"Sans? What happened? Is the kid okay?" Undyne bombarded Sans with questions the instant he came through one of his portals with an unconscious Frisk in his arms.

"They're fine. They fell asleep on the way back," he explained calmly, though in all honestly he had cast a sleeping spell on the kid.

Being within the world's code sometimes had residual effects on people who were conscious as they passed through, and he hadn't been willing to test and see if the kid would be able to pass through it normally like him. The fact the kid had been able to fall through a glitch was concerning enough as it was...Especially the way Gaster had reacted when the kid had begun to doubt them. Even the smallest exposure could be bad for the kid...

"We need to talk...Where's Pap?"

"What is it, brother?" Papyrus wondered quietly as he sat down and the table with Undyne, eyeing his brother worriedly as Sans sat across from them.

"I know where the kid is trying to go," Sans sighed,pulling a bottle of ketchup of his hoodie as he prepared himself for this conversation. This had to be done while the kid was asleep or it was going to run the risk of repeating the events of earlier.

"WHERE?!" Undyne almost screamed, barely managing to contain her voice to that of a loud whisper.

A moment to see the human still asleep...

"The kid's going to Asgore," Sans explained, taking a sip of ketchup as he watched their faces slowly turn from confusion to horror.

"I thought you didn't want them to die?!" Undyne hissed.

"But...why...surely Frisk knows," Papyrus was having a harder time coping with the news, although Undyne seemed to be pretending she hadn't heard the kid's name, again.

"They don't want to fight him," Sans explained patiently, "The kid was to ask him to help break the barrier, without the fighting and killing."

"Doesn't breaking the barrier required magic, though?" Undyne frowned, she didn't like where this was going.

"It does," Sans continued, "But...the kid's different."

"Because they don't kill?" Papyrus wondered, the humans had so far all been the same to him; although he would admit Frisk was notably different.

"Because," Sans began, looking back to make sure Frisk was still sound asleep, "For not having been exposed to magic before, they can absorb an abnormally large amount of it."

"What do you mean?" Papyrus wondered, Undyne leaning forward as she became more interested in the answer herself. "I've tried healing humans before, back when the experiments to try to replicate human souls were still going," Sans sighed, "Gashes like the kid got from the last fight...Even after all this time, I should have only been able to stop the bleeding on one before they couldn't take anymore magic. Humans' tolerance for magic has become so low they almost can't handle the most basic of spells without becoming deathly ill. Yet...the kid, after just a few weeks, can take enough magic into themselves for a severe wound to be healed...or a life threatening one to be mended enough for them to live."

"What aren't you telling us, Sans?" Undyne raised a brow, she could tell there was something else, even Papyrus looked as if he knew he wasn't being told something.

"Humans aren't just suddenly born with a tolerance to magic," Sans sighed, taking a bit gulp of ketchup, "Humans first discovered magic because they were desperate...For a human to suddenly have such a high tolerance for it...They...They have to have tried it at some point themselves. True magic, like we use...not...not that fake stuff we've seen from some of the humans before."

"What...Are you getting at, brother?" Papyrus asked cautiously.

"It means their determination almost shattered," Sans mumbled, just loud enough for the two before him to hear, "I didn't realize to what extent until today, when they told me and an old friend of mine they were going to see Asgore. Their determination wavered and part of the damage that had been undone almost returned. With the amount of damage done to their soul...I think..."

"You think...?" Undyne pressed quietly, not fond of where this was going.

"Their soul can go one of two ways," Sans sighed, there was going back now, "Their soul can either continue the way it has been so far, or...they could become the worst disaster to ever hit the Underground."

"N...No, they can't," Papyrus muttered, his eyes wide in horror.

"Calm down, I don't think that's going to happen," Sans soothes quickly, once again checking that the kid was still asleep, he wasn't sure how much longer the spell was going to ward off their nightmares, "So long as we don't do anything to make them believe they've been betrayed."

There was a long pause as they looked at each other, none of them knew what Frisk's true problem was for them to truly know how to avoid that.

"I think though, once they're healed," Sans began again, "If we can keep them that way...We might be able to change tactics to trying to get the kid to summon and use their magic, something's already triggered it for us. Kid just doesn't have a clue it's there...It'll take longer than Monster Plan A, but I don't think anyone wants to follow that plan anymore."

"If anyone even tries it I'll pound them into dust," Undyne suddenly snapped, the glowing eyes of the brothers telling her they felt the same. No one was going to hurt this child...

Not anymore...

You yawn as you finally start coming around again, rubbing your eyes as you slowly realized you were still being carried.

"FINALLY AWAKE, TINY HUMAN!?" Papyrus grinned down at you, hugging you tightly to his chest.

"Where are we?" you yawn, looking around as you realized it was WAY too warm for you to still be in Waterfall.

"The worst place in the Underground," Undyne mumbled, and you looked over to see her chugging down nearly a full bottle of water, "Hotlands."

"Is the King the only one that names things around here?" you muttered, looking around as you were trying to find the source of a strange sound.

"YUP!" Papyrus grinned happily.

"Hey kiddo," Sans began...

He was interrupted by a scream.

You found the source of the sound. Lava...You were all surrounded by lava.

"Whoa, baby bones, calm down," Sans called and you felt a familiar tug on your soul. Papyrus let go of you as you floated over to Sans, his magic not releasing you until you were securely on his back; he was giving you a piggy back ride. You wrapped your arms around his neck as he continued walking. "It's okay kiddo," he smiled as you hid your face in his hoodie, "The lava's not going to get you, I promise."

"Saaans," you groaned. Sometimes you really didn't know whether to laugh or smack Sans over the head.

"Hey Sans?" you wondered, finally having remembered something, "Weren't we supposed to work on healing the last wound today?"

"After we get somewhere cooler," Undyne groaned, squirting herself in the face with her water bottle.

"I THOUGHT YOU LIKED THE HEAT, UNDYNE?" Papyrus wondered, tilting his head at his friend.

"Not THIS hot," Undyne growled, marching just a little bit faster to get to wherever your destination was.

At least the pull was getting a little less annoying the closer you got to wherever you were going.

"Alphys! Open up!" Undyne yelled, banging on the door of a large white building.

Why...Did this place make you so uneasy?

"Just a moment, darling~!" a robotic voice called the other side of the door.

"Pap-pap," you mutter glancing over at Papyrus, "Was that...Mettaton?"

"YES! THE GREAT DOCTOR ALPHYS BUILT METTATON!" Papyrus grinned.

"Mettaton, the human hunting robot?" you stressed, hoping he would put two and two together before the door opened.

"You're safe," all three of them state with finality.

You hid your face in San's hoodie again to hide the cheesy grin you know you're showing.

Unfortunately...It had a side effect.

The door opens to reveal the robot you're so used to only seeing on TV right as you're hiding your grin.

"Oh. My. Stars~!" it yells, and you're hoisted from Sans' back and rapidly spun in a circle, "Aren't you just the most adorable thing! Not as adorable as moi of course, but still."

"P...Papyrus!" you shriek, your anxiety spiking at being in the arms of an absolute stranger.

The instant you feel Mettaton abruptly stop and gloved hands pulling you away by your underarms, you twist and squirm until you can cling to the familiar form of the taller skeleton. You barely notice Sans releasing his hold on Mettaton as you reach out for him, taking his hand the instant he holds it out to you.

"Me-ta-ton," Undyne growls, raising one of her spears as the robot is instantly raising its arms in alarm.

"Sorry! I'm sorry, I got carried away!" Mettaton is instantly pleading, backing away as another new person begins walking into view.

"Alphys, stay there," Sans warns, the new figure stopping as Papyrus lets you down, not stopping you from moving to hide behind Sans.

"W-w-what h-h-h-happened?" the new person wonders, and you cling to Sans as a chill runs through your body.

Something wasn't right with them...

"Mettaton happened," Undyned growled, keeping the robot away with her spear.

Well...This tension was going no where fast. "U...Um," you stuttered, blushing as you tried to find the words, "M...Mettaton? W-what does...That...s-switch do?"

"Hm? What switch deary?" Mettaton wondered, still mindful to stay where they were to avoid Undyne impaling them.

"THE ONE ON YOUR BACK!" Papyrus chimed in helpfully, and you jumped slightly only just realizing he had moved behind you.

"Oh, that! I'm afraid it might I might scare you more than I already have if I show you, darling," Mettaton explained calmly, carefully pushing the end of Undyne's spear away from their monitor.

"OOOH!" Papyrus yelled from behind you. He must have just figured out what you were trying to do...You'd never admit it but you liked watching Mettaton's shows with Papyrus, but that switch on Mettaton's back always drove you up the wall. WHY was it there? Surely it wasn't some super convenient off switch? "UNDYNE, WOULD YOU DO THE HONORS?" Papyrus wondered sweetly, and you had to try not to laugh at his antics. Being between the two brothers always made you feel so much safer, and it helped when you were scared because one or both of them would start acting goofy to make you feel better. You had to admit though, you hadn't been prepared for the giant puff of smoke that followed Undyne flipping Mettaton's switch.

You still weren't exactly sure how she had gotten behind the robot...

Sans wrapped his arm around you as you faintly realized you had moved slightly further forward to see, holding you tighter when the smoke finally began to clear. Where there was once a strange gray, rectangular robot on one wheel there was now a humanoid robot with black hair, pale silver "skin," and their clothes were a mix of black and pink. Oddly enough...This form was a lot less terrifying for some reason. You barely noticed part of Mettaton's hair covered one side of their face until you finally looked them in the eye and saw their look of pure shocked confusion.

"Easier to read," Sans chuckled, waving his free hand over his face as you finally settled for merely clinging to his arm. Undyne seemed to understand what was happening as she finally moved so the only one whose progress she blocked was Alphys, although she still kept a close eye on the newly transformed robot. Mettaton seemed to take a moment to access the situation before...he...finally began to slowly walk towards you, stopping whenever you hid behind Sans' arm. He...at least didn't seem to want to hurt you.

When he finally deemed himself close enough, he sat down on the floor with his hands easily visible on his lap, and you slowly shifted your grip over to Papyrus. Truthfully, you still wanted hold onto Sans, but you had promised Papyrus you'd go with him if he ever found the chance to meet Mettaton in the bolts. He smiled down at you before he began to close the gap between the three of you, allowing you to hide behind him the closer your got.

"Hey punk," Undyne called, causing you to look over at her, barely managing to catch the book she threw at you. You blinked owlishly at it for a moment, the white cover decorated in different colorful stickers.

Your scrapbook...

You had completely forgotten you had made this the night you had finally decided to trust Undyne, while she had made you dinner. You smiled shyly as you looked up at Papyrus, tugging his scarf as you looked between your book and Mettaton.

"Mettaton?" Papyrus began gently, holding you to his side as Mettaton looked up at him.

"Yes, darling?" Mettaton replied as softly as he could, seemingly trying not to scare you.

"Would you do us the honor of being the first to sign the tiny human's book?" he wondered, and you had to giggle at the orange blush that was slowly overtaking his cheeks.

You could only blush as Mettaton's face lit up like a Christmas tree and he instantly had a pen in his hand.

"Of course, darling, anything for a fan!" he beamed, though you could faintly tell he was trying to contain himself so that he wouldn't scare you. "So, what are you planning to fill your book with?" Mettaton smiled happily, gently taking the book from you and seemingly starting to draw something, "Other than my wonderful autographs."

"I...I don't...know," you admit quietly, "What...What do you normally put in a...scrap...book?"

"Papyrus," Mettaton began warningly, putting the book and pen down as he stood.

"Y-Yes, Mettaton?" Papyrus stuttered, pushing you back closer to Sans. Neither of you knew what was happening.

"I don't want to scare the kiddie again, so you're going to substitute for them." Sans barely managed to pull you away before Mettaton had Papyrus captured in a hug, squealing and spinning him in a rapid circle. "Oh darling that innocence is just adorable!" He only paused just long to set Papyrus safely back on his own feet and allow him to regain his balance before Mettaton recaptured your book and his pen and began working on it once again.

You tried to sneak around to see what he was doing, holding onto Papyrus's scarf as he walked with you, but whenever the two of you got close Mettaton would turn away or crouch over it to block your view.

"Patience, darling~!" Mettaton giggled, "Works of art take time you know!" You didn't even notice Sans and Undyne in the background trying not to laugh at the display before them.

Although...After the scarf stopped moving with you, you belatedly realized you had mummified Papyrus in his own scarf.

"O...Oh, sorry," you smiled sheepishly, helping Papyrus unwrap himself.

He just laughed.

"DO NOT WORRY, TINY HUMAN! THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS MERELY HAPPY YOU ARE ENJOYING YOURSELF!" Papyrus grinned, chuckling as your book was finally handed back to you by a triumphant looking Mettaton. You paused for a moment before you snatched the book from Mettaton, taking Papyrus's hand and running to hide behind Sans. Undyne couldn't control her laughter anymore as you and Papyrus crouched down behind Sans to hide as you both looked at the book. To his credit, Sans was doing a great job at not laughing so hard that he 'blew your cover.' You could even hear Mettaton's robotic laugh as you peeked past Sans' leg to see if Mettaton had had stayed put.

When you finally opened the book, you were stunned. Mettaton's name was written in a fancy font but above the name was a drawing of all...six...of you on a stage together. Mettaton was center stage with a mic in his hand, Sans and Papyrus were both next to him in fancier looking clothes with mics in their hands as well, you were standing in front of Mettaton with no mic, posing and dressed to match the three behind you, Undyne was standing at the edge of the stage with her spear dressed like a guard, and...Alphys...was sitting on the opposite side of the stage from Undyne with a big box that seemed like it had a bunch of different buttons and switches on it.

A rattling sound startled you from looking at the picture, tilting your head as you looked at a very orange...shaking...Papyrus.

"Pap-pap?" you questioned, ignoring Mettaton's call of 'aaaw.'

"Don't worry, baby bones," Sans grinned, trying very hard not to laugh, "He's just a bit...RATTLED!" You didn't even have time to react to the obvious pun before you were all suddenly reminded of the one person still not allowed near you.

"C-c-c-can I come over now?" she stuttered, a few feet away from Undyne.

Every part of you was screaming no...

"F...Fine," you sighed, the laughter dying as Papyrus protectively wrapped his arms around you, apparently snapping out of his stupor.

"What's the matter kiddo? Alphys can't be scarier than Undyne," Sans whispered, Undyne keeping Alphys away from the trio.

"She is," you mutter quietly, clinging to Papyrus's scarf as a security blanket, "There's...something off...W...Worse than h...having b...blood or d...dust on her hands." It scared you even more when you saw recognition flash through Sans' eyes.

"Baby bones," he sighed, "She won't hurt you, I promise. She's trying to make up for that mistake."

You still couldn't stop yourself from eyeing her suspiciously.

"Well, I didn't want this to happen so soon, but," Sans sighed, seemingly resigning himself to something, "Alphys, we're going down to the True Lab."

"WHAT?!" the lizard...dinosaur looking monster screeched, not even seeming to notice you flinched, "You can't! You know how territorial they are!"

"We're going Alphys," Sans growled, leading everyone towards a door, "With or without you. The kid's already got an idea of the sins crawling on your back."

"Sans? Isn't that the bathroom?" you mutter quietly, Papyrus still carrying you as he follows Sans.

"That's just how she hides this place," Sans explained patiently as he held the door open for everyone. It was a long hallway leading to an old looking elevator.

"Where...Are we going?" you wondered, Mettaton seemed to have some kind of idea and he didn't look too keen on wherever you were going.

"To the True Lab," Sans sighed quietly, eyeing Alphys as she quietly walked next to him, "One of the unfortunate stains in the history of Monster Escape Plans."

Oh this couldn't end well...

You clung tighter to Papyrus when Sans activated the elevator, Sans reaching up to take your hand as you felt his magic blaze to life again.

"Sans, you're going to scare them," Alphys tried to explain, only to be silenced when he turned his blazing blue eye towards her.

"They know me," he growls, and you can tell he's barely controlling himself for your sake, "I could care less if I scare them right now, there's only one person I'm worried about scaring."

"Alphys, darling," Mettaton sighed, "For someone who is terrified of leaving their lab, you sure don't know how to tell when someone else is even more afraid than you."

You almost felt bad when you saw Alphys's eyes flash with a look of hurt for a moment.

...Almost...

When the elevator came to a shaky halt, you didn't have to wonder why Sans had been using his magic anymore, he was keeping all of you from falling. You squirmed a bit until Papyrus sat you down, taking your hand instead as you held to the bottom edge of Sans' hoodie. He only paused a moment to cast you a reassuring smile before the doors open and he led all of you out into a dark, dusty room.

"Alphys, where are the keys?" Sans sighed turning just enough to cast the monster a bored look.

"U...Um...H...Here and th-th-th-there," she replied quietly, and you could here Undyne's annoyed snort that she seemed to be trying to muffle.

No one seemed very happy with Alphys right now.

"Fine," Sans sighed, "Then we'll split into groups of two to look for them. We can't get back without restoring the power to the elevator, it kicked off on the way down. Do you want to go with us, Baby Bones?"

You merely nodded, you were trying to desperately not to shake like a leaf, this place didn't sit well with you.

"Okay, then Undyne, Mettaton, and Alphys will search everything to the south side of the lab and we'll deal with everything to the north," Sans sighed, looking back until he received a nod from Undyne and Mettaton before he led you and Papyrus to a door to the back left of the room.

"Frisk," Sans called after you arrived in a room filled with beds, "Stay close to me, alright? You too Pap."

"Are...The things down here...Really that dangerous?" you wondered quietly, refusing to let go of either of the brothers.

"They're just scared and want to go home," Sans sighed, "They're not bad once they know you, they're just scared of strangers and, in turn, react the only way they know how."

"What...What happened to them?" you wondered as Sans started pulling back covers on the beds, Papyrus helping wherever he could without breaking contact with you.

"You really want to know, baby bones? It's pretty bad," Sans sighed.

"You brought me down here to learn what Alphys had done," you point out quietly.

"Okay, kiddo, you're right," he smiled tiredly, sitting on one of the beds as he pulled you onto his lap, "I guess this is the best spot to explain things, the only one that stays in this room is shy and only comes out to tuck you in if you fall asleep on the beds."

You couldn't help the quiet snicker at the information, a monster that only came out to tuck people in? That was a new one.

"Before we get into any true details, keep in mind that, until you, it's been a...very long time since a human fell down here. Most monsters lost hope that we'd ever be free." You nodded slowly, squirming until you were actually comfortable as you settled in for what you assumed was going to be a long story.

"When monsters began to lose hope, they tried to turn to other methods. If six human souls weren't enough, surely a strong enough monster could replace it, right?" Sans began, and from the look on Papyrus's face, he knew this story too, "Monsters began to kill each other, devouring each other's souls despite the fact we have no way of absorbing another monster. Many monsters gained...a lot of love during those times, trying to protect themselves and their families. Even Monster Kid has a few levels worth because of fights stronger monsters would pick with him when he was too young to defend himself, his love gained when his parents defeated the monsters that attacked him."

"Do...Do you and Pap-pap?" you questioned quietly, hugging Sans and retaking Papyrus's hand as they both gave solemn nods.

"After awhile, King Asgore decided something had to be done, and requested that Alphys try to find a way to...make a monster's soul as strong as a human's soul," Sans began again, there was no going back once he started, "Taking a small sample from one of the souls, she created a serum she believed could equal a human's determination. That's when she requested for monsters that had fallen, monsters that were dead but had yet to turn into dust. It takes a few...hours for bodies to completely turn to dust...She injected all of the bodies with the serum, and everything went terribly wrong."

You eyes widen as you tug Papyrus into your hug, holding to both of them as their faces reflected their pain at this story. "The bodies stopped turning to dust, they actually started to restore themselves," Sans smiled lightly before his face became sullen, "Alphys told all of the families their loved ones would return to them soon, and everything became even worse. They began...Melting...When they came in contact with each other, they couldn't let go. Eventually they became the creatures that you'll see down here, the Amalgamates. Bodies with multiple souls consciously controlling the different parts, all of them trying and failing to find their separate voices. Alphys...She's probably the second most hated monster next to Jerry. Every day people ask where their loved ones are, accuse her of betraying them, their letters get worse every day. She never leaves her lab for fear of what will happen if someone sees her."

By now, you were openly sobbing into Sans' hoodie, clinging to him and Papyrus as your shoulders shook violently from the crying.

"Th...those poor m...mon...monsters," you cried, holding to them tighter as you felt the brothers wrap their arms around you.

"She never wanted this to happen, kiddo," Sans added quietly, Papyrus gently petting your head as they waited for you to calm.

There's a long pause before you manage to steady your breath just enough to whisper, "That doesn't make it right to hide this from everyone. Even if they can't return to normal, the deserve to see their families again."

"I couldn't agree with you more, baby bones," Sans finally smiled, hugging you and Papyrus close as a metallic click began to fill the now silent air.

"Decided to take a nap?" Mettaton chuckled teasingly, frowning when he noticed the tears still threatening to fall and your cheeks stained with slowly drying tear streaks, "What happened?"

"Story time," Sans grinned, letting you stand up as he took your hand this time while Papyrus took your other hand. You sighed when you saw Alphys cast her gaze to the floor, you couldn't pretend not to notice the sad look in her eyes anymore.

"Alphys," you called quietly, pointedly avoiding looking her in the eye, "I'll...Give you a chance, but...I won't forgive you until the...amal...ga...mates are home."

"Sounds like a deal," Undyne grinned, putting her hand on Alphys's head before the shorter monster could try to voice her protest at the action.

Was...Alphys...blushing...from a touch to her head?

It was about an hour before you found all of the keys, all of you now standing in a small room with a TV and several video tapes. You were sat on Mettaton's lap this time, sat between Sans and Papyrus as Alphys shakily put the first tape in.

"Pssst. Gorey, wake up." the first tape began, and you perked up at the sound of the voice.

"Mom?" you questioned quietly, not missing the fact that Sans was staring at the screen in shock. Although, you could have done without him deciding right then to distract himself by starting to mend your side with his magic. You had completely forgotten with the turn events had taken, but right now you wanted to pay attention to the videos.

"I would be...A MOMERANIAN," Toriel's voice giggled, you and Sans both snickering at the horrible pun.

"Hohoho! You sure excited to have this child. You know, if you keep making jokes like this...One day, you could be...a famous MOMedian," the other voice joked, you assumed this one was Asgore.

Would that make him dad then, or were they technically divorced now?

The videos, all five of them, were short with barely any real information to them, but they still made your heart ache. Mettaton was openly crying and using you as a living teddy bear while Papyrus was doing the same to Sans, Undyne and Alphys looked about as upset as Sans did, but they were keeping to themselves.

"Flowey," you mutter, thinking back to a few of the barely working monitors you had read and a prophecy the old turtle in Waterfall had told you.

"Flowey?" Sans questioned, everyone turning their attention to you.

"Papyrus is going to be the only one that doesn't think I'm crazy," you sigh, as you scratch your cheek, even Mettaton stopped sniffling to hear this, "When I first fell...The first monster I met was a little...talking...yellow flower that called himself Flowey the Flower."

"Oh! I know that flower!" Papyrus chimed in happily, before you saw dreaded realization cross his face.

"Flowey attacked me...and would have killed me if Toriel hadn't shown up," you sigh, thinking back to your time in the Ruins, "His soul...I don't think he meant for me to see it...But he has two...A golden soul being choked and suppressed by a black soul. I think..."

"You think the black soul is Chara and the golden one is Asriel," Alphys continued as you trailed off, you could practically see the gears starting to go into overdrive in her head.

"I don't think...That there's any way to help Chara, but I think Asriel has a chance," you murmur, holding your head as you try to solve this new problem, "Chara enjoys hurting others, that's why they laughed when they made...Asgore sick. It was an accident, but it had been amusing to them. If the stories I've heard hold even an ounce of truth...Chara used Asriel to get to the surface...They wanted to use the power of both monsters and humans to..."

Your eyes widened as it suddenly dawned on you just WHY "Flowey" had been so insistent that you fight.

"Kid?" Sans called quietly, reaching out and gently shaking you arm.

"Chara's my opposite," you say through grit teeth, the words sour in your mouth, "They told me I had two choices in this world. The path of the strong or the weak...Even after Toriel saved me from them, they whispered to me from the shadows to slaughter everything...If I hadn't...If I hadn't chosen not to hurt anyone...Like...They hurt me...I'd be...just like...Chara..."

Apparently, Mettaton decided right that second that the best way to shut you up was to crush you in a hug. "U...Um, Mettaton?"

Alphys stuttered, "Their f-f-face is u-um...t-t-turning blue."

"Whoopsie," Mettaton smiled as he released you, finally letting you draw air back into your lungs, "But no more of that talk, deary. You're much too sweet to hurt anymore, not like that brute Chara if your theory is anything to go by."

"How...can you be so sure?" you question quietly, not even struggling as he picked you up and everyone began walking back towards the elevator.

"We've seen six examples of this 'stronger path' Chara told you of, none of them hesitated to leave a trail of dust in their wake. You, however, I've watched you through the cameras Alphys has everywhere, all you've done is dodge and try to resolve the fights peacefully. Even when that idiot cousin of mine attacked you!"

"That...That was your cousin?" your eyes widened in alarm, you were pretty sure he was dust!

"No worries, he's not dust," Mettaton quickly soothed, "He's actually quite happy now. He found a new dummy to possess and bound right to it. Although, that means if you really want to, you can give him a beating now. I won't hold it against you."

"I'll take that offer," Undyne grins, frowning a bit when you cast her a panicked, worried look, "I'm not going to kill him, just get my hits in and a couple for those wounds he gave you." You sighed, settling with shooting a pout towards Undyne before you settled back in Mettaton's arms.

If Undyne really wanted to knock that dummy's block in, you weren't going to stop her, you just wished she wouldn't. You still didn't like violence, but that might just be because you'd been on the receiving end of it for so long. You sighed once again when Mettaton began to hum, laying your head on his shoulder as you slowly fell asleep.

"Alright, spill," Mettaton demanded the instant the human was sound asleep, which was around the time they made it back to the elevator, "What happened to the kid? I haven't seen anyone this jumpy since the senseless murders ended and I finally got Blooky to go outside."

"From what we've gathered from their sleep talking?" Undyne sighed, glancing at the brothers who seemed just a reluctant to tell anyone, "Hell. The last time Alphys went on a anime marathon and blew up her UnderNet the kid was tossing and turning...Talking about their...human mom...We think they were abused by their own parents."

"It would explain why they so willingly call...Toriel...their mom. I don't think they have any plans to go back to the humans," Sans sighed sadly, "Not that we would let them."

"So they fell down here on accident while trying to run away?" Alphys questioned, looking at the human child Mettaton held protectively to his chest.

"I don't think so," Papyrus frowned, he really didn't like the only conclusion the child's nightmares lead him to, "I think they meant for the fall to kill them."

An uncomfortable silence fell over the group as they all moved to the living quarters of Alphys's lab, none of them wanting to continue the conversation anymore.

"Mettaton," Sans finally spoke up, "Can you check the kid?"

"For what?" Mettaton wondered curiously, laying the child on the couch.

"For magic," Sans sighed, "I think they tried their hand at magic before they fell."

"Oh," Mettaton murmured, rubbing the back of his neck, "Very well then." He gently laid his hand on Frisk's chest as his soul glowed faintly, calling Frisk's soul gently to the surface. It was an ability few monsters held, to sense another's magical capabilities, and one Mettaton knew he was only being asked to use because the older skeleton wanted a second opinion. "It's...Very faint," Mettaton sighed, obviously disappointed he had found anything at all, "I don't think they consciously tried to use it. It...Feels more like they accidentally summoned it to the surface...Sans...How long have the been in the Underground?"

"From what I've gathered?" Sans mused quietly, "Going on two months now."

"Their magic surfaced when they fell then," Mettaton said numbly, a feeling of dread washing over him, "Not of their own will either."

"What do you mean?" Undyne's head snapped up. What did he mean the kid hadn't somehow summoned their magic on their own?

"Think about it," Alphys stated, starting to put the pieces together, "Flowey was right there. Chara and Asriel in one being, watching another human fall. How is a young monster's magic brought to the surface?"

"The parents coax it to the surface with their own," Sans took over, his eye sockets blank as he realized what this all meant, "Asriel...He must have reached out with what magic he could control, and pulled what little magic is in the kid to the surface. Coaxed it into the first spell a child is taught." "Protection," Papyrus murmured, glancing over at the young human.

"Sans," Mettaton finally spoke back up, "Why did you want to know if they had magic?"

"The kid wants to help Asgore break the barrier," Sans grinned proudly, even if he was dreading what would happen to Frisk when the time came, "But they don't even know how to transfer their magic to another. If we can teach them that at the least, we won't have to force them through the years it would take to learn to cast the spell themselves."

"Guys," Undyne interrupted, everyone instantly following her gaze to a restless Frisk.

"Little Thief," a man growled pulling you along by your hair as he walked.

"I gave you the money for it!" you protested, desperately trying to break free.

"I don't want your stolen money," he sneered, pulling your hair harder and frowning when you refused to scream for him. You knew where he was taking you, and you had no plans on going back there again. He was dragging you home.

"I didn't steal it! I earned it fair and square!" you screamed, silently cursing everyone that walked past you without even trying to help. No one in this town liked you. With another tug on your hair, you finally resigned yourself to a decision. You grabbed onto his leg and pulled, not releasing his leg until he let go of your hair and fell to the ground.

You took off running without a second thought, ignoring the pain as every cut and bruise on your body screamed its protest. You knew exactly where you were going to go. If no one wanted you, you were going where no one could even find your body.

"Shit," you hissed as you heard gun shots behind you just as you finally reached the tree line, "Should've taken the bastard's phone."

You growled stubbornly as you started up the mountain, dropping to all fours and practically clawing your way to the top as you refused to stop. You grinned when finally reached the top and saw the top of the mountain you had heard all your life was strictly forbidden, although no one knew why. You didn't even look back as you jumped.

"Please don't die!"

You shot up, groaning as your head collided with something hard.

"Oh my, I'm so sorry, darling!" Mettaton gasped, gently helping you sit up as your head throbbed from the collision, "I was just about to wake you when you shot up."

"It's okay," you smiled tiredly, rubbing your head as you noticed everyone staring at you, "What?"

"Do you...Want to talk about it?" Papyrus prodded gently, causing you sigh quietly.

You had been wondering how much longer until someone directly asked you about the nightmares, about why it was so rare for you wake calmly from your sleep. You just...Didn't expect to be asked with people that were still so...new to you around.

"Guess there's no point trying to keep it to myself anymore," you sigh, not bothering to tell them you had been waiting years for someone to finally be willing to listen, "I take it...most of you have already figured out I was abused?" You chuckled numbly when you saw Alphys's mildly shocked face, she apparently hadn't connected all the dots until just then.

Wasn't she supposed to be the smart one?

"There's a small town at the foot of this mountain," you sigh, trying to piece together the best way to say it, "I guess you could say I was a table scrap child. My parents weren't drunks, but they were violent. Break something, fail a class, cry, anything that interrupted their lives lead to a beating. Mother wasn't too bad, she only beat me until I stopped making noise. Father, he was bad, whenever he got involved it always lead to waking up in a hospital. What do you expect though, he was a boxer that had been thrown out of the organization."

"Wait," Undyne interrupted gently, "You said..."

"That I can barely read and don't know a lot of the bigger words?" you interrupted, grinning tiredly at her, "I was left in school just long enough to learn the very basics when they decided it wasn't worth the money for me to keep going. After that it finally dawned on me I didn't have a single friend in the entire town. Everyone took their shot at me for any reason that happened to come to their mind. I didn't even understand why I was so hated until I fell down here, and I know at least three of you should have noticed it by now." You paused as you unzipped your hoodie, pulling the right side down and rolling up your shirt sleeve to reveal a symbol that seemed very familiar to everyone.

"The...D-D-Delta Ruin?" Alphys stuttered, and you only nodded.

"Was wondering what that was called," you chuckled dryly, "On the surface it's one of the markings we've forgotten the meaning of, just like no one remembers why you should never climb Mt. Ebott. In my town, there's hundreds of records of this mark appearing on someone. Apparently, it used to happen once every thirty years, but it started to happen more and more often. I was the second child born in my year with the mark. The first one had been killed, I was supposed to be raised as an experiment to understand why the more they killed the ones baring the marks, the faster the marks returned. They never said I had to be in good health, only that I had to stay alive."

"That's why you have magic," Sans finally spoke up, stopping your train of thought dead in it tracks.

You...had magic?

"What?" you wondered, eyeing Sans like he had finally gone insane from all his bad puns.

"You have a small bit of magic," Mettaton began to explain slowly, "When you...jumped, we think Asriel recognized your mark and pulled it to the surface to protect you from your fall. You weren't even aware you had magic until just now, so it understands why the magic is still newborn and faint. You won't be able to truly access it unless you're willing to practice with it."

"Asriel...Pulled my magic to the surface?" you questioned, holding your throbbing head, gasping quietly when Papyrus held his cold, glove-less fingers to the sore spot on your head.

"It's the exact same as what a parent monster does for their child when they're old enough to begin practicing with magic," Sans took his turn at explaining, "They use a harmless burst of their own magic to push their child's magic to the surface, and then use a little bit of their magic to coax the child's to take the form of their first spell. We think Asriel used what little control he had to pull your magic to the surface and shape into that spell. A spell we call, Protection."

"Asgore?" you snorted at the spell's name.

"Of course!" Undyne grinned.

"So, the spell is why...the fall didn't kill me," you murmured quietly, yelping as you instantly squished between Mettaton, Sans, and Papyrus.

Since when did you have three clingy males trying to suffocate you?

"Get used to it," Undyne grinned, sitting down as she left the three keep you trapped in a hug, "You're part of this family whether you like it or not and those three right there are the most protective ones by far...Yes, even more protective than me."

"Wasn't...trying to argue," you grunt, squirming to try to get free from your three captors. Thankfully, your stomach seemed to decide food was more important at that point. Mettaton and Papyrus almost instantly released you, practically racing for the kitchen as Sans moved you over onto his lap.

"Is there a reason the human isn't allowed down?" you huff, crossing your arms childishly.

"The human isn't allowed to get hurt anymore," Sans grinned, loosely holding you around your waist and practically daring you to try to go somewhere without him.

"I almost feel sorry for you, runt," Undyne grinned teasingly, making absolutely no move to help you, "There's not a force alive than can change those three's mind once they decide something."

You merely roll your eyes, leaning back against Sans in favor of being more comfortable than stubborn, "So, what is the plan anyways? It's not like we can just stay here. We've still got to get to Asgore, break the barrier, and figure out how to save Asriel!"

"B...But Asriel is only half a soul," Alphys finally spoke up, "There's no way to save him."

"Sans, is Gaster still in that room?" you questioned, seemingly completely ignoring Alphys.

The fact that Sans stopped looking at you and was looking over his shoulder at an empty wall was all you needed to know. Sans could openly walk through the world's code, he could see and access more things than the others thought.

"There are more fragmented souls aren't there?" You question, watching as Sans slowly nodded his head.

"What are you planning, baby bones?"he wondered as he turned his attention back to you.

"The determination serum," you frown slightly, not entirely sure where this plan was coming from, "What would it do to a monster soul that had absorbed a human's soul and therefore had already absorbed some determination? He can reset, I know he can. He's a monster with the powers you told me only a human can have."

Sans stared at you for a moment when you felt his fingers twitch on your waist, and you were both suddenly downstairs in front of a computer as his fingers started flying across the keyboard.

"Oh dear," Mettaton hummed, and you looked over to see him holding a large plate for you while Papyrus seemed to be trying to think of a 'rescue the human from Sans' plan, "Sans, darling, the human does need to eat you know." Alphys screamed bloody murder from the top floor when a stack of papers went flying with a flash of blue and you were shifted just enough he could still type while you ate.

"What's...going on?" you questioned quietly as you began eating, pausing when you realized it was mashed potatoes and spaghetti; that was new.

"Sans was a scientist before Alphys," Mettaton explained, sitting down in a chair he pulled up to the other side of the desk, "He worked alongside W. D. Gaster long before Alphys, though he left with Gaster's disappearance. I believe you re-awakened his inner scientist."

"THERE IS NO STOPPING MY BROTHER WHEN HE IS LIKE THIS, ESPECIALLY IF HE HAS DEEMED YOU UNSAFE TO LEAVE HIS SIDE!" Papyrus called, helping Undyne and Alphys pick up the mass amount of papers.

"Okay, let's forget about the stopping," you sigh, listening to the furious tapping as you ate, "How do you at least get him to let you go?"

"NOT POSSIBLE! I HAVE TRIED MANY TIMES!" Papyrus grinned.

You weren't sure if he was proud of his brother's protectiveness, or happy someone else was finally in his boots for a change.

Sans continued on that way for the better half of an hour before he finally stopped abusing the poor keyboard.

"Done?" you wondered, looking away briefly from the vocabulary list Mettaton had been helping you through. He had apparently decided he was going to be your English teacher, and everyone else was going to have to figure out what they were going to teach you themselves. Honestly, you weren't sure if it was purely his idea, or if Alphys had come up with it because she instantly jumped at the job of math teacher.

"For now," Sans muttered, staring at the screen and studying it for any errors.

"Three...Two," Papyrus grinned, breaking off his argument with Undyne for the moment just as Sans suddenly turned a hilarious shade of blue.

"Sans?" you questioned, poking his dark blue cheekbones as he looked away nervously.

"Sorry," he muttered, scratching his other cheekbone in embarrassment, "Didn't mean to...Do that."

"Oh it's fine, you had fun," you snickered quietly, watching his cheekbones turned an even darker blue, "So, will it work?"

"It...might," Sans sighed, staring at the screen once more, "If...we can convince him to finish absorbing Chara."

"I thought there was no way to stop the process?" Alphys's eyes widened, Sans casting an uninterested glance her way.

"You can lead a horse to water, but you can't force it to drink," Sans sighed, "If the host truly doesn't want to consume the soul, the body will forcibly stop the process, perceiving the soul as a threat."

"But unlike food...There's no way to regurgitate a soul once it's been consumed," Alphys added on as she finally pieced everything together, Sans nodding his agreement.

"Why do we still need the serum then?" you questioned, now thoroughly confused. Weren't Chara and Asriel both balf souls?

"According to Gaster, Chara's no longer a half soul. They're closer to a...quarter soul," Sans rubbed his skull as he tried to explain, "Dying creates a half soul, but Chara technically died twice. Once before they were absorbed and once after, the second death further damaging their soul as it had never been completely absorbed. Had it been, there wouldn't be the problem of two souls fighting over the same body."

"I'll figure something out," you grinned tilting your head slightly as you look between Sans and Mettaton, "So, what now? We still have to get to Asgore."

"I have a show in two weeks," Mettaton hummed thoughtfully, "We'll continue your school until then, darling. How's that sound?"

"Sounds good, anyone claim science and magic yet?" Sans grinned before you could protest.

"Darling of course not!" Mettaton grinned, "I'm teaching them english, Alphys is taking math, and Undyne and Papyrus are still fighting over who is P.E. and who's home economics."

You sighed as you tapped Mettaton's arm with your pen, turning the piece of paper back towards him.

"Hm? Economics?" he wondered, neatly writing the word on the page as you nodded.

"Just teaching the kid the big words?" Sans wondered, looking the paper over as it was turned back towards you.

"As well as cursive, basic grammar rules, and spelling," Mettaton grinned proudly, pointing over to Alphys who was on a smaller computer rapidly tapping away, "Alphys is working on basic mathematics and a little bit of pre-algebra."

You blinked when the walls started practically crawling with bones, Sans pulling you closer to him as all of you looked over to see Papyrus and Undyne moments away from getting in a full out brawl. You looked back at Sans when you felt his magic blazing to life again, looking over at the fighting pair as they both started floating.

"SANS!" they both yelled, though Sans merely grinned as he separated the two of them.

"Undyne," Sans hummed thoughtfully, "You can handle physical education. You've trained the royal guards under you, you know how to tell where someone's limits are. Papyrus can teach the kid home economics, I've seen him cooking with the kid before. He's patient and observant enough they won't get hurt, even while he's making spaghetti." You had to snicker a little bit as Undyne looked like she was pouting, unable argue that Sans had a point.

"Well," you chuckled, though you still wish you could get to Asgore already, "Looks like we have a plan for now."


[1 Week and 6 Days Later]

"Okay, baby bones, nice and slow," Sans smiled and he took your hand.

It was your last magic lesson before Mettaton's show and the robot had taken everyone else out to do something while you stayed at the lab with Sans. You frowned a bit as Sans brought his magic to the surface, and you focused hard to follow his example.

"Good, now, do you remember the next step?" he smiled encouragingly.

You nodded slowly as you wrapped your magic around your hand until it was glowing red, just like Sans' hand was glowing a fiery blue. It took a moment longer for you to start slowly blending your magic into his, looking up at him to make sure you weren't accidentally hurting him as your magic swirled purple where the two met.

"Good job!" Sans beamed once his hand was entirely purple, once more talking you through how to dispel your magic as he did the same to his, "Looks like you've really got the hang of it kiddo."

You grinned a bit sheepishly as you nodded, happy you were finally able to get it right. The last two weeks had practically flown by, everyone helping you with the basic skills you had never fully developed, and of course the one you hadn't even known you had. You could now transfer your magic to another, your magic practice partner changed every day to make sure you didn't learn how to only mix your magic with Sans, and you could 'cast' Protection and Mend; a basic healing spell, nothing like what Sans usually had to use on you.

Mettaton would randomly quiz you throughout the day on new words or rules you had learned in the morning with him, just like Alphys would give you a few pages of homework that were based on that day's lesson. You were actually proud you could finally, at the very least, do basic multiplication, division was still hard for you if you couldn't write it down. You, Sans, and Alphys had even come up with a pair of phones that could send each other messages even if one was in the void during one of your science classes. Of course, you found out quickly that you could only really communicate if Sans or Papyrus was around because they were the only ones that could read "Wing Ding." According to Alphys it was because the pair themselves spoke in fonts as well, which they had to explain by texting Alphys and having her show you the messages. She offered to update your phone, but you didn't have the heart to change the phone Toriel had given you, which ultimately ended in her handing you a custom made phone the next day.

"Darlings! We're home!" Mettaton called, dropping a large pile of bags in the middle of the makeshift living-room you had all made in the lab, "How goes magic class?"

"Just finished up," Sans chuckled, ruffling your hair, "Frisk's got the basics down pat."

"METTATON! CAN WE SHOW THE HUMAN THEIR SUPRISE NOW!?" Papyrus called as he finally got through the door, dropping off a large amount of bags off near the ones Undyne had brought in.

"What did you guys do?" you wondered, going over to peek into one of the bags until you were hoisted into the air by Sans' magic, looking over at him as he left you floating upside-down.

"No ruining the surprise, baby bones," he grinned, turning you so you could no longer see all of the bags.

"Fine," you huffed with a roll of your eyes, "Then where's Alphys and Undyne? I thought they left with you guys?"

"Oh they did, darling," Mettaton practically sang, "We'll meet up with them later tonight. Now, go change. Go on now, shoo."

You blinked as a bag was thrust into your arms and you were deposited upstairs on Alphys's bed. You merely rolled your eyes as you got up and started unpacking the bag.

…Was this...Really?

You ran across the room to the slowly filling scrapbook, opening it to the first page as you looked between it and the pile of clothes on the bed. Black dress pants, black socks, a purple tank top, purple sneakers, purple wrist bands, and a black hat with a shiny purple front...Exactly like Mettaton had drawn in your book. You could only grin as you changed into your new clothes, but you still kept your hoodie tied around waist, it was strange but you always had a nagging feeling that told you not to put it down. You didn't waste time grabbing the camera Alphys had given you almost two weeks ago and running for the stairs, pausing only long enough to hear Papyrus yell, "YOU CAN COME DOWN NOW HUMAN!"

You grinned as you run down the stairs, stopping dead in your tracks when you saw the three waiting for you. Mettaton looked like his usual self, but he was looking over you approvingly, not seeming to mind your unwillingness to completely remove your hoodie. Sans was wearing a black tank top, a nicer looking blue hoodie than his usual one, black dress pants in place of his usual shorts, and slip one shoes that were the same shade of blue as his hoodie. Papyrus, on the other hand, was wearing the black and orange version of your hat, a black tank top with an orange hoodie like Sans, black dress pants, and orange boots. "You like it, darling?" Mettaton grinned.

"I love it!" You grinned, running up and hugging Mettaton around the waist, "But what's all for?"

"Oh, you'll see, darling," Mettaton teased, causing you to pout, "Now come along, we have to get going so we make it back on time!"

"Can we listen to that song again on the way?" you grinned, stuffing your camera and scrapbook into the backpack Papyrus had bought for you the last time he was allowed to go shopping alone. You still didn't understand how he had found a spaghetti shaped backpack.

"Of course, darling," Mettaton chuckled as he started playing music from the speaker in his chest, "Anything for a fan."

You laughed as you and Papyrus danced along to the music as you walked, not a care in the world.

When was the last time you had ever been this happy? You couldn't remember. Ever since you entered the underground your world has been turned upside-down. Here you had a family, albeit a strange one, willing to help you through everything. Sure, it had taken time for you to finally trust any of them, but they had all waited patiently until you were ready. Alphys had probably been the second most patient next to Sans.

Even after you had said you would give her a chance, you had been unwilling to be left alone in the room with her. Oddly enough, she been respectful of that desire, always entering the room with at least one of the others. She wouldn't even sit next to you for the longest time, always keeping a table or some other large object between you and her. Honestly, you hadn't understood why you were unable to trust her, until you had snapped awake from a nightmare so terrified of her she had to be taken out of her own home. You couldn't remember what the nightmare had been able, but Sans had explained you had a repressed memory, one that didn't seem to want to resurface unless you were asleep,. Apparently at some point you had been subject to those experiments you had told them you were supposed to forced through.

Sans, by far, had been the most patient with you. You couldn't really remember the first week you had been with him, when you had spent almost all of your time unconscious. You could, however, faintly recall bits and pieces of the few times you had been awake. Times of him sitting on the opposite side of the room as you cowered against the wall on his bed, times of him feeding you when you didn't have the strength to move, small fragments of the times he had helped you...even if you hadn't wanted it. Maybe that is why he was the first you trusted so fully...Why he's the one that almost always decided how quickly you put your trust in anyone. Except Undyne...Monster Kid had done most of the convincing that Undyne wasn't a bad...monster...just that she acted before she thought things entirely through.

"Whoa," you gasped, jarring yourself out of your own thoughts as you looked at the large building before you, "Where are we?"

"Where I work, darling. Where else?" Mettaton smiled, Sans and Papyrus taking your hands as you walked into the large building.

"MTT Resort," Sans chuckled while Papyrus looked around excitedly.

"Mani, darling," Mettaton greeted a monster with a hand for a head, "Is everything ready?"

"Yes, Mettaton, here's the spare room keys you requested," they replied, handing Mettaton two sets of keys, "Your two guests have already already arrived."

"Five guests," Mettaton corrected, pulling you up next to him as he smiled tensely, "And if anything happens to my little darling here, your next manicure is going to be the least of your worries."

You actually felt a little bad as you saw the new monster sweat in panic.

A little...


[Ten Minutes Later...]

"Frisk, you okay?" Undyne wondered, waving her hand in front of your face with a worried expression.

You weren't entirely sure how long you'd been standing just in the doorway, staring wide eyed at Mettaton's suite. Everything was different shades of black, silver, and pink but arranged in a way where one color wasn't completely overwhelming. You could faintly remember, from a time you had been listening to a woman at the newspaper stand, that this was the...rich version of a modern style home, just compacted into a suite.

"Come on, baby bones, the couch doesn't bite," Sans grinned as he used his magic to hoist you into the air, using the same magic to remove your shoes before pulling you over and setting you on the couch next to him, "It just likes to loaf around."

"SANS!" Papyrus shrieked from somewhere in the background as you laughed.

"So, you excited for your performance tomorrow, Mettaton?" you smiled, tilting your head when you save Mettaton flash you a devious grin.

"Of course, darling!" Mettaton grinned, "But you should be too. Your big debut is tomorrow as well~!"

"H-Huh?" You stuttered, staring wide eyed at the robot before you.

"Don't worry, kiddo," Sans chuckled, "Pap and me'll be there with you."

"Unless you really don't want to, darling. I won't make you do something you're not comfortable with," Mettaton assured.

Oh...Oh shit...How the hell had you forgotten?! "N-No! I want to!" You quickly assure.

"Are you sure?" Mettaton asked, kneeling down in front of you so he was looking you in the eye.

"Y-Yes, positive," you stuttered once more, "I just...wasn't expecting that." Although, in all honestly, you should have given how closely this resembled the drawing Mettaton had done for you.

"THAT IS WHY THEY CALL IT A SUPRISE!" Papyrus chimed in happily from the background again, "METTATON, WHAT ARE ALL THESE BOOKS?!"

"DON'T TOUCH THOSE!" Mettaton suddenly shrieked in embarrassment.

"Oh, those are Mettaton's dairies. The filled ones at least, he has another stash somewhere from when he bought a new book for every day of his life," Alphys explained, running and hiding behind Undyne when Mettaton dove for her. You were too busy laughing to see what happened after that.

"Mettaton, what's that?" you wondered as you noticed Papyrus watching more Mettaton re-runs in the living-room.

"What's what, darling?" Mettaton wondered, turning towards where you pointed, trying to find what you were talking about.

"The rating chart on the side on your show," you clarified.

"OH!" Mettaton laughed, "The yellow line is the goal I hope to reach one of these days, and well I'll take a call from one of my viewers."

"So you've never had that many viewers?" You wondered, tilting your head slightly. You had been pretty sure Mettaton was something that was watched by everyone in the Underground.

"Not yet," Mettaton chuckled, a dreamy look coming over his features, "But I plan on going above and beyond that marker when we reach the surface."

"Why?" you asked warily.

"Because of all the human viewers I'll gain once we reach the surface," Mettaton grinned.

"But why?" You sighed, "The monsters down here need someone to look up to, don't they? Humans already have plenty, believe me. They all suck, but monsters?...You're all they have aren't you? The only monster they have to count on for any happiness down here..."

Mettaton was silent for a long while before a thoughtful look came over his features. "You're absolutely right, darling," he said with a certain finality, "I cannot let my fans down. This next show will be the biggest one yet!"

"I'll help however I can," You laughed, watching as Mettaton ran off somewhere, your English lesson completely forgotten.

"So, we all sleeping in different beds or camping out?" Undyne asked, handing you a bowl of cut up fruits.

"Camping out!" Everyone replied while you just shook your head with a smile.

"Camping out" had become code for "dog pile with the human in the middle" after the last night you had a nightmare. No one wanted to leave you alone to go back to their makeshift beds, so when you had woken up the next morning you were completely surrounded by everyone. When they did it the very next night...there was a universal shock that you hadn't woken up with a nightmare. Undyne had claimed you had nightmares when you didn't feel completely safe, and feeling surrounded by people you trusted while you slept was like the reason she slept with one hand on her spear.

"Alright, bed time," Sans chuckled, snapping you from your thoughts as you lifted by Papyrus and plopped into the middle of the giant makeshift bed mad of cushions and pillows.

You hadn't even realized you had finished eating and the bowl had been taken from you.

"IT IS THE GREAT PAPYRUS'S TURN TO HAVE THE TEDDY BEAR!" he declared, laying down and pulling you to his chest before anyone could protest.

You could only chuckle as you rolled your eyes at his antics. You were always his 'teddy bear' since the camp outs had started, it was just that Sans usually held you hostage on top of him.

"Yeah, Papa Bones can survive one night without the runt," Undyne snickered, laying down next to Alphys to your left.

You laughed when Sans' face turned bright blue and he buried his face in his pile of pillows on your right. Mettaton was sleeping at everyone's head as it was the closest to the wall for him to plug into to recharge.

"Night guys," you finally yawn, laying your head down as you slowly fell asleep, faintly hearing everyone's own chime of goodnight.


The next day you were all woken up by a banging on the door. Mettaton was the first to get up, marching towards the door and cracking it open.

"I believe I made specific orders that no one was to wake me until it was time to prepare for the show," Mettaton grumbled.

"I-I'm sorry, sir, but the agency thought it would make for a great segment to interview you with all of your co-stars before the show," a new voice spoke up from the other side of the door.

"As long as the others are fine with it," you sighed, just loud enough for Mettaton to hear.

You sat up, sleepily scratching your head as you looked at where you were. At some point in the night you had ended up between Sans and Papyrus, and both of the sleepy brothers were not very fond of the idea of letting you go. Their arms were stubbornly wrapped around your waist as they glared at the doorway, Undyne was more awake but she still looked like she was going to run a spear through the door to get the one that had given all of you such a horrible wake up call.

It took a few minutes before the others gave half-hearted, tired thumbs up...

"Fine," Mettaton sighed, grinning threateningly, "But if you step out of line, I can offer no guarantee to your safety." You had to snicker as a well dressed man walked into the room looking ready to wet himself.

"A h-human?" he stuttered, and you felt all your amusement disappear as Sans' and Papyrus's magic flared warningly.

"Darling, I would watch where you tread," Mettaton warned in a sing-song voice. You were hoisted into the air as Papyrus stood, holding you to him as he sat in the middle of the couch with you. Sans sat to your left while Mettaton sat next to him, and Undyne and Alphys sat to your right with Alphys directly next to you.

"Okay, let's start simple," the man began, clearing his throat as he seemed to snap out of his terrified stupor, "What are your names? Of course, everyone already knows that great Mettaton and Undyne the Undying."

"From right to left then," Mettaton took over as he slowly pointed to everyone as he spoke, "Undyne the Undying and Captain of the Royal Guard, Alphys the Royal Scientist, Papyrus the 'Coolest Skeleton Alive,' his brother Sans the Skeleton, and of course moi, Mettaton."

"I-I'm sorry but you appear to have skipped one," he stuttered.

"Go ahead, I already agreed to this," you sigh, looking over at Mettaton, "You know where the line is."

"Very well then," Mettaton sighed, "The one in the middle is our precious little darling, Frisk, and while we're at it, allow me to offer a warning. If anyone hurts or little darling, not even Asgore himself can save them."

"Ton-ton, stop trying to make the guy wet himself," You scold softly, deciding to tease the star, "Sans, Pap-pap, and Undyne have that completely handled for you."

Sadly enough, it was true too. Sans and Papyrus were allowing their magic to show while Undyne was pretending to be busy polishing her spear. Undyne wasn't kidding when she had said you had the most over-protective monsters in the underground for a family...

"Oh fine, Frisk darling," Mettaton laughs.

"O...Okay, next question," the man stutters, "Would it be...Crossing the line to ask what your relationship with...Frisk is?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Alphys spoke up this time, shaking her head as the man simply raises a brow, "Let's make this simple then. You're sitting in a nest."

"Alphys!" you whine as the man instantly looks ready to run for the hills again.

"Oh let us have our fun," Undyne grins, "He owes us for the rude awakening."

You merely sigh as you settle in for what's going to be a long morning.

It takes almost two hours before the man has enough answers and finally leaves, Undyne instantly moving into the kitchen and beginning to make everyone breakfast. Although, it didn't last very long as she had to return to help Mettaton pry you out of Papyrus's hold. If you tried to wiggle yourself free he simply held onto you tighter.

"Pap-pap!" you yelled, shaking Sans as he didn't seem very keen on helping you, "What is wrong with him?!"

Then, like a spell had come undone, you were released and crashed straight into Undyne.

"S...Sorry, baby bones," Sans apologized softly.

"It's fine, but what happened to you two?" you wondered as Undyne returned to the kitchen after brushing you off.

"THAT MAN!" Papyrus practically growled, "I DON'T LIKE HIM!"

Really?...They held you hostage because they didn't like the guy? Really?

"I don't blame you, darling," Mettaton huffed, "But he is a rat. Just be happy he's more cowered than thief."

"I think anyone would be terrified with all of you looking like you were trying to find the best way to kill him," you huffed, grinning as Undyne handed you a plate of pancakes. "So, why did you call this place a nest?" you asked once everyone had gotten their food.

"Oh, that's what most monsters call their home when there is a child present," Alphys chuckled, "You're our kid so why wouldn't we call our homes our nests?"

"THE HUMAN IS CHANGING COLORS AGAIN!" Papyrus yelled, pointing his fork accusingly at you.

"Nah, kid's just blushing," Undyne grinned.

"At least my skin doesn't make me turn purple," you grumble, squealing and struggling as Undyne instantly has you captured in a headlock and is giving you a noogie.

The day passes quickly after that, Mettaton giving you a crash course on the basic steps for the show.

"Did you invite Napstablook?" you asked, following Mettaton's movements as you both danced to the song.

"Of course, Darling," he chuckled, "I've even sent Undyne and Alphys to make sure he actually comes!"

"Oh nooo, pour Napstablook," you laughed.

"Okay, Frisk, darling, can you flip my switch back for me? It's just for a little while," Mettaton asked gently, he knew his temporary body made you uneasy.

You nod as Mettaton turns around and you flip his switch to its original position, wincing as his voice immediately becomes just a little more robotic than usual.

"Thank you, Frisk. Now remember, none of it is going to be real, and you have to flip it back during the first song's first song chorus," he says gently, his screen showing a heart in place of the smile he can no longer show you.

"I know," you smile reassuringly. He ran you through the first song the most so you understood you weren't actually fighting, that he had no plans of hitting you.


[That Night...]

This is it...

It took everything you had not to grin nervously at Mettaton as you both stood on opposite sides of the stage. Sans and Papyrus were in the back waiting for their turn, which wasn't until the end of the song. When the music began however, you allowed yourself to grin. Of course, it was your best impression of Undyne's 'I'll kick your ass!" grin.

Darling, I can show you where my loves hides

It's a Heart. Beat.

On a Hard. Drive.

Your grin widened as Mettaton began the attacks, your soul revealing itself as the familiar options appeared before you.

Yeah, I'm dancing with your soul in my sights

It's a Show. Down.

In the Spot. Light.

Dodge. Pose. Repeat. Each dodge brought you closer to closer to Mettaton as he 'refused' to back down.

Honey, glamour's got me out of my mind

Face to screen with Mettaton,

Like a kill. Switch.

Next to Mettaton as he faked moving to grab you.

On my back. Side.

Flip. Boom. The grin falls as you pretend to be frozen in fear. Who knew being used to wearing masks around people was actually useful for other things?

And the camera's got you frozen in time.

Like a save. State.

In a game. File.

Your grin turns defiant as it returns, Mettaton's 'attacks' forcing you to dodge in rhythm with the music.

I'm dreaming like no Dreemurr ever could

There's my name! Up in lights!

Fifteen minutes won't suffice, baby!

I'm sorry but it's for the greater good

Raise the stakes! Pick a fight!

And these ratings might ignite, baby!

You start fighting back, the fake attacks more like a dance meant to force each other to move as you go back and forth.

You got a lot of nerve my friend

What day and age you think we're living in?

You've got a lot to learn human

Did you really think the doc was in?

A busy signal as you cast your phone away, barely catching Undyne hidden in the crowd catching the abandoned electronic.

Darling, I can show you where my loves hides

It's a Heart. Beat.

On a Hard. Drive.

Yeah, I'm dancing with your soul in my sights

It's a Show. Down.

In the Spot. Light.

Honey, glamour's got me out of my mind

Like a kill. Switch.

On my back. Side.

You launch after the switch again, but Mettaton catches your wrist this time and 'forces' you to dance with him, seemingly drawing out the fight before he kills the human.

And the camera's got you frozen in time.

Like a save. State.

In a game. File.

Pretending to struggle for freedom as you dance in sync with Mettaton.

Electronic Personality

Persona Fabulosity

With romance, bloodshed, and intrigue!

Give the people what they need!

You let a cry escape your lips as Mettaton casts you away, biting a ketchup pack inside your mouth as you pretend to spit up blood, posing before you're forced to dodge once again.

A star! For humanity!

My face! On a million screen!

Turn around. Run past him.

Now turn your heel but don't you flee

Who needs arms with legs like these

Mettaton folds his arms behind his back as he cuts you off with a kick, all of his dancing now solely focused around his legs.

Get a loud of my sequins

Strut my stuff, you know I'm glammorin'

You're gonna go to the dungeon

Do you really think that I won't win?!

Oh Mettaton was such a ham...You sneered as you dodged a kick and accidentally stepped right into a trap, a cage springing around you.

Darling, I can show you where my loves hides

It's a Heart. Beat.

On a Hard. Drive.

Yeah, I'm dancing with your soul in my sights

It's a Show. Down.

In the Spot. Light.

Honey, glamour's got me out of my mind

Like a kill. Switch.

On my back. Side.

It's a Heart. Beat.

On a Hard. Drive. [x4]

"Thank you, darlings!" Mettaton yelled to the crowd when his song ended, walking towards your cage as you looked towards the rating monitor. So close... "Now, I do hope you don't think the show is over," he teased as he opened the cage and pulled you up next to him, "Because my darling little Frisk and I have much more planned for you with the help of a few of our friends!"

You hide slightly behind Mettaton when the crowd began whispering, a blush crossing your cheeks when you hear the sound of the ratings going up again.

"Now, Frisk? What would you like to see happen tonight?" Mettaton smiled as he gently pushed you forward. You knew you weren't exactly following script anymore as your blush grew. Without the music your nerves were back in full force.

"U...Um," you stuttered slightly, looking at the camera shyly, "To...reach the viewer milestone."

Mettaton chuckled as you instantly hid completely behind him, "Well, darlings? What do you say? Can we meet my little darling's goal?"

You didn't even have to see his face to know he was winking. There was a loud roar from the crowd for several minutes until music started playing again, Sans and Papyrus both walking up onto the stage as your grin returned in full force. It figures they would pick this song.

Drop.

Pop.

Candy.


Author's Note: The song used at the end is "Hard Drive" by Griffinilla

"HARD DRIVE" - UNDERTALE METTATON SONG | by Griffinilla