A loud notification jolts Aofil awake from their daydreaming. They take out their phone and grumble at the warning plastered on the screen.
"Your monthly bandwidth has been used up. For more information, respond to this message."
The music in their ears stutters and eventually fades. Why they didn't lower the streaming quality before setting off, that Aofil can't answer, but they can berate themselves for doing it. And they do. They take out their headphones while blowing their lips.
How far along are they now? Aofil drags the curtain next to them aside and narrow their eyes at the midday sun surprising their eyes. They wait for their eyes to adjust themselves before trying to get their bearings on where they are.
Green hills and fields of wheat is the only thing they see. Some houses here and there, along with a small town or so. Not much really that stands out or helps them, but it's not hard on the eyes, so they can't really complain. Could also be the reason they aren't getting a connection for their music. Either way, the rest of the journey is gonna be boring.
"Wow!" comes a breathy whisper from the opposite side of the bus. Aofil turns their head, and then immediately turns it back, "Is that Mt. Ebott? Where the monsters came from?"
Aofil only caught a glimpse, but that was enough. It's far away, really far away, but Aofil knows it like their back pocket, they've lived in its shadow for the majority of their life. Did the monsters build their town next to Mt Ebott? On the other side of their own? Didn't they want to leave the Underground behind? Didn't they shut down the CORE? What else is there left in that area for them? The color on Aofil's face drains, so much so that they become light headed.
Did the monsters find their summer home?
Oh no, what if that's the reason? Asriel might've been able to let Chara go, but what about Toriel and Asgore? Is there another Above Lab? But why? Asgore has his son back, there's no need for it to exist.
Unless…
If Asriel coming back to life was possible, what's stopping Asgore from trying to bring back Chara? And that's why Alphys still is the royal scientist! Dammit! And Asriel is probably in on it all. Everyone is! Even Frisk! Is that why this is all happening? Is the interview just a trap? Just a reason for Aofil to get close enough so that they can replace their soul with Chara's? Frisk will be rid of them, and the Dreemurrs will be a complete family again. Aofil couldn't replace Chara, so they'll replace Aofil with Chara!
The bus makes a sharp turn, away from the mountain, and Aofil feels blood returning to their head. The rushing sound echoes in their ears, and a wave of sickness washes over them. Aofil looks at the reflection of their eyes in the screen of their phone.
A faint red. Their cheeks are a bit hot as well.
Must be all these monster sitting around them. Good thing Aofil brought with them their medicine. They take a pill, and swallow it down with some water they brought along for the ride.
They shouldn't really let their mind wander like that, but without music or anything else to distract them…
And it's only going to get worse once they're completely surrounded once in the monster city. So much can go wrong. Aofil has to keep their head level throughout not only navigating through monsters, but also having an interview with one. If they're lucky they can play it off like in their presentation, but even that gave them trouble.
The driver informs that up next is Aofil's stop, where travelers to Monster City are transferring to another bus. Hopefully it too won't be heading for Mt Ebott. Even with the increasing distance, the looming presence still nags at the back of Aofil's head.
They're going away from it, but it still feels too close for comfort.
"For anyone transferring to the Monster City, you'll be doing so from platform D," the driver announces as the bus slows down at the stop. Aofil waits for the monsters to exit before following. They grab their bag and head for platform D.
The bus there is human made, but the paint and accessories on it can only be described as monster like. The name of it isn't the biggest surprise either.
"Monster City Bus," Aofil mouths silently, feeling every syllable roll off their tongue. They're passed by a couple of monsters that pay no mind to the name.
"Excuse me," one turns to ask as it accidentally bumps Aofil's shoulder. Aofil puts up a reassuring hand letting the monster know it's fine.
They board the bus, and flash the ticket to the driver. She hangs on Aofil for just long enough for it to be awkward before she approves the ticket and smiles. Aofil turns some heads walking down the bus to their seat as they're the only human on the bus. They sink down in their seat, which is adorned with various monster shapes.
They're seated in the Undyne section, if the sign over them stating that this is the 'Undyne Section' is to be believed. Aofil leans out into the corridor. There's a Mettaton and Papyrus section as well on this floor of the bus. Aofil wonders who's on the upper floor, but not enough to go up and look. Instead, they lean back for a nap. A strange feeling washes over them though, and they open on eye slightly.
The monsters around them are looking right at them. Not many humans traveling to the Monster City? Strange.
"Human?"
Aofil opens their eye fully, "Hm?"
The monster opposite of them, a red one with a set of irregular teeth, "Your luggage."
Aofil looks down at their backpack, with a large chunk of textile ripped out of it. A sandwich is missing as well, "Oh."
They catch a glimpse of the monster that bumped them heading up the stairs at the front of the bus. Some ragged cloth and a packed sandwich is hanging on one of its spikes. They twist their lips, but again, it's not enough to get them to risk seeing who's upstairs.
It could be her. Aofil can hold themselves up to Sans, even Frisk, but not her.
Aofil nods to the monster opposite them, "Must've ripped it."
"I heard that there was a sale at the MTT Shop in the city, human. It's just a couple of blocks away from the bus stop. You can't miss it."
"Screaming pink and neon?"
The monster is taken back a bit, "Yeah, you could say that."
"Then I know how it looks. Thanks."
The monster's lips stretch, and another set of even more irregular teeth is exposed, "No problem. If you don't mind, may I ask what you're doing in Monster City?"
"Actually," Aofil runs their tongue over their lips, "I do."
"Ah," the monster bows its head, "Sorry then."
"It's okay."
The monster returns to their business, and Aofil returns to theirs. They lean back, and as the bus starts and the gentle rocking of the suspension lulls them, Aofil falls asleep.
"Monster City. Final stop," informs the driver through the speaker system. Aofil blinks awake as the rest of the monsters disembark. They stretch out the last of their sleep and pick up their bag. It gets stuck underneath their seat and the medium sized whole turns into a gaping one with a loud rip.
"Dammit," Aofil sighs, picking up the papers and food that fell out of it. The entire side of their backpack is missing. Useless. Guess they have to make that extra stop at the shop.
First though, they have to find a toilet, "Excuse me," they ask the driver, "Where can I find a toilet?"
The driver looks at Aofil perplexed, "Toilet?"
"Yeah, I need to use one," Aofil repeats.
"Um," the driver forces a smile, "In the nearest human apartment or workplace. Since the human population at the moment is so small there hasn't been a priority to build any public ones."
Aofil's eyes widen, "Do you know where the nearest human is, then?"
"No idea, sorry."
Aofil flies out of the bus with panic in their eyes, and everywhere else. They rush up to the ticket vendor, "Is there a human working here?"
"No, only monsters. But I will be happy to help..." the monster barely manages to finish their sentence before Aofil rushes away.
The city is beautiful, but Aofil doesn't have the time or thought to take it all in. They need to get it all out first! They navigate through the crowd of monsters with their slashed backpack in their arms, but there's no toilet, or human, anywhere. This backpack isn't doing Aofil any favors either, they can't move through the crowd with it in their arms, it's too clunky.
"Yoho, darlings!" comes a voice. It's distorted, like it's originating from a cheap speaker, "I can see that you're not MTT branded fabulous, like me. Why not fix that huge personality flaw by shopping here, at MTT Outlet!"
There, the MTT store! At least they can fix one of their problems.
"Welcome, darling," comes the same voice, but from another cheap speaker inside the doors of the store. The tone is patronizing, but that's to be expected.
"Oh, wow. Another human? Nice to see a new skinny face," greets an employee unboxing some wares two aisles next to Aofil, "Hey, Multa, there's another human here!"
Aofil's ears perk. Another?
"Oh, nice! How's it going?" nods a girl from a bit further into the store. She waves with a smile.
"Toilet!?"
Aofil's aware of the bluntness of the question, but right now they're too desperate to be embarrassed.
The girl beckons for Aofil, "This way."
She navigates swiftly through the customers and unlocks a door behind some shelves. Aofil thanks her, and proceeds to be relieved over the sweet relief of relieving themselves.
With a weight literally expelled from them Aofil finds the girl again, "Thanks."
"All good?"
"Yeah," Aofil recoils a bit from the bluntness thrown back at them, "sure. I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that not many humans come through here?"
The girl's cheeks blossom, but unlike Aofil, hers is from embarrassment, "That obvious? You'd be amazed how much you miss tuff you took for granted."
"I mean," Aofil tries to hide their emerging smile behind their hand, "I'm pretty amazed that you asked me how my visit to the toilet was."
The girl shrugs, "When you're surrounded by creatures that don't have to use it."
Aofil nods, still with a smile on their lips, "Fair enough. How is it living with monsters all around you?"
Multa turns her head to the other monster customers in the store, "I'd love to tell you all about it."
Aofil shows her their backpack, "I need a new one, you can tell me while I'm browsing."
The girl beckons for Aofil, "This way, then. They're on the other side of the store."
"How convenient."
The girl chuckles at Aofil's eyebrow waggles, "Yeah, I know."
"So, living with monsters?"
"It's actually not so bad. I have some great colleagues."
"We know," comments one without turning their head.
"There are some more humans already living here. Some are helping with construction, others are here for other typework, and others wanted to start a new life."
Aofil doesn't pry which one the girl is, no real reason for it, "So do you like, greet them in the streets?"
"It was common before, but now when you've had time to settle in, you rarely titl your head at them. It's just a part of your life now. Same thing with the monsters. When I see stuff hovering, being conjured, and heck, even exploding, I don't get startled. It's there, and it's weird, but it's normal to me."
Aofil nods, "I see."
"Man, I was really frightened the first time I got here. It's like moving to a new city, times a thousand. I had to tell beforehand that I was a human and that I needed plumbing. It delayed my move by a couple of weeks, and my friends still ask to use it when they're visiting."
"None of the monsters in my city do that, though perhaps."
"Yeah," the girl continues, "they have it by default. Then it became normal for them as well, I guess. What are they using it for? I've always wondered."
"Oh," Aofil flusters out an answer, "I've not really asked, I still take it for granted, so I've not bothered to ask."
The girl lips turn into a frown for just a second, "Hm. Oh well, guess I'll ask the next one."
"About magic, you don't feel influenced by it?"
Multa thinks for a number of seconds before tapping her finger on her cheek, "Influenced how?"
"Like, messing with your emotions?"
"I don't really know? I can definitely feel it around me, and sometimes inside me."
A monster colleague of Multa nudges her side with one of their claws while winking. She swats it away and smack them with a flip flop donned with Mettaton's smiling face.
"But I wouldn't go so far as to say that it affects me. Human souls are much stronger than monster soul, so. Anyways," Multa points to a rack stocked with backpacks, "pick whichever you like."
"Just, one more question. It's kinda personal as well. What," Aofil take a deep breath, "waht did you think about the decision made at the trial?"
Multa moves Aofil into the racks, obscuring them from the others, "I agreed with it. A hundred percent. What they did, they murdered kids!" she growls with a whisper, "But, doing horrible stuff is what we humans do on a regular basis. I was given a second chance, so why shouldn't I give the monsters one? I've lived with them for years now, and sometimes they're more human than both you and me."
"What if someone you loved was killed by them?" Aofil asks. They hear the pleading in their voice, and they fear that they might've overstepped it.
Multa debates with herself before sighing in defeat, "The opposite almost happened for me. You know the riots that followed the trial?"
Aofil nods.
"I was there, I was in the thick of it. We offered to be fair with the monsters, yet they made these outlandish demands, right? Or so, that's what I thought of it at the beginning. I was moved here for community service, and once my time was up, I found myself wanting to stay. It's pretty funny, actually. I did everything to push them away, but once I stopped to listen, I found out that they were good. They're not angels or anything, like I said, they're just as flawed as us, but we're on equal footing. We make mistakes, they make mistakes."
Aofil can't even muster a nod.
"What I'm trying to say is that maybe magic and science one day will mean the same thing? Maybe one day we'll be like we were before the Barrier. I don't know what happened to you, but maybe if you heard their side of the story you'd find something? What's there to lose?"
"My other arm."
Multa doesn't have time to ask Aofil to elaborate before they grab a backpack and slam the money down on the counter.
"Hold on! Let me ring it up before you..." the cashier yells as Aofil heads for the doors.
"Oh, deary me!" shrieks the speakers as a shimmering wall is erected before Aofil, "What do we have here? A thief?"
The field comes down as quickly as it emerged, and the cashier tells Aofil that it's fine to leave now. Aofil fails to thank them as they blend back into the crowd.
Why do they insist on gambling on other people understanding their situation? Why are they still naive about it? Aofil's the only one in the world, the only one ever, to have a situation as ridiculous, yet dangerous, as theirs. Of course they've thought about asking the monsters! Of course they've tried to stop and listen! They want to, but they can't. They are physically unable to!
This interview they're heading to, it's just a waste of time. Another of Aofil's attempts to bend reality their way. Another attempt to deny that they're cursed. If they're so set on leaving Tylior and the others behind, why aren't they doing it? Why are they so afraid of people not saluting them as a hero? Why are they not just cutting their losses, again? Why aren't they leaving behind what they promise themselves to leave behind?
They're just doing the same thing they did with the monsters! It's a damn circle that they insist on rounding again and again.
Taking the weight even though they know it'll hurt them. Not asking for help, because no one can help them. They're alone in this, yet they're doing it for others. If only they could have someone that could help them.
But doing so would mean reliving what they cast away.
Is it worth it?
Aofil doesn't know.
A brick building stands at the end of a raked path. Beautifully trimmed bushes and hedges stand on either side. Aofil recognizes the skillful work.
A large sign above the entrance informs the name with a gorgeous font.
'Above School'
Aofil opens the double door.
"Oh, you must be today's human teacher," smiles the receptionist, "Two doors down that hall to your left," he points with a tentacle.
Aofil makes their way down the corridor, deep in thought. What should they do? Are they gonna fail the interview? That way they can actually leave things behind them for once. They made a promise though, but again, it seems that it will kill them in keeping it. Maybe not now, but later, when they can't stand their own thoughts any longer.
"Forgive me, human, if you had to wait."
Aofil shakes their head, "No problem, I didn't have to wait long," and meets their interviewer.
No…
"Your interviewer called in sick just a couple of minutes ago. I just got word about it, and hurried here."
It can't be…
"So, it's a pleasure to meet you," a gentle claw opens the dossier, "Aofi..."
A thick blanket falls over the small room, suffocating any sound produced. A quivering muzzle is lifted, and even more quivering eyes meet Aofil's. A pair of spectacles is lifted away, as a disbelieving sniffle breaks the silence. The chair complains as the weight is lifted off it, and the purple robe drags on the table as it rounds it.
A soft blend of fur and skin cups Aofil's chin with the utmost care. Aofil wants to turn away, but the won't let them.
It's time they face their problems. It's time they explain it. It's time for Aofil to ask for help, to not bear the weight alone any longer. It's time for them to stop running, despite them sprinting in the marathon of life, their past has caught up with them. It's asking Aofil to come home. To come home to their family. They might not be able to replace, they know they can't.
Aofil feels the eyes plead to them. Plead for them not to give in to their curse. They can't do it alone, but they don't have to. They need a family to help them.
And that is the family they want to be for Aofil. Why didn't Aofil see that?
But is it worth it?
Aofil doesn't know.
Is Aofil ready?
They'll never be.
The fur on Aofil's arm is tingling, but Aofil allows the gentle hand to stroke their chin. They allow the tears to fall and stain their lap, and they allow the white ears to flop against them as they're embraced.
And then, the tingling stop. Gone like the wind. The worries, the anger, the fear. Maybe only for a second, but to Aofil, it's an eternity.
"Hello, Toriel."
Author's Note:
If you want, the One Falls anthology has a channel in the Fanfic Paradise Discord server ( discord. gg/sXVXy7w). I frequent it daily, so if you fancy, feel free to join. Be seeing you there!