***Hello, everyone! I actually got this done last night... I just didn't upload it because I think I was stalling. Welp, it's here now, and y'all can't complain! The Dreemurrs belong to Toby Fox, the SOUL kids belong to me, and let's roll!

Chapter Fourteen: Fixer-Upper

Mark had taken insults more personally than he'd let on originally. He hated each one, but he kept his mouth shut to them. He kept telling himself that it wouldn't be as bad as it was on the surface. But so far, he wasn't exactly getting that.

And he was getting closer to snapping for the very reason he'd snapped on the surface.

XxX

It was evening time. Well, it was according to the clocks across the Underground, because there was no sun or moon to really tell what time of the day it was. But, that was another matter.

The royal family and the mass of adoptive kids with them sat down for dinner.

"You're late, Burns," Leah said flatly when Mark was the last one to the table.

"Least I'm not crazy," he replied.

"Children..." Toriel said in a warning tone of voice that was ignored. She kept her hand on Meredith's back reassuringly, as she was beginning to tug at her hair, just sensing a fight coming on.

"At least I'm not covered in ugly-ay marks that'll leave me forever alone~" Leah said, smirking. But that smirk fell right off her face.

Rather, it was punched off of her face, and she was knocked onto the floor.

"Mark, Leah, stop this right this instant," Asgore said in a tone of voice that usually got anyone to listen and obey. But even that was ignored as Mark picked up Leah by her collar.

"Do me-and everyone else-a favor. Shut your mouth for once or go back to the nut house. I know I'm burned, but you don't have to put salt in the wound," he said.

Leah uncurled his fingers from around her shirt calmly. "And you don't have to overreact to everything," she said.

Mark shoved Leah down, at a loss for words. Then, he stormed off towards his room. The girl got up and sat back down.

"I thought we were trying to be nicer," Chara said. Sean nodded.

"Trying," was all Leah said.

XxX

Mark only looked up when he heard a steady ka-thunk... ka-thunk... ka-thunk...

The noise was Anna's crutches against the ground. She came in and was in the doorway. "Mind if I come in and talk?" she asked.

"What about?" Mark asked, tone dark.

Anna sat down next to his on the bed. "How about you?" she asked.

"If you're here to treat me like Leah does, then you can leave now," Mark said.

"You hate yourself for your burns," Anna stated.

Mark met his eyes to hers. "Nah dip, smart-alec," he replied dryly.

"And you think you're the broken one," Anna went on.

Mark raised an eyebrow. "So what're you getting at?" he asked.

"Open your eyes! You think you're broken, and that you're the only one. But you're not the only one! Meredith can't hear, and she has autism. I don't even have two full legs! I'm sure that, before you feel down, you met people who were imperfect," Anna said.

Mark thought about his sister's words. He had met people with mental and physical deformations and handicaps on the surface. And he'd met some in the Underground as well. "Because people always picked on me, I always thought that I was just... the weird one out. Everyone else was better, and I was beneath them," he explained.

Anna patted his back. "You're not beneath them. In case you haven't noticed, we're all weird down here. All fixer-uppers. But... we're getting better," she said.

"Whatever you say, sis," Mark said.

Anna stood up, balancing herself back on her crutches. "Are you coming back to dinner? You know that Asriel really likes eating Mom's chicken, and that's what we're having tonight," she said.

Mark stood up too. "That goat isn't getting any of my chicken," he said. Anna laughed.

"By the way, can you maybe... whack Leah with one of those crutches?" Mark asked. He was then smacked in the back of his legs with a crutch.

"You earned that." Then, Anna limped off.

Mark followed her; well, it was certainly worth a shot.

***Yeah, not the best of the chapters. But be sure to leave a review on the way out and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!