyy, yeah so I’m going to start uploading fics again. no promises but I aim to get another chapter of Lets just talk up soon. I didn’t intend for this to be multi chaptered but it happened. Sorry for uploading this late, I struggle with deadlines. This has no ship as far as I know? This is going to be a mix of angst and other stuff I guess. Sorry if it’s inaccurate, I’m a teenager, not a historian. Anyways have a good day!

TW: Swearing, will add more as the story progresses, tell me if I need to add more. 

Words: 1205

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Anne sighed. Only a few more hours. Then it would officially be the day. 19.05.2020. Her death day. It was 21:23, and Anne was staring at her clock. 

Tick Tock. Anne was pissed. She wanted it to be midnight already, then she could try and sleep the whole day away. She had played every game on her switch, she watched every conspiracy theory video on youtube, she had done everything and now she was bored. 

She could hear Kats quiet snoring from the room next to hers, she could hear Cathy’s quiet typing from the other room next to hers, and she could hear Catherines quiet voice, speaking on her phone to someone. It made her smile. The normalcy of it, specifically, made her smile. It was just so normal. She could go to sleep and not worry about waking up somewhere else, or waking up with an arrest warrant, she could be safe, and she knew this life was secure. This life was amazing. 

Tick Tock. The ticking noise reminded her why she was awake. Anne groaned and flopped onto her bed. ‘Ughhh.’ she mumbled into her pillow. Maybe staying up wasn’t her best idea. Anne only wanted to get tired enough to sleep through the day without nightmares. The past few death days were so painful with flashbacks, she really didn’t want to go through that again. 

Tick Tock. that noise. It was taunting her. She yelled into her pillow and threw it across her room. It fell with a soft thud, and Anne felt annoyed. Now she had to walk all the way across the room to pick it up again. Before she got up, there was a quiet knock on her door. ‘Yeah?’ she asked, too tired to get up. Anne looked up to see who opened the door. It was Jane, holding 2 mugs of tea. ‘Can I sit?’ Jane asked, Anne loved that everyone there respected boundaries, but sometimes it was too much. It was her room, not like a time bomb. Anne shrugged and sat up, opposite Jane. Jane placed the mugs onto Anne’s desk as she sat on the chair. 

They sat in silence for a minute, before Jane passed Anne one of the mugs. Anne grabbed, it reveling in the warmth. Jane waited for Anne to drink before speaking.

‘Do you want to talk about it?’ She asked, gently. Anne shrugged, taking another sip of her tea. ‘That's fine,’ Jane said, her voice was very calming. Anne took another sip, just to avoid talking. ‘Do you want to stay in my room tonight?’ Jane pressed. Anne looked into Jane’s eyes. Nothing out of the ordinary there, kindness, empathy, a little bit of sadness. Anne didn’t feel too bad yet. She shook her head. ‘Not now.’ Jane nodded, understandingly. 

‘If you want to, my door will always be open.’ She said. Standing up and kissing Anne on her forehead. She stood straighter and exited the room. Anne smiled. It was reassuring to know that people cared. She took a few more sips of her tea and set it down. She certainly felt better, but it made her more tired. Anne sighed. ‘Fuuuuuuuu-’ she was interrupted by another knock on her door and someone strode in. It was Anna. ‘Hey Anna.’ Anne sighed gesturing to the seat opposite her.

‘Hey bo. Just wanted to check on you before I sleep.’ Anna said, wasting no time. 

‘I’m fine.’ Anne replied, she didn’t mean to be so guarded but it happened. ‘Yeah i can tell.’ Anna replied, dropping into the seat. ‘No, I’m serious, I’m fine.’ Anne said, annoyed. Anna shook her head, her face becoming serious. ‘Alright, i'm here for you though, bo.’ Anna reminded her, talks like these were not her specialty. She generally let Jane help someone first, and when they need a break, they could go to Anna. Anna went to exit the room, but paused at the door. ‘I think Catherine’s asleep, so she won’t come down, and Jane and Kat are talking, so unless Cathy forgets, she’s the last you’ll see tonight.’ Anna informed, knowing that Anne wouldn’t be comfortable until she knew where everyone was. Anne nodded gratefully, and smiled as Anna exited. 

Tick Tock. That damn ticking. Anne was ready to throw the clock out of the window. She got up and grabbed her laptop, opening up netflix, getting ready to binge watch some series she’s seen a million times. It was 23:30. Wow time moves fast. She scrolled through stuff shes seen and sighed, nothing was interesting. She played a random episode of a random series and grabbed her phone to scroll through tumblr. 

Tick tock. It felt like a blur, she had gone through maybe 13 episodes and she was getting bored. 

Tick tock. That stupid clock. 

Tick tock. Another 2 episodes. 

Tick tock. It was 02:45. 

Tick Tock. it was the day. 

Tick Tock. The day Anne hated almost as much as she hated henry. 

Tick Tock. the day that henry finally got rid of her. 

Tick tock. The day she got her scar. 

Tick Tock. The day Anne lost the chance of seeing Elizabeth grow up. 

Tick Tock. The day Elizabeth lost her mother. 

Tick Tock. Tick Tock. Tic- and then there was silence. 

Anne groaned and rubbed her head. It was pitch black. Where was she? Her head hurt like hell. She glanced around. It didn’t seem familiar. ‘-nne! Anne! Anne!’ came a voice, ringing in her head. It was like an alarm. Something was happening. Anne stood up, looking around for any indication of escape. Was she kidnapped? What was happening. 

Her eyes adjusted to the dark, and she realised she was in a room. It had no windows, a chair, and a small door to her right. Anne reached for the handle, and tried to open the door. It shook, but didn’t budge. With a frustrated groan, she sat onto the chair. She rubbed her temple. What happened? That's when she heard it, a soft whimper. ‘Hello?’ She asked, blindly moving towards where it came from. Anne squinted, and saw the outline of a child, huddling in a corner. It seemed oddly familiar. ‘Hey, I’m not going to hurt you. Can you move closer to me?’ Anne whispered, hoping to calm the child. 

The child moved away from the corner, slightly stepping closer. Anne gasped. She knew that child.

_______________________________________________________________________

Yeah, hi!. Does that count as a cliffhanger? I don’t know. 

Taglist Let me know if you want to be added or removed from it.

@mindless-pidgeon

@everything-insanity

@i-wanna-dance-and-sing-six

Stay safe folks.

[ayamari-no-goshi]

Eidolon 7 | (T)

ff.net | AO3

Fandom: Danny Phantom (DP)

Summary:  AU: What started off as the result of a simple act of rebellion ends up causing his life to spin out of control. How will young Danny cope with the results as well as a past that has a strange habit of coming back to haunt him.

Warnings: rated T for violence, mentions of death, kidnapping, and various other things

Parings: hints of Danny/Sam much later on

Notes: originally uploaded to Ff.net. Cross-posted to AO3 and tumblr

7. First Confrontations

It had been about two weeks since Danny had decided to visit the cemetery on his own. As he traveled the familiar paths, he constantly checked his surroundings for a sign of another's presence. Although he wasn't exactly, happy he felt that there was a need to check, it was better to play it safe. That creature had been there once after all, so who was to say that it would not appear again?

Without even realizing he had been aiming for it, he soon reached his favorite part of the grounds. A small stone terrace decorated with a couple benches sat neatly out of the way of both graves and the normal path. Since it was surrounded by trees, it was often easy to miss by visitors, assuring he would be able to think in peace for a while.

Words and images manufactured from hours of speculation kept swimming around his head. He tried to make sense of everything, but it just seemed to make his confusion worse. The puzzle of both his past and his parents' was not only vast, but complicated. It was likely it was possible to solve it; however he was pretty sure that there were several pieces that he still didn't have.

The new information about his unknown parents seemed to take precedence over any other thoughts. They had disappeared after being attacked, yet Winston had never actually said if they were still alive. Maybe his guardian withheld the information because of concern, or perhaps he didn't even know for sure. So, was it possible that they could still be out there somewhere? Wouldn't that be nice? But, he knew that it was incredibly unlikely just because of how much time had passed. Besides, he'd have absolutely no idea what he would say to them.

There was also the issue of the guy that had attacked his parents… Plasmius, or something like that. Winston seemed very hesitant to talk about him and had even danced around the subject once he had gotten a chance to ask him for details. Although he couldn't say for sure, it felt as if something big was being left out of the story, even if he had no idea what it could be. Was this Plasmius just an unorthodox researcher with some frightening ideas? Or was there more to it? Tucker had suggested that he could be some type of crazy arms dealer (though he personally didn't understand how weapons and paranormal science could mix).

Danny took a moment to both rest his mind and to attempt to figure out how to make his hand visible again. Shortly after his conversation with Winston, different parts of his body had seemingly begun to randomly disappear. The first time it happened, he had been trying to wash his face the one morning, only to realize that the wash cloth was seemingly floating in mid air. Although his hand reappeared only a few moments later, he was absolutely amazed that none of the neighbors called the police because of his regrettably very unmanly scream.

Since that initial incident, he was still no closer to understanding why it happened. It was possible that it was somehow related to the incidents where he fell through a solid object. However, he was currently unable to rationalize how that was possible. The only thing he could say was he was absolutely terrified of what it might be doing to his body, and what his friends might think if they happened to be unlucky enough to ever get to see it. That was why he had not contacted them in over a week.

He ran his hand through his hair as he sighed. No matter how much he tried to wrap his head around it, there was just too much he didn't know which prevented him from piecing everything together. Although he was definitely hesitant about contacting them, his friends, but talking to them over the phone would definitely help calm the chaotic storm in his mind, even if they couldn't contribute anything thing.

After glancing at his watch, he realized that Winston was probably going to be expecting him back home soon. As he got up off the bench, he inadvertently shuddered after a strange, almost breeze-like chill caressed his body which was almost immediately replaced by the feeling of being watched. "H-hello…?" he stammered, hoping that it was just his imagination. The last thing he needed at the moment was a repeat of what happened the last time he experienced this feeling.

"Okay… You're losing it," he told himself when nothing answered him. "There's nothing here except you and some dead people… Nothing to worry about… unless Amity Park has suddenly become Pittsburgh…"

"Zombies… How amusing. It always astounds me how the mind of a teenager can jump to such things."

Danny felt himself grow rigid as a sick sort of recognition ran through him. There was no way he could forget the sound of that voice, not after the terror he felt the last time he heard it. The chilling yet oddly sophisticated tone told him that whatever was speaking was definitely the very same creature he had encountered last time.

"W-who… what are you…?" he asked it, hoping he could possibly keep it occupied long enough for him to magically figure out a way to make an escape. The only problem was that he had this sinking suspicion it was smarter than him.

A strange and unnerving chuckle answered him. "I take it that you've heard of ghosts before, my boy?"

"So… you're telling me that you're a ghost…?" he asked slowly while he tried to figure out what was creepier: a disembodied voice talking about ghosts or it calling him 'my boy'.

"And you got it right on the first guess. I must say that I'm impressed."

His eyes narrowed as he tried to figure out where it might be. Sure he was definitely scared of it, but currently the anger at it actually questioning his intelligence was currently overriding his fear. "Are you just here to annoy me?" he snapped. "If so, you're really doing a good job."

"Oh, I assure you that I have more important things to do than to wound the pride of an adolescent," it told him with a flourish before its tone became one of hunger. "I'm here to take you away from this world."

He slowly began to back up. Its voice had originally had sounded like it was coming from terrace boundary, now seemed like it was coming from right in front of him. And, it definitely felt as if something was standing only a few feet away from him, even if he couldn't see it.

"Are you afraid?" it asked him it an amused tone. "You really shouldn't be. Daniel, you don't belong in this world. You never have."

"Wh-what do you mean?" The fear was present in his voice now, and there was nothing that he could do to attempt to hide it. He backed up until he felt tree bark pressing into his skin. Whatever this thing was, it had managed to corner him.

He glanced around desperately, hoping there was something he could do. However, his attempts stopped when he realized a figure was slowly starting to materialize out of the air. He could tell it was humanoid in shape, but the features were still too burry to make out.

Once again, the voice, which seemed to be coming from the slowly emerging figure, chuckled. "Oh come now Daniel, haven't you realized that you feel more comfortable among the dead than the living?" Apparently, it took the confused look on his face as a confirmation as it continued. "I've watched you for a while now. I know that you come here because it seems to call to you. It's the only place where you can connect with the other side, whether you realize it or not."

His focus turned away from the conversation as he noticed that the figure appeared to be reaching out for him. He batted the hand away, surprised when he felt the resistance of another person. With the realization there was something physical there, he tried to further push himself away from it, but instead of finding the resistance of the tree, it felt like he was suddenly stumbling through a wall of water. The next thing he knew, he was sitting on the ground facing the opposite side of the tree.

"Good… It looks like your powers are developing quite nicely." The creature's voice now seemed to contain a dark interest as it again moved closer, undeterred by what had happened. It's form, though still hazy, was now visible enough for Danny to clearly identify it as having more of a male build. "Though, they're still tied to your emotions, which won't do you much good at the moment."

"P-powers?" he almost choked as he tried scooting away from it, ignoring the fact that he now had a chance to run. "What are you talking about?"

"So Winston really hasn't told you anything. It's such a shame." For a moment it appeared that it would say something else, but tilted its head as if it was listening to something. "Your friends have remarkable timing," it told him in a tone that clearly expressed that it was not happy about the intrusion.

He had no idea what it meant until he heard a faint voice calling his name. "Sam?" he shouted back in a surprised terror. "Don't come closer! Get out of here!"

"DANNY?" Her voice sounded closer.

The creature chucked yet again. "Oh, don't worry, I can wait a little longer before I claim you. Just be prepared." The voice seemed to fade away along with the pale outline of whatever it really was.

As soon as he felt like the creature was truly gone, he breathed deeply in relief only to jump at the sounds of Sam finally reaching him. He had just enough time to look up at her before one of his arms decided that it no longer cared for the rigidity of the ground and sank right through it before getting stuck.

…

"So… where's Tucker…?" he asked in an attempt to strike up a conversation after he and Sam rather awkwardly started back towards the entrance. It was definitely a risk for him to speak as his stomach started to turn against him, which apparently was going to happen every time something weird happened. But, knowing that he had frightened one of his only friends was enough to get him to try.

She was silent for a moment before she spoke, making sure that she did not glance at him. "He's waiting near the entrance… He said that he was too frightened to go any further than that."

"Oh…"

He bit his lip as he tried to figure out something else to say. Sam had managed to handle seeing him try to free his foot from a floor quite well, but apparently watching how it had happened was a little too much for her. He wished that there was something that he could say that would help, but what could he say when he didn't even understand what was happening?

"Um… Danny…" He glanced over at her only to realize that she had stopped a few feet behind him. She was uncharacteristically playing with the hem of her skirt before she looked up at him with blazing eyes. "What's going on? Now I'm all for the weird and freaky, but even this is starting to get too weird, even for me!"

"Sam…" Before he could really say anything, she interrupted him.

"If you want me and Tucker to continue to be your friends, you've got to start explaining things! This is the second time that I've seen some part of your body get stuck into something solid. That's not normal no matter how you look at it! What are you? What was that thing? What's going on?"

"Do you think I know?" he snapped at her, causing her to stop her rant and stare at him. "If I knew what is happening to me, don't you think I would have said something after Tucker fainted?" Getting irritated was definitely not the best idea since his stomach decided to forcefully remind him that it was already upset with him. In an attempt to keep everything under control, he sat on the ground while resting his head on his knees. This illness thing was really starting to get on his nerves.

A hesitant touch caused him to glance up. Although it was very clear that she still felt uncomfortable, Sam had decided to come over and gently run his back in a somewhat apologetic attempt to make him feel better. "I'll wait until we get out of here before I ask anything else. You need time to feel better, and Tucker'll mentally need to prepare himself. I swear he can be so cowardly sometimes."

…

As he watched his friend try to find ways to rationalize what he was told of what had occurred in the graveyard, he grimly decided he would rather deal with attempting to escape from that creature… or ghost, if that's what it really was, than dealing with Tucker's spastic response to his fears. After meeting up with him at the entrance of the graveyard, they had relocated to Tucker's house to talk things over.

"So, you're telling me that this thing told you that not only do you not belong in 'this world' but that it was going to take you away too?" Tucker asked as he adjusted his glasses. "What's to say that it's not going to come after you while we're around?"

"That's what I've been trying to tell you," he sighed, for what felt like the thousandth time that day. "From what I understand, it could have very easily have taken me away earlier today, but instead it decided to leave when Sam appeared. It doesn't make much sense to me either, but I guess it would rather take me when there was no one around to watch…"

"But why?" Sam's tone made it clear that she held a great deal of skepticism about the motives of the creature. "I mean… I was the only other person around earlier, and it had plenty of time to take you and run, or fly, or whatever… you know what I mean… before I even managed to get a good look at either of you. There's just something that doesn't feel right about it."

Although Danny hadn't thought about it before, she had made a very valid point. That thing could have done anything it wanted with him, yet it decided to leave him alone again. There really seemed to be no logical reason for it. Well, no logical reason that he could come up with. For some reason, it just felt like it was somehow playing a game with him.

"Wait a minute, Sam! You actually saw this thing?" Tucker demanded, completely ignoring everything else that she had said. "What did it look like?"

She looked at him with a raised eyebrow for a moment before she spoke. "Why do you want to know? I thought that you were afraid of this thing…"

"I am, but I'd like to know what my doom looks like so that I have a better chance to be prepared."

"Tucker, we're dealing with something that's calling itself a ghost, meaning that it can become invisible. How is that going to help?"

For a second, he thought that the word 'ghost' was going to cause Tucker to go into another set of hysterics, but instead he smile rather broadly. "Well, if that's the case, than I guess I don't need to worry all that much."

"Wait a minute, you've been scared of this thing for two weeks and now it's suddenly fine? What's going on?" Danny asked after he shared a very confused glance with Sam.

Tucker gave them a rather surprised look before he started to look up something on his PDA. After mere seconds, he shoved it towards them so that they could get a glance at the article he pulled up. "I'm actually surprised that you haven't heard about this Sam, especially because of how interested you are in all things dark and creepy, but if that thing really is a ghost, then it's not going to leave its haunt."

"Wait, that's right!" Sam exclaimed after handing the PDA back to Tucker. "Ghosts tend to haunt places that have some sort of significance to them, and they're never seen anywhere else. So if that thing's haunt is the cemetery, then…"

"It's going to stay there…?" Danny asked with a little bit of uncertainty.

"EXACTLY!" Tucker nodded to himself, pleased that everyone now seemed to be on the same page. "That means that I don't have to worry about it. But… just in case… what did it look like?"

He just shook his head. "I… I'm not entirely sure."

"What do you mean you're not sure?"

"Um… well, it was almost like it was slowly coming into focus the whole time it was talking to me, and I was more focused on trying to escape than anything else…."

"You had to have seen something?"

The desperation in Tucker's voice made him try to revisit the encounter to see if anything in particular decided to stick out at him. "It… was about the size of a normal man," he said slowly after a moment, "and was wearing black gloves."

"And it had a cape," Sam added.

"It had a cape?" both he and Tucker asked rather incredulously.

She nodded. "That's really the only thing that I know I saw."

"Wait, you're telling me that this thing thinks that it's some sort of demonic superhero?" Tucker practically demanded.

"How should I know what it thinks? And what makes you say that?"

After that simple question, the three of them managed to somehow get into a rather complicated debate about the various superhero universes. Although it was completely off topic, it was definitely a very welcome distraction from the earlier events of the day.

Although he kept trying to push it from his mind, there was something that nagging him about the encounter. Sure, Tucker might be convinced that the self-proclaimed-ghost would not appear anywhere else other than the cemetery, but he wasn't as sure. All of the ghost stories he had heard had taught him that ghosts were not able to hurt the living, yet he was absolutely certain that if it had wanted to, it could have easily have killed him or Sam. Assuming that it had that sort of power made him wonder if it could throw the other 'rules' out of the window too.

The only problem was that he didn't have the necessary information about it though. Hopefully, he would never get a chance to learn it, but something told him that he wouldn't be that lucky. The only thing he could do was wait and see what happened in the upcoming days.

=================================================================== Okay, there's a few notes for this chapter:

1) Story timeline rundown: Ch.1 Sat Ch.2 Sat night Ch. 3 Sun Ch. 4 Wed afternoon Ch. 5 Wed afternoon Ch. 6 Wed night Ch. 7 Sun (two weeks after chapter 3)

The story starts in the 2nd week of September (the year is rather unnecessary to know). The reason is that this is what came to mind when I first started working on this, and that I have absolutely no idea when Danny's actual birth date (if there is an official one) really is.

If you don't get the Pittsburgh reference, it's okay. Pittsburgh's often called the zombie capital of the world because of how many zombie films have been made there.

[writteninsunshine]

Walking At Night Alone - Roche/Cloud Strife - SFW

Title: Walking At Night Alone Author: Donnie Fandom: Final Fantasy VII Remake Setting: Sector Seven Slums, Cloud’s Apartment Pairing: Roche/Cloud Strife Characters: Roche, Cloud Strife, Zack Fair, Marco, Tifa Lockheart, Marle’s Dog, Biggs, Sephiroth Genre: Romance/Hurt/Comfort Rating: T Chapters: 1/1 Word Count: 2733 Type of Work: One-Shot Status: Complete Warnings: Gay, Slash, Yaoi, MLM, Past Zack Fair/Cloud Strife, PTSD, Hallucinations, Insomnia, Sweetness, Roche is full of nicknames, Fluff, Cats still hate Cloud Disclaimer: I don’t own anything. Summary: Roche finds Cloud when he really needs it. AN: Hey guys, it’s me again! Just thought I ought to say, if you want vague updates and to talk to me more, I have Twitter and Tumblr, too! Twitter is Sunshinecackle, and Tumblr is Writteninsunshine! I also have a writing Discord that is currently pretty dead. xD I can PM it to people who want it on FFN, for everyone else, it’s here: discord.gg/FyaWw25 I’m part of team Cloud Needs Some Sleep 2020, and so is Roche. At any rate, I hope you guys like this! I’m hoping that it being so long will be better than the last one, so that there’s more content for you guys! I do plan on working on some more for these two, but Sephiroth/Genesis is next up on who I’m gonna write. xD I hope you guys are looking forward to that, too! Just a warning, this only received one edit, I didn’t have anyone to look over it the last time that I usually do, so it might have a couple of issues. Let me know if it does and I’ll fix it!

Final Fantasy VII Fic Masterlist Walking At Night Alone ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Another cat hissed, swiped for his foot and bolted down the path to the pipe that lead to the park, and Cloud had only just barely left his apartment. Marle's dog stood steadfast beside her door, panting softly and relishing in the slight breeze breathing life into its fur. The wind rustled Cloud's hair, and he sighed softly, just shy of content as he glanced towards the office.

It was late enough that Chadley and Wymer were both gone, likely bedded down for the night, but there was nary a night where Cloud could get a full nights' rest. Letting his guard down for just a second could prove disastrous; Sephiroth haunted him in waking and dreaming hours alike. Marco had been making a whole host of strange noises again, and to avoid another incident where he might hurt someone, he’d deigned it a better idea to walk the slums. Nighttime didn’t mean much, even in Sector 7 it seemed because there were still people gathered around shopfronts, talking in the streets. Cloud didn’t know the time, but from the relative darkness, he supposed it was late enough that he should have been sleeping. He bet if he swung by Biggs’ place, the man would be asleep instead of sprucing up the dirt in front of his door. Even Tifa was probably long out, dreaming of a better day. Pausing in front of the bar, he stared up at the wooden sign, scrutinizing it for something that wasn’t going to be there, even if he stared for hours. Things like memories never appeared when you could actually handle them, in his experience. Though, sometimes, they did rush back when he needed them. For a second, he could have sworn he heard a chuckle behind him, a very specific tone followed by boots crushing the dirt beneath their feet. When he turned, however, he let out a breath he hadn’t noticed he’d been holding. What had he been thinking? Zack was just as gone from him as Sephiroth was. There was no way he’d come around as often, either. Good memories tended to stay in the past, even if he still had nightmares about that rainy day, screaming at nothing while wearing Zack’s blood on his face. Shaking his head almost violently, Cloud balled his fists to give himself something else to focus on, turning away and starting for the station. It was better than walking circles this early into his evening, he supposed. The brisk night air, the abundant lack of people, it all melted into the background, even as he appreciated it silently. His arms felt chilly, maybe even numb, and the fact that he could just be there and feel that made his night that much more impressive; He hadn’t lost all of his senses quite yet. Waiting around at the station landing for twenty minutes hadn’t been part of the plan. Trains hadn’t been running for the last day or so, and even the hopefuls that still thought their husbands, sisters, fathers, mothers, whatever would come back had all but left. Maybe it was the hour, or maybe it was too much to hope for. What did he even expect to happen? Someone would come to talk to him that shouldn’t have been there? Shaking his head again, Cloud crossed his arms and pushed off of the wall, frowning heavily as he stomped back towards the road leading to the main portion of the slums. Maybe a solid night in Scrap Boulevard would do him some good. He might be tired in the morning, whenever it came, but it would be better than just waiting for something that wouldn’t, or even couldn’t come. It wasn’t until he had passed the factory that he heard what could only be called determined footsteps behind him. Itchy fingers tensed against his own biceps and Cloud hugged himself tighter. If anyone had followed him, they were probably in just as much of a bad spot as he was. Tifa had warned him that he needed to ask questions first, after what had happened with Marco. Someone innocent didn’t need to die because he wasn’t in his head when he attacked them. But the stubborn footsteps followed him past the bar, up the way he usually took towards the school. Another cat yowled somewhere to his right, bolting and clambering into a seemingly innocuous pile of scrap and buckets. The crashing had Cloud on high alert, and his hand bolted to the comfort found in the grip of his sword. Closing around the familiar haft, he turned enough to see who had been following him so doggedly. What he found surprised him more than anything else he could have seen in that dark alley. Standing in the dim light was none other than Roche, that pesky Third Class SOLDIER from the other night. He kicked a bucket away from his feet, firmly placed them in the dirt and gave a wink and the kind of blinding smile that would have made the sun lamps jealous, then waved. Altogether, Cloud could see the man was trying but was he really ready to deal with this? He hadn’t slept in what felt like lifetimes. “Roche, right?” Cloud asked, narrowing an unhappy, almost accusatory glare on the blond swordsman. “Oh, Sunshine, you remembered~!” Somewhere in the excited tone of his voice, Cloud could see that the other was trying his best to keep his voice down. The time and Cloud’s desire not to get caught like this was probably the biggest reason for that. “I didn’t think I’d ever be able to find you, and then guess who I saw hanging around the train station?” “You shouldn’t be here.” Cloud’s voice was a hiss, not unlike the cats that fled from him, and his arms crossed once more. Roche would give him a fair fight, at the very least, he knew that much; it was the only reason he felt safe without his hand on his sword. If he was here for another dance, they certainly weren’t about to do it in a cramped slum alleyway. Even if Roche didn’t care about the casualties, Cloud sure did. Innocent people didn’t deserve to die because Roche was an excitable puppy. The word crossing Cloud’s mind made his lips twitch in a frown and his gaze drifted slightly to the side of Roche’s head. “Well, it’s common practice that I tend to end up in places I shouldn’t be.” Roche offered a kind smile, stepping a little closer and holding out his hand. “I was thinking, maybe, it was time for another dance. I haven’t been able to get you out of my head. It’s been a long time since someone got my blood pumping the same way that you do, Sunshine.” “Shouldn’t you still be topside?” Cloud shifted his weight to his right foot, leaning away with a huff as a show of annoyance. “But you aren’t topside, now, are you, Kitty-Cat?” Taking a couple of lazy steps forward, Roche bent just slightly at the waist to meet those downturned eyes, and his hands took the other’s cheeks in the soft leather of his gloves. “Had to come to find you… You’re intoxicating.” Surprising himself, Cloud did nothing to shake free of the other’s hands, and he pursed his lips slightly, frowning instead seconds later. There was a certain familiarity in the way that Roche invited himself into his life, into his personal space, and he found it oddly comforting to lean into those hands. “If you’re going to be down here, you’re going to have to--” “I already hid my bike, don’t worry.” Roche grinned, perking considerably as he pulled Cloud into a hug. The sudden grip around him had him stiff, jaw clenched and hands held tight at his sides. What was this even supposed to be? “It feels good to have you close, Sunshine.” He whispered against Cloud’s ear, and he gulped slightly. “Can we go somewhere to be alone?” Still stiff but maybe less so, Cloud sighed, feeling just how fatigued he was when Roche had to put more effort into holding him up. Cloud was half tempted to tell him the bar, but instead, he found himself lifted with a stunted shout on his lips. In a quick set of motions, he pulled the sword off his back and held it out in front of them, though he turned a deadly, narrowed-eyed glare on the other. “I got you, Sunshine.” How had Cloud not asked him to stop calling him that by now? “Where’re you staying? You look like you need a three-day nap.” “I-- It’s-- I’m o--” Cloud’s stilted hesitation was silenced with a skeptical look and he sighed, thunking his head into the other’s armored shoulder. “If you follow this alley all the way to the end, it’ll let out near the apartments I’m staying at.” “Okay, Kitty-Cat, be there in a blink.” At least, that had been the plan, until Cloud’s grunt of surprise at the start of his mad sprint had Roche bouncing in place, suddenly anxious. “Uh-- No running?” He asked, bashful, and Cloud nodded, his glare lightening just slightly. “You’re going to drop me or we’ll hit a wall. Take it slow or put me down.” While Cloud’s voice wasn’t a threat, it almost sounded like one. Take it slow, which forfeited his favorite force in the world, speed… Or put Cloud down? The only acceptable amount of time apart right now seemed to be none, so Roche slumped for a second, sighing and collecting his pride from the floor, before readjusting Cloud in his arms and walking like a normal person. Feeling at least a little bit safer in the other’s arms, Cloud relaxed enough to give the illusion of being too tired to fight him, closing his eyes and letting the cool night air wash over him as he was jostled in the younger’s hold. “You sure we can’t just, uh, go a little bit faster?” Roche finally asked as they passed by the schoolyard, and Cloud snorted slightly, rolling his eyes. “Taking it slow for once isn’t going to kill you. If everyone went as fast as you do, we’d never see the small stuff.” “Small stuff?” The thought of missing things had never occurred to Roche, and he looked down with those wide eyes to try and catch the look on Cloud’s face. Cloud looked away, eyes on the dirt in front of them, though they were unfocused. Had he just run through that mission with Zack, there would have been so many things that they both would have missed, and it would have been such a shame. “Like…” Finally turning back to look at him, his eyes locked on Roche’s and he sighed, “Your eyes. If I didn’t take the time to look…” Cloud sucked in a deep breath, “They’re… Really teal. And not too bright, yet.” Roche blinked a couple of times in rapid succession before focusing a bit more on Cloud’s eyes. Now, those were the eyes of a SOLDIER. “Is that bad?” “No.” Cloud shook his head, “His eyes weren’t like mine, either.” “His?” Shit. Of course he’d mess himself up by saying something about Zack too soon. “Just… Someone I used to…” Trailing off, Cloud sighed a little. “It’s not important.” “He sounds important.” Roche replied, ducking slightly around a corner to hide his face from Cloud’s eyes. “But you can tell me when you’re ready. If you’re ready at all.” Those eyes caught Cloud’s attention again when they peeked up, and the only thing that kept him from commenting was the sudden light above their heads. Cloud glanced over to the path they’d have to take to the apartment, pointing the way with the hand not holding his sword. “Over there. Once we get to the clearing with the apartments, mine’s the second one on the second floor.” “Gotcha.” Roche smiled sweetly, readjusting Cloud’s weight in his arms once more before taking the slight right that the blonde pointed him towards. “You need someone to stay the night? It could be fun.” “I have neighbors.” Cloud answered, maybe too quickly, “Thin walls. I can hear one of them coughing all the time…” “I didn’t say we had to do anything,” Roche replied, brows drawing in like curtains over his bright-- but not too bright --teal eyes, “I have every intention of making sure you actually sleep. Even if that means I have to sit outside and tell everyone off very quietly.” He was grinning again, winking theatrically, “Or if it means I have to hold you close and make sure that you sleep, I’ll do that, too. Sometimes having someone to watch your six while you sleep helps.” The way he said it sounded like Roche had experience with that need, and Cloud didn’t doubt it. That did make sense. Cloud had never had a lot of issues with insomnia before Zack’s death, but sleeping with someone around always did make him feel safer. But there was really no reason for him to be willing to be that vulnerable with this man; Roche was supposed to be the enemy, wasn’t he? But a fellow SOLDIER, he supposed, someone who had some inkling of what he was going through, it was something he couldn’t pass up. The safety in numbers with someone who might actually understand him struck him quiet. And he’s a goddamn puppy, too. Cloud couldn’t get the thought out of his head that Roche and Zack would have gotten along swimmingly. “Yeah… Maybe it will.” At this point, he was willing to try anything once if it meant he could actually rest. When was the last time he’d actually slept and not just drifted in and out of consciousness for three hours before getting up? Always exhausted and always exerting himself, that was his lot in life over the last few months. Even Roche could have been fooled by the time flying by when he was stopping in front of Cloud’s apartment not even a minute later. He let Cloud reach for the doorknob, and didn’t let him out of his arms until the door was closed behind them again and the bed was all he could fathom putting him on. While the blond looked up with a raised eyebrow, Roche grinned and shook his head, pulling all of his hair over his right shoulder. “You stay in bed, just a sec.” Setting both swords against what he assumed was a closet, he paused halfway back to the bed, where Cloud sat on his hip with one hand on the mattress. “You’re beautiful.” And Roche was breathless. “I-- Shut up.” Cloud’s delivery was swift and stilted, and he looked away with a pensive frown, biting the inside of his cheek. Roche was almost too much. When he found himself scooting into the wall to accommodate the other SOLDIER, he sighed softly, rolling onto his side to face it. Roche scooted in nice and close behind him, wrapping a strong arm around his waist. “Alright, Kitty-Cat. This is where I bid you goodnight. We can dance another night away.” Roche whispered, kissing Cloud’s ear absently as he nestled into his back, one leg up and over his hip to hold him in place. Despite himself, Cloud found that this was possibly the most comfort he had felt in this bed, and that left an odd taste in his mouth. Maybe this wouldn’t be such a bad thing, he thought, finding his mind growing dizzy, thoughts faint, and then fading to black. He slept until the sounds of children running and laughing outside jolted him awake and Roche simply shifted to give him a kiss on the cheek, holding him in place. “‘S okay, Sunshine.” He told him, “You can still get some shut-eye if you can.” Cloud surprised himself by nodding, eyelids sinking closed once more as he snuggled into the warmth the other man offered. He didn’t even need his thin, threadbare blanket with the other man wrapped around him like this. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ AN: Welp, there we go! This one was definitely longer than the other one, and I hope you guys liked it! I know I had a lot of fun writing this, it was super sweet and I think Cloud deserves understanding and kindness. Roche is a little over-eager but he’s a good boy, I promise! I hope to see you in the next one! I’m also looking for another beta-reader, if anyone is interested! Please let me know, through reviews/comments/joining my Discord/asks or messages on Tumblr!

[topazshadowwolf]

The Door (Chapter 11)

An Undertale Fanfiction by: Topaz Shadowwolf Undertale is owned by: Toby Fox Setting: Post neutral run when Papyrus dies with chapter intros being before the child fell. Relationships: Sans and Toriel is the main focus, with a little bit of Undyne and Alphys Rating: I’m thinking Teen? Heads up: There is some depressed thoughts, feelings of worthlessness/wanting to die, mention of major character death, and the occasional bad word. Oh, and flowey being flowey, so you know, psychological/physical trauma. I really don’t want to say much more since I really don’t want to spoil anything further down the road…

You can read it on AO3! Here is Ch 10 Ch 9 Ch 8 Ch 7 Ch 6 Ch 5 Ch 4 Ch 3, Ch 2, and Ch 1 on Tumbler.

Random thoughts from the writer about this chapter: I am so happy I was able to get this done on time for the last day of Soriel Week. I’m sure many of you will be too busy reading all the fics that have been submitted for the week, and if you haven’t yet, I encourage you to. But, for this fic and me as a writer, Soriel Week means a lot. It gave me the courage to post the first chapter of The Door when I saw the reactions people had to my one shots last year. I thank all of you for sticking with me, and I hope you had a wonderful week, and year, filled with beautiful Soriel!

I also want to thank the artists who have drawn something for this fic, be sure to check them out: JDylah_da_Kylah from A03 posted this beautiful piece on chapter six of the comment section: With permission I posed it here on Tumblr.

For chapter 8, @blaiddsumu​ made this beautiful piece of art: Found here.

Just this week, @poisondilu​ drew a comic of one of the scenes in chapter 5, which I am still marveling at: Found here. 

Also recently, @skeleplatypus drew these, one from chapter 8 and the other from 9: Found here. 

The Door

Chapter 11: No longer Under a-rested

"hey, uh, lady?"

"Yes?" Toriel responded. The two had been sitting in silence for a while. Each reading their own thing, only occasionally interrupting the silence with a fact or a random joke that came to mind. It may seem odd, sitting near someone and not talking, but both were tired, and just wanted the company. Well, company without the added stress of needing to be funny or interesting for the night. It felt nice, familiar, just knowing he was there.

"you hear me talk about my bro, but i never hear you mention any of your family, except for the occasional hint that you have, or, well, had one," her friend said. He then quickly added, "sorry if that was a little... uh... nose-y," he laughed, she wasn't sure why. It's not like he could see her long snout. Perhaps he had one himself?

"No, it is alright," she then sighed, quietly, "My family is gone, and I guess I don't like talking about them because of that. Not that they aren't on my mind, much like your brother." She closed her eyes, feeling her heartache at the memories of children’s’ laughter, and even the booming laugh of the man she once called husband. "But those memories are now a painful reminder of what was. Perhaps, one day I will wish to speak to you about them."

"but not now, huh?"

"Sadly, no," she then closed her book and looked at the door, "I hope you don't mind that."

"naw, lady, it's fine," he was quiet, either returned to reading or he was thinking on what she said. From what she has learned about him, though, she is inclined to believe he was thinking. Her suspicions where proven correct as he spoke up again, "hope you don't mind that i keep talking about my bro."

"Nonsense, I love hearing about Papyrus," she smiled, trying to imagine the large smile that has been described to her countless times.

"good, 'cause, uh, honestly nothing much happens in my life that doesn't involve him," he confessed.

"I hardly believe that, you sound like a rather interesting person," Toriel replied brightly.

"being honest here, lady, anything i have done... well, it doesn't matter," he chuckled, and she heard him turning the page of the magazine he was reading.

"On the contrary, I think it does matter," she informed him, trying to sound insistent while remaining friendly. "You're being here to keep me company matters to me," she said cheerfully, "So, I'm sure there is plenty of other things you do that matter."

"thanks, but, uh...," he fell silent, not finishing his thought.

"But, what? There is nothing an individual does that is not important," Toriel insisted. It was clear he was in one of his moods, and it bothers her that they seem to be more often than before.

"it's," he paused then sighed, "it's different than..." He sounded oddly frustrated, like the words he wanted to say just weren't there. Again, he sighed, louder this time, before trying again, "it's not like the normal kind of 'not mattering.'"

"How so?"

"like, uh, how best to describe this...," she heard rustling of paper, and figured he was fidgeting with the magazine while he thought. "okay, have you ever had a dream, like a really vivid dream, where you do something only to wake up and realize it never happened?"

"I have had such dreams a few times. More in the past when I was with my family," Toriel replied.

"it's like that."

With a tilted head, she thought about what he just said, but she wanted to make sure she fully understood what he meant. To verify, she asked "Are you trying to say, everything you've done was in your sleep? I know you say you sleep a lot, but I hardly think that is the case."

"heh, naw. but, might as well have," he said in that tone she hates so much. He brightened up, before saying, "anyway, when, or if, you're ever ready to talk about your family, i'll listen."

Of his tones of voice, she much preferred that one. It sounded relaxed, almost happy. She rested her head against the door and smiled, "I know, and thank you. But can you please not speak so ill of yourself again? You're my friend, and I don't like anyone talking about you like that, even yourself."

"no promises, but i'll try, sound fair?"

"For now, Dishes, yes," she then smiled, "speaking of families, what do you call a female monster with children?"

There was a definite chuckle, and she wonders if he knows the answer, but will feign ignorance to hear her give the punch line, "don't know lady, what do you call 'em?"

"A momster!" she said brightly. That was always one of her favorite type of puns and jokes. Even the "your momma" jokes, to an extent, could make her laugh even though she was sure she was supposed to take offense to them. Still, you can't be hurt by something you accept as your own, right? Well, they aren't meant for civilized joke telling, and she wasn't sure how her friend would react to them. So, she’ll stick the with the milder mother jokes for now. What mattered to her was how much he had laughed at her pun, and that was a lot. And she did love that sound, which set her mind at ease. What would she do without her pun buddy?

 ---

 Shortly after picking him up, Sans was practically asleep in Toriel’s arms. He was trying to stay awake, and she felt him start to lean back to avoid drifting off. It was partly out of selfishness she hung onto him, preventing him from doing so. It had been so long since she had seen him, she wasn’t ready to let up on her hug, even if it meant he would soon be asleep.

As much as she would love to talk to him, the way he looked disturbed her, and she would rather he take this chance to rest. Which resulted in her glaring at Undyne when ordered to put him down. The notion of being ordered to release him caused her lips to curl, exposing more of her fangs. From within she could feel a growl starting to form from the protective nature taking over.

Oh, she wanted to fight. She wanted to make Undyne sorry for all of this. But right now, Sans needed her more. To properly fight Undyne, she could not be holding Sans. Yet, Sans needed to be somewhere safe, to rest, and he would worry if Toriel did get into a fight. These thoughts were conflicting, and causing her to worry about what the best course of action should be.

Then the quiet words he said, “please don't,” tore at her feelings. She heard in his voice the same desire to never be separated again. His magic felt disoriented and weak, most likely because of the vile thing on him. She doubted he was even aware his magic was trying to reach out for her own, but she could feel it. Looking at Undyne, she felt her rage, for now, put at ease. First comes the care of Sans, then, when she knows he is well, she will show this other monster her wrath. She will hold her tongue for now, and try to keep the peace.

“We should let him sleep, then try getting more answers when he wakes. In the meantime, please get this thing off him,” Toriel said, indicating the inhibitor.

She didn’t know if she was expecting a fight or argument over the removal of the inhibitor. The fact Undyne just complied, and without a word, came as a surprise. When Undyne moved closer to remove it, Toriel watched her carefully, making sure of no foul play. It didn't sound like something this proud warrior would be inclined to do, but at this point Toriel didn't know what to expect. She didn’t have any past experiences of her own to give confidence in Undyne’s honor; only word of mouth testimonials, and those she is starting to question.

“Fine, we’ll let him rest. But I don't want to wait forever. If this ‘thing’ Alphys talked about is a threat, I want to hear about it as soon as possible,” Undyne said. The inhibitor was tossed to the side far gentler than Toriel would have thrown it, even if it did hit the wall, before falling to the ground.

“I am curious myself,” Toriel forced a sigh, giving herself more time to relax before she continued speaking. With the barbaric contraption off, Sans’s magic felt stronger, which let her relax. This calmer mood allowed her to look at Undyne differently. If she were to describe the ruler she would say she looked like a wilting flower. “Since I have traveled a long way, same with Alphys, I think I will take this opportunity to rest while we wait. And perhaps, you should too,” Toriel said, offering the younger monster a friendly smile, an action far harder than it appears. “Believe me when I say, I am aware how hard it is to get sleep as a rule. But, if you don’t rest, when you can, your ability to make wise decisions decreases.”

“I don't have time, or need the lectures,” Undyne glared at Toriel. In her eyes was a clear desire to fight, her magic sparking around her hands. It seemed to be her glances to Alphys that kept her from attacking.

“U-Undyne,” Alphys said with a slight squeak, “I-I can help you after you wake. B-besides, there w-was that one series we were watching. And you h-have to see the end! I know you'll like it.”

She could see Undyne weighing her choices only to give in, “Fine, but the moment he wakes, or you wake him, I want to hear about this ‘anomaly.’”

“Of course,” Toriel replied. She then noticed Alphys shifting back, as if trying to be part of the background, “And I would like to hear more about what you know too. It never came up before, that you might have made this ‘anomaly,’ during our travels. Needless to say, I am a bit surprised by that bit of information.”

“Well, y-you see,” Alphys started, looking away.

“That is something else we can discuss later,” Undyne came to Alphys’s defense, “after we rest.”

Opening the door to the dungeon to calling for a guard, Undyne found them still there. Some were looking a little nervous, and several had char marks on their armor. Undyne shot Toriel a glare, but the boss monster didn’t care. When she arrived at the dungeon, she had asked the guards to move, and a few needed convincing before obliging. Still, Undyne ordered a guard to take Toriel to a guest room.

Knowing the guards were just following orders earlier, Toriel did apologize to them. It pleased her that most of them accepted it, though they did so while avoiding Undyne’s glares. The one that was leading her to the guest rooms, was one of those guards, and he seemed more than happy to get away from there.

It felt weird for her to be escorted to the rooms she had previously walked visitors to, while giving them a tour of the castle. Other than those few occasions, she rarely went down these halls herself. When she lived here, both with and after Asgore, she mostly was in the house, within the castle grounds, or in the throne room. Both, were not places she enjoyed being within the second time around, but she accepted that her presence there as part of her duty. Besides, there wasn't a need to go anywhere else, most of the time. Nevertheless, she had been this way enough to see Undyne had done some redecorating. That was no surprise to her, it is not uncommon for new rulers to adjust their surroundings to fit their needs or desires. And Toriel found it interesting that there were more images of past members of the guard, most of which were around during the wars on the surface.

The guard opened a door and let her into one of the rooms, which she remembered as being nicer than some of the rest. She thanked him for his service and entered before breathing a sigh of relief. Deep down, she wanted this, to be alone with her poor, tired Sans. He hadn’t stirred at all or reacted to anything since falling asleep.

She moved over to the bed in the room and tried to set Sans down, but he was still clinging to her. This made her chuckle softly and figured she was stuck like this for now. Getting into bed, she continued to hug him, resting her head against his skull, and closed her eyes.  Hoping for just one last thing, she ran her fingers along his spine, gently massaging the vertebrae as she had done in the past. Sans was deep asleep and she didn’t know if it would work; so, when he started to rattle softly she couldn’t help but smile. This was a sound she could easily fall asleep to. Feeling greedy, she continued massaging his spine until she drifted off.

Not to her surprise, she was the first to wake between the two of them. At least his grip had loosened and she could finally free herself from him. Not that she was ready to let him go, but there was something that needed to be done. Staying cuddled in bed won’t help in that regard, and she was set on putting her wants behind the need. She stood and walked into the bathroom to clean up first. It felt good to wash the grit and dirt of her travel to New Home out of her fur. She just wished she had something new to change into. Having left in such a hurry, she didn’t bother grabbing anything.

Exiting the bathroom, she found Sans half curled around a pillow he started hugging in her place. She hated to leave him, but this was something she'd rather do without him there. The bedside stand didn’t have anything on it, other than a lamp, let alone something to use to write a note. She checked the draw finding a note pad and pencil and started to reach for them. Before she could, she considered how she would feel waking up to find him gone. They had been separated for too long, note or no note, it would hurt her soul to wake up to find him nowhere near.

Still, she needed to get this done before he arrived to talk to Undyne. After some thought, she knelt by the bed and started to use her right hand to pet the back of his skull. Something caught her eye that she missed the night before. There was a mark on one of his cervical vertebrae, where that “thing” had been.

She knew all too well about inhibitor burns, and that clearly was one. Biting her bottom lip to hold back the boiling feeling building inside, she first reached out and healed the damage. As her magic healed the wound she saw him start to relax, the burn must have been a constant discomfort. On his face, she saw the start of his genuine smile in his sleep. Amused by this she ran her thumb softly along the healed bone, taking care in case it was still tender.

“Sans, dear,” she says softly, and he started to curl tighter around the pillow, as if it would save him from waking. This made her giggle before she leaned forward, nuzzling the back of his skull before kissing him.

In response, Sans started to uncurl and she kept kissing, moving slowly around his skull to his mouth while sliding a paw under it to turn his head. It took a few more kisses on his mouth before she started to feel his magic tingle on her lips in a pleasurable manner. To her annoyance, his magic felt hesitant, fearful, as if expecting repercussions. Before now, and once he accepted she loved him, he very forth coming with his magic when it came to expressing love. This cautiousness was aggravating to feel from any monster in this situation. But from the one she loved?

What helped soothe her from a building anger was his boney hand, as it moves to her cheek, slipping through her fur gently. It wasn't him she was mad at, and he didn't need that feeling around him right now. Leaning back slightly, she could see his eye sockets were only half open, and his eye lights are fuzzy around the edges, but there was still a look of love in them.

“My sweet,” she said while touching his cheek, and he turned his face into her hand. The soft sound he made, to indicate he was listening, accented how tired he still was. “I am sorry to wake you, and I want you to continue resting a little while longer, but I need to go take care of something.”

That made his eye lights focus to smooth edges, and he started to sit up, “I can come with.”

“Nonsense, my love. I know you're exhausted, and this is something I can do myself,” she said as she placed a hand on his chest to hold him still. Before he could object she added, “Just rest a while longer, I’ll see to it that you are woken, and I’ll get your clothes brought to you. Then you can clean up and get out of those.”

“Do you really need to?” he asked while placing a hand on hers. She saw the worry on his face and felt worse for needing to leave. If there was something to take away from this, she was happy she didn’t let him just wake up alone.

Leaning over again, she nuzzled his nasal bone and smiled bigger as she heard the wonderful song of his deep, rumbling chuckle. How much she would love to stay here, and get him to fully understand how much she has truly missed him. She sighed, sitting back, “Yes, Sansy, this is something I need to do.”

“heh, alright, t,” Sans said, but he didn’t look any more convinced. Right now, she wouldn't be surprised if he tried following her, and she knew how sneaky he can be when he really wants to. If she could get him to fall asleep again, that would be best.

His brow ridge was creased with concern, so she gently placed her hand over his sockets, forcing him to close them. In response, he raised his hands to lift it off, but she kept it there. Perhaps this was a bullying move, as between the two she was easily the strongest, but right now she wanted to get him to relax. To ease the tension on his face, she ran her thumb over his brow as if trying to smooth it out; which caused his attempts to uncover his eye sockets to become lethargic.

Pleased with this, she reached up with her other paw and started to pet the top of his skull softly, knowing well that doing so could help him get back to sleep. “I’ll have someone come to wake you. Be nice to them,” she said and giggled at his grumbled reply. It didn't take long before he was out again, his mysterious "Z's" being proof of that.

Standing up she walked to the door and looked out. There was a guard nearby, and she called softly to him as she exited the room, not fully closing the door behind herself, “Excuse me, but do you know where his things are? When he finally wakes up, I’m sure he will be wanting to change out of what he is currently wearing.”

“I can have them brought up,” The guard, a canine, replied, “will you need anything else? Breakfast, perhaps?”

“Oh, yes please, if you don’t mind,” Toriel smiled, “but for him. I have business to attend to with the Queen.”

“Empress, actually,” the guard corrected.

“Ah, right, I’ll try to remember that, thank you,” Toriel nodded, “Do you know if she is awake?”

“Empress Undyne is meeting with Gerson in the throne room.”

“Wonderful, thank you. Anyway, can you see that he gets those things in an hour and a half to two hours, and that he is up? He also has business with the Empress.”

“I will let the room service know to bring the food then. And his things should have arrived around that time, as well,” he bowed slightly and started to walk off.

“Oh, and before you go, can you make sure they bring ketchup with the breakfast? A bottle would be best.”

“I can do that,” He bowed again.

“Thank you very much,” Toriel said. She watched the guard go before looking back in at Sans. He was still completely out, and she sorely long to climb back into the bed, hug him, and feel him start to cling to her again.

Closing her eyes, she sighed. No, she can't indulge in those thoughts, not right now and with what business she had to attend to. Looking in at Sans one last time, she rekindled her resolve as she remembered the burn. Her lip twitched slightly as she remembered seeing him in that cell, weak and barely standing. Within, her magic turned like a cyclone of fire as she recalled the hesitation of his magic. Quietly, she closed the door and turned, walking down the hall with a single-minded goal.

When she arrived at the throne room there were two guard standing outside. One of the guards took notice of her, and turned to face her, “Toriel, Undyne has been waiting you and Sans.”

“Yes, well, he is not quite ready, and I have some unfinished business to discusses with her Majesty, that he is not required for,” Toriel replied before moving to the door to open it.

The other guard moved quickly to block her way, “We’ll announce you're here.” The one closest to the door started to open it, but she was not about to wait for such… procedures.

She didn’t really push her way past, as she didn’t really push anyone out of the way. She just continued walking forward and both guards decided not to test her, letting her enter the room with worried looks. Undyne and Gerson were sitting together in the bed of flowers that Asgore had grown. Both looked up at Toriel, Undyne looking annoyed and Gerson with an intrigued smile.

“Ah, hello there, Toriel!” Gerson greeted her.

“Toriel, I was expecting you and Sans. Why are you alone?” Undyne demanded.

“He will be arriving later. For now, I believe you and I have unfinished business to take care of,” Toriel replied, walking further into the room until she was standing beside them.

The fish monster looked at her a moment then looked back to Gerson. “It can wait,” she said while casually waving Toriel away.

“No. It can’t,” Toriel said flatly.

The old turtle was grinning, watching this. Rubbing his chin in a thoughtful manner, he said to Undyne, “I think you have more pressing matters to "discuss." Perhaps I'll rest while you two sort things out.”

“You will not!” Undyne snapped before turning back to Toriel, “And you will, now out!”

“You think you can just order me out like that?" Toriel gave a short scoff of a laugh. "After you kidnapped my love, placed a torturous device on him, and then neglected him?! I saw the untreated burn mark on the back of his neck,” upon mentioning the burn Undyne turned her head to look at Toriel. It was clear she knew nothing about that, which made Toriel all the madder. “I held back when I first arrived. I saw a greater need than releasing my rage out on you. But now that need had been met, it is time for us to settle this,” it was a struggle to keep her tone even through all of that, but years upon years of practice permitted her to maintain an authoritative tone.

“Is that so?” Undyne snarled.

“Get up, ‘Empress Undyne,’” Toriel growled with no respect for the title. “I’d hate to burn the flowers my ex-husband painstakingly cared for all these years.”

“I’m surprised you even care,” Undyne replied, mockingly. But she stood, a determined look to win this fight crossing her face.

“While my love for Asgore never returned, I do not harbor hate for him. He was part of my life, and someone I, at one time, loved dearly," she said, then looked around at all the flowers. They were like the yellow flowers that now grow where Chara's remains rest. Closing her eyes, she looked back at Undyne, "Thus, destroying a memento of him is not my intent. I’m sad he died, but it was a consequence of his choice to declare an unnecessary war.”

“UNNECESSARY WAR?!” Undyne yelled back, “He was fighting for our freedom!”

“No, he was fighting for your hope, and had everyone clinging to a false ideal. We had already lost the war to humans, why would we return to the surface at war again? I knew eventually the bottom to this lie would dropped, and everyone would fall hard!” Toriel stepped towards the back, where she was sure her ex-husband fought many times before. Him, and the children she once mothered.

“And look what has happened? He is dead, and your focus is to continue what he knew could never happen. As great as Asgore was, he knew, deep down, the humans would just kill us if we returned to the surface by means of murder. And yet, instead of choosing another option, a peaceful option, he forsook my council and stayed with the plan that suited his anger,” Toriel finished as they entered the room. Turning, she faced Undyne, feeling the anticipation building within for the fight about to occur.

Undyne summoned a spear into her hands while snarling, “And then you ran away. Like a coward, you turned your back on us, your people!” Several more spear bullets formed and she sent them at Toriel.

Toriel was not expecting an attack just yet, still she ducked and weaved her way through the attacks, stepping carefully, eloquently, and ignoring the biting pain as one she did not see hit her shoulder from behind. Toriel reminded herself that this was no time to be under estimating her enemy. Undyne was, after all, Head of the Royal Guard. That is not a position given to just anyone. Also, Sans had said in the past, that Undyne trained Papyrus, whom Sans said was the greatest fighter he knew. Granted, it seemed Sans was inclined to talk up his brother anytime, but it was still a detail she should keep in mind.

“For the longest time, I too believed that," Toriel closed her eyes, remembering her own self-hatred, and the day she first heard Sans through the door. Composing herself for combat, she looked at Undyne, "Then I was reminded, by one I hold most dear, of the real reason I left. I didn’t run away, as you so callously accuse. I left what I perceived as insanity. My morals would not hold to the notion of killing those who could be no different than my child, Chara, just because they were human. I went to where I hoped to prevent Asgore’s wrath." Magical fire writhed her hands, the colorful flames dancing with her anger. All the hues that made up her soul in view, with Integrity blue being the most predominate on display.

Taking the opportunity presented, she returned with an attack of her own. She started with a simple wave of dancing flames, wanting to gage the skill of her opponent. To her surprise, Undyne didn't dodge away from the flames like most try to. Using the spear in her hands, she blocked the balls of flame that came close enough to be a threat.

“You should have been here for us, your people. Besides, you had more than one child! Asriel, remember him? Murdered by humans, like the very ones you want to protect. But I guess the only one that mattered was the human, right?” Undyne then used the spear to seek out Toriel’s soul and turned it green.

Toriel didn't enjoy the feeling of being unable to move, but so be it. Like a lioness, she roared, "How could you insinuate such! I am, was, a mother. There is not one of my children that I favor over the other!" Toriel gathered her magic in preparation, "Asriel, my dear, sweet child... his death was tragic, but he did not blame the humans who killed him. He would not have wanted such bloodshed in his name."

Undyne summoned up a multitude of spears which came at Toriel from different directions. Using a fire barrier to block the attacks, Toriel turned and watched for the incoming spears. There were a few that were trickier than she expected, switching directions on her at the last second. But all of which she successfully blocked. Wasting no time, Toriel sent another wave of flames at Undyne the moment she could.

“No, I'm sure he would have rather been alive! Besides, it is not like you had a plan.” Undyne yelled back. She was fighting admirably, but it was clear her anger was getting the better of her. A common mistake, especially for the young who have not seen, or experienced, real combat. One can train and practice all they want to avoid it, but only a real battle could test one's abilities. Toriel saw a hint of carelessness as a fire ball scorched the proud warrior’s shoulder. “If you so strongly believed all you say you did, why didn’t you help him!” Another mass of spears was summoned up and they encircled Toriel.

“By trying to save the humans, I was also trying to protect my people,” Toriel replied. This time, she was ready for the trickier spears and expertly blocking the attacks as if dancing in place. The fire she used as a shield then gathered together her paws. Sweeping her arms wide, she sent a wave of flames toward Undyne. “What good would come from us returning to the surface in a state of war we could never win? What you did to Sans was no different than Asgore's blind war declaration. Making snap decisions, made from anger without any real consideration, is not a way to lead.”

"It is better than doing nothing!" Undyne snapped, blocking the attack. Her magic was becoming more erratic.

"Just like Asgore, you let your emotions lead," Toriel frowned. She straightened herself, eyeing the ruler as if judging her, "What have you done with your rule? Well, other than falsely imprison a monster and--"

"HE LET'S US ALL DOWN!" Undyne yelled. She sent more spears at Toriel, who again, turned in place to block the attacks with her magic. "Just like a coward, he chose you and that human over his own family, over the king!"

"And if Sans had died, would you really be that much happier?" Toriel asked. Again, she caused flames to rain down onto Undyne, but she watched more carefully, and she noticed that Undyne was losing her resolve.

Still, the fish monster blocked every attack as if they were nothing. Her stance was solid, unmoving, and there was an eccentric aspect to her fighting style. While she has seen monsters and humans fight in this manner for audiences, she doubted it was for fans that Undyne acted so much. It was likely Undyne was showing what she can do to intimidate Toriel. Unfortunately for her, this is not Toriel's first fight, and that is a technique that will not work.

"Never, but that doesn't mean he couldn't have done something!" Undyne refuted.

"Fair enough," Toriel said, "but only if you ignore the fact he is already aware he could never win against the human." As more spears traveled towards her, Toriel prepared to defend. "You forgot he was hurt by his brother's death as well. We were mending each other’s emotional wounds in peace, before you interrupted."

Again, same attack, just different rhythm and faster speed. There were also more spears, making the attack longer and more challenging, but over all, she was starting to feel ready for something new. Though, being trapped by the green magic, there was little she could do against some attacks. At least this is easier to deal with when immobilized.

“Asgore needed you more, and more than those humans,” Undyne snapped. She summoned up another multitude of spears and sent them toward Toriel, "You weren't the only one hurt by the loss of your children. Even the humans he killed weighed on him. I could see it."

Toriel varied her attack by having the flames come at Undyne from the side instead of above. At this point they weren't getting far, and Toriel knew she would have to fight harder. It has been a long time since she fought anything that stood a chance against her. She had fought the child, but she wasn't going full strength against them, after all, her goal wasn't to kill them. Now, though, she intended on winning.

“I always gave him my counsel, and was there behind him, guiding him with my knowledge and experience,” Toriel responded once Undyne was done defending.

Again, same attack but slightly different. The spears were moving in at different speeds, nearly tricking Toriel. Some were traveling slower than others, but appearing first, acting as a distraction for the fast ones. Keeping on guard though, she didn't intend on taking any more damage from Undyne. But this was becoming more difficult than Toriel thought it would be.  She wouldn't be surprised if Undyne had been practicing with Asgore, which gave Undyne the advantage of knowing some of her attacks. Still, she doubted Asgore had fought Undyne with the fierceness she was about to unleash.

Calling up more of her own magic, she sent fire raining down on Undyne. “Do you honestly think,” Toriel exclaimed while Undyne tried to block the flames, “that I would just leave him without a word? Did he not tell you of the days we argued, debated, and fought over this? I didn’t just leave him to deal with all of that alone without trying. Do not forget, I had loved him. But he made his choice, and it was one I could not stand by.”

Keeping her attack up, while Undyne was distracted, Toriel summoned up more fire to surround the fish monster and move at her from all sides. Undyne noticed them as Toriel sent the mass of fire in at her. The warrior barely had the time to build a defense, but she managed to block most of flames. As the smoke cleared, Toriel could see the char marks of a few successful hits.

“You keep saying you loved him! BUT YOU LEFT HIM ALONE!” Undyne’s spears were becoming unstable, and wild in formation. Magic may be a way for a monster to express their emotions, but when emotions become out of control, so does a monster's magic. Toriel could feel the danger of each bullet, but they were barely holding together, “Do you have ANY IDEA HOW MANY TEARS HE CRIED WAITING FOR YOU?!”

Toriel was free from the green magic on her soul, which was a welcomed feeling. But now the attack has changed, as a group of spears come at her head on, she dances to the side when needed. The attacks now coming at Toriel, lacked the aim of before. Composing herself, she didn’t make a counter attack, allowing Undyne to summon a mass of spears that required Toriel to dodge more as they followed her. Keeping her fire around her paws, she avoided most of the spears, save one that cut a small slit in her left ear. Toriel couldn't help but wonder how much more threatening a composed Undyne would be.

Once ready she turned to the Empress, a large fire ball summoned in her paws. With ease, Toriel sent it towards Undyne, and it collided with its target. It caused no harm, but did knock Undyne down. “I loved him, Undyne. Do not think I didn’t spend days, weeks, months, and years in the Ruins crying. DO NOT tell me for one moment that I did not love him!” Toriel felt a tear moving through her fur and instinctively reached to wipe it, only to feel her fur was soaked. She didn’t know how long she had been crying with her focus on the encounter, perhaps the whole fight.

Undyne hadn’t stood up yet, and Toriel walked closer, “Yes, I did not return to him, but he did not seek me out too.”

“You were hidden away!” Undyne yelled back.

“To most monsters, yes,” Toriel said, calming her tone, but more tears slid down her face, “he knew me enough to know where I was. Just as much as I could have returned to him, he could have come to me. I left to the old home we once shared, near where the humans fall. He knew, I know he knew.

“The forgiveness we needed to restore what we had is a two-way street. It can't all be him, or all me. We both must reconcile with the pain we felt and still feel. We both felt betrayed, and the trust we once had, broken,” Toriel sighed, turning away, “I thought for sure, he would see he was wrong and come for me. Then as the years dragged on, I understood he was no longer the monster I once knew.”

Undyne sat up, “Yeah? And what about you?”

Looking back at Undyne, Toriel shook her head, “I changed too. I was far more… open and happy before. I can still act that way, but inside I am closed off, and cold. As much as I thought I wanted him to come and get me, I also didn't want his apology. I wouldn't accept it unless he told me he would give up on his futile war. This torn perspective left me feeling as a failure, and that my people would be destroyed by my incompetence.

"I am no longer who I once was. I do not know if I have it in me to fully forgive him, and now I never will because I don't have that chance. It tears at me, day in and day out, that the last words we shared where so angry. But, not enough to surrender my own morals for his wellbeing. I am too stubborn for that, and he is too passive. That is what our argument revealed about both of us."

With a sigh, Toriel calmed her flames, she looked at the, slightly burnt, Empress of Monsters. Extending a paw, she offered to help the younger monster up, but was refused. "I just don't understand how you could have left him like that, alone," Undyne said, calmer, but still anger was in her tone.

"I do not know if what I did was right, but I couldn't stomach his war declaration. Not if it meant potentially killing children that would have been no different than our Chara. It was hard enough watch that dear one...," her body trembled, "that dear one wither. Seeing, and knowing more like them died by my husband's hands, that is what I struggle to forgive him for.

"I understand you and Asgore became family to each other," Toriel smiled, "Well, those humans were my family." Looking down and away, her smile fading, "Family that I ultimately failed."

"And were they?" Undyne asked, looking at Toriel. There was still frustration of the fish monster's face, but some had waned, "were they like your Chara?"

"A few, though several were, admittedly sweeter. Chara had their... issues, but overall, they were a good child. I honestly believed they wanted the best for us, all of us."

"Well, now," Gerson said, walking into the room, "got that little tiff with each other out of your systems?"

"I believe so," Toriel smiled at the turtle before looking back at Undyne.

"Yeah, I'm good," Undyne smiled a large toothy grin at the turtle. There were still going to be arguments between them, that was sure. But based on what she knew from the stories Sans told and what Gerson said, Undyne becomes more reasonable once she has released her anger.

If that is so, then the meeting they will soon have should run smoother with that out of the way.

 ---

  “Sir.”

A strange voice interrupted his dreamless sleep, and it took a moment for him to work things out in his mind. He remembered which timeline he was in, and the current situation. He was alone, though only currently. Toriel was alive, but had left to… do something. There was still a heavy fog clouding his thoughts. He struggled to remember what it was she said she had to go do, or anything really that was said.

As his thoughts cleared, he remembered Tori wanted him to continue sleeping while she went off to take care of… she never said. He remembered wanting to go with her, but she insisted on going alone. If his memory serves him right, she even held him down and did what she could to cause him to fall asleep. She used his tiredness to her advantage. Had he been more awake, he would have asked more questions, but instead, he just let her lull him to sleep without much fight.

Was he really that easy to manipulate? For Tori, he is. Papyrus possibly could have, but it was not in his bro’s nature. Normally, he would be upset by this revelation, but thinking about it, he really didn’t mind. If it is just Tori, having her knowing his weaknesses shouldn’t be a problem, she wasn’t the type to make them public. Some of his weaknesses already were well known, but they were basic. At MTT's resort, he has joked about how he sleeps too much, is lazy, and, over all, unhealthy. But none of that was like what she knows. If he was honest with himself, he preferred it this way. There was still so much he kept hidden, but it was nice to have someone he didn't have to feel so reserved with.

“Sir, Lady Toriel requested I wake you when your food arrived," the stranger said, reminding him that there was someone other than himself in the room.

Sans sat up, rubbing his eye sockets. If he was remembering right, Tori did ask him to “be nice." Well, he’ll try, for her.

... Grillby was right...

“thanks,” that’s a good start, right? He figured so, even if his tone of voice didn't really sound thankful.

“She had also asked that your things be brought to you. I placed them here on the nightstand.”

Looking beside him, he saw the small bundle of clothing and his slippers. Relief eased the ‘on edge’ feeling he was having with the guard being around. Go figure Undyne wouldn't have any actual 'room serves,' and has the guard doing everything. “sure, thanks again,” pockets, soon he’ll finally have pockets.

“Welcome, anything else?” The guard asked.

“no, i'm good,” Sans replied with a shrug.

“I'll be just outside,” the guard said, and finally left Sans alone in the room.

Collecting his things, double checking to making sure he had everything, Sans got up. He made his way to the bathroom, but stopped to look at the food. Perhaps he should eat something? He wasn’t hungry, but the food looks better than what mess he was offered before. It would be wrong to let it go to waste. Not that magic food spoils or anything like that, but it does taste better fresh.

Giving in, he sat down, setting is clothes to the side, and started to eat. Once he started, he found himself eating more than he thought he would, but not up to his normal standard. A few days of normal food should fix that. His only regret eating that much was it left him feeling sick and weighed down. The magic the food was made of was far richer than what he’s had recently, and his body wasn’t quite ready for that much so soon.

He should be fine in the end. His body needed food with more magic in it; and, as soon the new magic can be properly distributed, he would feel better. It would just take time for his body to readjust.

Once done, he finally entered the bathroom and took the time for a quick wash before getting dressed. Once his hoodie was on, he savored the sensation of his hands sliding into his pockets. It invoked a feeling of safety, like being hidden away from anything that may try to harm him. Between Tori’s hugs and his pockets, the hugs win in the overall protected feeling. But still, this was a close runner up, plus, it’s just what he is used to for most of his life.

Looking in the mirror, he could see how exhausted he was. Well, he felt that way, so this was no new discovery; but, now he can see it was more than just a feeling. At least he can stand straight, so that’s something. He chuckled, noticing that was a "Papyrus" thought, and wished his brother was here to say that to him.

Rubbing his eye sockets, he yawned, trying to force out the want to sleep now that he feels more like himself. Opening the door, he looked out into the main room but froze. Something shiny and rectangular was there, on the nightstand. It was something he really didn’t want to see right now, or think about. Closing the door, putting it between himself and that thing, he felt himself shaking. Pressing his forehead against the door, the thought back to when he grabbed his clothes. Was the present there?

No. He would have seen it. All his things came with him. He even double checked. There was nothing other than his clothes and slippers. Did someone sneak in while he was distracted in the bathroom? That was the only thing that made sense, but why would someone do that? But then, why would anyone be doing this at all other than to get at him in some sort of psychological way?

Maybe he was just seeing things? He was still tired and feeling very stressed. Closing his eye sockets, he tried to calm down before reopening the door a crack and looking out.

No, that was definitely the gift he has yet to open. It was just sitting there on the night stand, as if waiting for him. Again, he closed the door before sitting down and using it to lean.  His hands couldn’t go any deeper into his pockets, yet they still tried to seek refuge.

He wanted so badly to know what was in the gift, but he had a sickening feeling he already knew. Who it's from is something else he wanted to know. Was it Undyne? This really didn't feel like her, and after some sleep, he felt almost certain she wasn't the culprit. But, that doesn't answer who else would have the knowledge to do this. After all, how many people could Papyrus talk to about the special wrapping paper with?

Well, it was Papyrus, it was likely he talked to a few people about it.

This was no time for a meltdown. Toriel needed him, but he felt trapped in his own fears. It was just a gift, a cruel one, but it couldn’t hurt him… physically. Taking a deep breath, he stood and opened the door again, this time avoiding looking at the stand before quickly exiting the room. He’ll deal with it later… he should know what is in there, but not before this meeting.

[neural-novella]

The Marked 5

Author’s Note To Self: Don’t Trust Tumblr’s Draft System!

My eyes open to the familiar purple-blue city. The sound of thousands of Mage’s debating, squabbling and practicing their techniques engulf my senses. Unfortunately I am too late as my brother is already stood in front of me, He has been waiting for me to turn up. Have I become so predictable? I’ll have to make sure I teleport to random points in the city from now on. He doesn’t look happy as he glances at me with disdain. “Do you know what you have done?” he states.

“I didn’t do anything!” I rebuke. 

“I can’t prove you warned them somehow. They knew we were coming, they scouted us miles before we got to the outskirts. Even if I can’t prove you had something to do with this I just witnessed that you disobeyed me! You left the city after strict instructions not to do so!”

My brother looks away, fire burning in the palm of his hand. He’s always been the one to look after me, to stand up for me in school and life. Ultimately his will to protect is what lead him to becoming a Hunter, and I have never helped matters since. I have always driven a wedge between his duty as a Hunter and his duty as a Brother. I make decisions or get into situations that he must decide if he reports on as a Hunter or brushes under the carpet as my brother. It’s been really hard on him... but this time I doubt he can forgive me. He’ll have no choice but to report to the Council that the Marked has evacuated, that he had failed to do what was required of him.

“This is the last time brother,” He begins “the last time I can ever help you. I wont report to the Council that you have been out of the city, but I cannot hide the fact that someone here must have warned them and the Council will find out who. I suggest you lay low for a while, hopefully they won’t find you. Next time you do something like this, I’ll be sent to kill you understand?”

I nod in weary agreement. I wish there was more I could do for him. His rank plays on his heart, he has always been tested. Asked to do things he believes are wrong but he must carry out the Council’s orders. That’s why several years ago I got in between him and a Marked he was sent to kill. An innocent, we both knew she was innocent but just because she was Marked the Council wanted her dead. I did it to save a part of my brother but lost the piece of him that cared for me. He’s finally decided now, rank over blood. And that’s fair, his rank supports his family, his future. I’ve always gotten in the way of that.

Over the course of the next week, I spend a lot of time either brushing up on certain magical skills or drinking in whatever bar takes my fancy within the city. Word on the street is that my brother’s on course to be demoted after the failure of The Society attack. He’s been given a task to investigate who warned them, which if he fails I’m sure will result in him no longer being a Hunter. Meanwhile, I remain laying low and keeping out of trouble. I contacted the telepath that had assisted me in contacting Lee and Grimmal and told her she should probably do the same or get out of the city. She seemed quite content in continuing her life, any change being seen as suspicious and the fact she can pick up the mind of anyone who wishes to harm her before they even enter the same building.

Another week passes and still no news. I haven’t seen or heard from my brother. I want to contact Lee but I know it’d be a huge risk for us both. The Council are probably focusing on anyone using the type of magic signature that a long range telepathic message gives off. My mind wanders to how this all started. about 100 years ago there was a massive human war. Some Mages felt it was their duty to take part either as medics or as soldiers on the battlefield. One Mage in particular towards the latter end of the war, saw a way of turning the tide of battle. He created a series of spells, a ritual, a way of bestowing magical abilities to humans via specially crafted weaponry. However humans being humans, they decided that no one else could have such power and ended up using the weapons against their creator. It was a huge mess the Council barely managed to cover up, killing thousands of mages and humans alike in order to make sure no one had any evidence of the mistake to share. As it turns out, about 20 years later another war broke out and a german science division happened upon research into the same magical weaponry and devised a way to imbue a human body with such abilities in order to create a super soldier. His experiments failed one after the other, until he caught himself a mage. He experimented on the mage trying to figure out where is research was going wrong. When he finally figured it out, he attempted to create a super solider again but things went horribly wrong. There was a massive magical explosion and everyone within a 2 mile radius was killed. Oddly enough though, shortly after the war there were reports of children developing the same distinctive mark on their skin. After years of bloodlines now there are thousands of Marked in the world most of them with no idea how to control their abilities and some with no interest in them at all. The Council has been paying for their mistakes this entire time.

After a month passes by, I decide its time to leave the city. No one has come for me yet and there’s no sign or reports of anyone even being close to asking me questions. I need to speak to Lee and Grimmal. I travel by foot to the furthest outreach of the city, doing my best to be as far from the Magus Council as possible. When ready I take a deep breath and begin to cast a teleportation spell again. As my body is engulfed in a blue cloud I suddenly realize I have no idea where to go; I dismiss the spell for the moment. I contemplate visiting the telepath again to see if she can track either one but again the risk this poses is too great, there’s no way she’d do it. After a few moments of thought I concoct a plan and recast the spell, focusing on the rooftop that Lee last threw me off of.

I open my eyes to a human city, the noise of busy people on the streets and cars having close calls fills my ears. The smell of decay, smog and food fills the air. I walk over to the edge of the building and blink into the alleyway once I have it in sight. A homeless guy gets startled by the angelic vision of someone randomly bursting into existence via a shower of white sparks. I smile at him and continue to the metal door of the Marked Safe House, there’s no need to wipe his memory who’s really going to believe a homeless guy ranting and raving about angels anyways. The door is locked, damn! I imagine the interior I only visited once, the dark walls and dirt floor. I blink once more within the safe house.

It’s empty, I should have expected as much. The Marked have moved on which is exactly what they needed to do, I don’t really know why this place being empty surprised me so much. Rodents scurry up and down the perimeter, running away from the bright flash I would have emitted upon entering. I sit on the ground and meditate. Contemplating how I find anyone. Then an image hits me, Sable standing there telling me about how this was my fault. I focus on her features, her dark hair, slim face. I take a deep breath and extend my right hand into the air, extending out my fingertips as I cast silver threads from each one. A type of scrying spell used to track one’s magical signature. Good for Mage’s who can never truly stop passively emitting magic into the air around them, difficult for Marked who can. I focus more on Sable’s character, her whispering voice, her average height. As I exhale I simultaneously open my eyes and clench my right hand into a fight. The threads at my finger tips transform into a single long silvery thread that I now clasp in my hand. I was just barely able to manifest it, she hasn’t been here in so long. I close my eyes again and use my magic to trace the thread, following Sable wherever she has been. At the end of the thread I finally see her and Grimmal, sharing what appears to be a cheap apartment on the other side of town. I smile, this kind of magic was never natural to me. It always took me a while to get somewhere, and to do this after she had not been here for so long is quite the feat. I let go of the thread and it vaporizes out of existence. I stand up and blink back into the alleyway, after the amount of magic I’ve just expelled in order to get to this city, into the safehouse and track Sable I am at my limits. To use any more to get to Sable would be irresponsible as a Mage, I would lack the ability to defend myself when I got there. 

“So I guess walking it is, the good ol’ fashioned way” I tell myself as I turn out of the alleyway and join the stream of people walking in different directions on the street.