And here's another chapter already! You can expect me update regularily again in the time to come. :) I hope you'll like this chapter, and enjoy!

Gaster and Noelle stood in silence for a moment, after the latter told about her vision. It was the first time she said it out loud. She literally saw that her mother would die and that her grieving father would carry her SOUL in a container (probably so he'd still have a part of her).
"Let's get inside." - Gaster said as he opened the front door a bit wider.
"But what about the cameras in your house..?" - Noelle asked.
"We'll just be talking, there's nothing suspicious about that." - Gaster said - "Only images are recorded, not the sound."
Noelle nodded and headed inside. She and Gaster then walked to the living room and the two sat on the couch.
"So, is my vision bound to happen?" - Noelle asked.
"All I can tell is that your vision might… as well as might not happen."
"If it just might not happen, why do I see it?"
"Ah, it's a mistake many people make…" - Gaster commented, then explained after Noelle gave him a confused look - "Most people tend to think time in two dimentions. That is, the path traced by different choices we make and its consequences. However, time must be thought in three dimentions. Which means taking into account the many parallel timelines. Do you follow?"
"Hmm… Are you saying that my vision might come either from a future in this timeline, or from a future in a different timeline?" - Noelle processed Gaster's words.
"That's correct." - Gaster confirmed with a nod - "You are seeing this, because it has the potential to happen in this timeline. As long as the directly related choice isn't made, there's still the possibility it'll happen."
"How can we know which timeline we're in?"
"Unfortunately, there's no way to know. Timelines are forged by all our choices."
"Just great…" - Noelle muttered - "This means I'll figure out only by experiencing the timeline myself, right? That means when it'll be too late… But I can't just do nothing..! I didn't just find my parents only to lose one of them now!"
Noelle was trying to stay calm, but despite herself, her hands started to tremble. Gaster felt in a way sorry for her. Noelle's fear was something he could easily relate to, even though he barely displayed it through his body language.
"So, you really can't help me..?" - Noelle asked, her gaze reflecting fear.
"I told you what I know on the matter. But my knowledge is mostly theorical, time being a tricky concept." - Gaster answered - "If I could give you an advice, it would be to not make the same mistakes as I did. Don't create a timeline you'll regret later. Only you can create a satisfying future for your family."
"The problem's that it's unclear whose choices my mother's life depends on." - Noelle let out a sad sigh, then stood up - "Alright, I'll go back home. Is it okay if I escort Sam and Piper to school tomorrow?"
"...Sure." - Gaster replied - "You want to have a word with the boy who bullied them?"
"Something among the lines." - Noelle replied.
It wasn't long after that Noelle left the house. As Gaster watched her recede, he couldn't help but think about the vision itself. It was true that, concidering what happened between him and his "subjects", it shouldn't really be his business. But that possible future made him feel very uneasy nonetheless. "It would've been so much easier if I didn't care…" - he thought to himself, before walking to his bedroom.

The next morning, as Noelle brought Sam and Piper at the school gate, the kids hesitated before entering the school territory. Noelle patted her children's shoulders and said:
"Trust me, I know exactly what it's like. I've been bullied too, when I was about your age."
"You were?" - Sam asked - "Why?"
"The other kids made fun of me for still believing that my parents would come back for me someday." - Noelle answered with a sad smile.
"But that's awful!" - Piper exclaimed.
"They were being kids, and kids can be cruel." - Noelle shrugged - "But things got better… someway. And things will get better for you too, you'll see. Over time, people will forget about Gaster's deeds and the kids will leave you alone."
The twins sighed and faced the gate again. They were about to go, but then they stiffened when they saw Pupamy walk to them. Looking up at Noelle, Sam said with an angry tone:
"This is him. The guy who insulted my sister and broke my nose!"
"Sam, control yourself." - Noelle advised seriously - "Let's hear what he has to say first."
At that moment, Pupamy made it to them. He didn't dare to look the twins or Noelle in their eyes.
"H-hi…" - he said quietly - "I... I came to… apologize."
Sam and Piper looked at him with surprised expressions. They didn't expect Pupamy to apologize.
"My parents were very disappointed by my behaviour yesterday. They didn't like that I upset Papyrus' grandchildren." - the pup pursued, fidgetting - "After they berated me, I... kind of felt bad for assaulting your honor. So… I'm sorry for… insulting you two and… for breaking your nose, Sam."
"You also pushed my sister." - Sam reminded him.
"Right... Well, I'm sorry for that too." - Pupamy added.
The twins weren't sure what to reply, having not expected to get an apology. They looked up at Noelle, who gave them a small nod, after what they looked back at the dog monster.
"I forgive you, Pupamy." - Piper replied.
"Since you're apologizing, I guess I can forgive… this time." - Sam said seriously - "And I guess I'm sorry too, for punching you in the face and pulling at your ear."
"So... we're good now?" - Pupamy asked with a slight hesitation.
"Of course. We're good." - Piper confirmed.
"Alright, kids. I think you should go. The classes will start soon." - Noelle suggested to her children - "Have a good day."
"Have a good day too." - Piper replied.
"See ya, Noelle." - Sam said with a smile.
The twins went in the direction of the building. Pupamy was about to go too, but Noelle stopped him. The dog boy looked up at her, with a fearful expression. As much as Noelle wanted to be intimidating for a warning, the look of his puppy eyes hit her in the heart, having a soft spot for dogs. But she had to be firm, for her children's sake.
"I appreciate you apologized. But I hope this one time was the last it happened." - Noelle said with a low voice - "I don't want to ever hear that you hurt my children again. Capiche?"
"Y-yes, Miss Dreemurr..." - Pupamy said, his tone trembling a little.
His scared attitude softened Noelle. She then pat his head twice, getting a curious and surprised look from him.
"You don't look like a nasty boy." - she told him gentlier - "Can I just know why you behaved that way?"
"I don't know..." - the pup replied, but as Noelle still expected an answer, he added - "I suppose because everybody else was acting that way to Sam and Piper… I thought it was the normal thing to do."
"It's a natural phenomenom." - Noelle remarked - "But you'll be a much better person if you think with your own head and have your own opinion. Do you understand?"
"I think I do."
"Good." - Noelle finally smiled at him, to reassure that she was no longer mad - "Okay, I won't retain you any longer."
The two exchanged a brief goodbye, after what Noelle left and went back to her home. As she was walking, she at some point thought she heard something behind her. She turned around and, even though she didn't see anyone, she had the impression as though there's been a movement. But after a moment staring without anything happening, Noelle shrugged and thought: "Must've been my imagination…"

It turned out to be more difficult for Noelle to live her life as though nothing happened. The thought of the vision was literally haunting her, she didn't know what to make of herself. So, Noelle decided to do what she always did in her old life when she was upset. And thus, in the middle of the afternoon, as Sans walked in the bathroom, he was surprised to see Noelle cleaning the bathtub! She was sitting in the empty bathtub, wearing clothes she wouldn't mind to ruin along with rubber gloves, a bottle of cleaning product standing next to her. The woman was scrubbing with fury, as though her life depended on the tidiness of the bath.
"noelle... what are you doing?" - Sans asked.
"Isn't this obvious?" - Noelle replied with a puff as she looked up at her uncle - "I thought the bathtub needed some cleaning. You know, it's much nicer to take a bath in an actually clean bath."
"i see." - Sans said.
But he didn't go away. He kept standing there until this exhasperated Noelle and she stopped her action. She looked up at him with a sigh, her face reflecting an unspoken "what?".
"i know you better than you'd like, kid. you once told me that when something upsets you, you do house chores to forget about your problems." - Sans stated - "so tell me, what's the problem?"
"There's no problem." - Noelle said with a shrug - "Like I said, it's not pleasant to bathe in a dirty bathtub."
"is that why you changed the douche curtain? and cleaned the tap so it looks like new?" - Sans raised an eyebrow.
"Look, it's not because you're a lazybones that I must be one too. Someone has to do the chores, right?"
"noelle. i lived for a long time with gaster, who avoided every question i asked him. and i can tell that's what you're doing right now. you can't fool me." - Sans said seriously, then his eyesockets darkened - "so could you stop lying to me?"
"...Sans, it's not easy to talk about." - Noelle sighed - "Just thinking about it is painful enough."
"that's why you should tell me, pap and frisk about it. we all could help you."
"My parents are the last people who must know about it!" - Noelle said alarmed.
"why? is there something that we all should be alarmed about?"
"...Yes. I recently had a vision. The sort you and Papyrus can have." - Noelle started - "I won't tell you what I saw, but it's not good."
"so you had a bad vision… that's related to your parents?"
Noelle didn't answer and she lowered her head. Sans wasn't sure what to think of this. If Noelle wasn't his niece, he would've forced her to tell him everything. But Sans obviously could never hurt her, and he understood perfectly that Noelle maybe didn't trust him entirely. After all, he sent her away without anyone's consent and was more generally not the most reliable person. But Sans knew for sure that he had to snap Noelle from her current state somehow.
"look kid, i understand you don't want to tell me anything. but you have to at least tell papyrus and frisk." - the skeleton said seriously - "i know what it's like to have no faith in the future. i've been hopeless for a long time. but you shouldn't follow my example, noelle. 'cause you're a better person than me. so, if you don't want your vision to happen, leave the bathtub alone and talk to your parents. they'll surely appreciate it."
"...You...you're right, Sans." - Noelle replied quietly - "When they come back from the embassy, I'll tell them about my vision."
Noelle was resolute to tell her parents everything. And so, she waited for them in the living room until the evening, with a book to make time go faster. When the two finally showed up, Noelle jumped from her couch and ran to them.
"Papyrus, Frisk, there's something we must talk about."
"Alright, but can we say something first?" - Frisk asked.
"...Yeah, go ahead."
"WE HAVE A GOOD SURPRISE FOR YOU, NOELLE!" - Papyrus said with an excited tone - "YOUR MOTHER AND I KNOW YOU NEED MORE INDEPENDANCE, BUT IT'S DIFFICULT SINCE YOU MUST RELY ON JUST MY RACECAR TO GO SOMEWHERE."
"So, we've been searching long and wide the perimeter, and we found it! We found your cherry car, Noelle!" - Frisk announced with a big smile.
"My car's been brought here too? No way..!" - Noelle exclaimed in pleasant shock.
"IT WAS! WE FOUND IT AND TOOK CARE TO REFIT IT!"
Papyrus then allowed Noelle go outside and see by herself. Noelle squeeled in happiness when she saw her car standing there, shining like new. Papyrus and Frisk exchanged and amused look.
"I missed you so much my car!" - Noelle exclaimed as she caressed the roofing.
It was the only car Noelle ever had and drove. It took her a lot of effort to acquire it, and when she thought it was left behind in the other world, it did somewhat upset her. And so, the fact that her parents used their time to search for it touched Noelle a lot.
"Frisk, Papyrus, thank you very much..!" - Noelle said with a wide smile - "You have no idea how much this car means to me…"
"WE'RE GLAD WE COULD MAKE YOU HAPPY TODAY!" - Papyrus replied.
"Now, what did you want to talk about?" - Frisk asked.
Reality hit Noelle as she remembered what she had to tell them. But they were both in such a good mood, they just did her a nice gesture,... Noelle didn't want to ruin the moment.
"Uh... I don't recall. It mustn't have been important, hehe." - Noelle said with a shrug.
"Oh, okay. As long as it's nothing grave."
"No, nothing grave... Do you mind I go for a ride?" - Noelle asked - "I want to explore the city a little."
"SURE, NO PROBLEM AT ALL! JUST DON'T RETURN TOO LATE, OKAY?"
"I'll try my best."
As Noelle sat in her car, she let out a sigh as really wanted to slap herself. "Coward." - her inner voice told her. Noelle then started the car and drove away in the direction of the city.

Noelle was driving for a long while, without really having any destination in mind. Not that she knew the city that well for that. She noted that the city resembled a lot to Undertown in some aspects, which made perfect sense. But she wasn't into enjoying the sights at that moment. Noelle just needed some time alone… again. "What's wrong with me?" - she asked herself - "My family might face a terrible fate soon, and the best thing I found to do was to have a drive!" As she was mentally berating herself for her counter-productive behaviour, her eye got caught by a beautiful monument. Noelle turned her head and slowed down her car. With a closer look, Noelle could tell it was a shrine, a religious building. She decided to park her car nearby, so she could have a better look on the shrine, or even go inside. When Noelle locked her car, she approached the shrine, having an amazed look on her face. The shrine looked a lot like asian shrines from the "real world". Its predominant colors were golden and dark blue, like the night sky. Noelle guessed that the monument must've been ancient, and yet its structure almost looked new. "Maybe it recently went through restoration?" - she thought. Having enough admired it from the outside, Noelle then went inside and got as much impressed. She quickly noticed the golden statute that represented the local "divinity", and was surprised to see that it was a dog. "So, is this how God looks like in their imagination?" - Noelle asked herself - "It's… original." Noelle then sat down on a bench and, looking at the statute, started to speak:
"So, uh… hello? I'm not sure how I'm supposed to call you, or if you actually hear me… I really don't know what I'm doing… I just… really need a solution. I must be desperate, considering that I'm relying on a divinity to help me. Ha ha… pathetic, right? I know I'm supposed to make my own efforts to get what I want and not just call for your help. But the thing is… I really don't know what to do."
Noelle then paused for a moment. She then resumed her monologue, with a trembling voice.
"I have visions that tell me my mother has to die. Probably soon, I'm not sure. I should've told her about it, but I can't bring myself to do it. Because I'm scared. Uncertainity's always scary. But after everything that happened recently, it scares me even more. I used to consider myself as a strong person… sort of. But now I see that I wasn't; I was just alone. When I was alone, uncertainity seemed less scary or challenging, because I had nothing important to lose. Now that I found my family, things changed. It's about my family's future now..! All this in a world I barely know…"
Noelle paused once more. She clenched her fits, feeling something that resembled anger flow through her being. It was more a mix between anger and frustration.
"Ugh... Why do I even bother to share my problems here with you? Did you really care, you'd never allow that future to happen..! You allowed the De-Code to happen. You even allowed the War to happen..! It's to wonder if you actually care for your world! How can I trust you with my personal problem now?" - Noelle said bitterly.
Then, she let out a sigh and put her head between her hands. After a moment, she looked up at the dog statute again and apologized:
"I'm sorry... I know blaming a divinity in their shrine isn't something you do. I just feel… so lost. My own family can't help me with my problem, neither can science. I'm very very lost. And I needed to let some of my bottled feelings out. Thank you… for at least listening my rambling."
A short moment of silence passed, until an unfamiliar voice got heard:
"I believe the plate outside says 'shrine', not 'shrink'."
"Who's there?" - Noelle exclaimed.
She started to look around, until she saw a white dog sitting at her left on the same bench as her. The Annoying Dog. Noelle immediately recognized him.
"Toby..?" - she asked.
"That's one of the names they call me…" - the dog answered.
Noelle gasped a bit, surprised that in this universe the dog could talk. Normally, nothing should surprise her at this point, having seen monsters and magic, but this dog seemed to be a normal one instead of a monster.
"Anyway, I heard your call, so I decided to pay you a visit." - the dog said.
"Wait... are you telling me that…" - Noelle switched her look from him to the golden statute, and then back to him - "...the shrine's yours? Like, you are the god of this world? No way… that must be some joke."
"And why would that be a joke? After all, 'dog' is actually 'god' read backwards."
"... ...Uh." - Noelle frowned weirdly - "Now that you pointed that out…"
"So, from what I heard, you feel helpless because of a vision you had?"
"Yes, I've seen Papyrus mourning over Frisk's death. And he's keeping her SOUL in a container. Probably to feel as if she's still there with him." - Noelle said sadly - "I don't want this vision to happen. I heard that my visions are probabilities. If you're the god of this world, you surely can tell me if it's meant to happen in this or in another timeline?"
"Noelle... It's true that I created this world, but like I once told your uncle, I'm in no way responsible of the people's choices. Why do you think there are so many timelines? Because of the freedom of choice. If I didn't give them this freedom, there would've been only one timeline." - Dog explained - "In fact, I wouldn't even need to take care to hide the Legendary Artefact in every single timeline!"
"What are you talking about?" - Noelle asked curiously.
"When Frisk was journeying through Waterfall, she found the Legendary Artefact. She was about to take it, but I intervened before she could do so. If I didn't hide it, our world would probably left unprotected from the De-Code."
"Wait, wait, so you knew the De-Code would happen?"
"Let's rather say that… I had high suspicions it was bound to happen sooner or later. As much as I'm proud of my creation, it has its flaws. Not the most solid dimentional fabric used." - the white dog said - "And with the progress of science, I thought that precautions had to be taken. But I didn't know for sure in which timeline this would happen, nor who'd have the idea of the De-Code. That's why I had no choice but to jump across timelines and hide the Legendary Artefact."
"So, you can just jump from one timeline to another?" - Noelle asked, amazed - "And how many of those there are exactly?"
"Dozens? I'm not sure." - the Annoying Dog answered - "They're all very diversified."
"This is why you can't help me either, right? Because you can't predict people's choices." - Noelle said with disappointement.
"Come on, you're probably the most powerful SOUL ever born! You can't let a vision paralyze you!" - the dog tried to encourage her - "At any moment, you could get hit by a bus, but it doesn't stop you from going out."
"I know, but-"
"Or let me put it this way. If you focus too much on not getting hit by a bus, you won't see the taxi coming from the other side."
"Huh? I'm not in the mood for metaphors, Dog." - Noelle moaned - "Can't you just give me a concrete advice?"
"Sure! I'll even give you two advices!" - the Annoying Dog said, catching all Noelle's attention - "First, stay close to your family. Your parents, your children,... everyone. They're the only family you'll ever have, they can't be replaced. Hence the reason of your cry for help. But the stronger is your bond with them, the better are your chances of a good ending for everyone."
"Okay... and what's the other advice?"
"My other advice to you is… go watch the live adaptation of 'Mew Mew Kissy Cutie' at the cinema with your kids."
Noelle got a very a bewildered look on her face. Then, thinking she got the logic, she asked the dog:
"Oh, is the trip to the cinema some key factor for the events to come?"
"Absolutely not. I just think it's a good movie and you should go see it." - the dog replied with an amused expression.
Noelle's expression got even more funnier. Did the Annoying Dog really had nothing better to advise than go see a movie? Was he even taking the issue seriously?
"Fine, I guess I can give it a chance..." - Noelle said with an annoyed sigh.
"It's really worth it. It's starring Mad Mew Mew in the leading role!" - Annoying Dog replied - "But on a more serious note, keep your bonds with your family intact, Noelle. It's very important."
"I'll do my best." - Noelle said with a nod - "Oh, and sorry I've been rude earlier… I didn't mean to insult you, or anything…"
"Oh, don't worry. All's okay, no hard feelings here." - Dog replied with an easy tone - "It's true that I've been absent those past few years. But I absolutely didn't forget about this world. You can be sure the world is still watched over, Noelle."
"That's nice to know..." - Noelle gave the dog a weak smile - "Out of pure curiousity, what are you doing when you're not here?"
"This is a very good question! See that stained glass behind you?"
Noelle turned her head to look at the wall behind her. Above the entrance to the shrine, there was indeed a small stained glass, representing a symbol Noelle knew way too well.
"Yeah, it's the Delta Rune. But what does it have anything to do with your activity?"
Since the dog didn't answer, Noelle looked back at her left and saw that the spot was empty. The dog was gone. "What… the heck just happened?" - Noelle asked herself as she processed. Truly, the conversation she just had with the Annoying Dog was so weird, that Noelle actually questioned wether it was all real or if she lost her mind and imagined the whole thing.

A/N: But seriously, about the "god is dog backwards" thing... I wonder if it was done purposely, or if it's just a coincidence…?

Extra info: The reason why Gaster isn't erased in this timeline is because of Alphys' choices. In this timeline, instead of taking the risk to make the skelebros walk across the Core to the castle, Alphys requested Asgore to descend to the lab and see by himself.

Not much happens in this chapter, but it was necessary to show how difficult it is for Noelle to deal with her vision. This chapter explains how timelines work. Basically, the regular "Handplates" timeline does exist, but in a different plane of existance. The same applies to "Mercyplates", "Momplates", "Dustjar",... A genocide route exists too in a completely separate timeline. (But "my" Frisk is a 100% pacifist.)

The whole interaction between the Annoying Dog and Noelle has a WTF vibe, but it was done on purpose! ^^ I picture the Dog as someone having a odd humor, considering that in game, he's quite a prankster and also the real Toby Fox being considered to be a "troll".