Chapter 12
Victory

In a flashback, we hear high-pitched laughter as two young children dart through the streets. The children wear towels tied around their necks as they chase down their imaginary foes. They have given each other the names "Lady Red Herring (Lady Red)" and "Sir Puffington" as they fight crime and protect the citizens of Waterfall from evil.

As the children dash around, one begins to fall behind, wheezing and unable to catch his breath. This has been happening more and more often and it's seriously starting to cut into play time! The young Fish monster stops mid-combo to turn and face her partner.

"Aw man! Not again!"

The Skeleton is doubled over with his hands on his knees, panting and struggling to breathe. "I . . . I'm . . . I'm s-sorry." He apologizes.

"Hey, what did I say about that!?" The girl huffs, "Don't apologize for being sick! It's not like you can help it or anything."

"Y-yeah. You-you're right. I'm . . . I'm sorry."

"Ugh! Stop that already!"

The boy coughs, trying to cover his mouth to hide the small puffs of dust escaping. As the coughing gets harsher, it's harder to hide.

"Geez." The girl sighs, backtracking to her friend. She leans over him and lays a hand on his back.

"How about we stop for today. C'mon. I'll take you home."

"No!" The boy protests, "I can still kee- I c-can still . . ." He coughs again, finding it hard to speak through the harsh consonants.

"Nope, that's it. I'm taking you home."

The boy groans, but follows.

"Yeah, but I won!"

"That's not the point! You shouldn't have been fighting at all!"

"What was I supposed to do? Just sit there and let them talk trash about my best friend!?"

"Yes! You're gonna get suspended if this keeps up!"

"Then let them suspend me!"

"No! Undyne, I'm not worth it!"

"That's what you say. But did you ever think to ask me how I feel about it!? You know, it was really scary for me the other day when they had to come and take you away! You looked so bad! Then, they told me that you'd lost part of your rib- that you were turning to dust . . . I thought . . . I thought that maybe that might have been it for you."

Corbel hesitated for a moment as he attempted to heal a few of Undyne's minor cuts and bruises. For a second, he looked down to his gaping palms. His fingers were cracking and his dad told him that it was possible that they may even begin to fall off as the holes in his hands grew.

He was scared. Of course, he was scared. He was starting to fall apart! Parts of him were crumbling away! At seven years old, he already understood that he was dying and he'd been beginning to wonder what would happen if he did die. What would it be like? Would it hurt? Would he dream? What would life be like for everyone else if he did die? If he turned to dust and his mom and dad were left alone . . . would they be okay? Would they be sad? Would they forget about him? Would they try again with another kid? Would that kid have the same disease he had? Would his parents risk that outcome a second time?

And if he were gone, Undyne wouldn't have to worry about him slowing her down all the time. She could do so much more . . . she wouldn't have to get in fights because of him. She might even be happier if he weren't -

"So to hear them say those things about you- as if it wasn't your life they were playing with! It really pissed me off!"

Corbel's eyes went wide at her language and he whipped his head over his shoulder to check for his mom.

"They have no idea what it's like." Undyne muttered, "To be so scared for someone else. To watch someone you care about so much fight so hard just to keep breathing. Corbel . . . of course I'd stand up for you, especially if you weren't there to do it yourself. That's what heroes do after all! Fight for those who can't fight for themselves! Not that you would have confronted them like that, anyway. You're way too smart to do something that stupid. Three against one would have been a bit much anyway. Heh, well, maybe not if I was there with you!"

As he sat under the covers of his bed, his hands clasped around Undyne's began to tremble slightly. He tore his gaze away, unable to even look up at her anymore.

"Undyne . . ." He said softly.

Undyne noticed this and took her hand back. He'd healed her enough. She'd recover the rest on her own, no problem.

"Oh! That reminds me, though! I got this back for you!"

Undyne dug into her pocket and fished out a small tube with a plastic breathing apparatus on the end. Corbel's inhaler! The reason he'd had such a brutal attack at school. Those three had stolen his inhaler and forced him to chase after them to get it back in a cruel game of keep-away. For every failed attempt, they would release some of the magic spray inside of the inhaler so there would be less and less of it inside if Corbel were able to get it back at all. When Corbel was unable to catch them and he started coughing, he begged for them to return the inhaler. Scared because he was coughing up so much dust, the other three ran away instead, taking the inhaler with them. Corbel fell to the ground, coughing and fighting to draw in a breath. He'd passed out shortly afterward, unable to come out of his fit.

When Undyne handed back the inhaler, Corbel noticed that it was nearly empty. Those three completely drained his medicine!

"Those jerks got what was coming to them." Undyne seethed quietly, "And if I do get suspended, then that's okay. I'd do it again, because they deserved it! No one messes with my friends and gets away with it!"

Corbel hesitated, turning the inhaler over in his splintering fingers. She'd fought so hard to get this back for him. He was an idiot to think that she wouldn't . . . she'd always been like that. The seeker of justice. A soft smile spread at the thought. "Thanks, Red."

"You got it, Puff. Just . . . Never tell me you're not worth it again, got it!?"

Years later, Corbel cleared his throat and let out a long deep sigh as he leaned against the railing and waited outside of the school. He'd already told his dad that he might be running a little late to the lab that day because he had some stuff to take care of. He seemed understanding enough and told the boy to take his time and that there was nothing really to worry about. He would really only be focusing on minor tasks anyway and it was nothing that couldn't wait until tomorrow.

So there he was with the day off . . . though he really couldn't use the time to rest. He still had work to do, and in its own way, this work was a lot more taxing than it would've been if he'd gone to the lab.

This felt like more of a chore.

There she was, her duffle bag hitched up over her shoulder as she walked at a brisk pace toward the outer perimeter of the school. Doubtless, she was on her way to training. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Corbel wondered if today's sparring partner would be Gerson or Asgore.

Whatever. Those thoughts were meaningless. He'd found Undyne.

With the slightest bit of apprehension, Corbel raised his hand in hopes of getting her attention and he waved to her to make himself easier to spot.

As if coming out of a daze, Undyne blinked when she noticed the small movement. She trained her eyes toward it and recognized the owner of the hand. Instinctively, she frowned. What the . . . ? What was Puffball doing all of a sudden? After weeks of the cold shoulder treatment and avoiding her at all costs, why would he suddenly try to get her attention? What could he possibly want?

When he was sure he had her attention, Corbel gave a quick jerk of his head, acknowledging her. She returned it wordlessly, but the tentative hesitation was still evident in her expression.

With another quick jerk of the head, Corbel let her know which way to go if she wanted to talk. He moved from the spot where he'd been leaning and made his way away from where the majority of students were gathering near the entrances.

After a few moments of debating, Undyne followed, adjusting her bag over her shoulder as she changed course to meet her friend. If he was finally willing to talk to her, then she wasn't going to deny him. After all, she had a few things to say to him too.

Undyne made her way through the other students leaving the school and followed the path set by Corbel. When she caught up to the young Skeleton, the boy shoved his hands in his pockets and started walking again in the direction of the Capital. Undyne caught up easily and fell into step beside him.

Neither one of them spoke for quite a while as they each trudged step after awkward step. They didn't turn their heads or make eye contact. They just walked.

Finally, after a few long steadying breaths, the silence was broken.

"So . . ." Corbel began, chancing a look down to Undyne's boots, ". . . Hey."

"Hey, yourself."

"You know, I'm not used to there being so much silence when you're around." Corbel admitted, "I was kinda expecting you to jump in and take charge of the conversation. You're really not the type for long awkward silences."

"Yeah, well . . . you're the one who wanted to talk. You sought me out, remember? So . . . shouldn't you be the one to get things rolling?"

Corbel raised a brow. "Really? You were just gonna wait for me? What if I didn't say anything?"

"Then you just weren't ready to talk. I mean, I would've been annoyed as hell . . . but I get it."

"Huh . . ."

The two continued to walk in near silence, still trying to think of the best way to get to what they both were so apprehensive about.

"So . . ." Corbel began again.

"Look . . ." Undyne started.

"Sorry, about what happened that night." Corbel sighed at the same time Undyne grunted out, "Sorry I was such a bitch to you."

The two of them stalled for a moment and finally looked up toward each other, eyes widened. After a moment, the faintest of smiles pulled across their faces.

"No, listen." Undyne pushed, "You were obviously upset about whatever was going on and it was still pretty fresh for you . . . and you did tell us that you didn't want to talk about it . . . as your friends, we should have just backed off right then and there. Eventually, you would've said something . . . at least, I hope you would have. But here's the thing. Just watching you mope around like that was seriously pissing me off. I know you're better than that . . . and maybe it wasn't you that I was upset at . . . maybe I was upset for you. I haven't seen you that down since we were little and the whole . . . the coughing thing started up. People were real jerks to you and you took it pretty hard. You were so hurt by them and I swore I wouldn't let anyone do that to you again. So . . . maybe seeing you right back in that situation triggered something."

Corbel hummed as the memories came crashing back.

"But I shouldn't have done that to you," Undyne admitted, "That was a bit much."

"But here's the thing though." Corbel shrugged, "You were right. I was letting the thing with Sans get in my skull and it was really affecting . . . well, my entire life. No one should have that much sway over me."

"Sans?" Undyne asked, "It was that guy?"

"Oh . . . well, yeah. I forgot the two of you didn't really mesh well." Corbel continued with a tiny smile, "Anyway, we've been lab partners for a while now and we'd gotten pretty close . . . I guess I kinda overstepped and took things a little too far a little too fast. I asked him out . . . kinda. Really, I just tested the waters a bit and invited him over. I'd be lying if I said I didn't hope that maybe we could have ended up as something a bit more than friends, but as soon as Sans caught wise as to what was going on, he . . . he turned me down."

"Is that so?" Undyne hummed quietly, looking sidelong at Corbel as he explained. Obviously, he was still infatuated. That smile and that slight blush said it all.

"Yeah, but it's okay, though." Corbel shrugged, "It's not his fault. I didn't check with him or even really tell him what was really going on. If anything had come of that night, it would have been entrapment. I didn't actually ask him out . . . and plus he's already seeing someone, so . . . Yeah." Corbel went quiet for a few moments as he thought things over, "Maybe, for now, I'll just keep everything work-related with him. Not involve him in my personal life outside of that."

Even though she'd promised herself that she wouldn't get involved anymore, something about this whole thing didn't sit well with her. But the issue here was . . . so soon after what happened that night when she and Corbel fought, or rather, right when Corbel was willing to talk to her again after that, would it really be okay to come out with what she was thinking?

Well, she wouldn't be Undyne if she didn't right? And that's what friends are supposed to do, right? Look out for their other friends?

"Tch." She scoffed, "Probably best if you did keep him out of your personal life. I already don't like the guy and if you were to keep bringing him around here, I can't guarantee his safety. I might accidentally kick the shit out of him for hurting you so much."

"That wasn't because of anything he did though. Sans isn't that type . . . in fact, he was surprisingly supportive when it all came out. And when I think more about it . . . he did everything he could to make sure I didn't get hurt. He was . . . he was being kind. So, don't be mad at him for something he couldn't control. Something no one could control. Besides, we already came to the conclusion that it wasn't anyone's fault. No one is to blame and there's no reason why we can't move past this and still be friends. Work friends!"

Undyne hummed in response. "You have such a soft soul, Corbel." She said quietly, "I'm afraid that it's gonna get you burned more times than you can handle. And this whole thing about 'still being friends' . . . are you sure you can do that? Because it looks to me like that's not what you want at all."

Corbel hesitated for a second. "What are you saying?"

Undyne huffed again. What was she trying to say?

"Just that . . . staying so close to the situation. Is it really the best thing for you right now? I mean, can you really get over someone you see every day?"

"I'm . . . just doing what you suggested. I'm picking myself up again and fighting back! I'm taking control of my life again! I thought you would be . . . glad. Happy to hear that things are getting back on track."

"Don't get me wrong, I am! But -"

"Go back to the lab. Don't go back to the lab . . . You know, for someone who is usually so decisive, your advice is really . . . not."

"That's because it's not my decision to make! It's yours! Do what you want to do! I'm just laying out the options!"

"I just told you I'm back at the lab and then you gave me that disapproving look and asked if it's 'the best thing for me right now'! I tell you my decision and you question it? What, are you testing my resolve or something? Because all it's doing is making me not want to talk to you about it anymore."

"No, that's not it! I mean, yeah. It's good to know whether or not you'll stick to your guns even if you get disapproval from someone else. But that's not what I was going for! I just . . . want to know that you're okay, you know! I hate seeing you so hurt and so upset and it kills me every time it happens to you! You're my best friend, Corbel! Of course, I want to protect you!"

"Since when has it been your job to protect me!?"

"Since when hasn't it been!? I love you, you dork! I'm always gonna wanna protect you! If the roles were reversed, I'd hope you'd be there for me in the same way!"

Corbel silenced, taking in every one of Undyne's words and every sentiment. If the roles were reversed. If she were the one going through all of this and he was in a position where he could help her, he would absolutely do the same thing!

And if he saw that she was walking right back into a situation that left her scarred before . . .

"I just don't want you to get hurt again." She grumbled, "If you want to go back to the lab, then good! Go back to the lab! I'm glad you're doing something! Just . . . be careful, okay? That's all I'm saying."

For a while after that, their walk was silent once again, a thousand thoughts going through both of their heads.

Finally, they reached a point in the road where they had to reach a decision. They stopped right where the road split off into different directions.

"Well, I should get to training," Undyne announced after another moment. "I'll be late if I don't hurry it up. What about you? You going to the lab from here?"

Corbel shook his head slightly, giving a small shrug. "Nah, I'm off today, so I'll probably just head home."

"Then the whole point of walking this way was . . . ?"

"I just wanted to talk to you. Believe it or not, I . . . kinda missed you."

"Life was too boring without me in it, huh?"

"You could say that." Corbel chuckled.

"Well, thanks for walking me, Puff." Undyne grinned and she turned in the direction she needed, "Will I see you tomorrow?"

"Sure thing, Red." Corbel waved, turning around and beginning his walk home.

Undyne waved her response, her grin unwavering as she began down her own path. Good. At least there'd been some progress. She hadn't completely lost her friend and it seemed as if she didn't have to worry so much about him anymore. He was beginning to understand and realize the power he held and he was more aware. He was better prepared to take charge no matter what happened from here on out.

She could call this a victory.

Chapter 12.5 . . . ?

Fast Forward

Below will literally be a skeleton list of things that have happened between chapter 12 and 13, so you know where the characters are and what's going on in their lives. It would have been way too long and WAY too drawn out to do all of this in chapter form, so think of this as a Time Skip! Hopefully, this will be the last one of these for a while. But, as always, I'll let you know if/when it happens again.

A lot is gonna happen in a very short time, so hold on to something:

Undyne and Metta graduate high school. Undyne goes to Royal Guard boot camp thing and Metta works on the Blook family Snail Farm for now, but he HAAAAAATES IT! He keeps trying out for and auditioning for local plays and productions, but he won't accept anything less than the lead role.

Napstablook and Corbel graduate a year later. Corbel turns 18 that summer and since he's been working in the lab after school, he has credits and he's experienced enough to apply them toward college credits. He waits a year, working at the lab full-time and earning an income which he saves for school.

After he turns 19, he attends the University in the Capital as a Junior and lives in the dorms, feeling that he should take a step toward striking out on his own.

He majors in Physics because it's what he's been doing since Sophomore year of high school, but he starts to feel like maybe his heart really isn't in it anymore. He followed the scientific route for his father and because . . . well, Sans was there, but he really starts to think about what he wants and he's not so sure anymore.

In his collegiate pursuits, he wonders vaguely about Sans' ambition. He'd said he was supposed to start college when he showed up in the CORE, but he hasn't made a move to attend ever since and that was three years ago now. Corbel tries to encourage Sans to join him and at first, it seems to spark an interest in the other Skeleton, but something seems to really be bothering him and he becomes easily discouraged.

Corbel notices Sans drifting off into his own thoughts more and more often and even though the two of them have come leaps and bounds, making up and becoming close friends again, even he can't seem to break through that last defense and figure out just what's bothering him. It worries Corbel.

Corbel turns 20 and finishes his Bachelor's degree. He keeps in school, working toward a Master's Degree.

Because Corbel is extremely busy with school and unable to put in the same amount of work as before, Gaster has to hire on two more part-time apprentices to help fill the gap and maybe boost performance in his son's absence. He welcomes Fitz Maltez and Barton Ruddard on board as part-time colleagues. Pleased with this progress, he also adds Marielle Baelin as an intern.

Every once in a while, the four friends, Undyne, Metta, Napstablook and Corbel go out to catch up since it's not so easy to do now that they've all graduated high school. Undyne has finally beaten Asgore in battle and is a full member of the Royal Guard. Even if she is still just a new recruit, she's determined to become the greatest Guardsman the Underground has ever seen! Metta has made a new friend through a human-appreciation and anime club who has promised to help him achieve his dreams! And Napstablook has been studying music production at a local art college. During one of these outings, Napstablook lets the others know that he's seen Mrs. Gaster at his art school. She says she's started a night class for anyone who wants to learn to paint and she may use it as a springboard to start her own studio. She seems to have really found her niche and wants to expand on it. She plans on using the art class as a sort of recruitment ground for others who would like to teach art and, ultimately, create a studio that's open to monsters of all ages.

Though Corbel was aware of the second class, he had no idea the extent of his mother's dream. He realizes that he's growing out of touch with his parents. Aside from the diminishing hours he puts in at the lab, he only really goes home for special occasions like birthdays or Giftmas.

Again, Corbel is torn. Not for the first time, he looks to the symbol he carries in his pocket. The watch his father gave him. He remembers what it was supposed to represent. Self, Community, and Time. Just like his father had been at the time, he's been neglecting the time aspect. He's lost track of it all in pursuit of Self and Community. He feels he understands his father a little more . . . and he's ashamed of himself for falling into the same trap.

He arranges a time and a place to have a date with his mom. He gathers flowers for her and treats her to a gallery visit in the Capital. Over dinner, they catch up with each other and talk about their goals.

Nyala is exceedingly proud of her son and congratulates him on his progress, but of course, she notices something a little off. Eventually, she gets the truth out of Corbel, about how he's unsure about his scientific endeavors, but if he doesn't follow in his father's example, he doesn't know what else he's supposed to do. He feels he's been losing track of everything. Not just Time, but Self and even Community too. What is he really doing with his life that will make any kind of a difference?

Nyala explains that it's completely normal for monsters at Corbel's age to feel the way he is and that sometimes it takes a while to find their own paths in life. Some never find it at all. And though she did just express how proud she was of him for what he's been doing, she doesn't want him to take that as added pressure to pursue something he isn't passionate about. She knows that there's a lot of pressure riding on Corbel already because of the pocket watch and how he interprets it, but she wants him to see that it's not a contract by any means! Corbel is his own monster and he's entitled to live his life the way he wants to! If that means following his father, then so be it, and if it doesn't, then that's fine!

They end the evening and Corbel walks his mother to the Riverperson in Hotland so she can catch a ride home. She thanks her son for the date and reminds him that he's welcome home any time.

With hugs and kisses, they part ways for the evening.

Sans notices now that Corbel is extremely distracted in his work and he seems as if he's lost his zeal. He remembers when Corbel would try to cheer him up and feels that it would be the least he could do to try the same. Corbel of all people deserves that much.

After checking the calendar, Sans comes up with the perfect solution.

One night, after clean-up and prep for the next day is done, the assistants and interns are about to head home for the night. During this time, Sans corners Corbel and throws an arm around his shoulder. He notices how much more difficult it is now that Corbel's gotten taller. The kid's not so little anymore.

"Alright. Clear your schedule for this weekend!" Sans cheers, "I don't care what you have planned. Consider it canceled! We're going out!"

Of course, Corbel is confused at this and asks what the heck is going on.

"Really!? Have you been so lost in space that you've forgotten? Your birthday's this weekend! And not just ANY birthday either! It's the big Two-One! We're going out and the drinks are on me!"