Hana: Heya everyone! Look! Another story being shared on my account...give a warm welcome to KayahDHorseMaiden (tumblr) who has something to say in this co-authored work!
Kayah: It brings us great joy to finally introduce the reading public to the first chapter of this amazing little fic, that started off from a silly misreading and evolved into something truly engaging. We'll start by sharing with you that originally, this fic was originally being written along with a wonderful fic writer by the name StarlightSeira, who at some point vanished from social media, under very mysterious circumstances. The story wasn't forgotten though, and after a long waiting period, we chose to bring it up anyway. It might not be the same without Star, who we miss very dearly and hope she'll soon return. But we still wish the readers will enjoy it just as much as we have while working on it.
Hana: Yeah, so here we are. We don't own Undertale, but BaeTale is an Orginal AU we created :) I'd say "enjoy"...but Kayah beat me to it xD
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Chapter 1 - The Gig of a Lifetime
Ding! Vrr Vrr.
She pulled the covers over her head in hopes of gaining at least a couple more minutes of precious slumber. A feat proven futile when her phone released the alert a second time. It was the familiar notification jingle that everyone in Ebott knew well. One which the young adult was only barely starting to curse in her fading dreamworld. It was common to hear the chime in the waking hours for most citizens, at least to those who followed certain people who always seemed to post right on the dot.
Amongst them, Frisk, who softly groaned at yet another alert, was now awake by the combination of the sound of her phone, and the sunlight that was now pouring through the curtains of her bedroom window. The morning sun was being filtered by the light colors of the thin fabric, otherwise tainting her room in soft warm shades.
Peeking from beneath her duvet, Frisk saw the dust particles floating in the sunbeams, it brought a smile to her face as she pondered on going back to sleep.
Ding! Vrr Vrr
Her phone made the choice for her, it seemed.
Aaagh… alright, I'll get up then. Frisk protested in her thoughts. Shoving her blanket off her torso, the warm fabric piled at her lap, as she set herself in a sitting position on her bed and stretching out to greet the new day.
Like the majority of the population, the first thing Frisk did before stepping out of bed was check her phone for any notifications on Gram. Much as she thought, yes, there were a few.
Gram was the end all be all phone application that everyone in Ebott used, people posted pictures, videos, livestreams, job adverts; many lived off of brand deals thanks to it, others just used it to be in touch with the whole world, and others used it as a journal.
In the case of Frisk, she used it to keep in touch with some friends, some people she look up to, and to keep her own personal scrapbook of art. She didn't mind much about filters or all that 'over-the-top' noise about how extreme or glamorous your life had to be to rack up the likes or follows. She was more interested on what looked natural. If something caught her eye, she'd record or photograph it and save it, special simple little moments, such as the one she saw upon waking up that morning.
Frisk took the opportunity to hold up her phone and capture the view of the sunlight coming through her window, she waited a little while to make sure the moment was right, and click! "So pretty," she mumbled, then wrote a simple caption under the photo and uploaded it to her feed.
Frisk slid off her bed, to make her way to the kitchen, scrolling through the small list of updates that she had between the night before and this morning, the most recent one being of Undyne, with the caption "Off to a morning jog! #nobreaks!". The photograph showed one of Frisk's housemate's favorite jogging paths, it crossed the park on a part where the willows were big and their long branches gave you the impression they were like waterfalls, especially under the dark blue shades that you'd get from those scarce minutes just before the sun breaks through the horizon.
If she's off to a jog, she'll come home hungry, better make some coffee, Frisk thought, tapping the like button before locking her screen and started to prepare their breakfast.
By the time Frisk was setting down a basket with freshly toasted bread on the table, she heard the front door close, and the distinct, "OOH boy, that was a good run! Is that fresh coffee I smell~?".
Frisk made her way back to the kitchen to get the kettle, mugs already waiting next to it, when a tall and elegant fish monster, clad in tight sportswear, leaned against the archway to the kitchen and gave her a crooked grin.
"Hey girl, you got this house smellin' like a moondollar~" Undyne chimed.
Frisk smiled back at her and handed Undyne her cup of freshly made coffee.
The two friends then moved to their dining room and sat down for breakfast together. Frisk had been living under Undyne's roof for quite a while now, as she didn't have much means to live on her own, and Undyne had offered to support her for as long as she needed.
Just until she could get herself up.
Undyne was a well known celebrity on Gram, she made a pretty good living off of her sponsors and brand deals on the fitness and sports community; it allowed her to pay for her home and various luxuries, as well as supporting a friend in need.
Although it was well intentioned of her, Frisk dreaded the thought of being dependent of someone, she wanted to pull her own weight, be able to afford her own things, no matter how much Undyne offered to pay for the stuff she needed, or said that she didn't mind taking care of the bills alone, Frisk preferred to contribute in something.
They had settled on Frisk doing most of the house work, like cooking and cleaning, and if possible, pay off the lesser bills, whenever she could from the small jobs she'd book all over town.
That was also one of the main reasons Frisk used Gram, she really needed a job, and if she could get one doing something she liked, even better.
Undyne took a long whiff from the coffee in her cup.
"Ahh, when did I begin needing to start my mornings with a cup of your coffee? It feels like I'd have the worst day if I don't, haha!" she grinned, before sipping the hot beverage.
"I don't know, I guess it just happened. Any news?" Frisk dug her fork into the puffy mound of scrambled eggs.
Undyne looked at her phone that she had placed on the table. They had a rule that during meals, they wouldn't check their phones unless strictly necessary. She thought for a moment, reaching for a slice of toast and the jam jar.
"I hit a new milestone on my subscriber count; happened during my jog actually." Undyne spoke up, once her thoughts were collected, "I'm wondering what to do for my followers to celebrate, maybe do a giveaway or set up a meet-and-greet." She explained before munching down on her generously jammed slice of toast. "What about you? Anyone called?"
Frisk sighed, putting her fork down to reach for some toast as well.
"No, nothing really, but it's alright, we can always hang out today, it's been a while since you've had a day off like—"
Ding! Vrr Vrr
Both Frisk and Undyne looked at Frisk's phone, the screen was turned up and they could both see the private message notification stating:
"Unknown: Hello miss Frisk, I saw the adve…"
Frisk jumped off her chair and grabbed her phone, she gave Undyne a look as if asking if she minded, to which Undyne nodded her head then brought her coffee mug to her lips again.
Frisk slid her screen open and read the text message she just received.
"Unknown: Hello miss Frisk, I saw the advertisement for your photography services, and was interested in commissioning you for tonight, please contact me back at xxx-xxxx - Grillby"
"Well speak of the devil, huh?" Frisk muttered as she quickly pressed the contact number and scurried off to the kitchen.
The phone rang once, then twice, at which point Frisk considered maybe calling so quickly would make her sound too desperate, but it was too late now as someone picked up on the other side.
"Well, good morning, that was quick." the man's voice on the phone sounded like velvet in Frisk's ears, it caught her by surprise as it made her blush a bit.
"Ah, yeah," Frisk quickly replied "I believe that responding to requests quickly expresses diligence to any customers. Did I call at a bad time perhaps, Mister uhh...?" Frisk trailed off, cursing under her breath, shejust saw his name on the text and already forgot about it? Don't screw this up, come on!
"Grillby, name's Grillby, I was about to shut for the day, you called just in time." he stated, going quiet all of a sudden.
"... Alright, so what services did you need of me, Mr. Grillby?" Frisk managed to ask her possible employer.
"Ah, right," he began, "So, I am having this special event at my club tonight, and since I am one of the host's "people of interest" I can't quite tend to my social media, so I needed someone to do the usual, take photos, shoot videos, in general manage my account for the night. Would you be available?"
"Oh yes! Absolutely! When would you like me to arrive?"
"Hmm… Club opens for the staff at 9pm, guests and clients should start coming in around 11pm, so between those two would be fine. Expect to stay until 4am or later, and bring appropriate attire, it's a party after all." There was a pause as Frisk could faintly hear a long yawn and something like fire crackling "I'll text you a list of tags you can use and other information you might need, alright?"
"Yes! Of course, thank you Mr. Grillby, I'll be there tonight. Have a good day!"
"Alright, thank you!" He hung up after, and Frisk took a moment to process things…
"So~ how'd it go?" Undyne asked, startling Frisk out of her thoughts. Her next instinct was to spin around until she had taken notice of her housemate.
Having moved from her seat at the dining table, Undyne was now leaning over the kitchen counter, holding her coffee cup with both hands in front of her face, her smirk peeking from behind as she watched the startled human.
"It's just me, Frisk… well, what's up?"
Frisk at first glared at Undyne, then shook her annoyance off, showing her housemate her phone and grinning excitedly.
"I got a job!"
Almost immediately the two friends were a mess of excited yelling and jumping, it had been a while since Frisk's previous gig, and every new job offer was always a reason to celebrate.
"Okay, okay, so, who's the boss now? What's the gig?"
"Ah right, his name iiiis..." Frisk checked her messages again "Grillby! And he asked me to come to his club to manage his social media posts for the night."
Undyne's wide smile faltered a bit, "Oh boy..." she chuckled nervously "Did he say what the occasion was?"
"Hm, he said there was a party, and he'd be one of the… 'hosts people of interest', I don't — OH, he told me to bring appropriate attire for it."
The fish monster facepalmed "I knew it…"
Frisk tilted her head, wondering what had made Undyne react this way "What's the matter?"
"The matter is Frisk, my lovely meat nugget, you've just been hired by the King of Vagueness, Grillby himself!" Undyne theatrically waved her hand in the air. Frisk just felt more confused.
"Is...there something I'm missing, Undyne?" Frisk inquired.
"Alas, my dear Frisk, did he specify, what kind of party this'd be? A prom night? A fundraiser? A birthday?" Undyne let Frisk ponder on her words, watching fear settle in the poor human's face as she realized that no, he in fact, didn't say what the 'appropriate attire' would be.
"WHAT THE HELL DOES APPROPRIATE ATTIRE MEAN?!" Frisk shrieked.
"That is, indeed, the biggest fattest question, you'll always have in mind, when it comes to Grillby alerting you for anything." Undyne put her cup down, "But—" she moved around the kitchen counter to put her hands on Frisk's shoulders, to reassure her, "this doesn't mean you're in trouble yet. I've had my share of Grillby parties, and I know we can do something about this, alright?"
Frisk calmed herself down, nodding at her friend, "Ok, so what do we do?"
Undyne's wide fang-riddled grin grew, and Frisk's fears crept right back in, she knew that particular smile all too well, "Oh no".
"We" nooo no no no "goo~" NONONONONONO "shopping~!" Undyne threw her arms up excitedly.
Frisk's face paled, and she shook her head, dreading the thought. "No! I'm fine, totally and completely fine with what I have, Undyne! I swear on my teddy bear printed panties, I—"
"I'm stopping you right there." The fish monster interrupted, "Did you just hear yourself say, 'teddy bear printed panties'?"
"...n-not that I own any?"
"WEAK!" Undyne growled, "and totally pathetically unacceptable. No friend of mine is going to make a fool of herself wearing something that only idiot babies would wear." Frisk tried to say something, but Undyne had the final say, sealing her fate. "I don't think you're an idiot baby, I love you boo, but nevertheless. Let's go, shopping. Now."
She thought she heard her roomie mutter something about 'proper' underwear, and really, Frisk found herself dreading this trip more so than she thought possible.
It wasn't that she hated shopping for new clothes, Frisk did appreciate having more than one change of clothes that wasn't riddled with holes or mysterious smudges ingrained into the fibers. It was Undyne's personal fashion tastes and shopping sprees that scared her.
On a regular day, Undyne would mostly cart Frisk along to do her own shopping, and have the human give her opinion on any new outfit or article she was trying on, but when it came to get things for Frisk, Undyne would take the opportunity to doll her up, and she would be merciless.
"B-but, 'Dyne, you know I don't have enough money! A-and my clothes are perfectly fine for it, I-I'm sure." Frisk stumbled over her words in trying to convince the unpersuadable.
"Honey, I've got your wardrobe memorized, you need this shopping trip. Like hell I'll let you jive up to a Grillby party with any of that! As for the money, consider this a present, to celebrate your new job~" Undyne purred, "Now." she turned around to make her way into the hallway, "I need a shower!".
Frisk slouched, defeated "Well… better go get ready…"
. . - * - . .
"Alright!" Undyne said, as they walked to the car, Undyne was freshened up, and in nicer clothes, "So, check list! Do you got your water?"
"I do…" Frisk said, picking the bottle out of her purse, and then replacing it.
"Meds?"
"I'd be crazy not to have them…" The human female muttered, tapping the outer pocket of her bag. It was small, so she knew she wouldn't lose the container.
"Awesome! Wallet? ID? Keys? Phone? All that important, but not really too important to you stuff?"
"Yes, Undyne." The girl said with mirth.
"Sweet! Then let's hit the road running!" The two friends got into Undyne's car and drove through the city, towards the mall — one of them actually. The one Undyne liked for strategic reasons.
When you're as intense as Undyne, and you shop as hard as she does, you'll understand perfectly what kind of strategic reasons are behind this shopping trip. You wouldn't want to spend a whole day running stores in the heat of summer or freezing winter just to pretty much die on your feet as you're trying to find your way back to the car. No, that was a mistake neither of these ladies would repeat.
Undyne parked her car at her usual spot, thankfully today it was vacant, it seemed she wasn't the only one with the same idea of practical pre-programed shopping sprees.
"Alright Frisk, anything we can use in his very informational text?" Undyne asked, her eyes glued to the sight of the shiny screen windows of the mall, just beckoning to her helplessly, Frisk thought she'd actually start drooling at some point as she fumbled through her bag for her phone.
She read through Grillby's message, there wasn't much there besides the instructions on how to get into the club through the staff entrance, a small list of tags that referenced the club, and for some reason there was a small list of name-handles, of which Frisk actually recognized a few.
"I don't… think so? It's basically what he said he'd text me with, small instructions… I still don't know what I'm supposed to wear…" Frisk sighed "I also think he must've sent me the wrong text because there are these account names here."
Undyne's scarred eyebrow lifted up as her attention shifted from the shiny surfaces of her sacred temple of over-priced goodies, to look over at Frisk's phone.
"Could you read some of them for me?"
"Uhmm, alright? There's Gee Necrotine, Just Desserts? Wow some creative names here haha, hmm..." Frisk kept scrolling "oh my gosh, Mettaton's handle is here, why is Mettaton's handle here? What kind of party is this Undyne?"
Undyne tapped her steering wheel calmly "The way I see it, a pretty big Gram party, and a mixer too, who else is there?"
"Hmm, let's see, there's a few more… there's this getbonedon underlined?"
At that Undyne groaned loudly, which made Frisk jerk in her seat "What's wrong?!"
"It's nothing, except that…"
"Yes?"
"We're losing daylight and the stores are begging me to come in, Friiisk~!" The fish monster theatrically whined. "Plus! We do need to get you some shiny new duds~"
"...I'll willingly follow along, try on as many god damn outfits as you want me to, but only if you tell me what I'm up against at this whole crazy shebang."
"You drive a hard bargain, madam… a damn hard bargain…" Undyne mused, her grin impossibly wide, "Can't go back on your word, got that?"
"...fine." Frisk said, holding out her hand, and praying to herself she wouldn't regret this later.
Cackling to herself, the fish monster took the offered hand, in a firm and steely grip. "Let's go!"
She took it back. The human already regretted her choice.
"Alright," Undyne opened her car door and hopped out, "So what's bothering me the most as of now is that you just basically read to me, out loud, most of Gram's S-listers. It's not a reason to fret over, I just know a couple of them personally and…" She paused to think on her words carefully. "I mean, if you're going to document the party, there's hardly any chance you'll have to deal with them directly, right?" She glanced at Frisk, who had only just started getting out of the car herself.
"Yeah, I'm sure you'll be fine," She began to explain as they made their way to the entrance of the building, "I don't think any of them would bother with troubling you while they're having their fun." She grinned.
"O-okay. So… Why aren't you listed in as well?"
"That's," Undyne sighed, waiting for the automatic doors to slide open for them, "Well, I don't usually play nice with some of them, especially him…"
"Him?"
"Don't worry about it." Undyne waved her hand at the thought, "Anyway, since we kind of butt heads, it's been decided it'd be best not to have us coexist in the same venues, or parties at that, for public safety purposes." She winked at Frisk. "Oh, let's go in here first, they got some very nice choices here."
"What place—AH! UNDYNE!" Her friend had dragged her into a store that gave off an almost edgy vibe, full of graphic tees, and the odd anime merch that may or may not have been stolen from artists. Undyne looked at each Tee's design, taking in what appeared to be 'in', or at the very least what people in the more edgy side of things preferred.
They browsed around for almost half an hour, before Frisk decided to get a shirt that caught her eye. Whether or not Undyne noticed, she wasn't exactly sure.
"Next store!" Undyne yelled, some minor purchases already in hand, grabbing hold of Frisk, who just barely managed to take her bag from the clerk.
She didn't miss the pitying look the girl gave her...or was it amusement? It wasn't easy to tell when you were being dragged along faster than you could run.
The red-headed monster soon found her next target, only to growl in annoyance when she found a barrier with some models and the bold text saying 'coming soon!' "Are you kidding me?! They were open just last week!"
"...wasn't this one of your normal haunts?"
"Yes. It was." Frisk was more than certain Undyne might strangle someone if she ever found who or what was the reason for closing her favorite store in the mall…
"So… about the other Grammers?" Frisk asked in hopes of calming her friend down, and to keep her end of the bargain. She began to move her friend away from the barrier she was glaring at.
"Hm? Oh right! What would you like to know?"
"Well, what can you tell me about…" Frisk scrolled through her phone again "Okay, what can you tell me about Gee… G!Necrotine?"
Quirking a brow, Undyne's face became thoughtful, "Well, he goes by G. And if you ever learn his name, avoid using it, it's not a good idea to get on his bad side. He basically runs the Goth underworld in the city, all that is edgy and melodramatic, his department." Undyne crossed her arms, closing her eyes for a brief moment, before glancing over to Frisk, "I wouldn't want to mess with him unless strictly necessary, but then again, he keeps to himself a lot so don't worry."
"Ah...okay…" Frisk quickly checked through Gram for G!Necrotine's handle. Posts seemed to be made in sets. A lot of them were about a downtown club she had heard before but didn't really catch her attention. There were pictures and videos of said club's late night activities, sometimes stunning expensive looking cars, a couple of neons. There was also a lot of advertising for a plethora of clothing lines of the gothic genre.
Wow, he's got more going on than Undyne Frisk thought.
There was also a small counter on the top corner of his page, it was counting down, but Frisk had no idea what for.
By this time Frisk lifted her eyes from her phone and realized they were at a makeup store and Undyne was checking a monster line of foundation cream on her chest.
"I guess I'll ask you about Grillby now? Do you know anything else about him?"
"Well, aside from the vagueness, he's a pretty chill dude." Stated the fish woman once more, "You'll like him. He works too hard though, and don't expect him to take sides if something comes up, he has this whole thing about avoiding being involved in any form of conflict." She capped the sampler and grabbed a sealed container from the shelf, motioning Frisk to the human side of the store to get something for her "But he's a good boss, I think you hit gold with him. Here's hoping he keeps you." Undyne chimed, then made faces at Frisk for her to mimic as she applied the samples to her face.
Once Undyne was done putting stuff in Frisk's face, she handed her one of the sanitary make-up removers the store had at the clients' disposal, and headed to the cashier. Frisk followed after, scrolling through LiveAtGrillbys profile.
Almost immediately she realized the club was much bigger than she was expecting, that is, if the videos and photos were indeed making a display of the whole club and not a bunch of different venues.
She wound up finding a couple of photos of this tall monster, a pale white and icy blue figure. In the videos his silhouette flickers constantly, yes, she was almost certain this was an elemental kind of monster, maybe a fire one, but he looked to be made of ice. One thing for sure, his voice matched his looks.
Then they reached another store, as Frisk decided to ask about the next person on the list, "What can you tell me about Mettaton?"
"Hehh!" Undyne snorted, and walked in front of Frisk, hands on her hips, sporting a look of what the small human of 5-foot-3 could only describe as a type of authority, "The real question is, what CAN'T I tell you? Mettaton is pretty much as their blogs show, glitz and glam, party and pomp, I pity their personal photographer. They are such a diva you'd run yourself up a wall before you could even hope to last 5 minutes working for them." Undyne made to move, and Frisk quickly followed after her friend, entering the store.
"But, on the other hand, they are really pleasant to hang with especially if you want to talk high fashion." She took a moment to eye her friend again, "In fact, I can almost bet that no matter what I put you in today, you won't be stepping on their toes and cause them to have a meltdown or something hehehe~"
"Okay…" That was more than she thought she'd get out of her friend on one person alone. Frisk was halfway done typing Mettaton's handle and her search option was already suggesting over 6 profile options. Maybe I'll check on you later...
"To be honest Frisk, I'm positive you'll do wonderful in there, most of the A and S-listers either stash themselves away at the VIP lounge to have some rest from their fans, or will avoid cameras as much as they can, you won't need to worry about them."
Frisk found herself releasing a breath she didn't even know she was holding, "That's… really good to know 'Dyne." She looked to her phone, and eyed the next person on the list of handles Grillby sent her, "So what about getbonedon?"
Undyne's smile fell, as she scratched her head. "That guy…" She muttered, busying herself with looking through the racks of designer dresses. She was taking longer and longer to answer Frisk, which was bringing the human's nerves back little by little.
"You okay Undyne?"
"I'm fine… He's one of G's brothers, but he's not as edgy, just… a bit of a character, I don't really get along with him so I can't tell you much more besides that, if you see him, do avoid him."
Frisk nodded slowly, looking at her phone again, now on getbonedon's page.
It was odd, usually very famous Grammers would have their faces plastered everywhere on their pages, his? Not anything terribly obvious. There were a lot of pictures of motorcycles, a lot of neon greens, videos that were most certainly shot at late night clubs, every now and then there'd be this person in full body biking outfits. This guy really liked his motorcycles… It unnerved Frisk that she couldn't find anything with his face right away, this way she wouldn't know what to look out for later that night… Maybe him being G's brother they'd look something alike? "—OOOh!" Frisk's attention snapped back into reality.
Undyne pulled out something from the racks, it was a strapless number with a corset bodice, and a flowy skirt with a sheer fabric that flowed along the skirt's length. The entire outfit was black, and Undyne's grin returned in full force. She shoved it at Frisk. "Get in there and try it on. If I'm right, then this puppy is so coming home with you."
The tag with the price was innocently hanging from the center of the neckline. Looking at it, Frisk nearly did a double take. "WHAT IN THE HELL?!" She exclaimed, "Undyne, I can't afford this!"
"Apapapahp, I'm paying, get in the fitting room!"
"BUT!"
"No. The only butt is yours getting into that fitting room and into that skirt. Plus, you made a promise. I tell you what I know, and you try on everything I wanna see you try on. Now march! Hup! Hup! Hup!"
While Frisk headed to the fitting room, Undyne decided to look around the store. There were a lot of promising items, but none of which caught her attention...in a good way.
Minutes later, Frisk emerges from the fitting room, blushing slightly. "W-well?"
"I love it when I'm right~!" The eccentric monster preened. "You're looking fine! If you swung for my team, I'd totally hit on ya."
"I thought I was catcher?"
"Yeah, you right~ A real catch, in fact. Guys would totally drool over ya."
"I rather they not." Frisk said with a grimmance, "That seems gross."
"And unhygienic, but who cares? You are fucking hot, and you gotta show it." Frisk wasn't too sure of that, but sighed, realizing there was no way to get around her predicament. "Get back in your normal clothes, and let's pay for this baby~"
(* - *)
The bag almost weighed heavily for Frisk somehow, despite the only thing in there being a dress...a very expensive dress that would've killed her entire bank account ten times over if Undyne hadn't paid for it...not that this knowledge made her feel any better.
"Look at that drag…"
Frisk stopped in her tacks, and glanced at the people she thought she overheard. Were they talking about her?
"Like, omigawd, how could anyone dress like that in public?"
She was dressed decently enough, wasn't she?
"That loser ain't worth it, doll."
"Such poor form…"
"I wonder where the food really goes?"
"...sk…?"
"Holy shit, just look at how disgusting she is."
"Ain't no one gonna wanna a piece of that."
"She doesn't even fit in with the out crowd."
"What a disgusting existence!"
.
"Why are you still here?"
.
Frisk's head felt like it was spinning, the voices were getting louder, she couldn't even feel herself breathe anymore. Then the whole environment around her felt like it was darkening, was it that late already? How long had they been in this mall? Why are there so many people looking?
"Hey Frisk look!" Undyne's voice rang through the muffled echo. Frisk raised her head to look at what had gotten her housemate so excited now.
Her eyes came in contact with a giant poster of a smiling woman's face sporting the latest trend in hairstyles "you're too ugly for it", a short pixie cut with one long strand dyed in a neon color "you're not worth it sweetie~". The crushing feeling in Frisk's chest got stronger.
"Undyne no, I can't, my hair—" it's always been too wild and moppy, looks like a rats nest hahaha!
"Nope! You absolutely must, you promised, no ifs no buts no coconuts, lets go!" And Frisk was dragged into the hair salon.
To her, everything was happening too quick—almost as though she were seeing everything but it was still one big blur of color and sounds. She didn't even realize she was already sitting in front of the mirror, her hair wet, and her face practically drenched from cold sweats.
She could see Undyne next to the stylist chatting gleefully, but Frisk's neck was tight, everything felt so wrong, and was going so fast. Frisk could see herself shaking like a leaf.
"Please hold still dear." A strange voice cooed at her "I'll make you pretty."
"Undyne I don't feel so—" The scissors flashed in the mirror's reflection and Frisk jumped out of her chair screaming into the dark abyss she had sunk into. But no sound came.
Two hands suddenly found themselves on her shoulders, and Frisk's eyes snapped open, seeing the concern on Undyne's face. "Hey, there you are. Here, looks bad." Her friend held out a familiar container, with equally recognizable pills rattling within.
Still unable to speak, she clumsily took the vial from her friend, fumbling with the lid to the point Undyne had to open it for her. Frisk poured out three pills, and quickly ingested them. Undyne then handed her the water bottle that Frisk always carried around, which she drank from just as fast, nearly choking herself.
"Frisk I am so sorry, I got too carried away."
"It's… I'm fine Undyne, I'm just tired…" The human said, truly exhausted. "Guess I forgot to take them." Frisk pointed at her pill case and smiled sheepishly.
"We can go home now, I can help you style your hair, we don't have to cut it if the blades are too much."
"N-no, I… I want to try..." Frisk paused for breath, "I need to face this anyway, so… Stay with me?"
"Of course," Undyne pat Frisk's head, "What style do you want?"
"The one on the poster was pretty..."
"You sure?"
Frisk nodded "I want it neon pink."
Undyne slowly drew a grin to her face, "Alright, I think it's gonna look Amazing on you."
The following hour was spent between the two friends talking to each other and the stylist about anything that could whisk Frisk's attention away from worrying about the trimming scissors, stuff like her scrapbook journals, and how much of a pity it was for Frisk to let go of so much hair, but then again, a pixie cut would indeed do wonders to her overall looks.
Frisk watched as her locks were steadily chopped off and would fall gently to the floor around her, she'd still wince every time she saw the scissors come a bit too close to her head. To which the stylist pulled out an electric razor and showed Frisk there was no danger of getting cut from it, by pushing the cutting end to her palm, although this was a macabre way to prove a point, it was effective. Frisk's scalp tickled from it, it hadn't ever been this exposed to the elements, so it was a bit sensitive.
With her hair chopped off, the time came to dye the long loose strand at Frisk's right side.
For this, a different stylist was called over, of monster kin actually, he held Frisk's strand gently in his palms as magic sparks flickered off of them. Frisk was ready to jump off her seat again in a panic until she realized the worst she was getting from it was a mild itch on the side of her head, and she watched in awe through the mirror, how her hair slowly paled into white, and then gained a vibrant pink glow in the span of a few minutes.
She had never experienced cosmetic magic before, and it was awesome.
After that, the two friends stopped at the food court to grab some take-away and went home, if Frisk was to stay up late, she'd need to get some sleep.
. . - * - . .
"Aww… those aren't the pumps I picked out for you." Undyne pouted, Frisk glared at her, as she crossed her arms against her chest. Of course they weren't.
Almost since the day they met, Undyne had always attempted to have Frisk try on at least one pair of heels. However, the human always outright refused to wear the leather based torture devices meant for feet. Didn't help that her personal equilibrium was so horrible. Even the slightest height difference managed to make Frisk look like a baby deer walking on ice.
"You know well enough, I will never wear high heels, no matter what, you can't make me!" Frisk snarled as menacingly as she could, which in contrast to Undyne, was as menacing as an angry kitten facing off to an unimpressed Rottweiler. "Plus, these look cute with the dress, and you know it." the human stuck one of her feet forward, making a display of one of her slipper-like sneakers, they gave her off a tomboyish undertone along with the very chic style of her black dress.
"Well, you got me there, they do look nice." Undyne grumbled, secretly proud of Frisk actually making an effort at having a sense of style. "And you'll be comfortable at your first day of work, so good save!"
With matters of attire settled, Frisk moved back to her room to finish packing up her equipment. She checked her camera's condition, made sure she had spare batteries and memory cards, just in case, and packed a second Lens, hopefully there wouldn't be any accidents that would require it, better safe than sorry. Frisk also packed up a thermos with cool water and her pill case, along with a neatly wrapped up sandwich, and with that she was ready to leave.
. . - * - . .
The drive to Grillby's club was impressively shorter than Frisk had expected, Undyne mentioned that, on a good traffic day, with no red lights, you could reach the club in 20 minutes tops, at least that was her record. Frisk mostly wondered how she hadn't even realized the club was so close to home… She definitely needed to go out more.
They hadn't reach the club yet and there was already a line pointing to it, Undyne suggested Frisk get off there and follow the crowd, because at this rate, Frisk would be late for her shift.
Agreeing with her friend, she removed herself from the passenger seat, being sure to take what she needed, and double checking to be perfectly sure nothing was missing. Deeming everything checked out, she donned her bags, and waved to Undyne as the fish monster drove off. All she had to do was follow the crowd, so she did.
It didn't take much longer before she found herself at an entry into the facility. The front of the building was completely overrun by humans and monsters alike, there was loud music playing, and a lot of cheering and screaming every time a fancy car drove up to the front and another famous grammer would step out.
Frisk looked around the entrance, the alley she was instructed to look for was narrow and dark, it made her a bit uneasy, maybe she was in the wrong place, the club's front was so big and bright, and this side was so bleak… Frisk was about to leave until she heard a door open behind her "You're Frisk, right?"
"Ah yeah, I'm guessing I made it to the right staff entrance?"
The young man smirked at Frisk and cocked his head for her to come in. When walking through the small door Frisk found herself pacing into a dark hall, and could hear the muffled sound of music in the far distance.
"We're all under a lot of activity now, so I can't really give you any briefings, just go out there and start doing what you have to do, if you need anything, come to the bar. Ciao!" the guy blurted out, as he made a sharp turn to the left, through a swinging door that apparently lead to a service kitchen.
Frisk stood mildly confused in the hallway, were the staff here also as vague as Grillby? What luck… She then began following the music all the way to a pair of heavy looking swinging doors.
This is it, she thought, taking out and setting up her camera, she thought best to get ready in that hallway instead of doing it in the middle of a raving crowd. She could only see lights seep through the cracks on the doors, it didn't help much to identify the level of unruliness.
Thinking on it, maybe it was best to take her pills now, to help her through the night, she was an hour away but already felt winded from the possibilities. I think I rather be safe than sorry. She admitted to herself, after all, a panic attack just hours before was exhausting all on its own. She doubted two in a row would do well for whatever mental sanity she still possessed. Taking her pills out of her bag, she popped three of them into her mouth, and uncapped her water to swallow them down. I can do this. I just need to stay determined. She finished her thought as she recapped her water, and placed it, and the pill container back into her bag.
Frisk took a deep breath, then pushed through the doors. She was immediately hit by a heavy waft of hot air and loud noises. It startled her, but she was expecting it. What she wasn't expecting was how amazing the club actually was on the inside.
Words probably couldn't do such a space justice, but Frisk felt she would be damned if she didn't at least try. Like most clubs, there were shining lights of neon colors flashing in time with the beats of the music playing. Looking to her right, she saw a bar with patrons ordering beverages and most likely rearing to get smashed. The wood paneling had backlight gleaming from beneath the finished mahogany top, where several empty cups and mugs were sprinkled among the newly poured, and half drunk beverages. Behind the bar was a wall-to-wall, and floor to ceiling shelf full of different brands and alcohol types ranging in prices from super cheap to bank account-crying expensive.
"How does anyone afford to even sell that stuff?" Frisk found herself asking in disbelief. Deciding to look around a little more, Frisk took note of the dancefloor that party-goers were currently either talking, attempting to dance, or just kinda swaying to the music with close friends. Smack dab in the center of the venue. "Huh...and they said anything disco was dead." Getting closer, Frisk did note that the dancefloor was basically a disco-themed floor that lit up and gave anyone on it a colorful glow depending on what color flashed below them. From the remaining three directional sides, she could make out two walls lined with patrons seated at secondary bar tops and drinks. Between those and the dance floor, were booths filled with different people basically conversing, and enjoying good company.
Then her eyes fell on a more high-end area of the club. It didn't appear as though it were overly populated like the other areas, there were very few people hanging around the space. None of whom she could actually focus on. As her eyes trailed up, she was soon met with the most breathtaking art she had ever seen. A mural that Frisk could see the night sky right through. Something like this had to be admired, and Frisk was determined to get that perfect shot of the current unsung hero of this club.
(* - *)
A man sat down on a comfortable couch, looking down to the rows of people waving and swaying bellow him. He had been there for only a short time and was already bored. To him nothing about this mattered, no one mattered, they were all just numbers… He was the only real one out of that sea of faces…
"Heeey baby!" a shrill voice called as a young woman jumped on his lap, leaning too close to him "remember me~?" she cooed.
The man gave her a sly smirk before answering.
"Hehh, sorry, I don't remember every bitch I fuck." Then he unceremoniously pushed the bimbo off his lap onto the floor. The girl yelped, glaring daggers at the man, "You can be such a jerk sometimes Sa-"
She was suddenly cut off by the man's skeletal hand taking a firm hold of her face, bringing his closer "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, what were you going to say?" he snarled.
The girl's face shrunk in fear as she couldn't bring herself to even look him in the eyes. "That's what I thought. Get." he ordered, letting go of her roughly. The girl quickly scampered off, cursing under her breath, but he didn't care, it was all the same in the end.
He went back to observing the dance floor, wondering on how smashed he'd have to get to make this night any less of a drag, but then something caught his eye, making him snap his neck to spot it again and make sure he hadn't just imagined it.
He saw a bright flash of neon pink slither through the mass of people, almost in sync with the music playing, graceful, gentle, he followed the same flash as it made its way to stand right under the moon ceiling, where there were fewer people and he got to see her more clearly.
The moonlight coming from above showered her in a kind of brightness he'd only expect to see in movies, it was out of this world, was anyone seeing this?
No, definitely not, this was far too real, sure everyone could see she was there, but no one was looking at her, only him. The man stood up from his seat, smirking to himself.
The hunt was on.
(* - *)
The word 'breathtaking' couldn't do the architecture any justice. The large glass dome was paneled with an array of shapes making a bursting sun design from the center to the edges.
Frisk gingerly skimmed through dancing couples and groups, careful not to disturb them as she made her way through the dancefloor, not losing sight of her objective. Until she finally made her way under the famous moon ceiling
She looked up and admired the work that was put into the structure.
The center panels themselves were a rich ember, that faded out to a crystal clear as it reached the ends. The metal framing, the painted glass, the perfect clearness of the center-most circles, it was mesmerizing.
Frisk brought up her camera and prepared her shot, something like this needed its own stage to come out perfect. She held it up for a moment and time felt like it had stopped, it was so calm now, so quiet...
Too quiet in fact, Frisk realized the music had actually started fading and the lights were turning down, not only that, she found herself standing alone under the magnificent piece of structural art, and it looked like the crowd was staring at her.
Not good.
She hadn't noticed before, but while she was admiring the moon ceiling, the dance floor had actually, very slowly, raised a few feet off ground level, turning that section of it into a stage. Which she was on. Spectacular...
Frisk felt her heart was ready to jump out her chest when bright stage lights shut on beneath her, along with a thick veil of smoke that began rising from somewhere she couldn't quite tell.
"And now! Live at Grillby's is proud to introduce you to, the marvelous, the fabulous—" A loud voice cheered from the speakers spread all over the club and the music changed, as Frisk realized the floor behind her had moved and a figure slowly rose from it, enveloped by smoke and bright pink laser lights "the one and only~"
"METTATON DARLIIIINGS~"
To be continued~
... ... ... ...
As much as I need it, R&R doesn't stand for Rest and Relaxation. Leave a review and let us know how we're doing! Show this story some love by favoriting this work and while you're at it, feel free to follow this little project so you never miss a new chapter when it goes live! You can check out Kayah over on tumblr, and until next time, we'll see you again on...
BaeTale!