August 19, 191X
"Susie." Asriel grumbled. He leaned against the guest room door frame clad in Sunday clothes. Toriel had sent him up to wake the snoring lizard, although he was having a hard time of it. One didn't want to get too close when she didn't wake up on her own terms; her arms tended to flail wildly in some sort of unconscious act of defense. The goat learned that the hard way last Sunday. "Hey, Susie!"
Just as he expected, she seemed to smack the air with an open palm, rolling off the bed with a groan.
"Oh, for God's sake- are you alright?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine! Uuuugh…" She rolled off of her face and leaned against the bed frame. "What's the time…?"
"Nine thirty. You know what day it is, right?"
"Yeah, I know what day it is, gimme a break…" Susie swept the hair out of her eyes before getting back on the bed proper. "Can't I just stay here for a while?"
The goat shook his head. "Mom and dad have let you live here for a month. They say you can stay here as long as we're here, and that's the only condition! If you don't want to go to church, you'll just have to go ho-"
"Nonono, don't worry about it…" Behind Asriel she could see Kris looking in. He wore a suit, just like his big brother, an undone tie hanging around his neck. His plastic horns were especially jarring in that getup. Susie would have said something to him, but the human dipped down the stairs before she could.
"I guess it doesn't matter where you go." He straightened his tie and stood straight, sticking back a tuft of fur on his head. "We're leaving in a minute, so."
A cough erupted from her lungs. Susie stretched her arms and glanced out the window behind her. There was no show at the red window this morning. "Yeah, yeah, I'll be going…"
There was only one cig left in the pack of Lucky Strikes, pinched from a cab driver on break. It rested between her fingers as Susie pondered whether or not to light it up. On one hand, she could save it for when she really needed it. On the other hand…
The moment was near perfect. After she said her goodbyes at the flower shop, she made her way downtown, to one of her favorite spots. An apartment building on Hutchinson Street, the tallest side of Ebott. The landlord never paid her any mind when Susie came, giving her free reign to wander onto the roof, where she sat with her legs dangling sixty feet in the air. Everything below was bathed in light mist as far as she could see, tinged with warm sunlight. As high up as she was, she could see almost everything, even to the edges of the sea. A cool breeze whisked past her as the lizard struck a match and burned her cool.
Taking a long drag, Susie watched the people below with passing interest. A few here and there on their way to their own destination, maybe church, maybe somewhere else. She blew smoke through her nostrils, tapping off ash into the alley below. She watched it float down until they faded into nothing while something in the corner of her eye piqued her interest.
Some poor wino came sprinting down the street, chased by the fuzz blowing whistles. He nearly tripped and fell onto the pavement, but caught himself, making a break for the very alleyway Susie sat above. The bum sprinted headlong into a left behind cart, tumbling onto his back while clutching his forehead. The cops easily caught up, slowing into a walk as the two officers surrounded him. One gave the other an order, so the other cop rushed over to grab him. That was when they both raised their nightsticks, bringing it down upon the wino with reckless abandon.
Susie was transfixed with disgust as it went on. Cops beating somebody down on his luck, what new? She smoked the Lucky Strike down to a snub and they were still going to town on the guy. Annoyed, she flicked it down in their direction. With a bit of luck, the wind wouldn't carry it too far off course. It zipped down in free fall for a good few seconds, and just as one of the officers stood up from the bloodied bum to wipe their brow, the snub landed on their head and bounced onto their shoulder. They spun around with their gaze toward the rooftop, wiping their shoulder off and putting their cap back on. Susie could sort of make their face out: blue flesh giving way to jutting red gills, meeting gazes with their glaring yellow eyes.
As to avoid getting recognized, Susie swung her legs over the edge and rolled onto the roof. She was on her feet before the cop's eyes could adjust to the sun…
It was lonely going this time of day. Everything was closed and everyone was at church. The only ones still occupying the streets were losers like Susie. Aimless and paranoid about the cop, she had ended up on an entirely different side of town, the side she was far more familiar with.
The ghettos around which surrounded Silver Lane were like a short, condensed, filthy version of the city at large. Streets were so slim that hardly even a cab could squeeze through. Children played in the road unabated by traffic or even the rare horse and buggy. Trash piled up around the sidewalk, thrown from windows and passerby without a care. The cleaners seldom stopped by, partly because of the aforementioned lack of space, but also because someone always got back home with a missing watch or wallet.
Despite all that, there was a sense of a tight knit community. It was inevitable in such an environment, after all.
Yet some didn't manage to fit in. Like Susie.
Everyone her age here was part of a clique. It was a boys only club, without a doubt, and the only way in for the fairer sex was to be one of their airhead squeezes. Susie was never like that, and she was confident she never would be. Nobody that didn't deserve her affection would have her, and none of those boys did… especially Pyotr. Long story short, nobody was too kind to her, not the least her own kith and kin.
With a ducked head and pocketed hands she weaved through the ghettos many nooks and crannies. A band of children playing kick the can zipped past Susie as she trot along without any plans or destination. She ran through another backalley before emerging on one of the wider roads. A few cars littered the sides of the street, and she peeked inside for any stray cigs or change. Nothing wrong with stocking up for the day ahead, she thought, and hardly anybody was around. But a dreaded voice called her name from above.
"Heya, scales!" Pyotr leaned on the rail of the balcony he stood on, arms folded and legs crossed. His girlfriend, a skinny human brunette, lounged at a poker table, sprawled out over the armrests. She looked barely conscious. "Been a hot minute, huh? Heard you're leachin' off the Dreemurrs these days!"
"Shut up." The lizard turned the other cheek and kept walking, but Pyotr kept going.
"Aye, what's the matter? Aye, I'm talkin' to you!"
She stopped, slowly facing him. "You remember what happened last time, dontcha? Or should I remind your ruski ass?"
"Actually, you know what, you oughta come up here and give me a rundown, my memory's kinda fuzzy!"
"You'd like that, wouldn't ya?"
"It sounds jake to me- so c'mon, come on up, round two, aye!?"
"I ain't stupid. Your lackeys are hanging around!" She started walking away as she made another comment. "I'd throw you off that fuckin' balcony, schmuck…"
"Yeah, whatever, why don't you just crawl home to your ding-bat dad." Pyrotr's girlfriend let out a giggle, and a satisfied grin spread across his face. He turned to her, ready to tell her all about how well he handled the encounter, when a brick came barreling behind him. It smashed the balcony door's window, scattering glass everywhere. The girl gasped then coughed before polishing off a shot of whiskey.
"Are you gonna get her? Are you gonna get her, Peety?" She giggled again, laying her head on the rail.
"Later!" He formulated what he was going to say to Pyotr Senior, scratching his face, turning around to see the culprit below. But by the time he did, Susie was already gone.
November 18, 196X
"Son of a bitch, move along, move along!" The cabby, a portly, middle aged human, was laying it heavy on the horn. A traffic jam had ensued on Quetery, pinning the cab and the elderly lizard in the back with it. Still reeling from last night, Susie gazed out the window, watching a seagull glide through silver arches and a vivid morning sky. The growing cacophony of the bridge morphed into a drone, something she was barely privy to now. With the hum of the engine, she was lulled into exhausted sleep…
"Miss? Miss?"
Her eyes fluttered open breathlessly, slouched over her arm. A trail of drool was left on her sleeve.
"We're here… but a few minutes late, I think." The driver scratched his sweaty brow before continuing. "That'll be, uh, thirty three cents, please."
She solemnly nodded, digging around in her purse, extending a ten dollar bill to him. "Keep the change."
"Oh, well, ehm," He ogled it for a moment before stuffing it in his wallet. "Thanks very much."
"Of course… dearie." With a sigh, Susie collected herself, reaching for the door handle. "Could you be back by say, four thirty?"
"You got it. Enjoy your picture, miss."
"Mhm." The lizard stepped out onto the sidewalk, slamming the door behind her. A few people gave her a wide berth as she took in the scenery; a bright, seaside strip, warm and glowing, flanked by leaning palms that Susie didn't remember being there before. The seagulls swooped and glided through the city's air, through the fake palms and pale facades. Looming over all was the grand movie theater, a colorful mirage of neon lights and fetching billboards. Mock columns jutted proudly over the theater's awning, which displayed an assortment of playing movies: "Joe Spilled the Beans", "Ball", "2003: SpaceTale",
"Myer's Run"
The cab merged with traffic as Susie hurried over to the line at the ticket booth, just before a group of movie-goers came to stop up the line even more. Hippies and school kids just dried off from the beach all lined up behind her, all itching to get their own cinematic fix. Susie had her own reasons- nostalgia pinned curiosity, namely. Her girl on the silver screen…
"Ma'am?" Asked a cephalopodan monster working the ticket booth. A bow tie stuck to his otherwise bare, slimy body, tentacles slithering seemingly at random. He waited for a response from a lizard clearly lost in her own thoughts.
"Oh-" She snapped out of her trance, taking a deep breath. "One ticket. One ticket to Myer's Run."
"That'll be a dollar thirty three."
A five dollar bill slid under the glass before a ticket, slightly moist, was slid back in turn. The monster would have given her the change, but she was already rushing inside before he could even get the register open. All's well that ends well, he thought, serving up another round of tickets to excited audience members to be.
All that illuminated the theater was the projector and the technicolor magic it produced. Susie arrived mid-scene, a dialogue between two of the top-billed actors, men in blue jumpsuits at the bottom of some filthy maintenance tunnel. She hardly paid it any mind searching for a seat, one where she had some privacy. Quiet murmurs from the crowd underscored the character's back and forth as she scanned the veritable ocean of onlookers for one good spot. Eventually, she found herself at the top, just below the projector room. There were three seats in a row left open at the end- plenty of personal space. The elderly lizard sat her aching bones down, ditching the headscarf and laying it in her lap. She let her graying locks fall over her shoulders, sinking into the leather chair.
The movie thus far held little interest for Susie. Someone betrayed someone, in the future, with laser guns and spaceships and lush alien landscapes. Noelle hadn't even appeared for the first frame. Without her, the picture seemed dreadfully dull. Especially as she paid little more attention to it than necessary to spot one actor in particular.
"... Hey. Hey you." A voice to her left choked, sounding like he'd lost his voice. "Your name's Susan, ain't it?"
Confused, she glanced toward the man two seats over, judging him in the corner of her eye. A human of a deep and umber complexion, eyes sunken, covered in wrinkles. He wore a crooked smile below a snow white mustache with streaks of black strewn throughout, much the same with the scraggly remains of the hair on his head.
"Who's asking…?"
"Ooohhh, I knew you wouldn't remember me!" He shifted in his seat sideways to face her with a cough. The old man brought up his frail, boney hands, holding one behind the other in trembling fisticuffs. Like a switch was flipped, the memories came running back in Susie's mind. The boxer, the legend, the one and only.
"Booker." Susie folded her hands, tearing her attention away from the movie in front of her. "Uh… it's been a little while."
"Could say the same myself." He coughed once more, wiping his mouth with a sleeve. "I suppose I ain't expect you to be here. But I ain't shocked neither."
"... yeah."
The geezer nodded and coughed again. "Whatchu been doing all these years?"
"Getting older." Susis sniffed, looking up at the silver screen for a moment. There was a fistfight between two men in space age garments, knocking each other down on the glowing white floor. Her interest was immediately dissipated when Booker spoke again.
"Much the same, much the same." He rubbed his chin, considering his words. "Chance meeting, eh?"
"I guess you could call it that."
"Yeah…" The old boxer straightened his tie, returning to a more comfortable sitting position. "I don't blame ya. For what happened, and leaving, and all that."
Susie blinked and swallowed a lump in her throat. "I don't wanna talk about it. If you don't mind, you know, I just don't wanna talk about it."
"I know, I know, I just wanted to-"
'Stop! Stop fighting, this instant!'
Noelle, the Baroness Mercedes of the entire planet, descended from a neon staircase, flanked by her personal guard. They ran forth, tearing the brawlers away from one another. The guards hold them, their bruised faces still full of contempt. Noelle approached one of the feuding men, clad in flowing red silk, adorned antlers protruding through a loose silver veil. She parted it, revealing her white-powdered face and pale lips, a stern but still visage. It was as though she'd never aged.
"Ha. That's why ya came, ain't it?"
Susie hadn't realized her own dull expression, mouth slightly agape at the sight. Booker's words seemed to snap her out of it, if only for a moment. "Holiday…"
"Real big star now. Real pretty! Boy…" A child, no older than seven or eight, called for grandpa, catching his attention. He leaned over to listen as Susie gawked at the screen.
'Always the ruffian, you…"
She reached out to the man's face, running a finger down his cheek. He looked away from her in shame, much to the elder doe's amusement.
"Sure, sure, we'll getchu some ice cream… when the picture's done, ya hear?" He scruffed up the kid's curly hair before turning back to the screen. "Y'know, Susan, it's nice. Nice knowin' a few of us made it out, y'know."
"I guess."
"Didn't think I'd make it past thirty. Didn't think Noelle nor ol Ink would neither... "
"Dess…?" The scene changed, showing a vast city of towers and flying cars on hidden strings. The sky was orange, tinting everything below. Susie turned to Booker, perplexed. "Whatever happened to her?"
"Passed away by some illness. Been a couple years now." He sniffed, shifting around in his seat again.
"Angel's blood." Susie tilted her head down, pondering.
"Funeral was private, 'n they didn't invite ol Booker. Couldn't go, but… y'know," He watched the movie for a moment before continuing with a sigh. "Saint Yvette's."
The scene pushed in from the city landscape to a grand court, chandeliers of platinum lit by blue flame. Dozens of robed figures sit in round pews, Noelle being among them, surrounding the guilty man. He is utterly dismal, put in bonds and a baggy black jail uniform. In the center of the pews was a man in decadent garb and headdress, standing up with arms outstretched.
'We shall let the council decide your fate.'
"Is this the place, ma'am?" the cabbie asked, parking on the side of a pleasantly quiet road. They'd found themselves a ways from the skyscrapers into the humble Ebott suburbs. Windchimes from a porch tolled as Susie looked on at the church across the street, a few leaves drifting past its stained glass deltarune. A plain place of worship, but not without its niceties.
"Yes. Thank you." She pulled out a five to hand to him, and with a little hesitation, guided it to a pocket. "Come back in an hour. After that I just… wanna go home."
"An hour? Got it. I'll make it work." He tipped his cap, restarted his engine, and drove away, back to the city. Susie stood, a little dumbfounded, taking in unfamiliar surroundings. She'd never been a part of this place, the calm, uninteresting suburbs. Kids pedaled by on their bikes, waving at an unresponsive Susie. It felt like an age as she ruminated on the church. The steeple, although unassuming, held an interesting design of the Holy Heart, engraved with the deltarune.
She tightened her purse under her arm, gulping, before making her way across.
The walkway into the cemetery was lined with rows of baby's breath, giving way to a line of morning glories growing against a black iron fence, one that formed at perimeter around Saint Yvette's graves. An archway covered in vines led Susie into the hollowed ground. For a while she simply meandered along the path, slabs with names and dates filling the corners of her eyes. It was a big graveyard for such a small church, she thought. There were even mausoleums here and there, etched from marble and stone, posthumous marks of status. But as she continued, one tomb in particular caught her eye. Near the very end of the property was a box of a building, at least half as big as the church itself, a grand oak door with archaic script written on its surface. Sunrays glared off of the dome of glass atop its roof, probably the only source of light inside, she thought.
Stepping up to it, she admired the door's intricate carvings, guessing the meaning of the fancy script. She pressed a finger against it, to feel the handiwork, but ever so slightly it gave. A reverberated creak was followed by the whistle of breeze slipping through the crack. Susie brought her hand back to her chest, surprised and a bit unsettled. A feeling in her gut made her curious, filled her with dread. In near slow-motion she pushed the door open. It groaned loudly, exasperated by the tomb it was connected to, and once it was open, Susie was met with a wall of text bathed in natural light. Stepping in, there were benches along the entrance and before the final resting place, places to sit and speak with the dead.
She went forward, door closing behind her, engraved words becoming clearer.
And when earth shall take thy limbs,
Shall thee truly dance
1945
Tony Pernesti
Loving Father
1873 - 1927
Jay "Lancer" Pernesti
Unbridled Joy
1907 - 1927
Chiara De Luca
A True Star
1899 - 1927
Kristopher "Kris" Dreemurr
Dearest of Friends
1903 - 1927
Asgore Dreemurr
Mister Fluffybuns
1864 - 1934
Ralsenchencatto "Ralsei" Ritz
Eternally Kind
1904 - 1927
Frank Gotto
Eternally Patient
1900 - 1927
December "Dess" Holiday
"Ink"
Loving Sister and Protectorate
1898 - 1959
August 20, 191X
Susie knocked on apartment twenty five's door, fiddling with her hair as she waited for someone to answer. She had picked a flower from the shop, a yellow thing she didn't know the name of, hiding it in her jacket pocket. It wasn't like her to touch a flower, much less carry one around, but it was a gift for a special girl. A freak, really, but special nonetheless.
At the muffled clack of locks unlocking, the lizard straightened her shoulders and put on as friendly of a smile she could manage. The door opened, and her heart raced, but her expectations were dashed when she saw who peaked through the crack.
"Hello?" Said a deer, the same one that sat on the fire escape months ago. A look of suspicion crossed her face. "Who are you?"
"Oh, well uh, I'm a friend of Noelle's!" She forced a toothy smile to appear as harmless as possible.
"You're Noelle's friend? Likely story."
"You're right. It is pretty likely." Susie brought out the flower, holding it by the tip of the stem with her claws. It looked a bit squished. "She ain't out, is she?"
"She is..."
"Ah." The lizard lowered the flower, holding it by her waist. "Where to?"
"Uhm. She'll be back in a few hours. Did you wanna give her the flower?"
"Well, yeah, I sure do!"
"Okay…" The deer held a few fingers through the crack, beckoning. "I'll let her know you brought it."
"Eh." Susie passed the flower over, folding her hands behind her back. "Can I- or, uh, may I come over, later? When she's home?"
"Tomorrow. Noelle will be tired when she gets home."
"... Right. Fine. Guess I'll just… go."
"Goodbye." The deer shut the door, locking it. She put her eye to the peephole, watching Susie stand outside with a disappointed aura. The lizard clenched her fists and stomped off, unaware she was being watched until she was well out of sight.
The door to Rudolph's study was slightly agape, lamplight seeping into the hall. The deer pushed it open, flower in hand. Noelle sat at her father's desk studying a script before she noticed her guest. "Oh, Dess, hi. What's that…?"
"It's yours." She came behind her, handing her the somewhat homely yellow flower. Noelle smiled and smelled it, holding it against her chest.
"Thank you! W-Where'd you get it?"
"I didn't. Some gross thug came by just now. Asking for you."
"G-Gross thug?" The first thought in the doe's head was of Susie, her messy hair and towering physique. It made her blush. "W-What'd you tell her?"
"Her? How'd you get 'her' out of 'gross thug'?"
"Well, there's only one gross thug that I know… a-and she's a she!"
Dess's visage turned sour. "I know that girl is all giddy with Kris's family, but she's from Silver Lane. Nobody good comes from Silver Lane. Just don't stick around her unless I'm around."
"That's a big assumption!"
"Listen, now, I just want you to be careful. Dad's not coming back anytime soon, so now I gotta be your mom!"
"L-Like you're careful at all…"
Dess furrowed her brow, grasping her little sister's shoulder, trying to emulate her father. "Listen, I just… whatever. You'll get it when you're older." She let go, going for the door. "That Susie character will be over tomorrow. Okay?"
Noelle almost immediately perked up. "Really!?"
"Don't get your hopes up! People like that always flake!" She slid through the door, stopping one last time. "I'm gonna make dinner now. Alright?"
"A-Alright…"
Dess left the study, leaving the younger deer with her thoughts and the flower. She smelled it again, thinking about tomorrow…
"Hello. Can I help you?"
Susie snapped out of her daydream, reclined on one of the benches. She stood up, straightening herself out. Standing at the door was a turtle dressed in black. His hair was a dull pink and was fast receding, it seemed. He waited for his guest to say something before he made the next move.
"You a cleric?" She asked.
"I'm the director here at Yvette's." He ambled in further, seemingly admiring his own work. "I hope everything is to your liking?"
"I've never seen a, uh, mausoleum like this before."
"We like to call them havens, here." He backed toward the door, holding onto it. "We find it more comforting."
"Yeah…" She looked back at their graves, their names. "I think I'll be going, now."
"After you, Miss..? Sorry."
"... Miss Gardener."
"Of course, Miss Gardener."
He let Susie out, closing the door behind him. They walked together on the path for a little bit, silently at first, until the director struck up another conversation.
"I take it you're familiar with Miss Noelle Holiday?" He asked, looking toward the heavens.
"We were friends a long time ago."
"Yes, I see. She commissioned the haven almost twenty years back, although she asked not to have her name attached to it…"
"Yeah. It's really beautiful." Susie had no idea they'd been moved here. In fact, she had no idea where they'd been buried in the first place.
"Thank you. Compliments from the likes of you are an honor to our architects. She's a bit elusive these days, but if you see Miss Holiday, please tell her how much you like it!"
"I will. Don't worry." Out of her periphery she saw a couple standing at a grave laying flowers, sullen and silent. The old lizard would have lit up a fag, but decided it best not to smoke on hollowed ground.
"Have you considered having a haven of your own, Miss Gardener?"
"What!?"
"Forgive me if I offended you," he replied, a bit taken back by her response. "I may have been too forward."
"It's fine, it's fine. Just… wasn't expecting it." She rolled her neck, cracking it. "I don't know. I don't really think about things like that."
"Well… we'll always be here if you'd like to be among friends. I do hope you consider it."
They walked through the vine-smothered archway, breeze picking up into a less pleasant wind. The director stopped, extending a hand. "It was a pleasure, Miss Gardener."
"Same here." The handshake was reciprocated with an uncomfortable firmness. "I may be back. One day."
"Of course, you're always welcome. I'm afraid I must bid adieu, now. Enjoy the rest of your day." He turned from Susie, heading back to the church house.
It was back to the hotel now. Back with booze, hopefully. She slid a cigarette from its pack and lit it up, waiting for the cab to arrive.