It was baking day. At the agreed time, Muffet had shown up at Toriel's home, with her spiders following behind her and Lovett running in front. Toriel opened the front door immediately.

"Come in, everyone!" she smiled. "Good afternoon, Muffet. I have been waiting for you."

Up the doorframe and along the walls the spiders ran as they streamed inside.

"Single file, please! No pushing!" admonished Muffet, grabbing Lovett before she could join them. She sighed. "I do apologise, Toriel, they're a rambunctious lot when they're excited."

"The ruins are usually so still," replied Toriel. "It is wonderful to be surrounded with so much energy for once."

The spiders spread out the utensils and ingredients they had brought. Toriel had promised to provide for today, but still, they brought what they had. They chattered excitedly to each other.

Muffet approached Lovett with a makeshift leash of spun web as the monster backed into a corner, hissing. Muffet, however, was merciless, and soon had her tied to the leg of the table. "Sorry, dearie," she said. "But we can't have you running about and spilling things! Look, Toriel has something for you."

Toriel offered Lovett a biscuit, the same as last time. The little spider quietened to crunch it up. Toriel gave her a gentle touch on the head, and then straightened up with a smile.

"Shall we?"

After donning her apron, Muffet tied her pigtails back into a more professional ponytail. To her surprise, Toriel did the same with her long ears. Muffet thought it was rather cute.

There was a slight problem: while the kitchen bench was perfect for Toriel's height, Muffet found that it barely reached her chin. The spiders, who of course had no trouble reaching anything, loved it.

"If I hear one word out of any of you," growled Muffet, "you're being fed to Lovett." She knew that they'd tease her to no end anyway. She heard a snorting noise, and whipped around. Toriel was covering her mouth.

"Would you like a stool, perhaps?" she asked mischievously.

Muffet decided that Toriel was likely the only person in the Underground whom she would tolerate such a comment from. She agreed, and glared at her spiders, daring them to make a peep. Toriel fetched her a heavy wooden stool. Muffet still needed to stand on the tips of her pointy boots, but at least the bench no longer came up to her chest.

She clapped her hands together. "Let's cook!"

"While they are cooking their brownies, would you perhaps like to help me?" suggested Toriel. "I would like to bake a cinnamon and butterscotch pie. It is one of the first things I learned how to make, and I should like to show it to you."

"That sounds marvellous. You'll need to talk me through it, though."

Muffet was happy to cook with Toriel. She hummed as she whirled around the kitchen, fetching flour and butter and balancing eggs, while the spiders ran in lines past her boots, not once bumping into each other. Toriel watched with open delight.

"What a useful lot to have in the kitchen you are!" she said.

Muffet giggled, and the spiders tittered.

When they weren't chatting, a comfortable silence filled the kitchen. Muffet felt very light. It was so nice to cook with everyone again, and with Toriel, too. They slid the pie into the oven together, which Toriel filled with magical flames at a snap of her fingers. She closed her eyes when its sweet, heavy smell began to fill the room.

"This is not only the first thing I learned to cook," she said. "It is also my favourite. I have always baked this pie on special occasions… when I smell it cooking, I cannot help but remember them all." She smiled, a little sadly. Muffet knew that that last remark could go both ways. She was touched that Toriel had chosen to share something she found so personal with her.

Toriel made tea for them all while they let the pie and brownies cool. They all sat around the table, Toriel and Muffet chatting as the spiders relaxed around their cups. Cooking required much more running around for spiders than for larger monsters. Lovett had been untied, and she was enjoying stretching her legs. The enticing smells wafting from the kitchen had been driving her up the wall.

Muffet lifted her cup to her lips, but paused with a frown. "You mustn't slurp your tea, Pewit!" she scolded. She gave the offending spider a stern tap, who hid contritely behind the cup they shared. Muffet doubted that Toriel had been able to hear them, but manners were manners, after all. Toriel, of course, had whispered to the spider that it was perfectly alright while pretending to hide from Muffet behind her hand.

Soon after finishing their tea, it was time to plate up. The spiders sliced the brownies into squares, with three of them carrying the oversized knife at once. Toriel and Muffet began slicing the pie.

Spiders might have enjoyed playing about, but they took serving guests very seriously. A couple of them carefully dusted their work with icing sugar and presented the plate to Toriel, carrying it on their backs. From the perspective of one standing up, it looked rather like a plate of brownies had sprouted tiny legs and had taken to running across the floor.

"They'd like you to try it first, dearie," said Muffet. "They insist."

The spiders struggled to maintain their composure when Toriel bit into a piece and looked confused at their crunch. It seemed that no matter how serious they were, there was no sparing their guests of some particular pranks. Muffet was going to have a word with them, later.

Sooner than anyone would have liked, it was time to depart. It was rather late, and naturally Toriel wasn't as much one for the nighttime as the spiders were. After many farewells, they set off, Muffet carefully carrying most of a warm pie wrapped in a tea towel.


Muffet began to visit Toriel more often. There were some weeks where she would drop by every day, for anything from a quick hello to chatting for hours. Sometimes she would take some of the other spiders with her, but usually it was only herself, Toriel, and Lovett.

Toriel came to see her too, sometimes. The spiders would always see her coming from their webs and rush to inform Muffet. They would sit and talk, or go for walks together. Muffet showed her to her favourite places for catching insects to eat, and the next time she visited, Toriel brought a fine bug catching net. Muffet asked her why she had it, and Toriel had replied that it had belonged to one of her children.

She didn't eat the insects she caught like Muffet did, of course, but Toriel found that she enjoyed bug catching. She would spend a moment watching it scuttle or buzz around the net, then let it go free (or give it to Muffet if it was one she fancied, who would pop it into her mouth behind a politely raised hand). Instead of cooking, they would occasionally schedule little bug catching outings. Those days were quite peaceful, spent in companionable silence.

Similarly, Toriel began to occasionally allow Muffet to accompany her when she went to garden. Muffet treasured those rare days, and committed them to memory. They tended to be the only times Toriel spoke of her children.

"Chara could be a difficult child," she said once as they sat on the grass together, watching the flowers sway. "They were inseparable from their brother right from the beginning, but it took a long time for them to trust me. When they first started to live with us, I would leave a slice of pie by their room every night. They never answered the door, but the plate would always be empty by the morning." She laughed gently, and her breath shook.

That had been the first time Muffet had dared to take her hand.

Months passed quietly. The spiders spread their webs. Lovett grew and grew, and became ravenous. Muffet baked, and hunted, and drank tea with Toriel. She began to forget to write in her diary.

Then, one day, while she was catching insects for Lovett, she was greeted with a familiar face.

"Napstablook!" she cried.

"Hi, Muffet," came that same quiet voice she remembered. "I'm really sorry it's been so long… things have been really busy at the farm lately."

"That's quite alright, Blooky. I'm just delighted to see you!"

She tried to give them a hug. It was somewhat like placing your hand on wet foam – if you pressed too hard, you would pass right through. Muffet didn't get it quite right the first time, but Napstablook didn't seem to mind.

"Gosh," they murmured, their cheeks a light red.

Muffet insisted on dragging them home, despite their protesting that they didn't want to intrude. Napstablook told her about how life had been on the farm. She learned that they kept snails, and all of their names. Napstablook told her a little about their cousins, too.

"They're both really great," they said. "You should meet them. One likes to sing, and one likes to dance. And I like to play music. We're like a band."

Muffet privately wondered exactly how a ghost might dance. This, of course, she kept to herself.

When the conversation turned to her, she told Napstablook all about Toriel, and about how they cooked and went for walks together.

"And it's all because we helped her move a few chairs!" she finished.

"That's so nice," said Napstablook. "I love it when stuff like that happens."

"You simply must meet her! I'm certain you'd get along well."

"Oh, no… I don't think I could. I'm not very good with meeting new people. It'd be too sudden."

"I understand perfectly, dearie. Another day, then."

"For sure." Napstablook gave a timid smile.

There was a pause. Napstablook seemed to be working up to something.

"Say," they said. "I know that spiders can't really go out in the cold… but winter's over, and it's not snowing outside anymore, so you could come with me to my place, if you wanted to hang out there…"

"I'd love to visit! But how long a journey is it? You said you lived in Waterfall, did you not?"

"It takes me about a week," said Napstablook vaguely. "But I usually just fly here. If we catch the ferry at Snowdin, it would only take a day…"

Muffet hummed thoughtfully. "A week as the ghost flies would be quite a bit longer for me," she said. "I suppose we'd have to hope for the river person to be there for us. If we must, we can spend a while waiting at an inn."

"Yeah!" Napstablook bobbed up and down. "So, uh, when would you want to go? We could leave now, if you like."

Muffet was feeling excited. She hadn't been on a trip in a fairly long time. "We could set off right now," she said. "I suppose I'll have to leave Lovett here. I'll let the spiders know." She gasped. "I must tell Toriel that I'll be going somewhere! Come with me, once I tell the others, I'll just pop by her house and let her know. You don't need to come out to see her if you'd rather not."

Muffet led them to Toriel's home. By now, it was as familiar as her own. She rapped loudly on the door.

"Toriel, dear?" she called. "There's something I must tell you!"

The house was silent. Toriel didn't appear to be home. That generally meant that she was looking after her flowers, and, since she had gone alone, that she didn't want to be disturbed.

"She's off gardening," she told Napstablook, who was poking their head cautiously out of a wall. "Oh, dear… Oh! I'll leave a note." She fished out a pencil and a scrap of paper from her pockets.

"Gardening?" repeated Napstablook. "Oh, yeah, I remember seeing some flowers, earlier…" they turned to face the opposite wall thoughtfully, as though they were peering through the solid rock. "That's right… she's with her friend. We'd better not bother her…"

"She prefers to be left alone to her garden, most of the time," said Muffet. She quickly reread her note.

Dear Toriel,
I will be out of the Ruins for a few days. I'm going with my friend from Waterfall to visit their home, and unfortunately they must leave right away, and there is no time to wait. Please give Lovett a fuss so she doesn't fret! I will be back soon.
Muffet~

"That will do." She slid the note under the door, then jumped violently, bumping her head.

"What did you just say?"

"I said, Toriel's at the garden with her friend," said Napstablook, startled. "Sorry, is that weird? I can't actually see through walls, I can just sense where people are…"

"No, no," interrupted Muffet. "That's alright. But it's impossible for someone to be with her. She'd have told me by now if there was anyone else in the Ruins she would show her flowerbed to."

Napstablook looked at her curiously, then back to the wall. "Oh, you're right," they said, sounding a little embarrassed. "She really is alone… I must have got confused. Sorry…"

"Never mind that, Blooky! There was no harm done. Now, shall we be off?"

"Yeah, let's go. I know a shortcut out of here, follow me…"

Napstablook's shortcut was little more than a small gap in the Ruins wall where the bricks had fallen apart. Napstablook drifted through the wall absentmindedly, while Muffet wriggled her way through. Napstablook was right; the air may have been a little too brisk for her liking, but the temperature was more than tolerable, and there was little snow to be seen. She was glad to be wearing extra layers, though.

Their walk through the Snowdin woods was uneventful. Small monsters that ordinarily might have attacked passers-by scattered at the sight of a spider queen and a ghost travelling side by side. They talked comfortably, and pointed out pretty dew-laden tree branches to each other.

Monsters gave them curious looks as they passed through Snowdin. Muffet pulled Napstablook into a pastry shop for something to eat. A huge, rotund monster covered in yellow scales greeted them from behind the counter, his wings flaring in surprise.

"Well, bless me!" he said, squinting at the unlikely pair. "I've not seen you two 'round here before!"

"We're just passing through," said Muffet politely. "We're on our way to Waterfall."

"Waterfall, eh? Well, here's hoping that the old river person stops by. Hah hah hah!"

After asking Napstablook if they'd like something (they did not), Muffet bought a spinach roll. She munched on it as they continued to walk down the street. To her relief, the river person was indeed waiting on their boat for someone to ask for a ride. She hated staying at inns.

"I am the river person," they announced. "Would you care to join me?"

"Oh, we'd love to," said Napstablook earnestly. "We'd like to go to Waterfall, please."

The river person inclined their head. Muffet climbed aboard, and Napstablook floated beside her. The boat dislodged itself from its resting place, and began to float down the river.

The trip took a few hours. Muffet and Napstablook talked quietly for a while, but eventually fell into silence, and listened to the rippling water. Muffet looked around at the changing scenery with interest. She hadn't been to Waterfall in a long time.

At one point, the river person turned to look right at her.

"Tra la la," they intoned. "Your unlucky colour is… red. Or was it orange? I get the two mixed up."

"Thank you," said Muffet.

The boat scraped against the dark stones of the Waterfall riverbank.

"Come back soon," said the river person. Muffet promised that they would. Napstablook led the way through the darkness. Two tall houses loomed over them, side by side. Napstablook led them to the house on the left. Muffet could hear voices from inside.

"I've told my cousins that you might be coming," said Napstablook. "We never get visitors apart from Shyren and her sister, so I think they'll be pleased… are you ready?"

"I certainly am. I'm quite excited to meet them! But… Napstablook, what are their names?"

She asked too late, and the door was already swinging open. She had no choice but to follow Napstablook inside.

"Hi, guys," they said. "We're back."

The two ghosts had fallen silent. They stared at Muffet owlishly.

"This is Muffet," said Napstablook. "Muffet, these are my cousins. That's Hapstablook, and that's Tapstablook. We're the Blook family."

"Goodness!" said Muffet. "It's a pleasure to meet you both! I suppose this means I can't call you 'Blooky' anymore. I hadn't realised it's a family name!"

"Nonsense," cried the ghost named Hapstablook. "That's an adorable nickname. You may call me 'Hapsta', darling."

"And you can call me REALLY ANGRY!" shouted the final ghost. "Who the hell is this, Napsta? Why've you brought them here? You've probably scared off Shyren!"

"They've practically been talking about Muffet nonstop since they got back from the Ruins, Tappy."

"Do not embarrass me in front of guests!"

"Please ignore them," said Hapsta to Muffet. "Tappy's even worse with strangers than Napsta, in their own way. I promise we're actually very happy to see you, darling. Napsta's told us all about you."

"I see," said Muffet shakily. "Thank you, Hapsta." While Napstablook floated off to talk to Tappy, she took the opportunity to look around. It was a fairly sparse house, with only one room. There was a round table with no chairs, a fridge, and several radios and cassettes littered about. The walls and floorboards were plain.

While they certainly looked similar, she also noticed that the Blooks were actually much easier for her to tell apart than she had impulsively thought. Hapsta was somewhat narrower than their two cousins, and their eyes were larger. Tapstablook was the smallest of the three, and their eyes were closer set.

"Well," said Hapsta. "Here we all are! Welcome to Chateau Blook! Actually, this is Napsta's house. I live next door. You must have seen it on your way here."

"I did, but where does Tap – Tapstablook live? I only saw two houses."

"Tappy doesn't have a house. They swap between Napsta's and mine. Sometimes, they sleep outside."

"You bet I do! And sometimes, I-"

"Please, no more shouting, Tapsta," chimed Napstablook anxiously.

"Fine, fine, fine. Sorry."

"Tappy means well, honestly," whispered Hapsta conspiratorially to Muffet. "They're a little… abrasive, at first. But they really do care about Napsta. They get worried when they leave the farm."

"Is that so?" asked Muffet. She watched as Tapsta tried to argue with Napstablook about something.

"Why don't we all sit down, and listen to some nice tunes?" offered Napstablook. "I bet we have a lot to talk about."

The three ghosts floated over to the table. Muffet shuffled awkwardly. She had nowhere to sit. It seemed they really were unused to corporeal guests.

"Oh," said Napstablook. "Oh, no. I'm so sorry…"

"You should have prepared for your guest, you silly thing," giggled Hapsta. "Don't you worry, I think I have a few chairs in my place. I'll be right back, Muffet!" They darted through the wall.

"Isn't Hapsta great?" asked Napstablook. "They're always looking out for me."

"Hey!"

"And you too, Tappy." Napstablook had a tiny smile.

"Here we are," sang Hapsta as they flew through the front door, carrying a chair. "Please, have a seat, darling!"

Muffet thanked them and perched on the chair. The ghosts took their positions at the table.

Tapstablook regarded Muffet suspiciously.

"So," they said. "So. So."

"…So?"

"So. Napstablook tells me. That your name is Muffet. And that you're a spider."

"That's right," said Muffet tensely.

"…That's nice," finished Tapstablook. Napstablook and Hapsta visibly relaxed.

"I forgot to put the music on," said Napstablook. "One sec." They selected a cassette, and carefully loaded it up into one of the radios. Indescribable music filled the room, quiet and ambient. At first, Muffet thought it put her a little on edge, but then she decided she liked it.

"What is this called?"

"I, um, don't actually know," said Napstablook. "It's just some random cassette I found…"

"It's Napsta's own creation," said Hapsta proudly. "They made it themselves. They're so humble!"

"Really? Blooky, this is wonderful!"

"Gee…" mumbled Napstablook.

"I remember you telling me you liked to make music," said Muffet. "You said you have a cousin who likes to sing, and one who likes to dance."

"I'm the singing cousin!" proclaimed Hapsta. "One day, you'll be listening to me on the radio, darling, just you wait!"

"You might not expect it, but Tapsta's a really good dancer," said Napstablook.

"What?What do you mean, 'you might not expect it'? You saying that I look like someone who doesn't appreciate the arts? Is that it?"

"Oh, Tappy, you know that isn't what they meant…"

Muffet sat back in her chair and watched the exchange unfold. The Blooks really were a strange little family.