"Asgore… what're we going to do?" Asked a woman, her voice laced with worry.
"I don't know, Toriel… We're going to need help on this one." Answered a man, Asgore, voice deep and authoritative.
"But who? There's nobody here who could possibly be familiar with… with a…" Toriel was unable to voice her full concern.
"There's someone who I can trust my life with… maybe… we can at least get things… situated."
The Holiday house, on a typical night, would be silent. With the matriarch of the family often working well into the night, and two young daughters usually fast asleep after a day's worth of activities, silence would often be expected. One could feel at peace in the ambiance, and sleep peacefully.
This was no ordinary night.
"Honey! Not there!". Called out the reindeer man known as Rudolph "Rudy" Holiday. "C'mere!"
Reaching downwards towards a young reindeer girl, Rudy grabbed the girl and lifted her up and sat her on his shoulders. The girl was holding an end of a wire that held a series of multi-color lights, the lights ranging from red and green to blue and purple. After retrieving the lost girl, Rudy walked towards a doorway.
"The lights are supposed to go over the door, Noelle, not through it." Rudy said. "Up ya go!"
After being suddenly lifted a little higher, Noelle let out a small giggle of excitement. She had never been so tall before! Looking around the room with her tiny head, she was able to gain a new perspective on life. Everything seemed so… small. Was this what it was like for adults, who are always so tall? Or for the angels, who can fly so high into the sky?
Noelle will have to wait for an answer to that. Right now, her dad needed her for an important mission. The lights! Focusing her attention forward, she gripped the lights with her tiny hands as she leaned towards the door frame. Carefully, she extended her arms outward. Carefully… careful… and… Done!
Noelle had successfully completed her mission: Sticking the lights onto the wall above the door frame.
"There ya go, sweetheart! Way to spruce the place up!" Praising his daughter, Rudy lowered Noelle back onto his shoulders. Without a moment's hesitation, Rudy started prancing around the room. Adding a slight bounce in his step, Rudy started to hum Christmas melodies.
It was the Holidays, after all.
Noelle, even though she was holding onto her father's arms as he held her up in an attempt to keep herself balanced, couldn't resist laughing as the pair circled around the room. The easily frightened doe knew better than to distrust her father. She knew that as long as he was here, she was safe. With that in mind, she didn't any problem moving so fast at such a high height.
The two reindeer laughed together, and hummed melodies together. Noelle tried her best, but she still wasn't very familiar with the songs her father was humming so she had to follow behind Rudy's rhythmic pace.
Without warning, a telephone started to ring, putting an end to the festivities. Setting Noelle down, Rudy walked towards the nearby phone to answer.
"Hello, Rudy here."
"…"
Rudy's eyes lit up. "If it isn't my main man! Asgore, it's a bit late but if you and the missus wanted to-"
Whatever was said on the other end of the call, Noelle didn't know. But what she did know was that it got her father's attention, and that made her a bit nervous. After a couple minutes, Rudy had hung up the phone and went towards the front door.
"D-dad?" Noelle called out. "W-where are you going? Its dark!"
Rudy sighed and grabbed his jacket to put on. "Just gonna stop by the lake real quick, won't be long. I promise. Uncle Asgore just asked if I swung by over there to see him for a minute."
Noelle looked down to the floor, her eyes betraying the fear that's welling up inside her. "C-can I go? There's nobody else here…"
Rudy contemplated for a minute. He knew that whatever it was that Asgore wanted to show him, he knew that it was a secret that needed to be kept. On the other hoof, he didn't want to leave his youngest daughter alone.
"Alright, alright. You can come." Rudy said, and then added, "But you gotta solve this riddle first: What's the difference between the Christmas alphabet and the normal alphabet?"
For a moment there was silence as Noelle thought over the question. She scratched at her hands, clearly trying her hardest to answer the riddle. Before long, she eventually shook her head in defeat.
A smirk was born on Rudy's face. "The Christmas alphabet has no 'L'."
Immediately, Noelle looked up at her father's smug face, her own blushing red in embarrassment. A moment passed, and a smile slowly wormed its way onto her face as well.
"How rude-olph you!"
"Haha! That's my girl!" Patting Noelle on head, Rudy said, "Now go and grab a coat. It's a bit chilly out there."
The sounds of the lake were peaceful. The crickets chirping, the wind gently blowing through the trees. Nobody was around. It made the area feel almost isolated, as if the world was yours for the night. It would've made for a relaxing walk, had it been an ordinary night.
Rudy and Noelle made their way until they were standing beside the lake. Noelle, clinging to her father's side, nervously scanned the area. Unsure of if there were any threats nearby, she made for a perfect unnecessary lookout.
Not too long after they had arrived, another pair showed up. The two reindeer turned to meet the new arrivals, who happened to be their neighbors: Toriel and Asgore Dreemur. The goat pair looked nervous, frightened even. Asgore stepped forward, slightly covering his wife.
"Rudy… Noelle…" Asgore greeted. "Its good to see you two. T-there's been a bit of a… how should I say it? … A situation. Yes, there's been a situation that we need help with."
Rudy raised one eyebrow. "Yeah, you weren't exactly detailed in your call. So, what gives?"
"W-well… you s-see…" Asgore's eyes drifted from Rudy down to Noelle, and then back to Rudy. "A situation has occurred…"
"That's enough, Asgore." Came a firm command. Toriel stepped forward, still slightly behind her husband. "Rudy, we found something in the forest. Its… They're…" Toriel struggled to find the words to explain the situation. Sighing, she stepped to the side of Asgore, revealing what was behind him.
Or who, actually. What was behind Asgore was actually a child, whose hand was holding onto Toriel's tightly. Their eyes were hidden behind their hair, which was also messy and unkempt. The clothing the child had on was ragged, with rips and tears showing their bare skin. Most of all, though…
"I-is that a human?!" Rudy couldn't hold in his shock, causing Noelle to tighten her grip in fear. "A human child? Where… how did…"
The idea that a human child suddenly appearing in a town full of monsters was preposterous. When was the last time a human was even spotted here? If there was a child here, where were their parents?
Questions buzzed around Rudy's head. Of how to handle this, of who should know, if any should know. How long will the child stay, will the child's parents appear?
Looking at the child, they seemed… emotionless. Their face betrayed nothing. Certainly not a face one would want to play against in a game of poker, anyway. Yet, seeing their hand gripping to Toriel's reminded Rudy of his own clinging daughter, who was terrified in her own right.
This discussion would definitely not be suitable for children.
Smiling to the child, Rudy said, "Well, there's no need to be scared. See this one?" Rudy pointed to his daughter. "She's as scared of you as you are of her. What better way to make a friend than being scared together?" Rudy winked at the child, forcing a smile.
Asgore and Toriel looked to each other in surprise and looked down to the child. Looking back at Rudy, Toriel said, "Rudy, I don't think now's the time to…" Toriel's voice trailed off, noticing that the child's grip in her hand at weakened.
They wanted to make a friend.
Toriel acquiesced in the child's favor, letting them go. The child took a couple steps towards the reindeer pair, their eyes never leaving them. They stopped midway, respecting their boundary.
Rudy put his hands on Noelle's shoulders. "Now, Noelle, I know it's hard, but I have to ask you to play with that kid over there." Rudy pointed towards the human. "Keep'em company while your old man has a chitchat with his friends, okay?"
Noelle only stared at the child, unsure of what to do. She knew her father would never put her in danger, but still… that child looked… creepy. She looked up at her father, and he addressed her concern.
"It won't be long, I promise." Rudy said. "Just stand by the lake for a few minutes while the adults talk. Don't worry, I'll be watching you the whole time." He flashed her a smile as well.
Noelle gave him a small smile too, confident in her father. Reluctantly, she let go of her grip on Rudy and slowly walked towards the human. The human stared her down as she made her way, unmoving. Once Noelle reached them, before she could say anything, the human turned and walked closer to the lake. She followed behind them.
Staring at the lake was peaceful. It allowed Noelle a moment to find herself and collect her thoughts. Despite being as young as she is, being the mayor's daughter certainly forced her to behave a little more maturely than her peers. As such, she was expected to be sociable.
"S-so…" Noelle stuttered. "Y-you're a human, r-right?"
The child just continued looking out beyond the lake. The question remained unanswered.
"… r-right." Noelle said, sad that she was ignored. She turned towards the lake and said, "I'm a d-deer. Dad likes to say I freeze in l-lights b-but…" She didn't really know what she was saying. All she knew was that there was a creepy human child next to her and she had nothing to talk about.
"U-um…" She looked back to the human. "My n-name's Noelle. W-what's your name?"
The human shrugged in response. They didn't know.
"O-oh…" Noelle said, dejected. "Your parents d-didn't name you?"
The human tilted their head in confusion, before shaking it. Not only did they not know their own name, the concept of "parent" seemed alien to them. Did they not have…?
"W-well, how about I-I give you a name?" Noelle offered. Her boldness did not go unnoticed by the human, who had turned to her in response. Noelle shrunk at the human's gaze, feeling their eyes bore into her even though they remained hidden.
After a moment, they shrugged, and then nodded in confirmation. They didn't mind having a name.
"R-right!" Noelle forced out. A name… a name for a human kid… What kind of names do humans use, anyway? Noelle wasn't sure. To be honest, she wasn't sure what a "human" was anyway.
Before Noelle could come up with a name, the human pointed at her tiny antlers and then pointed at their head. Did they want to know if they'll also grow antlers?
"U-um… maybe!" Noelle said. "I don't know a lot about humans b-but… I don't see why you couldn't grow antlers! Or horns!"
The human nodded at that, satisfied with the answer. Did they think her tiny antlers were cool, then? Nobody else really paid them much attention as she's had them for practically all of her short life. It sure was nice to be complimented though.
Suddenly, the human placed both of their hands on both sides of their head, blocking their ears. Their index fingers pointed upwards, they started to stomp on the ground. Giving off tiny roars, they circled around Noelle as they acted out as a monster.
Noelle laughed at the scene the human had started and decided to join them. She also started roaring, the same way Asgore would when he hits his foot at the corner of a table. The two circled around each other for a few minutes, before they ended up sitting on the ground laughing.
Once the laughter died down, Noelle remembered her newest mission. A name… a name for a human. Her parents were always good with names. All of the Holidays were named something Christmas related, without fail. It was a nice motif… wait. Christmas. Chris-mas.
"I got it!" Noelle shouted in excitement, surprising the human next to her. Turning her new friend, Noelle continued, "I think I have the perfect name for you!"
The human sat and listened with rapt attention, focused on Noelle.
"What do you think about "Kris"?" Noelle asked. "K-R-I-S!"
The human looked down at the ground for a moment, pondering the name. After a moment, a smile appeared on their face and they nodded, content with the name their new friend gave them. Noelle smiled in return, happy that her suggestion was taken with gratitude.
Yes, this was definitely the start of a wonderful friendship.