Asriel: Howdy readers. So...wanna know why this chapter is later than usual?
Frisk: You see...
Chara: There's quite a few reasons for our author being a bit behind.
Asgore: Activities regarding family.
Toriel: Genuine career choices for his future.
Flowey: And...he felt really lazy.
Alphys: Ehehehe...seriously though, he's made a very important career choice.
Sans: it's super private. so he won't tell ya what it is.
Undyne: Just know that when he actually gets started-at least he hopes to-his time for writing is gonna be seriously cut. He doesn't know when, either. So if he eventually doesn't update this for MUCH longer than a month, this is why.
Papyrus: THIS DOES NOT MEAN HIS WRITING DAYS AROUND HERE HAVE GONE VAMOOSE, HOWEVER!
Gaster: It simply means that he's going to have more important things to do with his time from then on. But rest assured, he won't forget about this tale he's writing. Not one bit.
Muffet: We hope you can bring yourselves to understand, Dearies. This tale is far from over, rest assured.
Red: Yeah. We kind shave a long ways to go, and he does instead to see it through.
Asriel: Right. Now that you've all been notified, it's time we begin the chapter. Warnings for the usual silly nonsense go here, so prepare yourselves. It's a bit messy, but he did his best. So go easy on him, okay?~
Chapter Start!
It's been quite a while since the last major attack on Ebott. Everything has mostly died down since then, with most of the civilians no worse for wear.
But many of us knew better, and had begun acting like it as well. We've worked on our new and enlarged reserves of magic to see if we can find new innovations for them. It does get a bit intense from time to time, Undyne made sure of that. Our path isn't going to get any easier, so she lessened her restraint even further when he spar.
I appreciate her not going easy on me...even though my body certainly doesn't.
Alphys is still reeling over the fact that the Amalgamates have been cured, and back to their original selves. Of course they're going through a bit of medical rehabilitation since they haven't been themselves for years, but they're getting by. Still pretty surprising Flowey went that far for her.
Red and I...well...we kissed that day. And it was awkward, and it left a funny feeling in our souls...though it definitely wasn't a bad one. We're both still pretty young, we're still figuring things out. We're sure to get better at managing our feelings.
Chara and Muffet...they're much better at this than we are, even though the former always seems trapped in the web of the latter. I think...I KNOW she enjoys how easily and consistently she can break his concentration.
Frisk...it's been really rough for him. I could tell that he's still a bit shaken from everything that's happened. He's very much different from how he used to be. He used to not be afraid of pretty much anything. But now he's very afraid. Not for himself, but for us. He's afraid of losing us and all we've worked for, and that's been a very powerful motivator for him. And it showed when he finally opened his eyes fully.
They're beautiful.
And his soul is now constantly emitting a glowing gold and blue flame aura around it while his soul of Determination remains red. I think I'll call it his 'Bright Soul'. Chara joked about this. Since his soul of Determination has now been emitting a dark-but not evil-glow, he's called it his 'Blaze Soul'.
I considered calling ourselves Team BRB, since my soul is Rainbow, and so are my flames. Team Bright Rainbow Blaze.
I think it fits. Then again, me and Dad are terrible with names, so I'm not one-hundred percent sure...
Oh Golly! Sorry, I'm taking up a lot of time already, so I'll just get right to it. As usual, the gang was training, preparing for the storm that will inevitably come to them. But we do have our breaks to wind down and let that preparing settle.
And what better excuse for an extended break than our brotherly birthday?
Asriel found it quite difficult to believe that one year had passed since Monsterkind within Mt. Ebott first returned to the Surface. It was a great day for them, a grand day indeed. And from that moment onwards, they had all thought that things would finally get easier from then on out...this past year has proven otherwise, in perhaps the most extreme of manners. Most did not come out unscathed, with quite a few of them sporting new scars in nearly every way that matters.
But despite all the hardship they endured, they were still going strong and staying determined. This has seen them through many difficult situations, and it's unlikely to fail them now. Whatever was coming next, they would properly prepare for it, and face it instead of continuing to hope the storm passes.
For now though, the respite was greatly appreciated by many, as it gave them time to revaluate themselves and properly rest. Well...somewhat. There's a very good reason why it can't be ALL peace and quiet.
'Undyne' and 'Quiet' simply do not go well together for extended periods.
"Well oh well, punk! Look at ya now!~" Undyne grinned as she hand an arm snug around Asriel's neck while her other arm roughly noogies the poor goat, with her bosom affectionately pressed against his head. "Ya managed to make it through the year, and now you've reached fifteen! Ya feelin' proud of yourself?!"
"Um...yeah, I guess?" Asriel said with an unsure yet heartfelt smile. Both he and Frisk have turned fifteen today, with Chara turning sixteen. It was definitely a bit of a strange feeling, but not enough to completely throw him off-kilter. He's had seven birthdays before this that he'd thought he'd never be able to have again. Having another one was a pretty amazing feeling. A familiar one, but one he definitely felt grateful to have. Perhaps he was simply grateful to be alive.
Considering the chaos that he seems to find-or the other way around-he wouldn't be surprised if that was the reason.
"We're both fifteen now. How about that?~" Frisk said, lightly skipping towards them with glee and excitement. He went through a bit of a wardrobe change himself. He now wore a white hoodie with a blue zipper and blue Delta Rune symbol on it's back. He also wore brown boots and a white scarf around his neck. He still wore his trademark striped shirt underneath. One could tell that his wardrobe change was inspired by Sans and Papyrus, with his own spin on it.
"Yeah. And I'm sixteen. You two are still kid brothers of mine." Chara huffed while also approaching the group. Chara had mostly remained the same, except his poncho was no longer red and black striped. Instead it was simply black with the Delta Rune being red on the back of it. He had thought about the invert style, but then Rude Baby Red would accuse him of taking her style, and he didn't have the patience to argue otherwise, so he'd rather prevent the argument altogether.
"Welcome to the realm of age sixteen, the realm of awkwardness and cheery goodness!~" Muffet hopped up and hugged him from behind, nuzzling his cheek. "Cheek nuzzles for the cheeky cutie birthday boy!~"
"Can you not...?"
"Yo! Everything and everyone's all cheery right now!~" Monster Kid beamed while hopping and skipping about, before falling flat on his face. Old habits tend to persist no matter what, it seemed. Frisk readily helped him back up, brushing him off a bit. "Yo, Frisk! You, Asriel and I...we're fifteen! We have our own little group deal going on!~"
"Well, if we're going to refer to it that way, I guess it's true." Asriel said with a awkward smile.
"Alright, alright children. Settle down." Toriel gently hushed then as she patted each of their heads, then kissing the heads of her sons. They were currently walking into Grillby's, where most of the gang were gathered. A rather eccentric first stop to celebrate their birthday...but they were eccentric anyhow. They've come here for some hot breakfast, and Grillby's just the guy to provide some for many. Ten in the morning definitely seems like a proper time for that.
"Heya guys! Happy birthday!~" Fuku could be seen waving from one of the booths.
"Another age up for our Dreamy Dreemurr Boys!~" Mettaton cooed softly while blowing a kiss, which Chara dodged in a very desperate panic. Asriel and Frisk were rather casual about it. Mettaton felt rather disappointed by the latter two' lack of reaction, and completely dismayed by Chara's outright rejection. "Why...?"
"No, Mettaton. Just...no." Chara slowly shook his head in disapproval.
"D'oh..."
"rejected.~" Sans chuckled a bit farther back, lightly clapping his hands. He seemed to be having a fun time with this.
"Let's all relax quite a bit, everyone." Ashore mediated while lowering his paws. There's no need for this to escalate into a breakfast brawl. The last time they've done that, it was MUCH more destructive than anyone could have possibly expected...also, Undyne was the clear winner. Then Toriel had everyone clean up the mess afterwards.
It was totally worth it though. At least in her eye.
"Alright then, what are we gonna be doin' while we wait for our super brunch?~" Undyne grinned expectedly while bumping her fists together.
Asriel raised his paw a bit. "How about we do a bit of what we've done last year?~"
Undyne grinned wider. "Ya mean...?"
"I do indeed mean.~"
Both of them looked towards Grillby, who was casually handing a glass of milk over to Papyrus. He nodded towards them and pointed towards is upgraded jukebox with a thumb. Undyne grinned ever wider as she and Asriel high-fived one another.
"Oh goodness gracious, we're doing more karaoke of the anime variety, aren't we?" Toriel chuckled softly. "They seem rather excited about it, to say the least. Asriel, Undyne, and Alphys certainly seem up for it..."
Asgore smiled as he held her paws within his own. "It does sound like a bit of fun. Come, Tori. It sounds like it will be quite a bit of fun."
"I must say, I wasn't expecting birthday brunch to begin with morning karaoke...oh what the heck, let's do it!" Toriel smiled as she and Asgore left their seats to join their precious trio of children. "Hmmm...what shall we...oh! This one looks pleasant! Nice and slow. What a way to start the morning.~"
"Meh, I'm fine with it. I say we give it a go." Chara nodded with an affirmative shrug.
"Alright, we've got ourselves our first morning anime karaoke song! Here's to being anime trash!~" Frisk cheered with a raised fist.
"HOORAY!~" The very obvious cheers of Undyne, Alphys, and Red rang out.
"oh man..." Sans sighed while shaking his head in amusement.
And with that, the jukebox pays, and the Dreemurr's begin:
[Black Clover: Aoi Honoo-Ending 1]
Asriel has been staring longingly into darkness for a while, staring longingly at his paws, with a buttercup on his head. Chara was looking in an entirely different direction, while staring down at an entire patch of buttercups.
Asgore's eyes was overshadowed as he held a tea and coaster in his paws, slightly disturbing it with his tears.Toriel was on her knees with her face in her paws, tears of loneliness and guilt escaping her almost constantly.
Asriel holds his Heart Locket in his paws, protectively clutching it to his chest as tears began leaving his eyes. Chara was holding his own Heart Locket close, except there was blackness beginning to leak from his eyes and mouth, threatening to consume him.
Asgore held his trident in his paws, which is becoming more and more heated with glowing flames, still wearing a grimace. Toriel was surrounded by the six souls that she left to die, the guilt building up even further, along with shame.
Little Frisk suddenly plops into the fray, curiously looking around to see that the Dreemurr we're separated and saddened. He looked sad as well...but he quickly shook his head. He first ran over and took Toriel by the hand, then pulled her over to Asgore. After that, he pulls Asriel over to Chara. Each of them were surprised, but Frisk simply smiles. Acknowledging his determination, they began smiling as well.
Asgore had his trident balanced on his shoulder, wearing a much calmer and balanced smile. A wisp of flames over over Toriel's paw, and she's also wearing a soft smile.
Both of them take a step towards one another, gaze into each other's eyes, then exchange a warm mutual, forgiving hug.
Chara waved his arm wreathed in black flames while he calmly looks into the distance. Asriel's paw had a wisp of fire above his own paw, and he smiles.
Frisk rejoins the reborn Dreemurr with a beaming smile, stepping out of the darkness and into the light. The three boys each held their glowing Heart Lockets in their hands, with their parents lightly petting their heads.
Final shot is of the family at home, peacefully resting with one another with various smiles...
[End Theme]
Rounds of applause ring out from monsters and humans alike. Gaster amusingly using his levitating hands to do the same, which was quite a cheeky move not missed by Asgore. In fact, it got quite a chuckle out of him.
"Ooh...that was actually quite fun!~" Toriel lightly clapped, then gently held Asgore's paws within her own. "Have a bit of fun, Gorey?"
"Sure did, Tori!~" Asgore beamed as he and Toriel eventually stepped down, as well as Chara and Asriel. Frisk is the only one remaining at the moment, and he is soon joined by the likes of Alphys. Undyne was quite clearly cheering for her, causing the lizard to blush softly.
"I think I have an idea of what the next one should be. I'll take point, how about that?" Frisk suggested with a cheery smile.
"U-Um, yeah Frisk! Let's give it a go!" Alphys nodded softly as the jukebox gradually switches to yet another tune. "...O-Oh! This one's a good one!~" Alphys said excitedly, with Frisk nodding, choosing to believe her.
And with that, the both of them began:
[Toaru Majustu no Index: See Visions-Opening 4]
Frisk slowly opens his eyes for the first time in years and smiles, both actions showing a great recovery and increase in his self-confidence.
Soon descending, Gaster is levitating over the city with his arms behind his back. He glitches for a nanosecond, before looking down to see Sans and Papyrus chatting away without a care in the world, walking under him.
Overhead on a bridge, Toriel, Asgore, and Gerson were moving along, the former two happily in each other's arms. Below said bridge, Chara was nonchalant as Asriel was dragging him by his remaining arm to order some funnel cakes.
Red types on her paw phone for a moment, before quickly closing it and beaming happily, running towards the cheerfully waving Muffet, who was also accompanied by the smirking Undyne and anxious Alphys.
Multiple duos appeared in different frames. Asgore and Toriel were nose nuzzling, Gaster and Gerson were overseeing, Sans was punning while Papyrus was steaming, Muffet happily nuzzles a surprised Red's cheek, and Asriel and Chara soon jumped in to join Frisk. Asriel and Chara lightly rustle his hair to get a laugh out of him, before the trio continues on their merry way.
Their many friends: Grillby cleaning a glass at his bar with MK tripping over himself once again, the Pack all gathered together in their house playing cards, Alvina and Temmie sleeping in the former's office to Adam's grave annoyance, Parvos and his gang waiting obediently within their prison, Lunar smirking in the dark while illuminating Tempest and Darkness's faces with her twilight magic, the Six Soul Children also waiting for their chance to lend a hand as their souls also lit up the dark.
Frisk looks up for a bit, then turns back towards Asriel and Chara. All three of them were briefly surrounded by many of their friends, mainly Sans, Papyrus, Alphys, Undyne, Muffet, Red, Toriel, and Asgore.
They are bathed in streaks of gold and blue, rainbow, and red and black respectively as they go about their various battles. Asriel's flames were shooting towards a rather mysterious monster wielding a tomahawk, while Frisk shoots a bright streak of light across numerous enemy mages. Chara himself was wreathed in black flames while swiping his shadow claw across the landscape, while Asgore and Toriel combined their flame mastery to pierce through the darkness. A brief gust of wind nearly blinded them.
A final shot of the five Dreemurrs graciously floating within the sky, their warm flames protecting one another...
[End Theme]
Yet another applause echoes throughout the bar, as the duo and Frisk waved to their fellow friends and family while stepping down from the karaoke stage as the next range stepped up to take their place. Asriel then steps back up with Red and Undyne on both sides of him.
"Happy Birthday, Asriel." Red said with a warm smile. Asriel smiles gratefully in return.
"Let's see now...Fuhuhuhu! This one's from a good one!" Undyne stated with her signature grin. "How's about it, Fluffybuns Jr?"
"I'm all ready, Dyne Dyne!"
They soon begin:
[My Hero Academia: Odd Future-Opening 4]
First Asriel appears riddled with weapons and scars carrying Chara's corpse, then him being reborn as Flowey, absorbing souls as the Absolute God of Hyperdeath, his younger self hugging Frisk, himself and Frisk fighting Chara, then the three of them standing with their parents and friends, and finally Present Asriel, who adjusts his scarf and gathers an ember in his paw, before lightly pushing it forward.
Frisk and Chara both held a Save Point Star in their hands, before gently releasing it and walking away.
Asriel, Asgore, Alphys', and Undyne were sitting together making and drinking Golden Flower tea. Flowey looks at the tea quite anxiously, before pouring more for them. In the background, Toriel and Papyrus were helping to make a picnic outdoors, with Sans sleeping under the shade of a tree.
In the meantime, the Pack of Canines were interacting with the Pride of Felines, with Parvos in the back lazily sipping coffee. Gerson looks fondly towards passing citizens while holding his walking stick. Red brandished her blade and holds it confidently, though her focus was strongly disrupted by Muffet pouncing and hugging her in a six-armed spider cuddle.
Four X's were crossed out of Alvina's family aside from her mage brother Adam, whom she fearfully embraces.
Frisk conjures light, while Chara channels darkness, and both of them release a magic wave of it forwards in unison. Alongside them, Darkness oversees Tempest slicing through a canyon via wind magic, while Lunar gleefully destroys most of it via twilight magic.
Asriel clenched his fist tightly with flames, raising it upwards. There's a card to Asgore in the same stance, before stroking g down the ground, with the fiery explosion equal to that of a volcanic eruption.
The Prophet sighs while gazing straight ahead, behind him stand the shadows of sinister monsters and humans following his steps. Another fade towards seven Humans, lead by two significantly important humans and one large monster.
Not too far away, the gang leaps high and sprints forward with intense vigor. Gaster was levitating forward, as all of his hands fired a Gaster Blaster beam widespread through the skies.
Asriel, supercharged with flames and lightning, rose from the ground with his fangs on display and his eyes turned to slits, coming face to face with a monster that towered over him. With a resolved glare, Asriel charges onward.
Soon Asgore was coming face to face with a feminine shape staring down. A firestorm erupts around him as he roars, his eyes flashing orange and blue. Around him we're the following; Gaster fires another blaster, Gerson smashes with his hammer, Frisk and Chara both jump with respective magics, Toriel throws a wave of flames, and Asriel finally slashes with his Chaos Saber.
Final shot would be the bonded Dreemurrs once again watching over Ebott City a flaming crest of the Delta Rune shining behind them.
[End Theme]
Asriel sighed as he eventually catches his breath alongside the dutiful Red. She had a bit more difficulty recovering her breath, but she eventually does so while lightly high-fiving Asriel, both of them beaming slightly while doing so.
"I think we managed that pretty good!"
"Yeah! I agree!~"
"Totally!" Undyne grinned with a thumbs up.
It was about time for their next song, which would most likely be the last before all their food is ready. Red steps down, while Undyne and Asriel remained, and Asgore would be returning as well. Even Gerson agreed to take a shot, much to Undyne's delight. Their next song was picked, and Asriel was rather interested.
"This one has a rather slow start, I remember. But it's slowly finding its way, shaping it's own identity bit by bit...I'd like to think I'm going through the same thing."
"That's a rather positive way to think about it." Gerson grinned while winking slightly.
"Very well, Asriel. We'll follow your lead." Asgore nods.
"Its the same anime as the first song too! Second time multiplier! Let's do this!" Undyne grinned even wider than Gerson, not much of a surprise.
Soon enough, they begin again:
[Black Clover: Black Rover-Opening 3]
Flowey burrowed throughout the Underground for several moments, before popping up near the entrance, overseeing the city he and his friends call home.
Asriel was seen training with Undyne, with Toriel, Asgore, Frisk, and Chara overseeing them. They traded numerous punches with one another, end ugh for Toriel to step forward with a paw outstretched slightly. While the background provided Sans with a hammock to sleep in, an annoyed Papyrus trying to shake him awake, and Alphys diligently reading through her notes.
Further outside, Alvina was seen with Adam, and Temmie's stretchy arms wrapped them both in a hug. The Pack were sitting together, each with doggie treats on their noses, including Red. Parvos, Shamir, Ribras, Rasha, and their own group were trying to decide how to move forward. Gaster stands next to Gerson, both of their taxes were deeply contemplative of the future.
Asriel, Frisk, and Chara lightly press their Lockets together as various images of their memories go by. Asriel training with Undyne, Frisk training with Lunar, and Chara developing his black flames himself. Asgore smiles calmly with his trident balanced against his shoulder, while Toriel smiles as well with flames in her paws.
Seven shaded monsters stood across seven cloaked humans, both looking quite prepared to fight. The Prophet lingers in the middle, despondent to their intense feud.
Frisk uses Support Magic to boost Undyne, Red, and Gerson's performance. The first was a storm of Spears that shot forth from behind her, Red jumping off several of them to slash through the air. Gerson follows up with a swing of his hammer strong enough to rupture the earth.
Flames gave way for the trident-wielding Asgore, who was standing across a smaller but incredibly dangerous opponent. The earth have way around him as his enemy sends a crimson wave of red magic towards him. His fury tranquil, he pulls his trident back and sends a wave of flames back towards them, said flames possibly hotter than they've ever been.
Asriel meditatively breathes an ember, while the Delta Rune flares above him in rainbow flames. The same flames coated his Chaos Saber as he lifts it before him. One moment of contemplation later, he leaps forward in a downwards diagonal slash.
Last image, Asriel on his knees, only to be helped up by both Chara and Frisk. Asgore and Toriel stood behind them, with the former's paws on Asriel's shoulders and the latter's were on Chara and Frisk's heads. Flowey popped up once again in front of them, coughing slightly before straighting himself.
They gazed at the sunrise ahead of them...
[End Theme]
The group of four sighed, with Undyne obviously quite proud of herself as well as Asriel, taking him by the neck and giving him a rough noogie. Asriel simply laughed while Asgore and Gerson looked on in amusement.
This was a fun time.
And right on the, their breakfast food was finally ready. And of course what be chose was fresh and warm cinnamon rolls. Asriel couldn't wait to have quite a lot of them, I couldn't breakfast bagels, and a quiche shared among his family. Not only that, but there was a rather cool smoothie on the side. With so much warm food, something cold to balance it out would be nice.
"All, I'd say that went over pretty well." Asgore says with a small smile as he too reunited with his family, and could see that he was mostly given the same as Asriel, except his smoothie was substituted with iced tea. He hummed with very obvious appreciation. "Ah, lemonade iced tea.~"
"You and your tea. I swear." Gerson playfully rolled his eyes, but couldn't really help but grab one of his own. He definitely felt like the cool beverage would help his throat after having such childish yet enjoyable fun such as that. "It certainly is good tea regardless."
"There's always going to be proper time for good tea, Dearies. Tea time is a favorite time of mine.~" Muffet cooed, and Asgore nodded in agreement. She could see Chara off to the side, and gently stopped him with a raised hand. "Oh, not too fast, Dearie. That's Lady Toriel's tea!"
"Toriel's Terrific Tea?" Asgore hummed.
"More like Toriel's Terrible Tea." Undyne snickered.
"I beg your pardon! I'll have you know that I HAVE improved my tea-making skills!" Toriel resisted. Though she soon reduced to a cute pout while looking to the side. "It isn't my fault that Gorey is significantly better at it than I, due to having a green thumb and using said plants for said tea..."
"At least you still have your pies, Tori." Asgore comforted slightly as he caressed her ear a bit. She snickered slightly from his touch. Chara rolled his eyes but paid it no need, simply nibbling on a chocolate muffin. The batch was made specifically by Muffet herself, which can really deepen hid appreciation for her, even though it's seemingly so simple.
Red couldn't help but be at least a bit envious of her dear friend's baking skills, no matter how many times she says otherwise. Though it's not like she could do any better. Red was a knight, not a baker. Just like she knew that Muffet was strong for a spider girl, but she herself was stronger and more combat ready. It was a silly comparison, hence her frustration at letting it bother her.
Neither Asriel or Chara seemed to mind, which made it a bit worse. She assumes it'll fade over time.
"i've said it many times before guys and gals. and I'm feelin' like sayin' it again. want some warm food, grillby will be more than happy to provide~" Sans chuckled.
"OF COURSE YOU'D KNOW THIS, FOR YOU COME HERE EVERY DAY." Papyrus sighed, turning towards Grillby for a moment, pouting slightly. "I HAVE EVENTUALLY REALIZED THAT THIS IS YOIR FAULT AS MUCH AS IT IS HIS. YOU MUST STOP ENABLING HIM SO MUCH! HE'S GOTTEN BETTER, BUT THE PACE SLOWS DRASTICALLY WITH YOU AROUND AND YOUR LACK OF MEANINGFUL INTERFERENCE."
Grillby shrugs nonchalantly.
"THAT RESPONSE DOESN'T REALLY HELP EITHER OF OUR CASES, DOES IT...?" Papyrus sighed with a shake of his head. "UNFORTUNATE. THOUGH I CAN AT LEAST SAY THAT I'VE MADE AN HONEST ATTEMPT, HOWEVER FRUITLESS."
"don't be like that, papyrus. there might be hope for me yet."
"I SHALL NOT LIE TO YOU SANS...THAT HOPE IS SLOWLY DYING."
"harsh..."
"HARSH TO BE KIND. UNDYNE IS ADEPT AT THAT."
"It's true, I consider myself to be quite the expert at tough love. Ain't that right, Sans?~" Undyne grinned towards Sans with a raised fist, making the skeleton nervously slump in his seat to try avoiding her incriminating eye.
"Undyne...please stop scaring Sans." Asriel sighed while munching on his cinnamon rolls. "He tries his be...well, he tries at all. That counts for something to some extent, right?"
"I suppose so..." Alphys shrugged.
"aw c'mon guys! gimme a break here!" Sans pleaded, both dismayed and annoyed that no one came to his defense. Though given the looks on their faces, especially Flowey's, Chara's, and Undyne's...they were definitely doing this on purpose. He turned towards his last pillar of support. "tori, you know i've been tryin' harder, right?"
"..."
"...tori...?"
"..."
"...tori, don't be like that. why won't y-" Sans sort of lost hope once he heard a restrained snort, and could see she was as doing her best to hold in her giggles. He sighed and faceplanted his table. "so this is how it ends...sans the skeleton, the expert on many things funny...has become the butt of everyone else's jokes..."
"Yup."
"Probably."
"Kinda."
"Apologies."
"NO OFFENSE."
"You make it SO easy."
Chara, Frisk, Alphys, Toriel, Papyrus, and Undyne said one after another, without the slightest hint of hesitation. Ouch.
"wow...i appreciate the honesty...but ya could have been a bit more restrained about it, guys..."
"Tough love.~" Undyne repeated with a smirk.
"It's quite effective with the right circumstances." Toriel agreed.
"Very much so." Alphys nodded.
"...why are you women so bloodthirsty...?" Sans deadpanned.
Frisk and Asriel both sit back slightly with sufficiently filled bellies, warmed by warm breakfast. "Hah...this was great."
"Hm. What's next on the boys agenda? Seems like there's still much to do." Gerson hummed. "Gonna do something different this time around regarding the second activity?"
Frisk hummed slightly, while looking up towards the ceiling with a find smile. "Alvina did text me. She said she has something in mind, and for us to meet up with her."
"Truly? Where?"
"Bowling Alley!~" Alvina beamed with raised hands.
"Ca$ lE b0wLInG!~" Temmie repeated while raising her own arms, which stretched and waved about with carefree glee, especially once she spots Flowey within her sights.
"Yeah. We're doing this, apparently." Adam sighed while scratching the back of his head. "I'm not sure how I feel about this. I've never exactly been out bowling before."
"This will be your first time then. All the more reason!" Alvina reinforced while stretching her arms. "Bowling is a highly respected art that has been set in motion for generations, Adam. We shall continue to pay it the respect it deserves."
"...Alvina. What are you even saying right now?"
"Doesn't matter! Actions speak louder than words, and I'm a woman of action with amazing words!"
"...I don't even think you know what you're saying..."
"We're heeeerrree!~" Frisk cheers throughout the large room to signify his and his friends and family.
"Ah, there you are! Right on time!"
"They're two minutes late."
"Like I said, right on time!"
"Ugh..."
Alvina ignored her brother's complaints as she moved forth to hug Frisk and kiss his forehead. "Hope your birthday's been well and good so far, champ. You really do deserve a chance to simply chill after all the crap you've been put through so far. Bowling can be a pretty great mediator!"
"Oh? Really?"
''Sure is! Come on over and let's get started!" Alvina clapped as she turned and made way to set everyone up. At least setting up the ones that would actually be playing. Quite a few would only be spectating. "Oh, and this should go without saying...no magic. Understand this...Sans?"
"you've gotta be kidding me..."
"I am being OH so serious."
"MaYor is SOOoooo000 seriOUS! LISTEN well and LISten GOoD!~" Temmie says resolutely with a salute and tongue sticking out slightly.
"Wells that's fair. Makes for a more relaxed game, I guess." Asriel said with a small smile. "Alright then, if that's the case, I think the three of us will be the lead, while we have Mom and Dad supporting us."
"Very good. I'll be leading my own team, with Adam, Sans, Papyrus, and Gerson! Remember what I said, Sans! We're doing this fair and square!" Alvina repeated with a energetic pump of her fists. "Alrighty then, let's do this!"
Adam sighed quietly as he rubbed his forehead. "I can't believe this. I seriously can't believe how seriously she's taking this..." It's more like she's putting much more energy into this than he was prepared for and able to keep up with.. But since it was dear brother and sister time, he would have to bear it for the time being. And besides...he would admit he was somewhat looking forward to spending time with her.
In the meantime, as things were getting set, Undyne and Alphys were sitting a little in the back, with Gaster, Muffet, and Red accompanying them. A snack bar was a bit to the right, while simple vending machines were a bit north of them. Alphys took the time to get herself some Potato Chisps, and was already getting to munching them. Red had herself some Cinnamon Bunnies, and Muffet had herself a Spider Donut. Undyne stuck to a Starfait, while Gaster selected nothing, simply standing idly while watching on. Though Alphys did make herself comfy upon Undyne's lap.
"Can we really trust Sans not to be a cheater this time around?" Flowey muttered while lightly sprouted from the ground.
"Probably not." Alphys mumbled while munching on her snacks. "Alvina will make sure that he doesn't so anything though. She seems pretty serious about this, after all. He'd be smart not to push her buttons on this."
"Indeed, it seems that she's getting quite a handle on her inner beast. She's become more fierce, more confident. And somehow...more compassionate. Strange how that works, but we can indeed sense it from her soul. Her beast magic has only made her stronger. Both in mind, body, and soul." Gaster says while nodding. "Now...it is a matter of her gaining quite a bit of control over that magic. Learning to master it. Procedures like that."
"Yeah, I can see that happening. Besides a bit more energy, she's been pretty much unchanged personality wise. Which is kinda great, I guess." Undyne agreed while eating her Starfait, turning towards the competing bowling teams. "Now I would go ahead and bet on the Dreemurrs, but Alvina seems really pumped. It might be a close one."
"Alvina does seem rather intense right now. Perhaps she likes a bit of bowling once in a while?"
"She keeps calling bowling of all things a highly respected art. I don't think she's in her most stable state." Adam mumbled while looking rather tired of it all. Alas, he was required to participate in full, lest he risk his sister's aggravated cries of annoyance. Though things were still significantly better than they used to be. He could safely say that their relationship was improving. If something like this would help accelerate that progress, well, he wasn't him a position to complain. Still, it was just shy of his comfort zone.
Nothing he couldn't handle, of course.
"Alright then, I believe I remember how this works." Asgore says while everything is good and ready.
The pins were set up, the lane was nice and clean, and the bowling ball felt rather light in his paw. He narrowed his eyes a bit as he sets them in the pins ahead. He holds up the ball, lightly wiggles his tiny tail, cracks his neck, then smoothly moves forward while pulling his arm back, then throwing the ball forward. It rolls forward...knocking down eight pins.
Asgore smiled. "Golly! That wasn't so bad!" He says rather confidently. So confidently, that he feels rather confident about his second shot. He releases it with great vigor...
...right into the gutter.
"D'oh..."
"Ooooh so close!~" Alvina faux cheered while playfully sticking out her tongue. From her own lane, she picks up her own ball with steeled eyes. "Not bad for a beginners throw, of course. Now for the pro's turn!"
Adam sighed. "Look, Al. I know you feel pretty passionate about bowling, but I don think calling yourself a pro is-" He was interrupted by Alvina's ball smashing into all ten pins, knocking then down with ease, followed by her jumping and yelling 'Strike!' afterwards. "...Okay then."
"ALVINA IS REALLY GOOD AT THIS, ISN'T SHE SANS?" Papyus regarded in awe.
"heh, i guess so...i'd better actually try if she's seriously this pumped about the game." Sans declared with a nervous chuckle.
"Oh dear. Alvina is quite good at this." Toriel smiles while gently clasping her paws. "Well then, I do believe it's my turn." She takes a ball and lightly feigns a struggle, before holding it up in her paws, glaring towards the pins. She pulls back and then releases the ball forward, managing to knock down three pins. "Humph. That's a rather unfortunate try." She then tries again, with altered positioning and rolling speed. The remaining pins were knocked down with ease. Toriel smiles as she lightly flipped her ear. "Much better.~"
"A spare? Not too shabby, Tori! Sans! You're up!" Alvina calls out with a jabbed thumb over her shoulder. Sans sighed as he moved forward as the mayor kept a stern glare towards him.
right...no magic. c'mon, sansy. this is your time. He thought with a stern nod. "right. i got this. totally in the bag."
He never stood a chance. Both times he tried, it rolled unceremoniously into the gutters without entertaining the idea of coming close to the pins.
"What the hell was THAT? FUHUHUHU!~" Undyne playfully mocked from the background. Coupled with Alvina's intense but faux disappointment upon the small skeleton, he could feel nothing but immense embarrassment and shame.
"Not your best shot, Sans." Chara smirked. Defeated, Sans makes his way back to the bench, and simply slouches in humiliation. "Alright. Let's get this over with. My turn." Chara proceeds with a ball in hand. He grunted slightly, his arm hanging a bit. He took a breath moment to adjust, before he pulls back and rolls the ball forward. He managed to get a spare via five pins each.
"ALRIGHTY THEN! LOOKS LIKE ITS MY TURN!" Papyrus says confidently, taking a ball for himself and proceeding easily from there. He managed to get a spare after getting five in the first throw and five on the second. "WOWIE! THIS IS EASIER THAN I THOUGHT!" Sans incoherently grumbled something unsportsmanlike, going ignored by Alvina and Adam.
"I guess I'll take a crack at it..." Asriel says with a small smile as he grand the bowl within his paws. With a deep breath, he pulls his arm back and rolls it forward, knocking down nine pins. He was unfortunately unable to knock down the last pin on his second try, however. "Golly gosh darn it..."
"Whoops. Too bad.~" Alvina says with a playful pout, before turning and slapping Adam's back. "Your turn, bro! Knock those pins down!"
"You don't have to be so loud..." Adam muttered as he indeed proceeds with his turn. He managed a miniscule three pins on the first roll, and two on the second.
"Come on, Adam! I know you can do better than that!"
"Hey, lay off! I told you I've never bowled before!" Adam grumbled. "At least I did better than Sans."
"EVERYONE did better than Sans!"
"nnngh .." Sans grumbled, refusing to move or speak at all.
The sound of all pins being knocked over interrupted their banter, and everyone turned to see Frisk was the one responsible. He turned towards everyone with casual raised fists of triumph. Sans grumbled again as he raised his skull, then huffed.
"betcha can't do that again."
The sound of knocked over pins echoed again. Frisk turns towards Sans, who stared with a deadpan glare.
"...kid, now you're just bein' a showoff."
Frisk smiles cheekily.
"Oh, ya think you're SO cool, don't you Frisk?!" Alvina challenged with a strong huff. Frisk playfully rubbed his chin while pretending to think it over.
"Well, now that you mention it..."
"This match isn't over yet! Get those pins back up, we're goin' for the second half! Sans. Try again, but this time... don't suck."
"Yeah Sans, don't suck this time!~" Flowey changed with a grin. Muffet smiled mischievously. Oh
"piss off, weed."
Toriel chuckled. "My goodness, Sans. I never took you for being a sore loser. I thought you were too lazy for that." Sans flinched. Not even Toriel was pulling her punches.
"i am. but now my pride's on the line. miniscule as it is, i gotta do somethin' to defend it."
"...Hold up. You capable of having pride in yourself?" Undyne wondered aloud with a suspicious raised eyebrow.
"...why do you all hafta dunk on me?" Sans muttered, hiding his skull in his hood.
After everyone finished harping on Sans, they continued with their bowling match. And after a hard fought-Alvina casually ignoring Adam saying otherwise-bowling match, it ended up being a draw, with Frisk and Alvina getting the final strikes.
"Well crud. You're better at this than any of us expected, Frisk." Alvina sighed while wiping sweat from her brow. Temmie popped up, helpfully wiping her forehead of more sweat with a small towel. She casts a longing look towards Flowey before hopping away. "I suppose beating you on your birthday would have been pretty bad, so I'll let this go...today."
"I still think you're taking bowling far too seriously..."
"Ignore Adam, he doesn't understand."
"I hardly understand anything..."
Asgore stretched while lightly stroking his beard. "Well well then, it was good of you to have us, Alvina. This was much more fun than I expected. Bowling is quite fun.~"
"Course you'd think that, big guy. The bowling balls are pretty might as well be weightless in your paws." Alvina chuckled while lightly punching his shoulder. "I would spend more time with the birthday boys, but I've gotta get back to work."
"Ah. Your break is ending so soon?"
"Nope. I kinda snuck out my office. My staff is gonna be pissed." Alvina chuckled.
"It's true, she left out of nowhere without telling them where she was going." Adam deadpanned. "And I'm NOT explaining this to them!"
"You don't have a choice. You're an accomplice. We're going down together."
"W-What?! That's not fair!"
"I said it was gonna happen. I didn't say it was fair." She smiled while rustling Frisk's hair. "But once Adam's done getting yelled at, I'll be sure to catch up for the remainder of your celebration, champ.~"
"...Help. Me." Adam turns towards the gang with pleading eyes, before stretchy Temmie arms wrapped around him and pulled him away, with Alvina taking the lead.
"...She's really milking the whole little sister thing for all it's worth." Undyne chuckled. She brushed herself off and flipped her hair. "Alrighty then! Let's get moving again! We've got some more birthday stuff to get through."
Frisk paused a bit. Then he smiled softly. "Your hair is beautiful, Undyne."
Undyne blinked, then blushed while lightly curling a strand of crimson hair around her finger. "That's random as hell, Frisk...sheesh...anyway, what ARE you boys gonna do next?"
Chara lightly rubbed his chin a bit, wondering the same thing. After a moment of thought, he smiled. "I think I've got something in mind. First, we've gotta pick a certain group up." Asriel and Frisk both turned towards Chara in surprise, while he simply nods in confirmation. "Yeah. I'm being serious."
"Wait...are you being serious...?" Justin asked, blinking owlishly towards Chara. The other children were doing the same.
"I've already answered this question once." Chara said with only slight irritation. "Though given that, it might be good to respond with a question of my own. Are you in?"
Lisa coughed a bit into her paw, currently in fox monster form, and adjusted her glasses. "So let me see if I have all of this completely correct. The adults pretty much dropped you off here, aside from your parents." Lisa gestured to the side, with Toriel and Asgore waving slightly. Lunar yawned, simply waving and wishing them happy birthday. Tempest and Darkness did the same, looking a bit more casual and kind about it. Muffet and Red also waved from where they stood, along with a cheery Monster Kid. "And they came as well. So you're wishing to spend some time with kids your age...which is us."
"Yeh." Frisk beamed, tilting his head slightly.
"Azzy~" Verena beamed, hugging Asriel and happily nuzzling his floppy ear with glee. "You're a birthday boy today! That's pretty fantastic!~"
"Yeah. Hehe~"
Ace lightly scratched his head. "This is seriously going to be a thing we're doing? I mean...are you sure?"
Chara scratched the back of his head. "Yeah...Look guys. I'm sure you think this cave of yours is cool. And believe me, I do think it's a pretty swell cave. But you can't be holed up here for so long without some extra outside time."
"What do you mean...?"
"It's time for you to move outta this cave. You've spent enough time in here as it is. It's a cool place to hang, but not to live." Chara explained while gazing towards them. "As soon as we're able, we're gotta give you actual homes. You deserve that much after all you've been through, which has been quite a lot."
"Chara..."
"...But I do get that this will have to wait another day. I just want to let you know that we have it bookmarked." Chara said with a wave of his hand. "Now that's out of the way, let's focus on us for a bit."
"Right then. What shall we do?" Lizzie questioned.
"I thought about that! We're having a bit of a picnic!" Frisk said. And to prove so, Monster Kid waddled up with a basket around his neck. He swayed a bit, though he managed to stand straight on his own with a big smile. "Picnic basket!, There's quite a lot of snacks in them!~"
"Huh...while I'm sure there are, haven't you eaten quite a bit already? We're quite sure that you have." Justin wondered.
"We're growing adolescents. We eat a lot."
"...Meh. Fair enough." Soon enough, the children would sit down in a group, with the picnic basket placed right in the middle. Opening it up, they were surprised to see that they indeed packed a lot of snacks. Not wasting time, they dug in. Justin was the first to recover after munching on a Legendary Hero. "So to recap recap, you're hanging with us on your birthday since we're pretty much around the same age range?"
"That's about th gist of it. Plus, we wanted to keep you all company." Red said while munching on a Cinnamon Bunny. "We know you usually get pretty bored sitting in the caves and tunnels of the Underground, so we figured we'd visit for their birthday. Chara's the one who brought it up, of course. Monch Monch~"
Lizzie huffed, lightly sipping some Sea Tea while giving Chara a curious yet grateful look. "Daw. You thought we were getting lonely, holed up in the Underground entrance with three dragons? How uncharacteristically sweet of you, Chara."
"Your sass is ineffective on me." Chara waved off rather casually.
"Yet Muffet's sass always succeeds in penetrating those defenses."
"...That's different. And not only is it different, it doesn't count in the slightest."
"Sure it doesn't..."
"Moving on." Lisa coughed, stirring some of her own Sea Tea and sipping some of it. She nodded in approval and sets it back down. "We've been having a discussion amongst ourselves ever since our last...incident. We've took it upon ourselves to become stronger. And a little bit more than that, we've considered what we could do from here onwards. It's quite obvious that trouble shall find Ebott regardless of it's reluctance to involve itself."
"Which is why we've decided to band together. In a slightly different way." Verena said while smoothing out her dress. "Our own cute little organization can do some small things that will serve to help the city when you guys are out doing other important stuff."
"Pardon?" Asriel blinked curiously.
Ace sighed while scratching his head. "An example: while you guys will be doing some major stuff far away to help maintain Ebott's safety, we'll help take care of possible threats much closer to home. We'll...kinda be doing some dirty work."
"We're kind of used to stuff like that, whether we like it or not...though at least we'll be doing them for a slightly better cause. We'll be ensuring the safety of our home instead of simply eliminating targets for the heck of it, or because someone was feeling spiteful." Richard sighed.
"And we'll be doing this out of our own volition. That's a pretty significant plus." Lizzie says with a quiet nod. "Also, we want Chara and Frisk to be our unofficial leaders. All eight of us have fallen into the Underground at some point or another, with you two being the first and last. Seems like a pretty good excuse/idea, isn't it?"
"Um...I guess so." Frisk said quietly.
"This was just thoughts amongst ourselves. We just wanted to let you know about it, so you don't have to let us know your thoughts on it now. Plenty of time to do some finalizing and deciding...and stuff." Richard muttered.
"I'm assisting in most of the planning. A bit of adult help and we'll be on our way. That is if it'll be alright with the others." Lisa said while adjusting her glasses. "While you guys are building your tales, we might be creating some of our own. Our own little Grouptale, if you will."
"Oh my, how interesting. Auhuhu~" Muffet giggles fondly while lightly patting Chara's shoulder. "Doesn't that sound interesting, Chara-Dearie? Especially since they've shown interest in you and Frisk being their unofficial leaders. How sweet.~"
"Not that sweet. They did admit that they would be doing some dirty work, which is why I might be considered a lead. But they're also saying that they're doing so for the sake of their new home, so that might be why Frisk would be considered a lead."
"How sweet.~"
"...You just love doing that to me, don't you?"
"Will you attempt to stop me if I answer yes?" Chara couldn't come up with a rebuttal, which left him feeling defeated as Muffet smiles and sips more of her tea, then taking several her Spider Donut.
Verena smiles, warmly and a bit awkwardly, while lifting a Starfait. "You know what? I appreciate this, guys. Sure it isn't anything grand or exciting, but it's something enjoyable for all of us, and I'm totally fine with that. Plus, it reminds us of something rather important."
"What's that?" Asriel asked curiously.
"No matter how serious things get, it's nice to know that it's alright to kick back once in a while and act our age...to be kids."
No one answered to that, but the look in each of their eyes did show that they all agreed, even the mostly unknowing Monster Kid showed support for that. Much has happened, and much WILL happen whether they like it or not. And through a majority of it, situations required some of them to grow up much faster than others expect them to, especially since most of them have been dead and brought back, gaining a newer appreciation for life. It wasn't completely their fault-Asriel, Frisk, and Chara were still taking personal responsibility- it was the world at large that was giving them difficulties now, and that was definitely no easy obstacle to overcome.
And yet they wouldn't hesitate to do so anyway. They had to at least try.
Away from them, still within sight, Asgore and Toriel were watching the children from afar. Seeing them interact, smile and laugh with one another, simply being children, the world's problems oblivious to them for the time being...it caused the latter Dreemurr to sigh tiredly. The former took notice, turning towards her.
"Is there something the matter, Tori?"
"...Why can't things remain like this, Gorey? The children are simply enjoying their lives right now, being...children." She mumbled, leaning against Asgore. He wrapped his arms around her and began rubbing her shoulder to soothe her. "They should remain like this...not constantly fighting for their lives whenever trouble arises."
"I know, Tori. Believe me, I'm just as troubled by this as you are." Asgore says softly. "Unfortunately, the world we currently live in isn't giving them much choice in the matter. We can't keep them from participating, not with everything that's to come. And even if we could, they would simply find a way to act anyway. Better for it to be with our support than without it."
"I know...I know. But that doesn't mean that it will ever not trouble me..."
"Nor will it cease to trouble me. But at the very least, crisis like those make peaceful moments like this more meaningful. More desired and enjoyable. And thus, it pushes us to reach that calm as soon and as efficiently as possible."
Toriel pouted. "You always seem have to have an answer for these things."
"The irony being that I usually come to YOU for answers. You're the smart one."
"We each have our own version and degrees of sagacity, Asgore. And both are valuable. We strengthen each other and cover our weaknesses. I wish to appreciate that better."
"I realize you wish to try your hardest. I wish the same. And we shall prove that desire with action." With this, they lightly kiss each other on the muzzle, smiling when they pulled back. "But that comes a later day. Right now, we should witness our children enjoying their day."
"Agreed." Toriel nods as she turns back towards them, a paw on her cheek. "It's amazing how our children continue to grow stronger, wiser..."
"An aspiring ambassador like myself could have some dedicated and loyal bodyguards. Not that I can't defend myself, but it helps to have helpers. Better safe than sorry." Frisk began. "And there's a certain something that several female staff around me must be willing to wear when I request it of them, without question."
"And what's that, Dearie?~" Muffet smiled, already knowing what he would say, and was ready to laugh.
"...Tiny...mini-skirts." He said this with such a serious expression, it was difficult to tell if he was joking or not.
Asriel blinked, Chara groaned, Muffet laughed, and Red barked in embarrassed outrage. Monster Kid just looked confused, and the other children looked shocked/amused. Lunar, for one, tilted her head at the idea, then smirked. Tempest and Darkness simply facepalmed in exasperation at the future shenanigans.
Toriel could hear this from afar...then sighed quietly as her eyes squinted closed and she lightly pinched the bridge of her nose. "Gods...this child is going to exhaust us all..."
Later that afternoon, the boys special day was nearing it's end. As such, they'd be enjoying it for all it's worth. Asriel was leading the way with Chara and Frisk in tow, and their parents following close behind. While it took them quite a bit to figure out their second major activity of the day, they definitely knew what to do for their third and last major activity. It was one that a certain few wouldn't expect, but would accept anyway.
It took quite a bit of asking from Asriel and Frisk. Both of them were quite adamant about it, while Undyne was quite adamant that now wasn't the time. Though they eventually wore her down, and she succumbed to their begging, even though a bit of what followed made her slightly regret it.
"Well well, this is unexpected. You're letting us off the leash for today to celebrate the brats birthday. That's mighty kind of ya, Warden." Parvos smirked while stretching from side to side his tail swaying mischievously. Undyne was looking much less amused.
"You so much as breathe wrong on their birthday, I'll beat your ass into the concrete. Repeatedly." Undyne swiftly turned towards the Pack. "And you all have full authorization to engage in asskicking if he acts out."
"Aye, ma'am!"
"I don't think we have much to worry about...he seems too lazy to cause any trouble like that. Not on a day like this. I'd like to believe so." Alphys' says while adjusting her glasses, awkwardly smiling. "I mean, he's grossly outnumbered and outgunned. He's not an idiot...not a massive one, anyway."
"Now I'm getting burned by the fat, adorable technomage monster. How low I've fallen." Parvos mumbled sarcastically.
Alphys' pouted as she twiddled her paws. "...I'm not that fat...plus...you really think I'm adorable?"
"Yeah sure, why not. So adorable I could pinch your cheeks-"
THUNK!
A spear pins into the wall, mere centimeters away from his ear. He blinked owlishly as he turned towards the significantly less amused Undyne, who's arms were folded as her boot tapped the ground. He smiled a bit more nervously because if this.
"I was just kiddin' around. Having a bit of fun..."
"For the sake of your continued health, and my very loose restraint...I implore you stop talking...and to start walking away. Right now."
"Right. Gotcha Boss." Parvos snapped as he turned around and did as instructed.
Undyne huffed. She then turned towards Alphys with a pout. "...Dammit Alphys, you gotta be more careful. You're too adorable."
"U-Undyne!"
"I'm only being truthful."
"O-Oh dear..." Alphys' blushed intensely.
Chara sighed while scratching his head. "Well, this was a great idea."
"It totally was!" Frisk beamed, missing his sarcasm by a mile, either that or he ignored it completely. Again, it wasn't easy to tell.
Asriel laughed a bit nervously while rubbing his neck. It was a bit awkward for them all, really. Though, if it made sense, something was 'fun' about the awkwardness. It made it all the more amusing, even if they didn't mean for it to be. It's much better to be awkward together, he reasoned. While he was at it, he might as well check upon the rest of the monsters.
The first one being Shamir, he approached him first with a wave. "Hi Shamir it's been quite a while since we've talked. How are you feeling? Is everything alright?"
"Just fine. Once again, the hospitality you all show towards us, especially Undyne, is surprisingly warm. We don't feel too much like prisoners. Simply...guests."
"Not exactly the best term for it, but I don't exactly disagree." Will says while sitting back against a chair. "Aside from a very close watch on Parvos, Undyne's been treating us all as guests instead of prisoners, so long as we behave. We didn't have a problem with that, not at all."
"Certainly not. You've all shown us more consistent kindness in our short time together than many people ever have in years. That is rather significant." Dyra muttered while flipping through a book. "And you wish to know what I certainly didn't expect? This unexpected friendship over here." She gestures over to the side, where Dynamo was on his knees in front of Papyrus, still effortlessly towering over him. But his eyes seemed much gentler now, since the danger was now over. He was watching curiously as Papyrus was stirring something in a pot...his spaghetti.
From a distance, Sans was suddenly worried.
"So you aspire to be a respected and well-known hero of your own right. That's an acceptable goal, I suppose. My goals are fairly simple. I only want to keep my team, as well as my sister, safe." Dynamo says. "Growing up as we did, we didn't have the luxury to have grand dreams of success...the only success we were desperate to achieve was staying alive."
"IS THAT SO? WELL THEN, NOW YOU CAN ASPIRE TO BE SAFE, ALIVE, AND HAPPY. AND LET ME ASSURE YOU, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL HELP YOU KEEP ALL OF THOSE THINGS." Papyrus declared while stirring the spaghetti more, until he finished and lifted some with a scoop. "WOULD YOU LIKE SOME OF MY SPAGHETTI? ITS QUITE GREAT, MUCH LIKE MYSELF!" He lowered his head. "THOUGH I AM NOT BLIND TO THE FACT THAT NOT MANY AGREE..."
Dynamo tilted his head at the food before him. He leans in and lightly takes a bite out of the scoop of spaghetti. Papyrus pulls back, slightly nervous. Dynamo lifts his head a bit, lightly smacking his lips after swallowing. There was an anxious pause in the air. Once it ended...Dynamo smiled.
"This...this is..." Dynamo licked his lips and gazed at Papyrus, his own eyes shining a bit. "This is perhaps the best thing I've ever tasted...!"
"...wah?" Sans muttered, his eye sockets gone dark.
Papyrus seemed unable to comprehend this for a moment. But understanding quickly came through, and his expression beamed with delight and pride. "REALLY...?!" He swiftly turned towards Sans. "SANS! BROTHER! THERE'S SOMEONE WHO GENUINELY, FULLY LIKES MY SPAGHETTI!
"that's, uh...that's great, bro...really cool..." Sans muttered with two thumbs up. He then watched in deeper awe as Dynamo sits a bit more politely, as Papyrus proceeds to feed him even more scoopfuls of spaghetti, and was showing little signs of slowing down.
Even Frisk's usually neutral demeanor was broken, given way to shock. He remembered the times he'd usually try Papyrus's spaghetti. While it was no longer possibly lethal, that didn't make it any more easily edible. Yet Dynamo was just chomping a whole pot of it as if it were nothing.
He must have quite a strong stomach.
Asriel rubbed his neck, seeming rather surprised by the spectacle but nonetheless glad that Papyrus was creating a rather humourous yet happy friendship with the usually serious-minded Dynamo. Scythe was standing by with a toothpick in his mouth, watching his teammates with a small and peaceful smile. This must have been the first time they could truly relax with zero worries in a very long time. Of course they were going to savor it while they could. Enjoy the peace while it's here. Asriel could appreciate that. He really does.
He was briefly confused by how Dyra looked away from her book to warmly look towards Scythe, before she huffed and returned to reading, before she was approached by Alphys, who was anxiously twiddling her paws. Dyra raised an eyebrow. "Alphys, my rival. What do you wish to discuss?"
"Hi, Dyra. We're all having a great time here, and I was just wondering if we could share a few things together...such as...well..." Alphys mumbled a bit. She cleared her throat and looked Dyra in the eye with a shaky smile. "...do...do you like...anime...?"
Dyra raised an eyebrow, lowering her book in confusion. "...anime, you say...?"
"And thus another friendship is born." Chara said while observing from afar, yawning slightly while shaking his head. "This seems pretty amazing, how friendships are being formed so easily. Especially on our birthday."
"It's like we're indirectly creating bonds on our birthday...I'm kidding of course. It's great to know these bonds are forming after a lot of hardship." Frisk says while resting his hands behind his head. Everyone looks pretty happy with themselves don't they?'
"Yeah. Pretty happy indeed. Though how long that will last, and how well we'll be able to protect it... that's definitely up for very, very troublesome debate." Chara mumbled.
"Come now, Chara. Please don't be like that. Not today." Frisk pleaded with him, lightly placing a paw on his shoulder. "We'll worry about those things...but another day. For now, we should just keep on enjoying our special day...the day the three of us share despite our vast personal differences. We should be happy about that."
Asriel nodded, placing a hand on Chara's other shoulder. "Today is a new day, and there will be more days moving onwards. We keep moving forward, with the past holeing our lessons, the present holding our actions, and the future holding our hopes and dreams. This alright with you, Chara? Can you agree to those terms?"
Chara gazed at both brothers for a moment. Then he looked towards his arm...then his lack of one. He briefly sprouted a shadow from it, then held it up to his face. A claw of darkness. A claw of a demon. He has regarded himself as a demon for so long, and a deep part of him still couldn't let that go. Yet still...
He wondered which one would fit him better. A Fallen Angel, like Adam said? Or a Righteous Demon?
"...We'll see." That was his answer to that question, and his inner thoughts.
"Chaaaaarrrraaaaa-Deeeaarriiiee!~" Muffet changed, pouncing upon him with all of her arms wrapped him, nuzzling his cheek and surprising him. "Goodness, Dearie. Why must you be so pouty? Especially on your birthday. You've gotta smile much more than that. Honestly." Muffet rolled her eyes. "You really should smile a genuine smile more often. It looks cute on your brothers when they smile, so you'll look cute when you smile as well!~"
"Honestly. Would it seriously bother you so much to not look like such a downer?" Red rolled her eyes as she stood close to Asriel. "I think even I know how to loosen up significant better than you do. Which is really saying something."
Chara scoffed. "Yeah. What you're saying is definitely something. Hot air."
"What'd you say?!"
"Hoh? And here I think ugh your canine ears were actually working. Could have sworn you heard that."
"I'll seriously cut you up if you keep talking like that."
"You can make the attempt... there's not a high chance of that working out, though."
"Tch...you're a real cocky jerk when you wanna be...and that's really irritating." Red pouted. "Fine. You get to be cocky on your birthday...but you won't be able to get away with it any other day!"
"Sure I won't..."
"I'm being serious!"
"Yeah yeah."
"Grrrr..." Red muttered with an irritated puff of her cheeks. Chara had gotten some chocolate cake, taking a piece and preparing to eat it...he planned to, at least, until Red unceremoniously smacked his plate upwards, smashing the cake into his face. "Whatever! Eat your doggone cake and act jerkish! See if I care!"
"Oooh! Red, your Rude Baby side is showing again.~" Muffet cooed.
"Pffft...!" Frisk and Asriel snickered, as Chara looked absolutely dumbfounded, not knowing entirely what to do, only knowing that precious chocolate has been wasted on a rebellious action.
"...My chocolate..." He actually whimpered while muttering this.
"Alright everyone! It's finally ready!" Alvina declared with raised hands. Mettaton stood by her with side with his hands raised as well. Some wondered what this was about, until they began to hear loud crackles outside.
Fireworks.
Asriel, Chara, Frisk, and company would look outside to see the fireworks indeed going off. As usual, Mettaton felt the need to be extravagant for such a day. They were full of obvious...glamour. Glorious Glamorous Glamour. That's how Mettaton chooses to operate. That's the kind of person whom Napstablook and Shyren enjoy hanging out with. And surprisingly, well...not too much, the fireworks looked a lot like the Dreemurrs themselves. And also...many of their friends.
Many firework images of the Dreemurr Trio and the Royal Couple. Including a Lazing Sans, an Optimistic Papyrus, an Energetic Undyne, and a Genius Alphys. They were joined by a Greedy Muffet, a Showboating Mettaton, a Righteous Red, an Annoyed Flowey. And what returns, was a Teaching Toriel, an Amazing Asgore, a Fantastic Frisk, a Casual Chara, and an Advancing Asriel.
Many of their trials and tribulations up to now have been amazingly recorded via fireworks. Of course Mettaton would go through that much trouble to make things look this look amazing. Especially if they were fireworks. He worked a lot with those anyway, and he sure made it count, with great assistance and joy from Alvina.
Asriel, Chara, and Frisk looked around. Up to know, they've gained quite a lot of friends, and further strengthen the bonds with their families. And they remembered that there were plenty of threats out there that wished to destroy all of this to destroy what they've worked for, what they've gained, and what they've hoped to gain.
...There's no way they would allow that to happen. Not after all they've been through, and especially not what they still wished to accomplish.
It wasn't a question of Asgore or Toriel supporting them. Especially since they were standing right behind them, with their paws on their shoulders. Each of them have small, gentle kisses to their sons heads, smiling widely.
"Happy Birthday, Our Precious Sons."
The Dreemurr Trio each smiled pleasantly. Though Chara's was a bit more subdued, but genuine all the same.
...Yes...yes this is it. I'm definitely sure of it now. I know what I want to do. Especially if I wish to become the best Prince I can be...even more so if I wish to call myself a King one day.
Asriel thought as he looked around once again. Monsters and Humans getting along, goofing around, laughing at one another, with one another, and becoming closer than ever. Friends and family, several old enemies become new friends. Of course the latter is unable to always happen...but he would always look for the opportunities than do result in that. That's always the best course to take, even if it isn't always available.
Its really quite obvious. I guess deep down...I was scared. We all were, to a certain extent. Too scared to actually go out and see the world, outside of Ebott. The safest Haven we know of. It makes sense, I wasn't always the most adventurous person. I was fine where I was. But...we won't make any significant progress by standing still here. After some more preparation...quite a lot of it...we'll move onward and outwards. We've heard many differing opinions and experiences about the outside world. It's time we actually go out and see the world with our own eyes, find our own answers and draw our own conclusions. Inspire growth in our minds as well as our strength and power.
Asriel looked up towards his parents, then towards his adopted brothers. He nodded silently, gently caressing his Heart Locket.
Reaching out to form new bonds so we can further help each other when needed. To share experiences, knowledge, power, love...that's what I want for all of us, even if it does sound a bit far'fetched. It's possible, and that's enough for me. We have the Determination to reach it. To be able to protect everything and bring people together. To bring Humanity and Monsterkind together stronger and kinder than ever, one day...eventually, we'll get there. I believe in it.
Grumble...
Golly...I also believe my tummy is demanding more snacks. I can save these thoughts for another day...right now I'll just keep enjoying today. I made it to fifteen, after all. I never thought I would get the chance. It...feels nice.
The three brothers, their loving parents, and loyal friends would enjoy the rest of their birthday night in happiness, fully aware of the intense hardships ahead but saving the worry over them for another day. For now, they were happy, they were peaceful, and they were together.
That was enough for them.
Whew. Remember when I said that we would take a break from long chapters? Yeah...I was being sincere. But then my heart made a liar outta me and wanted to do this little storm of words to give the cast some happiness.
So, here ya go. Another birthday chapter for the Dreemurr Trio. Asriel and Frisk 15, Chara 16.
Alright for real, the next chapter should be shorter. And as for the above A/N...I was serious there as well. So I intend to update as much as I can before I proceed...IF I proceed with my career. I'm hoping so, at least. Again, it's private. Maybe if I later feel more comfortable, I'll share it with you all.
But for now, hope you're all having a good day(I'm posting this past midnight...)and staying determined! Until the next chapter!