Chapter 4: The Pure Child
David was slowly counting as Julie giggled and looked for a place to hide. Toriel, who was in the living room reading a book, smiled as she heard her children playing. It had only taken a couple days for Julie to settle in and the little girl had first been unsure about playing. Her first day, she had sat quietly on a stool in the living room and when David invited her to play a game, she admitted she didn't know how to play or even what a game was.
"What did you do with your days then, my child?" Toriel had asked, having a bad feeling about this.
"I just sat in a chair or on a stool," Julie had said. "And I couldn't leave that spot except for when it was time to eat. I wasn't allowed to really make a sound either. I was to be quiet and if I did speak...I got spanked."
Toriel had almost cried at hearing that and had hugged Julie, reassuring her that she didn't have to sit around all day. She was allowed to play. David took it upon himself as a big brother to teach his little sister some awesome games. As she had learned it was okay to play, she came more out of her shell over the past month.
Now, she was looking for a good spot to hide before she heard a loud thump outside and grew curious, opening the door of the Ruins and looking around. She had once been afraid that the mountain would collapse since it was hollowed out outside the ruins, but Toriel had told her that the Underground was full of magic and the inside of the mountain was reinforced by the strongest magic known to keep it from collapsing on anyone.
Glancing around, she heard a whimper and looked to see a boy that looked to be her brother's age and had black hair and wore a red shirt, black jeans, and black sneakers. She noticed his arms looked scratched up and one of his eyes was bruised. Worried, she ran back into the Ruins, forgetting about the hide-and-seek game with her brother for the moment.
"Mommy! Mommy!"
Hearing Julie called out in a fearful voice, Toriel stood up, putting her book aside as David, who had been searching for Julie, came into the living room just in time to see the little girl run up to their mother. "Mommy! Come quick! There's a boy who's hurt!" The seven-year-old girl said urgently.
Toriel's motherly instincts kicked in. "Where is he, little one?" She asked.
"Outside," Julie said, taking her mother's hand and guiding her to outside. "I heard a thump when I was looking for a place to hide and I went to see what had fallen."
Normally, Toriel would have cautioned her children about going outside the Ruins without her knowledge, but decided this time it was alright because she could now see the child that her daughter had seen and from a first glance, she could see the boy was hurt with what looked like a black eye, multiple scratches, and she could see a bruise peeking out from the boy's upper arm just under the shirt sleeve. "Another abused child," she said as she placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.
He jolted awake and looked at her with brown eyes filled with fear and he tried to scoot backwards, but groaned, giving the goat woman an idea of his injuries. "Shh, shh, calm down," she soothed.
Julie and David stood by, looking worried. "Will he be okay, David?" The little girl asked.
The boy nodded. "He'll be okay. Mom can heal him just like how she healed us," he said confidently.
The new boy noticed them and grew worried, but before he could open his mouth, the little girl spoke. "Mommy, what's wrong with his leg?" She asked, pointing to the boy's left leg.
Toriel gently placed a hand on the boy's leg and her eyes widened in shock at seeing what the problem was. "It looks like his knee is dislocated," she said.
"What's dislocated mean, Mom?" David asked.
"It means out of place," the goat lady said patiently. "David, I'm going to need my medical supply kit for this one and some towels. Can you go get them for me?"
"Yes, Mom," the boy said.
"I'll help too," Julie said, following her brother inside.
Toriel looked at the boy, holding out a hand to check his stats and main trait.
Thomas
Age 10
Strongest trait: Integrity
Attack: 1
Defense: 5
LV: 1
Refuses to do anything wrong, even if figures of authority order him to.
She nodded and gently stroked the boy's head. "Don't be afraid, little one," she said. "I'm here to help you."
He looked at her uncertainly, but felt some of the pain from his arms leave as the goat woman's hands glowed green, making him curious. "Are you...healing me?" He asked.
"Yes," she said. "And when my children return, I'll fix your knee."
He looked surprised. "You will?" He asked before looking away. "No one else would fix it."
Toriel had a bad feeling about this. "What happened that your knee got like this?" She asked gently.
"My foster parents were mad at me for not stealing some money like they told me to," he said. "The man tied me up in a chair and grabbed my leg and twisted it until my knee popped. I screamed and begged him to stop, but the lady slapped me and told me to accept my punishment for not doing as I was told."
The goat woman bowed her head. "How can someone be so cruel to a child?" She asked aloud. She then looked at the boy. "What is your name, little one?"
"Thomas," he said. "Though my foster parents never used my name."
"Well, I will," she said to him. "By the way, how did you get to the mountain?"
Thomas took a deep breath, feeling more of the pain leaving him, though his knee was still really sore. "I ran away and hitched a ride with a farmer who was passing by. He said he was on his way to another town but was passing by Mt. Ebbot, so I asked if he could bring me here. He did and I climbed up, though it was hard with my knee. I had a walking stick, but I guess I dropped it when I fell down."
David and Julie had returned with the items their mother had asked for and Toriel, thanking them, got to work on healing the rest of the scratches and bruises on the boy before turning her attention to his knee. "This is going to hurt a bit, but I'll try to be as gentle as possible," she said to him, resting her hand on his knee.
Thomas looked afraid, but nodded. Julie, getting an idea, moved closer to him. "Do you have any siblings?" She asked curiously.
He shook his head. "No," he said.
David, seeing what his sister was doing, smiled and sat on Thomas' other side. "Well, maybe Mom will let you be our brother," he said.
"Really?" The boy asked.
"Yeah!" Julie said excitedly. "You could join our family and I'd get another brother!"
David smiled. "We were loners too before Mom took us in and Julie and I have grown close. She's like the little sister I always wanted."
While they were talking, Toriel got ready to push Thomas' knee back into place and seeing as he was relaxed right now thanks to her children, she took a firm hold of the knee and pushed. A resounding crack seemed to echo and the black-haired boy screamed in both surprise and some pain before the pain went away and he sat up, looking at Toriel, who looked contrite. "I'm sorry, Thomas," she said gently. "I was trying to be gentle."
"It's okay," he said, bending his knee a little. "It doesn't hurt anymore and I can move it."
"Still, you should let your knee rest," she said, grabbing two pieces of wood and gently making the boy put his leg flat as she secured the wood with some strong string before her hand glowed green to help out a bit. "Alright, you should stay off that leg for today and we can check it tomorrow to see if it's healed."
Thomas looked surprised. "It'll heal that fast?" He asked.
Toriel smiled. "Yes," she said. "Between you resting it, my healing powers, and some monster food, your knee should be better by tomorrow."
The boy suddenly looked pensive. "What do you want me to do in return for you healing me?" He asked.
She smiled again gently. "Nothing, little one. Except, would you like to stay? It seems my children have accepted you as their new brother."
That was true and Julie and David looked at Thomas hopefully. He was surprised, but then looked at Toriel. "You won't make me steal or anything like that?" He asked.
"No," Toriel said. "You will not be forced to steal or do anything wrong. And if you do stay, I promise I'll keep you safe and you'll never see those awful people again."
"And Mommy keeps her promises," Julie said.
"And she loves us," David said.
That and Toriel's actions proved that they all spoke the truth and he looked at Toriel and nodded before tears brimmed his eyes. "Thank you," he said.
"You're welcome, my little one," she said, picking him up and carrying him inside with Julie and David following behind her.
"Mommy, I'm sorry I went outside without telling you," Julie said suddenly.
"I forgive you, Julie, because if you hadn't, we wouldn't have found Thomas," Toriel said gently.
David smiled. "Do you think our family will get bigger, Mom?" He asked. "I've always wanted a lot of siblings."
"Me too," Julie said.
The goat woman chuckled in amusement. "I believe it might," she said as she saw Thomas had fallen asleep in her arms.
But while she was happy to be a mother again and willing to take in these little ones who had only known a cruel world, she was also worried about what would happen if the other monsters knew about the children. After Asgore's decree about staying away from humans, the other monsters had vowed to be on the watch for any humans who fell.
Now she was certain none of them would raise their hands to strike a child, but she didn't know if they'd be so understanding about these children, though they were understanding of Chara's situation when she first fell.
She finally decided that for now, the children she was taking care of had to remain a secret for their safety. But perhaps one day, they would be accepted by the others too.
So now a third child had fallen, but are Toriel's fears unfounded? Will the children be accepted by the rest of the Underground? We shall see. :)
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GoldGuardian2418
