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the-dalseum-duet · 20 days ago

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dude just hand me the autism diagnosis at this point

most people watch tv or something when they’re tired and need to sleep but can’t. not me though. bitch I do thematic analyses

every once in a while I’ll remember Undertale exists and how utterly unwell I am about the dreemurrs, specifically asirel I am incredibly unwell about him. like. that family is the backbone of the story and they do not get the hype they deserve imo. fuck all y’all sans au bitches where is my love for meta storylines of grief and forgiveness and childhood. I mean. sans kinda does this but in a much more complicated and less pertinent way. the dreemurrs are perfect I will accept no criticism of them

god. the omega flowey fight actually rearranged every cell in my body i would not be myself if it weren’t for that damn goat boy I’m sorry sans fans but you will never be him. the goat. literally and metaphorically. they call it the goat bc of asriel dreemurr

hey. isn’t there another family comprised of two siblings who persist to love each other regardless of their faults and wrongdoings? and an unstable mother (gender neutral) fighting not only the outside world but themselves tooth and claw for the protection of their child? and a father willing to sacrifice (his) children for the “greater good” of his kingdom because it is so deeply rooted in his belief system?

ladies and gentlemen please welcome the sangs to the stage.

at first I was just like “this is just a me issue bc every family dynamic I have ever written has been like this” but it really is not. at all. this one just Happens to be the one I am the most unwell about

and a lot of this will not be canon bc everything kinda ends after Noeul dies and Sara becomes Marie’s advisor. which. AUGGGHHH WHY IS ALL THE BADASS THEMATIC SHIT POST CANON I actually hate the current setup rn bc I have to write all the boring scenes and none of the cool ones bc they’re just. Implied to have happened. Which doesn’t really work idk why my brain works backwards like that.

what was i even talking abt. man

thematic parallels. sangs. dreemurrs.

okay let s start with Marie. bc. I love her I LOVE HER SO MUCH.

i am inclined to compare her to asriel due to her gentle disposition slowly becoming unglued. like when you picture asriel you picture soft goat boy. but for 99% of the entire game he is either Flowey in some form or the god of hyperdeath. so. he very evidently is not soft goat boy. y’all are just picking and choosing atp he is SO MESSY and I LOVE HIM FOR THAT. He’s a child. He’s confused. He was roped into some grand scene with Chara (note the use of “with” instead of “because of” we Do Not Blame Chara in this house) and was MURDERED. IN ONE OF HIS MOST VULNERABLE MOMENTS. BY THE VERY HUMANS CHARA WARNED HIM OF no one talk to me ugh

And not to mention how this ties into how you defeat omega flowey. With the genuine love and compassion of humanity. The love and compassion of humanity. The souls of human children being called upon to help another. THE SOULS OF HUMAN CHILDREN. THE SAME TYPE OF SOULS RESPONSIBLE FOR HIS DEATH AND BY PROXY THE DEATH OF HIS SISTER. i have. many complex feelings abt this that i cannot express. something about his generalization of the evil of humanity contrasted with the power of its love literally being so powerful that IT KILLS THE FORM FUELED BY HIS HATRED OF THEM. i like the themes of undertale i like them a lot. god i am so fucking normal about this entire game

so. uh yeah Marie. she. she’s here too

like i know i change things so often and I literally do not keep track of things so just. hang on for me alright bc the Marie lore is a little difficult to follow compared to others probably because I never write for her bc her themes are built very subtly and also secondhand

Marie is a princess. That is all she is. It is so important that she is fairly flat leading up to the events of Blackbirds. Her identity is rooted in the performance of the royal family to Dalseum. Marie is a little girl who wears shiny jewelry and ruffly clothes and finds joy in the mundane aspects of Dalseum (read: the cocktail quarters). The most interesting aspect of her character is the subversion of her liking rock music, which even then is a trait passed down from her father. She is the Sangs’ golden child. She is the poster for everything they want her to be— walking propaganda, but just offbeat enough to be human. To her, Dalseum has no faults. She has nothing but pride in her kingdom and what she is set to become.

She is a child. She knows no better. She is enjoying her life. She doesn’t know she is a weapon.

None of that related to Asriel though. Just some setup for what does.

She believes that no one could possibly hold any disdain for the royal family and how Dalseum is run. Sure, there are minor discrepancies here and there, but that’s life. Everything always works out in the end. She and Asriel are both initially optimistic.

Enter Crow and Chara. They both come from similar situations. Chara escaped the human world into the underground to avoid the ridicule she was facing, and she harbors a hatred for humankind. Crow regularly wanders from the palace further into Dalseum, and he has been trusted with much more controversial details than Marie has been trusted with. He begins to harbor a distaste towards the nobility of Dalseum for allowing the Wasteland to fall into ruins and encouraging the vapidness of the Lovesong district.

Both Crow and Chara want to indoctrinate their respective sibling into believing the same way. For Asriel, this works to some extent because there’s no downside to him believing this. Marie is much harder to convince considering she’s had patriotism shoved down her throat since she was a child. She was already a coverup for Crow. Sonnet and Noeul couldn’t afford her not to be perfect, and Marie knows this. She just doesn’t understand why.

But Chara is an extremist. Her plan to combine their souls is insanely risky. But Asriel loves her regardless. That’s his sister, so surely he can trust her.

Bad move on his behalf. They both die when Asriel returns Chara’s body to the surface, and he has to live with that guilt as Flowey. Which is a topic even I’m a little lost on. Idk how that memory transfer works. But I choose to believe he feels that guilt still for the sake of my argument

Similarly, Marie has to live with her own guilt. But in the opposite direction.

Crow’s reasoning just sounds insane to her because she’s never witnessed it, so it must never happen. Because that is how politics work. It never happened if the people in charge never saw it. She disregards his comments and is unsupportive of his want for change. Because things are perfect as they are, and if Crow starts messing with things then it surely won’t end well.

So Crow leaves as a “form of protest” (read: sneaking charlie out of the palace but framing his choice as his own) anyway. Very pissed off, but he does it without his sister and #1 supporter anyway. And it’s a massive deal obviously. Word gets out about him living in the Wasteland and she feels miserable. She should have prevented this. She should have convinced Crow to stay.

But Crow’s need for justice is the human spirit here. He is the beating heart of the Dalseum Duet, alongside Charlie’s drive to return home. The two intertwine, a bit more heavily on Crow’s end.

tl;dr so far all these kids are so messy and have no clue how the world actually works

As Sonnet and Noeul begin to form a plan to snuff out Crow’s little protest movement, Marie realizes just how inhuman she has been made to be. They barely consult with his own sister. When they do, they make snide comments about him. Crow is still her brother. Crow is still her best friend. Something something your best friend Asriel dreemurr

Once she is actually invited to a Court meeting, this is her breaking point. She knows Crow’s true intentions better than anyone else on the Court, and she knows what they say about him being reckless and shallow and attention-seeking are untrue. He may be behaving that way, but Marie knows Crow well enough to know when there’s a reason behind his actions. So she defends him at a Court meeting.

Noeul does not like this. He confines Marie to the Palace for the time being because “it’s getting too dangerous for her to be in the public eye” so she draws an outline of a bird on one of her windows in red. This becomes a symbol of Crow’s movement.

Noeul is PISSSSED so confines her to a tower without windows. Sonnet gets even more pissed and I’m getting off topic

All this was to say that the Sang siblings will always find ways to communicate with one another, specially over broadcasted reports on one another. The Dreemurs, likewise, find ways to reconnect.

Asriel recognizes Chara in the player during the Asriel Dreemurr fight. He calls out to her and their past memories. He, too, is willing to take drastic measures for the reminder of her support and love. For the reminder that it does exist. Marie does the same, and Crow reciprocates by storming the Palace after the coronation to take refuge under her rule.

and. idk. there’s probably something else abt the coronation that’s relevant. Noeul’s ass gets sans fighted right down the middle of his chest L. yeah take that bitch with a blue winter motif

i’m. so tired. I hope this made any sense at all. it makes a lot more sense than just this. there IS More. just not rn

#What an earthbound inspired rpg does to the underdeveloped neurodivergent brain #oc rambling #divider by cafekitsune #not edited lmao

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obsessivefangirl · 2 years ago

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🍉 🍓 🍒 FOR FRUIT ASK GAME THING >:D

🍉 Do you prefer to write short fics or long fics? Multichaptered works or single ones? Why?

I like the idea of multichaptered fics, but one shots are much less stressful. I want to write long stuff, but I usually don't get to

🍒 What’s your favorite character dynamic to write? (Can be romantic or platonic, specific or general!)

The brothers or the dreemurr siblings!!! I should probably write them being little shits to each other more often, but I consume so much of that content I'm left starved for emotional and mushy content, and it looks like I just have them cranked up to the angst and sweetest and don't like them being silly and playful. I do! I just don't find too much of content I make which makes me want to add one more in the world.

🍓 What’s a fic you’ve written you feel is underrated?

I'm not at all famous, so it's hard to really have something underrated. However, something that got very little traction compared to my pride is hunger. That's probably because I got suspended and for "harassment" (saying I'd steal proshippers knees if they read it jokingly) so when it got out it was lost to time.

#ask #sneakyfox55

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acerikus · 1 year ago

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Yeah yeah Dess hasn't turned up yet and that's probably why she's never really discussed as a candidate - but Asriel wasn't revealed till right at the end of undertale despite being someone we'd faced off against multiple times way before that.

Dess could've absolutely been flowey'd in her own way and I find the concept so fun to think about.

Both the Dreemurrs and the Holidays feel very unique and separated from the rest of the cast while very similar to each other - the only ones with known surnames, two parents with a rocky relationship (though Rudy and his wife seem to be at least a more stable than Toriel and Asgore), one parent in a position of political power while the other disapproves of their recent behaviour, and two siblings who have been separated in some way.

Both the undertale dreemurrs and deltarune dreemurrs work for this parallel in different ways - ut!asgore being king while mrs holiday is the mayor, the kids of both families in deltarune having grown up close with the eldest siblings absent and the youngest missing them deeply more than anything (and repeatedly searching the internet for possible info in regard to them coming home). Noelle shares her love of chocolate with both Kris AND chara. Treading down a darker path only increases her parallels with chara in ways that have already been talked about plenty of times before.

Dess and deltarune!Asriel are the cool older siblings who their youngest siblings look up to and miss terribly. But let's talk about Dess and undertale!Asriel as a possible parallel - talking specifically of course, about Flowey.

An easy argument against knight!Dess would be, 'but wouldn't people have seen her around hometown if she was making dark fountains?' or 'why wouldn't she have reached out to Noelle?'

I feel like there could be an easy answer here.

Firstly, we have no idea where she is, or what happened to her. People like to speculate that she's wherever gaster is and I kinda love that, but... let's say that's the case (or even if not), what if she wasn't able to keep herself together? Maybe wherever Dess is, she can't go back the way she is - either due to actual physical/metaphysical limitations, or because she doesn't want the ones she cares about seeing her that way (sound familiar?)

Not enough a lightner to come home to her family. Just enough of a lightner with just enough determination to create dark fountains. If she were the knight it could be an interesting reversal on some of the speculation I've seen on knight!kris - instead of it being Kris making fountains in the hope of finding Dess, maybe it's Dess trying to use them as a means to an end for coming home. Maybe she's been lied to about their purpose. Maybe there's more to dark fountains than we've been told. Maybe she just wasn't the greatest person.

Maybe whatever event caused her disappearance or what happened after has warped her and/or her mindset beyond recognition, much like how flowey gave up on his morals after what must've felt like forever in a body that suddenly wasn't like his own, packed with determination and the ability to reset.

Idk, knight!Dess just feels really neat to me. A villain-not-villain-tragic-kid, who could even end up being the key to this story having a happy ending. And if Noelle has already been shown to be an angel candidate in a more destructive scenario just like chara did, dess sharing an angel parallel with asriel/flowey could be fun too.

Final thing I wanna add is these tags from @ariadnesweb which I think are super fun and kinda go well w some of my thoughts:

Thinking again about the possibility of knight!dess and the narrative impact that could have (not to mention, the inherent undertale parallels that would come with it)

#utdr #dess holiday #xan's thoughts #somehow i accidentally turn everything into at least a little bit of flowey meta huh 😂

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whathappenedtodecember · 3 years ago

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now i wanna talk about my kris headcanons........ probably better if you check out my chara headcanons beforehand because this is going to be drawing from that post from time to time

- first thing i noticed is that it's Very Easy to headcanon kris as southeast asian. like this is no longer projecting at this point it's just, the amount of text the game gives us, *sinks teeth into this headcanon, cries*. their name? super common here, can't go to school without knowing at least one kris. their skintone when done right? the allusions to kris as in the knife? (though i usually separate the fountain-making knife and the pie-cutting knife in my headcanons, because, you know. it's kinda weird to use a sacred heirloom to snack.) the 'make sure to go home before dark' theme? (i know this is, like, universal, but if youre indonesian specifically you know at least one adult has told you to stop playing outside before dusk, lest you're kidnapped by malicious spirits). the POSSESSION? also super common here! look at this thread for instance (everything in the thread is just wall of texts but uhh. potential cw for descriptions of body horror i think)

> unlike chara though i don't necessarily hc kris as an efl/esl speaker. i feel like they were adopted at a much younger age by the dreemurrs + have spent more time growing up around the monsters that english is more natural to them than their SEA language........like they're still multilingual, yes, but primarily they think or speak in english unlike chara

more under the cut

- much like i love to reverse engineer chara headcanons from kris's characterizations i also love to do it the other way........so i think kris loves gardening. they know a lot about flower and plant maintenance. this is an activity that they like to do to bond with their dad and they're always the delivery guy for asgore's flowers. it just so happens that this inadvertently makes them, like, super privy to the details of the Divorce Soap Opera that involves almost all the adults at hometown.....they have a front row seat to all this mess. their coping mechanism to this is to be a terrible gossip with asriel (who procrastinates on his assignments by making his sibling tell him about uncle rudy's plan to make the konbini guy into a xylophone)

> on that note i can't decide which headcanon i like more: that asriel is sacrificing what little amount of sleep he already gets as a college student to keep kris company over the internet, or that asriel is studying abroad

- like chara, they're classically trained in piano but they suck at rhythm games. (and by clasically trained i mean undyne babysat them on occasions when they were younger) this is based on the sheer amount of people i know irl who are otherwise decent musicians but very awful at knockoff mobile rhythm games because the lag or delay catches them off guard. i think there's something to say about how the rhythm games kris wanted to play are probably like, old or vintage because the tutorial search result was in VHS 😭😭 so definitely not the rhythm they are used to when playing the piano

- kris doesn't necessarily hate other humans, they're just not comfortable with strangers + there's their own issues about being the lone human living with monsters. personally i feel like the library scene is kinda like the asgore hug scene, in that kris doesn't necessarily hate hugs, they just dislike hugs that are too tight/that take them off the ground etc.

edit: more hcs

- the canon fact that kris is a younger sibling is as important to me as my chara is the older sib headcanon.......in fact i do believe that kris is absolutely the baby of the december-asriel-noelle-kris friend group. i can imagine small kris asking for piggyback rides from dess too and sometimes even from noelle. when you use the club sandwich on ralsei kris divides it evenly (new friend, they're being polite) but when you use it on noelle they take 2/3 of it for themself.......absolute baby sibling behavior it can't get better than this

> in line with this i kinda feel like bratty and catty, and even burgerpants/pizzapants are azzy's relatively 'newer' friends that he probably only became close to after december's incident.......and kris tried so hard to be included here too because they missed the proximity they used to have with their brother and the holidays :( missed the 'so tight knit i basically have two more siblings' feeling.......but mayor c probably forbade noelle from hanging out with the dreemurr kids post december and everything just felt awkward and fragmented. they lost dess, they grew distant with noelle, and now azzy's off to college......... :( :( genuinely think it's a good thing the lancer fan club got to be friends, they were all so alone in their own ways prior to chapter 1

#deltarune #kris dreemurr #dr2 #ogpost

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starlightshore · 4 years ago

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hi sorry if this seems a little rude, if chara isn't really bad, then why do they kill them on the soulless route?

(I always wanted to know about it)

(not rude at all! feel free to ask questions like this its no skin off my back) which “them” are you referring to? that could mean different things like: the underground, the player, Frisk ect. its a little vague)

but I’ll try to answer this with the above being vague anyway

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hoo boy this ended up long LMAO. coming back from the bottom to say Sorry this ended up this lengthy. here’s some

content warnings: discussions of canon and implied dark topics such as: abuse, murder, death, suicide, and self harm

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TLDR: Chara is a complex character with a rich backstory and motivations. by looking at the full game, you understand they’re a mentally ill child who is just following the player’s directions. YOU do the killing, Chara is your partner in crime because you force them to be.

Chara is the narrator in ALL routes. they are the UI, stats and narration.

it is Chara’s memories that convinces Asriel to remember how they met and how much they loved each other when alive. Chara is key to Asriel freeing the underground, they are a god dang hero

let’s look at canon Chara pre-game to fully understand what’s going on though.

-Chara lived in a village close to mt.Ebott. they decided to climb mt.Ebott for “a not happy reason” and hated humanity

-once underground, they become the sibling to Asriel and become a full fledged Dreemurr. They love their family. “it’s a dusty photo. everyone is happy.” (which, if you believe is the photo of Chara holding the flowers next to Asriel, implies Chara is smiling under them and their bangs) + the Mr.Dad Guy sweater + baking a pie for their dad

-in the underground, there’s the Deltarune prophecy. it reads as follows: “There is a prophecy. The Angel... The One Who Has Seen The Surface... They will return. And the underground will go empty.“

-Toriel and Asgore are both strong believers of the Deltarune as seen by the symbol on their clothes and homes.

-Chara has been to the surface and therefore, most believe Chara is the angel that will free them.

-Chara is a small child, who hates humanity, loves their family, and by fate is destined to free monster-kind. they are determined.

-Chara and Asriel decide to prank Asgore by making a pie with buttercups instead of a cup of butter. They learn the flower is poisonous and Asgore gets sick, but ends up fine. Chara laughs it off, but if one is paying attention to the game, you will see that their is a very common theme of smiling/laughing when distressed.

Toriel smiling, laughing when being killed in no mercy

Migospel’s whole game-play is about how one acts around others vs. alone “ Laughter hides the pain. [Alone]”

sans can be seen as a broad example

a VERY good example is the snowdrake’s mother fight:

“You laugh, and keep laughing. It's SO funny, you can't stop. Tears run down your face. | ... what? You didn't do that? [Laugh]

But it's not funny. [Laugh again]”

-Chara hates humanity (epilogue Asriel says that) and by extension, would hate themself. you can read into the tools being worn down to being blunt + no knives in the kitchen as being precautions Toriel put in place to prevent Chara from self-harming. Chara attempts suicide twice in the game’s story.. Also! It’s implied Chara was abused before coming underground. “ If you're cuter, monsters won't hit you as hard.-faded ribbon flavor text” and the fact Chara thought to kill the villagers in the first place, they didn’t get the “kill or be killed” mindset out of nowhere. + abuse can manifest in depression, anxiety, and Chara displays behaviors of coping with abuse. (harder to explain that detail, but Chara’s control-issues and distrust just SCREAMS abuse to me)

Chara is a kid with severe mental illness, implied to be abused, and all while younger than 13. that’s a lot to take in. which is also why a lot of people are upset at “Chara is evil” theories because it ignores that context and demonizes them. which is. bad. for lots of reasons. but mainly for how it handles the topic of survivors of abuse and mental illness and they’re just a freaking kid.

-anyway, long tangent aside... so this next point is more so how I interpret the order of events: Chara climbs the mountain to die, but trips and meets the Dreemurs. They become beloved by the kingdom and believed to be their savior. Chara can’t escape humanity’s history of trapping monsters or their own history of their horrible village, and when Asgore is poisoned they realize they’re bad too. It’s a common mindset of suicidal people to want to die before their image is tarnished. die while things are still “good,” when they’re still remembered fondly.

to cross the barrier, you need to have a human soul AND a monster soul. if Chara wanted to, they could of killed any of the Dreemurrs and absorbed their soul. But instead, the buttercup plan is a really freaking horrible way to die. Buttercup poisoning is awful. seriously, look up the symptoms. it’s bad. which is also why i believe Chara hated themself so much to put up with that form of death. -then they die, and become part of the Asriel and Chara fusion. (it should be stated they did not know Chara would be conscious.) the plan they agree on is to kill enough humans to break the barrier and free monster-kind, but Chara wants revenge, which is why they want to kill the humans and not negotiate like Toriel suggests Asgore could of done.

-Humans of course freak out at seeing them + their corpse and attack. Asriel realizes Chara was wrong and doesn’t want to murder, lets himself be killed. As they’re dying Chara screams “its kill or be killed” and both die. -years, possibly a century later depending on what side of the time-skip debate you’re on, Chara awakens in Frisk’s body and interacts with You, the player.

-they likely see you as the True Angel, and follow your orders just as Frisk just kinda vibes and does so as well.

-if you keep murdering, frisk distances themself from the world. (implied by what sans says about LV): * LOVE, too, is an acronym. * It stands for "Level of Violence." * A way of measuring someone's capacity to hurt. * The more you kill, the easier it becomes to distance yourself. * The more you distance yourself, the less you will hurt. * The more easily you can bring yourself to hurt others.

-Frisk, NOPEing out of the whole thing, just leaves Chara, who feels like they are the literal stats of the universe. THAT is why Chara is only really fully present in no mercy, and only narration otherwise. Frisk’s autonomy and how much control they have are directly tied to your LV. Frisk is only named in the pacifist ending because they’re rewarded with the acknowledgement that they’re a person.

-The biggest detail is that it’s not Chara who kills, but YOU. Chara is your partner in crime, and only attacks the player when you refuse to ERASE the world and they kill you themself. it is your power and your determination that brought them to this world, and it is through your actions they believe power is the only they must fight for.

-also, both Chara and frisk are influenced by the player and react differently depending on your actions. (the dog food bag is described as “half full/half empty” depending on your LV, a reference to how one looks at glasses of water to be more optimistic/pessimistic and Frisk will feel good/bad depending on LV when punching the mad dummy in waterfall.) Chara is always just following your lead. they’re not controlling Frisk, you are. however, they are in control of the choices (as confirmed in no mercy you don’t get to choose answers for papyrus’ question and he calls you out on it. personally i like to think each choice answer is from each kid)

anyway yeah that's my overly long analysis of how Chara’s backstory is used to define who they are and then how being revived from the dead, they follow your steps to apply the “kill or be killed” logic to it’s extreme end.

also, its not like Chara is happy about following your orders either.

they think a plant is judging you. they talk about your sins in the sans fight. they call Undyne a hero despite fighting her. Chara doesn’t want to kill Asriel, but once it happens they go ballistic, stabbing repetitively, clearly upset. that then instantly gets them powerful enough to destroy the world, as with how LV is described as distancing yourself and such. Asriel meant the MOST out of everyone, he was their best friend, forever.

#Anonymous #personal stuff #sams replies #long post #undertale analysis

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jorisjurgen · 3 years ago

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For the Ask Game, Asriel/Flowey perhaps?

First of all thank you for being my #1 supporter in "going insane over him" hobby for the past couple of years, Saffron. This post will certainly contain NOTHING that you hadn't heard me say about him 10 times before in your dms. probably.

[ask game]

1. I literary don't even know where to begin. He has 97 mental illnesses, he's a tsundere, he has 20-30 music tracks associated with him, he's an edgy 12 year old, he remembers what you did in other timeloops and has a lot of dialogue about that, he a lot of different designs and all of them are good. All of it is really good. Though probably my most favorite part IS the sheer tragedy that his life is, and how in the end he gets a happy ending.

2. How underrated he is 💔

3. Of all banger lines that he has, this dialogue straight up Haunts me: "I thought of all people, SHE could make me feel whole again. ...She failed. Ha ha... I realized those two were useless. I became despondent. I just wanted to love someone. I just wanted to care about someone. Chara, you might not believe this... But I decided... It wasn't worth living anymore. Not in a world without love. Not in a world without you. So... I decided to follow in your footsteps. I would erase myself from existence. And you know what? I succeeded."

4. Him and literary everyone. I want him to have a big support system and a lot of friends, and obviously for him to have a good relationship with his parents. But I especially like to see him being friends with Sans and Papyrus. Papyrus is an obvious pick, as for Sans, it's because in geno-route he says that what he thought "the anomaly" (who is almost certainly Flowey, though at that moment he is convinced it's player) really needed is a support system, friends, and care. Also it's funny when Sans is friendly with him and Flowey is PISSED because of that.

5. Past Him and Chara, and then Him and Frisk post-game.

6. I don't know any other pairings with him dfgjsdfg.

7. Some of this is kind of crack, and almost all of this is post-canon lol. Frisk introduces him to vocaloid music and he loves it. I think he'd like beyond-dark music about trauma and death, and vocaloid has a lot of that. Also he seems like the kind of person who unironically listens to nightcore. I think Toriel, not yet knowing that he is her son and that he has 97 mental illnesses, would enroll him into public school the second she learns he is a kid (which, let's be real, will be like a day or two after Frisk brings him outside simply because she can like... Hear him say words, and connect the dots.). He then would definitely cause something simply dubbed as "the knife incident" and be homeschooled then on. He's a good student on good mental heath days, but definitely much worse than his deltarune counterpart. I also think Toriel would be would be a lot more protective and a lot less strict with him than before he died, because she is badly afraid of losing him again. He definitely spends a lot of time with Asgore! Dreemurr Coparenting Real. I don't think his childhood was entirely happy even before death, and before Chara. Neither Asgore or Toriel are perfect, and I could picture him being quite a bit lonely, sheltered, and having a lot of expectations on him from Toriel. He has neon rainbow darkness dementia ravenway type ocs.

8. Chara and him weren't siblings and Chara was abusive to him, and that's not even an opinion this is literary canon. Also he has PTSD and depression and just thinks his emotional issues are the result of being soulless because he literary doesn't know anything! He's some 12 year old guy!! It's far more likely that he is a very unreliable narrator on his own condition because he isn't an expert on souls and maybe doesn't know what a "mental health" is.

9. I have a 3 hour long playlist about him, but my ESSENTIAL Asriel song is "Scrumize" by Maretu.

10. This cut goof toby posted a couple of years ago.

#ask games

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teffyjeffy · 4 years ago

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Fabric Tears (Part 3)

NEXT (Coming soon to the Mystery Shack!)

PART 1

PART 2

PREVIOUS CHAPTER

ONCE UPON A TIME...

TABLE OF CONTENTS

With the sudden task to redecorate the dining room for a tea party materializing in front of everyone, an aura of calmness had settled within the Corduroy household, much to Wendy's relief, Mabel's joy, and Dipper's confusion.

First off, the winter garb finally came off, now that there was no longer the threat of a bear running away while the coats were being removed. Dan was more than happy to house them in the closet located near the entrance. The closet, which originally was only keeping plaid colored jackets in there, now had a splash of color with the trio's coats added to the rack.

The three Corduroy brothers returned in record time with a box of Candyleaf, and whole bunch of other boxes of tea flavors. They all talked over each other with excitement, talking about how the ghostly couple were so thankful for the boy's good manners that they were allowed to the other boxes for free. Dan roared with good natured laughter and got a second kettle of water boiling.

Wendy and Mabel were taking turns between keeping an eye on Mr. SnuggleLots and setting the table up. Mabel made sure to throw a bunch of cute stickers on the tea cups. Wendy taught the bear how to play card games, and thankfully, cards were not in Mr. SnuggleLots's diet.

Dipper and Frisk were taking a break, sitting at the bottom steps of the stairway and watching Mabel, Wendy, and everyone else running around and transforming the dining room into a top quality tea set for Mabel's wild tea party plan. Dipper and Frisk were also using this opportunity to keep an eye on the pets, with Dipper holding onto Waddles, and Frisk giving lovely head scritches to Toby

"Back in the summer, I bet I would've chopped the poor bear's head off by this point or something," joked Dipper.

"I have a feeling you would've faced some resistance from Mabel if you tried that," replied Frisk, holding the torn scarf in their hands and making sure that Toby was far away enough to not consider biting it.

Dipper laughed, setting Waddles down to give himself a moment to stretch his arms. "Yeah, probably. Still though... I don't know if she would have come to this crazy conclusion to throw a tea party if she hadn't met you. Maybe instead, she'd have... pfft, I dunno, encased him in ice and shipped him off to the North Pole?"

"It feels like any scenario is possible if Mabel is behind it," teased Frisk.

"Just her, huh? Sounds like someone's picking favorites," laughed Dipper, giving the child ambassador a playful shove on the shoulder.

"Maybe I am~ Are you willing to prove to me that you are the sibling who's worth more of my attention than your sister?"

"Ohhhhhh no, don't go there. Last time Mabel and I had that kind of dispute, things got... pretty ridiculous. I've hated carpets ever since..."

"If you're going to continue being secret about your stories, you should stop hooking people in like that. I was all down for letting your story remain untold, and then you bring up this sudden hatred for carpets? You have captivated me, Dipper."

The stairway softly echoed with the barks of Toby, the snorts of Waddles, and the chuckles of Dipper and Frisk... when another sound made its way to Dipper's ears.

It sounded like... sobbing. From upstairs.

"Everything okay, Dipper?" asked Frisk with a tilt of the head. "You got awfully quiet."

"I'm going to check up on Toriel. Call me if Mabel needs me," Dipper suddenly declared, making his way up the stairs.

"Huh? Dipper, wait-" began Frisk, but Dipper was already gone. Giving a sigh of uncertainty, Frisk resumed watching the rest of the group set up the table while the pets messed around.

Dipper was able to find Wendy's room pretty quickly, having memorized to route to get there, which he was embarrassed to admit. Without thinking, we twisted the knob and opened the door.

"Toriel, what's wrong? I heard... sobbing..........."

The room was almost completely dark, the only light source in the room coming from the paused image on Wendy's television. And there, sitting on Wendy's bed, legs folded and drawn in to her chest, was Toriel; her eyes were puffy and red, there was a prominent trail of tears on both of her cheeks. Even Papyrus could have deduced that the Ex-Queen had been crying.

Not wanting to stare, Dipper shifted his attention to the television set. The image on the screen appeared to be a home recording of some sort, the kind taken with a big vintage video camera. The background depicted a well maintained house with a wooden floor and fireplace. In the foreground...

There was a little goat kid, eyes wide with wonder, and tears welling up at the bottom of those eyes. He had white soft-looking fur, a tinge of pink to his cheeks, and just... the purest smile that Dipper had ever seen. Pure enough to rival Mabel's 1000-watt grins.

Toriel's yelp of shock jolted Dipper back to the present moment.

"Dipper! I- I wasn't- that is, I didn't... I didn't anticipate that anybody would need me so soon-"

"Nonono, it's my fault, I... I thought you were in trouble and I came running in-"

They both eventually stopped talking over one another and a thick silence fell on them.

"...........I- I'll go-" Dipper started.

"No, it's-" began Toriel, her voice hitching.

...

Toriel continued. "Frisk has... told me about you. How your curiosity tends to drive you."

"Well um... it's not something I'm proud of exactly... but yeah, I'd say that description fits me."

The awkward silence returned, but this time the intensity was a little lighter.

Dipper was the one to break it this time. "Listen, you don't need to tell me anything, my curiosity should not be a factor in this-"

"I appreciate that, Dipper. But let's be honest. If I had you leave now, things will be awkward afterwards, and they'll stay awkward for who knows how long. I.... I might as well tell you, now that you've already seen it."

For one last moment, silence filled the room, the only audible sound being the buzz of the old television set.

"......please come in," finished Toriel.

Not a word was spoken as Dipper warily entered Wendy's room and shut the door behind him, submerging the room in near-total darkness once more, minus the light shining from the TV. Toriel looked down to the floor. She said nothing, but slowly lifted the paw that held the remote... and hit 'play.'

"M-mom?! You made this for me?! It's gigantic! I want it! I WANT IT I WANT IT I WANT IT!!!"

"Ha ha ha ha! I know, it looks delicious, doesn't it! But that's no excuse to forget your manners. How do you ask for things that you want, my child?"

"Mom, may I please eat the cake?"

"Nope!"

"What?!!!? B-but you said... you said that I-!"

"Aha ha ha ha! I'm just teasing you my child! Before I can let you dig in though, your father and I need to sing for you!"

"That song again?? You sing it every year though, ha ha!"

"Maybe. But it is a tradition~ And it's worth singing for you, my bundle of sunshine~"

"Stoppit mommmmmm! You're embarrassing me!"

"Hush now, little one~ And close your eyes~"

The image suddenly went dark, and Dipper realized that the lights had been switched off in the household... then the screen lit up again, by candles being lit on the cake. The light gave the goat child a very calming orange glow. He looked so... happy.

"Okay! You can open them now!"

And he did. Dipper watched him gasp... somehow, the goat child's smile managed to get even bigger.

"♫Happy Birthday to you ♫..........♫Happy Birthday to you♫.......... ♫Happy Birthday dear-"

"Asriel" mouthed Dipper.

His lips had moved before his brain, or heart, or even his voice could process it. But he just knew. This was him. This... was Asriel. The child that Frisk had tried to save... and lost.

Dipper vaguely noted that at some point, tears had welled up in his eyes and they were currently trailing down his cheeks.

"...Happy Birthday tooooooo yooouuuuuuuuu~♫ Make a wish, little one!"

The video went still again. Dipper looked up to see that Toriel had hit the remote's pause button once more, the small box silently trembling in her paw. She dropped the remote, buried her face in her tear-stained sleeves, and let out the most gut wrenching wail that Dipper had ever heard. Instinctively he wrapped his arms around her. And bless her heart, she let him.

"He.......... he was everything..." whimpered Toriel after what felt like hours of weeping in Dipper's arms. "He was full of life... every day was filled with his cries and his laughter... the plan was when he was old enough to become a prince, we were going to surprise him with a throne that was just... covered with honey suckles. Asriel always... always loved those honey suckles..."

Dipper could not say a word. What could he say? He had never endured the loss of a loved one. He came awfully close to losing Mabel at the hands of him, but unlike Toriel, Dipper got lucky. He had his great uncles to thank for protecting him and his sister. But it appeared that Toriel did not have such luck...

Toriel sniffled. "You remember earlier when Mabel said she was willing to share her candy with the coolest mom to ever walk the earth, right Dipper?"

"I remember."

She gave a sad laugh. "Well... this is the day when I remember how lousy of a mother I was. I should have seen the signs. I should have stopped him... and I didn't. I'm no cool mother. I'm not even a good one... I... I was powerless, Dipper."

All Dipper could do was tighten the hug. Nothing could be said. Toriel Dreemurr was going through something that Dipper could never fathom, and part of him hoped that he would never come to learn it.

There was suddenly a gentle creeeeeeeeeaaaaaaak that shook the two out of their hug.

It was Frisk.

Nobody said anything for a while. All that could be heard was the clinking and clattering of silverware downstairs.

"...The tea is ready," finally spoke Frisk. "Mabel is expecting all of us to attend. I can let her know if you need more time th-"

Toriel shook her head. "N-no, I'm alright. You said tea is ready?"

"Yes, correct," affirmed Frisk. They watched as Toriel remained tense. They gave a quick glance to the television screen, before looking back to their mother.

"...The plan was to talk once this was all over, correct?" said Frisk reassuringly. "I'll tell you everything then, I promise. But first, I'd like to have some tea. Mabel will be furious if anyone lets their cup get cold."

"R-right... Yes... Yes of course," said Toriel, standing up from the bed and dusting herself off. "Tell Mabel I'll be right down."

"Yes Mom," said Frisk with a hint of a smile, disappearing from view as they climbed back down the stairs.

"Well... I'll see you downstairs Dipper," said Toriel, wiping her eyes. "Mind shutting the TV off for me?"

"I don't mind at all, Toriel. See you down there," said Dipper with a wave, watching as Toriel disappeared from his view.

There was... a lot to process from that exchange. But it would have to wait for now. Dipper reached forward to press the TV's on/off switch...

...when something on the monitor caught his eye.

The dim background made it hard to see, but Dipper swore that there, sitting in a chair, was another child.

A human child.

...

Dipper hit 'play.'

"I wish that I can stay best friends forever with-!"

"Oh come on Asriel, you wished for that last year. Wish for something else this time, sheesh."

"Hey! That was rude!" said Asriel, seeming to be both shocked and tickled by the remark. "You're such a meanie sometimes, Cha-"

And then there was static. The videotape had reached its end.

...

Filled with questions that he knew he'd have to wait until the right moment to ask about, Dipper turned the TV off and finally left Wendy's room.

Dipper was met with a very lively spectacle.

Dan was pouring cup after cup of various tea flavors, handing them to Mabel and Wendy (both wearing heat resistant gloves) who fanned out to place each cup in front of 11 different seats at the dining room table. Toriel had already sit herself down at one of the seats, but had opted to wait until everyone was seated before she began sipping her tea. Toby and Waddles were running around underneath the table, darting under some chairs and darting around others. The boys and Frisk were gathered in the living room, Frisk eagerly listening to a story that Marcus was telling about how he once managed get himself a gigantic fish from the lake (while Kevin and Gus acted it out in the background to hype up the tale) and all four of them were smiling and laughing. Sitting at the end of the table, his beady eyes taking in the entire scene, was Mr. SnuggleLots.

"Dipper! Welcome back!" said Mabel as she noticed her awestruck brother. She walked up to him and took him by the hands. "Welcome to the tea party! Your seat is right over here next to Mr. SnuggleLots! Don't worry, he hasn't been biting anything since he ate my half of Papyrus's scarf. Come on, this way!"

Dipper let himself be guided by Mabel as she sat him down at his seat. Now that he was at the table, he noticed all of them had a designated name. Starting from Dan's seat, and working clockwise, the seats were as follows.

Daniel

Marcus

Gus

Kevin

Toriel

Frisk

Mabel

Mr. SnuggleLots

Dipper

Wendy

Francine

...Francine? Who was-?

"ALRIGHT EVERYONE!" Hollered Dan, clinking a glass so hard that it sounded like swords clashing. "THE TEA PARTY HAS OFFICIALLY BEGUN! THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING, AND ON BEHALF OF THE MABEL PINES ORGANIZATION-"

"Yes my friends, that is actually a thing!!!" piped Mabel.

"-WE HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY YOUR TIME HERE! NOW, DRINK UP!"

Everybody swarmed the table, plopping down in their designated seats and engaging in lively conversation. The Corduroys, minus Wendy, clashed their mugs together like they were beer mugs, then blew on their cups and gently sipped on them because they were actually hot mugs of tea, not cold jugs of beer. Toriel was giggling as Frisk had managed to get roped into another story that Mabel was telling to Mr. SnuggleLots, whose reactions were proving that he could always understand English like Dipper hypothesized. Looking elsewhere, the boy was pleased to notice that Toriel was looking more and more like her old self, and Wendy seemed to be lighting up from the calm but animated gathering. Dipper couldn't help but smile, happy to see that Wendy was starting to recover from her frustration from the recent lack of sleep.

But in the midst of this discussion, Dipper noticed that the seat of Francine was still vacant.

"Wondering about the empty seat, kiddo?" Wendy spoke up, Dipper tearing his gaze away from the seat to look at her.

"Um... y-yeah I suppose," said Dipper, cheeks turning the faintest shade of pink. "Is it..."

"A seat for my mom? I'm afraid so, champ," said Wendy, giving a gentle smile and taking a hearty sip of her tea now that it had cooled down enough. "Francine Corduroy. Better known by her nickname, Manly Fran."

Dipper looked down, not knowing how to reply. As he looked up, he saw Toriel on the other side. She appeared to have overheard the conversation.

"Manly Fran?" repeated Dipper.

"Yep, believe it or not, my dad was always a fan of tea time. His masculine attitude was a rather late addition. It's how he makes sure that her legacy lives on, I suppose. Though I bet that most of what he does nowadays would just make my Mom howl."

"Did she enjoy tea?" Toriel blurted, before putting a paw to her mouth. It seems she didn't mean to speak out loud.

"Oh she loved it, especially if Dad was the one who made it," Wendy gave a warm laugh. "Her adoration for it is the reason my dad didn't abandon it when she passed..." she takes her napkin and gently dabs at her eyes. "It's our way of honoring her. We do this every memorial. It is... one of my favorite nights every year. It's cool that we managed to find an excuse to do it tonight, but... it just wouldn't feel right to have it without that one empty seat, even if this one isn't for her, you know?"

"I assume that the atmosphere here is... a lot less lively during the day of her passing..." Toriel's voice quivered near the end.

"Oh, you couldn't be further from the truth," snorted Wendy in laughter. "If anything, tonight's positive vibes are subdued compared to the anniversary of her passing. The whole day is filled with stories, memories, laughs, and endless tea for anyone who asked for it. I know it seems backwards to be that jovial during a day of remembrance for a dead family member who was a part of all of our lives- and don't get me wrong, there is a fair share of crying as well- but hey... if we're gonna remember her every year, we all knew that it would be better, and healthier in the long run, to fill the day with as many smiles as there are tears."

Wendy tilted her eyes towards the ceiling. She gave a kiss to the air, gestured her mug to it, and finished the rest of her tea. "Ahhhhhh..."

"That's... that's incredible," said Toriel, wiping her eyes.

"Oh, the tea was cold enough at this point," Wendy assured. "If it was fresh from the kettle, there's no way that-"

"No, I mean... the way your family honors your late mother. It's....... I've never thought of it that way. 'As many smiles as there are tears...'"

"Words straight from my Old Lady," said Wendy, leaning back in her seat.

Toriel looked down, silent. She witnessed her reflection in the steaming liquid. She managed a smile. "Wise words to be sure. I would've loved to meet her."

"She would've loved to meet everyone here," said Wendy with a courteous smirk, before heading out of her seat to quickly pour herself a second mug.

The topic of Francine drifted off soon after, and eventually everyone was back to jovial discussions that were occasionally sprinkled with a bark or a yip. All the while, the smile on Mr. SnuggleLots's face never wavered.

About an hour and a half passed before the mood died down enough to declare that the table should be cleared off. The kids had reconvened to discuss the night.

"I guess we managed to check off almost all the boxes on your Rehabiliteddy Program™, Mabel," said Frisk.

"Oh right, I forgot that that program had multiple steps," said Dipper, proving that Mabel had relied on this program before.

"Right... we still have no idea if this guy has an owner out looking for him," reminded Mabel.

"Or whether or not the owner ever want's him back," cautioned Frisk.

"Or even whether or not the owner is a human, or a bear, or something else entirely," added Dipper.

The kids went silent, stewing in all the questions that were unanswered.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

Everybody in the house froze. Toby started growling at the front door.

"Helloooo?!" came a muffled, ragged voice of an elder woman from the other side of the door. "Pardon the disturbance! I just need to know if something passed this way! A Teddy bear to be specific! One that's alive, to be more specific!"

The kids shared a glance at Mr. SnuggleLots who was being playfully tossed around by the Corduroy brothers. Did the voice truly belong to the bear's owner?

Frisk shimmered orange for a second, deciding that there was only one way to find out. "I'll get the door."

"Wait, hang on a second, Frisk-!" tried Dipper.

But Frisk had already marched toward the door and opened it.

On the other side was a heavily hunching, stubby old woman. Her skin was heavily wrinkled and had a sickly green complexion. Her hair was gray to the point of looking white, and there was a cobweb or two that was nestled in her shabby locks. And she was wearing a tattered cloak that was decorated with two giant shadows of disembodied hands.

"Hand Witch!!!" cheered Mabel, recognizing the kind hag.

"Well welllllllllll! If it isn't the lady who helped redecorate my caaaaaaave!" dragged the delighted witch. "And the boy as welllllllll! Good to see you!!! I don't recognize the kid in the striped sweater though..."

"Wait, the Hand Witch?" said Wendy, cocking an eyebrow in bafflement. "I thought you were just some myth that Stanley cooked up to sell his overpriced molds of decapitated hands."

"Nope, he and I go way back!" said the Hand Witch proudly. "Thanks to the kind metal-teethed lady, I finally know what it's like to have a sweet heart!"

"You have a boyfriend!!?" squealed Mabel in excitement, slapping her hands to her cheeks.

"Hm? Oh no, he broke things off with me weeks ago," explained the Hand Witch, cheerfully adding, "So I boiled him up and ate his heart! Hearts are surprisingly sugary after you cook them!"

Mabel looked like her own mom told her that Santa Claus got killed in a sleigh accident. "W.... What...?"

The Hand Witch laughed awkwardly. "That was a joke. I thought I was being obvious about that, sorry. We're still together!" she continued, holding up a photo of herself smiling happily and holding hands with... a pale skinned, wrinkly man with unfocused yellow eyes, crooked brown teeth, shaggy dirty hair, and a giant gaping hole in his chest. "I did eat his heart for real, though. He's a ghoul now."

"Oh, okay then!" said Mabel, calming down quite a bit, not appearing to care about the whole eating-hearts thing. Dipper probably did though, considering how creeped out he looked.

Frisk on the other hand marched straight up to the witch and stuck their hand out. "Frisk Dreemurr, Ambassador of Monsters from the Underground. Pleased to meet you."

"Ooooooooooooooo, such delicate haaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnds~! Um, I mean, the pleasure is all mine!" said the Hand Witch, eagerly shaking Frisk's hand with both of hers.

"Am I to understand that you are the owner of this Nocturnal Teddy Bear?" asked Frisk, seemingly unphased by the Hand Witch dragging the hand shake on for a little too long.

"Yep!" nodded the Hand Witch. "Good ol' Beelzecub is my own creation! Did you kids cross paths with him by any chance?"

"Beelze-what???" Mabel stumbled over her words, when suddenly she felt something land on her head. It was Mr. SnuggleLots, recognizing the witch.

"Ah! There he is!" exclaimed the witch. "Beelzecub! You sure gave me a work out that is only sure to worsen my distorted spine! Why'd you run off?! Was it something I said? Or did? Was it something I didn't say or do? Speak to me Beelzecub! Speak to me, even though I know you can't talk! Was it because you thought I couldn't handle raising you when you turned out to be more of a bear than I intended?!

"What do you mean by him being more of a bear than you intended?" asked Toriel, approaching the group.

"My goal was to create the most Teddy Bearish sentient Teddy Bear to ever roam Gravity Falls!" bellowed the witch, imaginary thunder and lightning booming behind her. "But what came out... acted a lot more like your average bear cub."

"So you abandoned him?!" realized Toriel.

"Absolutely not! I raised him like any well-respected mother should do! Anyone who abandons a child if they don't come out exactly like they intended was never meant to be a parent at all!"

"I mean... do the rules of parenting apply here?" said Dipper, a little perplexed by this strange scenario. "What do you think, Frisk? ....Frisk?"

Frisk suddenly shook out of their stupor. "Hm?"

"Do you think the Hand Witch should treat Mr. SnuggleLots like he's her son?" said Dipper.

"Oh um, I suppose so. She did create him and all."

"See Dipper?!" said Mabel, nudging him. "I knew that Necromancy could be used for good!"

"I'm pretty sure necromancy doesn't apply here," grumbled Dipper.

"If he knows I created him, then why did my boy run away from home???" said a downtrodden Hand Witch. "I did my best to raise him right in the three weeks that I had him..."

There was silence among the group, nobody knowing how to approach this extremely weird conundrum. Even Waddles and Toby were silent.

The silence was broken by a familiar growl from a stomach made of stuffing.

"Oh!" said the Hand Witch, noticing the Teddy bear. "Are you still hungry, Beelzecub? I have a nice plate of fresh fish waiting for you at home!"

The bear said nothing.

Mabel got up to the hag's ear. "Try calling him Mr. SnuggleLots."

"Hm? That's a weird name..." nevertheless, the Hand Witch cleared her dry throat. "Oh Mr. SnuggleLoooooooootssssssss! There's a plate of fish with your name on it if you accompany Mama back to the caaaaaaaaaaave!"

The Trio, the pets, the Corduroys, and Toriel all watched as Mr. SnuggleLots's face turned a sickly green at the mention of fish, the poor bear looking absolutely nauseous.

And everything made sense.

"Mrs. Hand Witch," said Mabel, standing straight. "I believe we know why your pet Teddy ran away from home."

Dipper stood up next. "The reason for him leaving you was not because you were a bad role model, but rather..."

"You were feeding your child literal garbage," finished Frisk.

"B-but, look at him!" pleaded the Hand Witch. "He clearly acts like a... well... huh, actually he's acting pretty much how I envisioned him to act when I made him."

Dipper paced the room, stroking his chin. "I believe that what you had been dealing with was simply a side effect of a hungry Mr. SnuggleLots. It would appear, based on our experience, that the hungrier that Mr. SnuggleLots gets, the more animalistic he becomes. And this is not unheard of; I know a great number of people who display similar behavior when they're hungry. Take Mabel for example. Mabel!"

"Present!" said Mabel, raising her hand.

"Answer honestly! Do you, or do you not, start to growl like gremlin whenever breakfast takes longer than usual to be served?"

"I do!" said Mabel. "I also start biting the table legs!"

"Now then, Ms. Hand Witch," said Dipper, pointing at the witch who was taking notes. "Would you say that Mabel's behavior is well mannered, or not?"

"It isn't," Frisk chimed in. "But it is very much a quality that defines Mabel, and should never be corrected."

Mabel couldn't help but smile at that.

"So wait, hang on," said Wendy. "You mean to tell me that all of this crazy behavior was happening because Mr. SnuggleLots was hangry?"

"You are absolutely correct, Wendy." said Dipper, before returning his focus to the friendly crone. "The point we're trying to make here, Mrs. Hand Witch, is that when you created Mr. SnuggleLots, he was born without any food in his belly. He was starving. And he left your cave because what you were feeding him is not what he eats. It isn't fish, or bugs, or even honey. It is-!"

"Fabric!" said Mabel from behind Dipper, throwing confetti out of her hands. Where she got the confetti from was information that only she knew about.

"So, all that you need to do is change what you feed him," informed Frisk with their index finger up. "If you can't get over feeding him bear-food, then do it in the form of fabric. Knit a fish-doll. Use a yellow spool of yarn in place of a beehive. Things like that. Do that on top of everything else you've been doing for him, and you should be fine."

"I see, I see!" said the Hand Witch, enchanted by the new information. "I shall update his meal planner right away! Whaddya say to that, Beelz- um, I mean, Mr. SnuggleLots? Wow, that's going to take some getting used to... Ahem, well, Mr. SnuggleLots, how 'bout it? Ready to head back to our sweet little cave?"

Mr. SnuggleLots slowly crawled up to the Hand Witch... and gently chewed on her robe. Not eating it. Just chewing it.

"Looks like he's willing to give you another chance," said Frisk smiling.

The hag cackled with glee, picking the bear up and spinning him around. "Mama has missed you sooooooooooooo much!"

Mabel smiled at the happy reunion... but try as she may, she couldn't stop herself from choking up. "I'm gonna miss you, *sniff* Mr. SnuggleLots! Don't forget about me, you- you hear me?! I forbid it!!!"

"There there, sis," soothed Dipper, patting his sister on the back. He looked back to the bear, and gave a gentle yell. "Stay out of trouble from now on, okay buddy?"

"Your mother loves you very much! You're very blessed to have someone like her!" Frisk chimed in. "Don't forget to thank her occasionally!"

The sentient Teddy smiled and nodded, giving one final wave to the kids before the door to the cabin gently shut behind him and the hag.

"Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" came the over-the-top wails of Mabel Pines.

"And here come the post-Teddy-bear Blues," sighed Dipper, giving his sister a big hug.

"Ah, so this is a normal occurrence?" asked Frisk.

"Yep," nodded the capped twin. "She is incredibly loyal to any Teddy bear she encounters. You would not believe the number of times I've had to drag her away from various Lost and Found departments because she gave them a lost Teddy bear and couldn't will herself to part with it."

"Heh," chuckled Wendy. "I guess she couldn't bear saying goodbye to any of them, huh?"

The whole room went silent. Well, almost silent; Toriel took everyone by surprise with her giggles.

"You've been hanging out with Sans too much," snarled Dipper at Wendy.

"The guy's a hoot! Shut up!" laughed Wendy.

"At- at any rate," said Toriel, composing herself, "We should be heading out."

"Wait! We should try to help Wendy out with her sleeping problems!" said Mabel, having snapped out of her state of weeping. "I was going to suggest Mr. SnuggleLots but... he's gone now..." annnnnnnnnnnd the tears resumed.

"Meh, that wouldn't have worked out," said Wendy. "It's right in his species' name: Nocturnal. He'd be up all night, and I'd be spending the whole time taking care of him, instead of getting any sleep. But... it did give me an idea. I think having a stuffed animal would help me get to sleep."

"You want a what???" called Dan, his voice becoming a calm growl.

Wendy sighed and tightened her fists. No backing out now. She was a daughter of Francine Corduroy, and dang it, she was going to act like one.

"You heard me, Dad! You all heard me! I am done with the December noise! You all wanna holler about the upcoming New Year, do it outside! The pub, the woods, the sewers, I don't care! Just do it away from me when I'm trying to sleep! As for the stuffed animal, heck yeah I want one! I've always wanted one, why not!? They're soft, they're quiet, they'll help me sleep, and they don't even cost that much, Dad!"

"Dang, she's going off," said Dipper, almost mesmerized.

"'Tis the wrath of the teenager," said Mabel with deep respect towards the red-haired girl. "A power that you and I will soon acquire for ourselves, brother."

"And... A-and...!" Wendy stammered.

The room went quiet from bated breath.

"AND IF ANY OF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT, I'LL SUPLEX YOU INTO A MOUNTAIN!!!"

There was silence. Not a peep was uttered from any of the Corduroys. Wendy simply waited, puffing and panting...

"BWAAAAAAAAAH HAH HAH HAH!!!" Dan howled with laughter. "THAT'S MY GIRL~!"

"Pardon?" said Wendy.

"First thing tomorrow, we'll stop by the local toy store. You can pick out whichever one you want! The boys wouldn't stop pestering me about it anyway. As for the New Years noise..."

Wendy tensed up.

"Baby girl, I'm gonna be honest, it completely slipped my mind how busy you are with the shack. I promise to take the noise elsewhere. And if you ever catch me forgetting that promise, you have permission to wack me upside the head with your late mother's favorite frying pan."

"You're kidding," said Wendy with a flabbergasted smile.

"Nope, you know I don't kid around with you or any of the boys," said Dan with pride.

"Heh... thanks Dad," said Wendy sheepishly, thinking to herself, Looks like Undyne isn't boasting around when she's giving advice. I keep forgetting that she was a Captain during her time underground.

"Victory for Wendy!!!" cheered Mabel, throwing more confetti from seemingly out of nowhere.

"And with th-thaaaaaattttttt..." Toriel said before letting out a massive yawn of her own. "I believe it's time that we headed home."

As the kids, the pets, and Toriel made their way back home in their winter garb (Mabel now donning a decently lengthed spaghetti scarf thanks to Mr. SnuggleLots biting it down to size), Frisk slowed their pace, drifting away from the kids until the stoic faced child was side by side with their mother.

"Frisk?" said Toriel, curious as to why her child fell behind.

"I knew that today was Asriel's birthday. I knew the whole time."

"!!!"

"And when I found out that you stole the living room TV, I realized it was because you were planning to spend the day alone in your room with the videotape of his birthday. I... I wanted his birthday to be a day of celebration. A day where you and Dad could come together, if only for the one day. I..."

Toriel said nothing. She just picked her child up and held them close to her as she walked. Frisk buried their face in her shoulder, their tiny hands gripping onto her robe.

"I got..." whimpered the child. "...I got so mad when I found out that you were planning to spend the day away from me... from Dad... from everyone. If anything, we could've at least helped you carry the burden of all the grief the day brings you. So... So I stole the videotape in the hope that you would abandon looking for it and spend time with us instead. I should've told you, I know... but... I was scared you'd just turn me away... I'm sorry..."

"Oh, Frisk," comforted the remorseful mother. "You don't have to apologize for anything..."

"...except for stealing."

That earned her a muffled chuckle. Okay, good.

"I'm the one who needs to apologize here. I should have never secluded myself from the group, from Asgore, and especially from you. If you knew that today was his birthday, you must've been grieving a bit yourself. And there is no doubt that Asgore was coping with his own grief as well."

She felt Frisk silently nod against her.

"Did you overhear the conversation I was having with Wendy, Frisk?"

"...A bit."

"Well," said Toriel, giving a murmur of a giggle as she ran a paw through Frisk's hair soothingly, "She told me something that I feel silly for not considering sooner. About how the anniversary of a lost loved one should be filled with laughter, not just grief. I promise you, this is the last night where I suffer in a room by myself on my dear Asriel's birthday."

"Really?"

"I swear it, my child."

Frisk pulled back to look their mom in the eyes and smile. "Thanks, Mom."

"You're welcome, my dear sweet Frisk," cooed Toriel, brushing her snout against Frisk's nose endearingly. "Would you like me to set you down?"

"Please," said Frisk. "I just remembered something I want to tell Mabel."

"Of course, sweetie," said Toriel, setting Frisk back down on the snowy ground. "I suppose we can consider this to be the end of the conversation that we both promised earlier to continue."

"Okay, Mom," said a beaming Frisk, before running up to rejoin the group and say...

"Hey Mabel, don't you owe your brother fifty dollars now or something? The owner of the bear turned out to be a witch after all."

"Huh... that's right! Alright, Mabel! Hand over the dough!"

"I don't owe you squat! I refused that deal, remember?! Frisk, you're my witness! Back me up here!"

"I plead the fifth~"

"Traitor!"

The next day was a whirlwind of activity. The Mystery Shack finally reopened, and it turned out that everyone's fear of a swarm was unwarranted, as there was no swarm. But, there was something new about the visitors that kept things interesting.

Monsters were beginning to visit the shack. Of all shapes and sizes, inhabitants of the underground were stopping buy to peruse the gift shop or experience a tour of the museum. Of notice, there was a dummy that was very brash and loud, but was very respectful when asked to shush. There was a purple spider humanoid that was creepily polite as she bought herself a few Mystery Shack Mugs™ and left a flyer on the counter for the 'First Spider Bake Sale on the Surface!' before tittering and leaving the store. There was even a humanoid cat and alligator that stopped by that Wendy just knew her ragtag of friends would get along with.

Wendy looked like she had a face lift with how much better she looked. At Mabel's curiosity, Wendy spoke about how once this shift is over, she's heading out with her family to visit the toy store and get a toy for each of the kids, and that's when she'll be able to pick out her stuffed animal to sleep with.

"But honestly, I still have no idea what kind of stuffed animal I want right now..."

That's when a peculiar critter, with the cutest face and voice that Wendy had ever seen, passed through the door, followed by 19 lookalikes.

"Hoi! I'm Temmie! Is this the Mystewy Shack???"

Wendy knew exactly what kind of stuffed animal she wanted now.

But it wasn't just monsters showing up. Candy and Grenda finally passed through now that they could, and Mabel nearly knocked Grenda over with her pounce-hug. They spent the whole time preparing sleepovers, catching up, and promising other times to meet up that weren't sleepover-related.

Old Man McGucket passed by as well! He needed a batch of normal AA batteries. When Dipper asked him what invention he needed the batteries for, he hooted and hollered, saying they weren't for him. They were for the alarm clock for his new lab assistant, simply named 'P.N.' Something about that name struck Dipper as familiar, but McGucket had left the store before the boy could ask him anything else.

Frisk had bumped into someone roughly their size. The other kid was in very suspicious clothing: A tiny trench coat, a fedora, and sunglasses. The only thing Frisk heard from the kid was a simple phrase spoken in a boyish, and ridiculously southern, voice. "If anyone asks, I was never here. Good day."

The Mystery Trio was certain the day was over when Wendy left with her family, flipping the sign from 'Got money? We're Open!' to 'Begone from this cursed place! We're Closed!' on her way out. But it wasn't over.

Toriel had been missing for most of the day, much to the Trio's confusion, the only clue given to them was that she had asked Stanley if there was any flour left over from the errands he was running when Tim attacked. Now, they were about to find out why.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMAN," rang Papyrus's voice. "THE EX-QUEEN OF THE UNDERGROUND HAS AN ANNOUNCEMENT TO MAKE! THE GREAT PAPYRUS ORDERS YOU TO PLEASE HALT WHATEVER IT IS YOU'RE DOING AND PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT SHE HAS TO SAY! ALSO IF SOMEONE COULD TELL WHY MY SCARF GOT SO MUCH SHORTER OVERNIGHT, THAT WOULD BE FANTASTIC-"

"As I told you, I will explain everything to you soon," a giggling Toriel promised the uptight skeleton, waiting until everyone had congregated in the living room and kitchen before continuing. "My friends, I owe you all an apology."

The whole crew went quiet as Toriel went on.

"Some of you know- and for those that don't, I apologize for holding this secret from you- that yesterday was the birthday of our departed prince of the underground, Asriel Dreemurr."

Gasps were heard all around.

"I spoke nothing of this occasion previously because I didn't want anybody to know. I wanted to grieve alone. I wasn't even willing to share the grief with my ex-husband, Asriel's father, Asgore. My time of grieving for all these years had made me grow distant and selfish."

She spared a glance to Asgore before closing her eyes, sighing, and proceeding.

"Yesterday, a chance encounter with Wendy's family opened my eyes to something. If I'm going to remember Asriel's passing for every year when his birthday comes around, I'm doing my poor child a horrible disservice by not celebrating. By not smiling. By not laughing. By not spending it with those who were close to him and the friends of those close to him.

She looked to everyone. The misty eyed Stan twins. The Papyrus who was trying his best not to shriek like a dog whistle. The Sans who looked lively for once. The Undyne and Alphys who were looking pumped as all heck. The joyous Mettaton. The smiling Napstablook. The Asgore grinning from ear to ear. And the Mystery Trio, who were slowly realizing what she was about to say next.

"So who wants to help me bake a cake?!"

As pandemonium continued to ensue in the kitchen, Toriel found a moment to pull Asgore aside. They both were now sitting quietly on the couch of the back porch.

"Everything alright?" asked Asgore.

"In the grand scheme of things, absolutely not," answered Toriel with brutal honesty. "Our child is still dead. And with him, 6 other children fell. By your cursed trident."

Asgore could only look down, well acquainted with the crushing shame that coursed through him.

"But... today is a tribute to Asriel's birthday. And you were... are... his father."

Toriel finally looked the ex-King in the eyes. "I may never forgive you for what you did after we lost Asriel. However... you were the best father a boy like him could've ever hoped for. And you continue to be that father for our little Frisk. For that... I cannot thank you enough."

"...that's all the thanks I could ever ask of you, Toriel." said Asgore with a sad smile. "I appreciate you telling me."

Despite herself, Toriel gave a small smile. "Come inside. Cake is almost ready, and I'm not going to sit and listen to your whining if you aren't quick enough to nab a piece."

"Ha ha ha, of course," beamed Asgore.

"♫♫HAPPY BIRTHDAY TOOOOOOOOOOOOOO YOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUU!♫♫"

The band of misfits finished the terribly sung rendition of the ancient tune. And yet, it was music to Toriel's ears.

She looked up to the ceiling, wiping her eyes and smiling.

"Make a wish, little one~"

"Mabel, Frisk, you guys go on ahead. I'll be right behind you as soon as I'm done with something!"

"Okie dokie!"

"Understood. See you in the morning, Dipper."

Dipper was just on his way to a long needed nightly rest, when he remembered a very important question he wanted to ask Toriel. This was why he approached her as she was getting ready to settle into her bed with a good book.

"Hey, Toriel?"

"Yes, Dipper?"

"In all the excitement from last night and today, I forgot that there was something I wanted to ask."

"Ha ha ha, and what would that be?"

"Yesterday night... I was watching the tape after you left, and... I couldn't help but notice that there was another child in the background."

"Another child?"

"Yeah! They were looking away from the camera a lot but I think they looked like a human... Who were they?"

Toriel gave a bemused smile. Her face was one of pure honesty, and when she answered, her words came straight from the heart.

And that's why what she said next did not sit well with Dipper at all.

"Dipper, sweetheart, I'm afraid I don't understand. Asriel was the only child we had in our family. I don't remember raising anyone alongside him. Who is this this other child that you claim to see?"

A day spent remembering the passing of a loved one is better went it's filled with laughter and good company. Solitude and grief is necessary, but extended doses of it can be harmful.

Credits Scene

"Tadaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" cheered the Hand Witch. "I present to you, my dearest Mr. SnuggleLots, with the first round of your new meals!"

The Teddy bear was currently seated at the table, the latter donned with a table cloth and three covered platters.

The first platter unveiled a perfectly crocheted fish, with light-blue scales made of yarn and beads for eyes.

The second platter revealed a giant spool of yellow and brown yarn, representing a beehive.

The third platter showcased a plethora of colorful beads, which symbolized different berries and bugs.

"So which one will it beeeeeeeeee?" dramatized the Hand Witch excitedly. "Take your pick! It's all up to you!"

Mr. SnuggleLots took a very decent amount of time examining all three tasty fabric-treats...

...

Before eating the tablecloth.

"Ah, I see," said the witch, dumbstruck. "You are... quite the picky eater."

Mr. SnuggleLots only smiled at her, his cheeks puffed up from the tablecloth currently in his mouth.

.- / - --- .- ... - / - --- / - .... . / ..-. .- -- .. .-.. -.-- ---. / - --- / - .... . / .--. .-. .. -. -.-. . --..-- / -- --- ..- .-. -. . -.. / -... -.-- / .- .-.. .-.. ---. .-.-.. .- -. -.. / --- -. . / - --- / - .... . / -.-. .... .. .-.. -.. / - .... .- - / -. --- / --- -. . / -.-. .- -. / .-. . -.-. .- .-.. .-.. ---.

NEXT (Coming soon to the Mystery Shack!)

PART 1

PART 2

PREVIOUS CHAPTER

ONCE UPON A TIME...

TABLE OF CONTENTS

#IT IS DONE #AFTER FOUR YEARS #CHAPTER 7 IS FINALLY COMPLETE #See you all in 2030 for chapter 8! XD #gravity falls #undertale #underfalls #gravitytale

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sapphiresnowqueen · 5 years ago

Text

The Dreemurr Fortune: Prologue

Asriel Dreemurr was stolen from his bedroom at some point during the night on November 11th, 1921. He was just seventeen, just about to step into his role as an adult Dreemurr. The family was famous and rich, partially due to their restaurant chain, and partially due to their real estate and construction company, and also just because they were famous for being rich and rich because they were famous.

Toriel, the mother, was a sort of sex symbol and had spent her youth modeling, whereas Asgore had been born into the Dreemurr family and had always been a business man.

It was thought that Toriel couldn't get pregnant, so they adopted a young girl when they were ready to have kids, and then the shock came about a year and a half after that, when Toriel found out she was, in fact, pregnant…

Asriel Dreemurr was the cute little darling of the family, with his fluffy white fur and his bright green eyes, he was quite an attractive young man. Beloved.

He got to be about 17, and that was the last anyone saw him. It was thought that he had disappeared from his room, kidnapped, perhaps, but regardless… after two years they had to have a funeral for him. Had to accept that he was gone forever.

Only he wasn't. Asriel wasn't dead, wasn't even lost. He was happy. The heir to the Dreemurr empire had been stolen from his bed, yes, but it's much more complicated than that.

A young, mysterious woman by the name of Chara, had ordered his kidnapping. The heir to the Dreemurr fortune, stolen from his room, less than a year before his eighteenth birthday. The family would certainly pay a lot of money to get him back. And Chara was counting on that.

Chara wasn't just a common criminal, it would take more smarts than that to execute a kidnapping of a member of the richest and most protected monster family in the country-hell, possibly the world. And Chara was smart enough. Bold enough. Had the means to do it.

Chara was queen of the Underground. At just 22 years old, she had a total of 3 years experience under her belt being leader, too. She had successfully identified the leader of this Underground society, seduced him, murdered him, and took his place. All while she was nineteen, too. And the Underground was thriving under her rule, more than it had ever been.

The City Under The City, as it was nicknamed. Chara ruled all.

All she needed was something big, something nobody could ignore, to really set herself apart from her predecessors. And Asriel Dreemurr that was just that.

She had sent a few of her people to get him with a perfectly planned course of action to achieve this. The Dreemurrs had 24 hour security patrolling their Manor, but these patrolmen were humans and monsters- and humans and monsters make mistakes. Sometimes pay attention to one thing, while a more serious thing happens right behind them.

Chara had racoons released at their fence, distracting the guards that were patrolling around the western side of the Manor, where Asriel's bedroom was.

In the dead of night two women, two of Chara's most trusted underlings, climbed up to his window, and shattered it to get inside.

Asriel woke up to the sound of shattering glass, but was promptly gagged, sedated, and carried off with a cloth bag over his head. Never to be seen again.

When he regained consciousness he was in a dark room, tied to a chair. He couldn't move his arms or legs.

It was only natural that the pampered Dreemurr heir was scared.

The lights came on, revealing an extravagant throne with a silver base and a red cushioned seat and back, black accents and details all over. And in that throne? Perhaps an even more impressive woman.

She had a vibrant, fire engine red pixie cut, which complimented her lightly sun-kissed skin, her eyes were red, like nothing Asriel had ever seen before on a human, and her cheekbones were high, very defined. But perhaps what got his attention the most was her lips. Painted black, she had a defined cupid's bow, and her lower lip was bigger than her top lip.

She was strung across her chair, sitting sideways with a pair of very toned, almost muscular legs positioned over the right armrest of the chair. She swung them back over to be in front of her, and then rose to her feet.

She was very fit all around, actually. Muscular legs, toned arms, a pear shaped figure, all graced her medium build. And she was tall. Probably aided by the black heels she wore, but she towered over Asriel, especially with him tied down to the chair like this.

To say he is intimidated would be an understatement.

His fingers twitched. If his mother wasn't so insistent on him keeping his claws trimmed down he might have been able to tear through this rope and set himself free.

"I never intended to show you my face, Asriel Dreemurr." She began.

Her voice was low, but so, so melodic. It made Asriel's ears twitch.

"I intended to extract payment from your family, and then perhaps execute you publicly. All without you ever knowing what's happening. And yet, I've found myself in quite the trouble…"

She walked towards him as she spoke, gently feeling his soft, fluffy ears when she reached him.

"You're too cute to kill." She grinned, revealing some razer-sharp fangs similar to what you would see in a vampire movie.

Asriel was frozen. He couldn't speak, he could barely breathe.

"I've grown lonely, Asriel… pathetic, isn't it? My self imposed social isolation has created something it was intended to destroy. A weakness."

Chara cringed at her own words.

"And so, I've decided, that if I'm to have a weakness whether I isolate myself from connection either way, I will choose the weakness that minimizes my negative emotions. I will choose to have an attachment rather than a longing. What I'm getting at, is… I will not kill you, nor will I extract money from your family, so long as you stay with me."

All this information at once overwhelmed Asriel. But after a few moments of silence, it became clear to him what he needed to do.

"Would you be surprised if I said I would rather stay here?"

Chara looked surprised. So it could be assumed that, yes, she would be further surprised to hear Asriel say that.

She had expected it to be a long, tedious process to get him to choose her over his family.

Asriel looked down at himself. Even his pajamas were lavish, silk. His fur was finely groomed and conditioned. He had never known hunger or poverty. But it was all at a price. A price too high for him to pay, it seemed.

"My parents expect me to inherit their fortune when they die. And in less than a year I am to start taking control of some of the businesses. My image is constantly prioritized over my sense of self, I…" he shook his head, a fear tears made the fur underneath his eyes wet.

"It is so much pressure. I've considered death before submitting to the future they want for me. But this seems like another option. A way out." He looked up, his green eyes meeting her red ones.

"I will give my life to you if you promise me protection. Promise not to hurt me, and instead shield me. I would rather be a nobody, hidden away from the public eye, than be a Dreemurr. I want to be Asriel."

The desire to disappear was something Chara could relate to. Was that not her desire at nineteen? To disappear from the consequences of her delinquency and seek power, rather than poverty?

She pulled a knife from a holder underneath her dress, and simply cut Asriel free.

"I believe we've come to an agreement, Asriel."

She had such a dazzling, enchanting smile. And she couldn't wipe it off of her face as she extended a hand to Asriel and helped him up out of the rather uncomfortable wooden chair.

Asriel was taking a leap of faith. Anything, he thought, would be better than becoming another Mr. Dreemurr. And if that anything consisted of such an attractive young woman? He would gladly accept his fate.

Still, a thought lingered in the back of his head for his sister.

Frisk deserves the fortune, the power. She's always had such good ideas about what to do with the fortune and how she could benefit the community. She's a business woman at heart. Always has been.

Asriel knew that Frisk would miss him. But this is just something he had to do.

Chara rarely appears in public. But she made an exception today for the very public funeral of her beloved, and definitely not dead, Asriel.

Her hair had grown out into a bob, and she wore regular sunglasses, and dressed in a black dress. The funeral was indoors, so she looked slightly overdressed with her big black coat and the sunglasses still on. But she didn't want anybody to look at her. She just wanted to observe. Get to know Asriel from the point of view of people who didn't really know him, she supposed.

Nobody really knew Asriel, except for her. And it proved true in the speeches all of these people gave. Vague, and sometimes completely false information about Asriel, was spread and celebrated at his own funeral. Chara was disgusted.

That is, until a young Latina woman took the stage. She was about 5'8, curly brown hair that fell just above her shoulders. Asriel's sister, Chara guessed.

"I'd like to start this off by saying thank you to everyone who came here to celebrate my brother. He's a good person and a better sibling." She began.

Chara immediately took note that this woman spoke of Asriel in the present tense. She suspected denial.

"He's brilliant, isn't he?" She smiled sadly.

Chara prepared herself for another series of false statements. But this woman didn't seem to have much of anything false to say.

"I was two years old when Asriel was born. I don't remember it. In fact, I think my very first memory was when he was two. He was such a pain… always wanted to take my toys away from me, always wanted to pull my hair, poke me… It was like he lived to make little four year old me miserable. That… that never changed. He's always loved to irritate me. But our most tender moments consisted of him being very raw with me. Very, deeply honest." She had to dry a stray tear on her cheek.

"When he was twelve Asriel told me he wished that I would take over as the primary heir instead of him. I laughed at him. Why would anybody ever turn down such an opportunity, y'know? But he always listened to my big ideas and plans for charities and thought I would be a better heir. Over and over I mimicked our parent's words, that I'm a woman, that I'm adopted, that I'm their darling and they never want me to have to work a day in my life, that Asriel was meant to be the heir."

Some people were notably uncomfortable, squirming in their seats. Sweating.

"When Asriel was fourteen he told me he'd rather kill himself than become another Mr Dreemurr."

There was whispers in the crowd. A man in a black suit came and grabbed the woman's arms, beginning to pull her away from the microphone. But she got two more sentences out, tears in her eyes…

"I know that wherever he is, he's happy to not be just another rich man giving orders. That's the last thing he ever wanted to be."

It seems Chara may not be the only one here that truly understood Asriel.

But she's the only one to know that these people are having a funeral for a young man who is very much alive.

#Undertale #ut #chara #frisk #undyne #alphys #sans #Papyrus #Mettaton #asgore #toriel #Asriel #grillby #papyton #chasriel #sans x frisk #1920s #20s #au #alternate universe #Undertale au

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invertedfate · 5 years ago

Note

What do you think about the ship Chara x Asriel?

I don’t care for it. Personally, I see the two as siblings- they were raised together like siblings, the monsters in UT describe them as “like siblings.” While it’s true that Asriel only ever calls Chara his best friend, I just personally find it uncomfortable.I’m not saying this to attack other people- I’ve learned from experience that people are gonna ship what they ship. I just personally don’t like/encourage it for the reasons I mentioned and personally just ask that people not do IF-related Ch*sriel, just as I really don’t like F*ntcest or Papg*re in IF.Which may make you wonder how I feel about the other popular ships with Frisk/Chara.So. Charisk/Friskriel to me... I can see a case being made for or against them, and it’s wholly dependent on the way things are handled in a given work. Works where Chara, Frisk, and Asriel are all treated as siblings and view each other as such? Dddefinitely not, as that touches on similar uncomfortable territory as Ch*sriel for me. I would also argue that in Friskriel’s case it might still be awkward because Asriel initially mistook Frisk for Chara/projected on them. The reason why I’m more okay with them is there are a lot of factors that are way more open to interpretations.For instance, how old is Frisk/Asriel/Chara? I’ve seen headcanons from small child to preteen/early teen (since the EB/Mother kids are about 12 - 13-ish). Depending on age, they might be meeting later in life, thus have lived many formative years without a prior sibling relationship/background. Then there are a lot of variables to consider. How close are they? Are these fanworks where the whole Dreemurr fam is back together and the kids are raised as/like siblings? Etc, etc. Places to Go also exists- Frisk in general is a character with MANY valid interpretations.So, sometimes these situations can get SUPER nebulous and murky. A huge example is the Birth by Sleep trio in Kingdom Hearts. Some people ship Terra and Aqua romantically. Others see them as purely platonic/argue that because they were both trained by Eraqus, that makes them siblings (though the two never refer to each other as such whereas with Ventus, he and Terra are compared to brothers many, many times).So to me, these kinda ships do hit incest squick vibes when the narrative is writing them as if they are siblings, who view each other as siblings. But in fanworks where Frisk and Chara/Asriel are close friends who never quite hit that sibling dynamic, who meet late enough in life that they’re strangers first, it’s a biiiit different? But again, 100% understand why people would be against them in principle and I am 100% against the ships when they do carry the “oh, but we’re also siblings!!!” approach. It’s creepy as hell when a work romanticizes that and I hate that it’s so prominent especially in cases like f*ntcest and also a lot of anime/manga.But ultimately, all the variables I mentioned are up to the individual fanartist/writer/etc. So for me, personally, I think it is important to be very careful when tackling these kind of topics because they can be super uncomfortable for a lot of people and there’s already a lot of media out there that romanticizes incest (especially anime/manga)... which can be really hurtful to people who have experienced it in their lives.But my other thing is that I generally think ships with child characters should be handled in an... innocent way, I guess? Cute things like hand holding, hugs, pecks on the cheek, etc- the kinda stuff you’d see in maybe a Ghibli movie like Ponyo or Spirited Away. Again, this is just 100% my viewpoint. I’m not looking to name names, point fingers, or shame anyone.

#shipping #tw: incest mention #PLEASE let me know if you want any other tags added #i was wary of putting it in the chasriel tag because it's ship negativity /#but this is a really divisive topic and i want to be respectful #asks #the-nameless-one1

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argentdandelion · 5 years ago

Text

No Soul Necessary: Flowey’s Happy Ending (Part 1)

Introduction

Warning: This post necessarily covers Flowey’s dark, traumatic, and sad backstory.

In many works, Flowey gets a SOUL in a Post-Pacifist timeline, and is often “restored” back to Asriel with a Boss Monster body. Sometimes, it is implied this is only way for Flowey to be happy: that it is impossible to save him, too, so long as he is a soulless flower.

Yet, as the Flowey and PTSD series shows, having a soul is neither necessary nor sufficient for Flowey’s happiness. For one thing, six human SOULs apparently wasn’t enough for him to regain love nor compassion; he only got that after absorbing six human souls and the souls of almost every monster. More importantly, though gaining a soul might make it easier for him to be happy by letting him feel love and compassion again, it wouldn’t solve all his problems.

And Flowey has a lot of problems.

Well-Supported by Canon

These aspects of Flowey's suffering are well-supported by canon.

Guilt, Regret, and Self-Loathing

After the God of Hyperdeath fight, Asriel understands if Frisk cannot forgive them, and understands if Frisk hates them. He acted “so strange and horrible” and hurt many people; Asriel believe she has no excuse for what he had done.

If the game is started up again after everyone goes free, Flowey (despite presumed soullessness) says he can’t “go through with it again” (do the same actions to achieve that ending) if the world was reset, so whoever he’s talking to must erase his memories, too. He seems guilty or ashamed at his actions: he talks about the power Chara was “fighting to stop, the power that I wanted to use” (presumably the power of SAVE) with an expression that might be shame.

Furthermore, several prompts in for the flowerbed speech, Asriel discloses he’s blamed himself for the decision to not kill the humans attacking him the whole time. Apparently, a sense of guilt and self-loathing at himself for failing Chara and getting himself killed was why he adopted his “kill or be killed” view. Yet, after seeing Frisk (it’s unspecified when; it could be at the flowerbed itself) he doesn’t regret his decision anymore. He said he did the right thing, and he can’t regret hard choices forever.

Lack of Love/Compassion/Empathy; Difficulty Forming Relationships

Flowey cannot feel love nor compassion; it is likely anything approaching empathy eludes him. This is a major impediment to feeling fulfilling relationships. Indeed, the idea he couldn’t feel anything (loving) for anyone made him “despondent”, until he eventually coped by making himself a callous manipulator who didn’t (emotionally) need anyone.

Flowey’s difficulty in forming relationships is a similar problem. Solving others’ problems distracted or amused him for a while, but it didn’t really make him happy. His lack of love and compassion, as well as his ability to rewind time, led him to become estranged from others. People were reduced to sets of numbers, lines and dialogue.

Unable to feel love and compassion, Flowey's life was surely less happy than before. The closest Flowey could get to fulfilling relationships was just amusement at others, and with time he grew tired of it. He himself likes to think “there’s someone out there...someone that I won’t get tired of.” There’s only one person (Chara) he cares about anymore, and yet he says (with a sad expression) that he couldn’t really care about them.

Despair

Given how close they were, Chara’s death alone would have been enough for Asriel to fall into a deep depression. Yet, his suffering is only multiplied by several layers of trauma from the plan and its outcome.

Flowey/Asriel believes that, in refusing to kill the humans attacking him and getting killed himself, he “failed” Chara. He expects Chara to be mad at him for this.

Flowey discloses that, when he woke up as a flower, he “couldn’t feel anything for anyone.”1 He spent weeks with Asgore, trying to vain to feel love. Eventually, Flowey became so distressed at his failure he quit and run away. He went to Toriel, but even she couldn’t make him “feel whole again”. He became despondent: he decided to didn’t “want to live in a world without love anymore—a world without you, Chara”. He spent weeks with Asgore, trying to vain to feel love. Eventually, Flowey became so distressed at his failure he quit and run away. He went to Toriel, but even she couldn’t make him “feel whole again”. He became despondent: he decided to didn’t “want to live in a world without love anymore—a world without you, Chara”. Flowy then tried to “erase himself from existence”.

He discovered his power of SAVE after this, starting ‘Pacifist Routes’ of his own and solving others’ problems flawlessly. Their companionship amused him, for a while. But, as he repeated time, he found them predictable; without compassion, he grew estranged from others and saw them as just lines of dialogue and numbers.

He killed everyone in the Underground, just to add novelty to his boring life. But eventually, he grew tired of that, too. He was surely very lonely and thought his existence pointless, but the very things he had lost (and gained) with his new life as a flower trapped him in despair.

Extrapolations

While recurring elements in works set in a Post-Pacifist timeline, these aspects of Flowey’s suffering aren’t so well-supported in canon.

Body Dissatisfaction

A recurring element in fan works is Flowey’s dissatisfaction or distress at his new flower body, and its limits.

In the Genocide Route, Flowey shows fear and helplessness at realizing he can’t feel his arms and legs and how his whole body had turned into a flower. If he had some choice in form when absorbing six human SOULs, the fact he had two big, clawed arms may very well be a compensation for his long-lost limbs. As soon as he absorbs the equivalent of seven human SOULs, he takes a body identical to his old Boss Monster one, and says: “Finally. I was so tired of being a flower.”

In some cases, it’s hard to tell whether Asriel/Flowey is dissatisfied by what he is or who he has become in that new body; he might conflate the two and separate his existence into two identities.

Flowey is neither human nor monster, but a soulless, nigh-necromantic magic flower whose existence is utterly unprecedented. After attacking Flowey, Toriel calls him a “miserable creature”. Flowey describes himself and who he thinks is a soulless Chara as “creatures” as well. In his flowerbed speech, Asriel calls Flowey not a “he”, but an “it”, and tells Frisk not to think of Flowey as Asriel, saying: “I just want you to remember me like this. Someone that was your friend for a little while.” (It’s unclear whether he means “as a Boss Monster” or “as someone compassionate”)

Parental Separation

Even in works where Flowey gets a soul, "becomes Asriel", and has Frisk as an adoptive sibling as a sort of Dreemurr Family 2.0, things just aren't the same. Chara is still dead, and Asgore and Toriel are still estranged/separated.

It must have been a shock for a newly-awakened Flowey to go back home and find Toriel’s old throne under a sheet, and to search for Toriel for so long only to find she’s as far away as possible from Asgore. Realizing his parents, who used to be such sickening sweethearts, have separated and no longer love each other is bad enough. Knowing that they separated over Asgore’s declaration of war, which only happened because Asriel and Chara died, just makes things worse: Flowey might believe it’s (indirectly) his fault.

While Toriel and Asgore are probably not technically divorced in Undertale, Flowey could have reacted in a comparable way to the kids of divorced parents. After all, kids developing mild depression after their parents’ divorce in a common response. In fact, this “mild depression” can get worse; according to Helpguide.org, some of the symptoms, “frequent violent and angry outbursts”, “withdrawal from loved ones”, and “disinterest in loved activities” sound like things Flowey would do.

Uncertainty He Even Deserves Happiness/A Second Chance with a Boss Monster Body

In several fan works, Flowey/Asriel sometimes believes he doesn’t deserve happiness, and/or a second chance with a Boss Monster body. Regardless of form, he might believe he doesn’t deserve happiness because of all his terrible deeds, and also think he’ll only bring misery to others.

To this end, he might regret going up to the Surface with Frisk, or even seek isolation. Indeed, only Frisk knows Asriel broke the barrier, and Asriel spends the rest of his short existence as “himself” by the flower patch in the Ruins, apparently unnoticed. He doesn’t want his parents to know he was alive again, and won’t go up to see them, because he thinks it would just break their hearts. Furthermore, in some works, Flowey lives an isolated life in the Underground as a sort of prison sentence for his Flowey Run crimes.

While Flowey cannot feel love nor compassion, it’s still possible he could feel guilt and regret. It’s possible he remembers what it was like to feel love and compassion, even for a little while, and wants Frisk and the other monsters to be happy even if he cannot.

He’s certainly capable of feeling irritated at people, so presumably he meant an inability to love anyone and, perhaps, a flattened and incomplete emotional range in general. ↩︎

#Undertale #Undertale Analysis #Undertale Meta #Flowey #Flowey the Flower #Asriel #Undertale Character Analysis #No Soul Necessary: Flowey's Happy Ending

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swimmingseafish · 4 years ago

Text

Sanderstale Prequel: Jen

So, this is a Sanderstale prequel fic that I wrote in literally one day. It’s somewhat OC-focused, but I’m pretty proud of it, so I’m posting it here too.

tagged: @hideyseek @ironwoman359 @shrimpangie

summary: The journal of the second heir to the human throne, before the human-monster war. Could also be described as the personal accounts of Princen Cal of Medeis, featuring their family and monster friends and one particularly violent Entity.

CW: violence (mentioned at least), several implied deaths, possession, and an almost-drowning (but very vague).

(Please let me know if I need to tag anything else for this fic. I don’t think I’m leaving anything out, but I’m not positive.)

Read it on ao3!

Entry 1

(I have a strange urge to write this like a letter, and no one’s going to read this anyways, so they won’t care if I’m a dork.)

Hi, book of blank lined pages.

Father says I should keep a journal and write an entry once a week. He thinks it’ll help me prepare to help rule the kingdom one day. Or at least, I suppose, to deal with paperwork.

I mean, I guess it isn’t a bad idea. We’ll see how this goes.

It was nice to meet you.

- Cal

Entry 2

Greetings, still-mostly-blank journal.

People write important events down in journals, right? I think that’s how it works.

Well, I had my naming day this week! I’d been SO looking forward to turning eighteen. I finally got to stand in front of the kingdom and introduce myself to the world as Calyx, they/them, second heir to the throne of Medeis. Immy was very proud of her little sibling (me).

Prince Emile of Bellua was there, too, out of royal formality and respect. His naming day was a few months ago. I still don’t know him very well, but he seems nice, and so do his parents, which is good. Eventually, Immy and I will have to negotiate with him on things like borders and taxes, so we better at least kind of get along.

Hey, you know what? Since it’s my naming day and I insist on writing these like letters, I might as well name you, too. How about Jen?

(So, I like alliteration. Sue me.)

See you next week,

Cal

Entry 3

Dear Jen,

Mother and Father have been particularly stressed this week.

We’ve been working with Bellua to build and maintain a reservoir on the Regio, which is the largest river in the area and also happens to be the border between our two kingdoms. But the negotiation of exactly where to put the dam has been an absolute nightmare.

Why can’t we just put it by Lake Aureus? That makes the most sense. It’s basically a reservoir on its own already—just dam the river and add supporting structures to make the lake deeper. And that lake’s relatively empty of life for some reason, even though the water’s clean, so we wouldn’t be encroaching on protected species or monster homes.

But no one asked me, so.

Actually, hold on a second. I’m going to try something.

***

Back two hours later to say that Immy absolutely loved my idea and will be pitching it to our parents tomorrow morning. Huh. Maybe I should speak up more.

Good night, Jen.

- Cal

Entry 4

Dear Jen,

I’m no longer sure if speaking up was a good idea or not.

It’s managed to convince Immy and my parents that it’s time for me to handle a project on my own. Which should be a good thing! And I’m happy that they consider me responsible enough for that! It’s just that the project in question happens to be this infernal DAM. It’s fascinating, but the paperwork and scheduling and negotiations for workers and who does what when are absolutely EXCRUCIATING.

Also, I’ve spent nearly every day this week with Diana, the royal architect, which, again, SHOULD have been fine, if we hadn’t gotten into an argument five years ago with her daughter that led to us completely cutting off communication. Diana would not stop talking about Daisy.

“Yes, your highness, I agree that we should add more supports on that side. By the way, have you considered asking my daughter to help? She’s becoming quite a skilled architect herself.”

“It’s such a shame that you and Daisy don’t talk anymore, your highness.”

“Daisy actually came up with this particular design. Isn’t she doing such a good job?”

“Did you hear

I was going to keep writing out things that she said, but I got frustrated, so nope.

I like Diana, but I had good reason to stop talking to Daisy. So, also a big nope on talking to her.

I wish just one thing in my life was straightforward. Wait, no, definitely not. Nothing about me is straight.

***

I just laughed for a good five minutes over a pun I’ve made a billion times. I’m definitely exhausted. I need to at least try to get some sleep.

Night, Jen.

- Cal

Entry 5

Dear Jen,

Sorry, I know it’s been a month since I’ve last written, but I’ve gotten so much done!

Diana and I completed the plans for the Vis Dam three weeks ago, and it’s been under construction ever since. I’m due to go and supervise the end of construction in a few days.

I’m, quite frankly, a little nervous. I’ve put so much time and effort into this project, and it actually seems like it’s paying off.

As long as it’s not like the Cat Herding Incident of 1845, I think we’ll be good.

I’ll update this more once I can finally say the project’s complete.

- Cal

Entry 6

Dear Jen,

So! Things have happened. The Vis Dam is finished, thank goodness, but that didn’t quite go as planned.

Let me break this down for you:

I, in my ridiculous ceremonial robes, arrive at the dam. Prince Emile’s there, along with several other monster nobles that I don’t know and a host of human and monster workers.

I make small talk with Emile for the next hour or so until the dam’s officially complete. I learn that he really likes tea and that we both enjoyed this one children’s book series about space gem people. He is incredibly pleased to learn that I’d read it and that I am actually willing to listen to him talk about it. (People need to give this guy a place to nerd out more often, clearly.)

Both Diana and Daisy are there. I say hi to Diana and then proceed to ignore them as politely as possible.

It’s time for me to dedicate the dam, and I make my speech from the second-floor platform, just underneath the area that would vent water. It should be noted, and it cannot be emphasized enough, that this was not my idea. I would have been fine giving my speech from the top of the dam. But Diana decided, along with my parents, that it would be better to give a speech about the two kingdoms getting along if everyone was on the same level, literally. So, she added in a large, retractable platform lower on the structure. Why it was beneath the water vents, I have no idea. It might just be because that was in the center. Regardless, that’s beside the point.

Everyone else stands around me, while I stand with my back to the dam. It should be noted that the water vents were supposed to be OFF.

I finish my dedication of the dam to peace and harmony between humans and monsters, and everyone starts applauding. The vent directly above my head, determined to ruin my day, opens, blasting me and a dozen other assorted monsters and humans off of the dam and into the reservoir below.

This was not a short fall, by the way. It was a good 200 feet down at least. The only reason we didn’t all die was that someone caught us with blue magic just before we hit the water, holding us still for a brief second and then letting us drop 2 feet instead.

I, also, am terrible at swimming. We—Immy and I—had to take classes as children, but we only ever had to get good enough to be able to survive. Immy’s a swimming champion. I can tread water for five minutes. I was not (and am not) equipped to survive in a raging river.

Fortunately, just as I was about to go under for good, I felt my SOUL turn blue again. I was forcibly yanked from the water so hard that I flew over the water and smacked into my very furry rescuer. He felt so guilty that he couldn’t stop apologizing, despite the fact that he’d saved my life and he had no reason to feel sorry (as I promptly told him).

Turns out, his name was Patton, and he’d been practicing his blue magic by working on the dam—moving parts into place alongside the other workers. His specialty is healing magic, but his parents both served in high positions in the Belluan military, so they had insisted he learn more combative magic as well. He’d done great with fire magic, he told me, but the specific SOUL magic types had proven more difficult, hence the practice.

Right then, Emile, who’d apparently escaped being thrown off the platform by the waterfall of death, ran over, asking if I was okay. I quickly assured him that I was and that he didn’t need to worry, though it was appreciated.

And then:

“Oh! Prince Emile Dreemurr, meet Patton Hart. He saved my life.”

“Ah, n-nice to meet you, Patton.” Emile’s cheeks turned bright red as he dipped his head to Patton.

“It’s nice to meet you too, your highness!” Patton said, bowing and then bouncing back up. He glanced at me, still soaking wet, and then at Emile, standing there in pristine royal robes. “I see you’re not a go with the flow kind of prince.”

All three of us immediately burst out laughing, but Emile couldn’t stop staring at Patton the whole time. Prince Emile, who I’d officially decided was my friend now, clearly had a GIANT crush on the boy who saved my life.

I went home after talking to both of them for a little while longer—and after getting a towel. My robes were soaked. I think I’m going to need new ones; I don’t trust that velvet to last after that much exposure to dubious-quality water.

Patton, Emile, and I are planning on meeting up next week. I’m determined to play matchmaker. Also, they both seem like amazing people, and I haven’t had a close friend outside of Immy in years. (Don’t be offended, Jen—I’m counting humans and monsters, not journals).

Wow, this entry got long. I’ll be back sometime soon. It’s after midnight and I have to debrief Mother and Father tomorrow on this whole fiasco.

But overall, a successful day, don’t you think?

Night!

- Cal

Entry 7

Dear Jen,

I love these two.

First of all, there was an absolutely GOLD moment that I have to share.

We all met up at my home, the castle in Medeis, since neither Emile nor Patton regularly made trips to the human kingdom, so I figured it’d be fun for them. Patton got there first, and we were sitting in what is best described as the living room and chatting.

Emile, arriving next, didn’t know that Patton was there already, and for reasons unknown decided to open the door while making what were arguably the strangest noises I have ever heard in my life. It was like he was trying to be an entire orchestra introducing the beginning of a children’s play but could only generate notes via his own voice and using the vowel “da” at various pitches and intensities.

I actually didn’t even know it was him at first, to be honest, until he stopped, popped his head around the door frame, and instantly turned bright red upon seeing both me and Patton.

Does he just enter every room that way? Is that something he reserves for friends? Not the blushing thing, but the singing thing. I didn’t ask because he was already embarrassed, but now I REALLY want to know.

Second, on a more general level, things I learned from this experience:

1. Patton probably has a crush on Emile too, based on the evidence of my own eyes. (No, Jen, I refuse to elaborate. That would take up at LEAST all the rest of your pages.)

2. Patton will make puns endlessly unless he is stopped. (And Emile will definitely not stop him ever.)

3. Emile will reference various fantasy books endlessly and cannot be stopped. (This is not a bad thing. He clearly loves them.)

4. Patton, despite being the only one out of the three of us that isn’t an heir to a throne (and the youngest by a couple weeks), has the best head for leadership and politics.

5. All three of us care too much, apparently, and have been told so several times by our family and friends, especially Emile. He says not to hold it against his parents, though.

6. Patton’s a pacifist and refuses to fight anyone in a real battle, though he is trained for it. Luckily, there aren’t really any real battles he’d need to fight in. We’re lucky enough to live in a remarkably peaceful time.

7. Emile is simultaneously stronger and weaker than you’d think. He’s built, with broad shoulders and muscles clearly built up from years of training. But we practiced fighting together, and he’s the most skilled at magical attacks. His trident is really something else. I’m a skilled martial artist, but I’m not a mage, so I can only beat him about half the time.

8. Emile is trying to grow a beard with only VERY limited success. I asked him why he bothers when he already has more than enough hair, and he bopped me (very lightly!) on the head with his trident.

9. I laugh a whole lot more around Emile and Patton than I normally do.

The only other person I’ve been this close to was Daisy, but she broke my heart at age thirteen and I have no desire to revisit that experience. (Maybe the fact that I’m still stuck on it five years later is an issue. There really should be like…mind doctors or something to help with things like that.)

But anyways, I’m not in love with either of them, for sure. Though Immy would get a kick out of it if I fell in love with Emile—she’d say I managed to arrange my own marriage.

I do love them as friends, though, even though we haven’t spent too much time together. I think I get attached quick.

Hopefully we’ll get to do this again a lot in the future.

I’m not sure how much time I’ll have to write in the next few months. Harvest season’s coming up, and I still have to do maintenance on the dam. But I’m dedicated to this now, even though I think my dad’s forgotten he suggested it. Don’t worry, Jen. I won’t abandon you.

Have a good few months,

Cal

Entry 8

Hey, Jen. It’s been a while, huh?

I had a feeling it was going to be hard to keep this up consistently.

Anyways, I’m nineteen now, so there’s that! And yes, past me, you did get to hang out with Patton and Emile much more, don’t worry—I’m now confident in calling them my best friends. And they’re still dancing around each other like the goofballs they are. (To be fair, they’ve had more pressing concerns recently.) Even Emile’s little sister, Princess Linda, needles him about Patton constantly. That’s a good sister right there, and I say this with the full knowledge that I would hate it if Immy did this to me.

I also got to meet Patton’s friend Camden, a tortoise monster, and Camden’s little brother Gerson, who is the most optimistic child (and potentially person) on the face of the planet. Camden wants to be a professional photographer someday, and his work is excellent. He’s hilarious and laughs at pretty much any badly planned joke, which I’m starting to think is a prerequisite for being Patton’s friend.

And Gerson—I still cannot get over him. He’s seven years old and knows so much about the world and current events, but he never lets it affect him negatively. He always looks at the bright side. A monster kid like that, even if he’s not a boss monster, is going to live for centuries.

Oh yeah, current events. I guess I should put that in here too. God knows I need to talk to someone about it.

Tensions between humans and monsters are on the rise and have been pretty consistently for the past year. I didn’t know until three months ago when a skirmish broke out on the border—right by the Vis Dam, in fact. Three humans were grievously injured, and one was killed, but five monsters in total were turned to dust.

Immy and my parents had been trying to handle it quietly with Emile and his parents, but there have been an increasing number of humans terrified of monsters in recent years.

Someone—a palace worker named Silenda—went through the records from the long-ago battles between humans and monsters. She found out that monsters could absorb human SOULs while humans couldn’t absorb monster ones, and she told her brother, who unfortunately was both unable to keep his mouth shut and worked for a very popular newspaper. The information spread quickly, and there are some in our kingdom who have used it to stir up fear.

I actually was a little hurt that my parents didn’t trust me or Immy with this information. And that once they did let us know, they only told Immy. She had to tell me. But I do understand. She’s the Crown Princess. She’ll be queen one day.

But I’ll be her advisor and strongest supporter. Shouldn’t I know, too?

Ugh. I’m still bitter about this and it’s not remotely the point.

The point is that we’re starting to see skirmishes on the border, and neither ruling party wants that. But both countries have so far been unable to stop the fighting. The small factions are operating independently of the leadership.

We might have to call in the military to calm down the situation if it gets any worse, and I can’t see that going remotely well.

I said at the beginning of this entry that I’ve still been seeing Patton and Emile. And I have. But it’s gotten a lot less frequent over the last three months.

Patton’s been working with the medical corps of the Belluan military and volunteering on the “front lines” of the skirmishes, healing whoever he can. Camden’s out there with him, documenting everything for posterity. Gerson mostly stays home, but Camden’s had to bring him once or twice.

Emile’s doing his best as Crown Prince, but it’s been hard on him. He doesn’t hold much power on his own yet, and he feels like if his parents can’t do anything, what could he possibly do?

I’ve been reaching out diplomatically to the leaders of the small factions as best I can to try to get them to stop. Silenda’s been helping me; she’s a surprisingly fast writer, and incredibly brave and strong and a true believer in justice. She also blames herself for everything that’s been going on.

I’ve told her repeatedly that I, at least, don’t blame her, which is true, I don’t. I blame her brother, a little, and the newspaper some, but mostly I blame the people who decided that the only answer to being scared is to kill.

Why did I have to jinx everything by writing that we live in peaceful times?

I wish I could have a conversation about this with someone besides you, Jen, but everyone’s just so busy and overwhelmed and stressed. All I can do with them is endlessly throw solutions around and have none of them work out. At least I can get my thoughts out this way.

Until next time.

- Cal

[On the next three pages, several entries were started and then scratched out.]

Entry 9

Jen—

I turned twenty, and I think I might be losing my mind.

We tried military intervention. It didn’t work. Our soldiers, instead of holding the monsters back and protecting our own citizens, decided to go rogue and wipe out the entire monster battalion.

Bellua and its rulers were rightfully devastated and furious, and they were about to declare war on us.

My parents, Immy, me, and several other councilors held a meeting in the throne room to determine our best course of action. Eventually, they got around to asking my opinion.

I opened my mouth to suggest literally anything other than war. Reparations, peace talks, giving up territory. My best friends were monsters and I had—and still have—absolutely no desire to fight or kill them or their families.

But then I felt like my body was taken over by a stranger. I couldn’t control my movements or my voice. I watched, a horrified passenger in my body, as my voice made a persuasive argument for declaring war before Bellua could.

And they listened.

My parents. My sister. All the councilors.

They listened.

And they declared war.

What’s wrong with me?

I couldn’t—didn’t—say those things.

I love my friends so much that it feels like I have a star living in my chest.

Sil almost slapped me when she found out what I’d done. Instead, she quietly gathered her things and left, tears running down her face. I love her too, and I’ve never told her.

And I might have just lost all of them.

Who do I go to for help? Who would believe me? Even if they did, what could they do?

What the hell is going on, Jen?

Entry 10

It happens nearly every day now.

The Entity—that’s what I’ve chosen to call it—comes for me in the morning. I go through my routine mechanically, or, at least, my body does. Then the Entity and I join the royal council to make plans and move troops.

I’m a general now. Me. All I thought I would ever do was help Immy and run paperwork. And maybe build more dams.

I fight on the field, too. The Entity favors lightweight javelins and shatters SOUL after SOUL with them.

I think dust is permanently stuck to my boots.

I can’t make it stop.

Entry 11

Immy’s worried about me. But she’s all for the war now. And the Entity exerts control even when it’s not speaking for me. I can’t take its words back, so I can’t tell her what’s wrong.

Patton’s worried about me. He’s tried to send me messages using the little spiders that serve the matriarch of the Spider Clans. The Entity won’t let me write back or even read them, and it hurts every single time. The most I’ve managed to do is protect the spiders. The Entity wanted to squish them.

I don’t know if Emile’s worried about me or if he even cares. I’ve seen him leading charges on the battlefield, too. I don’t know if he’s seen me, but I hope not.

I haven’t heard from Sil. The Entity won’t let me reach out to her, either. But I thought I saw her next to Emile, once. I hope she’s safe, or as safe as anyone can be in this broken world.

Entry 12

I caught my reflection in the mirror today when the Entity was in control. They turn my eyes this weird pale red color. It’s not even pink. They just dull my eyes.

Appropriate, I guess.

I’m twenty-one today, for whatever it’s worth.

Entry 13

The Entity can control time.

Today, I managed to break free of their control for a split second and shatter a bottle of squid ink on a table filled with valuable intelligence. I could sense how angry they were. And, of course, how angry everyone else was. Immy just about took my head off.

But then I felt a warm sensation in my chest, blinked, and somehow it was 7 AM that morning again. I saw a flicker of bright golden light for just a second before the Entity, still irritated, quickly ran through my morning tasks again and headed back to the throne room. They kept me on a tighter leash this time, and I didn’t have another chance to break free.

How did they do that?

More importantly, if they’re controlling MY body, is that something THEY can do or something I can do? Because if I’m the one who can do that…

I need to conduct some research.

Entry 14

I’m exhausted. I’ve been doing most of my research at night. The Entity has far less control at night.

I still try to stay awake all day, though. I need to keep tabs on what they’re doing with my body.

Hence why my brain is dead right now. But I need to catalog what I’ve found.

My SOUL is red. I’ve known this since I was a small child. SOUL colors are logged at age five, as soon as it’s definitely safe enough to enter into the sort of magical connection necessary for a SOUL to appear on someone’s chest.

No one else in my family has a red SOUL. Immy’s is purple, Mother’s is dark blue, and Father’s is green. (Sil, though not my family, has a yellow SOUL.)

I’ve never met anyone else, as far as I know, with a red SOUL. That’s what started me on the track of thinking that SOUL colors might be important.

According to the old texts I found in the library, all the other SOUL colors are thought to be linked to personality traits or convictions. Light blue is patience, orange is bravery, dark blue is integrity, purple is perseverance, green is kindness, and yellow is justice. But red is never labeled, not in any of the texts I looked at.

Finally, at the very back of the library, just as the sun was coming up, I found a book so old and covered in dust that I was worried I wouldn’t be able to read it before it fell apart.

That book said that red SOULs store immense power, but they’re not linked to any specific trait. Red SOULs are said to be blank slates. People used to be afraid of them, apparently, because they feared they could be possessed by demons.

Well, if the Entity isn’t a demon, I don’t know what the fuck it is.

The part I still don’t get is the “immense power” line. The only humans who can use magic are mages. I’m not a mage. I know I’m not a mage. We’re tested for that as kids.

But I’ve never tried to see if I could control time because as far as I knew, that was impossible, and it’s a little late to learn.

And there’s always the chance that this could in fact be the Entity’s power, not mine, and I’m going on a wild goose chase in the middle of a war.

I don’t have much else to do, though, do I, Jen?

[The next pages are filled with tally marks and scribbled notes in various different pencils and markers. There are drawings of SOULs on several of the pages, and spilled candle wax and dried tears adorn a few as well.]

Entry 15

Well, I still can’t make those glowing time-points. But I do actually have a surprising amount of stored magic. It was just sitting in the center of my SOUL. I would never have figured out how to access it if it weren’t for the Entity.

I’ve seen and felt them reset a couple more times since that first day, usually when they say something that they consider less than optimal. They’ll just reset and repeat that moment over and over again until it meets whatever the fuck their standards are.

We’re four years into the war, now. I skipped noting a couple of birthdays in there, somewhere, but I’m twenty-four now. Twenty-four, and there’s still a demon living in my head, forcing me to kill.

Emile’s parents were assassinated last year. Not by me, but the Entity supported it. My parents are still alive, but I’m not sure how long that will last, giving the blood-and-dust nature of the world right now.

I know Sil’s one of Emile’s top tacticians now, thanks to the intelligence the Entity has gathered. I’ve seen Camden’s war photography, including a photo of Gerson, much taller than he used to be but still just a kid, standing out in front of their home with a giant hammer in his arms. Patton’s still working on the front lines, healing as many people as he can. He still refuses to fight. I admire him so much for being able to make that choice and stick to it. I wish my hands were still clean.

Linda’s serving under Emile now, too, but as a soldier. She’s far too young for this.

Maybe we’re all too young for this.

Immy scares me the most. She still supports the war, but more out of fear than anything else. She sounds like those fearmongering men from so long ago.

She makes me wonder if the war is even the Entity’s fault.

Maybe it would have happened anyway.

Entry 16

I found my power.

But I don’t control time—or at least, I don’t know how.

I erase memories.

The Entity stayed down in the dungeons—that’s another thing we never used to have, or at least use, here, really. But anyways, the Entity stayed down in the dungeons for too long, and night fell. So, I had a little bit more control than usual.

I reached out with just a little bit of my magic and tried to make one of those glowing stars that allow the Entity to reset. Instead, one of the prisoners cried out.

“Where am I? What happened?” They looked around wildly. “Wait…WHO am I?!”

That absolutely wasn’t what I meant to do. And I couldn’t figure out how to bring the memories back. It looks like, when I erase memories, they’re gone for good.

But I needed to figure this out. I tested my power on one more prisoner and figured out that I can erase only specific memories if I try hard enough.

Writing this out, I’m shocked at myself. I’m experimenting on people. And I don’t even feel that bad about it.

What’s wrong with me? I’m so numb to suffering at this point. I’m numb to the world.

I miss Patton, Emile, Camden, and Gerson…and Sil. But they’re better off without me.

I don’t know what I can do with this power. I’ll keep fighting the Entity. Maybe I can break free. Maybe that’ll be enough.

What else can I erase?

[There’s an interval of at least twenty blank, crisp pages.]

Entry 17

It’s almost over. After five years, it’s almost over.

I managed to free myself from the Entity for now. I won’t say how because I don’t have time, but they’re not happy.

Medeis won, if you can call it that. Sil, as the monster ambassador, and I managed to get Immy to agree to seal the monsters underground rather than exterminate them. The war’s done a number on us all.

Sil still hates me. She doesn’t understand. She can’t. She never will. Neither will any of them. They’ll all hate me forever.

Sil has teamed up with a group of other mages to create the Barrier. With me, that makes seven.

The Entity doesn’t like this. They want to kill all the monsters.

I won’t let that happen.

Camden’s dead. Linda’s dead. My parents are dead. Immy, Gerson, Patton, and Emile are still alive, and so are thousands of others. You don’t get to take them too, do you hear me, you absolute sack of shit?

You think this is a game.

You think that what you do doesn’t matter.

It matters to me. It matters to Immy, and Sil, and everyone else in my world.

After we seal the monsters underground, I’m going to erase you from this world. I’ll erase you, and I’ll erase the memory of monsters and magic ever existing from the minds of every human on this planet.

I’ll almost certainly die in the process, but I don’t care. They’ll have a future, and the monsters will be safe from you and the humans like you.

There’s no future for me anymore.

You’ll have no host and no memory of your purpose or identity. You’ll be gone for good.

They’ll be safe. They’ll be safe. They’ll be safe.

I love you. All of you. More than words could ever say.

Goodbye.

- Princen Calyx of Medeis

#sanderstale #my writing #sanderstale prequel

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