A/N: There are two interconnected timelines in my story! The context clues to figure it out in the text are there, but to make sure no one gets lost, I'm going to start labeling what timeline each section of my story takes place in. Hopefully that will make things easier.


Beta Timeline
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
The Ruins
The Underground

It was an orange day. Like every day was now. When I woke up this morning, it reminded me of the disaster movies Chara, Dad and I used to watch. Mom says it's because of the fires from the south. But today is really bad; the air hurts my throat and it's hard to breathe. I don't like it.

But this day has to be the day. I had to tell myself that I would find you.

Chara, I was so worried about you. I know you hated it here. At the lake. When you ran away, me and dad were really sad. We both cried for a long time. But, when that monster brought your body back here, we were both so shocked. Monsters were really real! At first, I was scared that the monster had hurt you, and now it had come to hurt us all. Mom said so too. But right before she attacked the monster, it smiled back at me. That was you, wasn't it Chara? I don't know how I know, but I know that the monster had to be you. I could feel you trying to tell us that things were going to be okay. It was sad to see you go, but it made me so happy to know my wonderful sibling was out there somewhere.

So, me and dad decided to save you. That morning, dad took me up the mountain. It was dark and scary but I promised not to be scared! Dad told me to use my magic if I had to. Halfway up Mt. Ebott, he told me to keep going and to find you. He told me that he couldn't come with us, but that he would always be protecting me no matter what. He said that he would join us later, and that we could live in the underground together. So no matter what, I had to keep going.

I felt like I wanted to cry. But then, I remembered you, Chara. I remember how you used to sing to me. You used to always hold my hand and tell me it was all going to be okay. When I was stuck on my homework, you would help me. You would always dress up with me, even though you hated dresses and hated makeup. And you always protected me Chara. If you were here, you would believe in me no matter what.

So I did like we practiced. I climbed the mountain all by myself. And I breathed slowly too. I used my magic to keep myself calm. And then I reached the hole. It was so dark and deep. And so scary. I didn't want to do it at first. But Chara, you fell down that hole too, didn't you? if you could do it, I could do it too.

I jumped. I thought I was going to fall for a long time. I thought it was going to make a loud sound when I finally hit the ground. But it all happened so quickly. I closed my eyes, and when I opened them again, I was on the ground. I can't describe how painful it felt. Everything hurt so bad. And when I looked around, there wasn't anything around me. I thought I had failed. I thought I was never going to be able to see you again. It wasn't fair. I could feel myself beginning to get mad and cry. And the madder I got, the more things hurt. I thought I was going to be stuck there forever. But then I remembered the lullaby grandma used to sing to us. I couldn't talk, but I tried to breathe and say the words in my head.

Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high

Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry.

I sang the lullaby again and again. It took a long time. I don't know how much time passed. But eventually, the pain went away. I was really tired though. I was trying my best but it was really hard to breathe. And when I tried to move, I couldn't. Nothing worked. I tried to crawl, but my legs wouldn't move. I tried to scoot but I couldn't roll over. The only thing I could do was pull myself ahead with my arms. After what felt like hours, I finally reached a tunnel that led into the dark. But I wasn't alone! A group of frog-shaped monsters and their friends had been watching me! As fast as I could (which wasn't fast at all) I reached for the toy knife that I had put in my pocket before I left home. But I couldn't do anything. The last thing I saw after that is seeing little fireflies and then seeing a giant monster before everything all going dark.

My final memory was a pair of soft arms carrying me away. Were those your's Chara? Were you protecting me from far away? I don't know why, but that thought made me feel good before everything went away.

Oh Chara. I miss you so much. Are you really out there somewhere? Will I ever be able to see you again?


Beta Timeline
Snowdin
The Underground
Friday, May 3, 2120, 10:19 AM

Before Toriel or Asgore had a chance to stop him, Asriel took off towards the light at the end of the long hallway, dragging Chara in tow. Chara initially resisted, digging their heels into the hard ground as best as they could, before turning around with a worried look to seek approval from Toriel. Toriel opened her mouth to protest, but then offered Chara her sincerest smile before waving at them both. With that small morsel of confirmation, Chara gave in and weakly resisted Asriel as they took in the cold air from the outside.

Recharged by a night's rest in the Ruins, Asriel looked as energetic as ever. "Chara! Look! It's Snowdin! It's really Snowdin again, can you believe it!?"

Chara blushed as they stumbled forward and tried to keep up with the goat monster's pace. "Y-yeah Asriel, it's really amazing, but could you slow down a bit please? We're going to t-"

No sooner than Chara's utterance of the "T" did Asriel lose his footing and go tumbling into the snow, pulling Chara along with him as they both slid across the frosted ground towards the base of a nearby tree. Upon slowing down, Asriel cackled and embraced Chara in a tight warm hug, overjoyed at being able to experience the miniature things in life they so desperately missed. Chara wiggled in discomfort at being embraced so suddenly, but eventually gave in as they felt Asriel's white fur rub up against them. The only word they could think of to describe their situation was disorienting; what exactly had happened to them after all this time? The anxiety made them want to push their way out of Asriel's arms, but here, covered in snow in the vast forests of Snowdin being held by their absolute best friend in the world wasn't awful either. They chuckled lightly at first, building up to a true, heartfelt laugh that quickly faded away as Toriel came rushing forward off the path to check on them both.

Toriel's facial expression looked as if her children had seriously hurt themselves. She scuttled over the tree where the two lay and brought them to their feet, dusting them clean of snow with her glove-covered paw. "Asriel! You must be careful! Especially outside. The recent earthquake has made many formerly dry surfaces very slippery! I do not want you to get hurt."

"Mom, it's okay!" Asriel beamed. "The snow in Snowdin is super soft and fluffy! There's no way we could get hurt really bad here."

"Asriel, that's not the point! What if something bad had happened to you now! What if you…you…" Toriel stopped talking mid-scolding when the tears in her eyes and the redness in her face made it too hard for her to think clearly. Rubbing her eyes, she was just about turn around to compose herself when a shy-looking Chara stepped forward and grabbed her free paw.

"We're sorry, Mom. I promise Asriel and me will be more careful. So please, don't cry anymore."

Listening to Chara's soft pleas just made Toriel want to cry more. She kneeled down and brought her two children into a hard embrace as Asgore finally caught up to them from behind. "My children, do not worry about me. Your mother just has a lot of care for you both left in her old heart." She let the two of them go and showed them both a large, reassuring smile. "I will be okay. I promise. But Asriel, no more running, okay?"

"Okay! Thanks, mom!" The goat child smiled in affirmation and led Chara by the hand back towards the forest path. This time endeavoring to keep a close eye on them, Toriel picked herself up and trailed behind them at a car's length while Asgore continued to march by her side. She did her best to fight back tears as the four of them continued towards Snowdin Town, where they would, hopefully, find the answers they're looking for.

"So, are we accepting this now? That…our children have returned to us?" Asgore said, turning his head only so slightly to Toriel's side to make sure he avoided any more of her scorn. The time they've spent in the Underground together is the most time they've had alone together since the barrier broke. Asgore's expression was marked with a cautious optimism to try and make up for the fact that Toriel continued to agonize for answers in her head. She furrowed her eyebrows and stared off to the side for a long while before picking her words carefully.

"To tell you the truth, I am not exactly sure what to make of this." She paused for a moment, hesitating, before deciding to swallow her discomfort and face Asgore directly as she walked. "Do you remember how it felt when Asriel was alive? When…when you could feel your life force, your magic, moving from your body to his?"

Asgore blushed deeply. "I….I, well, that is to say…"

Toriel's face narrowed at any implication of intimacy from him, as if to say "you lousy perv," but before she had a chance to speak, both goat monsters were startled by the scream of their human child ahead of them. Chara had mistakenly taken a step on to a patch of ice, and soon found themselves sliding down the icy path ahead.

Toriel and Asgore both yelled "Chara!" but before they could reach the ice, Asriel had already taken to the slick. He declared "Don't worry Chara! I, the Legendary Monster Asriel, will step in to—whoa, AAHHHH!"

Too busy showboating to establish his footing, Asriel immediatedly begin to slip after attempting to strike a pose on the ice. It really is unfortunate, because not only was he not running just like his mother told him not to, Chara, who had just managed to successfully keep themselves from wobbling over on the ice, now had to contend with their goat brother speeding right towards. "Ahhh! Asriel, you idiot! Wait, stop, you're gonna run into me!" Chara tried to pivot to catch his brother, but trying to save Asriel only put them in more danger. They both collided with each other and began to tumble, mentally preparing once again to have a faceful of snow, before Asgore did his best Olympic sprinter impression and rushed forward to catch them both. Asgore skidded to a stop right before the ravine ahead of them, unbeknownst to his children, and then gripped both of them tightly in their arms as they laughed and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Asriel blushed deeply. "Dad! You stole my thunder! I was *totally* going to be the one to save Chara! You would have seen."

"Yeah right!" Chara yelled, playfully elbowing their brother in the arm. As embarrassed as Asriel was, it felt good to see that softer side of Chara again. "You knocked me down again! And who knows where we'd be if D-dad didn't stop and save us! Ugh, Asriel!"

"I-I'm sorry Chara! But we've been asleep for one hundred years! Of course there's going to be some slip-ups every now then! But!" Asriel interjected, once again putting on a confident face. "It's all work on the path to becoming the Absolute God of Hyperdeath!"

Chara groaned. "Not this again…"

"Children, settle down now!" Asgore said, wrangling his squirming children back to the ice. "I know you are both having a lot of fun, but you absolutely need to be more careful now. A lot has changed since the time we have all been here together. And you would not want to upset your mother, would you?" Asgore and the children turned to look at an exasperated Toriel, who, instead of choosing to join the scolding, simply brushed the excess snow off their backs.

Doing the best to hide the exhaustion in her voice, Toriel strained a smile and said "You heard Asgore. Come now, hold my hand as we cross this bridge. We are almost to Snowdin, and I'm certain we can rest there."

Both of the children looked as if they were ready to protest, but Toriel read their faces and quickly squashed any intention of that by letting her true emotions show, just for a second. Begrudgingly and thoroughly spooked by their parental figure, they sang "Yes, mom!" in unison before accompanying Toriel across the bridge.

The family then turned to head down the slope towards Snowdin Town, but just a few paces away in the now-disused guard booth, two rabbits, one monster sized and the other extremely tiny, sat propped in a chair with a book in front of them on the desk. When the larger rabbit heard the Dreemurrs pass, she hopped up and swiftly packed her belongings before picking up and safely stowing away her younger brother. She delightfully smiled while bringing her paws together at the sight of the family. "Well Cinnamon, it looks like they finally made it out! I should let Ms. Sirius know!" And before Toriel or anyone else could look back and see if they really weren't imagining someone's presence, the two had already left, hopping off the cliff and around the trees to reach Snowdin Town before the Dreemurr family could. For now, all of them are none the wiser.

The rest of the walk was, relatively, uneventful. Not wanting to broach uncomfortable topics, the Dreemurrs abstained from asking their children about the circumstances leading to their deaths or about how they ended up in the Ruins, two very burning questions at the front of their minds that just simply could not be solved, no matter how much they thought about it. The family had spent the past twelve hours together, inseparable from bedtime to breakfast time, so the lack of privacy had made discussing sensitive topics difficult. Likewise, the children sometimes found time to glance at themselves over Toriel and Asgore's increased distance between each other, as well as to mutter about the fact that one hundred years had passed and it was unclear if their plan had succeeded at all. But, with no freedom to be themselves without the presence of their parents, awkward stares during periods of often tense silence were so far the best they could manage. With no one ready for hard conversation and everyone eager to enjoy what felt like a brief, fleeting moment of joy for a family wracked by calamity, the four laughed and joked their way past all of Papyrus' deactivated traps and the oddities of Snowdin before finding themselves greeted by the sign on the summit that welcomed them to Snowdin Town.

Not even seconds before their arrival, Snowdin Town had been loud and brimming with life. Asgore immediatedly recognized some of the monsters who had lived there when the barrier fell: Ice Wolf was there, showing a group of monsters Asgore did not recognize how the new automated ice system works. And the orange tracksuit-wearing Politics Bear, who decided to stay behind and become the part-time mayor of all the territory below the CORE, looked overwhelmed as a crowd of monsters stood around him and peppered him with questions about all sorts of things. But besides those two, what couldn't have been a town of more than one hundred monsters or so was suddenly overflowing with at least double. Monsters of all kinds Asgore didn't know and Toriel had never seen hung out of windows, peeked out of makeshift tents, and made the entire town feel as if new life had been breathed into it. This made the town's sudden shift to total silence all the more shocking to the royal family when they appeared just beyond the welcome sign.

Toriel and Asgore looked at each other, confused, before looking down to their kids, who had nervously backed up to be closer to their parents. Asriel looked as if he wanted to fold up in anxiety, and had even began to inch behind Asgore, before Chara grabbed their hand with their best determined face and began to take slow, but confident steps forward. The parents followed, and as they walked through town, the murmurs of the other monsters filtered through their ears.

"Who…who are those children? One of them can't be the prince, right?"

"I mean, it's possible. If you're back, then that means the others could be too, right…?"

"So the time machine's affected everyone? Even the Queen and King are back together!"

"I don't think so. The queen doesn't look very happy at all. What could have happened?"

"Wait! I'm lost! Who's the queen? I didn't know the queen was still around! I thought she disappeared, but now she's back?"

"Didn't you hear Bear's speech earlier? Everyone's gone, the barrier's been broken."

"Really? Then why are we here…?"

The four of them continued to step forward through town as a crowd of onlookers slowly gathered around them. Even as they marched into the area that was thickest with monsters, the groups parted and gave way as the family passed. It was hard to pinpoint the energy in the air. Many of the monsters tried to be as reverent as possible, bowing or at least nodding as the family passed, while some of the others expressed shock at Asriel and Chara's return or the Queen's emergence from hiding. But the vast majority of monsters simply looked puzzled, and Politics Bear, whose face had gone from worry to shock to major relief all in the span of a minute, scurried over to the family to thank them from saving his hide from the hordes of confused onlookers.

"Oh golly, thank goodness you're here! King Asgore, Lady Toriel, we have absolutely no idea what's going on here! Just yesterday Snowdin was its usual empty self, but after that giant earthquake, monsters just started to appear everywhere! We could handle a few but this many-"

"I seem to understand, Mr. Bear!" Asgore said, holding up a hand and hoping a smile would ease the bewildered bear's mind. "Lady Toriel and me have traveled the underground and seen the elevated levels of monsters everywhere. I assure you that Snowdin is not unique, and that we're working on figuring it out as soon as we can."

Politics Bear's shoulders dropped as he exhaled. "That's good to hear! I'm so happy you're here, your highness. I don't know how much more of this I could have taken, especially without an explanation."

Asriel, still holding Chara's hand, looked around at the village onlookers and then, frowning, back to his father. "Yeah Dad, who could have done this? This couldn't have happened on it's own, right?"

Toriel didn't waste any time. Cupping her hands around her mouth, she yelled to the crowd. "Come now. Is there anyone in this crowd who may have an idea about what caused this to happen? No matter how unsure you are, please, step forward!"

Hushed conversation among the townsfolk followed. While it appeared that a handful had some credible theories, no one had the confidence required to walk up and tell the queen personally. A full minute of anxious hand-wringing had passed, and Toriel was about to tell Politics Bear to give up on any answers until, in an almost theatrical manner, a dog monster and an eccentric-looking bunch of four different kinds of monsters began to approach the queen from the anonymity of the crowd. The dog monster, a stunning but disinterested-looking woman with poofy black hair to her hip and jet black fur, stopped in front of the royal party first, while the other four fell in line next to her. The monster on the farthest left appeared to be a rabbit girl walking…another smaller rabbit? She had a warm, genuine smile on her face that seemed to betray the chaotic nature of the town, and her brightly patterned knit-green sweater contrasted sharply with the simple black dress and white lab coat the dog monster was wearing.

The second monster from the left was one no one recognized. It was a round, slimy fairy who hovered slightly off the ground, the pitter of her translucent, glassy wings standing out against the murmur of the crowd. She wore a millennial pink dress with a pleated skirt and a ribbon tied around her waist over a pastel blue blouse. Compared to the lazily dressed dog next to her, she glittered with an absolute beauty that was almost comical, and the sparkle of her eyes made the dog monster seem even more aloof and out of place than she already was. More than anyone else in the group, she looked very happy to be here.

The two on the dog's right were people that Toriel did recognize. One of them was Fuku Flame, yes, that Fuku Flame, dressed with a lab coat over the winter sweater Toriel had seen her in yesterday. She looked off to the side with her hands folded in front of her, fidgeted in place as the green flames shooting from her head flickered softly in the cold. Her pensive demeanor was not lost on her friend, a girl Toriel knew as Samantha but others called Skateboard Girl, who stuck out slightly past Fuku Flame in a subconscious effort to protect her. Not looking happy nor displeased, she cautiously investigated the royal family from a distance as she tried to adjust the lose-fitting lab coat over her shirt and jeans.

Individually, any one of these five monsters stood to be genuine characters in their own right. But together, they were an eccentric force to be reckoned with, and not even Toriel, pent up with silliness over the years through her relationship with Sans, was ready for what stood in front of her.

Sensing his ex-wife's bewilderment, Asgore composed himself and became the first to step forward. His voice was wracked with hesitation, but he tried to sound as kingly as possible as he spoke. "*ahem*, Howdy, fellow citizens!"

Asriel tried his best to suppress a laugh while Chara nodded. Not one to let the pressure get to him, Asgore continued. "Weird day, is it not? It seems as if the spirits of the departed walk among us, and yet, we have no idea how this might have come to pass. Have you anything to say about this situation?

The black dog's floppy ears on the top of her head twitched, and she seemed to snap out of a trance before widening her eyes in shock at the King's presence (like he hadn't been here the entire time). Pulling up the strap of the dress that had so far been lazily hanging off her shoulders, she bowed with her left arm to her chest. When she righted herself, she smiled at the party with a warmth almost too unbecoming of her statue. Chara has been familiar with the "emo" style that had been popular when they were initially alive. But more than her large poofy black hair covering one of her eyes, the skeleton hand necklace with a hole in the center that hung from her neck proved to be too much for their liking. They shrunk back further behind Toriel, almost lined up with Asriel, as the dog began to speak. Her smooth, mature voice contrasted sharply with her current demeanor.

"Your Majesty! It is a wonder to have you grace Snowdin with your presence once more! It has been a long time, but it warms my heart to be able to see you again." The dog softened their smile a bit and held out a pin with the royal seal on top of a diagram of an atom on it. Both Toriel and Asgore's jaw dropped at the sight. "I can tell that you don't remember me, and that's fine. I mean, it has been 73 years and all. I'm just happy that I can be in service to the crown once more."

"Seven…seventy-three years!?" Toriel said, her brow still raised in amazement. "You mean to say that all this time, there was a boss monster like you living in the Underground?"

"But that is…that is not possible." Asgore said, his eyes shimmering has he took his paw to his forehead. "This pin…this pin was issued to the royal science team over 100 years ago, when Asriel was barely a toddler. To have it now must mean that you had to have been there then, but..., my memory…"

"Umm…" Asriel said, slightly stepping out from behind Toriel to address the dog. As he did, his paw instinctually went for Toriel's, who quickly took it in her grasp. "It's been a long time, so I can't say for certain. But I do remember there being a dog scientist long ago…"

"As do I." Toriel said, some of the confusion leaving her face behind as clarity began to return to her. "If that's the case, then that would make you…Lady Sirius? You were…an assistant?"

Sirius clapped their hands together in affirmation. "Correct, my Lady. It is as you and the young prince say. I am Sirius Majoris, former Assistant to the Chief Royal Scientist. My father served in the Great War with you, your majesty. Seventy-Three years ago, I was…scattered throughout time when one of our experiments went very wrong. Do you remember the volcanic explosion?"

Asgore nodded. "I do. We lost a lot of people that day, including the previous royal scientist. Were you present for that accident? You will have to forgive me, I can't remember exactly who was all there at the time. But it is good news to know that a survivor from that time still exists."

"Yes, I…" Sirius paused, looking away at nothing in particular. Their smile had faded from their face when they found the courage to face Asgore again. "I was lost for a long time, until very recently. When I awoke, I found the underground empty and feared the worst. However, that's when I was able to enlist the help of these four, and to come up with a way to save the rest of my crew." Sirius bowed and held out her hands as if to motion to the rest of her team. Her loose-fitting dress showed a little too much of her well-endowed cleavage for Toriel's comfort, especially around the children, but she held back her protests for pleasantries' sake.

The slime fairy went first, floating ahead and saluting the royal family. Her earnest and bubbly energy could be felt by them almost instantly. Her eyes sparkled as she spoke. "Good day, your majesties! It's always a pleasure to see you both again! M-my name is Urania and I love science! I was killed in the eruption as well, but Lady Sirius was able to bring me back to life! I am in her debt and happy to serve the crown however I can!"

The lapine girl went next, along with her bunny brother. She stepped forward softly, almost as if to not hurt the snow as she walked, and carefully bowed and saluted the royal family. Her smile was soft and motherly, in stark comparison to the earnestness and superficiality of her partners. "Your Majesty, and Lady Toriel, it's a pleasure to see you once more. My name is Mina, and I've been a lifelong resident of Snowdin. Please don't hesitate to contact need if you need anything during your stay. And this is my brother, Cinnamon. Say hello, Cinnamon." Mina motioned towards her small brother, who didn't say anything because, of course, bunnies can't talk. But Mina held the silence long enough that it felt too awkward, even for Sirius, to say anything. After a few seconds, she stepped back, and Fuku quickly stepped forward to pay her respects to the Queen.

"H-Hi again, Lady Toriel! This is a surprise, huh? I'm working on Sirius' science team because they offered to give me some work, and-"

Toriel cut her off. She did her best to hold a straight face and to not come off as frustrated at the girl who had led her in here without any detail. The sudden sternness shocked Fuku. "Ms. Fire, do you mean to say that you knew of all of this when you invited me here in the first place?"

The embers on Fuku's head intensified as her anxiety did. "N-No! Not at all, your majesty-I-I mean, my Lady! I was only asked by Sirius to bring you here, that's all! I had no idea that the experiment would involve this!"

At that moment, Sam, the skateboard girl, stepped forward and saluted as well. She held out her hand in front of Fuku and said "Lady Toriel, she tells the truth. We were only told to notify you about the earthquake. We had no idea what this experiment would entail, only that if it worked, we would have a chance to reunite the dead and the living. Hi, it's Sam, by the way." She turned her head and blushed slighty at her infamous academic and attendance record at school. The tentacles on her head weaved quietly as she spoke. "I'm sure you know who I am, but I joined to keep Fuku out of trouble. It's a pleasure to serve the royal family."

Not wanting to lose control of the situation, Sirius stepped forward and positioned herself between the royal family and her team. Her eyebrows drooped, and for the first time in the entire conversation, she tried to look reassuring as she held out her hands and tried to explain the suddenness of her work. "You see, I didn't want to tell you about the experiment if it had failed. To promise that your children would be back, only for you to walk all the way to the ruins and find nothing would have been…devastating I'm sure. The earthquake was an unintended effect, but having you and, surprisingly, Asgore here as well certainly helped with that."

It was Asgore's turn to be startled "W-wait, so the letter I had received about Toriel's disappearance, that wasn't sent by you?"

Sirius looked puzzled for a second, but then let her eyes drop again. "Letter? Your majesty, I never mailed you anything. In fact, I haven't left the underground before. It sounds like you may be looking for someone else."

Asgore brought his hand up to his chin. "That is puzzling indeed. That means that someone else wanted me to be here too, but who…?"

Toriel wasn't done quite yet. "So Professor Sirius, why did you do this? What was your goal after all of this work?"

Sirius, for the first time in this entire conversation, showed her real smile. When she had first introduced herself to her group, she made it a point to keep her mouth closed. Her floppy ears, hair, and general disheveled appearance did a lot to soften her aesthetic, and for how little she cared about it, she did appreciate that it gave her an in. But to think about the excitement of it all, about how close this entire experience brought her to her real motive, she couldn't contain her excitement any longer. Her real smile exposed her jagged, pointy teeth, and while the interlocking triangles of a smile combined with her soft goth aesthetic in some ways added to her dark charm, it was, in fact, a brief glimpse into what would end up being so much more.

"Come. I'll show you the details in my lab. And there, we can discuss everything you want to know."

Toriel and Asgore looked at each other and exchanged nervous reactions, and then down at their children. Chara looked off to the side, as if they didn't want to think about it, while Asriel looked up at his parents, frowning while clutching Chara's hand with eyes full of consternation. There was a moment of wordlessness between the pair before Toriel picked up on everyone's collective feeling and led the way behind Sirius.

"Whatever it is, I am sure that once we know more, we can get through this. I am not worried."

"B-B-But your majesty!" Politics Bear said after a long moment of silence. "What about the current situation!? What should I do about all of these monsters?"

Sirius turned around, annoyed again. "Isn't there someone in charge of this area now? I picked up that much from the others. A pair of skeletons?"

Politics Bear brought his fist down on his palm. "Yes! You mean the Lord Serifs. We'll have to send someone out right away if we want to get word to them.

Toriel stopped dead in her tracks, causing Asriel to bump into her. Her hands had initially shot up to cover her mouth in shock, before she turned around and tended to her son. She looked concerned as she confided in Politics Bear about the mistake she had made.

"I was supposed to attend a picnic today."


A/N - It's been a long time, hasn't it? I'm sooooooo sorry for the huge delay – there isn't much I can say other than the holidays were long and my motivation went down the drain for a bit. But this story is really something I want to see through, and I'm not going to stop working on it. The next chapter is already done, so expect the next chapter very soon.

Fluff! I get to write fluff! I'm so heckin' excited to break up all of the serious stuff in the fic lol. When I planned out this story, I knew it was going to be heavy, but man, it really comes through, especially in this arc. It just really makes me appreciate the quieter moments. I'm so excited to introduce Claw! Thinking up the team was so much fun, and thinking up the concept for Sirius was even more fun. They're going to be very major players in the story moving forward, so I hope you all get to enjoy them too.