"It seems a bit silly to me, that is all," Toriel sighed as she straightened Silas' tie. He stood dutifully at attention and craned his neck upward to give her room to work. "You have hardly been working there four months, and you already feel obligated to go to their party and miss out on the one in your own home?"

"Just because it's a government job doesn't mean it's not still an office," he groused. "And the internal politics are all the more brutal because everyone's getting paid less."

It was New Year's Eve, the last night of the year. Everyone was busy in their own way. Silas' friends and some of the monsters were coming and there was so much which needed to be done. A turkey was roasting in the oven, sending out gentle waves of heat which helped beat back the winter chill. The monsters would be bringing sides as well, but Toriel could not resist preparing some other things to complement the main dish: brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, and broccoli for vegetables and starches, peanut butter cookies for dessert and snacks. Frisk was helping with the last of these; the cookies had been pulled out of the oven only moments ago and they were dutifully placing a chocolate kiss on the center of each cookie while it was still warm and gooey.

Silas, unfortunately, was expected at a New Year's party the other lawyers and paralegals at the public defender's office were throwing. Among other things, this meant he would have to wear his binder and dress casual clothes rather than frumpy sweatclothes. He would prefer to have blown off his co-workers but he was still working off the stink on his career his disastrous tenure in Texas had left. In addition some people saw his drafting of the LOVE memo as an act of hubris and still looked down on him for jumping ahead in the line. His presence at this party would help mollify some of those hard feelings. He had to make a good impression on the Weymouth office or it would be difficult for him to find a job anywhere else. At this time it was still his plan to eventually leave Weymouth once he had satisfied his duties here. He would not need to be Frisk's foster father forever. The monsters would eventually need a full-time lawyer on retainer, one with the correct specializations for what they needed. Even his friends, while he appreciated them, could not keep him tied down here. Some day he would run into the limit of what he could do here and then it would be time to leave. When that time came a recommendation from the government office would be invaluable.

Toriel stepped back and gave her judgment of the tie with a nod. "Well! In that case I will mind the house until you return. I will explain the situation to your friends but I will not be canceling the event." She got a sly grin before adding, "I promise not to let everyone make too much of a mess, so long as you promise not to make too much of a mess of yourself."

The corner of his lip twitched. Toriel had learned of Silas' poor alcohol tolerance in a decidedly embarrassing fashion and would likely never let him live it down. "I will not be drinking tonight if I can avoid it and will be leaving soon after midnight tolls. Expect me home before 1 AM, weather willing. We are supposed to get snow tomorrow, hopefully it holds up until I am safely home." His attention went to the child standing at the counter. "In case I don't see you before you pass out, good night Frisk."

"No way!" Frisk said. They turned to face him, one of their cheeks smudged with brown from when they "sampled" some of the chocolate. "You both said it's okay to stay up late tonight so I'm gonna stay up!"

Silas hunched over with a smirk. "That's what you said on Christmas, but who ended up being carried to bed by Toriel while they drooled on her arm?"

"I don't drool!" Frisk pouted. "And this time'll be diff'rent!"

"All right Frisk," Silas said without being patronizing. "I'm going to hold you to that. I'll see you too when I get back. Do you want a hug before I go?" Frisk smiled and wordlessly stepped into his arms, making sure to hold their hands out so they did not get chocolate on his clothes. Silas clapped them on the back twice before releasing them. "There we are. Don't give Toriel or your teacher too much trouble."

"I won't," Frisk promised before turning back to their work.

"I'll see you tonight as well," Silas said to Toriel as he slipped his arms into the sleeves of a peacoat. "If any of the others are here when I get back I'll be happy to say hello, but if the snow starts don't let them get caught here. Fitting everyone into this little apartment was rough, I really don't want to do that again."

Toriel smiled. "I will be sure no one overindulges and must spend the night, but if it is not safe for anyone to travel I will have to insist they stay."

"Even Asgore?"

Toriel's face blanked, but her eye did not twitch in anger like usual. Interesting. "Yes, even Asgore. I know you must leave, but do you have another hug to spare?" Silas acquiesced, giving her a quick hug. "A better one! This has to last me all night, you know." Silas rolled his eyes, but smiled and gave her a longer hug. Toriel then surprised him by lightly touching the tip of her muzzle to his nose. "And a nose nuzzle, in case there is no one around you wish to kiss at midnight."

He sputtered and disentangled himself from Toriel, wiping at his nose. It had been warm and soft to the touch, more like fur than a nose. "Not, er, not everyone does that at New Year's. But h-how did you learn about that tradition?"

"That is the thing about naivete," she said with a smirk. "It is only a temporary condition. Have fun at your party." Then she returned to overseeing Frisk.

Despite it being the middle of winter Silas found himself overheating as he walked to his car. Damn it all, what was it about him that made him so easy to tease, anyway…?

The pot luck went better than expected: Papyrus made pasta salad (naturally) but failed to bring his brother. According to Papyrus Sans was low on spoons and was not up for a full party, though he left open the possibility he might drop by. Alphys brought drinks, mostly soda, along with cups and plates so Toriel would not have to worry about dishes later. Undyne provided mashed potatoes; she had intended to make scalloped potatoes and got a little too enthusiastic during preparation. Toriel had tried to be earnestly appreciative of them but Undyne's response was subdued. Things had been strange between the two of them ever since the incident where Undyne had told her off and taken her kid away. Toriel had allowed Frisk to stay over Undyne's place a few times since and Undyne still came to her for advice on improving her cooking techniques, but neither of them were quite sure where they stood with the other anymore. She was privately thankful when Alphys pulled Undyne's attention away, sparing both of them from an awkward silence.

The humans came right when expected. "Hey, look who we dragged in!" Susan cried as she came in the door followed by a stocky human carrying a casserole dish in each hand.

Chad Nelson tried to smile but only ended up pulling the corner of his lips back. "Heya," he said. "It's, uh, been a while."

"It most certainly has!" Toriel replied, hands on her hips. "I cannot fault you for being busy, but I feel as though Silas was starting to forget your name!"

Chad grumbled, "Yeah, he does that."

Marty rubbed the back of his head. "Wasn't sure what else was spoken for, so I ended up making some stuffing. It's from a box, but I mixed some sausage in with it so I'm sure it'll be fine. Oh, but Chad brought his green bean casserole! That'll be real great!"

"Wonderful!" Toriel said, clapping her hands. "And you, Susan? I've been looking forward to your cuisine!"

Susan winced and held up a store-bought package of dinner rolls. "Sorry, I was preparing for the new semester and ran out of time…"

Toriel snapped her finger but kept smiling. "Ah well, another time then. Come along, put those things down on the counter! The turkey is almost ready!"

After a delicious and hearty meal (with plenty of leftovers saved for Silas) everyone decided to play a few games while waiting for midnight to strike. They raided Silas' pile to look for a good candidate when Papyrus pulled one out. "The printing on this one suggests it is good for large groups!" he cried.

Marty took the smallish box from him with a wicked grin. "Ah, Resistance Avalon. It's a party game of deduction and deception! That means you might have to lie to the other players and figure out who might be lying to you. Does that sound like fun?"

Frisk made a bemused grimace. They had never thought you could make a game about that, but it might be bad for them if people figured out a way to tell Frisk was lying to them. "Um… I'm sorry," they said finally. "I'm no good at lying." This earned them a double-take from Chara, but they kept their complaints to themself.

"That's alright Frisk!" Susan said. "I'm no good at that either. How about you and me play a game by ourselves, away from all these nasty deceitful creatures?" Frisk nodded and fetched another board game from the pile. Susan followed them to the living room, where they would have room to play and stay out of everyone else's hair but still be within earshot of each other if there were a problem.

Behind their backs Chad winced at the playful insult, momentarily unsure how serious he should take it and who it was directed most at. It was not as though he was lying to everyone, exactly. It was not as though he was here as a spy. He really did just want to hang out with his friends and forget about everything happening in the world. Was that really so bad? He could go back to working to limit the monsters' influence on the city, state, and country tomorrow. Today he would relax, even if it was with monsters.

Marty pulled two cards out of the box and began his explanation of the game: "Okay, so this game takes place during the reign of King Arthur. We are Knights of the Round Table, protectors of the kingdom of Camelot." He held up one of the cards to reveal a determined-looking man in a suit of armor. A field of blue bordered the portrait.

Undyne smiled. "Oh, so we're heroes?"

"Well, most of us are." Marty flipped the other card face-up to reveal the portrait of a snarling man with a red border. "Some of us are secretly villains, who seek to destroy Camelot! The villains know who each other are, but the heroes have no idea who to trust and who will betray them. The way it work is, we have these quests we need to go on. And each quest needs a certain number of people to go on them. We take turns picking out a team, and then everyone votes on whether we trust that team. Once we agree on a team each member can play a card to succeed in the quest… or fail. If the quest succeeds the heroes get a point, and if it fails the villains get a point. First to three wins."

Papyrus tapped his index phalanx bone against his teeth. "So the heroes want to only select heroes to go on quests, while the villains want to sneak onto the teams and cause the quests to fail while sowing discord, all while remaining undiscovered themselves. Hmmmm… a simple premise, and yet…"

"There's another wrinkle," Marty said. "There's a special role in the game, Merlin. Merlin is on the side of the heroes, but he knows the identity of all the villains."

"W-wait, that doesn't make sense," Alphys complained. "This, uh Merlin? Can point and say, 'Hey, those are the bad guys!' Doesn't that… you know, ruin the game?"

"Ah ah ah, it's not that simple," Marty wagged his finger back and forth. "You see, the villains have an Assassin on their team. Even if the heroes complete their missions, the Assassin gets one try to guess who Merlin is. If they guess right the heroes lose. So Merlin has to guide everyone else without revealing who he really is."

Asgore stroked his mane. "I see. A 'hidden role' game. I have heard of them, Mafia and Werewolf are popular at large gatherings, but I never had the opportunity to try one. And this one is without player elimination, and with an added wrinkle in the form of Merlin and his need to use his knowledge while remaining secret. Clever."

Toriel seemed a bit confused but game to try. "I think I would need to see it in play before I truly understand. So, let us start right away. Please hand out the role cards! May we all be noble heroes!"

"Uh," Chad said. "That's… not how the game works…"

The role cards were handed out, and each player took a moment to study their role and what their strategy for the game might be. Through a system of the players closing their eyes while first the villains and then Merlin opened them, the villains revealed themselves to each other and then to Merlin, while Merlin's identity remained secret from everyone. Then it was time to play.

Chad was first to attempt to form a team. "Two people for the first round. Well, I know I'm a good guy so I'll nominate myself for the first position. For the second… Toriel. So me and Toriel, how does that sound?"

The results of the vote: Alphys, Undyne, Asgore, and Toriel voted for it, while Chad, Marty, and Papyrus voted against.

Undyne squinted her one eye at Chad. "You… rejected your own team?"

"I didn't actually expect it to go through," Chad admitted. "I was just trying to see who said 'yes'. On the other hand, why are you all being so easy with your acceptances? Do you realize throwing down random rejections gives Merlin cover to hide behind? And if either of us are villains the bad guys can get an early lead?"

Asgore sheepishly admitted, "Well, I thought it would be rude to dismiss your team right away. After all, we've only just begun."

"W-w-well," Alphys scratched nervously at the table. "I, hadn't really thought about it that way, heh heh. I thought, 'the faster we get teams out, the better info we'll get'. We aren't going to have anything to go on until some quests get completed… or, um, failed, I guess."

"Alright," Marty said with a sigh. "Too late to worry about it now. Toriel, Chadster, here you go, a Success and a Fail card. Pick one, put it in the pile, and we'll see what happens."

Toriel and Chad both chose one of the two cards they were given. After Chad's card and Toriel's card were put together, Marty had Papyrus and Asgore both shuffle them under the table so nobody knew which card was whose. Then he flipped them onto the table… both Successes! The whole table cheered, even though everyone knew three of the people there were only pretending to be happy…

"I didn't actually expect that one to work out," Marty admitted. "But yeah, we take those!"

"Lucked out," Chad said, nodding quietly with a smile on his face.

"So I am next to choose a team?" Toriel asked, reviewing the board. "And it must have three members this time? Then… myself, Chad, and Marty."

"So," Papyrus mused. "The last successful team, and a new addition."

"Oh," Marty winced. "This… could be bad, actually."

Toriel frowned. "Oh… did I do something wrong?"

"Not 'wrong'," Chad said. "But it's a little more dangerous of a move than you think."

As before, everyone selected their vote cards and revealed them. Again the team passed: Papyrus, Chad, and Asgore against, everyone else for. Marty put his head in his hands. "What did I just tell you guys?"

Alphys cringed and threw up her hands in defense. "I-I-I-I'm sorry! It just, it sounded like a really good idea! Two good people, and then one more, it just… it seemed right!" The others who voted in favor nodded in assent.

Asgore, however, frowned deeply. "If it works, the heroes have succeeded well," he confirmed. "But if it doesn't…"

The quest cards were passed out and the plays made. When they were counted there were two golden Success chalice… and a single tainted, black chalice. A Failure card. The Quest had failed and the villains were one step closer to victory.

Marty winced and leaned back in his chair. "Aaaaaand this is what I was afraid of."

"Wait," Toriel said. "So the villains got a point? How? Who did that?"

"W-w-well, the bad guy's obviously Mr. Conway!" Alphys accused. "I mean, the first quest was fine, but the second failed once he got brought in! So… you know, isn't that, suspicious?!"

"Please," Marty winced, "The name's 'Marty'. My dad is Mr. Conway!"

"Wait," Chad explained. "Alphys, you're not thinking it through. There's only two people on the first Quest. Say one of them plays a Fail card. The other person now knows their quest partner is a villain for sure. Everyone else knows one of those two people is a villain. So if you're the villain, you outed yourself to one person and everyone else is now very suspicious of you. But if you pass, then you're 'cleared'. Everyone trusts you because the quest you were on was good, and that lets you do a lot more damage later on… including failing quests later in a way that doesn't make you suspicious. So even though Toriel played a 'Success' card last round, there's nothing saying she didn't play a 'Fail' card this time." Around the table there was a chorus of 'Ah's and 'I see's.

"Do not try to trick everyone by implying I played the Failure card!" Toriel growled. "After all, you might have been the villain just as easily!"

Chad smirked. "If I were the villain, why would I explain the trick I was using?"

Undyne snarled, "Maybe 'cause you're trying to win our trust!"

Alphys agreed, "Y-yeah! I mean, by saying, 'There's n-no way I would do this if I were a bad guy'… you just created the perfect cover for yourself!"

Marty nodded. "You didn't really think that would work, did you villain?"

"W-wait," Chad stammered, looking much less confident than he did a moment ago. "I misspoke, I didn't mean-"

"Now hold on!" Papyrus said. "There's no need to fight amongst ourselves. Let's think carefully here! Chad rejected the team both times when he was named as a member… that kind of behavior would be very strange indeed if he were a villain! After all, if I were on the villain team I would be eager to approve teams I was a part of, because that way I could get points for my team. So you see? His actions make perfect sense as a hero, but are quite strange as a villain. I trust him!"

Alphys and Undyne were somewhat mollified by this reasoning. However, Toriel simmered. "You realize by clearing him you are placing greater suspicion on me, do you not?"

Now it was Papyrus's turn to beg for mercy. "W-Well, I don't really want to suspect anyone, it's just the game…"

"Ugh, never mind! Alphys, it is your turn to form a team for the next quest."

Alphys stammered, "Uh, alright…"

But her team of herself, Undyne, and Papyrus failed when only she and Undyne approved it. Undyne's team of herself, Alphys, and Asgore also failed, with Undyne being the only vote in favor. So next was Papyrus. Undyne grumbled, "Not a single one of you liked my choices, I see how it is. Yeah, wait'll I get my hands on you, villains! I'll serve you all the justice you can eat, fu hu hu…" She stopped smiling as she realized Papyrus was taking a long time to form a team. "Hey, Paps. You doing okay? Having trouble deciding?"

Papyrus tapped his phalanges against his teeth. "This game… I do not think I am very good at it. I mean, I am trying very hard! But it asks me to assume the worst of people, and this is not something I like to do!"

"You are trying to escape notice," Asgore said with a patient smile. "It does seem a bit out of character for you to be so quiet… do you have something you are trying to hide?"

"Of course not!" Papyrus replied. "I have been hard at work trying to determine who I distrust! It is taking all of my brain power, which is only even more prodigious because I don't have a brain! But… hm. Perhaps if I change the question to, 'who do I most trust'… yes! This I can do! So I believe a team of myself, Marty, and… Undyne! Yes, I have a good feeling about this team!"

The good feeling did not last. His team was rejected by Alphys, Toriel, Chad, and Marty while being accepted by himself, Asgore, and Undyne. Papyrus' brow furrowed in consternation as he shifted the Team Leader token over to Asgore.

"Oh, uh," Marty piped up. "I should have mentioned earlier? Evil wins immediately if we reject five teams in a row."

"What the hell?!" Undyne snarled. "Say something like that earlier!"

"Oh dear," Asgore muttered. "So if my team and the next suggested one are both rejected, the good guys lose? That's… hm. I don't think I like that rule. Perhaps we can start those five rejections now since we did not know about the rule before?" There was some thinking and nodding around the table, and they all agreed that Papyrus' team would count as the first rejection and four more would be needed to throw the game. Asgore continued with his turn. "Then, for a team… myself, Toriel, and Undyne. How is that?"

Chad spoke up, "Telling you right now, I'm rejecting the team for the sole reason that Toriel is on it."

Undyne raised an eyebrow. "You tryin' to imply something, Chad?"

"I'm not implying anything," he said. "I'm outright saying it. She's a villain."

"Why I never!" Toriel bristled. "You are just as suspicious as Marty or I, yet you place all the blame on me?"

Chad shrugged. "I'm pretty familiar with Marty's tells, I think he's good. I know I'm good. And so that leaves you as the only person who could have failed that second quest. Seems simple to me."

Toriel's eyes flashed, but Asgore put out a calming paw. "Now now, I would not have put you on the team if I did not have faith in you, Toriel," Asgore said with a smile. "I know you will do the right thing."

Toriel sighed deeply. "Hearing that from you does not make me feel any better…" she grumbled, but her hackles lowered. "Very well, let the rest of us vote on the team."

Surprisingly enough, the team passed: Chad, Marty, and Papyrus voted against, while everyone else voted for. The three chosen warriors received and played their cards and the table held their breath while they were played. There were smiles as two golden chalices came up… only to be dashed when the evil black cup of Failure appeared.

Undyne snarled at the Failure card. "Damn it! I knew I should have rejected this team!"

Chad gestured toward Toriel. "What'd I tell you? Villain, villain, villain."

"I swear I did not do this!" Toriel objected. "I played a Success card! Asgore, you know I am telling the truth! Please believe me!"

"I said I would put my trust in you," Asgore sighed into the table. "It appears now my faith was misplaced. I do not take it personally, it is only a game and you are doing your best to win. Still…"

Toriel opened her mouth to say something further, then deflated. She merely crossed her arms and turned aside, shaking her head. Apparently she was thinking that if even Asgore was convinced of her guilt there was no more use in protesting.

"Oooookay," Marty said, slapping his cheeks to get pumped up. "My turn, finally. Four people on the team this time, and there has to be two Failure cards played for the quest to fail. And since we know one villain already I'd have to pick both of the remaining bad guys to lose. But evil's one point away from winning… dicey, dicey. Alright… me, Papyrus, Alphys, and… hm, how about Asgore for the fourth? Buck up big guy, today's another quest."

Marty selected a team of himself, Undyne, Asgore, and Alphys. The team passed: Chad and Papyrus voted against, while everyone else voted in favor. "Uh," Marty stammered. "That's, uh, not good you guys. I know I said I needed to pick two villains to fail, but that doesn't mean you have to be careless…"

Chad looked from Toriel's acceptance card to the Queen's face, staring straight ahead with no expression. "I've got a real bad feeling about this…"

But it was too late now. The cards were passed out and the selection was made. The very first card was a black Failure chalice, immediately crushing the hopes of the heroes. True, two cards were needed to Fail, but that one villain on the team felt confident enough to play a Failure card was a sure sign there were at least two villains on the team. Sure enough, the third card was another Failure.

Undyne clenched her fists. "We… we lost? But how? Wait, if there are two villains on this team, and I'm not one of 'em, that means-!"

"I see," Asgore said with his eyes closed. "Evil was triumphed and the king is dead." He sighed and reached for his role card, grabbing it by the corner. He held his role up to reveal the tell-tale red borders of a villain card. Shadows draped across his features to give him an air of absolute menace. "Long. Live. The King."

"WHAT?!" Undyne slammed her fists on the table hard enough to splinter it. "Are you freaking…! I can't believe it!"

Chad stared at Asgore's role card with a slack jaw. "I don't believe it," he said. "How could I have been so blind…?"

Toriel sighed deeply as she flipped over her own card to reveal a villain. "I admit I had low hopes, but it truly was excellent play. I did not think you capable of such masterful deception, Asgore."

Asgore chuckled. "You do not live for a thousand years without learning a few tricks. I admit, though, Beatrice has been helping me on that front. She's been showing me how to use my demeanor and reputation to my advantage. I believe she put it as, 'Once everyone believes you are a fool it is very difficult for them to shake that prejudice even in the face of overwhelming evidence'." He looked across the table at Papyrus. "I must admit, I thought Chad was Merlin until I saw his reaction just now. Well done."

The skeleton sighed as he flipped over his role card to display the robes and hat of the wizard Merlin. "I am not too proud to admit, this time we have been bested."

Marty scratched his chin as he looked from Asgore to Toriel and back again. "That third round," he said to himself. "When you told her you trusted her. That was a signal, wasn't it? You were telling her you would play the 'Fail' card, so she should play a 'Success'. We were so focused on Toriel we completely missed the tell."

Toriel chuckled. "There is no partial credit for explaining why you lost," she teased.

Undyne looked around the table, confused. "So wait, who was the third bad guy?"

"Aheheheh, heh…" Alphys flipped over her role card to reveal another villain card. "S-sorry Undyne. It's, you know, how the game is played…"

Undyne stared at her with her jaw open. Then she wrapped Alphys' head in a bear hug and laughed uproariously. "Damn, I didn't suspect a thing! You really went all in on your role, huh? I see it now, latching onto what I was saying, following my lead, never sticking your own neck out… I thought you were just nervous! You really pulled one over on me, that's awesome!"

"Uh, it is?" Alphys squeezed out, still a little happy.

"Do we want to play again?" Chad asked. "Now that you all understand the game a little better? Maybe too well…"

"I would like that," Toriel said. "One more game, then the people who lost both games have to put it away. That is how the rule goes, yes?"

And so the players handed out role cards to start a new game…

Sometime during their game the following scene occurred: Frisk and Susan were both staring at the board, one contemplating their next move and the other waiting in anticipation. Frisk bit their lip and looked up at Susan. Her lips were pursed and she tapped two fingers rhythmically against the game board. They looked a little beside her to the ghost child hovering there. Chara sighed. "Are you going to ask or not?" they said. "We both agreed you would need to practice on someone with a sympathetic ear. The others aren't listening, you aren't going to get a better chance than this."

Frisk nodded. They spoke out loud, "Um… can I talk to you Ms. Laow?"

"Of course!" she chirped. "You can talk to me about anything. And don't think I haven't noticed you practicing my name, I really appreciate that!"

"You're welcome," Frisk said. They clasped their hands and could not stop staring at their feet. "It's… I need to ask you. A really big favor. Not right now, but, um…" Susan tilted her head sideways and blinked. Frisk looked over their shoulder to make sure nobody else was listening and asked, "Well… can I have your soul?"

Susan put a hand to her chest and scoffed. "Frisk!" she said in mock offense. "That's not something you ask your teacher! Besides, I'm still using it!"

Aaaah, she was not taking them seriously! "Not now!" Frisk pleaded. "Not for a long time, not until… not until you die. But when you do, could… I borrow it? I need it for something."

Susan's smile withered on her lips. "Frisk, you… you're serious, aren't you?" She hunched over so she could look Frisk directly in the face. "I really can't make a promise that big if I don't know what it's for. I'm sure you have a good reason, but you can't ask people to give their soul to you if you won't tell them what it's for."

Frisk pondered their next move. There was a sense to what she was saying, they could not expect even someone extremely kind to hand over their soul for no reason. But at the same time it would be extremely dangerous to tell her what it was for. What if she told Toriel, or the other monsters? They would get in big trouble for sure. "There's… a child." Chara's eyes widened and they whipped their head toward Frisk in warning. But it was okay, Frisk remembered their promise. They just had to talk around it. "A monster kid that can't feel love. Not just that… he can't feel anything. And he's stuck like this, maybe forever, unless we do something. The only way to save them… I need seven souls. And I thought, I need really nice people with big hearts to help them, and I thought of you right away. So that's why I wanted to ask you first." They were quick to add, "But you can't tell anybody! Not even any of the other monsters! They… they don't know about this, and it would be bad if they found out. So… please keep it a secret."

Susan bit her lower lip, her gaze being drawn over to the others absorbed in their own game only fifteen feet or so away. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. "It's not going to be for a long time, you know that right Frisk?" Susan flexed their arm to show off their bicep. "I might be small but I'm strong! I'm not kicking the bucket anytime soon! So if your friend is waiting on me, sorry to say I've got a lot of life left in me." They took Frisk's hands in hers. "But if he still needs more souls when I die in sixty years or whatever, you can use mine. Absolutely."

Frisk nodded with a wide grin. "Yeah!" They did not honestly expect to need Susan, but she was the ideal person to practice on. They did not count her as the first soul, not yet. For one thing hoping for her to die would be unspeakably ghoulish. Also, in some small part of their mind, they thought it would be a little mean to give Asriel a teacher who never went away as one of their soulmates. They looked back down at the gameboard. "Um," they said. "Whose turn was it?"

Susan looked down at the board as well. The long pause said something that her confidence in saying, "Yours," could not make up for.

The second game was won by the hero team of Papyrus, Toriel, Asgore, and Undyne. Alphys was a bit too obvious for her villain tricks to work a second time, and as clever as Marty was he could not resist snickering as a bad guy. Chad played admirably but he could not hold up the forces of evil by himself. In a last-ditch effort Chad fingered Asgore as Merlin, but in reality it had been Toriel; Asgore quickly figured out her identity and made himself the obvious target, drawing the assassination meant for the wizard and clinching the victory. This left Chad and Marty as the two-time losers who had to put the game away. Toriel said she was going outside to get some fresh air and rather pointedly asked Asgore if he would like to join her, repeating her request through clenched teeth when he was too flush with the afterglow of victory to catch her hint. This time he caught her meaning and shuffled out the front door to follow her. Undyne, Alphys, and Papyrus went to the living room to join Susan and Frisk in setting up a movie to watch in the disc player.

"So," Marty asked as he poured the tokens from one hand into a plastic baggie in the other, spilling a couple in the process. The two of them chatted by the kitchen table, still strewn with the remnants of their last game. "In all the excitement I never asked, what have you been up to? They working you hard as part of the skeleton crew at the ol' golden tea factory?"

"Nah," Chad said as he tapped the cards against the table to straighten them out. "They cut me loose at the first round of layoffs months ago."

"What?!" Marty shouted, genuinely distressed. This earned him a few glances from the living room that Chad brushed off with a waving hand and a shake of his head, a gesture to say 'everything is fine'. "Holy… why didn't you say something before, man? Mad Martian Media's rolling the dough, and after all the mooching I've done the least I could have done is give you a cushy job while you recover!"

"It's not a big deal," Chad waved off. He slipped the cards into a plastic baggie and sealed the top, tossing them into the box. "I landed on my feet. Got hired the same day as, uh, part of a local not-for-profit. Community organizing, that kind of thing."

Marty calmed down a little but he still had an expression on his face like he just popped a dark candy in his mouth expecting chocolate and got root beer. He gathered up the spilled tokens and put them into the bag one by one. "I didn't think you were into politics."

"It was sort of a 'right place, right time' thing. We're doing a lot of good work in the local community, mostly in educating people about important issues. I didn't want to bring it up out of nowhere because, you know, politics."

"Ha! I hear that!" Marty put the cover back on the game box. "Say, these people you're working with… would I hate them?"

Chad shrugged. "I dunno about 'hate'. Maybe you wouldn't agree with them on everything, but by and large they're good people trying their best. They treat everyone, even people they disagree with, with respect. Agree to disagree, you know? At the end of the day the important thing is that we all stick together."

"Amen to that," Marty said. "I hate getting bogged down in politics."

Chad had been counting on that. Marty had never been one to take strong stances on anything. "But you kinda put your foot in politics by having monsters on your show all the time. Hey, don't get me wrong, I'm happy for your success. But once the novelty of monster guests wears off they may be more trouble than they're worth."

"They've been good for me so far," Marty said. "Dad's finally gotten off my case about 'getting a real job'. A couple newspapers and magazines have given me interviews, too. Nah, I don't think I'm gonna kick 'em to the curb anytime soon. In fact it's the other way: I'm thinking of doing a full rebranding, you know, make the transition from a goofy entertainment stream that occasionally has monsters on to a show about monster interest and monster rights stories exclusively. As part of that I'm gonna have Camille on next week to talk about Humans First. You know, that hate group that sprouted up? She's been talking to monsters around town that have been getting harassed. Threatening phone calls, stalking… nobody's gotten hurt or died yet but it's getting scary. Hey, don't make a big deal out of this? But good ol' Mad Martian Media's caught some pretty nasty stuff in its email filter too. I don't read any of it, but when I'm getting called a 'race traitor' in the subject line I can pretty much guess the rest of it."

Chad frowned. He objected to being called part of a 'hate group', but at the same time he did not at all agree with threatening people or making them feel unsafe. He had not heard of anything like what Marty was describing going around the office. He knew HF was in talks with politicians and organizing online petitions, but not organized harassment campaigns. He found it hard to believe. If his group were doing something like this he would know about it, right? "Are you sure it's from Humans First?"

"Maybe not," Marty admitted. "But those guys are egging them on if nothing else. Those emails started showing up the day after they put out a statement saying I was some evil agent, a nobody who owes my success to monsters. Which I mean, yeah, I had double digit viewers before I had monsters come on as guest stars and look at me now! So they, uh, weren't wrong, but… they make it sound like a conspiracy or something. But you know I'm not smart enough or dumb enough to try something like that, right?"

"I dunno," Chad said. "You are pretty clever, in your own way. Just, your cleverness is more like, 'cooking a hot pocket in the oven', not 'plot to overthrow society'."

"Right? But hey, don't knock the oven trick until you've tried it. I know it sounds unintuitive but it really does bring them to the next level. Anyway, they put out a hit piece on me and the next thing you know I'm getting flooded with hate mail. Quite a coinky-dink, don'cha think?"

Chad growled low in his throat. "True…" Was Marty lying? No, Chad would not believe that for a second. Say what you wanted about Marty, after all he was more than upfront with people about his faults, but he was not a liar. But HF did not have any hand in this. He was not blind, he would have noticed. He would have.

"Wonder what Asgore and Toriel are talking about out there?" Marty said idly.

The thought flashed through Chad's mind that they were concocting a new scheme to secure more rights for monsters at the expense of the people of Weymouth, but he ejected it from his mind so quickly he did not register he had it. (yet it was there) "Probably private stuff," he said instead. "Stay out of it. Hey! I mean it."

Marty held his hands up innocently. "Wouldn't dream of eavesdropping on 'em! Don't you trust me?"

Asgore ducked his head under the doorframe and scooted sideways to get outside, closing the door behind him. Toriel was staring up into the clouds as though she could see the stars beyond them. Later on when the snow started the light pollution from the city would give the sky an unearthly green glow and cover everything in a light brighter than a full moon. For now the dark was deep, the street lights and the soft radiance from the windows only partially succeeded in piercing the gloom. Puffs of smoke wafted into the air as they both exhaled.

"So!" Asgore said, trying to break the ice. "Two solid victories! Difficult to be more decisive than that. Even after everything we make good partners." He coughed when she did not immediately respond. "I am sorry, I-"

"No, it is alright Asgore." She sighed. "I think, we have needed to talk about this for a while now."

Hope fluttered in his chest. "Tori, I-!"

She held up a paw to stop him. "Let me make one thing clear: I cannot love you as I did. Too much has happened, and both of us have been changed. We are no longer who we were. We will never get back together. Surely you realize this by now." He nodded slowly, and she continued in a more upbeat manner, "But I was wrong to blame you for everything. You are not the wicked devil I tried to think of you as, nor the fool I called you to your face. And I am not as faultless as I imagined myself."

"You must not blame yourself," Asgore said. "I was too hurt, too broken. I did not care about anything else, other than lashing out with my own pain. I doubt I would have listened to you if you tried to stop me."

"I could have tried," she admitted. "I could have talked to you, we could have worked out a plan to keep the humans alive secretly while keeping a public policy of breaking the barrier, together we… we could have done something. Instead I abandoned everything. I was so lost in my own misery I never thought of anyone else's suffering. I locked hundreds of monsters in the Ruins, appointing myself their prison warden. I allowed seven children to pass through my home, knowing I was condemning either them or you to death."

"If one of the children had killed me, I could not honestly say I did not have it coming. I made my poor decisions, Toriel."

"And I made mine," Toriel said. "I have made mistakes, very serious ones, and hurt people I care about. Asgore… despite everything, I am tired of pretending you are not one of those people."

"Wait," Asgore said, rising to his full height. "It would not be right, for you to say it first. Toriel… I am sorry. For allowing my anger to control me. For devising that awful scheme in the first place. For failing to remain the man you married and fell in love with. For all of that and so much more… I'm sorry."

Toriel took a deep breath. "I am sorry too, Asgore, for betraying my duty to my people. For leaving you by yourself when you needed me most. And for locking myself in the Ruins, leaving you with the impossible choice of abandoning your subjects or breaking some of our most sacred traditions by intruding in the home of your ex-wife. I would like to forget all of it and start again."

Asgore blinked. "You mean…?"

"Yes," she replied, extending her paw. "I think I would like to be friends again."

Asgore took her hand and shook it confidently. "I am honored to call myself your friend, Toriel."

It had started snowing shortly after midnight. For natives of New England this said less than you might think. There was the kind of snowfall with thick, fluffy flakes that came down slowly and lazily, drifting to and fro in their flight. There was the snow that fell in thick sheets, gumming up tire treads instantly and blocking vision any further than a few feet to make even a short drive a harrowing ordeal. There were the flakes so tiny one had to catch a flake on their hand and catch the shape of it in the brief second before it melted to be sure it was snowing at all (occasionally one would do this and watch the "raindrop" bounce off their hand, and that was the cue to get inside before the hail really started). But this time was the type of snow children loved to see, falling heavy, thick, and wet. The type of snow that could be packed well to make snowballs, and enough of it that if it kept snowing like this all night maybe, just maybe, school would be closed tomorrow. Of course, no children would be going to school on New Year's Day in any case, but the type of snow that was fun to play in was never unwelcome except to those who had to drive through the stuff.

In a way Silas was thankful for the snow. It gave him the excuse to leave as soon as midnight struck. He could hardly see five feet in front of his car, so he drove at half the posted speed limit and passed by several half-buried cars in ditches with their hazard lights on who were not so cautious. He could only shake his head. Despite snow happening every year there were always some people who forgot how to drive in the stuff. He did slow down to make sure the driver's were alright; mostly they were spooked and talking frantically into their cell phones. He would have been happy to offer assistance if he were able, but his heart condition made it difficult to exercise so he was much too physically weak to haul a car back onto the road or even provide meager backup for those who could. If they were not physically injured and still had the cell phone reception to get help they would be alright. Still he said a quick prayer for them to get home safely. Even if it was their own fault for being drunk or careless, nobody deserved to ring in the new year freezing on the side of the road.

He did not see anyone else's cars when he pulled in; it seemed he missed everyone. The lights were still on so at least he would not be coming home to a dark house and having to tip-toe to avoid waking Toriel up. Sighing to himself he parked his car and pulled his wipers up to keep them from getting buried in the snow and caked over with ice. He opened the front door without even bothering with his keys. "I'm home," he announced.

"Welcome back!" Toriel replied from the kitchen.

"Habby Ne'eer…" Frisk slurred from the couch where they were slumped over. The poor kid's shoulders were hunched over, and they lacked the energy to even keep their jaw closed. With their eyes closed it would not have been odd for them to begin snoring any moment.

Silas could not help but smile at their determination. "Well," he said as he slipped out of his coat. "Someone's suffering for staying up past their bedtime."

"'S not true," Frisk grumbled. "'M not tired… at all…"

"It's fine, Frisk," Silas said. "You stayed up long enough to wish me a welcome home, you kept your promise. You can go to sleep now."

Frisk stared at him slackjawed for a couple seconds, their body leaning one way then the other, before slowly nodding. "Oooo'ay." They oozed off the couch and trudged up the stairs on all fours.

Silas turned his attention back to Toriel. "I apologize for leaving you to deal with everyone on your own."

"Nonsense!" she declared. "Everyone was on their best behavior. Oh, you missed your friend Chad. You really ought to spare some time for him, he seemed upset that you have not seen each other."

"I've tried," Silas said, brushing snow out of his hair. "We're busy people and our schedules don't match up. But fine, I'll see if I can spare some time next weekend. Hadn't you better check on Frisk? The way they are now I half expect them to not change into their pajamas before passing out."

"Sleeping in their day clothes once will not hurt them," Toriel said, casting a glance up the stairs. "Still, you are correct. I should make sure they at least make it to the bed. There is plenty of food in the fridge, but be quick about eating it. I would like to get sleep too!" She went up the stairs to check on Frisk.

Silas walked by the couch that still, still, served as Toriel's bed and peeked inside the fridge. Plastic containers filled with turkey, separated by white and dark meat, and numerous sides greeted him. He paused before grabbing one, shaking it with one hand. Green bean casserole. Chad's signature dish. The last time he had seen Chad was months ago, when the monsters were still a secret to the world. Silas had not thought about him even once since, and Chad still took the time to come over to his house. "You deserve a better friend than me," he sighed to himself before replacing the container and closing the fridge, suddenly not very hungry.

AN: Resistance: Avalon is a game I truly love and that I haven't played enough of. The lack of player elimination is what really sells me on it; in a game of Mafia or Werewolf you can get lynched or nightkilled very early on and be stuck not playing for hours before the game is over and you can do something else with your friends. As mentioned, Resistance: Avalon avoids this. I intentionally kept what game Susan and Frisk are playing vague; I think I wrote enough words about board games this chapter already, don't you?
Also, you are correct that Frisk did not give a soul container to Susan; they have no way of giving one to her right now without everyone else noticing. It will be delivered at a future date, even if it never ends up being used.
Also playing a bit with the possibility of Silas/Toriel. Still not sure which direction I should go. On the one hand I could see them working as a couple, on the other hand a man and a woman having a normal platonic relationship without it turning romantic is rare enough that I don't want to torpedo that without a good reason or future payoff. Let me know in a comment/review if you have strong feelings about it one way or the other.