~Cody~
"Welcome to our parlour, dearies~" a spider monster greeted the children, standing behind a selection of funny-looking pastries. Cody had never seen those type of pastries before.
Percy didn't seem to like the monster too much. He was hiding behind Melody.
"Interested in some spider pastries?" the spider monster asked. "All proceeds go to real spiders~"
"9999G?!" Clover asked, observing the price for a spider donut. "That's highway robbery!"
"Percy could probably afford that." Melody commented, wrinkling her nose.
Percy was still behind her. He didn't look interested at all in purchasing some spider pastries.
"MAN!" Brayden grumbled, eyeing the prices. "BUT I'M STARVING!"
The eighth human perked up. They winked knowingly at Brayden. He gave them a glance of confusion. They made a '-_-' face.
"OH YEAH!" Brayden grinned. "I forgot we have those donuts!"
"What was that, dearie?" Muffet asked.
The eighth human covered Brayden's mouth, waving innocently at the spider monster. They speed-walked away, dragging Brayden with them. He looked dumbfounded.
"This room is like the room we saw before," Alphys explained the next vent-filled room. "There are two puzzles to the north and south. You'll have to solve them both to proceed."
"You can try hacking again, Perce." Clover told Percy, winking at him.
Cody smiled enthusiastically at Percy, hoping to boost his confidence. The purple boy looked uncomfortable.
"Also... I'd like to say!" Alphys added. "I don't really... like giving away puzzle solutions. But if you guys need help, just call me, okay?" She paused. "Actually, wait, I have an idea! Let's be friends on Undernet! Then you can just ping me when you need help."
"But... we're already friends..." Faye said, making a face.
"Oh... wait, were all those random people posting... you guys?" Alphys asked. She sounded so embarrassed. "Oh wow... I completely forgot your usernames! I didn't realise they were..." She laughed nervously. "Well...! The original Mew Mew is still better than Mew Mew 2!" She hung up.
"Lies." Percy grumbled. He held out Melody's phone. He almost visibly frowned. "It seems I have been blocked on here too... I can't hack anymore."
"Never mind, Percy," Cody told him. "We can still solve the puzzles! Right?"
The eighth human nodded. They leaped across the vents, heading off to solve the puzzles. Cody went with the eighth human, his sister and Percy. Alphys called. She and Percy had yet another nerdy conversation about Mew Mew Kissy Cutie. The eighth human went into the small room to solve the puzzle. They seemed insistent about doing it solo. Cody and Clover waited outside, nearby Percy.
"Gosh darn," Clover wiped her brow. She eyed Cody. "Alrighty, now we can finally talk." She frowned. "I was thinkin' about that Gaster stuff again..."
Cody pouted. "Clover-"
"I know you wanna do a good thing bro, but it's just too dangerous," Clover replied sternly. She frowned, adjusting her hat. "This is why I can't leave you alone. You get in trouble."
Cody had a very bad urge to retort. He could look after himself! He knew he could. He looked away, his arms hanging down.
"I just wanna protect you, bro," Clover told him. "Ya get it?"
"I understand, Clover." Cody replied, not facing his sister.
The eighth human walked out of the puzzle room. Percy was still talking to Alphys about Mew Mew Kissy Cutie. The eighth human glanced at the siblings. They looked a little concerned. But they replaced the concern with a smile and kept walking.
Cody sighed. He and the others followed them.
"Melody, I don't like this place." Percy said, eyeing a large, purple building covered in spider webs.
"It's the only place we can go, Percy." Melody sighed.
The eighth human opened their phone and accessed their dimensional box. They pulled out five spider donuts. Notes about various manga were attached to the icing. Percy looked embarrassed.
"Do we get to eat those now?" Brayden asked eagerly, eyeing the donuts.
Knowing him, he'd probably eat the notes too. The eighth human nodded. They signalled the others to follow them into the building.
"Stay near me, bro." Clover told Cody.
He bit his lip and followed her into the building, eyeing the huge amount of spider webs on the walls and ceiling. Percy was shivering.
"Ahuhuhuhu..." a voice above them laughed. Everyone jumped (yes even Brayden). But not the eighth human. "Did you hear what they just said?"
"They said seven humans wearing striped shirts would come through." a creepy voice replied.
"Melody." Percy looked like he was about to have a panic attack.
"Calm down, Percy," Melody replied, yet she was shivering too. "It's just some... spiders..."
"No no no..." Percy started sweating.
Clover glared at the spiders hanging down from the ceiling. "Could y'all cut that out? You're scaring my friend."
Percy blushed.
"Wait, spiders can talk?" Brayden asked, confused.
The spiders, unfortunately, didn't cut it out.
"I heard that they hate spiders," a voice whispered eerily.
"Oh no..." Faye said quietly. Her shoes were stuck in some cobwebs. They were slowing her down.
"I CAN'T RUN!" Brayden grumbled, trying to get his foot out of the webs.
Percy was frantically taking notes, staying nearby Melody. Cody did not like this. Only the eighth human remained completely calm.
"I heard that they love to stomp on them," the voices whispered. "I heard that they like to tear their legs off."
"I would never do that!" Cody protested, even though he wasn't the biggest spider fan.
"Just ignore 'em, bro." Clover said, taking his hand like he was a toddler and leading him away.
Cody frowned. He was slowly losing his tolerance. He kept getting pushed over by others and he wasn't sure if he liked it.
"HEY!" Brayden yelled. The kids had reached the centre of the web. "I CAN'T MOVE!"
"Oh no no no no no..." Percy mumbled nervously. He was covered in webs.
"I heard," Muffet cackled, appearing in front of the children, "that they're awfully stingy with their money."
"Wait, what?" Melody looked dumbfounded. "Excuse me, have you seen the stick-"
The eighth human shushed her.
"Dude!" Melody exclaimed. "I was just about to compliment-"
The eighth human shushed her again, more forcefully.
Melody sighed.
"You think your tastes are too refined for our pastries, don't you, dearies?" Muffet asked, chuckling. "Ahuhuhu... I disagree with that notion. I think your tastes... are just what this next batch needs!"
The eighth human tugged Cody's arm. They pulled out the five donuts, then cocked their head at his pocket. Cody felt his heart sink.
"I... uh... might've given my donut to Brayden back in Snowdin..." he said, laughing anxiously.
The eighth human frowned. They signalled with their hands, wanting a group huddle.
"Can ya give us a sec?" Clover asked Muffet, eyeing the eighth human.
"Well, I suppose it would be impolite of me not to let you have your last words~" Muffet chuckled. She backed away, leaving the kids alone.
"So, what's up?" Brayden asked the eighth kid. "Can I have a donut now?"
The eighth human drew a bunch of pictures on the webs? Don't ask me. From those drawings, the kids could infer the eighth human bought six spider donuts back in the RUINS (as that's all they could fit in their inventory), though they had to give one to Cody as their inventory kept getting fuller. The donuts would allow the kids to bypass Muffet. The eighth human was apparently planning to fight Muffet solo, since they didn't have a donut for themself. However, now they only had five donuts, which meant two kids would have to stay behind.
Cody immediately volunteered. He was the reason they had one less donut, after all.
"No." Clover stared at him. "I'm not gonna let ya get hurt anymore, bro. Brayden can stay behind. He's the one who ate your donut."
"HEY!" Brayden grumbled. He put his arm around the eighth human. "That's... fair, I guess."
Cody looked away. He started trembling. He couldn't take this anymore. He was letting himself be pushed over by his sister - and everyone else - far too much. He had been like this for far too long, and he hated it. It wasn't kindness. Others were benefiting from his pain. He was suffering.
Cody glared at his sister. He walked over to the eighth human. "No. I'm the one who gave Brayden my donut. This is my fault. I'M staying."
Clover frowned. "Bro-"
"Just... SHUT UP!" Cody yelled, glaring at her. "JUST SHUT UP, CLOVER! I CAN LOOK AFTER MYSELF! YOU'RE NOT MOM, SO STOP ACTING LIKE HER!"
Clover looked a little taken back. But she wouldn't back down. "Cody-"
"NO!" Cody physically pushed her away. "I'M NOT YOUR STUPID WIMPY BROTHER ANYMORE! I'M NOT SUCKING UP TO YOU!" He wiped his eyes, which were full of tears. He looked up and yelled, "Hey, Muffet! My friends bought five of your donuts back in the RUINS! But my other friend and I didn't because we think they're terrible!"
"Cody-" Clover began, but Cody turned away, not looking at her. Muffet clambered down, eyeing the five donuts.
"Is this true?" she asked, suspicious.
"They bought them with their own money," Cody replied, gesturing at his friends. He stood next to the eighth human. "But we didn't. We HATE spiders. Those guys love them."
"Uhh-" Percy was about to protest, but Cody shushed him.
"Well... if that's the case..." Muffet chuckled. She eyed the other humans. "I see that anon who told me about you all only meant these two! The rest of you are free to go~"
"Get out." Cody said quietly but sternly, glaring at the others.
Clover held her head down. She stormed off, not looking up. Melody was patting her shoulder. Brayden was giving Cody a strange look. Percy was still shivering. Faye walked off, looking back briefly.
The eighth human glanced at Cody. He started crying harder. They rubbed his shoulder, giving him a hug.
"What did I do...?" he asked, crying. "Why am I like this? What did I do?!"
"I'll tell you what you did, dearie~" Muffet cackled, appearing in front of him. "You became a threat to spiders everywhere. This is why eradicating you is very imperative~"
Cody gulped. But then he had an idea. He glared straight into Muffet's eight eyes. "... No, I'LL tell you what I'll do. I think your pastries are terrible. I bet I can make much better ones."
"Oh, really?" Muffet asked, tilting her head.
"YES really," Cody replied, slightly shivering. "I challenge you to a cook-off. Whoever can make the best dessert in half an hour wins. If I win, you let my friend and me go. If you win..." He paused. "You can have us for your new recipe."
The eighth human was shaking their head at Cody. But he didn't back down. He didn't do that anymore.
Muffet smirked. "It's a deal, dearies~"
The eighth human and Cody were standing behind a counter full of cooking utensils and a selection of ingredients in front of them. Muffet was on the other side, surrounded by spiders. Because she had more arms, the eighth human was allowed to help Cody. They looked a little nervous, yet they were still determined. Cody was determined too. Cooking was his profession and he was going to win. He had to win.
For once, he had to prove himself.
"Are you ready, dearies?" Muffet asked. She looked smug. Cody glared at her.
"I was born ready." he replied.
The eighth human nodded in agreement.
"Then let's begin~" Muffet chortled. The timer started. Cody eyed the eighth human.
"Can you crack those eggs for me?" he asked.
They nodded. While they did that, Cody measured and put some flour in a bowl. He glared at Muffet while measuring some milk. She glared back at him. She was ahead of him, mixing a bowl full of batter. Cody winced.
The eighth human put the eggs in their bowl. Cody added the sugar, then pulled out a whisk and started stirring the batter. He and Muffet kept sharing competitive glances. The eighth human gave Cody some melted butter. He gave them a grin. They preheated the oven while Cody added the butter to the batter. Muffet was pouring a cup of spiders into her batter. Cody shot her another competitive glance.
The eighth human pulled out a bunch of muffin trays. Cody added some chocolate chips to his batter, stirred it, then placed the batter into muffin-shaped holes in the tray. The eighth human gave him some assistance. Once that was done, the duo put the tray into the oven. Cody wiped his brow out of relief. The eighth human gave him a thumbs up.
Muffet had put her desserts in the oven too. Now it was time to wait. Cody and Muffet kept glaring at each other. The eighth human was holding Cody back, making sure he didn't do anything stupid. This gave Cody time to think. He wondered if he had been too harsh on his friends.
No, he thought. I wasn't being too harsh. I was being too nice, and now...
He remembered the look on his sister's face. On everyone's face. Even the eighth human looked a little surprised. Had he made a mistake? He'd promised to himself that he'd always be kind. Then people took advantage of his kindness... but was it really right for him to snap back?
Cody sighed, his arms trembling. He felt like crying again. What was he going to do now? He wanted to go home. He hated this place.
The eighth human waved their hand in front of Cody's face. They were frantically pointing at the oven.
"Twenty seconds left, dearies~" Muffet chortled, smugly leaning on her counter.
Surrounding her were piles of pastries. Cody felt his heart jump. He'd completely lost track of time! He quickly opened the oven. The eighth human let him borrow their red gloves. He took out the tray, his breathing picking up.
"Ten seconds~" Muffet yawned.
Cody gritted his teeth. He began taking the muffins out of the tray, putting them on the counter. The eighth human helped him.
"5," Muffet counted down. The spiders were clapping along to the music. The kids had nearly got all the muffins out of the tray. "4... 3..."
"Careful!" Cody told the eighth human, since they'd almost dropped a muffin.
"2..." Muffin said. Cody wanted to scream. They were so close. "1..."
Cody collapsed, his brow covered in sweat.
Sitting on the counter were his chocolate chip muffins. The eighth human gave him a nervous smile. They held out their hand, helping him stand up. Cody smiled at them. He had never been more grateful for assistance.
"Well well well," Muffet smirked at the children. She had made many more desserts than the kids had. Cody shivered. "It seems we already have a winner~"
"We haven't tasted anything yet!" Cody retorted, biting his lip.
"We don't have to," Muffet chuckled condescendingly. "Those muffins are undercooked~"
"No they're..." Cody began.
His face creased with horror. He poked one of his muffins. Wet batter was on his finger. His pupils shrunk. He was such an idiot... he'd made a huge mistake. He hadn't made enough time for the muffins to cook.
Muffet licked her lips, approaching the children. "Don't be upset, dearies. You'll both make fine cakes~"
The eighth human tugged Cody's arm. They jerked their head at the exit. Cody understood what they were saying.
"Sorry," Cody told Muffet. "But you won't be making any cake today."
And with that, he and the eighth human ran for their lives.
The two ran through a purple room, and some kind of stage. It seemed there had been a show of some kind there. There were strange noises behind the kids. They sounded like... spiders.
"Uh!" Cody gave the eighth human a fearful glance.
They were approaching a pathway. Surrounding it was the Nice Cream Guy and the guards from Hotland. The eighth human pointed at the pathway going north. But Cody didn't care about that. He'd spotted something ahead that was worrying him. It was a Vulkin, hanging off an edge. It was dangling above the lava. It was nearby the elevator.
Cody raced towards the Vulkin, which was obviously in distress. How come none of the other monsters could hear it? Cody didn't care about that now. He had to save the Vulkin.
The eighth human was jumping around, trying to deter him from going to the Vulkin but he ignored them. They turned around, eyeing the army of spiders approaching. Meanwhile, Cody raced over to the Vulkin. Its kawaii face had become one of distress. Cody felt a chill crawl up his spine. He held out his hand.
"Don't worry," he told the Vulkin. "I've got you!"
He felt a spider crawl up his shoulder. He glanced behind him and saw the eighth human was fighting off a tidal wave of spiders. They were holding a shiny red sword. They were also wearing a jacket similar to Sans' and a scarf similar to Papyrus'. A red spear was coming out of one of their eyes. Though it was hard to see their eyes, since one was covered in shadows and the other was covered in hair.
Cody gulped. Where had the eighth human got all that stuff from? He was about to say something, but then he remembered Vulkin. He leaned down, his grip tightening on the monster. He pulled it up, his breathing heavy. His pan was lying beside him.
"Are you okay?" Cody asked the monster.
It nodded, snuggling against Cody's arm. He would've squealed in delight if he were in a different situation. He stood up, eyeing the eighth human. Suddenly he felt guilty again. He was putting this poor child through so much. He realised all along he had been taking advantage of their kindness.
Everyone had been taking advantage of their kindness.
Cody looked down. He knew what had to do. Making sure the Vulkin was standing back, he held out his frying pan and took a step forward.
"Get away from my friend!" he yelled, charging at the spiders.
The eighth human was shaking their head at him, but he ignored them again. It was time to repay them for everything they had done.
"You will not escape me forever~" Muffet hissed, appearing in between all the spiders.
"Go away!" Cody yelled. "We never did anything to you!"
"That is quite a lie," Muffet replied. "You insulted spiders, baked terrible muffins and dishonoured your word~"
"The whole world isn't your bakery," Cody replied, baring his teeth. "I'm sorry, but there are more important things we had to do. Now, get out of here before I have to hurt you."
"I'm afraid not, deary~" Muffet giggled. Cody turned around, eyeing the eighth human. They nodded at him. He gave them a smile.
He and his friend charged forward, holding out their weapons.
They forced their way past the many spiders. Scratches were raked across Cody's arms. They stung with pain. But Cody didn't stop yet.
"I'm sorry!" Cody yelled. He raised his fry-pan, holding it nearby Muffet's head. "But you can't always be kind!"
Muffet whimpered. Suddenly, Cody realised what he was doing. He was about to...
Tears filled his eyes. He dropped his frying pan, blurting out a sob. What was he doing? His breathing became heavy and his cheeks were covered in tears. He dropped to his knees, sobbing.
This wasn't kindness at all.
"I'm... I'm so sorry..." Cody sobbed, his hands wet. "I don't know what's getting into me."
The eighth human gently squeezed his shoulder. They had a kind smile on their face.
"Thanks," Cody replied, smiling back. "You're a great friend."
Suddenly, Cody felt so drowsy. His shoulder screamed in pain. He realised a spider had bit him. The Vulkin nudged his side, watching his eyes droop. Cody smiled at it.
"Tell Clover I'm sorry..." he told the eighth human.
Then everything went dark.