"Who the hell are you?" Undyne demanded as she stepped into the skeleton's house. The captain of the Royal Guard was exactly as had been described to Ryan. The blue fish monster with fiery red hair and a one-eyed glare to match was just a hair taller than him and she used every bit of it to tower over him. The monster wore a studded, black leather coat and jeans and her gaze was fixed squarely on him. Ryan almost jumped out of the window on instinct.
She strode closer to him, eye narrowing further with every step. Ryan shrunk under the gaze, his brain unable to process what was happening. Everything he had planned for was falling into ruins. He expected to be struck down at any second.
Suddenly a thought seemed to come to Undyne and most of her fierceness seemed to melt away. She still looked like she was ready to lash out at anything that threatened her – or simply annoyed her – in an instant, though, and the smile on her face now did not do much to comfort him either. "You must be the one Papyrus told me about. Ryan, right?" She stuck out a hand for him to shake. Ryan flinched back from it like it was a full force punch. Slowly though, once he realized it was not, Ryan took the offered hand and his own was nearly crushed by her grip. "You look a lot different than he told me, though."
Ryan did not understand for a moment. He looked down at himself and was surprised to see the illusion he had weaved was still in place. He almost let out a sigh of relief. He looked nothing like a human at the moment. Undyne was none the wiser. He still had a fighting chance to make it out of this alive. But he was not out of the woods yet.
Regaining as much of his composure as he could manage, he forced himself to look back at his nightmare turned real and smile. "Yeah, that's a thing I can do. Change how I look, I mean." To emphasize, he turned his hair to the same red as her own before bringing back to green. The monster looked him up and down and then nodded as if impressed.
"So, where is Papyrus?" She went on, previous matter apparently settled. "He not back yet?"
Ryan opened his mouth to say he had not seen the skeleton yet, but more noise drifted in from the still open door before he could start. "I'm telling you, I almost had that darn horoscope solved today!" Said a voice that was definitely the tall skeleton's. It was followed by, "Sans! Why did you leave the door open?"
"wasn't me" It seemed both of the skeletons were back already. Ryan must have been staring in the mirror longer than he thought after all.
No sooner had a shadow appeared in the doorway did a pale blue spear become embedded in it. Eliciting a yelp from both Papyrus who was walking into the doorway and Ryan who hoped no one noticed. Undyne went right into it, though. "Papyrus! Why didn't you introduce me to your friend yet?!" While she said all of this, the soldier ran over to the skeleton and grabbed him by the neck. She swung him around in a circle and tossed him back out onto the snow in the street.
sans, who was standing behind his brother, casually stepped aside from the flying form and went into the house. To Ryan, he looked as cool and collected as ever, but he saw the skeleton's eyes dart between Undyne and him several times as the monster walked over to stand next to him. Ryan tried to the signal to him that he was not found out yet while moving as little as possible. Likely, sans thought he was just panicking.
The two other monsters were talking over each other outside. Ryan could hear the sound of more than one crack from the skeleton hitting a tree. It did not sound like it was anywhere close to ending either. "you should probably go and break them up before the whole town gets flattened" sans told him as if this was all nothing out of the ordinary.
Ryan looked at the monster incredulously. "I am not getting in the middle of that!" He said back to him.
The skeleton sighed and went back outside. There was no indication that sans had done anything, the noise simply ceased. "So, as I was saying, this is indeed Ryan, the one I told you about." Papyrus announced as all three now walked in the door which sans shut behind him this time. "I would have brought him to see you sooner. But sadly he is actually awake during the day and asleep at night, so we don't get to hang out much. Ryan you look different. Did you get a new shirt?"
Ryan's eye shot to the mirror. He still looked nothing like he normally did, with bright green hair and giant red eyes. He was surprised that the skeleton had recognized him at all. "Yes, Papyrus." He answered. "That, and a few other things."
"I thought so." The skeleton nodded. "I have a sharp eye for fashion, you know. Now then, what brings you today, Undyne?"
"I had to move some stuff around, so we're having our lesson today. Get moving!" Undyne had the skeleton by the neck again and was dragging him back to the door before sans stopped them.
"hold on, since we're all here, why not make it a more formal thing. i'm hungry, who wants breakfast?"
Ryan's head whipped around to the monster. After all this time, he was still pulling stuff like this? He was about to say he had somewhere to be, but both Papyrus and Undyne jumped ahead of him. "Sounds like a plan. I'll go cook something!" Undyne stated.
"Nonsense! You are a guest. I shall do the cooking." Papyrus countered. They argued back and forth over who should have the right to cook for a few minutes before sans chimed in again.
"actually, why doesn't ryan cook? this is all about him, after all, plus he's been working at grillby's" Their fighting stopped, and their curiosity overtook their pride. Reluctantly, they both agreed.
Ryan stood in the kitchen still as a statue while the drone of the three monsters in the other room washed over him unnoticed. His head felt like it was tied up by a dozen ropes that were all trying to pull it in a different direction. He was caught in more bad situations at once than he could count. He tried to calm himself down, but it did not work. Instead, he just tried to focus on the most immediate problem. What should he cook?
Spaghetti came to mind first, but what consequences would that bring? Would the skeleton be angry if he outdid his signature dish in front of his mentor? Knowing him, he would probably be proud and give himself most of the credit. Still, it was a mine field he would rather avoid. He ended up just making a more suitable breakfast: pancakes, eggs and bacon, made solely using magic. He looked down at his handiwork and smiled. Toriel would be proud of him.
He brought the plates into the other room and saw that the table had been pulled back from the wall and they were all sitting around it. There was already more than one crack in the table near where Undyne was sitting. Ryan began to wonder just how long the house would stay up if she remained. The conversation died out as he entered the room and put the plates down on the table. He took a seat opposite Undyne, certain that it was not happenstance. sans and Ryan began to eat in silence, while the other two stared between him and the food. "What?" Ryan asked.
"I thought we would be having spaghetti. I was hoping to show Undyne just how much you had learned from me." He should have guessed. There was no winning that one.
"Oh, just eat." He told the skeleton.
"Very well, another time then."
The meal passed in relative silence, which surprised Ryan. He had expected it to be one of the most psychotic displays he had ever seen, but very few words were passed around while they ate. It was not until after all of the plates were cleared that the conversation began.
"So, Paps tells me you're good with magic?" Undyne commented.
"Not really." Ryan half lied. He still thought he was just getting the hang of it, but everyone else seemed to think he had a knack for it.
"I know, we should have a fight!" Undyne was practically leaning over the table with excitement as if she had not heard him.
Ryan shook his head. "If you're one tenth as good as your reputation suggests, then I am nowhere near strong enough to fight you."
"There's only one way to find out for sure, isn't there?" Undyne insisted. He did not like the gleam in her eye one bit.
Thankfully, Papyrus jumped in to save him. "Undyne, remember the last time you tried to have a fight around here? And how mad it made the king?"
In response to that, Undyne slumped back into her seat. "It's not my fault forests take so long to regrow!" She said defensively, crossing her arms over her chest. "Alright, maybe not a fight, but I want to have some kind of contest because I don't get what Papyrus sees in you."
"what's this all about, undyne?" sans spoke up.
The monster's fist slammed down onto the table, adding more cracks to its surface. "I refuse to believe this scrawny kid made it past every single one of the sentries I posted in the forest!" Undyne glared at Ryan from across the table.
"What? All those dogs out in the woods?" Ryan started, "They are…" Undyne's glare intensified. "They are very good at their jobs and were very hard to get by…" He took an awkward sip of a drink.
This time, it was sans that steered the conversation in a different direction. "didn't one of you say something about moving a lesson around?"
"That's right!" Undyne shot up from the table, almost taking it with her. She grabbed Papyrus by the top of the head. "We're wasting time!" She yelled at no one in particular before going toward the door. She spared one additional look to Ryan before she left. "We're not finished with this." She assured him before she was gone, still dragging Papyrus by the head behind her. The skeleton managed to give Ryan a thumbs up before the door slammed behind him.
A moment later, Ryan's head hit the table. "you're still alive. I think that went well"
"I haven't been this stressed since high school." Ryan said without picking up his head.
"so, when did you learn how to do that?" sans asked him once he was sure the other two were gone.
Ryan let the illusion drop before answering. He was already feeling exhausted from the concentration it took to keep up. Or maybe that was just because of everything that happened. "About twenty minutes before she showed up." He told the skeleton.
"Well, aren't you lucky?"
Ryan scoffed. "Yeah, lucky…"
...
It was a few days before Ryan built up the courage to go back out in public again. Partly out of fear that Undyne would show up and try to challenge him again, and partly just because he felt like he just needed a recharge. He asked Papyrus to grab books from the library whenever he could, though it turned out the place was mostly filled with books for kids or written by kids. Otherwise, his time was spent doing little more than nothing. And for once it did not depress him at all to be doing so.
"Can you really believe that other timelines exist though?" Ryan was saying to sans one morning. The two stood on the balcony atop their house. Ryan was looking into his drink as he swirled it in his hand. The monster had one as well. It surprised Ryan at first; he did not take the skeleton to be one that would drink, but he had learned long ago that monsters would surely never stop surprising him.
It was one of those rare instances where the two actually just spoke about whatever came to mind, usually about things more useless than those he talked about with Sallie. Ryan had lost track of the steps that had brought them all the way to talking about time as it always seemed to, but he was certain it had started with something to do with apples. "what's so hard to believe about it?" The skeleton asked him in return.
Ryan enjoyed talking about this kind of stuff almost as much as he did talking with Sallie. Plus, sans seemed more knowledgeable about this kind of stuff than anyone he had ever met. "Because I have a firm enough grasp on the concept of infinity to know that I will never have a firm grasp on the concept of infinity." He began to explain. "My brain is not capable of wrapping itself around the sheer immensity of the idea. And if you believed some alternate timelines were to exist, then would all have to exist, every single possible outcome of every choice by every person and particle in existence stacked on top of each other.
"I mean, imagine if you could see that. There would be an unbelievable overflow of information. It would drive me insane in an instant, I'm sure. Plus, how would you be able to know which is real, which is yours? How would you be able to tell what actually happened from only could have happened? Or did it happen? And again, if you accept that idea where everything has actually happened or at least will happen, then I definitely would go crazy. To watch everyone you love live countless lives, from the worst to the best; to see it all…
"No, I'd much rather believe that what I see is all there is. I'll leave the matters of 'what if' to the gods and my stupid anxiety."
sans said nothing for a while, and he finished his drink before finally speaking up. "maybe you're right" He said simply.
Ryan decided to shift topics. "You know, I feel like we don't ever get to talk much. Aside from when you're lecturing me, of course."
"maybe I don't want to talk to you because you're a dirty freeloader. ever think about that?" The skeleton's smile returned at the chance to poke fun at Ryan.
Ryan smirked. "You know full well I've tried to make arrangements to pay you guys and you've just dismissed it every time."
"yeah, because then I wouldn't be able to call you a dirty freeloader" They both laughed. "if you really want to talk more, you can always swing by my booth while i'm working. i'm not doing anything better"
"Yeah, but that's so far away." Ryan mock whined.
"speaking of which, i've noticed you've kind of secluded yourself these last couple of days. anything wrong?"
Ryan drained the last of his own drink. "I've been perfectly fine. What could you mean?" He told the monster, but he was not fooled.
"it was undyne, wasn't it? she gave you quite the scare, huh? yeah, she has that effect on people" Ryan stared out in the direction of the edge of town. From there, he could almost make out the way out of the forest. "maybe it's time you start wrapping thing up here, huh?"
Ryan sighed, turning his back to the forest. "Maybe…" He whispered to the air.
...
Ryan strode through town the following morning with a purpose. He had spent almost the whole day yesterday coming up with a plan and was now began putting it into action. First, though, he had to prepare. He swung his arms in a circle occasionally, savoring his returned freedom of movement. There had been one more practical application to the illusion magic he figured out. He could use it to hide his soul, and that meant no more bandages.
He had yet to actually go into the shop near the entrance of the town, never seeing the need to get anything from it. All he knew was that it was owned and run by one of Sallie's aunts. But, he figured it would be the best place to start.
The shop itself was attached to the inn next to it and looked much the same on the outside, but the inside made is breath catch. Shelves lined the walls and more filled up the floor, all of them filled to the brim with all sorts of things. Hundreds, if not thousands of items filled the place. Both things he knew and things he could not even begin to discern the function of, let alone put a name to. "Hello, how can I help you?" The monster behind the counter asked as he shut the door behind him. The rabbit monster standing in front of even more shelves gave him a warm smile. She was almost as tall as him, not even counting her ears and her purple fur made her look almost nothing like Sallie. "Never seen your face before. Well, feel free to take a look around. I've got all sorts of stuff here, even stuff that happened to drift in from the human world, if you can believe it. There anything in particular I can help you with?"
"Actually, there is. I was wondering if you happened to have… What?" Ryan stopped as he noticed the way the monster was looking at him.
"I know you." She said as she looked him over. "You're the one Sallie won't stop talking about, aren't you?" The monster crossed her arms in front of her and seemed to weigh him even more heavily. "I was wondering when you'd show your face around here. I've been looking forward to the opportunity to talk to you for a long time."
"Why's that?"
"I don't know what she sees in you." The monster went on. Ryan could not tell from her tone whether the monster had answered his question or not. "You don't seem like all that much to me, and I've heard all of the stories about what you two have been doing together. So let me ask you, what makes you think you're good enough to date my niece?"
"Date?" Ryan was taken aback. Where could the monster have gotten that idea from? He and Sallie were good friends to be sure, but the rabbit always seemed adamant in keeping it that way. He was certain she had no interest in him. "Sallie and I are just friends." He told the monster, but she rolled her eyes, unconvinced.
"Oh, please. That girl is an open book. If it isn't obvious that she likes you, then you must either be dense or dull, and you don't look to be either. So what's the story, don't like them cute and fuzzy? Play for the other team? Or are you going to admit you were lying? It's okay, I would not even think of coming between the two of you. Unless you did something to hurt her. You didn't, did you? That isn't why you're here, is it?"
Ryan could hardly get a word in to say anything and he struggled to keep up with all of the questions and accusations. When he finally managed to speak, his words came out in a jumble. "No, I didn't… I mean I'm not… I mean it is about Sallie, but-"
"What is it, then? Thinking of something to buy to win her heart forever? Well, let me tell you, kid, the way that girl talks, it's already yours. You could give her a pile of snow and she'd treat it like it was all the gold in the world. I hardly think you'd need anything more than that, but I'm not one turn down a customer. I could make a few suggestions, if you like. How about-"
"Speakers." Ryan managed to force through a crack in the monster's onslaught of words.
"What was that?"
"Speakers." He said again. "I'm looking for speakers. And some advice, I guess. Since we're already on the topic."
"Speakers? What to do you need people to speak for you for? Your own voice not good enough?"
Ryan took a moment to explain to the monster what speakers were, careful not to reveal too much of how he knew all of it and even more careful to imply that he had seen them used before somewhere down here.
"Is that what those things do?" She said once she understood. "I always wondered. Yeah, I got a few of those around here somewhere." The monster disappeared through a door in the back, all the while still talking over the sound of boxes being shifted around. "I bet they have all sorts of stuff like that in the capital, huh? That is where you're from, right? Oh no wait, Sallie said something about that not being quite the case. Oh well, it makes no difference really. The city seems like it gets all the best stuff nowadays. Not much tends to float all the way down here anymore. Then again, there is a town of fire above a lake of molten rock between here and there. I'm sure that dissuades a lot of travel. I hear their crowding problem is only getting worse too. Know anything about that?"
Meanwhile, Ryan was beginning to understand why Sallie thought he did not talk much, if this is what she had to grow up dealing with. Certain that participating in the conversation would only go unnoticed, he occupied himself in studying the objects that lined the wall behind the counter. There were several bottles and books, a few open chests, and many unnamable things besides. His eye was drawn to a scroll tacked to the wall, however. By the order of His Majesty, Asgore Dreemurr, King of Monsters, it read across the top, all humans found within the Underground are to be captured or killed on sight. They, or in the latter circumstance their souls, are to be brought before His Majesty with the greatest of fervor. There is to be no mercy for the humans. They have proven time and time again that they are our enemy and will forever be so. And they shall be treated as such. Below the words was a symbol, what Ryan had come to know as the delta rune. It was the monster's crest, though he never understood why. The symbol was made of three triangles, two pointing up and one pointing down, topped by winged circle. It struck a familiarity in his mind, one that made his mind strain to remember something, but he could not.
The scroll itself made him shiver. The decree went on to list a very vague and rather inaccurate description of humans as well as what punishments awaited those found to be harboring them. The rabbit appeared back in the doorway and Ryan tore his eyes away from the paper, but not fast enough for her to not catch him staring at it.
"Ever seen it real thing before?" I was just a little kid when the announcement was made. It shocked a lot of us. But after everything we heard had happened, it seemed the right thing to do. After all, were closer to freedom now than we ever were. It won't be long now I can feel it. I find myself dreaming about the sky some nights." The monster shook her head as if to clear it and then set two large rectangles down on the counter. "Now I really am rambling, huh? That's hardly important. Here you are. There's these two and I got two more in the back still. Will they fit the bill?"
Ryan examined them top to bottom. They were speakers alright, he had been doubtful for a moment. A little old, but definitely in working condition as far as he could tell. He told the monster as much. "I'll need one other thing too." He started to explain. "Another box, slimmer, with knobs on the front that most likely would look a lot like the speakers. It may also have been with them."
"I did see something like that." The monster nodded and disappeared into the back again, reappearing much quicker this time. She set another box on the table. "This it?"
Ryan nodded. It was all starting to come together. "Now about that other matter," The monster went on. "What sort of advice can I offer you? If I like your questions, I may even knock the price down a bit on everything else." The rabbit flashed him a mischievous grin that would have given Loox a run for his money. Ryan swallowed, wondering if it had been wise to come here after all.
...
A short time later Ryan walked through the streets with an even bigger grin than he had on before. The speakers he had bought were safely tucked away, and more importantly he had some assurance from the other rabbit monster that his plan would work. There were just a couple more things to take care of, though he still was not really looking forward to any of them. The next would be the worst, but he had to get that out of the way as fast as possible. The shop owner had agreed to send Sallie on some sort of errand so he would not be discovered. He had to act quickly.
He was torn from his thoughts as the wind was knocked out of him. One second he was looking towards the forest, the next his head was buried in the snow. "Greetings, strange puppy." Said a whispery voice he recognized. The weight that held him down disappeared and he was brought to his feet. As he had thought, it was Dogamy and Dogaressa that had knocked him over, but what surprised him was that most of the other dogs were there as well. The two before him had their hoods up over their eyes as they usually did and were only vaguely facing his direction. "The dogs request your presence, strange puppy." Dogamy went on. "We are having a dog celebration and all dogs should be in attendance."
Ryan scratched his head awkwardly. "Um, sorry. As much as I'd like to, I have something else I need to do that's really important."
Dogaressa seemed to sniff the air before her and then she elbowed her partner in the side as he began to raise a complaint. "We understand, strange puppy." She told him. "Matters of the heart always take precedence. We wish you luck, and will see you in the future."
The group started to walk away leaving a slightly confused Ryan behind. Where is everybody getting that from? He thought. The clock was ticking, the rest could be figured out later.
He had seen Sallie come out of the store where she and her mother worked several times, so he knew where it was. It was a tailor, if he remembered correctly. He had never been in it either. Sallie had treated that idea like it was worse than the dome falling on all of their heads. Now, he was certain he had some idea as to why. He swallowed as he pushed open the door.
A small bell rung as he did and a voice came from another room. "Just one minute." It said. "I'm a bit short handed at the moment. My sister came by and snatched my daughter away for one reason or another." A monster entered the room that, in almost all ways but the color of her fur, looked like an older version of Sallie. The rabbit smiled deviously as she saw him. He opened his mouth to introduce himself, but it seemed to be unneeded. "Well this is a surprise. Sallie was very clear she would never allow us in the same room together, and yet you came all on your own. I suppose that's why my sister seemed giddier than when she was a child, yes? And why she just happened to steal my daughter away before you show up? Then I take it you went and saw her first? Good. It saves me some trouble. So tell me, child, what exactly do you plan to do with Sallie? Careful now, answer wrong and you may find yourself lost in one of those caves you like to explore so much for a long time."
Ryan swallowed again. If he made it through this day, he would not be going outside again at all for a long time.
...
Sallie was not quite sure what to expect from the note, it was vague: meet me in the square, as a show of thanks. Nothing on who sent it or anything. The square in the center of town was dark, they had turned off the lights on the tree and somehow the absence of that color after so long made the place feel less open. She wondered why they would turn it off as she heard snow crunch from around the other side.
The rabbit monster jumped as she saw who it was. It was Ryan wearing a striped shirt as always, but he had a black button-down over it now. It looked like her mother's handiwork even from there. Did she have a part in this? Ryan walked up to her with that awkward smile on his face, like he did not know what he was doing, and simply said, "Hey."
Sallie's heart skipped a beat. She was even more clueless about what was going on here than he looked. Her head swam. Did he leave the note or is this just coincidence? Did someone put him up to this? "What are you doing here?" She finally managed to ask.
"I wanted to thank you for how nice you've been to me and all the help you've given me." He told her, his smile unwavering.
"Oh, no," she denied, "there's nothing to thank me for. I just did what any monster would do, really."
"Sallie, you've helped me through some tough times, tougher than you'll ever be aware of, I think. You were always there with a smile and a distraction right when I needed it and a helping hand when no one else was there. So when I sent you that note," it was him, "I thought I'd surprise you."
He clapped his hand together in front of him and the square filled with light. The tree came back on, its strings of color brighter than they ever had been before. They pulsed slowly on and off in random patterns that reminded her of stories of flickering stars she read about when she was younger. Even more strings of light hung from the trees and the buildings, all connecting to the tree in the square. She couldn't help but gasp.
He then waved his arms out to the side and from his hands sprung ribbons of light coalescing into tiny sparkles that hung in the air all around them. "Would you like dance?" He asked, extending a hand out to her. "Though, I warn you, I'm not very good."
Sallie was frozen in silence, though the night suddenly felt warmer than she could ever remember it being in the forest. Try as she might, she could not move. She thought it was because she could not figure out whether to take his hand or just jump into his arms. You're ruining it, you idiot! Just do something! Slowly her hand moved towards him. This time, he waited until her hand rested in his before stepping up so they were mere inches apart. With the motion, music began to fill the square and they started to dance.
Ryan had lied. He was very good. As the two of them stepped a twirled around the tree in their own private heaven, Sallie was able to let her instincts take over and let her mind drift. The light swirled in her vision and the music warmed her as much as Ryan did himself. How many perfect moments like this had they shared? If she went up to herself a year ago and listed all of the things she had done in such a short time, she would have laughed at herself.
The song flowed seamlessly into another, slower than the first. Their dance slowed with it. Sallie laid her head against Ryan's chest, willing time to stop. She was happier than she thought possible. It really was like a fairy tale. She looked up at the man. Ryan was smiling down at her the way he always did. It was a smile that seemed to hold his laughter and say "I'm glad you're enjoying yourself."
Without thinking, Sallie started her head up closer to his. She was sure her intent was written all over her face, but he did not pull away. She came closer and Ryan started to lean towards her as well. Their eyes locked; she was close enough to feel his breath brush against her face.
At the last second, Ryan turned his head. Letting her go, he turned his back on her as well. Sallie almost wanted to cry. "What's wrong?" She asked, somehow managing to make her voice not sound choked.
For a moment, he said nothing, back still to her. Finally, he said, "I've been lying to you, Sallie. I'm not who you think I am. I'm not what you think I am."
"What do you mean?" Could all of it have been I lie?
She heard him sigh. "I guess it's better if I just show you."
Before she had time to question what he meant by that, Ryan turned back to face her and lifted up his shirt. Beneath it, in his chest, was something that should not have been there. Sallie took a step back without thinking. The red, heart-shaped glow could only mean one thing: "You're-"
"A human." Somehow, hearing him say it only solidified it further for her; it made it real. Suddenly it was like all of the cryptic puzzle pieces slammed together. This was the reason he skirted around so many questions, the reason he was so vague about his past. He was not just trying to make himself seem more mysterious, he had been hiding this. "I'm what every monster hates and fears so much." He continued.
Sallie had no idea what to do. A part of her wanted to run, but she quashed it, hating herself for even thinking it. Finally she asked, "How did you get down here?" Her voice was definitely choked that time.
"I fell, some time ago now, and was lucky enough to find myself in the company of a monster who gave me a fighting chance. But it doesn't change anything; I'll never be able to fit in down here. And the longer I stay the more likely I'll be discovered, the more betrayed everyone will feel and the more trouble you'll all get into." Ryan turned his back to her again. "I understand if you hate me. I wouldn't blame you. I'll be gone and out of your hair soon enough anyway. So don't-"
Ryan felt something impact with his back. He flinched in response to an attack and was surprised when the feeling stayed. Arms wrapped around him and he could feel Sallie shaking against his back. "You're you." She choked through tears. "And some stupid light in your chest doesn't change that. Nothing will ever change that! If you meant us monsters any harm, you wouldn't have spent so much time laughing with us, helping us. And I'm sure others will feel the same. I don't want you to leave, ever." She squeezed him tighter.
He was shocked, yet somehow not at the same time. He did not deserve this; there was no logic behind it. Yet somehow, he was forgiven once more. Maybe he had been wrong. Maybe fate had something else in mind for him. Somehow, he managed to turn himself around while still in Sallie's arms. "It's not that simple." He explained. "I've lived this lie before. And not matter how monsters saw me beforehand, they still came to hate me for what I was."
"Is that why you came here?"
"It was part of the reason, yes."
Sallie pulled away just enough to look him in the eye. "That doesn't matter. I know the people of Snowdin. They'll come to see that what you are doesn't change who you are, I know it."
Ryan shook his head. "I can't tell them. I can't go through that again."
"Then don't!" She almost yelled. "It doesn't matter. Either way you have me." She put her head back to his chest. "You'll always have me. So stay, please."
Ryan wrapped his arms around the monster and held her close. He was not going anywhere. But he could tell her that later. For now, he was content to just stand there in the square, lights dancing around him, and happiness wrapped in his arms.
...
Things grew calm, routine; everything settled and the more it settled the more Ryan enjoyed life. He liked the routine, found happiness in the day to day repetition. His guilt lessened day by day as well, memories he pushed back stayed there and faded from his mind. So that on the day Snowy's father showed up one afternoon at Grillby's, he did not see just what it would mean for him.
"You!" The Snowdrake shouted almost as soon as he was in the door. Ryan had been delivering drinks to a table at the time. He looked up at the monster and set the tray he carried against the back of a chair. The monster looked ready to tear the place down around him. Several of the other monsters at the tables slunk away from the drake as he crossed the room over to where Ryan stood, an act that clearly pained the monster yet he did it anyway. "I am getting sick and tired of hearing stories from my son about how someone keeps filling his head with all of these nonsense ideas and false hopes."
Ryan decided against what he was going to originally and picked the tray back up off the ground. He walked over to another table and began to clean off the plates and glasses that were left behind as some monsters had run off when the Snowdrake had come away from the door. He purposely ignored the monster who went on regardless. "But it seems my son no longer listens to a word I say, thanks to you. So now I'm telling you, stay away from my son. Okay? You're a bad influence on him, and I don't need this getting worse than it already is."
Ryan brought the tray back to the counter before he started wiping the table down with a rag he kept over his shoulder. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Papyrus poke his head in through the door. The skeleton read the situation immediately. Ryan gave him a slight nod and the skeleton disappeared again.
"Are you listening to me? I said-"
"I heard what you said." Ryan told him, finally looking up from the table. "I heard you loud and clear. Here's the thing, though: it doesn't change anything. You have absolutely no say over what I do and who I chose to spend my time with. Just like you have no say in what your son likes and what he chooses to be in life."
Grillby had stepped up from behind the counter, ready to intervene if there was to be a problem. Ryan waved him off and the fire monster stayed back warily.
The drake's eyes narrowed, his feathers bristled in anger and he pointed a wing at Ryan. "Now, you listen here. I am the boy's father, and I will not have-"
"If you really were his father," Ryan interrupted, "then you would be encouraging Snowy no matter what he showed interest in. You wouldn't be tearing him down every chance you get and making him have to run away from home just to get away from your disapproval! He wouldn't have to go to some stranger because it made him happier than being with his own dad!"
Ryan realized he had gone too far immediately, but the monster had had this coming and he was determined to speak his mind on the matter. The drake's look flashed to shock for a moment before turning back into icy rage.
A spike of ice appeared in the air and flew towards Ryan. With a wave of his hand, the spike split in two and impaled the floor to either side of him. The monster growled and flapped its wings, jumping back at the same time he shot a blade of ice at Ryan. The blade evaporated into steam before it came within a foot of him.
Ryan saw Grillby move to jump in again and he put up a wall to block the monster off. He would handle this, and he did not need the extra risk to think about. Tying off the shield, he turned his attention back to the Snowdrake. At this point, anyone else that had still been in the restaurant to watch what would happen had run off. In the now empty room, Ryan sent a gust of wind at the monster in the hopes of knocking him out. Tables and chairs were kicked up into the air, falling on their sides and scattering everywhere, some of them broke and Ryan could feel Grillby beating against the invisible wall. The spell did not affect the monster though. The drake flattened its wings against its body and its snowflake crest against its head, using its aerodynamics to weather the attack. It dug its claws into the floor and slid back mere inches.
The monster wasted no time. As the wind settled, he opened his mouth and a beam of blue light shot at Ryan. He dodged and the beam hit the wall behind him, freezing whatever it touched instantly.
Seeing that this had gone on long enough, Ryan began to spin air around the monster, making it thicken against his limbs and picking him up off the ground. He shoved the Snowdrake against the wall as he finished wrapping the monster in invisible bonds. But that did not stop the monster from using magic. Spikes of ice filled the room, each with point faced towards Ryan and they flew towards him before he could tie off the spell to keep the drake to the wall and defend himself.
But the spikes all shattered before they could hit him, and a figure now stood between the two. Wearing dull, metal plate with a tail of red hair sticking out of the helm, there was only one monster it could be. "Stop!" Undyne shouted to the both of them. "What has gotten into you two? I thought Papyrus had gone crazy when he called to tell me what was going on. And yet I find you two fighting like a couple of insane humans!"
"Undyne, I-" Ryan began to explain, but the monster pointed a gauntleted finger at him and he went silent.
"Shut it." She told him. "I'll deal with you in a moment." Undyne turned her attention back to the other monster, still tied to the wall by Ryan's spell. He let the drake go as Undyne came close and he dropped to the ground. He did not move as Undyne leaned in close. "This is the second time something like this has involved you now, Mr. Drake. Pretty soon I'm going to have to get the king involved." Undyne's voice betrayed no emotion, she simply sounded like she was simply stating fact and it only made the threat seem more real. Her voice then gained a touch of sympathy. "I understand that you lost your wife recently, but there is no excuse to be acting like this. You should be home with your sons. I'm sure they could use their father right now."
The monster must have still been furious indeed. For he looked up at the soldier and said, "Why don't you ask your incompetent scientist friend when she's going to give me my wife's dust back, huh? I'm sure she wants to be home with her sons too."
A spear appeared out of thin air and into Undyne's hand. With a roar, she thrust the spear into the wall barely an inch from the Snowdrake's head. "You're lucky I'm still in a relatively good mood." She said. Her voice dripped with venom that made the drake's sound like he was a giggling child. "Go home. Hug your kids. And don't let me catch you causing any more trouble." She pulled the spear from the wall and the Snowdrake almost flew out of the restaurant.
Letting out a breath, Undyne turned her attention to Ryan. "You, explain." She demanded, and Ryan told her what had happened including that he was waiting for her to show up and tried to minimize the damages until she did. The monster looked around the room in response to that. "You didn't do a very good job of that, did you?" The monster began picking up a toppled over chair next to her. "Come on, help me clean this up."
Instead of reaching down to grab anything himself, Ryan raised his arm. With it came all of the chairs and tables, floating into the air to shift and settle where they had been before the fight broke out. He gathered anything broken into a ball and placed it in the trash behind the counter. Once he was finished, the room looked little different than it had before. Lastly, he let the shield around Grillby drop. Still half expecting the fire monster to attack him himself, Ryan went up to him hesitantly. "I can't do anything about the scratches or the broken chairs." He told the monster. "I understand if you take them out of my pay." The monster just nodded back to him and left through the back room.
Undyne was still holding the chair she had picked up off the ground in her hands. It was the only one not back where it should be at that point. She placed it upright next to her. "Alright, that was impressive." She told him.
.
The two walked back to the skeleton brother's house together in relative silence. The clink of Undyne's armor counted the seconds for Ryan in his head. The monster had her helmet off now, tucked under her arm and she seemed to be thinking about something. Finally, she spoke up.
"Don't tell Papyrus I said this, but I want to make you an offer."
"What kind of offer?" Ryan asked, curiosity slightly outweighing his fear.
"To join the Royal Guard." Ryan almost missed a step. "That was some impressive magic back there, and from what you told me, you handled that situation like a seasoned veteran. We could use someone with your talents."
Ryan's head swam. He had never thought about something like this happening. What could it mean? How could this change what might happen? Maybe this was a better way. But then, the memories of the time he had spent here came back, and they ultimately made up his mind for him. "Sorry, Undyne, but I don't think…" Ryan trailed off as he saw Chilldrake running up to the two of them. He did not look happy, in fact he looked more worried than he had then first time Ryan saw him.
"What's wrong?" He and Undyne said simultaneously.
The monster practically tripped onto its face to reach them. "It's Snowy. He's gone again. And this time it's bad."
The two looked at each other and nodded before following the drake back towards the center of town.
.
Undyne may be a monster who was aggressive and wild whenever she had the chance. But that night she proved just how disciplined she could be when she needed to. The captain of the Royal Guard took control immediately upon the two of them reaching the square in town. Most of the residents were already gathered there. Ryan saw Chilldrake, his father, sans, Papyrus. A crowd had formed. He did not see Sallie among them. Undyne quickly got reports from everyone who had seen Snowy recently, though it gave them little to go on. The young monster had apparently left a note telling both Ryan and his brother not to look for him this time and that he would not be coming back.
Within minutes, they were split into teams of two in order to search the forest. Ryan and Undyne were one of them. He told her about Snowy's hiding spot, which almost started another fight between him and Snowy's father. After tempers were quelled, Undyne said that the two of them would search there first. The rest of the teams were given sections of the forest to go through in case they were wrong and, without delay, they were off.
"Papyrus tells me you're fast," Undyne said to him after they were a ways into the forest. "We've got a bit more ground to cover than anyone else, how about we pick up the pace?"
Ryan nodded. "You set it. I can keep up." He told the monster, and without further invitation, she blasted off into the trees.
The monster was certainly fast herself. Ryan was able to keep pace with ease, confident that he could outrun her if needed, but much faster and he would not be able to keep it up for long.
They covered the distance to Snowy's hidden camp in minutes. A quick search revealed no trace of the monster. If Ryan had to guess, he had not been there in days.
"You sure he would have come here?" Undyne asked as she immerged from his igloo.
"I can't think of anywhere else he would have gone." Ryan told her, trying to hide how out of breath he was.
"That doesn't bode well." She sighed.
Then started to circle out from the area, searching every crack and crevasse the monster could have gotten himself stuck in, checking under every pile of snow that looked like it could cover the drake. Hours later and a quarter of a mile out, they agreed that he must not be there. "Maybe someone else had better luck." Undyne suggested. "Let's head back."
The two watched the woods silently as they made their way back to Snowdin. They kept an eye out everywhere for the missing monster. A part of Ryan was thankful Undyne seemed too preoccupied to make conversation. But it was not meant to last. As the two were walking up the side of a cliff, Undyne decided that there must be no place for the drake to hide nearby, so she asked. "So, you're Snowy's friend, right?"
"I like to consider myself one, yes." Ryan said, repressing a sigh.
"You're handling this rather well, then. Calm, careful." She went on.
"You are aware this is not the first time Snowy has done this, right? The kid's fine; he knows how to stay out of trouble. He just has some problems he needs to work out his own way."
"I bring it up," the monster clarified, "because I'd like to re-extend the invitation to join the Royal Guard."
Ryan stopped a moment. He was leading the pack up the cliff and his back was too the monster. All for the better that she could not see the anger on his face. "Thanks but no thanks." He managed to say flatly. He kept walking.
"I understand, and it's your decision to make but, can I ask why?"
He nearly rounded on her, high risk of death or no. "Why not ask Papyrus? If you have an opening, give it to him. He's been begging for it for as long as I've known him."
The monster laughed. "You and I both know that won't work out." She was cut off from what she was about to say next by a rumble in the ground. They both froze. Ryan's eyes darted around for the cause. He heard, "Look out!" Before he was shoved and sent flying into the snow. A loud crash and crack followed.
Coughing and wiping snow off his face Ryan stood back up to see a part of the cliff had collapsed, blocking off the path. He ran to the wall of rock, half in a panic. "Undyne!" he shouted, trying to pull a massive boulder from the pile. "Undyne, are you okay?" He pulled the bolder away only to cause more to fall where it was.
"I'm fine." A voice coughed from the other side of the wall. She was alright. Ryan relaxed.
"What now?" He asked next.
There was silence for a moment, and then. "You keep heading back. I'll go a different way and meet up with some of the other groups. Keep an eye out."
Ryan nodded though she could not see it. "Okay." He said to her. "Meet you back in town."
As Ryan continued on his own, he was reminded of his first journey through the forest his first night here. Suddenly the silence seemed oppressive, but he pushed it aside. He had been trying to think of a reason Snowy would not have been in his secret hideout since they started making their way back. It made no sense to him. If the monster was missing there was no other place he would have gone. He agreed with Undyne: it did not bode well.
He reached the top of the cliff and looked out over the familiar plateau. No wonder he had been reminded of his first night. This had been a part of the path he had taken then. There were many paths to and from the town of Snowdin. None of them were direct and this was certainly not the most of them. sans had lied about that, but he at least gave a half-joked apology for that one.
The plateau where he had met one of the dog sentries was empty tonight, though. The dogs had all been sent to search a different part of the woods. As he tried to think of who would be close he heard a voice, too soft to make out what was said, but clear enough to tell it was not a shout of joy. Ryan was off in an instant. Trees rushed by as he raced towards the direction of the sound. When he was certain he must be close, he stopped and listened.
"Help!" The voice shouted. It was Snowy, and he was close. Ryan went to the edge of the rise and looked down. There he was, on a small platform about a quarter of the way down a sheer cliff. He had one wing clutched to his side and was looking around in a panic.
"It's okay, Snowy. I'm here!" Ryan shouted and the monster looked up.
Relief washed over his face. "Ryan." He said almost reverently.
Ryan leaped down to the platform and looked over the small monster. He kept away from the wing he kept still, it was definitely broken. Ryan could see light peeking out of the feathers. Other than that he seemed fine. "Snowy what happened?" He asked the monster. "Almost the whole town is looking for you. And when I didn't find you at your hideaway, I thought the worst."
Ryan could see now that the monster was crying. He looked up at Ryan apologetically. "I'm sorry," He started. "My dad came home and he started yelling at me and told me to stop talking to you and I told him no, so he stormed off and I was sad so I ran away and there was this talking flower and it-"
"Talking flower?" Ryan interrupted. Maybe he just had not heard right.
But the monster nodded. "Yeah," he went on, "It told me about this place I could go where everyone would laugh at my jokes; somewhere I'd really be appreciated. It told me if I followed it that it would show it to me. And then I woke up here."
Ryan stiffened. A chill went through him that had nothing to do with the snow. "Let's get you back to town." He said as he gently picked up the small monster. "We need to get that wing fixed." In a single leap, he jumped back up to the top of the cliff, landing gently in the snow and careful of Snowy's injury. He began his way back when the monster spoke up again.
"Ryan, the flower…"
"It's okay, Snowy. We'll worry about that later."
"It's here."
Ryan froze. Turning towards the deeper part of the forest, he saw Flowey sticking out of the frozen ground, looking up at the two of them with the same maniacal grin he hadworn before.
"Howdy." The flower's serpentine voice dripped with venomous hatred. Ryan looked back down at it with a one he suspected rivaled it for intensity. "You've been getting quite comfortable, haven't you? Now, I thought I made it clear last time that I wouldn't let that happen."
"And I told you that you have no control over me." He was already walking away when the flower peeled with laughter. Snowy shook in his arms with fear.
"You naïve idiot. I have more control than you realize. A few whispered promises to your friend there, a few fallen rocks, and here you are, all alone. I finally have you all to myself."
Ryan noticed the vines around him just a split second before they shot up from the ground to try to stab at him. With practiced effort, a razor sharp wind picked up and minced the vines into a pulp. Green liquid stained the snow, and Snowy continued to shake in his arms.
Ryan thought he heard a hint of pain behind the flower's laughter that time. "I see you've learned some new tricks, but I guess that's only to be expected from a human. They always did have a better grasp on magic than monsters." Ryan ignored Snowy's quiet whimper of "Human?" He kept his eyes locked on the flower. "But it means nothing. You are still powerless in my wake."
More vines shot out of the ground. This time Ryan incinerated them in a vortex he brought up around himself. But as his focus was on them, more shot up from within the circle of flame and went straight for Snowy still in arms. Ryan turned and the vines hit him in the side hard enough to force his spell to drop and to knock him from the edge of the cliff.
The wind rushed by Ryan as they fell. Snowy was silent in his arms, his eyes closed. He could not tell if the monster had fainted or was simply trying to shut it all out. There was nothing Ryan could do to slow their decent. The blow had made him lose concentration on his power and he felt ready to pass out himself. He did the only thing he could do. Wrapping his arms tight around the monster, he tried to save him from harm and hoped to whoever may be listening that there was a lot of snow beneath them.
Pain shot through Ryan's body before everything went black.
.
He was not sure how long it had been when he came to. He had to cough air back into his lungs and the simple act of sitting up was an extraordinarily painful effort. Snowy was gone, no longer in his arms. A winding path of prints in the snow told him where the monster had gone. Struggling to his feet, he followed after.
He felt weak, weaker than he had after fighting Papyrus. It seemed like a lifetime ago, he had forgotten what it felt like to push himself too hard. He searched his pockets for some sort of food he may have stashed away and forgotten about. A safety precaution against just this that he had thought of some time ago. He found half a granola bar he had gotten from Grillby and ate it as if he had not seed food in a year. Instantly he felt better. Still exhausted, but he no longer felt the need to be leaning on trees to stay standing.
A ways ahead, he found Snowy collapsed in the snow and he ran over to the monster, shaking him awake. When the drake finally opened his eyes, he struggled to get away, uncaring of his injured wing. "It's okay, Snowy. It's just me." Ryan told the monster but Snowy still continued to try to get away from him. "Snowy, what's wrong?"
Ryan let the monster go and he skirted back well out of his reach, looking ready to defend himself. "That flower wasn't lying." He said. "You are a human."
Ryan instinctively looked down at his chest. The glow of his soul showed through the wet fabric of his shirt. He had forgotten to redo all of his spells when he woke up. He tried to step toward the monster. "Snowy, I…"
"Stay away from me!" The drake screamed. And a familiar laughter rang through the trees.
"That's right, Snowy." Flowey said as he sprung up out of the ground behind Ryan. Ryan felt his determination return to him immediately and let out a jet of flame towards the flower. But when the spell tapered out, the flower was simply somewhere else. "He's a human: the hated enemies of monsters. He could kill you with barely a thought and has spent all this time trying to gain your trust; trying to fit in with monsters like the idiot he is!"
"That's not true!" Ryan shouted.
The flower laughed once more. "What else could it be? Humans are uncaring beasts." The words were all directed at Snowy, he could tell. "He is a threat to everything down here. But he's weak. Now's your chance. Think about it, how proud would your father be if you struck him down? If you were the one to help monsters finally be free of this place? You would be a hero. You would finally have the spotlight you deserve."
"Snowy, please." Ryan turned to the monster, but he could see from his face there was no use. The flower had him convinced. The looked of hated pained Ryan more than words could describe. "Snowy."
"I will protect my family from you." The monster said. Spikes of ice shot out of his uninjured wing. At the same time, he saw more vines closing in on him and he reacted instinctively, realizing his mistake a moment too late.
Fire erupted out all around him and the attacks disintegrated, but the trees were too close. They caught almost instantly; dry from decades of being in the still underground forest despite the snow that covered them. The fire spread quickly to anything near. This hiss of steam filled his ears as the heat made him squint. Over it all, laughter resonated with the chaos.
The tree behind Snowy caught and the heat made the ice monster scream. Without thought, Ryan hurled himself at the monster to get him away from the fire. They both rolled to the ground. Ryan scooped the drake into his arms and carried him as far from any of the flames as he could. Setting him back on the ground he found that he was, thankfully, unharmed.
Ryan stood, looking for a way out of the fire, and locked eyes with Undyne. The monster stared back. Anger turned her face to stone. Ryan knew without having to look down to know that the light in his chest was outshining the fire around him. They were both still; a wall of fire separated the two. Ryan looked down at Snowy for a split second and he saw Undyne take a step towards them. Seeing no other option, Ryan ran.
.
In little more than the time it took to blink, Ryan was back in front of the skeleton's house in town. It was silent, empty. No one else had made it back yet. No slower, Ryan went inside and grabbed his things. He went over to the fridge before leaving in order to gain some of his strength back. He was not going to take much, but before he knew it the fridge was empty. He had eaten the pasta and all and barely even noticed. He was still starving, and he had no idea if the food even made a dent in what energy he had used tonight. He could only hope. He refused to let go of his power to find out.
Back outside, he went towards his shed and ran into the first and last person he wanted to see at that moment. "Ryan?" Sallie's tired voice came from behind him. "What's going on? Where did everyone go?"
When he turned to her, she was still rubbing sleep from her eyes, but she immediately snapped awake when she saw the state he was in. "Are you crazy?" She asked as she ran up to him now. "If walk around like that, some one is sure to find you out. What's gotten into you?"
Ryan had changed into dry clothes while he was in the house, keeping a spare there just in case. But he had not rebuilt the magic that hid his soul from view. He could not afford to waste even that much magic. And at this point, it did not seem to matter. He caught Sallie by the shoulders before she could reach him. He did not even know where to begin explain what had happened to her. "I need to leave." He said finally. Best to get that out of the way first. "I'm sorry."
"Why? Ryan, what are you talking about? What happened?" She tried even harder to get to him, but he held her back.
"Snowy went missing again; everyone's probably getting back from looking for him now. Something happened, an accident, and now Undyne and probably everyone else knows what I am. I'm sorry, I can't stay. I won't let you get dragged down with me." Sallie looked like she was ready to refuse whatever he had to say until the end of time, but it melted away. She stopped struggling against his grip. "Listen, Sallie." He went on. "There probably going to say I did some things. And I don't have time to explain what. But I need you to believe me when I say that I did not do it. I would never hurt anyone."
The rabbit was already wiping tears from her eyes. He had to go, any longer and he would be asking her to come with him. "Of course I believe you, you dolt. I'll always believe you."
Ryan could not help but wrap his arms around her. Embracing her, he could almost forget what lay ahead. "Thank you Sallie, for everything."
"Here," she said, pulling away from him, "let me get some things for you that might help." The monster jogged back in the direction of her home and Ryan disappeared into his own. He did not have much else, not that he'd be able to take with him. Sallie reappeared in the doorway as he was deciding what to abandon. "You can use this." She said as she watched what he was doing. She held out a backpack for him and he took it from her with a smile. It did not change her mood though; she still sounded like she would rather wake up and find this was all a dream. He could not blame her. He wished that he would too.
The two hugged once more when they were back outside. "I'll try to smooth things out on this end until you come back." She said, then pull her head out of his chest and asked, "You are coming back, right?"
Instead of answering, he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead before pulling away. He did not dare look at her; he could not bear it. A moment later, he was gone.
A moment after that, he stood before the edge of the dome next to the mouth of the tunnel that led beyond Snowdin. The fog was appropriately drifting in from the stream nearby just as it had the night he fought Papyrus. It blocked off sight of the town behind him, making looking back impossible. He was thankful for that. Taking a deep breath, he went in.
The tunnel was dark, darker than his enhanced vision would adjust to. Strange… He had no idea how long he walked before he decided something was definitely off. The tunnel was too straight, too unnatural. He reached out to touch the wall that should have been right near his shoulder, but his hand only grazed air.
He wanted to use as little magic as possible, lest he need it down the line, but he saw no other option here. Letting the light form over his hand he floated it out in front of him. The light immediately revealed sans, sitting behind his sentry booth in the middle of the tunnel. Snow still clung to its roof and Ryan almost felt like laughing. He brought that with him on purpose, he was sure.
The skeleton was staring at him, waiting for him, obviously, and Ryan approached hesitantly. He did not know what the monster had heard yet. "would it be rude to start with 'i told you so?'" The skeleton began.
"A little, but you would be justified, I think." Ryan did not feel like this was a time for cryptically beating around the bush. "Listen, Sans, I-"
"i'm thinking about going to grillby's, wanna come?" sans interrupted, stepping out from behind the booth. He must have seen his apprehension, because he said, "don't sweat, kid, you'll be fine. no one will see us. i know a shortcut"
Knowing the question was merely a formality, Ryan nodded and followed the skeleton back into the darkness. Strangely, there was just enough light for Ryan to see the monster but nothing else beyond, nothing at all. It was almost like nothing was there at all.
A door appeared in front of them. 'Appeared' was definitely the right word. It did not fade it as it would as they walked closer. One second it was not there, the next it was. The skeleton opened the door and walked into Grillby's. Questions ran through Ryan's head as he followed behind, but he kept silent. The door closed after him. He turned back, but outside was the normal view of the main road of Snowdin.
sans went over to sit at the bar and Ryan followed, tearing his eyes away from the door. They sat in silence for an eternal minute. Ryan very nearly tapped his foot in his impatience. Just as he was about to start, the skeleton jumped it. "so what do you think about my brother?" he asked.
Ryan glared at the skeleton, aware of the fact that he knew full well what he was doing, but sans had his eyes on the bar. The entire place was empty, not even Grillby was there, and the silence stretched to uncomfortable lengths. "He's alright." Ryan answered finally, decided it would be better to just be pulled along. "A little much at times, but so are you."
sans chuckled. "i could say the same about you"
From the back room, Grillby appeared and set two plates down in front of both of them before disappearing into the kitchen again. Ryan did not even question the food; he simply began to dig in. sans offered him a bottle of ketchup, but he declined. The skeleton shrugged and shoved his plate over to Ryan before starting to drink straight from the ketchup bottle.
"anyway, cool or not, you have to agree papyrus tries real hard" sans said, resuming the conversation from before. "like how he keeps trying to become part of the royal guard. one day, he went to undyne's house and begged her to let him be in it. of course, she shut the door on him because it was midnight" Ryan laughed at that. "but the next day, she woke up and saw him still waiting there. seeing his dedication, she decided to give him warrior training. it's uh, still a work in progress"
"Obviously." Ryan added as he finished up the first plate and began working on the second. "What are you getting at with all of this?"
"i wanted to ask you, have you ever heard of a talking flower?" Ryan froze with food inches from his mouth. He dropped it, no longer hungry. "i'll take your silence as a yes. they're called echo flowers, if you didn't know. they're all over the marsh in waterfall. say something to them and they'll repeat it over and over"
Ryan did his best to still his body, trying not to betray anything. "What about them?" He asked.
"well, papyrus told me something interesting the other day. sometimes, when no one else is around, a flower appears and whispers things to him. flattery, advice, encouragement… predictions; weird, huh? someone must be using an echo flower to play a trick on him. you should keep an eye out, okay?"
Finally, Ryan decided the skeleton deserved not to be in the dark. "Actually, I know exactly what you're talking about and I don't think it's an echo flower."
"oh? how so?" The skeleton's tone made Ryan think he had already known as much, but he went on anyway.
"I have had a similar run in with it myself." Ryan told sans about what had happened just a short time ago, Flowey and all, leaving out only what he knew about the flower. The skeleton listen to the whole thing without saying a word and when he finished, he sighed.
"so that's what happened"
"I take it you believe me then?" Ryan asked.
"i'll admit i had my doubts, you have two people whose stories don't exactly line up with yours, but you wouldn't have agreed to talk with me if you had actually done what they said, i think. also, a story that crazy has to be true. there's something you're not telling me, though" Ryan froze once more. "does this have something to do with that secret mission of yours? never mind, i don't wanna know. i trust you enough to leave it at that" He stepped down from the bar. "welp that was a pretty long break. i can't believe i let ya pull me away from work for that long"
"You were working?"
"of course. i was looking for humans, wasn't i? it just happened i found you" sans began to walk toward the door, but he stopped. "i'll keep an eye socket out for that flower of yours, ok?" Ryan nodded, thought the skeleton's back was to him. "i also take it you won't be coming back, huh? how about paying off your tab before you leave then?"
"How much is it?" Ryan asked. His voice had a touch of somberness to it he could not hide.
"about ten thousand g"
Ryan snorted. "That's a bit more than I have unfortunately."
The skeleton shrugged. "that's ok. i'm sure we'll see each plenty before this is all over. stay out of trouble; i'll be watching" And the monster was gone.
Ryan turned back to the half-eaten food on his plate. He was still not hungry, but he was not in a position to let food go to waste. He cleared the plate before heading for the door himself.
As it swung open, it did not lead him back into Snowdin, but back to the mouth of the tunnel where he had started. Fog still obscured much of the forest, and the door was gone when he looked back. He did not give it a second thought, though. Taking a deep breath once more, he went in.
You may have noticed that this is the first chapter that doesn't follow the whole "named after an Undertale soundtrack song" convention. For the curious the song is Spection by Fractal and should be listened to by all.