... Well sh*t. Would you guys believe me when I say I completely forgot to post this chptr on Fanfiction?

I totally did.

Gaster felt oddly cold as he stared down at Frisk. The child had fallen asleep not too long ago and thankfully rested peacefully, allowing Gaster some time to think.

She had refused to let Gaster go when she was awake and Gaster honestly didn't want to put his little girl down either. Today in short had been a living hell for the scientist and it didn't seem as though things would be improving from here on out.

The king's law still replayed in Gaster's mind; an endless cycle of horror that reminded him of the dangers for his child. All humans that fell into the underground were to be brought to Asgore so that their souls… Gaster felt his bones shake in disgust.

It was a horrible law, and an unjust one in Gaster's mind, but he also could see why the King had made it. He had not only lost both his children in one day, but he had lost one of them because the fear that lived deep inside humans. From what Gaster could make out of the story he was told earlier, Asriel, after taking the human's soul, had taken Chara to the surface and the humans had seen him, and humans being the fearful beings they were attacked.

It seemed as though humans did a lot of things out of fear.

They prisoned monsters underground, in fear of what they could do. They killed the prince in fear of his… godlike form. They were probably more terrified of how they saw Asriel holding a lifeless body of a child… Fear made humans do many things.

But that fear, those panic-filled hearts of theirs, was now the reason behind the life Gaster saw for his little girl from here on out.

Frisk would never be able to step foot outside the lab. She probably would never be able to go out of his office during the work hours, let alone the world outer the lab. All expectations, all the plans he had for Frisk, were swept down the drain the moment Asgore spoke the law.

Gaster felt sick, he felt angry, he wanted to go up to a wall and punch it. So many emotions were swirling around inside his head and he didn't know which one to act on first.

Letting out a sigh, Gaster leaned his arms on the cabinet/crib and rested his head in his hands. Everything was turning into a disaster, and nothing Gaster thought of would be able to fix it. He could try, oh there were plenty of ideas that sounded feasible, but the outcomes would all be the same. Being a man of science and of careful strategy, Gaster could calculate an educated guess as to how each of his notions would play out…

None of them ended the way he wanted them too.

"What am I going to do?" Gaster spoke softly. "This is no way to raise a child."

Peering down at Frisk, Gaster couldn't help but smile. She looked so peaceful; so unaware of the things around her. This little child, this precious little girl, deserved so much more than this. Frisk deserved to be able to run around with children, to learn about her surroundings, and to be happy. No child would get that from being cooped up in this decrepit lab. What else was there thought; in a world were humans were to be killed on sight?

"I'm so sorry, my child." Gaster said as he brushed some of Frisk hair to the side. "I wish I could do more."

Gaster slowly pushed himself away from the cabinet/crib. He didn't need to look at the clock to know he was late, very late. Truthfully he should have been home hours ago, to be there comforting his sons, but Frisk had needed him and it gave him the time to think in silence. But he had wasted more than enough time and Gaster knew he had to get home.

Looking back at Frisk one more time, Gaster walked out of his office and out of the lab. Normally he would have teleported home, but he knew he was going to have to start saving up his magic from here on out. His teleporting used a lot of magic and with Frisk being so young, Gaster knew he was going to be blipping back and forth from the lab and home a lot. Situations like this made Gaster every so thankful for the strange and sometimes bizarre gift he had.

Teleporting wasn't a common gift amongst monsters, even Bosses were rarely born with such an ability. Some monsters never even heard of teleporting, and some thought of it as a lost talent. So whatever marker in the laws of genetics that allowed Gaster this ability he thanked for. Especially in the days to come.

Taking the river person home, the ride was silent Gaster noted. Not even the mysterious monster's tra la la broke it and in no time at all Gaster made it back to Snowdin. A small flurry of snow began to fall and it highlighted every breath Gaster took; creating a cloud of heated air. Why skeletons and other various monsters needed to breathe still made Gaster wonder… sometimes. There are just certain things you don't question and will never get an answer for.

Passing by the daycare house, Gaster inwardly winced when he found the lights off. A bit fearful, Gaster quickened his pace home. If the boys weren't are the daycare and he wasn't the one to pick them up, there was only one other solution…

Grillby had gone and gotten his boys and brought them home.

Grillby…

Gaster shrank at the thought of the fire monster. Grillby was a kind and gentle monster, but his anger could ignite so fast it was like striking a match. Gaster wasn't sure how many times Grillby had chewed him out in his life, too many to count probably, and this one was just going to be added to the list. One he didn't want.

Gathering up the courage, Gaster pushed the door to his house open. The house was silent and Gaster found that the light source he had seen from outside had been Grillby himself. The fire monster was sitting on the couch, Sans and Papyrus wrapped safely in his arms, and his magic was creating a barrier around them. It wasn't a visible one, more intense heat than anything, but the magic that surrounded the couch dwellers was strong enough to let any monster know that Grillby was not to be messed with.

The moment the fire monster saw Gaster though the barrier fell away and the fire monster stood up.

"Oh thank god you're alright." Grillby said as he set the sleeping children down on the couch. "Where have you been?"

Before Gaster even had a moment to answer, Grillby enveloped him in his warm arms. For the moment nothing was said, and Gaster was unsure if he should return the hug, but after much deliberation Gaster slowly returned the embrace. It felt good to be held by Grillby, and after what had happened today Gaster was in need of something good.

"What happened Wing Ding?" Grillby spoke, though he did not pull out from the hug. "This… strange magic came through Snowdin and no one knew what to do. Sans and Papyrus were so terrified."

"I know, and I am sorry I wasn't here." Gaster apologized as he gripped onto Grillby's shirt. "Something…. Something bad happened."

"What, what was it?" Grillby asked. "You can tell me."

And Gaster did. He told Grillby all that had happened, from what happened in Home to the Prince's demise and the new law. Grillby was surprisingly quiet through it all and Gaster was grateful for it; he wasn't sure he would be able to continue if he was stopped. Gaster made sure to leave out any and all bits with Frisk, and when he was done he loud a loud sigh.

"That is… that is a lot to take in Gaster." Grillby said as he finally pulled away from the skeleton and sat down on the couch. "The prince, did he really..?"

"He did," Gaster said as he sat on the opposite side of the couch, seeing as the middle was occupied by two small children. "His magic was the presence we all felt."

Grillby's flames dimmed in brightness for a moment and his hands gripped his pant legs tightly. "I can't even imagine what the king is going through; him and Toriel both."

Or what I am going through, Gaster thought to himself.

Turning to his sons, Gaster frowned. The two of them were pressed right up against each other, chest to chest, with Sans' arms wrapped around the younger. They both looked tired, but not peaceful. Sans expression was contorted into one of fear and Papyrus looked just as upset and worried. Seeing his sons like this upset Gaster. He should have been here for them, to comfort them, but he wasn't.

Frisk had needed him and he hated to say it, but she was going to need him a lot from now on. Gaster was the only one who could know about her and though he had been a single parent for a while, it was going to be difficult with three children needing him and having them split like they were.

"Are you alright Gaster?" Grillby spoke up, resting his hand on the other's shoulder. "You seem out of it."

"I am… alright." Gaster lied. "Just a bit rattled. Today has been…"

Gaster couldn't even find the words to describe it. Today had been plenty of things, a few choice words ran through Gaster's mind, and he wished it had gone differently.

"Daddy?"

Looking down Gaster found that Sans was slowly waking up. The little boy was rubbing his sockets and was lazily looking up at the adult.

"Yes, Sans, it's me." Gaster said as he cupped his son's cheek and rubbed his thumb over it.

The boy was still holding his brother but that didn't stop him from snuggling into his father's chest. Sans was quiet for the longest time, and Gaster was a bit worried by it, but when the older monster felt a smaller hand take his he relaxed.

"Don't leave, please." Sans spoke softly as he squeezed his father's hand.

"… I'm not going anywhere Sans, I promise." Gaster said he rubbed soothing circles on the boy's back.

The rest of the night went on with the small family huddled together on the couch; each seeking comfort from the other. Grillby ended up staying the night again, for both Gaster and the boys' sake. The four of them stayed on the couch and ended up falling asleep on it.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Hours flew by with the group sleeping on the couch. Gaster had ended up with his back pressed against Grillby's chest while the fire monsters rested on the arm of the couch. Sans was still resting at his father's side, but Papyrus had moved to sleep in the crook of Grillby's neck. It seemed as though nothing would wake them up, but when the familiar tug at his soul came it woke Gaster up with a silent gasp.

Frisk had woken up and was calling him over their bond.

Sighing as quietly as he could, Gaster sat up and gently maneuvered himself out of the sleeping pile on the couch. The trio never woke from Gaster's motions, even as Gaster moved to place the blanket they had been using over them. Staring down at his family, Gaster found the smile that spread over his face not a happy one.

Frisk could have been a part of this, she could have been a sister to Sans and Papyrus, maybe even a daughter to Grillby, but that option was no longer available.

Not wanting to think about what could have been, and also not wanting to upset Frisk any further, Gaster teleported to the lab. After leaving a note this time for Grillby to find that is.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

A week has come and gone since the death of both royal children and the event still looms in the air of the underground.

When the news went out of what happened, every and all monsters mourned for the loss the King and Queen were going through. And when the new law was told everyone, well almost everyone, saw it as a fitting rule. Toriel was appalled by what Asgore had done and for the first couple days she had tried everything in her power to make him revoke the law, but Asgore was, if not anything, stubborn and would not budge.

A funeral had been planned for the two fallen children and everyone was planning on going… again, almost everyone.

Gaster refused to accept the offer of joining Grillby in attending the service, twice, but the skeleton had given the flame some leeway in letting Grillby take Sans and Papyrus. Grillby figured that the reason as to why Gaster didn't want to join was because he saw it as his fault that he hadn't done more to save the two children. So after his second attempt, Grillby allowed Gaster to keep his decision to not go.

Gaster did blame himself in a way. For not being able to help Asriel or Chara, but he also blamed himself that since he couldn't do anything it was his fault that Frisk would have to live a sheltered life. If he had just done something, anything, tried more, maybe he would have been able to bring Frisk home and not…

He just wished everything had gone differently.

This week, and everything that had preceded it, did give Gaster plenty of excuses to hide away in his lab with Frisk though. Grillby hadn't been too pleased when he found Gaster starting to leave without notice, but he was more accepting of this absence since the skeleton started to leave notes. Though Grillby was a bit more accommodating with Gaster's random disappearing, Sans and Papyrus were not.

The two had taken to latching onto Gaster the moment he returned to the house and literally wouldn't let him go. Under normal circumstances the sight of Gaster walking around with his sons hugging his legs would have made him and Grillby smile, but this wasn't a normal circumstance.

"Are you sure you won't be coming?" Sans asked as Gaster walked around the kitchen making lunch. "Grillby said everyone else is going."

"You know I can't attend Sans." Gaster said as he stirred the pot full of soup. "The king has asked everyone at the lab and the workers to finish up at least enough of the core and city for the monsters in Home to move in."

Asgore, after telling everyone the rule, had said the remaining monsters in Home were to move out and go into New Home. Gaster had been a bit shocked by the news, and a bit by the name given to the city, but he had no say in it. Not even Toriel had a say, and she was the queen.

So the past few days everyone at the lab worked double time to get the city up and ready along with the beginning forms of the core's skeletal structure up. The core itself was far from complete but with the base of it set up it would help everyone clear out a bit of the clutter that had started to fill the lab.

The city surrounding the core itself was even farther from being done, but with help from monsters from Home at least a quarter of the city was complete. It would be a bit cramped for all the monsters coming from Home to live there until more housing could be made, but they would blindly follow the king wherever he went.

So if the king wanted to move into an unfinished city, they would.

"B-But…" Sans spoke as he tightened his grip around Gaster's leg. "You've been gone so much lately."

"Gone Gone!" Papyrus cried from the other leg. "No Moe!"

Gaster hated to be like this with his sons, so distant and unresponsive, but this was how things were going to have to be for a while. At least until things settled down Gaster had to be careful with that he said and did. If he said the wrong thing or wasn't careful with what he took to and from the lab, someone could get suspicious and possibly…

Find Frisk.

"I know, and I am sorry." Gaster said as he stared down at his sons. "But I promise once all this is over with, we can spend as much time together as you want."

Sans didn't seem too pleased with this, but said nothing more on the matter. Hearing a knock at the door, Gaster watched as his eldest son went to go answer it.

"Hi Grillby," Sans voice traveled through to the kitchen and it made it pretty clear to Gaster who was here. "Dad's making lunch in the kitchen."

"Thank you Sans." Grillby's voice also made it to the kitchen and Gaster tried not to notice the hurt in his tone.

Grillby was still worrying about him and Gaster hated that he was making that feeling arouse. Finishing up the last couple sandwiches, Gaster turned around to find Grillby and Sans coming into the kitchen and neither looked too happy.

"I made sandwiches for you all." Gaster said quickly as he set them on the table and handed one to Papyrus. "This should be enough."

"Gaster." Grillby spoke but the skeleton walked right past him to the living room and grabbed his coat from the couch.

"I should be home a bit early tonight," Gaster continued as he slipped on the jacket. "We can do something fun. Watch a movie or play a game."

"Gaster." Grillby spoke louder this time and spun Gaster around to look at him. "The lab can wait. I want to talk with you."

Gaster wasn't sure he should be alarmed or not by this, but allowed himself to be held by the other monster before Grillby pressed his forehead to Gaster's.

"You need to calm down." The fire monster said as he just kept their foreheads pressed together. "I know you have your plate full at the moment, but don't forget about what's important."

Staring right into the other's gaze, Gaster sighed before closing his sockets. Grillby was right, like usual, he needed to take a step back and calm down. He needed to stay calm about everything and with a calm mind came answers and solutions.

"… Promise me you'll come home early tonight?" Grillby asked softly, his flames taking on a hint of pink. "The boys need to spend time with their dad, and not some bar tender."

"But we like this bar tender." Gaster chuckled lightly. "He's a good cook, kind, and knows just what to say."

That made Grillby smile before pulling away from Gaster and giving his shoulder a playful shove.

"I'm serious Wing Ding, say you'll come home tonight."

Gaster smiled, but on the inside he was frowning. He wanted to keep that promise, he really did… but what if he couldn't? Promises were so hard to keep, and Gaster had broken far enough in his lifetime…

But what is life without a few chances?

"Yes, I'll come home early tonight." Gaster said and in hopes he would keep it.

"Good. Now get going." Grillby smiled as he turned Gaster back around towards the door. "That Core isn't going to build itself."

No, it definitely wasn't. Neither was finding a solution on how to manage both his family and Frisk at the same time. Gaster hoped, dare he say he was willing to pray, that a solution would come his way soon. Anything at this point would be helpful.