"Please stay close to me, child," Toriel advised, "The ruins can be quite dangerous for someone as unfamiliar with them as yourself."
Day didn't need to be told twice— she trailed within inches of her guardian, eyes wandering the area with some trepidation.
The walls were made of dark stone, cracked with age and, in some places, spiraling ivy ate away at the crumbling rock. There was very little light: at corners, a small candle burned where it was mounted on the stone, only illuminating a few steps' worth of the long hallway.
Occasionally, Toriel would walk over to a wall, touch what seemed to be a switch of some sort, and then continue ahead unabated. Day didn't ask for an explanation; she was just grateful she wasn't forced to make the journey alone.
Once or twice, Day checked behind herself tentatively, half expecting to find some sort of monster stalking after them— perhaps it was caused by the excessively gloomy atmosphere of the ruins, or the fact that, given all she'd seen, it wasn't the most impossible scenario.
Day was suddenly stopped in her tracks, running headlong into an obstacle before her: Toriel.
She chuckled, "You must watch in front of yourself while walking, dear! You nearly knocked me over!"
"Sor—I'm sorry," she whispered apologetically.
"Never you mind, no harm done... though perhaps I could give you the chance to take in your new surroundings, as we walk." Toriel again offered a hand, and Day accepted it with none of the hesitation from before.
"There— now I doubt you'll get so easily lost," Toriel joked, glancing down at her with a tender expression. Day returned it shyly.
"Tell me, my child, what is your name?"
"... Day..." Her voice was no more than a breath.
"What was that?"
"D-Day," she repeated, only a little louder than before.
"Oh, Day! I see! My, what a pretty name for a pretty girl."
Day's cheeks burned—she sunk into her sweater, unsure how to reciprocate the praise.
"Very well, and how old are you, Day?" Toriel continued to ask.
"Nine..." she whispered, losing the volume from before.
Toriel seemed surprised, "My, you are quite young! Do not worry Day, dear— as long as you are with me, I will keep you safe from harm."
Day clung tighter to Toriel's hand— if that was the case, well, she wouldn't be leaving her side any time soon.
They crossed through a low stone doorway, and Day caught a glimpse of something odd in the corner.
Toriel had stopped in consideration, so Day took the opportunity to study the strange object. It was tall, light brown, and looked as if it was comprised of several lopsided sacks. There were a pair of eyes drawn on its "face," and it stared down the intruders unwaveringly.
"Hm… I suppose we could… yes, while we're here, it seems a good time," Toriel eventually decided, then turned to Day. "I have a task for you, dear, should you be willing."
Day nodded (she wasn't exactly in a position to refuse this woman), so Toriel explained, "Here in the ruins, you may encounter monsters who wish to fight you— as you've already learned— and should you not know what to do, the situation could prove quite dangerous."
Day was not exactly comforted by this warning.
"Do not look so worried, child! The solution is simple; all you must do is strike up a friendly conversation, and I will come to help you." She gestured to the lopsided dummy, "Here, practice on this."
She released Day's hand and stepped back to spectate.
... This will be… interesting.
Day approached the dummy, stopped, then looked to Toriel for instruction.
"Go on, dear."
She turned back to the dummy, then cleared her throat.
"Um… hello," she stammered, then immediately returned her attention to Toriel.
"You could do a little more, don't you think?"
She'd already used up most her conversation topics despite only having said two words, but Day continued nonetheless.
"Uh…" Day wrung the sleeves of her sweater, the stick still held tightly in her grasp, "H-how… how are you… today?" She paused as if expecting an answer. Of course, getting none, she continued the conversation on her own, "That's— that's good. Um… you have nice… um, n-nice… eyes?"
After another brief silence, Day felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Very good, little one!" Toriel congratulated, "Very good."
Day doubted this, but didn't say anything to correct her.
Their journey continued uneventfully… but only for a few more yards. They entered a long, narrow hallway, lit in a way that the exit was completely out of sight. It could've gone on for miles and she would be none the wiser.
"I know you must be quite tired of this by now," Toriel commented, "But…"
She dropped Day's hand, "I want you to walk to the end of the hall. On your own."
There was no further explanation— in an instant, she was gone.
"Wait!" Day blurted, hurrying ahead to catch up with her, "Wait, don't—"
Her pace slowed. Toriel was not there. There was only the empty hallway. She checked behind herself to be sure, but found no one.
Fear seized her once again, and Day started to shake.
"M-Miss Toriel?" she called out, then without waiting for an answer, repeated more desperately, "Miss Toriel? Where are you?"
The walls reverberated with her voice, and Day realized just how childish she sounded.
Do… I really sound like that? she wondered, a little ashamed of her shrill and whining tone, I must be really annoying to be around.
The back of her neck began to heat up, spreading to her cheeks, and a lump formed in her throat. She swallowed uncomfortably, then more resolute, rubbed her burning eyes with a sleeve. Toriel had given her a job to do: walk to the end of the hall. She didn't know why this would help, but Toriel hadn't done anything to hurt her yet, so she probably knew something Day didn't. And what was so hard about that? She could walk—she wasn't a baby. She could take care of herself!
Day set her jaw, and with eyes locked on the ground in front of her, plowed forward.
The walls felt like they squeezed closer with every footstep, hunching over to peer down at her from above, waiting for the opportune moment to crumble and collapse. But Day didn't let this stop her— she kept walking.
And walking.
And walking.
The stone walls narrowed, the darkness became thicker, the hall colder. Gradually, Day began to shake again. The uncomfortable prickling returned to her face and neck, the prickling thoughts to her mind.
Somehow, her legs pressed on almost mechanically, ignoring the discomfort of her upper half. Day focused solely on her shoes and the patter they made against the earth, refusing to slow her pace. At any minute, she would get to the end. It couldn't be much further now; she'd been walking for ages, surely it was only a few steps away.
Soon… it had to be there…
Then, the darkness began to retreat— there was a light up ahead. Fears now long behind her, Day rushed forward, an escape in plain sight.
And there it was: the doorway. It was framed on either side by a worn white pillar, which cast long shadows against the wall behind it.
She had already begun to leave the dreaded hallway in her wake when, from a distance, she heard someone chuckle and ask, "Aren't you forgetting something, little one?"
Day halted in her tracks, surprised. She spun on her heels to return— and stopped just short of ramming into Toriel for a second time.
She beamed, "Hello there, Day!"
"Miss Toriel!" She threw her arms around the woman in a grateful embrace. Toriel returned the hug without any hesitation.
"Thank you for trusting me, my child." When Day had released her, she continued, "Do not worry, I never left you— I was merely watching from behind the pillar you saw. But I did so for a very important reason: to test your independence."
Day glanced up, a little confused.
"It is not that I doubt your bravery, of course—" Day thought she heard a note of patronization in the way she'd phrased that, "— but I needed to be sure that you could handle the responsibilities of being left alone, even if only for a short time." She smiled, "I want to know that my child can take care of herself and not be harmed by foul-mouthed flowers."
The biggest threat in her life was now a flower— Day had fallen through a mountain and somehow still found ways to hit a new low.
"On that note," Toriel said, "I have some business that I must attend to, and I'd like you to wait here for a little while; the rooms ahead have more complicated puzzles that may be a bit difficult for you, right now. Is that alright?"
Day nodded, though deep down, she'd have preferred to stay with Toriel.
"Don't worry, dear, I have something for you." Toriel withdrew a small object from the pocket of her robe and handed it to Day, "It's a cellphone. If you need me, you can call, and I'll be here in the blink of an eye!"
Day studied the phone, intrigued; she'd never had anything like this, before. Of course, she'd seen people around her use ones that looked a bit like it, but… this one was hers.
"Now, are you sure you'll be alright?" Toriel repeated, "You won't be afraid on your own?"
"I don't think so…" she answered, a little distracted.
"Very good." Toriel passed through the doorway, and was soon out of sight.
Day almost didn't notice her absence; she sat against one of the pillars, flipping open the phone and staring wide-eyed at the bright screen. There were multiple icons and buttons all over, and she planned on testing each one.
I will never get tired of this! she mentally declared, eagerly browsing the contents of her new toy.
After only ten minutes, she was sprawled out across her back, staring at the ceiling in boredom. The phone sat beside her, idle.
I'm very tired of this, now.
Day sighed, rolling over onto her stomach; she was no longer gripped by impending doom, but then again, she wasn't doing much of anything else. And it was boring, to say the least.
Time dragged on, and nothing changed around her. Day had shifted positions at least six times, and found herself sitting crisscrossed against one of the pillars, chin in her hands.
Weren't there supposed to be monsters here? Because right now, the scariest things she could see were rocks.
Not long after this thought entered her mind, there was a blur in the corner of the doorway.
Day sat up, "… Miss Toriel?"
There was no reply.
She was sure she'd seen something there… were her eyes playing tricks on her?
After a minute, curiosity got the better of her. Day stood, picked up her discarded phone, continued to wield her stick, and set out to explore what lied beyond the empty hallway.
Thank you for taking the time to read! I'd appreciate any feedback you have- that's what keeps me writing! ^-^