Death month is over and I can finally breath a little 3 Well, once I secure my internship I can, but let's pretend it's not that big of a problem if it isn't the case. I need vacations... And a chauffeur, probably. One is planned, not the other.

Chapter XXXXIV

Listen to the tales of the river

'May I ask why you did it?'

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The question took him aback. It was not unlike the witch to ask questions, but she usually stuck to the ones whose answer she needed for her work. Yet, despite her words being so vague, Gaster knew this one was personal… And he feared what "it" meant.

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'Did what?'

'Take a human in your care,' she said without batting an eye.

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She was not making any assumption there, she could tell it was a fact. However, Gaster was not ready to be faced by the blatant truth in the middle of the night, especially when it came from someone living as a hermit in the depths of a forest most Monsters would not even dare approach. There was something quite funny to this predicament he was in, at least there was to the witch.

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'Oh don't give me that look,' she laughed, 'this old witch knows her craft well!' Her finger tapped on an edge of the mask Gaster was still holding. 'I can tell from the measurement you gave me this is meant for a Human boy.'

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Of course, she would be able to say so. She was not considered a master of her craft without reasons! There probably were subtle hints, a strangely distinctive feature such as a ratio finger to arm, which could only be attributed to a Human. Gaster should have been more careful, but how? There was no way to alter the measurement to make them more like the ones of a Monster. Then again, he had never come across anything about such measurement. Monsters came in all forms and shapes, surely it had seemed fair to assume there was nothing to worry about. But the witch knew, she was not lying.

Except she definitely was, although Gaster did not know it. Seeing his face decompose as soon as she said the word "Human" was simply far too amusing to miss the opportunity to mess with him. While she genuinely wanted an answer, twisting the knife some more did not cost anything. Besides, he was the one who had decided to show up on her doorstep in the middle of the night! Because she knew he was coming did not mean she appreciated it!

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'Why would a monster even need to look like another type of monster?' she added as she drew her finger across the porcelain mask.

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Gaster was keeping his eyes — or lack thereof — on the mask, avoiding hers… The frown on his face betrayed his worries, and the witch decided pushing a sleep deprived scientist might have unexpected consequences she was not willing to face. His ideas were already controversial enough without her risking giving him more. She liked to exist, and she would like it to remain this way. If the boy and his son kept him from messing up with timelines, it was better not to make him worry about the safety of any of them.

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'Ah! Quit frowning!' She hoped he would not notice the way her nails scratched the table. 'I wouldn't tell anyone even if someone showed up here just to ask! Not that anyone would! So… What has gotten into you, Royal scientist?' She paused and stared at him. 'Friend of Asgore?'

'It's a complicated matter,' Gaster said, hoping the witch would change the subject.

'Is it? Your king wouldn't approve.'

'You wouldn't understand. There is much more to it than meets the eyes.' His grip on the mask became tighter as he stood up, ready to leave. 'What do you want in exchange?'

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The witch did not budge. The conversation was over, there was no use insisting anymore. Gaster was not ready to face his own decisions, and she was starting to think he did not really know where he was going anymore. His goals could not justify his actions no more — he needed goals to explain them. He was walking blind toward more darkness, and he would not admit that, for once, he would have liked to stop and sit in the darkness.

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'I am a master of the illusion art, "more than meet the eyes" is my line of work.' She offered Gaster a smile, eyes slightly squeezing. 'Make good use of this mask, Doctor Gaster, this will be your payment.'

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She knew Gaster would not give her an answer — he was not sure of it himself. However, she did not need one. She knew.

She always knew.

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The river always sang the tales of the Underground.

And she was always listening.

She had been listening for centuries.

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As the door of the mill shut, the witch reached for her cheek. Her nails hooked up to an invisible edge under which she slipped her fingers, taking off her own mask. A smile on her face, she went back to her workshop to hang the mask on the wall. It would stay there as long as it was not needed, between her tools and another mask — a simple one, devoid of any features but of the blackest black she could produce.

She took this black mask and exited the workshop.

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oOo

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'Tra la la. An apple a day keeps the doctor away. Are doctors afraid of apples? Who knows? Tra la la.'

I don't know how summer will be, so I can't be sure the chapters will be updated in time (as if they actually are anyway XD) since I still don't know anything about my internship (except that me passing depends entirely on it right now, and that's not good).

Also I love the backstory of the witch. It won't be used in LT, but I love it anyway. I like knowing useless things.

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See ya!