Zane sat at the table with a mug of cocoa and the morning crossword. He was in his pajamas still, which clued Asgore into this being one of Zane's rare days off.

"Got any plans for today?" asked Asgore as he made himself a pot of tea.

"It's been a while since I've been to Snowdin, I plan on going for a nice walk around the town, it will be nice to be surrounded by my element again, I might talk with Sans for a while," said Zane

"That sounds nice," said Asgore.

"Also Aaron has been begging me to show him my workout routine," said Zane

Zane took the riverboat to Snowdin and walked down to the sentry stations. Doggo popped his head up.

"Who's there? I saw something move," said Doggo

"It's just me my friend," said Zane

"Zane? Oh, good, I thought it was a human," said Doggo

"Is Sans at his post here or is he at his waterfall or hotland stations?" asked Zane

"He's here," said Doggo,

"Thanks," said Zane before walking off, Papyrus was at his own crudely built sentry station.

"ZANE!" exclaimed Papyrus

"Hey Pap," smiled Zane

"What are you doing around here?" asked Papyrus

"I have the day off, it is good to take a break every so often, is your brother around? I want to talk to him," said Zane

"He should be at his station, reconfiguring his puzzles," said Papyrus

Zane knew there was about as much chance of Kai turning up than Sans working on his puzzles, a snowball's chance in hotland. Though when it came to the short joker of a skeleton anything was possible.

Zane walked on and found a napping Sans.

"Ya know, I'd teach you my Spinjitzu ability if it weren't for how much work it takes," said Zane leaning against the counter.

"You know me too well bucko," grinned Sans

"How is Papyrus doing with his spaghetti practice at home?" asked Zane, he lay down in the snow, letting the cold soak through everything he was wearing.

"Heh, you know Pap, always making things way more complicated than they need to be," said Sans

"By the way, you never told me the results of when you judged my soul," said Zane

"Eh, you don't gotta worry about that, you're soul is fine, no sins that I could see, though given your past I'd say any that you did have were wiped when you sacrificed yourself, you came here as pure as can be and you've stayed that way," said Sans

"For a guy with one hp, you're scary powerful," said Zane

"Eh, hp never means you should underestimate someone," said Sans

"Or overestimate, when I faced the Overlord, it took one explosion even though he had almost unlimited power at his disposal, I just had to use myself as the bomb," said Zane

"So how're things going between you and glitter brain?" asked Sans

"I'll wisely not tell him you called him that, for your sake. But it's going well," said Zane

"Well his popularity means everyone in the underground has a thing for rectangles on wheels," laughed Sans.

"That's just the form he uses in public, I get to see the true Mettaton," said Zane

"Yeah and you still have to fight off the fans with a stick," laughed Sans

"Your brother is usually at the front of that crowd," deadpanned Zane

"Yep, sorry I can't do much about him, he has a weird way of turning criticism back on the person who gave it," said Sans

"Just warn him that if he leads that crowd again I'm going to force him to make something other than spaghetti," said Zane with a chuckle

"I'll just dump him on Undyne," laughed Sans

"You do that and she'll destroy both of us," laughed Zane

"How is that bakesale you work at going?" asked Sans

"Well ever since Muffet lowered the prices she's been getting more business and making a lot more money," said Zane

"Wow you curbed the spider greed, I'm impressed

"Nah, I just offered a way for them to earn more money," said Zane

"You ever think about your battle music?" asked Sans

"No, I've never had battle music, and haven't done any real fighting since I got here," said Zane

"Usually the music fits your personality or your power level, take the canine unit, for example, their music is all the same, bouncy and perky and someone can get past any of them by petting them enough. Their music reflects the goofy nature of the dogs. My brother's also has a bit of a bounce to it but it sounds more like a song you would dance to rather than fight. Then there's me if I judge someone as evil and can't let them near the king, then I fight, my music reflects my abilities rather than my personality," said Sans

"You're pretty scary when you get serious," said Zane

"If another human does show up and they get past the guard and Undyne, you know the order," said Sans

"Yeah I know, Asgore hates that he had to make it, but hopefully I can make it a bit better with this idea I had that Asgore has already approved of," said Zane

"Got any ideas for your attacks?" asked Sans

"I'll probably just use my ice magic and my shurikens, no need to go crazy, besides, if they get past me they have to deal with you," said Zane

"Wow you'd make me work?" asked Sans, mocking offense

"Hey it's only if they get past everyone else, I'm not going to make you reconfigure puzzles every day, I'm not your brother," laughed Zane

"Ha, they only have to get past you if they get past Undyne and then your boyfriend," said Sans

"Can your brother use those blasters like you do?" asked Zane

"Probably, not like he ever would though," said Sans

"Why does he want to be in the royal guard anyway? The only popular one is Undyne and me but I'm famous because of Mettaton, not the guard," said Zane

"Eh Pap thinks famous means lots of friends but if you ask me fame just means you don't know who is your real friend and who's a mooch," said Sans

"Yeah, I knew a guy like that back in my old world, hung around us all the time and got in the way, Kai just fueled the idiot's ego by naming him the Honorary Brown Ninja, he had no combat skills, an ego bigger than Onionsan and was just a narcissistic fame-hungry idiot," said Zane, finally able to voice his true opinion about Dareth.

Zane looked up at the ceiling of the massive cavern.

"If I were to die down here, I don't know what would happen, would I turn to dust or would my soul go to a different world, the fact that I didn't go to the departed realm when I died worries me because I don't even know if I'll get to see my father again," said Zane

"I think death scares all of us monsters, only because we are almost certain that there is nothing for us after death because our souls can't persist outside our bodies," said Sans

"Death was always talked about as the next adventure but with those we love around us, this has certainly become an adventure but I thought when I died that I would see my father again, as much as I've come to love everyone here in the underground, I wish I had my family back," said Zane

"I think I know how you feel, I've done some things in my past that mean there are people I'll never get to see again, friends, family, all gone in a moment because of a single choice. I think the king feels that way as well," said Sans

"I wonder what my friends back in my old world would think of my relationship with Mettaton, I never really went for the fame hungry popstar type until I came down here," said Zane

"From what you've told me of your past life you've changed quite a bit," said Sans

"Yeah, I think dying took away the social ineptitudes being a robot made me have, well that and playing a bigger role in this world than I did on the team of ninja, I was sort of the background ninja and not many people other than my friends really thought about me," said Zane

"Well down here you're one of the only two celebrities, you live with the king and you helped save the lives of so many monsters, you ain't a background character anymore," said Sans

"Well I'll let you get back to your "work", I think I'm going to go see if Metty is busy," said Zane

"See ya later bucko," said Sans

Zane walked back to the River person and made his way to the Resort.

It was hard to believe he'd been here almost a year now.

"I wish I could tell my friends that I'm ok," sighed Zane as he made his way to the elevator and top of the Resort where Mettaton's room was.

Zane knocked on the door.

"Who's there?" came Mettaton's voice

"Metty it's me, can I come in?" asked Zane

The door slammed open and Zane found himself dragged inside.

Zane flipped the switch and was in Mettaton's lap very quickly.

"Darling you should have told me you were coming, I would have called up for some food," said Mettaton

"It's fine, I'm not hungry anyway, just came over to spend some time with you on my day off," said Zane leaning into Mettaton's embrace.

"You stay here until the show tonight, I'll have someone go get your outfit from your room at the palace," said Mettaton. He had forgotten how good it felt to care about someone else until Zane came into his life.

"I really need more than one day off a month, I'm exhausted," sighed Zane

"Tonight is going to be easy, it's the late-night news," said Mettaton.

Suddenly Zane sat up straight and pulled out his phone.

"I just thought of a way I might be able to contact my friends from my previous world," said Zane

"Oh? How?" asked Mettaton

"We had this holiday where the veil between life and death was really close, if I'm right that's today, I'm dead to that world so I might be able to call one of them!" exclaimed Zane

"I'll call all of your friends and we can talk to your old family together, I just know Alphys will be excited to talk to people of another universe," said Mettaton.

Ninjago

The tournament had been a trap. Morro had almost won, but the team was finally starting to heal from the loss of Zane. It was the day of the departed, their first one without Zane.

"It's been almost a year," sighed Cole

"Yeah, it's still hard though," said Kai

They were sitting around the fire about to light the lantern for their fallen brother when Lloyd's phone rang from an unknown number.

"Hello?" said Lloyd

"Hello Lloyd, it's been a while, put me on speaker and video if everyone is there," came Zane's voice.

"Zane?" asked Lloyd.

"Yeah, it's me, put me on video so I can talk to you all,"

Lloyd press the button and propped the phone against a log.

"Zane?" asked Kai in disbelief

"Yeah," smiled Zane

"Where are you? How are you speaking to us, you're dead," said Lloyd

"Are you in the departed realm?" asked Nya

"No, I am dead to Ninjago but I was taken to a different universe, I'm ok though and I have some people I want you all to meet," said Zane

"Wait, Zane what are you wearing and how is this possible?" asked Lloyd

"Oh my boyfriend and I are TV stars, long story, and it's the day of the departed, the only time I could have had any chance of contacting you, it's not a different realm though, it's a whole different universe," said Zane

"Wait, Boyfriend?" asked all the ninja at once.

Someone grabbed the phone and a face they didn't recognize appeared.

"Hello darlings, I am the one and only Mettaton, Zane has been my beloved boyfriend and co-star for several months now,"

"Metty give me the phone back please," came Zane's voice.

"Ahem, sorry about him, he's rather dramatic," said Zane, Mettaton stuck his tongue out.

"Anyway, this is King Asgore Dreemur, he's the ruler of monsters and was nice enough to let me live with him.

"Howdy," said Asgore

A skeletal hand grabbed the phone.

"GREETING HUMANS I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS IT IS VERY NICE TO MEET YOU! YOU'RE FRIEND ZANE HAS BEEN MOST HELPFUL IN SHOWING ME THE ART OF SPAGHETTI MAKING!"

"Papyrus give me the phone back please," said an exasperated Zane

"Anyway, that was Papyrus and this is his brother Sans, Jay you have the same sense of humor as Sans, you both love terrible puns," said Zane panning the phone to show a shorter skeleton.

"Sup, your bro here is a great guy, helps a lot of people around here," said Sans

"And this is Dr. Alphys, I help her in her lab," said Zane, moving the phone again to show a yellow dinosaur in a lab coat and glasses.

The phone was grabbed again. This time by a fish woman with an eyepatch.

"WHICH ONE IS NYA!" exclaimed Undyne

"The girl with black hair," deadpanned Zane

"Oh, Zane told me you're a great fighter and a badass, it's nice to meet you, I'm Undyne, captain of the Royal Guard,"

"Um hi?" said Nya

Zane grabbed the phone back.

"Anyway, I called to let you all know that I'm ok and I'm happy, my life is kind of crazy but the good kind of crazy, the kind of crazy where I'm either covered in glitter or spaghetti sauce," said Zane

The view widened and all the ninja could see all of Zane's new friends behind him.

"Anything interesting happening on your end?" asked Zane

"Um, Cole became a ghost but was un ghosted about an hour ago," said Lloyd

"An evil guy named Chen tricked us into coming to his island for a tournament by claiming he had you then Garmadon sacrificed himself and was sent to the cursed realm to save the world but a ghost escaped and possessed Lloyd but Nya is now the water Ninja and beat the cursed realm by gaining her True Potential, and Cole fought Sensei Yang and hour ago so the haunted temple isn't haunted anymore," said Jay

"Sounds like you've been busy," said Zane

"We really miss you, buddy," said Kai

"I miss you guys too but I'll try to remember to call once a year on the Day of the Departed, if I don't get held up, just know that I'm ok, ok?" said Zane

"Other than being a TV star what else do you do?" asked Cole

"Well, I'm a royal guard, I help Alphys in the lab trying to free all monsters from the Underground, that's a long story, I give cooking lessons, I work in a bakery, oh word of advice, don't let spiders make cider, it's weird," said Zane

"It sounds like you are very busy," said Master Wu

"I am, but I'm happy, just don't mourn for me anymore, I'm ok and if things work out I might see all of you again someday," said Zane

"Ok, we love you, Zane," said Lloyd

"I love all of you too, bye," said Zane before hanging up

"Well that was interesting," said Nya

"At least he's somewhere nice and he's loved," said Lloyd

"Yeah, all that matters is that he's happy," said Kai

"Did that tall skeleton remind anyone else of Dareth?" asked Jay

"Yeah only the skeleton was much more likable," laughed Nya

"He's clearly been talking to them all about us, that fish woman seemed really excited to meet you Nya

"Anyone else surprised that Zane likes guys?" asked Kai

"Actually I think Zane once told me he's Pan, so it's not all that surprising, what really surprised me is his choice of boyfriend, I never pegged Zane as the type to go for dramatic TV stars," said Cole

"With how fast he fell for Pixal, I'm pretty sure he just has a thing for other robots," said Nya "Also that guy seems like the type who would sweep Zane off his feet and dramatically carry him into the sunset leaving our poor nindroid no choice but to say yes after such a romantic gesture, trust me, I caught him reading Misako's romance novels once,"

"Why do I feel like that tall skeleton is an even worse cook than Cole?" asked Kai

"HEY!" exclaimed Cole

The Underground.

"Your friends seem nice, for humans that is," said Undyne

"I'm glad I was able to talk to them again," said Zane

"That Nya chick looks as badass as you said," said Undyne

Mettaton hugged Zane from behind.

"I know how to cheer you up, let go practice for the competition next week," said Mettaton, kissing Zane's cheek.

Alphys smiled at the scene before her, glad that Mettaton had gone back to being the caring monster he had been before becoming a star, all thanks to Zane.