Howdy! I'll keep this intro short. Here's the end of dump 1. Hope it's not crap.
Heh.
Time passes. You learn from Toriel about these ruins, about the history of monsters. About the genocide committed against monsterkind. Days stretch into weeks, as you use powers you've never known. Magic trickles from your fingertips with more and more ease every day, until the golden sparks of magical electricity you've taken to summoning forth come as naturally as breathing. You help her catch snails for her delicious snail pies (you were disgusted by the concept at first, but you've since adjusted) and learn more and more about magic and monsters. Weeks stretch into months.
At first it was a slip, but with increasing regularity you're calling her "Mom." Your old human family feels more like a bad dream than a past reality. You have trouble remembering your old face. For that matter, you're not sure if you want to. Month after month, you find yourself adjusting to this new form- and you love every moment of it. For the first time in your life, you're looking into mirrors and feeling satisfied with what's there. Not an awkwardly androgynous human that never fit in, no, but a blossoming young boss monster with a future ahead of her and hope in her ruby eyes. You move with an easy stride, loose robes billowing around you and magic crackling in your palms.
Despite all of this, on a frigid November morning, you find yourself thinking about whatever lies beyond the ruins. It's been a long time since your fall, and everything in your life has changed. You absentmindedly crack open a snail-shell with your fang, slurping out the delicious creature within and lazily discarding its shattered home. You know that you were sent to gather them for a pie, but mom won't miss a couple, right? Just a snack? You walk away from the golden flower bed that cushioned your fall (though according to your mother, it did a terrible job) and towards home. You've got enough snails. Ish.
Today, you're growing more and more restless. What IS out there? Treasure? New friends? Perhaps a way to shatter the barrier is hidden out there amongst the other monsters, and you'll be the one to find it. The possibilities torment you now more than ever as you trot down massive, empty hallways fringed by purple brick. Your wicker basket half-full of snails should make a lovely dinner. Your stomach rumbles in agreement with your mind as your paws begin to crunch through red, fallen leaves and your eyes rest upon the oaken door of your home. You settle one handpaw on the worn cast-iron knob and turn it- the door is never locked. Everyone down here knows better than to mess with Toriel's lot.
"Mom, I'm home!" No answer. You enter and quickly go to the kitchen to deposit your basket of snails on the white-tiled counter. Wherever could she be? You head back into the entry room and head down the stairs into the long, purple-brick hallway that leads to the door out of the ruins. Not that you'd leave, but… Padding along this cold corridor towards that door fills you with something you haven't felt in a very long time- determination. Not as much as you knew back when you were human, but you feel a pang in your chest as you consider your future. You're not a human anymore, so you could never pass through the barrier. You're, well, probably going to die down here. You think about Toriel's vague stories of "Asgore," the king of the rest of the underground. Six human children slaughtered. You might have been the seventh, but… You grin outwardly. Sure, it was unfortunate that you nearly died falling into a massive hole but you're okay now. You're okay.
A massive, purple door engraved with the Delta Rune, ancient symbol of monster royalty, stands before you. An ice-cold draft runs through the crack under the door and twists its way down the hall. It carries no smell. You idly wonder if there's any more boss monsters out there. Maybe… Maybe someone for you to be with? A blush colours your cheeks as you consider the possibility. On the surface, you never really dated, preferring your academics and writing to the contact of others. Down here, though, you're a new person. Perhaps… On another day. You cannot leave Toriel alone in this place- the other monsters are too afraid of her to keep her company, and calls on your cell phone are no substitute for person-to-person contact. You sigh and turn your back to the door, as you hear a creaking sound upstairs.
Toriel is home, and you're alone in the tunnel out of the ruins. This won't look good. You hear her voice echoing down the halls, calling for you, as you break into a sprint, bounding towards the stairs at the end of the hall. You take the steps two at a time and, out of breath, lean against the bannister and shoot your mother what you desperately hope will pass for a casual grin. She glares at you solemnly and makes a motion for you to follow her. She leads you into your own bedroom and sits on your bed, setting down a mysterious package beside her. You sit on her other side as she clears her throat awkwardly. "My child, I know what you were doing down there." Oh. God. You tense up and wait for angry accusations to fly from the monster, but are met only by a tired sigh.
You're reminded of the first time you saw her, same melancholic expression stuck in her eyes as she gives you a once-over. Her eyes meet yours as she begins to speak, softly at first. "On this day, one year ago, I found a young human lying bloodied and bruised atop a bed of golden flowers, being tormented by something out of a nightmare. On that day, I fought that horror off and carried the human back in my arms, broken soul stuck in her breast and bones shattered by her fall. I was certain that she would die."
Tears begin to well in Toriel's eyes as she continues, voice swelling to its normal volume. "But she did not. Despite everything I thought I knew, that human's soul persevered until they were no longer human. And when that former human awoke, they responded to the world around them not with the malice I had come to expect of their kind… But with love and mercy." Tears begin to flow from your own eyes, carbon copies of Toriel's, as she takes your hand in hers. She shoots you a wistful smile and laughs to herself quietly.
"And that young monster grew, not physically, but in every other way. Every day, I grew prouder and prouder of that monster- until I found myself proud to call her my child. But I do not think that title fits you any more, does it? You have grown. You are still my daughter, but…"
You wrap your arms around her and close your eyes, letting your muzzle come to rest above her shoulder. You can't communicate the joy swelling in your chest as your tears wet your mother's robes. "You are an adult now. These ruins seem expansive, but the more you learn about them the smaller they feel. I cannot keep you here, my child. Doing so would be a terrible crime." With one claw, she tears at the brown paper binding the mysterious package beside her. You withdraw from your embrace as she shakily brings something into view…
A camera, held as carefully as one might hold an infant. A dull memory resurfaces, of a spindly, furless hand grasping at its black plastic as another gripped the steel of a flashlight. This was your camera back when you were human. But now, can you even accept this? More memories come to you of a burly man with a thick, curly beard and a hawkish woman with bones that formed sharp, painful-looking angles. The humans who conceived you and many years later gave this camera to you. One of their only kind gestures to you- you cherished the camera immensely. Your fall had shattered it, but here it was again, good-as-new. "I have been working on getting this fixed for some time. You used to talk quite a bit about it, you know." You allow yourself a small smile as you remember your old obsession with documenting everything, as if the world might end any day. You suppose that your world DID end, in a way. "I had to work together with many of the monsters in these ruins, but we even managed to save some of your old pictures and videos! Aren't you happy?"
She pushes it into your palms and curls your fingers around to grasp it. "Go on, take a look!" Wordlessly, a press the camera's power button. It responds with a wheezing click as you press another button to view the camera's library. Most recent: a video. You click play, and a reedy voice blares out from the camera, distorted by the device's horrid speakers. "Th-this might be the entrance. To the, uh, land of monsters. That sounds kind of-" You pause the video, unable to stand the sound of your voice. Next. A fuzzy, low-resolution image of a human with her mother's build and her father's nose fills up the entire screen. You freeze up, clenching your teeth. You press a worn button with red paint on it, stylised to resemble a trash-can.
DELETE?: [*NO] [ YES]
DELETE?: [ NO] [*YES]
ARE YOU SURE?: [*NO] [ YES]
ARE YOU SURE?: [ NO] [*YES]
IMAGE DELETED.
The camera beeps twice to signify the deletion as it automatically displays the next image. Toriel looks over your shoulder wordlessly. You expect her to stop you, but she does nothing. You feel her chest heave next to you. This image is of that same human, standing between her parents. Her smile looks fake. You quickly scroll through the deletion options, saying YES as quickly as possible.
IMAGE DELETED
You scroll back to that horrid video, reedy voice still ringing in your ears.
VIDEO DELETED
And again, to the next image, two human children dressed as monsters. One is wearing fake horns. You scowl in response to its vacant smile.
IMAGE DELETED
More humans pretending to be something they are not.
IMAGE DELETED
A yellow bus full of vaguely-familiar humans, contrasting neatly with a sea-blue sky.
IMAGE DELETED
You hold your mother tighter, pushing the old thoughts away. You won't be hurt anymore. You're safe.
You're okay.