"You may now kiss the bride!" Asgore quickly leaned in to capture his beloved's lips on his own. The experience was just as perfect as her. Reluctantly pulling themselves apart from the warm embrace, they turned to the crowd of cheering monsters and humans. It was a bit louder than he would have liked, but Toriel didn't seem to mind one bit. As they walked back down the makeshift isle of the outdoors, their peers and subjects around them congratulated the two on their marriage, which they kindly returned with gestures of thanks. There was everything any the typical wedding would have, just multiplied to support a much wider audience. The the cake they had got a bit messy; Asgore had a bit of trouble trying to kick the frosting off of his nose. The Captain of the Guard, the Royal Scientist, and a few higher ranking human peers made speeches congratulating the two. Asgore could always tell when Toriel was blushing from under all that fur. The dancing was as elegant as expected. The Captain, Fairfeather, spent hours on end just trying go get the king to memorize the movements and get them down. Toriel, it seemed, was a natural at this. With he dressed in his usual golden armor and robes and her in a dress of a soft sunshine, they truly looked fit for royalty. She even wore flowers atop her head, fitting in between her horns and her ears. They were buttercups, and they looked absolutely beautiful on her. "So, is this a wedding fit for a queen?" Asgore asked with a sheepish grin as he concentrated on moving his feet in the right directions. Toriel giggled some and raised herself some to plant a quick kiss on her husband's lips. "I'll have to get used to that title," she said in that soft voice that made his knees weak and his horns a bit too heavy. "However, you, my dearest husband, will refer to me as just Toriel. That's an order," she joked. "That will be rather hard when you rule my world," Asgore chuckled, trying his hand at one the jokes she liked so much. Her reaction was immediate as she bit her bottom lip, trying to hold back her laughter in an environment where they were surrounded by their subjects. "Alright, I suppose you can call me queen, but only if you'll stay by my side as king," Toriel comprised after she had calmed herself. Asgore couldn't help the loving grin that tugged onto his lips. "Of course, my love. Together forever, yes?" The queen had her eyes grow blurry as a smile graced her face. "For all of eternity. I love you." "I love you."
Asgore hummed ever so gently to himself as he carefully watered the flowers of his garden surrounding his throne. He didn't water the flowers very often, just every week or so. And it was around this time of the week that he always realized that their might just be a bit too many flowers. He never heard it said aloud, but he always saw it whenever Undyne had to play hopscotch just to avoid stepping on a single one. She's gotten good at it, too, the sweet young monster.
Every so often, Asgore will stop to go back home and refill the watering can so he could delicately finish up the rest of the flowers. This process took him a good two hours in total, but it was always worth it in the end. When he was done, he would sit on his throne in silence, gazing over the sea of beautiful gold. As was his unabashed routine, he would gaze over at the spot beside him, almost as if something or someone was going to be sitting at his side. Perhaps a child or two playing in the grass where he could watch.
He still thought about them. It had slowed to the point where thoughts of them had only come once every day. He thought of her whenever he passed by the covered up throne and made his way to the barrier.
Gazing up at the shimmering light filtered through the barrier, he would squint his eyes, trying to catch just a glimpse of the sun. Though, time and time again, it was to no avail. All he could see was what it left behind, and what it promised for everyone. Just one more soul. That's all they needed. And then, everything would be made right again. He just had to be patient.
He hummed to himself as he got to the last patch in the garden. It was such a beautiful day outside, he noticed. Birds were singing their sweet songs. His flowers were blooming so beautifully. On days like these, it would be so perfect for a picnic. Perhaps a nice game of catch. Kids tended to love this type of day.
What a beautiful day to spend time with the family.
Echoing footsteps soon caught his attention as the last of the water was draining from the can. He heard them stop almost as soon as they had entered the throne room. "Oh, is someone there?" he called, not yet turning to meet his guest. "Just a moment! I'm almost finished watering these flowers!"
Asgore and Toriel watched with their fellow monsters as the humans conversed from above. He used his staff to keep a few lone monsters from charging up and attacking. He tried not to wince from the calls of "coward" and "false king" from behind him. He remained stoic as the mages waved their staff, the air shifted, a loud rumble shook the ground, and the twilight turned into a dim fade as the barrier was placed. However, he couldn't help the tears that blurred his vision as he heard his wife break into sobs beside him. At first, all was silent as the monsters began to process what had just happened. And then, there was chaos. Panicking and screaming soon rang through the caverns of their new prison. Toriel dried her tear and rushed into the crowd to try and calm some of her people down so there would at least be some coherence. The only light that could be seen was the dim spots from some of the fire monsters scattered along the large crowd. Asgore went with his wife and ordered a few guards to try and keep the overwhelming number of monsters calm. Soon enough everything was as quiet as they could make it. The guards and the royal couple immediately got to getting things in order. Heat-based and water-based monsters were obviously kept separated. The monsters more used to the colder climates were at least thankful for the coolness of the underground. Many of the more water-bound subjects had run off to find a source of water to survive in while led by a few guards. Asgore was hopeful they would find something of the sort, as it would show there was some opportunity to be made from the darkness of their new home. Toriel was by his side as he tried to console his people, doing her best to do the same. He had most of their subjects stay in the area as the guard went to explore the area, seeing which areas were safe and if the caverns were even big enough to store all of them. A few flame elementals were happy to make fires to brighten the dark and gloomy cavern. While the caverns seemed so large and vast at first, they really were quite small once you got used to them. Agore rested by a fire with his wife, listening to the pained sobs of the monsters who had lost loved ones just mere days before. His heart broke at the sound, but he tried to remain the hardened and honorable king his monsters wanted him to be. And yet, he could feel that facade chipping away with the whispers of his betrayal. They called spineless and unfit to hold the throne. It made his soul grow heavy. "Don't listen to them," Toriel whispered, gently taking his large hand into hers. "You were right to show mercy to him, love. You've done nothing wrong. You are a kind and honorable monster. If they want to be angry at anyone, they need to be angry at me. I was the one who stopped you in the first place." Asgore felt a slight grimace grace his face at the thought of the memory. It wasn't a pretty one, either. His staff had been at the throat of their general, ready to come down and end an entire war with just the life of one human. There would be no more suffering. No more losses at the hands of the humans. However, her cries had rung out above his heavy breathing. He had shaken heavily as indecisiveness had crawled up his back and locked his arms in place. The more she cried for mercy, the more his mind began to change. Before he knew it, he let the man go. Now, weeks after the final assault, he wondered what would had happened if he had just gotten done with it. Would they still be trapped down here? His thoughts were interrupted when Toriel leaned forward and planted a quick kiss onto his lips. "We will make it through this, Asgore. We just have to stay determined." Asgore felt a smile grace him, something he hadn't done in nearly a month. "Of course, Toriel," he agreed, gently squeezing her hand in a show of his affection. "I will stay determined. As long as we have the support of our people and with you by my side, I will always stay determined." The two shared another kiss before breaking apart. "So, what will you name our new home?" Toriel asked, folding her hands back into her lap. Asgore smiled, having thought this particular question over. "I will dub this new land 'New Home'!" He gave a confused look when his wife burst into tear-filled laughter.
"Hello, humans! I am The Great Papyrus! I will do the honors by allowing you to be one of my first new human friends!"
Needless to say, the two humans just enjoying their morning in the park were surprised by the 6'5 skeleton monster that had just burst out of the bushes beside them. They blinked, screamed, and ran for their lives and Papyrus waved them goodbye. "Goodbye, humans! Perhaps we should have spaghetti, later?"
"I think you scared 'em off, Paps," Sans chuckled as he stepped over to stand with his brother. "That's not very HUMANe of you, bro." Papyrus crossed his arms and scoffed at the less than impressive pun. "Really, Sans? You can't even wait thirty minutes out of the Underground to tell a pun?"
"Whoa, you got to see more humans?" Undyne shouted, running over to the two. "Nice! Where are they?" "Paps scared 'em away," Sans said, jerking a biphalangeal digit over over to the taller skeleton. "Aw, nice one, Papyrus!" the guard congratulated, raising a hand for a high five, which Papyrus gladly gave as hard as he could. Alphys soon came trotting over as fast as she could, huffing and puffing as she did so. Her form wasn't exactly built for running. "Hah, Undyne? I- hoo! Y-you run r-really fast, Undyne. Wh-where are- oh! Have you seen any humans?" she huffed as he was doubled over, hands on her knees. Undyne gladly answered her new girlfriend. "Papyrus saw some, but he drove them away. Nice one, Pap!"
"Now what is this about driving humans away?" Asgore asked as he approached the small group. "I thought we were befriending humans, not having them fear us. Papyrus, you aren't tormenting the humans, are you?" Papyrus seemed to flush a bit, despite being a skinless skeleton. "Hey, where's Tori and the kid?" Sans suddenly asked, tilting his body a bit to get a glimpse behind Asgore's huge frame. "Geeze, they're lost already? I know this place is huge, but come on."
As if on cue, the familiar shape of a large boss monster and her small human child were seen on the horizon. As the two got closer, Asgore felt a soft smile appear over his face upon noticing one of Toriel' large hands enveloping Frisk's smaller one. It was odd to think how much this small image reminded him so much of his Ariel and Chara. It seemed that she couldn't help but be the mother after all these years. Frisk smiled up at the group once they were close enough. They really were a sweet and innocent young thing. Well, innocent couldn't really be included on the list after he had just, well, you know. Asgore was a bit surprised this human still had good will towards monsters, much less accept to be their ambassador. It must have been an absolute hell to get through the entire Underground without dying.
"Hello there," Toriel greeted once they were immersed within the group. "Is there anything we've missed? Sorry for our tardiness." Papyrus was the one to answer her. "That's quite alright, Lady Asgore! We had only just started our little adventure into the world." Asgore couldn't help but notice the way Toriel's ears twitched slightly at that forbidden name. She'd have to have a little chat about it with the skeleton, he could already tell.
"So, Asgore, what's our next course of action? Gonna confront the humans?" Undyne asked, her hands on her hips as she got excited for their next plan. The king promptly took up his title, having already thought of what to do. "I suppose now we should our go and meet the human leader. Won't we be quite the surprise?" He gestured to the large castle in the distance. It should still be in use around now. It hand only been a little over a century, after all. Though, a lot could happen within a century. The horizon had a clearer view than he had remembered. He wondered how long it had taken the humans to demolish his castle.
"So, what're we going to do?" Sans asked, hands stuffed into the pockets of his hoodie. "Y'know, the non king type people?" The king smiled in amusement at the tiny skeleton. "Well, you'll be coming along with us, of course," he chuckled. "After all, you and your brother are both as important to this group as the rest of us, having been there at our most important hour." Asgore's words seemed to get Papyrus really excited; he could practically see the skeleton ready to jump out of his boots.
"Gah, I-I knew I should've worn my, um, better coat this time," Alphys muttered to herself, sweat already dripping down her scales. "Aw, don't sweat it, Alph," Undyne said with a grin, giving Alphys a pat on the back so hard, it made her squeak and lurch forward some. "You already look ready to meet royalty. I mean, look who we're with." She looked up at Asgore, crossing her arms some. "So, am I gonna have to bring out the armor or what?" The king merely shook his head. "That won't be necessary. We're trying to make friends, after all. Besides, I'm sure that once Frisk here explains what has happened, it will go over fairly smoothly." Frisk gave Asgore a thumbs up to confirm his idea.
"Though, Undyne, should anything go awry, you have no need to protect Toriel and I. Just make sure the human, Alphys, and the others make it out-" Asgore was suddenly cut off my a rather loud throat clearing from his former wife. He blinked in surprise and looked over at her. Ooh, she had that glare in her eyes. He was in for a stern lecture, wasn't he? "You all go for a head start," Asgore said rather firmly. The others seemed to know what was going on and promptly left, but not without a "good luck" from Undyne first.
"So what appears to be the problem?" Asgore questioned, turning to face the queen. "You are just impossible," Toriel sighed, pinching the bridge of her muzzle with a huff. "I am not your wife anymore, Asgore, and nor am I the queen of the Underground."
"Well, I'd assume so," Asgore said, looking her in the eyes, despite how painful it was. "After all, we're on the surface now." Toriel did not take kindly to humor being injected into the situation, something he used to do to appease her back when they were still married. "I coming with you all to the castle, but you are foolish to think that I will stand by your side as you speak to their leader. I will be standing with the others as you do your part."
The king immediately frowned at this demand. Did she really expect him to lead the monster and keep the peace between monsters and humans without her? For years, she had always been a symbol of peace and mercy for monsters. She was one of the reasons the war had even ended as it had did. And yet, she wouldn't take up her old position for the sake of the kingdom. He should have figured it beforehand, though. As regal as Toriel was and as fair as she could be, she was never one for the title of queen. As a woman who wasn't even fond of the idea of punishment, her mercy had always been a weak spot of hers. She truly did love her people, but sometimes he would hear them question if she could really rule a stable kingdom. Especially when the humans started to come.
"Toriel," Asgore spoke, trying to sound as soft as possible, "please. I can't do this without you. In new stage of our lives, the monsters need you to-"
"The monsters have had you for over half a century with just you and they can last another half century more," Toriel snapped, though she kept her voice low. "When we eventually do go to meet with the humans, I will appear not as your wife, not as your queen, not as your partner, but as another one of your many subjects, and you will address me as such." Had the moment been any lighter, he might've pointed out how she was the one commanding him right now. "Are we clear?"
Asgore gave a tense sigh as he allowed himself to relax. "We are clear, Toriel. I understand your reasoning." He saw the other boss monster relax, though she seemed surprised he took it so easily. "Thank you, Asgore," she said with a sigh. "Now. Let's meet with the others before they get too far ahead. Who knows how far Papyrus has gotten already?" And with that, she promptly walked off.
"Asriel, dear! We do not pull at the grass," Toriel scolded lightly, giving the small boss monster a small little bop on the head at a warning. Asriel looked up at his mother dropping the bits of grass caught in his hands. "Fiiine," he sighed, the beginnings of a pout starting to form. "Now now, I don't want to see any pouting. Princes don't pout," Asgore chuckled, watching the two sit in the grass from his throne. "If you pout, your mother might not let you have any pie." At the suggestion of no more pie, Asriel squeaked a "no!" and hid his face in his shirt. The loving father couldn't hide his amused grin, slowly sliding off the seat of the throne to rest in the grass with his family. Asriel just mumbled a few incoherent words. "Don't act like you don't have a nuisance about yourself as well," Toriel giggled, turning to Asgore as she lightly tugged that large golden beard of his. "You, sir, need to trim this beard." Asgore blinked and looked down at her hand. "My beard? Never. It's proof of how old I've gotten since we've had Asriel," he defended, and it was true. Being able to age again after decades of staying relatively the same was one of the biggest reliefs of the century to the couple. "Maybe so, but that's what you have your horns for, Fluffybuns," she pointed out, giving one of his massive ivory horns a good knock. "It's already a difficult sleeping situation with those things. I don't want that beard of yours to get in the way of our nuzzles. Remember? Nose Nuzzle Champs '98?" "Of course I do, love," Asgore chuckled before giving his wife and affectionate nuzzle. "Nuzzles!" Asriel suddenly shouted, leaping at the cook in between his parents just so he could try and hug them both. Both parents smiled at their child. As was routine for them, Asgore picked up Asriel and threw him into the air several times, much to the delight of his son. "I don't know how we're able to care for both a kingdom and a child at the same time," he said, only talking his eyes off of Asriel for a moment to glance at Toriel. She herself gave a shrug at the idea. "I'm not sure. If you feel too confused, though, I could always give you a tuTORIEL." Asgore caught his son one last time and gave her a look. "How many times are you going to make that particular joke?" he asked. "As many times as the opportunities allow it," she giggled. "Mama! Can we go walking again?" Asriel asked once he was set back onto the ground. Toriel thought the suggestion over and nodded. "I'm sure that we could take a visit to Hotland or maybe even Waterfall," she thought aloud. "No! The Ruins!" he said, hopping up and down in Asgore's lap in excitement. Toriel gave a slight grimace. "The Ruins? But that's on the other side of the Underground. That's awfully far, dear." Despite Toriel's firm stance on this, the whines of her son broke her within minutes. "Alright, alright. I suppose we can take the ferry to Snowdin and go from there." Asriel's small fists pumped up in victory. "Yay! Thanks, mom!" He quickly hopped to his feet and ran to the doorway of the throne room excited. Toriel giggled and slowly came to a stand. She strolled over and took one last look back at her husband. "Bring back something interesting," he joked, watching them both take their leave.
Asgore watched the water begin to simmer lowly. That should be about enough. He dipped the packet of crushed leaves into the pot. "Alright, just a few minutes and you'll be perfect," he rumbled to himself, something he tended to do often with him living alone and such. With it being one of his only times away from the throne, he felt the need to relax, and tea was just the way to help him do that.
He lifted his head suddenly upon hearing a firm knock on the door. "Coming!" he called, removing the apron he wore. Such large hands could be rather clumsy after all. He didn't bother to check through the peephole before opening the door. He just assumed it was royal business or maybe a neighbor, despite himself looking less than royal with his "Mr. Dad Guy" sweater and sweatpants. Don't judge; the humans had a large array of clothing that he happened to like and decided to buy.
The mysterious monster behind the door turned out to be his ex wife and former queen, Toriel, wearing a sour yet restrained expression. It had only been a few months, but these looks always made him a. It nervous. He wondered why she was here of all reasons.
Asgore gripped the arms of his throne tightly as he heard the thundering feet of his wife storming through the castle. It had only been a matter of time before she found out. He just kept his head low, preparing for what came next.
"Asgore," Toriel greeted firmly.
"Toriel," Asgore greeted back. "What brings you here?"
"Frisk," she sighed. "They and Alphys mentioned they had something to confess to us. Apparently it involves Flowey." Ah yes, the flower. He had experienced a few unpleasant encounters with the potted houseplant. "I see. In that case, would you like to come in. I have tea preparing in-" He was cut on by Toriel curtly entering through the small space Asgore had provided for her.
His eyes flicked up to see the stiff, enraged form of his queen. He straightened up in his throne. "Ah. Good evening, my lo-" "Save it, Asgore!" she snapped, voice hard, but sounding on the verge of cracking. He hated to make her so upset like this. Asgore remained tight-lipped in order to hear what his wife had to say.
"So, where are Frisk and Alphys?" Asgore questioned, checking up on his tea as Toriel rested on the couch. "On their way," she answered rather curtly. "They should be in here within minutes. Hopefully." He came back into the room, awkwardly sitting in the armchair by the fireplace. Usually Toriel would be the one in the armchair. Well, that was how it used to be, anyways.
"What is this the guards have been telling me?" she demanded, rapidly approaching the king as he came to a stand. "A decree? To kill all humans that come down here? Are you serious, Asgore? What are you thinking? What about Chara, hmm? Would you have killed her if she had fallen down after this decree?" "Of course not," Asgore shot back. "It's because of our children that I am forced to do this."
The king sat in silence with the former queen. Not a word was spoken; just the deafening quiet brung pain to him. He needed to speak up.
"Look, Toriel, our children our dead!" he yelled shakily. "And we cannot even confront the fiends who have committed this crime! Chara and Asriel were proof that our races could come together as one; they were the hope of the entire Underground. And now, they're dead. My back is up against the wall; I cannot just sit by as our people are murdered with nothing we can do about it! The monsters are begging for a way out. We have been trapped here for too long, and all because YOU stopped couldn't even give the life of a single human that had killed many of our own. Listen, Doctor [̢̕͜R͘҉͢E̢̛͘D̷̨A̸̶͝C͠҉̕T̢́É͠D̛̕̕]͏ has informed me that all we need are seven human souls. Seven human souls, and that's it. Toriel, tell me, what is worth more to you: the freedom of thousands or the lives of seven?"
"Look, Toriel, I can't stand this," he sighed. Toriel looked up at him, seemingly surprised that he decided to break the silence. "I will not lie. I do miss having you around, back to the way we used to be. I understand why you hate me so, and I understand why you did what you did. And I apologize. I apologize for what I had resorted to and all of what I subjected our people to: asking them to kill for freedom. But, should I ever have the chance of undoing it, I wouldn't. A way to escape the Underground was what gave monsters hope. It gave them a reason to get up in each day and look forward to the next. With each soul taken, they became more and more hopeful for our future. I truly do hate what we were forced to do, but to finally see monsters happy and ready to take on the challenges of each day after forty years of stagnation, it gave me hope as well. I do not ask for friendship or even forgiveness, but at least an understanding. As much as we have fought, I do not enjoy the way you look at me with scorn each day. I would greatly appreciate it if we could look at each other just once and without hate. Please. I just want to move on, as monsters and humans have."
"Asgore, these souls you speak of aren't just some tools to be used! These are humans, beings like us who have family and children and lives just like we do! There is no difference between us other than our magic. They've done nothing wrong but to be what we aren't. These are humans like our Chara. They have kind souls and don't deserve to have them taken away because of us. No one deserves death, as it only shows that we are just as awful as them for slaughtering in the name of our kingdom. We have made a home here. Everyone is happy. There has to be some other way for us to-"
Toriel was silent for a while, most likely processing everything Agsore had just laid out for her. "I do understand you, Asgore," she said finally. "I understand what you did and what it's done for our people. Of course, I'm a bit bitter that you'd still kill the fallen humans even after Frisk had freed us anyways. Though, it's made me realize that I was never one for royalty. I could never make such sacrifices for the good of monsters. I just wanted us all to be happy. We had made a home in the Underground. We were finally going back to our old lives. Even then, I know monsters would never be truly happy until they got to see the sun and the stars once again. Despite that, you ordered for the deaths of seven humans. Humans just like our Chara, and they could have very much been one of them. And for that, I don't know if I could ever truly love you like the way I used to. Asgore, you are a great monster. You made me happy for many years, and although I don't want to get back together with you, I am willing to take up your offer of moving on. As friends."
"THERE IS NO OTHER WAY!" Asgore exploded. "There is no other way out of here! No one can help us but ourselves! We have to do what we must to get back to the surface, and if that involves slaying seven humans for it, then so be it! I will not just sit here and watch our kingdom rot away because of them! I will-"
"ASGORE DREEMUUR, YOU SPINELESS COWARD!" she screamed. Asgore shut his mouth almost instantly. She was breathing heavily, tears blurring her eyes. "What happened to you?" she whispered. "The death of our children was a misunderstanding and nothing else." Asgore felt tears drip from his eyes, trailing down his face as his knees grew weak. "They killed them," he rumbled lowly. "I just want to make things right once again." He lifted a hand to gently touch his beloved wife, but she stepped back and out of his reach. "No," she whispered, shaking her head. "No. I won't let this happen. Over my dead body. If you won't stop, then I have no choice but to stop you myself." She removed the golden crown from atop her head, just between her horns. She looked down at it, grimacing before throwing it down and storming out of the room. Asgore watched her, not going to to stop her. He just watched the crown roll on it's side before falling over, right next to the only golden flower within the large room of grass.
"Thank you," Asgore rumbled with a smile. "I'm glad. I'd like us to at least be friends once again. That would make me happy." Toriel nodded and returned the soft smile. That has to be the first time he'd seen her smile at him in over half a century.
He realized it was long past the time his tea was to be ready. He looked over at Toriel with a smile. "Would you like a cup of tea?" he asked, peering down at her. The monster nodded and stood. "Yes, that sounds lovely."
And so, the two monsters went into the kitchen to serve up some tea, striking up a conversation with each other. He made it just as he knew she liked it. As it turns out, Golden Flower tea was still her favorite, too.