Next chapter! Enjoy!
Chapter 4: I went on a...date?
Papyrus stood in my way on the path. The cold wind biting at me as he stood facing towards me. He seemed... different. A bit more serious than usual if you could believe it. The snow started to fall around us, blocking much of the view except for me and him.
"HUMAN. ALLOW ME TO TELL YOU ABOUT SOME COMPLEX FEELINGS." While I was willing to listen, I wasn't sure what he was going to say. Or what he even considered to be complex about him. "FEELINGS LIKE... THE JOY OF FINDING ANOTHER PASTA LOVER. THE ADMIRATION FOR ANOTHER'S PUZZLE-SOLVING SKILLS. THE DESIRE TO HAVE A COOL, SMART PERSON THINK YOU ARE COOL."
So far it was what I was expecting. Though I could feel something from him. Papyrus seemed... alone. Like he had trouble making friends and would get over-excited when he would meet someone he could connect with to the point of driving them away. Not that he could really help it, it was just how he was.
"THESE FEELINGS..." he said as he looked down in front of him, lost in thought. "THEY MUST BE WHAT YOU ARE FEELING RIGHT NOW!" he said as he looked up excitedly. His mouth curling in a smile. Since he didn't have lips to curl it was quite a sight to see. Like his cheekbones were malleable. "I CAN HARDLY IMAGINE WHAT IT MUST BE LIKE TO FEEL THAT WAY."
Papyrus put his boney hand on his chest, posing heroically with his chest puffed out. "AFTER ALL, I AM VERY GREAT. I DON'T EVER WONDER WHAT HAVING LOTS OF FRIENDS IS LIKE. I PITY YOU... LONELY HUMAN..."
I could sens a bit of self-inserting in his words. But strangely enough... his words did ring true. Back on the surface, I was alone. I didn't really like to talk to anyone and I had very few friends... all of them I could do without if I'm being honest.
Living in an orphanage was hard... watching friends come and go. But the worst of it was the isolation. Once you reach a certain age, getting adopted into a family was basically impossible. We would be sitting in the back while all the couples would come in and dote on those who could barely walk. Sometimes they'd adopt a teenager... but more because of some kind of moral ethic code. Often those kids would get into trouble to get attention from the orphanage staff, or just anyone...
"WORRY NOT!" shouted Papyrus, breaking me out of my trance. "YOU SHALL NOT BE LONELY ANY LONGER!" A part of me was... overjoyed to hear it. Looking up at him hopefully. Despite him being a loud goof, I could be his friend... quite easily actually.
"I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL BE YOUR..." said Papyrus, but starting to trail off. He looked down towards the ground sadly then turned away from me. "NO... NO, THIS IS ALL WRONG! I CAN'T BE YOUR FRIEND!"
Why the sudden change in tune... I was about to get my answer. "YOU ARE A HUMAN! I MUST CAPTURE YOU! THEN, I CAN FULFILL MY LIFELONG DREAM! I WILL BE POWERFUL! POPULAR! PRESTEGIOUS!"
Papyrus paused for a moment then glared at me, flourishing his arm in front of him, a long white bone appearing in his hand. "I WILL FINALLY BE OF THE ROYAL GUARD! THE GREAT KNIGHT PAPYRUS!"
I felt a Fight begin. Time for a bonetroussle.
Papyrus stood there with one hand on his popped hip while the other arm was straight down and hand out in a flourish. One knee cocked lightly as he stood in a very... sassy pose. His cape billowing behind him from the wind.
I could only glare at Papyrus... I felt upset that he had given me the cold shoulder. I wouldn't mind having a friend down here... So far Sans and Toriel were the closest things. Toriel told me never to come back and Sans... well... was Sans. It was hard to get a read on that guy.
Kill this bonehead!
I glared up at him and shouted an insult at him... It was a lash out in anger but it was the most I could muster up given my emotional state.
"HOW SELFLESS... YOU WANT ME TO FEEL BETTER ABOUT FIGHTING YOU... I DON'T DESERVE SUCH HOSPITALITY FROM YOU..." said Papyrus as he threw the large bone in his hand forward. It was slow moving, easy for me to get out of the way of it. Another bone pellet forming in his hand.
Pop his head off and crush it into powder!
His words were odd to me... as if he took the insult as more of a compliment. Did he think I was talking about myself? I was pretty clear in my choice of words... Maybe he was the type that would block out words and twist them to benefit him? It was narcissistic... but not so much in an egotistical way. More of like a traumatic way.
He wanted to feel important, but it was hard for those to take him seriously because of his personality and... eccentric attitude. I felt... sorry for him. But should I even feel that way? He was a monster after all and he wanted to capture me...
Then again, Toriel wanted to capture me too but to protect me.
Why are you hesitating? Do it! He won't be your friend!
I came this far without hurting anyone, I was gonna keep going. I looked at his billowing cape and gave it a compliment. Told him that it looked good on him.
"WHAT?! F-F-F-FLIRTING?!" said Papyrus excitedly and flustered. He definitely was taking the meaning of my words differently... "SO YOU FINALLY REVEAL YOUR ULTIMATE FEELINGS! W-WELL, I'M A SKELETON WITH VERY HIGH STANDARDS!"
He seemed to be goofily looking for excuses to brush off the 'flirt.' He waited for me to reply to him... so I told him I could make spaghetti.
"OH NO! YOU'RE MEETING ALL OF MY STANDARDS!" he shouted as he blushed brightly. Skeletons could blush? "I GUESS THIS MEANS... I HAVE TO GO ON A DATE WITH YOU...? LET'S DATE L-L-LATER! AFTER I CAPTURE YOU!" he said as he threw a few more bone particles my way. I easily sidestepped them as they weren't moving very fast.
Papyrus stood there bewildered and lost in thought. He was clearly thinking about this date that he was planning in his mind. Curious as to what he would say, I complimented his boots next. Told them that they really brought out the color of his eyes.
"OH NO! I TOLD YOU WE WILL DATE L-L-LATER AFTER I C-C-APTURE YOU!" he said as he threw more flustered bones at me. Still the same speed so they were easy to dodge.
I had a feeling that continuing to flirt wont do much. So I offered to spare him. Telling him I wouldn't fight. "SO YOU WON'T FIGHT... THEN, LET'S SEE HOW YOU CAN HANDLE MY FABLED 'BLUE ATTACK!'"
I remembered that Sans warned me about this attack. Papyrus summoned another bone in both hands, this time blue in color. I remembered earlier fighting with Doggo that blue particles meant to sit still. He started to throw the bones at me in a wild flourish. Showing a more energetic side of him that I had not seen before.
I refused to move. Watching as the bone particles flew through me without any damage at all. About 10 seconds of deadly stillness later, there was a long pause. Papyrus lifted his hand and snapped his fingers.
Something strange happened. I felt strangely heavy all of a sudden. Before I could get my footing, a small bone flew at me from behind and struck my Soul. It hurt quite a bit. I looked down at my Soul, noticing that it was Blue now instead of red!
"YOU'RE BLUE NOW. THAT'S MY ATTACK! NYEH HEH HEH HEH!" He cackled proudly, summoning another bone in each hand. Now the fight would truly begin.
But still I refused to attack him. Papyrus seemed a bit absent-minded. Tabbing something behind his ears. I could smell a faintly strong scent on the wind... cologne? "WH-WHAT? IM NOT THINKING OF THAT DATE THING!" he said self-conciously.
He started to throw more bones. They were still slow, but it was much harder for me to move. As if I had a ten-ton weight on my back! So this is what the Blue attack did. It made me heavier! I managed fine so far. The attacks where somewhat tame enough for me to move around them.
Papyrus showed more of his fighting skills as it went on. Throwing a more complex array of bones. Even making a wall of them with little gaps for me to go through. I was hit a few times by it as some caught me by surprise.
I noticed he was also dabbing several things behind his ear... powder? Even some kind of slimy aftershave... The smell started to get a bit more pungent and nauseating. Getting hit by another bone as it got to me a bit. "YEAH! DON'T MAKE ME USE MY SPECIAL ATTACK!"
"I thought the blue attack was his special attack... "I CAN PRACTICALLY TASTE HOW POPULAR I WILL BE AFTER I USE THIS SPECIAL ATTACK!" he said as he threw more bone particles my way.
I kept dodging to the best of my ability.. though things were getting a bit dicey now. My Soul started to hurt a lot. I couldn't take much more as I practically dragged myself away from his attacks. "PAPYRUS: HEAD OF THE ROYAL GUARD! THE UNPARALLELED SPAGHETTORE! UNDYNE WILL BE REALLY PROUD OF ME!"
Undyne? This was the first time I heard that name. No doubt someone I would encounter later. "THE KING WILL TRIM A HEDGE IN THE SHAPE OF MY SMILE! SANS WILL... WELL HE PROBABLY WONT CHANGE THAT MUCH."
He seemed to be basking in his own dreams, eyes lifting skyward as if seeing a bright hope coming towards him. "I WILL HAVE MANY ADMIRER'S! BUT... WILL ANYONE ADMIRE ME AS SINCERELY AS YOU? SOMEONE LIKE YOU IS VERY RARE..."
Papyrus's attacks didn't let up as he was practically spinning around as he threw the bone pellets at me. Some slow, some at high speed and some blue. I just barely managed to scrape by, a bit of my strength returning after not taking a hit for a minute.
"AND DATING MIGHT HE HARD IF YOU'RE CAPTURED..." he paused for a long moment, then glared up at me. "UGH, WHO CARES?! IT WON'T MATTER AFTER THIS SPECIAL ATTACK! SO JUST GIVE UP ALREADY OR FACE MY MOST POWERFUL MOVE, HUMAN!" he cried out surprisingly loud (even for him) as he kept throwing more bones my way.
I wouldn't say I skillfully dodged them but I did the best I could. Some of them small walls I couldn't just step aside from and had to jump through. Managing to avoid them all. Papyrus sighed and shook his head as if in disappointment. He reached back behind himself as if to grab something, patting his backside and looking around.
"HEY YOU!" he shouted as he pointed to the side. I looked to see a dog chewing on one of the bone particles, tail wagging happily as he enjoyed his newfound treat! "THAT'S MY SPECIAL ATTACK! HEY! YOU STUPID DOG!" shouted Papyrus, the dog freezing and looking up at Papyrus, eyes comically huge.
"DO YOU HEAR ME?! STOP MUNCHING ON THAT BONE!" Shouted Papyrus, the dog pausing then biting on the bone and slooooowly backing away into the trees out of sight. "HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! COME BACK HERE WITH MY SPECIAL ATTACK!" shouted Papyrus as he acted like he was gonna give chase.
But he paused, as if realizing that it would be rude to leave in the middle of a fight like that. "UGH! WELL... I GUESS HERE'S A COOL NORMAL ATTACK... HERE IT COMES..." he said as if disheartened.
He summoned more bones into his hands and began to throw them. He threw a lot more than normal. This was anything other than a normal attack... I dodged through many more bones than usual this time. Even noticing that he threw a few at me that had the words 'Cool Dude' carved into them. Even managing to get one to slide passed as a bone wearing sunglasses on a skateboard. But the strongest was yet to come.
Papyrus raised his arms, a massive wall of bones popping up out of the ground moving slowly towards me. They seemed to follow me, just managing to roll out of the way. Moving as much as I could. I moved a lot more than I thought I could... Just in time too. I noticed Papyrus standing behind the wall dragging a bone three times his size. He lifted it up overhead as he got close to me and slammed it down hard. I just barely managed to get out of the way of it!
I lay there panting, exhausted as I had just done as many dodges as I possibly could. My Soul was aching a lot, I wouldn't last long anymore..
One more bone slooooowly made its way towards me. I noticed it and painfully rolled to my side so the bone would whip passed me.
"WELL..! 'HUFF' IT'S CLEAR... YOU CAN'T 'HUFF' DEFEAT ME!" shouted Papyrus. He was clearly very tired at this point. "YEAH! I CAN SEE IT YOU SHAKING IN YOUR BOOTS!" though that was quite literally him. His legs trembling from exhaustion.
"THEREFORE I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, ELECT TO GRANT YOU PITY! I WILL SPARE YOU, HUMAN!" he said with his arms open becomingly.
I got to my feet, panting and looking at Papyrus. I felt all danger lift as I looked to him.
SLICE HIM IN HALF! THIS IS YOUR BEST CHANCE!
I gripped my hands tightly curled into fists. Why should I spare him? He's been an annoying thorn in my side the whole way here! He was just a monster... he was going to turn me over to Asgore! But... he was still willing to spare me. I knew how important it was for him to capture a human and bring me to the king. And even then, he was willing to let me go.
That spoke volumes to me. It showed that he was willing to put his friends before his desires and duty. A trait that many look for in their friends. I smiled at him, and nodded. Letting him spare me.
The snow stopped falling around us, clearing up the area. I looked at Papyrus, seeing that he had turned away from me. "NYOO HOO HOO. I CAN'T EVEN STOP SOMEONE AS WEAK AS YOU..." He seemed sad, but still satisfied with his choice. "UNDYNE'S GOING TO BE DISAPPOINTED IN ME. I'LL NEVER JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD AND... MY FRIEND QUANTITY WILL REMAIN STAGNANT!"
I kinda felt bad for him. I smiled at him and walked up, placing a hand on his bony arm. He was a bit cold to the touch, but he looked over at me quite startled. I smiled up at him warmly, showing I would be his friend.
"REALLY?! YOU WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH ME?" he asked in disbelief. "WELL THEN, I GUESS I CAN MAKE AN ALLOWANCE FOR YOU!"
He clapped excitedly in front of me, turning towards me. "WOWIE! WE HAVEN'T EVEN HAD OUR FIRST DATE AND I'VE ALREADY MANAGED TO HIT HTE FRIEND ZONE!" I don't think that's what being in the friend zone meant.. but I wasn't going to argue with it.
"WHO KNEW THAT ALL IT TOOK TO MAKE PALS WAS TO PUT THEM THROUGH AWFUL PUZZLES AND FIGHT THEM?! YOU TAUGHT ME A LOT, HUMAN!" said Papyrus as if reaching some form of new enlightenment. "I HEREBY GRANT YOU PERMISSION TO PASS THROUGH! CONTINUE FORWARD UNTIL YOU REACH THE END OF THE CAVERN. THEN, YOU WILL REACH THE CAPITAL WHERE YOU WILL CROSS THE BARRIER!"
The barrier... I remember Toriel talking about it. And no doubt at the capital, Asgore waited. The final challenge on my way home.
"THAT'S THE MAGICAL SEAL TRAPPING US ALL UNDERGROUND." informed Papyrus. "ANYTHING CAN ENTER THROUGH IT, BUT NOTHING CAN EXIT. EXCEPT SOMEONE WITH A POWERFUL SOUL. SOMEONE LIKE YOU! THAT'S WHY THE KING WANTS TO AQUIRE A HUMAN. HE WANTS TO OPEN THE BARRIER WITH SOUL POWER. THEN US MONSTERS CAN RETURN TO THE SURFACE!"
Papyrus's eyes lowered for a moment, then looked back up to me. "AH, I ALMOST FORGOT TO TELL YOU SOMETHING. TO REACH THE EXIT, YOU WILL HAVE TO PASS THROUGH THE KING'S CHAMBERS. THE KING OF ALL MONSTERS, ASGORE."
Asgore... Still I keep hearing that name. Seems he was the one that put the monsters down here up to taking a human's Soul. "HE IS... WELL... HE'S A BIG FUZZY PUSHOVER!"
I was rather surprised by that... Whenever Toriel spoke of Asgore she made him seem like a cruel person. "EVERYBODY LOVES THAT GUY. I'M CERTAIN IF YOU JUST SAY 'EXCUSE ME, MR. DREEMURR, CAN I PLEASE GO HOME?' HE'LL GGUIDE YOU RIGHT TO THE BARRIER HIMSELF! ANYWAY! THAT'S ENOUGH TALKING! I'LL BE AT HOME BEING A COOL FRIEND!" shouted Papyrus as he darted towards me, leaping over me as he went back towards the village.
I had so many questions... but I wasn't sure if Papyrus was going to give them to me. I decided to head back into Snowdin and explore around a bit more. Something came to my mind that I wanted to see. But I also wanted to stop a few other places. Maybe get to know the locals a bit more.
I stopped first at the shop, meeting a nice bunny lady who sold me a manly looking bandana that I tied around my neck, as well as a few cinnamon buns for the road. The smell kind of reminded me of Toriel's Cinnascotch Pie. I noticed that there was a glove on sale too that had strong padding, could easily punch something and hurt someone with it... But I decided against it. She said that she just found it somewhere, that it belonged to another human at one point. I bought the glove for safe keeping.
There were a few monsters living here, though they were all more animal types. Mainly bunnies, and bears. A few dogs too. One of the bunny girls wearing a blue hat was walking a smaller feral rabbit on a leash... for some reason it kept saying 'bun-bun-bun' all the time. A slightly gray furred bear placing presents under a large Christmas tree in the center of Snowdin. Said he was doing it so monsters would feel better towards each other.
Then again that's a lot of what Christmas is like. Yeah, there's a whole obligation to give gifts and all but its to make others feel happy. I think that's important enough to do it.
I also noticed a mouse, monster with a large scarf wrapping up his whole body and what looked like a kid in a devil Halloween costume. I didn't want to ask if it was part of his body or not. But soon I got to where I wanted to go. The Library... though the sign over the door lead Librarby... would I learn anything here? May as well look.
The first thing I noticed was the several shelves of books along the back wall. Red, Blue, Yellow, Brown, Light Green, and Dark Green. The librarian, a reptilian female with square glasses, spoke up. "Welcome to the Library. Yes, we know. The sign is misspelled."
I didn't press further. I looked around the books, finding a few of them that had interesting titles. I came here to learn more about Monsters. Anything would do. Maybe even the history of the old legend between humans and monsters? Clearly there was some truth to the old bedtime story.
Some of them were just school reports from the monster kids in classes. One was kind of interesting about how monsters hold funerals.
'Monster funerals, technically speaking, are cool as heck. When monsters get old and kick the bucket, they turn to dust. At funerals, we take that dust and spread it on a person's favorite thing. Then their essence will live on in that thing...'
It trailed off from there. But I found it interesting that it was somewhat similar to cremation. Spreading those ashes on a place or thing a person liked. My mind drifted to Toriel... and what I did to her before I reset the world... She turned to dust when she died. So its not just being slain when monsters turn to dust.
The next books were more... books than kids reports.
'Monster History Part 3-4: Trapped behind the barrier and fearful of human attacks, we retreated. Far, far into the earth we walked, until we reached the cavern's end. This was our new home, which we named... HOME. Fearing the humans no longer, we moved out of our old city, HOME. We braved the harsh cold, damp swampland, and searing heat until we reached what we now call our capital. NEW HOME. Again... our king is really bad at names.'
I was curious as to where parts 1 and 2 were. But they weren't here at all. The next is a few books in one, but it gave me a bit more info on what a Soul is, and monsters.
'While monsters are mostly made of magic, human beings are mostly made of water. Humans, with their physical forms, are far stronger than us. But they will never know the joy of expressing themselves through magic. They'll never get a bullet-pattern birthday card! Because they are made of magic, monsters' bodies are attuned to their Soul. If a monster doesn't want to fight, its defenses will weaken. And the crueler the intentions of our enemies, the more their attacks will hurt us. Therefore, if a being with a powerful Soul struck with the desire to kill...'
Unfortunately the chapter ended there. So Monsters were made of magic? That explains the strange forms they can take such as a talking vegetable or a dog in a suit of armor. Also a Monster's form and power were relative to what their intentions were. That made enough sense. Just as well, our intentions to them play heavily on them... Like when I killed Toriel... It was strange to me that a plastic knife did the damage it did, but when I attacked I meant each hit... Then there was that weird dream I had where I attacked Toriel and cut her down immediately... Feeling that strange exhilaration. The enjoyment coursing through me as I watched her fade into dust...
Never again. That isn't who I am. I wasn't going to kill anyone anymore. But the dreams were still a mystery. There was ine more book to read.
'Love, Hope, Compassion... this is what people say Monster Soul's are made of. But the absolute nature of what we call 'Soul' is unknown. After all, humans have proven their Souls don't need these things to exist.'
Love, hope, and compassion. I remember Flowey mentioning my LV being Love. But I could feel that my LV was still at 1. Maybe he didn't know what he was talking about? I felt my eyes growing heavy as I went through a few other books. I had been here for quite a while... so I decided to lay my head down for a bit... soon drifting off into slumber.
I stood on the path outside of Snowdin, the snow falling around me and the wind blowing. Seeing that obnoxious idiot Papyrus standing in my way... Seems he didn't learn from all those I cut down on the way here. I'd make him whine and cry like I did Dogaressa.
"HALT, HUMAN!" shouted Papyrus, his hand lifted up in a stopping gesture.
Like hell I was gonna stop for him. I'd go right through him if he didn't get out of my way. I stepped forward, glaring at him. "HEY! QUIT MOVING WHILE I'M TALKING TO YOU! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE SOME THINGS TO TELL YOU!"
Right... things to tell me... Out with it so I can get somewhere warm.
"FIRST: YOU'RE A FREAKING WEIRDO!" This skeleton wanted to die... "NOT ONLY DO YOU NOT LIKE PUZZLES, BUT YOU SHAMBLE ABOUT FROM PLACE TO PLACE. THE WAY YOUR HANDS ARE ALWAYS COVERED IN DUSTY FEELS... LIKE YOUR LIFE IS GOING DOWN A DANGEROUS PATH."
I was going home. And this pile o bones wasn't gonna get in my way. "HOWEVER. I, PAPYRUS SEE GREAT POTENTIAL IN YOU. EVERYONE CAN BE A GREAT PERSON IF THEY TRY. AND ME, I HARDLY HAVE TO TRY AT ALL! NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH!"
I've heard enough. I stepped forward again, glaring at Papyrus. "HEY! QUIT MOVING! THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT. HUMAN! I THINK YOU ARE IN NEED OF GUIDANCE! SOMEONE NEEDS TO KEEP YOU ON THE STRAIGHT AND NARROW! BUT WORRY NOT! I, PAPYRUS, WILL GLADLY BE YOUR FRIEND AND TUTOR. I WILL TURN YOUR LIFE AROUND!"
Keep me on the straight and narrow... Why was he talking like he was my dad? Or anyone I could even think of looking up to. Ridiculous... I don't need anyone. I've always been alone so that's what I'll be. I stepped forward again. Papyrus looking down at me at this point
"AHH, I SEE YOU ARE APPROACHING ME. ARE YOU OFFERING A HUG OF ACCEPTANCE?" Papyrus said as he put his hands up to his cheeks in gleeful excitement. "WOWIE! MY LESSONS MUST ALREADY BE WORKING! I, PAPYRUS, WELCOME YOU WITH OPEN ARMS!"
I stood in front of Papyrus as he opened his arms, his mouth curled into a happy grin as he waited for me to run into them. My hand tightened around the old worn knife I found in Toriel's house. Knuckles showing white under the skin. His arrogance infuriated me... him be my mentor? I'd rather lose my head. Speaking of which...
Give him a real surprise. Show him that he should have looked up to you!
I started a Fight, and immediately rushed up and slashed my knife across his boney neck. His head popped right off, falling on top of one of his outstretched hands. His eyes widened in surprise as he turned his head to look at his body. "W-WELL, THAT'S NOT WHAT I EXPECTED..."
His body suddenly started to crack like glass, dust fluttering away in the wind as it mixed in with the snow that fell around us, Papyrus's head falling onto the snow. Making a soft crunching sound as the snow gave under his boney skull.
"B-BUT STILL! I...I BELIEVE IN YOU HUMAN! YOU CAN DO A LITTLE BETTER! EVEN IF YOU DON'T THINK SO! I...I PROMISE..." said Papyrus, the severed head looking up at me with hopeful eyes.
Even when an annoying head on the ground he still tried to butter me up. I smirked down at him as I walked up to him. I could do a little better... how could I leave this head on the ground like that? Better finish the job.
I placed my heel on Papyrus's forhead. "H...HUMAN? WHAT'RE YOU...?!" his eyes widened in shock as I started to push my heel down hard on his skull. I could feel it begin to crack under my foot, a wicked smile touching my lips.
"S-STOP! HOW WILL YOU EVER DO BETTER IF I'M DUST?! Y...YOU NEED ME TO HELP YOU!" said Papyrus as the cracks started to form more across his face.
CRUSH HIM! Make him ever regret offering his help to you!
Enough. I pulled my foot back and glared down at him. He looked up at me one last time, falling silent as I brought my heel down to stomp on that skull. Shattering it into pieces, and watching it fade to dust. I looked down at where my foot landed, smirking as there was nothing left of that obnoxious bag of bones.
I felt my LV and EXP increase a lot more, moving on down the path. Ready to progress through. Though something felt odd... as if I was going to have a bad time.
"Quite an interesting thing to watch, isn't it?" Said that strange, familiar voice in my head as the world around me faded into blackness. Leaving me floating in the void, unable to see anything. "That poor naive Papyrus. He never realized just how ruthless you are."
How ruthless I am? That couldn't be me... I didn't kill Papyrus, I spared him! "Oh sure, for now you're playing the good guy route. But sooner or later, you'll go back when you realize you can't leave this place without killing anyone. You don't know what it takes to go beyond the barrier, do you?"
I remembered Papyrus saying something about Asgore collecting Souls. I placed my hand to my chest where my Soul would be. Would more than just my soul be needed?
"That's right. Not even just a human can walk through the barrier. You need more Soul power. Every time you kill something, you take a bit of their soul with you. Growing stronger and stronger. By the time you get to Asgore, you're strong enough to break the barrier like a wall made of paper. If you left so much as one monster alive, you'd reach a dead end. Never able to progress onwards and stuck here till you die."
They couldn't be telling the truth... could they? I didn't know much about Soul power... how does this person know?
"You'll learn soon enough. Keep up your little goodie two-shoes act. Even if you find a way through, I will always be here in your head. You're stuck with me now. And like all those before you, you'll reset the world just to see what it's like. Then you will know real power. Until next time... say hello to Undyne for me."
WAKE UP!
"WAKE UP!" shouted a loud voice, a book being slammed on the table to jolt me out of my sleep.
I shot up with a start, a bit of drool leaking on my chin with a book open in front of me. The librarian stood in front of me, crossing her arms angrily. "This isn't the inn. If you need to sleep, go there!" I nodded and stood up, stretching my back and arms.
Without making any fuss, I stepped out of the library. Looking from side to side to look over the area. I guess I hadn't been asleep for long, since nothing else really happened while I was out. But I did notice Papyrus standing outside what I assumed to be his house. Images of that dream still plagued my mind... what did it all mean? Why was I seeing them?
What did that voice mean when he said I will reset...
I walked towards him with a friendly smile on my face. "SO YOU CAME BACK TO HAVE A DATE WITH ME!" Oh that's right... he did think we were supposed to go on a date. Well, why not? Could be fun.
"YOU MUST BE REALLY SERIOUS ABOUT THIS..." said Papyrus as he seemed to be a bit lost in thought. "I'LL HAVE TO TAKE YOU SOMEPLACE REALLY SPECIAL. A PLACE I LIKE TO SPEND A LOT OF TIME!"
He grabbed hold of my hand and walked briskly down the path towards the town. I thought he was about to bring me to Grillby's. A little local restaurant I noticed in Snowdin. I didn't really want to go there right now. He then turned around and stopped right in front of his house. "MY HOUSE!" he said before darting inside.
I followed in behind him, looking around the living room. The carpet was a teal and violet wavy pattern, the kitchen just off to the side. A table sitting by the door. A lime-green couch with a large flatscreen sitting across the way. A staircase leading to a balcony upstairs leading to two rooms.
"WELCOME TO SCENIC MY HOUSE!" shouted Papyrus from by the staircase. "ENJOY AND TAKE YOUR TIME!"
I smiled over at him then looked at the table. I noticed that there was a rock sitting on a dinner plate. "THAT IS MY BROTHER'S PET ROCK. HE ALWAYS FORGETS TO FEED IT. AS USUAL, I HAVE TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY." It was then I noticed the rock was covered in sprinkles.
Willing to bet that Sans put the rock there for Papyrus. I decided to check the kitchen. First thing I noticed... was the ridiculously high cabinet with a sink on top of it. There was no way anyone could reach it.
Papyrus had run over excitedly as I walked into the kitchen. Noticing that I was looking at the sink. "IMPRESSED? I INCREASED THE HEIGHT OF MY SINK. NOW I CAN FIT MORE BONES UNDER IT! TAKE A LOOKSY!"
Would there be a large pile of bones under the sink... who's bones were these? I didn't want to ask. Maybe he could just spawn them since his attacks look like bones? I opened the cabinet to find... a dog chewing on a bone. Tail wagging happily as it munched on its treat. "WHAT!?"
"CATCH THAT MEDDLING CANINE!" Shouted Papyrus as the dog darted out of the kitchen and out the front door before either of us could really do anything. "CURSES!"
I heard a door open upstairs, followed by a impromptu tooting of a trombone. 'wamp wamp waaaaaamp.'
"SANS!" shouted Papyrus, looking up towards the balcony. "STOP PLAGUING MY LIFE WITH INCIDENTAL MUSIC!"
I stepped out of the kitchen, looking around more. I walked over to the tv, looking it up and down. It surprised me that they had flatscreens like this down here. Did they have a factory somewhere? I looked at the brand on the front of it. 'MONSTER TV' I pressed the power button. The SMPTE color bar image came up, a strange song playing with a fuzzy sound coming from it.
"OOH, IT'S MY FAVORITE GAME-SHOW!" said Papyrus excitedly. All the TV said was 'STAY TUNED FOR A NEW PROGRAM – MTT.' "WHAT! IT'S USUALLY BETTER THAN THIS! YOU JUST CAUGHT IT AT A BAD TIME... DONT JUDGE ME!" shouted Papyrus angrily.
Not that I could judge him. I didn't even really have a favorite tv show. I walked closer to Papyrus and noticed a joke book sitting on an end table. I flipped open the page, hoping for a good chuckle. But inside was a quantum physics book. I opened it to find a joke book... then I opened it to find another quantum physics book... I decided to stop and head for the stairs.
I walked up and noticed two doors. One of them covered in a bunch of tape, keep out signs, and notes saying to keep out. Another at the end of the balcony having some strange lights coming out from under it. There was also a painting of a bone between the doors.
"A CLASSIC IMAGE." Papyrus pointed out. "IT ALWAYS REMINDS ME OF WHAT'S IMPORTANT IN LIFE." I mean, sure if that's what it says to him.
I figured the one with the lights coming from the bottom was Sans's room. So I walked over to the other door. Reaching for the handle. Papyrus walked up the stairs and stood next to me. "IF YOU'VE FINISHED LOOKING AROUND... WE COULD GO IN AND... DO WHATEVER PEOPLE DO WHEN THEY DATE?"
Wait what was about to happen? I didn't want to lose my innocence yet! But I still went into the room. It was... surprisingly well furnished. Albeit strangely designed. There was a box of old bones in the corner, a computer in the back corner, a bookshelf, a desk with a bunch of figurines on it, a skull and bones flag along the back wall, and a race car bed that I would see at department stores. As well as a black rug with a fire design around the edges.
I looked over at the box of bones first. "HEY THOSE ARE ALL THE ATTACKS I USED AGAINST YOU! GREAT MEMORIES, HUH?" he said as if fondly reminiscing. I recalled the shape of a lot of those bones...
I walked towards the computer, looking over it. The tower looked to be pretty old fashion. The mouse still used a ball-tracker under it. A little rubber ball that would roll when you move the mouse that would move the mouse cursor on the screen for those who don't know what that is. Now everyone just uses laser-tracking.
"THE INTERNET! I'M QUITE POPULAR THERE! I'M JUST A DOZEN FOLLOWERS AWAY FROM A DOUBLE DIGIT FOLLOWER COUNT!" said Papyrus hopefully.
So they had the internet down here? Television too? They must have a whole network... did they get channels from the outside or was it all local? Also those numbers didn't add up at all...
"OF COURSE, FAME HAS A STEEP PRICE. A JEALOUS TROLL HAS BESEIGED MY ONLINE PERSONA. ALWAYS SENDING ME BAD PUNS IN A GOOFY FONT..." recalled Papyrus, glaring in annoyance.
I had a feeling that was Sans. Seems like the kind of goofy thing he'd do.
Next thing I looked at was the bed. It looked kinda like a Ferrari. "THAT IS MY BED. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE A CAR LIKE THAT IN THE UNDERGROUND, AND FEEL THE WIND FLOW THROUGH MY HAIR!" said Papyrus as he gingerly tossed his hair to the side... then realizing he had none to toss. "WHY ARE YOU SO INTERESTED IN MY BED?"
Moving on! I walked over to Papyrus. Looking up at him expectantly.
"SO... UM..." he said as he awkwardly shuffled. "IF YOU'VE SEEN EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO... DO YOU WANT TO START THAT DATE?" I just nodded up at him.
"ALRIGHT! DATING START!"
I felt a Date begin.
Papyrus stood in front of me in that same silly pose he used in combat. "HERE WE ARE! ON OUR DATE!" he said with a long, awkward pause. "I'VE NEVER ACTUALLY DONE THIS BEFORE. BUT DON'T WORRY! YOU CANT SPELL 'PREPARED' WITHOUT SEVERAL LETTERS OF MY NAME!" Well he was right I suppose...
Papyrus pulled a book out from his... pocket? Holding it up dramatically. "I SNAGGED AN OFFICIAL DATING RULEBOOK FROM THE LIBRARY! WE'RE READY TO HAVE A GREAT TIME!"
He flipped open the book and started to read through its pages rather quickly. "LET'S SEE..."
"BRING UP THE DATING HUB? WOWIE I FEEL SO INFORMED!" said Papyrus happily.
I had no idea what he was talking about...
"I THINK WE'RE READY FOR STEP TWO! 'ASK THEM ON A DATE.'" mumbled Papyrus as he kept going through the book. I heard him clear his throat... oh boy.
"AHEM! HUMAN, I THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL GO ON A DATE WITH YOU!" he said loudly, a lot like that of an announcer you hear at those wrestling matches.
I nodded at him to agree to his date. His eyes lit up brightly as his cheeks blushed... skeletons blush? "R-REALLY? WOWIE! I GUESS THAT MEANS IT'S TIME FOR PART THREE!"
He looked at the book again. "PUT ON NICE CLOTHES TO SHOW YOU CARE!" There was a long pause after he said that. His eyes narrowing as if suspicious. "WAIT A SECOND. 'WEAR CLOTHING.' THAT BANDANA YOU HAVE AROUND YOUR NECK. YOU'RE WEARING CLOTHING RIGHT NOW!" he said as he pointed at the bandana I tied around my neck.
"NOT ONLY THAT. EARLIER TODAY, YOU WERE ALSO WEARING CLOTHING!" he said, his brow furrowed in a glare. Of course I was... I wasn't gonna walk naked in the snow.
His face changed, he started to blush like crazy and put his palms on his cheeks. "NO... COULD IT BE? YOU'VE WANTED TO DATE ME FROM THE VERY BEGINNING?"
I wanted to see where this would go... So I nodded in agreement.
Papyrus's eyes widened, practically bulging out of his head (somehow). "NO! YOU PLANNED IT ALL! YOU'RE WAY BETTER AT DATING THAN I AM! N-NO! YOU'RE DATING POWER!" Papyrus flinched backwards as if hit by something hard. He clutched his chest and looked up at me with a renewed confidence.
"NYEH! NYEH HEH HEH!" he cackled confidently. "DON'T THINK YOU'VE BESTED ME YET! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAVE NEVER BEEN BEATEN AT DATING AND NEVER WILL!" I could feel the tension tighten up in the room. Papyrus was taking this quite seriously... maybe too seriously.
"I CAN EASILY KEEP UP WITH YOU!" he shouted. "YOU SEE, I TOO CAN WEAR CLOTHING! IN FACT, I ALWAYS KEEP SPECIAL CLOTHIGN IN MY CLOSET JUST IN CASE SOMEBODY HAPPENS TO ASK ME ON A DATE!"
Papyrus darted into his closet. I heard a lot of rustling around for a few minutes before he rushed back out. Now wearing a white sleeveless shirt that read 'Cool Dude' on the front of it, shoulder pads that looked like basketballs. Basketball shorts and tennis shoes with knee-high socks. As well as his same gloves and a backwards cap.
"NYEH! WHAT DO YOU THINK OF MY SECRET SENSE OF STYLE?!" said Papyrus as he gestured to his outfit. Reminded me a lot of a sporty toddler. But I appreciated the thought. Honestly on him it'd be fitting. I kinda liked it. I nodded at him with a kind smile.
"NO! A GENUINE COMPLIMENT!" shouted Papyrus as he flinched as if struck again. Stumbling back and clutching his chest as if holding a grave wound. But he soon straightened himself up. "HOWEVER..."
Seems like things were about to heat up. "YOU DON'T TRUELY UNDERSTAND THE HIDDEN POWER OF THIS OUTFIT! THEREFORE, WHAT YOU JUST SAID IS INVALID!" Papyrus said with narrowed eyes of confidence.
"THIS DATE WONT ESCALATE ANY FURTHER!" barked Papyrus, followed by a brief pause. "...UNLESS YOU FIND MY SECRET!"
I guess I had to find it on him... where would Papyrus hide something? I started with his foot. Maybe he had it in his shoe? "HUMAN SOULS ARE STRONGER THAN MONSTER SOULS... BUT THE SOLES OF OUR SHOES ON THE OTHER HAND... ARE ABOUT THE SAME."
Seems Papyrus could play the clever pun game too. I looked to his hand, poking it lightly with my finger. I could feel the bone through the fabric of the glove. Papyrus's face turned red. "HOLDING MY HAND SO I'LL TELL YOU THE ANSWER... NO! I MUST RESIST!"
I looked to his shoulder pads next, my hand sliding up along his bone arm along the way. "CARRESSING MY BICEPS LIKE A FLOATING HEART? EVERYONE LOVES TO DO THAT!"
Being a bit more careful with my hands... I reached up to his hat, tapping on it lightly. "MY HAT... MY HAT? MY HAT!" the hat lifted up a bit to show a wrapped present under it on top of his head. "W-WELL THEN... YOU FOUND MY SECRET! I SUPPOSE I HAVE NO CHOICE. IT'S A PRESENT... JUST FOR YOU!"
I reached up to the bow of the box and pulled the ribbon so it popped open. Showing a plate of... spaghetti? "DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS IS?" I nodded at him.
"'SPAGHETTI'. THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, ISNT IT?" said Papyrus with a hint of mystery in his voice. He set me down and took the plate off of his head, holding it towards me. "RIGHT! BUT OH-SO WRONG! THIS AIN'T ANY PLAIN OL' PASTA!"
It didn't look much different to me, but I looked up at him inquisitively. "THIS IS AN ARTISAN'S WORK! SILKEN SPAGHETTI FINELY AGED IN AN OAKEN CASK... THEN COOKED BY ME, MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS! HUMAN, IT'S TIME TO END THIS! THERE'S NO WAY THIS CAN GO ANY FURTHER!"
He was really confident in his spaghetti. I took the plate from him, grabbing hold of the fork sticking out of the side of it and eating a mouthful. It didn't taste... good. My face flinching a bit from it. Guess Sans was right, eventually he would make something edible.
"WHAT AN EXPRESSION! YOU MUST REALLY LOVE MY COOKING!" said Papyrus gleefully. His face starting to blush again. "AND BY EXTENSION, ME! MAYBE EVEN MORE THAN I DO!"
Papyrus flinched again several times as if being barraged with attacks, soon falling on the floor flat on his back in a slow, dramatic fall. "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he said as he hit the ground. There was a long pause before Papyrus jumped back up to his feet. His expression very startled.
"HUMAN. IT'S CLEAR NOW." His face blushing bright red and his voice a bit shaky. "YOU'RE MADLY IN LOVE WITH ME. EVERYTHING YOU DO. EVERYTHING YOU SAY. ITS ALL BEEN FOR MY SAKE. HUMAN. I WANT YOU TO BE HAPPY, TOO. IT'S TIME FOR ME TO EXPRESS MY FEELINGS. IT'S TIME THAT I TOLD YOU... THAT I, PAPYRUS..."
Papyrus paused for a long time after that sentence. Something felt... off. Normally when he would think he would look... silly. But his expression was much softer as his eyes drifted to the side. He was clearly in deep thought, thinking very seriously. "I... UM... BOY IS IT HOT IN HERE OR IS IT JUST ME?!" he said as if trying to break the tension.
"OH SHOOT... HUMAN, I... I DON'T LIKE YOU THE WAY YOU LIKE ME. ROMANTICALLY, I MEAN." Wait, really?
Why did I feel... put out?
"I MEAN, I TRIED VERY HARD TO!" said Papyrus. I did believe him on that, seeing as how eager he was to have this date. "I THOUGHT THAT BECAUSE YOU FLIRTED WITH ME. THAT I WAS SUPPOSED TO GO ON A DATE WITH YOU. THEN, ON THE DATE, FEELINGS WOULD BLOSSOM FORTH!"
His face started to blush again as he seemed to think about it. "I WOULD BE ABLE TO MATCH YOUR PASSION FOR ME! BUT ALAS... I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS... HAVE FAILED. I FEEL JUST THE SAME AS BEFORE. AND INSTEAD, BY DATING YOU... I HAVE ONLY DRAWN YOU DEEPER INTO YOUR INTENSE LOVE FOR ME! A DARK PRISON OF PASSION, WITH NO ESCAPE. HOW COULD I HAVE DONE THIS TO MY DEAR FRIEND...?"
Is it weird that he was kinda right? I mean... I don't think I loved him or anything like that. But I grew to like him a lot more during this. I liked his goofy attitude and comically serious demeanor.
Papyrus continued, his eyes perking up in realization. "NO! WAIT! THAT'S WRONG! I CAN'T FAIL AT ANYTHING! HUMAN! I'LL HELP YOU THROUGH THESE TRYING TIMES! I'LL KEEP BEING YOUR COOL FRIEND... AND ACT LIKE THIS ALL NEVER HAPPENED. AFTER ALL, YOU ARE VERY GREAT. IT WOULD BE TRAGIC TO LOSE YOUR FRIENDSHIP. SO PLEASE, DON'T CRY BECAUSE I WON'T KISS YOU. BECUASE I DON'T EVEN HAVE LIPS!"
I suppose he had a point. Kissing a row of teeth would be rather unpleasant.
"AND HEY, SOMEDAY YOU'LL FIND SOMEONE AS GREAT AS ME!" said Papyrus reassuringly. "WELL, NO THAT'S NOT TRUE. BUT I'LL HELP YOU SETTLE FOR THE SECOND BEST! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus turned to go and change back into his old clothes, then stopped to walk back over to me. "OH, AND IF YOU EVER NEED TO REACH ME... HERE'S MY PHONE NUMBER."
I wasn't sure how he knew I had a phone, but I wasn't gonna argue with him about it. I let him put his number in my phone. "YOU CAN CALL ME ANY TIME, PLATONICALLY. NYEH HEH HEH!" he said as he ran into his closet. I decided to leave him be, and walk out of his room.
There wasn't anything left I needed to do here, so I figured this would be the best time to move on. I left Snowdin, following down the snow-blowing path that Papyrus and I fought at. Soon I would come to a cavern entrance, walking into it. The river flowed into it, large ice chunks that were being thrown by the wolf-man back in Snowdin flowing down the river every few seconds. My footsteps echoing off of the damp, stone floor. But crystals on the walls illuminating my way.
As I walked down the path, I noticed that there was a small clearing with a waterfall leading off the side. I noticed an orange fish-like monster standing next to a tall blue flower. I heard something faint coming from the inside of the flower.
"Standing next to this flower and explaining what it is is what gives my life meaning." said a strange voice. I looked over at the orange fish-man. "You should never trust a flower. That's my philosophy."
"You should never trust a flower. That's my philosophy." echoed back the light blue flower.
Seems like the flower would echo whatever it heard last. Very interesting to find a flower like this down here.
"Yo!" said a familiar voice. I looked over to see the armless reptilian kid from earlier run up to me. "Are you sneaking out to see her too?" See who? "Awesome... she's the coolest, right!? I wanna be just like her when I grow up... Oh uhh hey, don't tell my parents im here, okay? Haha!" said the kid nervously.
I took a moment to just relax in this area. The sound of the rushing water filled me with determination. I noticed a kiosk to the side, Sans sitting inside. He held up two fingers, and gave me a slight wave. "hey kid. got a minute?"
Good spot to end this here. Read and review!