Two Worlds, Two Souls
Chapter 66: Fooled
Angel's Point of View:
I'd never felt so happy in all my years of life.
Since Sans and the others had found me in the blizzard, I was happily with a new arm that I was able to use and function with properly. The hand was steady, I was able to cook, clean, and paint just like I could before the accident.
Sans was the most ecstatic about it. Seeing me with an arm again and doing things like I used to made his soul soar, even if he wouldn't tell me. I could feel it within his soul after I explained to him that his father attached his deceased soul to mine and crafted me a new arm. But that was not the only thing that had the male so happy.
His father still loved him and didn't blame him.
The fact that his father didn't hate him when Sans couldn't save him in the labs all those years ago took a huge weight off his ribs. Sans would never admit it, but that had bothered him for years. To the point where his last birthday he was miserable. With me fully recovered and his father's love, he was elated.
Leading us to the day were currently on when everything went to hell in a hand basket.
With my new arm, I was happily working at a new painting in the living room. With a much steadier hand and a brighter outlook, art poured out of me again. The requests that I'd been given were being filled rapidly and all that was remaining was to have them framed and delivered. The current one for a new client in Hotland that I'd yet to meet.
Frisk and Papyrus were happily playing the day away on video games. It was another day off for the skeleton and he was eagerly spending time with family. Frisk and him were currently in the midst of a fighting game where she was beating his boney ass, but with the stress of myself no longer struggling or suffering, he didn't care. And neither did my sister.
Sans was so relaxed after everything had settled down that he'd actually fallen asleep. Not far from me was he, but he was deeply out, snoring and everything. I giggled as I looked over at him a time or two during the day as I completed artwork. Filling up the orders that had been delayed due to my accident.
A sudden knocking at the door caught us all off guard. The loudness of it actually work up Sans from his spot on the couch and halted everything in the house. The knocking was insistent and made all residents of the house weary of what was on the other side of the door. With a motion of my hand, magic flew and I grabbed both my and Frisk's cloaks. Hurling the black object of desire at my sister, we yanked them on quickly just as Papyrus wandered the door.
The girl-ish squeal that left him made me worry even more.
There in our doorway stood Mettaton, the acting star of the underground. Unfortunately, most of the underground seemed to love this lady. I was not a fan; I found her fashion choices rather strange. They apparently were obsessed with anything human from what I'd seen and what Sans and Alphys had told me.
Alphys had warned me to stay away from her as much as physically possible. If she ever caught word that we were in the underground, it would spell bad news for us. She was built by Alphys, a robot with a soul, to kill humans on spot. Not only that, but there were concerns that she would use underhanded tricks to get information or things from us. She would be absolutely obsessed if she discovered we were in the underground.
"Hello darlings!" Metatton rolled into the house on the one wheel that was her legs. She looked just like a large machine box with a colorful screen that changed colors. The screen had multiple tiny screens in it to change colors and show a set of eyes to us. Two hands extended from the square shaped body with white gloves over her hands. She twirled around our living room with a fuchsia pink dress covering her body. "It's so lovely to see you!"
"M-m-mettaton!" Papyrus stuttered in astonishment before he flew into the air, nearly hitting the ceiling in his glee. "Sans! Mettaton is in our house!"
"I can see that." Sans raised a boney brow at the monster. "What's the star of the underground doin' in my house? Can't be ta see me."
"Oh Sans! Darling! Lovely to see you again. Loved the show you did last Thursday! Everyone thinks you're a riot!" Mettaton approached the eldest male and shook his head rapidly. "Sorry for barging in so suddenly, but I heard a little rumor that there were two little humans living in this area, and of course, you're the skeleton who knows everything!"
"Eh... not everythin'." Sans shrugged before he sat on the couch. "What'cha wanna know 'bout 'em?"
"I'd love to have them on my show!" Mettaton cheered quickly. "Wouldn't it be fabulous for those humans to come onto my stage and talk of themselves? Reveal themselves more to the underground? And think of the views! Humans in the underground that wish to live among us? It's so amazing its almost ludicrous!"
"And you think Sans can get in touch with them?" I dared to voice myself as I stood to the side with Frisk. The two of us hung back while this new monster strolled around our home.
"Oh, I know he can." Mettaton giggled eagerly. Her gaze turned to us with a slightly maniac like glow. "He and Papyrus, even my dear Dr. Alphys and Captain Undyne. All of them know how to get in contact with these dear humans."
I flinched under the hood of my disguise. I could see Sans look at the person a bit more sternly too. Mettaton knew that we were humans. I could see it in the way the screen like eyes focused in on us when she said that.
Shit…
Sans' narrowed his sockets at Mettaton. "What do ya really want with the girls, tin can?"
"You act as if I have an ulterior motive?" Mettaton nearly cried, fanning herself in horror. "Oh Sans, don't you know me better than that?"
"Sans!" Papyrus huffed at him. "What a rude thing to say to a guest! You should apologize!"
"I'm with Sans on this one." I pulled Frisk a bit closer to myself and put us near the elder skeleton. We were in grabbing range in case of anything. Papyrus watched us with surprise as I said that. I set my hand down on Sans' shoulder before looking back to the metal woman in the room. "What do you want?"
"Well... Miss Angel..." I flinched when she said my real name, I prayed that she couldn't see me do as such under the cloak. "I do still want to have you and Miss Frisk on my show. It would be great for my ratings as well as helping you with boosting your popularity and keeping you alive in the underground. It's a win-win for us both. Won't you agree?"
I couldn't help but clench my fists. So, this was about increasing her popularity, huh?
I sighed as I looked to the monster. I didn't like how she wanted to play off of us, but I also knew that allowing myself to be played sometimes could be helpful. Being on that talk show could help and hinder us. I knew for those who weren't as against humans, they could see that hopefully we were kind and not wishing to hurt anyone like they'd been taught all their lives. For those that were more harsh or frightful, it would frighten them and perhaps throw them into a frenzy to attack us.
I just hoped that wouldn't be the case.
"What do you get as a benefit of this?"
"Are you kidding me darling?" Mettaton almost fainted onto Papyrus, the pour skeleton caught her and his face flushed in orange from the contact. "My ratings would go through the roof with you two on my show! I benefit from the rates and you benefit from exposing yourself as kind little humans to the world of monsters."
I still felt hesitant about it. I needed to talk to Alphys and some of the others before I made a decision on it.
"Is there any way I could contact you later with my decision? We should talk about this together before deciding."
"Oh, very well, darling." Mettaton sighed before pulled out a business card and handing it over. She then sped up her wheel and pulled herself from Papyrus's arms. "Thanks for the catch, love. And as for you, Miss Angel. Do give me a call before five today, if you don't catch me in the office before then, let Alphys know. She knows how to contact me!"
With a wave of her robotic hand, she twirled and giggled before rushing out of the door. With her gone, we sighed and Sans used his magic to close the door. The lock and bolt were put in place before he glanced over to me in worry.
"What'cha wanna do, Precious?"
"I think we need to speak with Alphys and Undyne before we proceed. Can any of you call them and see if we can meet up?"
"I can call Alphys!" Frisk said quickly before she had out her phone.
"I shall call Undyne then." Papyrus noted. "She should be getting out of work shortly..."
"Good." I focused back in on Sans. "Where do you think is the safest for us to chat?"
"Definitely not the lab, Al and that tin can are close friends. I'm sure the tin can's got someone hoverin' around." Sans sighed and heaved himself from the couch. "Let's see if Undyne's willin' ta share her place. Even the tin can would watch her words around the captain."
Later that Day:
"Are you friggin' kidding me!"
Undyne's fist came slamming down on the counter once we had explained what had gone on during the last few hours. How Mettaton had decided to come to our home and ask (very sneakily) us to be a part of her talk show.
I was against it and so was my sister. She had never liked Metatton when we watched her shows when we first arrived. Undyne had some distrust as well from how annoying Mettaton tended to be or managed to get her way.
Alphys might have been her best friend, but the little yellow lizard woman didn't defend against her. Alphys had noted that she found Mettaton had broken in her lab during the one day we were all out relaxing and having fun before I got my new arm. Alphys certainly told off the robot female for that, however, Mettaton hardly listened. That female certainly moved to her own beat of the drum.
Papyrus was the only one defending, as Sans would call her, the "tin can". Unfortunately, like always, Papyrus saw the good in all and wouldn't fault the crazy robot. He kept saying that Mettaton was trying to help us out, but I knew that wasn't true. She had another agenda.
From what I'd seen of her shows before, none of the people she brought on ever made it out easily. Mettaton asked deep and personal questions that were very rude and that if asked, I certainly wouldn't be answering. The juicier the gossip she could ring out of her guests, the more views she got.
It was pathetic.
"I'm not looking forward to it, if we even decide on it." I sighed. "I have a feeling that this woman is going to ask us all sorts of intrusive and rude questions."
"Y-yeah. M-mettaton is l-like that." Alphys said quietly. "I-I'm s-sorry... about h-her."
"Not yer problem, Al." Sans shook his head as he sat at the counter.
"But what do we do?" Frisk questioned worriedly. She sat beside Papyrus as he sulked. "Will she do something bad if we don't do it?"
"M-mettaton loves h-her f-fans a-and views."Alphys commented from beside Undyne. The captain helped the little lizard woman into a chair that had been made too tall for her. "I-if you w-were to m-mess with t-that... s-she would h-hunt y-you d-down."
"Yeah, but what power would she have if ya made 'er mad enough?" Sans almost snickered as he thought over a plan.
I narrowed my eyes at him. "What are you planning Sans?"
"Well, Mettaton might have dirt and may try ta ask ya and Frisk some bad questions. I'm just sayin' that maybe ya ask some rude ones back."
"I can be rude!" Frisk easily and eagerly had a glint of malice in her eyes. "What do I gotta do?!"
"Easy there, Kiddo." Sans ruffled the top of her head. "We got a couple o' plans we gotta make for this event. But don't worry, there's plenty of stuff that ya can do."
That made her only giggle evilly.
I couldn't help the groan that escaped me and a tinge of anxiety pool in my gut. "Should I be worried?"
"Nah, Angel. Just let me take care of it."
Later that Night:
I sighed as I was seated by Papyrus a few hours later, still at Undyne's house as a plan by Sans and the others had all been hashed out. Papyrus sat with me, not exactly pleased for it either. I didn't think he understood how self-centered that Mettaton truly was, even if it was shown to him.
We had a rough plan in place. We were going to agree to Mettaton's asking us to be on her show, however, at any point where she began to ask us questions that were much too uncomfortable for my liking, we would signal Sans who'd be with us and he'd send out an signal to Undyne to use the royal guard to attack.
After all, Mettaton was going to be hit for breaking and entering into the lab of the head royal scientist, that's a serious fine and even a small bit of jail time if I remember correctly. Alphys couldn't save her from that even if she wanted to. Undyne found out and of course Undyne would report it because she didn't care as much about Mettaton compared to Alphys and her friends. Being also the head of the royal guard made it so that if Undyne didn't say anything, her sense of pride would be damaged if she didn't follow through with her duty. It was a vow she took after all.
"Must we go through with this, Angel?"
"It's not like I want to do this Papy." I sighed, glancing at him through the edges of my vision. "Mettaton plans to use us for her own gain, and you've seen her shows. I know you love most of them, but even you stay away from her drama filled ones where she grills folks about their past and history. You know that's what she going to try to do to us."
"But Angel! She's just a curious monster who wishes to help you?"
"I don't think she really wants to help us at all, but regardless, the show will be helpful to present us more to the underground population. Those that don't know us yet."
I sucked in a deep breath attempting to keep my nerves under control. I knew that some of my discomfort was probably passing onto the others as they attempted to make all the planning without me. Sans and Frisk had taken over the entire operation.
I still was recovering. I'd only gotten my new arm a short while ago. I still had moments where I wasn't too kind. I became stressed easily if things didn't go according to plan, and I wasn't prepared to be thrown into a talk show that would be seen by the entire underground. It was taking most all my will power to keep whatever negative emotions I wanted to shout and scream at bay. I knew that Sans and Frisk could see it on my face at times, or feel it. Alphys probably did too. I wasn't sure if Undyne or Papyrus could feel it or whatnot, but if they could, I felt incredibly guilty.
It wasn't something I could just… get over. The emotions I felt were uneasy and jittery. After the experiences I had with our run from Undyne and the loss of my arm… while I had forgiven the female, the emotions had yet to leave me. My patience threshold hadn't returned to normal yet after such a frightful night.
I wasn't ready to handle something like this, and I knew it. I would need desperate help from Sans and Frisk who planned to be with me with that. My heart pounded in a frenzy from nerves alone and flashes of fear passed over me when I let certain thoughts get to me. I tried to hold them back, it was actually the purpose of Papyrus sitting next to me.
But it wasn't working. How long could I last before I snapped?
"ey, Pap?" Our attention was brought up to face Sans at the counter. "Why don't ya and Angel make some dinner? Take yer minds off this while we finish up?"
At the mention of anything that I could do, before Papyrus could protest and argue with his brother, I shot up and darted to the kitchen.
That caused all members in the household to still. I could feel their eyes on me from the dining room table as I flited through cabinets. Undyne didn't have much in the ways of cooking, she having admitted she ate out a lot due to her inability to cook much.
I groaned before I turned back to Papyrus who actually was watching me in a stunned matter. I'm sure he'd never seen me so rattled before, or fretting so much as my emotions became frenzied. "Papy? C-can you pick up something for us to cook? I-I don't have a-anything here. Um-"
My hands began to shake. To try and hide it, I gripped the counter top. I couldn't even think properly that it probably made me more suspicious to the group. I couldn't control myself… and that just made me more fearful. My breathing was shaky…
I was going to snap…
Hush… Sweetheart… it's going to be okay…
"Pap, go, get what she asked." Sans' demanding voice echoed in the room. He didn't give any room for arguing before I heard him again. "Undyne, borrowing your room. Al, give me a hand."
"C-coming!"
"Don't mess with anything, bone head!"
"Precious?" I lifted my head as struggled to not let tears fall. A single hand was held out for me. Sans' face was calm, even if I had a suspicion in the back of my mind that he wasn't. But I didn't care in those moments. I was too overwhelmed by emotion. "Come on, ya need a break."
I had no will power or desire to argue with him, all I craved was for this to be over with or for something to distract me. My hand latched onto his and I was pulled into the single bedroom of Undyne's.
I couldn't even focus on her decor or what was in her room before I collapsed in a heap. My hand still held Sans', but the rest of me became a sobbing mess once I hit the ground.
"S-sans…" I could barely hear Alphys' whisper. "I-I don't t-think s-she can h-handle this…"
"Shit…" I felt him kneel down before me to hold me close. One hand still held my own while the other wrapped around my shoulders. "Deep breaths Angel, come on. I know you can do it. Just listen to me, okay."
I tried… I tried so hard… My face buried into the front of his ribs while I shook and cried.
"I-I'm… t-trying…"
"Shit, Al, see if Undyne's got some echo flower essence."
With a squeal, the little lizard flew into the common room of the house. I could barely hear noises beyond the door. It was hard to hear them over the sound of my own heart ramming the ribcage and muscles in my chest.
The door opened back up and something was passed to Sans. My face was lifted and there was a single serving style bottle.
"Drink."
I couldn't argue. I took a large gulp of what was before me before Sans pulled the bottle away. Then he held me again. He gave me a few moments to breath while I felt the liquid burn down my throat. The distraction was nice enough before I felt the liquid hit the put of my stomach and my heart began to calm. My feelings were becoming numb… and I felt more in control.
"Hey… Angel? How ya feelin' Precious?"
"…Numb… I… I think… better?"
"Oh, thank God." The sigh that came from him landed on my skin. I could feel his breathing while he ducked his head into my shoulder. "We'll have ta bring some of that with us."
"Okay…"
"Precious, let's get you into a nap. I'll stay with ya."
While my emotions were numb, I could still feel the fact that I was emotionally exhausted. I was led to the large blue bed of Undyne's that Sans sat down on, leaning his head against the head board. I crawled in from the other side and curled quickly into him. Not even thinking what I was doing, I wrapped my arms around him and used him as a pillow before sleep came so easily to be with so much of the brew in my system.
Witch's Note:
Oh, my goodness! What a chapter! Angel is not in a good place right now… is she gonna be able to handle this 'interview' that Mettaton is having her do? Welp… we'll just have to see…
Anyway, was anyone expecting that to be our introduction to our lovely robot? She's always been a character that I've always been on the fence about with how I felt. Some people make her a great friend of the main characters, some other have made her an enemy. But which one is she here?
Who knows?
Mystic Girl: I know, I know!
Me: Hush!
And now onto reviews!
MysticBoywastaken: Okay, so I'm glad you loved the chapter, but I'm afraid that both Mystic Girl and myself are not agreeing with you on those cookies. I've had liver before, and while its not bad… not my favorite food… and in cookie form? I'm sorry…
Mystic Girl: My dear brother, what is going through your head? Spinach? Liver? Bleh!
TheSquoxQueen: Welp, your wait is over! Two batches of cookies! Chocolate Chip and Red Velvet!
(Mystic Girl goes ahead and displays the cookies out on fancy platters with your favorite type of beverage to go with them for a binge fest.)
Dasansi: Yes, the wait is tough, but I'm glad your eager for the uploads! At least I can promise that this story is done and will be entirely posted. Still working on story two… Really happy you liked the town's focus on what was happening with Angel and how it all led up to that point with another's perspective. Can't wait to show you how some of these people will rally together in the future!
RoseCentury: So happy to hear how well your doing! Don't forget you need a bit of sugar so your mother-in-law should lay off just a bit! I know she cares but you and your THREE little ones need a sweet moment every now and then!
Thechaosmaster: Okay, so that sounds like a cool story! I certainly want to read that! I'll have to get on that. And let's be honest here, which one of us isn't a dirty sinner in some shape or form? XD
And oh my God… a KillaBearClub? Whatever! Just do what you want! But you'll have to wait a bit, Mystic Girl is a bit under the weather right now and not feeling the greatest. You'll get a response from her next week. Promise! And no, its not Covid, she's just got a nasty bug.
River: Oh my! What a long review! So good to see you again River! I love all the predictions that you sent in our direction, and not to be rude, but I won't say yes or no to anything you've said since we have some lovely items coming up soon! Hopefully you'll let us know what you think as we post up those chapters!
Alright, so now we're onto our next arc with Mettaton! What's going to happen? Is things going to go as planned? For her? For the girls? Who knows! Don't forget to check next Saturday to see what happens! Love you all and see you next week!
Halloween Witch
