Asgore: Well...this chapter surely took a while to come. At the very least, it provided plenty of time to gather up thoughts in order to proceed.

Toriel: Precisely. Time used to think out these events and how to proceed along with them. Unfortunately...these events spell misfortune.

Asgore: In what shape or form, we shall see. What remains unchanged is our resolve to endure it and stand against it.

Toriel: Hm...it seems the two of us get a bit of an extended focus for the time being...as well as our beloved mayor. I wonder why...

Chapter Start!

Alvina...wasn't really in the best mood. right now. The reasons why were standing before her, and none of them looked particularly friendly. In fact, judging by the way they were looking at her, they weren't happy at all to see one of their own flesh and blood. The feeling was dreadfully mutual on Alvina's side, if not doubled, or even tripled. The scathing gazes they sent towards one another was a very clear sentiment of this, which only lead Temmie down to the deeper pits of confusion. What was happening? Why did Alvina not look happy to see her family? Why were they not happy to see her? This didn't feel right at all. There was something dreadfully wrong with this scenario.

Alvina sighed tiredly as she slowly pinched the bridge of her nose. There still wasn't any sign of them communicating with one another, yet despite the lack of words between them at the moment, Temmie could clearly see that this was not a happy meeting. And she was growing increasingly worried for Alvina because of it, as she's never seen her look so distressed before. It was very easy to tell, because having worked for her for quite a while now, she as very well aware that Alvina and distress usually don't go together. She tends to be significantly more relaxed than this, but this was a special case, one she couldn't afford to ignore.

This prolonged silence eventually ended as Alvina made a simple request: "Temmie...it's time for you to go. You're done for today." She said solemnly as she lightly gestures for the small monster to leave. Said monster was surprised by Alvina's choice and grew very worried for her. Alvina was asking her nicely, but she could tell that this was not something that was up for discussion. So with a reluctant nod, Temmie grabbed her suitcase-filled nearly to the brink with Temmie Flakes-closed it up and secured it, then proceeds to leave the office room while looking back. Alvina shyly waved towards her with a smile of reassurance, but Temmie wasn't fully convinced by it. She soon lightly stretched her arm and closed the door behind her.

Then there was silence, briefly uninterrupted. Then the middle-aged woman turned towards Alvina...and swiftly slaps her across the face. The smack resonated across the room, and Alvina had to support herself with her desk to keep herself from falling on the floor completely. The others did nothing to stop this, they simply watched as Alvina slowly struggles to stand back up. Though after a few moments of collecting herself, she laughed softly, though there was also a sarcastic tone to it.

"Well...so this is the first thing you choose to do, Azami? First thing you after seeing your daughter after so many years, and you slap her...yeah, that sounds like something you'd do." Alvina casually rolled her eyes while rubbing her sore red cheek. "What can I do for you on this absolutely lovely day? You do think that this is a lovely day, right?~"

"Your attitude hasn't changed, even when you have reign over an entire city. That's to be expected from someone like you." The older woman behind them said with extreme distaste, and the older man in the wheelchair acknowledged this with a strong nod. Alvina rolled her eyes and leaned against her desk while still nursing her bruise.

"Ah yes, of course. Acacia and Atherton. How are you doin'? Not well? I hope so. Maybe then you'd have less reasons to rag on me for something that literally has nothing to do with you." Alvina waved off the both of them, her rather despondent grandparents, without a care.

"Irresponsible brat. You still haven't learned how to speak with respect...?"

"I only give respect to those that deserve it. You all clearly don't deserve it, which is why I'm talking without a care." She rolled her eyes at her rather confrontational father, Alastair. Her brother Adam didn't make any eye contact with her at all. He simply shifted to the back of the room while nonchalantly staring at the wall. They didn't exchange words at all. Her reaction to him was neutral at it's best possible positive. She then turned towards the cat attached to Acacia, then folded her arms. "Though I do admit, the cat is new. Chubby little fella, ain't he?"

"Axel wants nothing to do with you, child." Acacia huffed.

"That's too bad. Because he's most likely the only other being in this room that I'm actually rather happy to see, and we JUST met." Alvina said with an aggravated huff. Said cat actually meows in response to this, and Alvina smiled fondly towards said cat for a bit, until she narrowed her eyes and turned her head back towards her family. "Anyway, we've gotten pretty much all of the pleasantries outta the way. You guys mind tellin' me why you feel the need to bother me at this point in time? I'm quite a busy woman, and I had to send my secretary away so that I'd have to deal with all of you. And of all times, NOW you decided to visit me...I'm pretty sure you never wanted to see me ever again. In fact, you were QUITE clear about expressing that desire to me in the clearest terms possible. Very impossible to mistake."

Alvina's sass was rewarded with yet another slap, knocking her to the ground once again. Again, Alvina didn't bother being vocal about the physical pain, she just stood back up and nursed her worsening bruise with the same annoyed expression. Azami narrowed her eyes towards her daughter, who still met her gaze with a glare of defiance. Azami turned away from said daughter while folding her arms and looking towards the door that Temmie left through. After some consideration, she soon turns back towards Alvina with a highly critical glare.

"We did say that we didn't want to see you ever again...but it seems that your own incompetence is so outrageously atrocious that someone needed to tell you just how horrible you are at this job. ESPECIALLY in regards to recent events." She began while circling the room, glaring harshly at Alvina while doing so. "You've allowed vermin to go ahead and infest this city...without the slightest bit of resistance. Your incompetence is truly staggering. There was no way that I could ignore something like this, and neither could the rest of us. You've proved how utterly incompetent you are at being a mayor."

"Ya REALLY like the word incompetent, do ya?" Alvina deadpanned in reponse. "Course we let the monsters to the surface. If you ask me, they really needed a break. If you've known about all of the crap they've been forced to go through, then..." Alvina paused, then she shook her head. "You know what, never mind that. I forgot that you all have a pretty one-sided view on things. I feel idiotic for thinking that you could possibly think positively about this. You've never really had a positive look no matter what you hear or what I've told you in the past and what I've read. You're just trying to find excuses to antagonize me further and you're using the monsters as a proxy...or you may really hate the monsters and end up hating me anyway. It really doesn't matter to you, does it?"

"You're not taking this seriously, Alvina. And with this latest blunder of yours, you've proven just how incapable you are at your so-called 'job' and you seem to be even less effective when it comes to keeping your own citizens safe. The recent destruction that's been caused here three days ago...have you even taken proper actions? Reassured the public? Anything that a responsible leader would do?" Alastair huffed while folding his arms. "Have you simply been playing around without a care? You really haven't changed a bit."

Alvina rolled her eyes while face-palming softly. "You all are completely helpless. Of course I've been trying to do my job! You know how hard it was to try and calm everyone down when the city's been outright attacked by an enemy faction!? That was COMPLETELY outta my control!" Alvina shouted at the lot of them, while she sighed and stood backwards again. "Of course the public has been incredibly panicked from everything that's happened, but the monsters are completely angry about what's happened. That's completely unlike them but this is really how they feel. They REALLY don't appreciate their friends being attacked. Nice as those guys are, they have a really nasty side to them when you give them a reason to be. It's why I'm pretty sure I can count on them to have my back, and the backs of humans that live here. They won't take something like this lying down, that's for sure."

"Are these the thoughts that you've allowed yourself to be deluded by, Alvina...?" Alastair asked quietly. "Have you forgotten what they've done in the past? The track record between humans and monsters hasn't really been the best...no, far from it. Those records have been completely horrible. Do you truly think that things like that can simply be swept away? You've lived in an era of naivete for years, but this is the absolute end of a spectrum in which there is no escape. You shouldn't bother trying with how far you've fallen from the very little grace you had left."

"I don't think I want to defined by your meaning of grace." Alvina deadpanned while waving her hand once again, this time turning away from them all entirely. "You know what, it doesn't matter what I say. Nothing I say or do is going to change your minds, so there's really nothing for us to discuss anymore, is there?" She said distastefully while pushing some hair away from her face. "So how about all of you let yourselves out and do what made every single one of us happy...staying out of my life. That's something you've proven exceedingly good at, so why stop now?"

"...Hmmm...you're right...we have been pretty effective at avoiding you, just like we've all wanted. Unfortunately, we can't do that just yet." Azami said slowly as she walked around the desk, picking up a pen on Alvina's desk, and twirled it around a bit. "You've always been irresponsible and sassy as a child...but now those traits have greatly heightened to intolerable amounts...and like I said before, I can't really tolerate that, and neither can we. So..."

JAB.

"...!" Alvina's eyes widened as she suddenly fell down to the ground, clutching her shoulder where her mother forcefully and deeply stabbed the pen into.

"Look at that. You can't even stand up after a casual stab." Azami rolled her eyes while placing her hands on her hips. "You used to be so much more resilient as a child...not only have you've gotten more irresponsible and sassy, but you've surprisingly begun looking more pathetic? You call yourself a leader? Already falling to your KNEES!" Azami roughly kicked her in the ribs, sending her crashing into the floor once again. Alvina refused to submit to her, however. She simply grabbed the pen and pulls it out of her shoulder, though it's made abundantly clear by the glaring expression on her face that it wasn't painless.

"Heh...go on, do and say whatever you like, it's not gonna change the fact that the monsters of Ebott are here to stay. The humans here have welcomed them with open arms, which they gladly accepted. If you have a problem with that, then you can go ahead and leave again. While you're at it, do us all a favor...don't come back." She said despondently while glaring at them all, then she began walking past them all, but stopped to gaze at her brother Adam. "What? Not even gonna say anything?"

"..."

"Tch. Again, the only one of you I'm actually rather happy to see is the cat that I haven't even seen before. That's gotta send some unfortunate signals, right?" She said bitterly while pushing past him and the others, not giving them a second glance. Numerous staff members saw her bleeding from her shoulder, but she told them she was fine and that she would take care of it herself, then left the building altogether so that no one else had to see her in her state. She was really glad she sent Temmie away when she did.

Silence followed soon after. Azami and Alastair, alongside Acacia and Atherton, watched her leave with nothing but eyes of disdain. Adam and Axel were the only ones who didn't have eyes of disdain, because the former couldn't bring himself to look at his sister, while the latter couldn't fully understand what was going on, so he simply leaps down onto the ground and continues exploring the room. Azami slowly looks out the the window that gives a wide view of the city, her hands clasped behind her back.

"...There is no saving that child, Azami. Even after all of these years, she refuses to change." Acacia said. "Not only has she allowed the monsters of Ebott onto the Surface without any kind of fight, but she also willingly allowed the Royal Family to adopt Frisk, the jinxed child. He is without a doubt responsible for a majority of what is happening. Though the people of this tainted city are also to blame. They did not resist in the slightest. They have just as much responsibility for this mess as he does, as much as Alvina does...not only is she beyond saving, but this entire city is beyond saving as well."

"Agreed. Any attempts to try and dissuade them will be hopeless, therefore they as a people are completely hopeless." Alastair agreed as he gazed at everyone else. "The humans here...no amount of guidance will save them...she's lead them too far astray..."

"Afraid salvation for the humans here is impossible..." Atherton said without the slightest bit of hesitation. "Azami...I believe you're well-aware of what we must do now."

"Yes. I do." Azami nodded in full agreement.

The humans...they've been completely complacent with this drastic change for far too long far too easily, and have allowed themselves to be deluded by the monsters so-called kindness and compassion, and Alvina allowed it to fester into something incurable. Humans of Ebott will have to be punished for their failure to see the monsters for who they really are. There was no point in trying to sway their views, there's only one use for them now.

Well...I suppose it's time...we're going to finish the job that previous mayors participated in...

Saying that Toriel fell into a bit of a lull would be an understatement.

Don't misunderstand, she's more than happy to be spending a bit more time with her family while the damaged parts of the city-including the school she worked in-are under extensive repair via Alphys, and Darkness's blueprints, as well as Mettaton's drones. They planned to make several important structures even sturdier and durable than ever before, and they had moire than enough to pay for it, amazingly. Once again, monster gold really comes in handy. Some humans were still in utter disbelief that the monsters casually trade gold with one another, while to humans it's one of the most profitable items in the world.

It's just that Toriel was really getting into her job, and to have the school she was placed in charge of be unceremoniously blown up by one of the children she had under her care...it was more than a little bit discouraging. Not enough to make her give up on it; she just calmly accepted that she is now stuck in a forced hiatus until further notice. So, instead of moping about it with a constant frown on her face, she chose to occupy herself by doing other things, and she tended to do those things with a smile.

Buying some snails from Napstablook, reading a few good books of decent length, making sure that Frisk was recovering well, making sure that Asriel and Chara were feeling alright after everything that's happened, trading pun calls with Sans over the phone, checking in on Mettaton and Alphys' progress, and having tea with Gerson and Asgore while the latter tends to their garden. With Gerson, it's old friends having a few laughs as well as comforting one another, especially since Gerson was serious about coming out of retirement completely so he can fight fully again. Toriel and Asgore, on the other hand...well...they're Nose Nuzzling Champs for a reason. With the extended free time on her hands, Toriel was able to indulge in much nose-nuzzling with her beloved. Not only that, but they also indulge in many other husband and wife things that require a great degree of...privacy. Privacy she would rather not having anyone pry into.

Alphys, Undyne, Sans, and Chara weren't fooled by her in the slightest.

Moving on. Toriel was sitting in her improved Chairiel, which has turned into a rocking chair/recliner with rather comfortable seating, had her reading glasses on with one of the previously mentioned books in her paws. She's peacefully rocking back and forth with a small smile on her face, wondering what she should do next.

"Heh. You're pretty bored, aren't you?" Flowey asked, turning away from the window while sitting contently in his in his flower pot. "It's been three days, you were simply tryin' to sort out a little bit of conflict with your coworkers and work out your differences...but then the other six brats has been brought back as magic child soldiers sent to cause some havoc...and then BOOM! Entire building gets blown to smithereens. I'm not even trying to put up a show, that's gotta suck. This just isn't your week, is it?" He asked rhetorically.

Toriel's response was to simply turn a page in her book and hum calmly.

"And then there was all the other things that happened outside your control. Asriel provided a savage beatdown to Parvos and oversaw the Pack killing three enemy monsters; Frisk was wrapped up in magic chains which then blew up in purple flames, and Chara killed a human mage while Muffet's pet devoured two others. Things were getting quite serious back then, huh?"

Toriel simply hummed while once again turning a page in her book.

Flowey raised an eyebrow and stretched around so he could properly see her face. "Hey! Are you even listening?"

"Now Flowey. can't you see that Tori is trying to read?" Asgore said while coming down the stairs, stretching his fuzzy arms out ever-so-slightly and yawning aloud. "There's no use trying to fill our heads with cynical thoughts about what happened. We should try to stay positive about this. Frisk is currently healing much quicker than expected, while Asriel and Chara are currently looking after him. Worrying is fine, but worrying too much won't do us too much good."

Toriel nodded softly as she slowly closed her book and sets it to the side. "That is right. As concerned as I am about my sons, I cannot afford to exhaust myself worrying over them every second of the day every time they get hurt. I have to have faith in their recovery, and try not to watch over them to the point of being overly smothering...just a tiny bit of smothering will do."

"Just a tiny bit...?"

"Flowey. I am a mother. My children are adorable. I truly cannot help but cuddle them whenever it's deemed appropriate...or if I'm simply feeling cuddly. It's just that at this time, Frisk feels a bit of a need to feel alone with his brothers. The three of them need time and space to breathe and to properly process everything that has happened to them so far, and I'm honoring that request and keeping out of the way for the time being. If they need me, they can call for me and I'll be right there. It's a very simple process. I left them each a small pie just in case."

"Wow...you're really not smothering them as much as you used to. I mean, first letting them adventure on their own, then they're fighting on their own, and now you're allowing them the privacy to mentally recover from this ordeal on their own first so that when they pull themselves together, they can finish off what's left by talking with you." Flowey tilted his head in mock surprise. "Oh my god. Toriel...are you actually...*gasp*...a good parent?!"

"Well, I've been given many chances to get it right, and failed because of my selfishness and pride. Now I've finally managed to get it right, to an extent. I'm simply glad I've finally managed to find my balance." Toriel smiled softly towards Flowey, who only sighed; he realized that riling her up-or at the very least making her frown-via mocking was not going to happen, not today.

"...Hmph. You're not letting me have this one today, huh? Okay fine, I concede defeat...for now." He huffed, extending his vines and using them to move away from the two fluffy monarchs.

Asgore smiled as he slowly sets himself on the slightly larger chair/recliner next to Toriel's-coined 'Asgore Size'-as he reaches out and holds Toriel's paw. Her response was to hold said paw and lightly pets it with her other paw...which is followed by Asgore petting that paw. Both of them lightly chuckled as they stared lovingly into each others eyes.

"Hello~"

"Howdy~"

There wasn't even a specific reason for that. They simply forget about the whole world for a moment and focus entirely on each other, and how lucky they were to have one another once again. Even after six years, even after Asgore has fully an unconditionally forgiven her despite literally having every reason not to-the thought never even crossed his mind-Toriel is still immensely surprised by how optimistic Asgore was, as well as his ability to stay unrelentingly positive. It was cautious, of course. But it was optimism nonetheless. While she wasn't much better off without him. Things were dull around the Ruins, she felt the constant creep of loneliness that she and she alone placed on herself, and she was too cowardly and prideful to leave on her own.

Heck, she couldn't even take care of the plants around that house! Therefore, she couldn't make decent tea. Asgore was the one who makes much better tea sense he's such an excellent gardener. She unfortunately doesn't have his green thumb. Luckily it balances out via her cooking skills. Not that Asgore was a terrible cook-he does a lot better than Papyrus and Undyne-but it still wasn't spectacular.

No matter how many times he says it's okay, and she agrees at the moment...she can't help but ask. Even though she was forgiven, the tiniest bit of guilt still laid deeply into her soul. And Asgore was very quick to catch onto it. "Tori, what's the matter...?"

"It's moments like these...the hardships of the Surface that we're now facing...I could not help but be reminded of your own hardships, and how you dealt with them. You were usually burdened by all of your own hardships while going out of your way to lighten the hardships of our fellow monsters. Of how you pushed on to wear a genuine smile on your face despite being on the very brink of despair. Even though you've made a grave mistake, that's more than anyone can say for me." Asgore didn't say anything, simply caressing his wife's paw and waiting for her to finish. Having done this quite a bit of times by now, it was best to simply let her speak her mind before he would give his own input. "I was already prepared for things to become a bit difficult...but this...it's rather unsettling. We were outright attacked by outside forces, and many have been seriously hurt, including our friends and children. Even on the Surface, our hardships are not truly over."

"Hmmm..."

"And yet despite that, after a few cuts and scrapes, especially after the reveal with the other six children deeply involved with us...you're still pushing on strongly, while I still needed a bit more time to collect myself. I'm honestly surprised with how strong you can be."

Asgore looks fondly towards Toriel while still sweetly caressing her paw. He took a deep breath and sighed while closing his eyes. "For years, I continued on for everyone's sake, wearing a gentle genuine smile. I've always acknowledged a good day. And I've still made time to talk about their problems while completely setting my own to the side. I comfort those who need to be comforted, while never expecting comfort of my own to come. The only times I've allowed myself to weep are when it's appropriate, and when there's nothing productive I could be doing."

"Oh...I see..."

"I've endured years of loneliness mostly on my own, and mostly without complaining. Because I believed I didn't have the right." Asgore smiled as he tenderly kisses Toriel's paw. "Compared to the immense emotional weight of all of that, these current hardships feel like nothing; because now I'm with my family and friends all around me to help face them."

Toriel smiles softly. "I see...it looks like Asriel inherited that trait from you, and clearly not me. All of the pain and guilt that he's endured as Flowey, and he was fully prepared to STAY that way without either of us ever knowing, and without a peep of complaint about his fate. It only makes me more glad that Frisk and the other children talked him into giving himself a chance, but still..." She took a deep breath, then gazes at Asgore again. "He seems to be getting better at it; the invasion's shaken him, but he's already thinking of how he can help the others. It's amazing."

"Well, that's how we Dreemurrs operate." Asgore smiles. "Every time life hands us misfortune, we endure it and become even stronger than before. It is bound to relent at some point, and we'll greatly appreciate the respite. We don't really expect it to come, but we'll be grateful if it does."

"I wish I would have had a mindset such as that, instead of abandoning you when it became too much for me to bear."

"You're adopting it, though. That has to count for something."

Toriel softly smiles at this, enough for her to return the kiss on his paw. And it was also enough for her to leave her own chair and promptly place herself in her husband's lap and wrap her arms around his neck; she then proceeds to promptly nuzzle noses with him, which he gleefully returns. After which, she pulls back just a little, only topush forward again to fully kiss his muzzle. Again, he was quite eager to return said kiss while wrapping his arms around her back, gently pulling her closer to him. She then slowly pulls away, and Asgore pulls away as well. Though he did also proceed to kiss her forehead, while she kissed his cheek while cheerfully smiling at one another and basking in their mutual fluffiness.

Flowey could be heard gagging in the other room. The sweetness was too much.

"Gorey...?" Toriel began quietly.

"Hm...?" Asgore tilted his head curiously.

"Have...have we ever been to the beach?"

"The beach...?" Asgore gently began stroking his beard while gazing towards the ceiling. "Hm...actually, no. I do not believe we have. Not even once. None of us."

"Truly? That doesn't sound very great at all." Toriel said softly as she tilted her head. "I think we should plan on fixing that as soon as possible. Yes, that's what we should do!" She said with a bit of enthusiasm while clasping her paws. "We should all plan a visit to the beach sometime. And obviously our friends should participate as well! That's sure to bring everyone's spirits up a bit!~"

"A beach trip, that's a wonderful idea, Tori! It's one way to relieve copious amounts of stress, especially with the presence of friends. I fully approve of this idea!" He then stroked his chin again while tilting his head. "It shouldn't be too soon, though. Everyone still needs time to process and recover."

"Of course." Toriel nodded with a soft smile as she lightly tilted her head with a paw on her cheek. She was blushing slightly. "Oh dear...I'll have to buy swimwear for the boys...including some for myself..." At that, a mental image popped up, and Asgore began to blush. Toriel caught onto it quickly. "Gorey? You're blushing hard...are you perhaps...interested in something...?"

"N-No..." Asgore sheepishly denied.

"Are you suurrreee?~" Toriel teased, lightly booping his snoot. Asgore resisted the urge to bleat in embarrassment; Toriel wasn't helping matters at all when she acted like this around him. Remembering that their bodies still in physically young didn't help matters at all...

Ringing...

"Oh thank golly!" Asgore sighed deeply, causing Toriel to chuckle and playfully roll her eyes. He was quick to pick up his cell phone and answer. "Hello...?"

"King Asgore, Queen Toriel. I have done a bit of private digging into Ebott's overall history...it's something you really need to hear." Geno Alphys gravely said on the other line.

"Truly? Can you tell us about it?"

"...I'm afraid this has to be a face-to-face thing, your Majesty."

Asgore was briefly surprised by Geno Alphys' seriousness. Though he nodded strongly. "Very well. We'll be there in a few moments..."

Click...

"Is it really that serious...?" Toriel asked with a bit of concern, having heard the short yet concerning conversation due to being so close.

"She seems to believe so." Asgore nodded as he slowly stands up while setting Toriel on her feet. "Go get the boys. This is something they should hear too."

"Right..." Toriel nodded softly as they both began to move out.

They felt that whatever Geno Alphys had to tell/show them, it wouldn't be anything good...

"Well, well, well well well!~" Muffet hummed as she began spinning on a spinning stool, her legs kicking out cheerfully. She wasn't managing her parlor this time since she had it closed for the day, and was instead hanging out at Grillby's for a while. It was slightly upon his insistence since he was still a bit worried about her due to what happened just three days ago "Looks like things are taking quite a while to calm down because of what happened. Being outright attacked by humans AND monsters from the outside...they have no idea how to handle that~"

"...You don't seem too bothered by it." Grillby said quietly while cleaning a glass. Some monsters began spending more time at Grillby's lately. They've been trying to calm their own growing anger at allowing this to happen so blatantly, and have immediately begun making preparations to do something about it as soon as possible.

'We've gotten quite protective of our home, and even more protective towards the humans living here. It's quite surprising how quickly we changed our views on them. Too bad their slight paranoia has kept quite a few of the of coming to the parlor." She pouted as she eventually stops spinning and crosses one leg over the other while gazing at Grillby. "Can't really use the building for a little while, so I'm having my spiders hand out a few deliveries every now and then from the stock that I make at home. The people are scared, but they're still pretty nice.~"

"Hm..."

"Muffet!"

The spider turns around towards the sound of the voice, then immediately smiles as she sees Red approaching her from two close booths where the Pack was gathered around chatting cheerfully. The pup makes it over to Muffet and seats herself next to her on a nearby stool of her own.

"Hi Ribbon Buddy!" Muffet beamed while waving two of her hands rather gleefully. "Things have been rather rough lately, how have you and the other Pack members been doing? By the looks of it they seem to be rather relaxed for the most part."

"Oh yeah, that. We all had a pretty extended conversation about it, about what happened and why it happened. And most importantly, we discussed what e were going to do about it." Red informed while lightly kicking forward on the stool. "Something like this, an attack like this...it's unacceptable. Humans are scared and monsters are pretty mad. Some humans would try to pin this on us, but they can't. Because human mages were a part of this as well, and they clearly knew what they were doing. At least those leading three were, the others were just doing what they're told." She narrowed her eyes a bit. "But Undyne made it clear to them that just because they're just doing what they're told, doesn't mean they're completely free of blame. And from what I heard, monsters were trying to make up for that as well."

"Oh yeah. I can understand how we might be making up for that." Muffet blinked as she rubbed her chin and stared at the ceiling of the bar. "Monsters have been simply doing what they were told by King Asgore for years, whether it be good or bad. Ever since the Barrier shattered, they've been working to grow past that and to really start thinking for themselves once in a while. Though to be fair...monsters were still pretty mad at humanity for everything they did, so they lashed out at any human that fell. Given how they were all children, you can see how bad they feel about this."

"I...I see. And this included Frisk, right?" Muffet nods at Red's question, in which Red tilted her head. "Red...were YOU one of the monsters that wanted Frisk's soul back them?" Muffet nods again.

"Yep! But not exactly for the same reasons as everyone else."

"Oh? Why did you try to do it, Muffet?"

Muffet smiled cheerily. "Mettaton offered me a large sum of money if I took Frisk's soul and brought it to him!~"

...

...

...

...

"YOU TRIED TO TAKE SOMEONE'S SOUL FOR A RIDICULOUS REASON LIKE THAT?! ARE YOU SERIOUSLY THAT EAGER FOR MONEY?!" Red furiously shook Muffet's shoulders with her teeth sharped and her eyes blank white with aggravation. Yet Muffet wasn't too bothered at all, simply smiling gleefully as her close friend relentlessly shook her over her past selfishness, and was probably still intact. Red eventually stopped, sighing while running a paw down her face and turning away from her. "You're impossible..."

"Chara-Dearie says that my priorities tend to get mixed up because of my mindset as a spider...I won't know what he means!~" Muffet beams while shrugging.

"Ugh..." Red groaned as she lightly slammed her head on the counter. Grillby hummed while turning away to serve yet another customer. Red lifted her head and turned towards Muffet. "Sometimes I'm rather surprised by how casual you can be sometimes..."

"Meh.~" Muffet stuck her tongue out while she tilted her head and blinked. "By the way, Red...you're much more wolf-like than before. In fact, you ARE pretty much a wolf now, aren't you?~" She says while pointing towards Red, who began looking herself over a bit. "Yeah. Your pink hair is a big longer, your silver eyes are very prominent now, you grew a bit more fur..." Muffet reached behind Muffet and lightly brushed her hand across Red's tail, which made her jump slightly. "And your tail is much longer. And sooooo fluffy!~"

"Alright alright, I get it. You're becoming a bit too interested in that..." Red said while snatching her tail away with a pout.

Muffet giggled softly. "Oh Red, you're so modest."

"You already got me a short skirt to 'display' my legs. By the way, I'm still gonna wear shorts under it." She ignored Muffet's own pout of disappointment at this. "Honestly, what else can you pay so much attention to aside from my legs and my silver eyes...?" Red challenged. Muffet's eyes grinned at the challenged as her eyes lowered to Red's chest. Her response was to close up her cape and turn her head. "Never mind. Forget that I asked."

"Ahuhu~"

Their gentle squabbling would have continued, if it wasn't for someone entered the bar before they could...and they immediately noticed the smell of blood in the air. They both turned around and could see Alvina slightly struggling to get through the entrance. She had quite a cheery smile on her face despite the blood that was leaking from her shoulder. She didn't seem to have bothered seeking medical help, she's seems intent on casually blowing it off for a while. Though it was pretty immediate that the monsters weren't going to allow that to happen.

Red blinked. One moment, Grillby was standing behind the counter. The next moment, he had disappeared in a flash of flames and appeared right next to Alvina, gently holding her by the arms. Alvina blinked softly as she smiled towards the fire elemental. "Oh..hey Grillby. There's no need to worry, I'm fine..." He didn't respond audibly. he just placed a hand on her shoulder. She winced a bit at the heat he was intentionally applying to said shoulder. Though the pain slowly disappeared and was replaced with a sense of relief, as Grillby removed said hand, and the wound closed and stopped bleeding. She blinked in awe. "Wow. Pretty sure that healing with heat is a discontinued practice, but since this is magic fire and all...and you're kinda made of that same fire..."

"Lady Mayor, what happened to you...?" Muffet asked as Grillby eased her over to a booth in which she could sit comfortably. Red sits in the same booth but across from their own seats, her silver eyes flashing slightly. She had a feeling that this was the first sign of something about to go very very wrong.

Alvina turned towards the three monsters watching her, and softly sighed. "It's not much, really. I got a bit too into something and I injured myself." They were already fully aware that this was a lie, but they chose not to interrupt her for the sake of learning exactly what happened. "I'm just a bit irritated by the fact that my family is here. I've told Toriel and Asgore about my parents, but there's a bit more to my family. My brother and grandparents are here as well...and none of them are exactly...well...pleasant." Grillby and Muffet were able to immediately put two and two together, but neither she or Red noticed it.

"What do you mean by that?" Red asked with slightly narrowed eyes.

"It's...it's nothing too serious." Alvina said with a wave of her hand. "My parents weren't really supportive of my positive viewpoint of monsters, and were very...very direct about it. As for my grandparents...they didn't really do anything direct, but they sure liked to trample over my beliefs as if they were nothing but immature delusions. Because that's how they saw them: immature delusions that needed to be torn apart before they manifested into something ridiculous and cannot be undone. They treat my thoughts as if I was mentally deranged. And then there's my dear brother..well...he didn't really try and stop any of it. Nor did he try to help me. He mostly left me alone completely, neither criticizing me or supporting me. He was distant on almost every level..."

"Well well well, your folks don't really sound like good people." Muffet stated bluntly, frowning slightly. "You were being troubled and criticized by our parents simply for believing that monsters were decent? Why, that doesn't sound very fair at all, dearie."

"Yeah. I didn't let it stop me though. I just kept doing what I was doing because that's how I truly felt." Alvina shrugged. "Though they eventually gave up on me completely and simply left me on my own. To be quite honest, I have no idea why they might be back aside from putting me and the monsters down every chance they get. To be simple, they came back to be jerks to me, which is a bit cruddy of them to do. Even after that plague swept across Ebott, they never bothered to check up on me. That's fine though, I didn't really miss them as much as some might believe I should."

"That's a bit sad. They didn't even check up on you? Why would they be so cold?" Muffet tilted her head.

"They're just jerks. No more and no less." She rolled her eyes. "Doesn't matter anyway. So long as they only have acidic words to say, there isn't anythng to worry about from them."

Red simply narrowed her silver slitted eyes and turned towards the ceiling in thought. It couldn't have been that simple. Their visit was almost directly after Ebott was attacked so viciously.

Something definitely wasn't right...

Darkness was staring at six different capsules before him, in what used to be Alphys' lab. The six capsules contained the six children, all who were currently unconscious, and submerged in a glowing liquid fluid that was serving to purge them of their heavy indoctrination, as well as anything else that may serve to be mentally poisonous later down the line, those were things he'd rather not allow to fester and grow into something that couldn't be controlled. And his fellow friends would rather avoid this outcome whenever they pssibly could. By the looks of it, the Dreemurrs especially wouldn't be able to handle losing all six of them a second time without demanding some form of retribution.

It was bad enough that someone forcibly robbed them of their peaceful rest, but someone had the nerve to turn them into living weapons.

A long time ago, Darkness wouldn't have cared about that. He wouldn't have interfered with the process. Hell, he would have helped. Just so he could see what would happen. Darkness was a scientist. But what he used to be, unlike Alphys, was a scientist without a moral compass. Only the truth pushed him onward, only discovery mattered. The ethics didn't matter in the slightest.

He remembered a time when he was younger. He was doing experimentation on a deer...while it was still alive and fuily conscious. He was called out on sadistically torturing a defenseless creature. Darkness' response?

'I just wanted to see how it's insides work! I can't do that if it's dead!'

He remembered his tone when he said that; he was subtly comparing the ethics of torturing something just to discover how it works to the basic idea of book-reading. And from there, he only got worse. The complete lack of ethic thought he put into his actions greatly influenced Tempest and Lunar. The former was molded into a cold-blooded assassin who couldn't trust anyone outside of his family, and the latter was growing to be an unrepentant battle-hungry brute.

It was only until he saw what his younger cousins were becoming that he truly opened his eyes to what he himself was doing. And just like that, all of his sins weighed heavily on his conscience. But the three of them were in too deep to just escape the cycle of sin they helped perpetuate, and no one until now was able to save them from it. By the time they WERE saved, the damage was done. They''ve proven to be invaluable assets to a truly dark and cruel side of the world.

Someone was going to forcefully attempt to repossess them because of it. It's a matter of when they'll attempt it, as well as how hard and how much they'll try.

Darkness sighed. I've gotten us in an incalculable crisis. All because of my pursuit for my own self-satisfaction. He clutched his clipboard, nearly tearing it in half. Scientists should seek to improve the world, not the other way around.

Why couldn't I have been a scientist like Alphys? She did morally questionable things, but she never forsake her conscience in the process. She only wanted to help...

Tempest and Lunar were both sitting around the Underhround's entrance, thinking about different things. For Tempest: It's whether or not he had what it takes to redeem himself for his past crimes. For Lunar, she was just wondering when her next great battle would commence, and where. These thoughts plagued the twin dragons for a long time.

However...

Tempest...

The dragon's eyes widened for a moment after hearing the voice. "No..."

Lunar...

"Ah...?" The older twin dragon opened her eyes in curiosity. The she rolled them. "Ah geez...it's you. You don't give up, do you?"

The time for you twin dragons to be running around without your leashes is over. Now , we have a task for you. And unlike Augustine, we won't be giving Tempest the benefit of free will. It's time for some adjustments to make sure you don't wander off from your owners again...

Tempest got up and immediately got up and shook his head. "No! No you won't!"

Lunar casually shrugged. "Go on if you'd like...I'd be interested to see what you'd do."

You're going to do your assignments at your most efficient...so let's alter those mindsets.

Tempests' eyes widened as his paws clutched his head, growling as he tries to resist the force. Lunar didn't resist at all. She closed her own eyes with a small smirk. Their minds rippled slightly, aligned to a drop of water in a large pond. After a few seconds, something changed within them.

Tempest slowly removed his paws from his head and gently raises it. His struggling emotions were instantly gone, and it was replaced with a mask of apathy; his eyes turning a much more dull gold than usual. Lunar's eyes briefly flashed crimson, before returning to silver. She seemed intrigued. "So that's your game...you know you can't control me in the usual manner, so you appeal to my nature..." She chuckled as she folded her arms. "Alright. I'll play along." Lunar said as she begins walking out of the Underground with a casually swaying tail, with Tempest stoically following her.

Head out now, Tempest...in the meantime, we're going to use the device that your dear cousin Darkness invented on Ebott...one last time. The monsters here wish to settle here and won't give it up? Very well...then they can have it.

Darkness raised his head slightly, noticing that he could no longer sense his cousins in the Underground. All he did feel was a very sudden and very deep concern for them. But as worried as he was, he couldn't leave the rejuvenating children unattended, they're under his personal protection.

So he stayed behind and continued overseeing their condition, sincerely hoping that nothing sinister was amiss...

Asgore: Golly gee, we avoided a rather embarrassing conversation...however, what conversation seeks to replace it...? Perhaps something unpleasant...

Toriel: Very unpleasant indeed...did Alvina forget to tell us something...or was something kept from her as well...? What could have been kept from her...?

A feeling of dread has fallen across Ebott. The twin dragons are being called into action. One against his will, Tempest. And the other with curiosity, Lunar. Darkness has been intentionally left out of the loop...he'll soon wish he picked up on the signs sooner. Much, much sooner.

Until next time, readers.