"And that was all?"
Fate took a small, deep breath and then nodded towards Gaster, who she had just told her story to.
"Yes. After that, I just… ran. Destiny found me in the middle of the snowstorm." She finished explaining, in which Gaster gave a nod back. She wasn't sure if he agreed with her actions, she didn't know if she agreed with herself, but he still seemed to accept her and she appreciated that
"… I worked in the big lab once, when I only had Sans and Papyrus. I didn't like Dr. Torres; he was always full of himself and didn't think of any consequences or mistakes when it came to experimenting." Gaster explained, in which Fate couldn't help but agree. That certainly sounded like Dr. Torres. "When I heard they were using a little girl for the big experiment, I didn't agree with it. I figured that she'd be dead in a second and that it was a waste of a life… but here you are."
Fate let out a scoff and shook her head a bit. Was she really here? She wasn't free.
".. Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence..." She joked, not wanting to bring. The mood down any more further. However, Gaster's hand gently made its way to the side of her face, bringing her worried gaze to his soft, understanding one.
"Child, I am always here for you... the other kid's love you for who you are—"
"For who they think they know."
"They love you no matter what." Gaster sighed, his voice calm and absolute despite Fate's interruption. Said girl bit her bottom lip gently, still unsure about one particular person.
".. What about Destiny..?" She asked softly, removing her gaze once again from Gaster's. She hadn't really thought about how much Destiny knew and how scared he would be... but now that she was thinking about it, she couldn't stop thinking that maybe he would hate her. Maybe he would tell the others and they would kick her out of the house. Maybe they would carry her back to the lab or set her on fire like some sort of witch or—
"It's okay."
Fate's head snapped up to see Destiny standing in the doorway and she nearly started crying when she realized that he had heard everything. He looked calm, though, if not a little worried.
"I don't hate you. I get it, you were scared and you defended yourself... you saw an opening and you took it. Dr. Torres sounds like he was an awful guy who deserved it anyways." Destiny told her, although Gaster gave him a bit of a look that made him look a little ashamed. "I don't hate you." He repeated, climbing up onto the seat beside her. They were both so small that they could share one and very gently, with caution, Destiny gave Fate a hug. "You're my friend. I could never hate you! I understand and I know that the others would as well, but... I think we shouldn't tell them all of it."
"I agree, Destiny." Gaster sighed, getting up from his seat as Fate leaned into Destiny's embrace with a couple of tears rolling down her cheeks. "I'm going to tell everyone the twisted truth... that Fate is from the big lab and was an experiment, but she is not dangerous and has not killed anyone. They simply think that she is dangerous and they are bad people for subjecting her to everything they did... but we stay calm and we protect our own."
"What!? Why!?"
Fate jumped a little bit at Destiny's raised tone, sinking down in her chair and leaning closer to her bowl of cereal. Cereal was great, like bread and milk except... better.
"I'm not sure if Fate should go to school, Destiny." Gaster repeated as he poured himself a cup of coffee. "She's been hauled back in studies most likely due to staying in the lab, she doesn't like social interaction.. It would be the new school year, I know, but most of the kids? Ugh, don't get me started on the PTA meetings either!"
"But Dadster—" Destiny went to argue, but Fate suddenly snapped her head up.
"I'm very well-educated, Gaster..." She said, her voice still soft, but actually stern for once. "I love to read and to write, math is super easy, science is great from what I've seen from the books in your study... whatever else there is, I'm sure some social interaction will be nothing. I mean... I hate social interaction, but the others will be there, right? I trust them and I'll just... stick with them.."
"Yes, but Fate... you have to keep up grades. You have to deal with kids younger, your age, or older and listen to a teacher. They tell you what to do and if you don't do it, you get detention or sent to the principal's office. Plus... some kids like to tease and bully." Gaster explained, in which Fate frowned a bit, thinking about it all over again. Would they make fun of her bruises? Her scars, her... injuries, perhaps her appearance?
"Hey, by the way... you're always wearing gloves, Fate." Destiny pointed out, in which Fate's head snapped up to look at him. She didn't mind him knowing, so she removed the glove on her left hand and held it out to him, showing that she was missing her ring finger and her middle finger on that hand. She also had the birthmark of a star on the inside of her wrist. "Whoa, that's so cool! How are you gonna get married in the future, though?"
Fate had never thought about marriage before and stared at her hand for a moment before shrugging.
"I guess... the ring will just be on the remaining stump." She replied, in which Destiny nodded in agreement.
Gaster sighed at this, wondering if Fate could really handle school... it was worth a shot, right?
Fate didn't realize that school started early in the morning. She nearly face-planted into her cereal twice before realizing that she didn't know what to wear, as she didn't want to wear her regular clothes. Luckily, Destiny was her friend and became a very good helper when it came to these kinds of things.
He picked out a dark blue jumper with a several black stripes, a pair of black cropped leggings, a pair of blue overalls with shorts instead of pants, a pair of dark green socks and a pair of red and white high-tops. He told her that she didn't need gloves, but Gaster changed her bandages before she had gotten dressed and she still needed to bundle up. She would never take off her necklaces or her bracelet, not ever.
Destiny and the others seemed pleased that she was going to school with them and honestly, Fate was very excited as well, past her anxiety about what would happen. Would the kids be nice? Would the teachers be nice? Would the subjects be easy or hard?
Upon entering the classroom, she and everyone sat down in a group together, putting their backpacks beside their desks. Fate found the desks really cool, honestly, and was glad that Destiny had lended her one of his old backpacks. It was a plain black and Fate was content with that.
Class started only minutes later, a tall woman making her way into the room. Fate just then realized that this was a human and monster school, which gave her a bit more anxiety.
"Good morning, class!" The woman greeted cheerfully. "My name is Anna Bush; you can call me Mrs. Bush. Your first assignment of the New Year—" She paused to let the kids jeer, besides Fate who actually seemed a little interested. "—is to introduce yourselves to your classmates and to me! I'll give you fifteen minutes to fill out a paper before I call you up one by one to read them, but I do understand that some students might be nervous or they might have some trouble speaking, so… you may pass or ask someone else to speak for you, if necessary." She paused again, having passed out all of the papers and made it back to the front of the class. "So, little minds… start writing!"
"Okay, little minds, your fifteen minutes is up!"
Fate squeezed onto the pencil Destiny had given her, finishing up the last thing on her page just a minute after she was supposed to. She had to fill things out like her name, her birthday, her favourite foods and color, her likes, and… what she wanted to be when she grew up.
"We'll go in order of the attendance list, which means A to Z. First up, we have Judith Acerbi!"
A young girl with wild black hair and fierce brown eyes stood up from nearby, a huge smile spread across her face.
"I'm Judith Acerbi!" The girl introduced, sounding ecstatic. "I just moved here with my older brother, Klahan, and our mom! My birthday is May 24th and my Mom is a landscape gardener! My favorite color is beige and my favorite foods are bacon and chips with salsa! My interests include gangster movies, architecture, and baking! When I grow up, I want to be a baker!" She then took a seat and Mrs. Bush continued.
"Next, we have Destiny Allyn."
Fate watched as Destiny stood up on his chair so everyone would be able to see him, which caused multiple giggles to ring out through the room. He seemed unphased, his huge and usual grin on his face as he spoke.
"I'm Destiny Allyn and I've lived here for awhile with Dr. Gaster and a bunch of my friends, Asgore, Toriel, and Papyrus, Sans, Fate, Undyne, and Alphys!" Destiny introduced, having no trouble listing his whole household. Fate blushed a bit when he mentioned her, putting her head down as much as she could so she could stay hidden, but also continue to listen. "My birthday is July 15th and Dr. Gaster is, like in his title, a doctor… well, a scientist! My favorite colors are orange and blue, and my favorite foods are blueberries and tomatoes. I'm allergic to olives, though. My interests include dragons and olden things like castles and stuff! When I grow up, um… I want to be an archaeologist!"
Destiny then sat down, getting a high-five from Sans, who was sitting in front of Fate, and she did her best to give him a small smile. Mrs. Bush then continued on and Fate sat back, hoping for this to go fast but to also take a bit because she didn't want to speak. Maybe she could get Destiny to read for her? Mrs. Bush said that she could do that if necessary… School was already super weird, honestly!
"Felicia Bayer."
Felicia was a girl with long, braided, wavy blonde hair and brown eyes.
"I'm Felicia Bayer and I've lived here since I was born with my twin brother, Felix, my little sister, Peggy, and my parents, Albert Bayer and Kiara Bayer. My birthday is February 2nd and my Daddy's a historian while my Mom's a model! My favorite color is hot pink and my favorite food is mashed potatoes. My interests include dogs and romance movies, and when I grow up; I want to be a model just like my Mom!"
"Felix Bayer."
Felix was a boy with shaggy, wavy blonde hair and brown eyes much like his twin sister.
"I'm Felix Bayer and I live here with my twin sister, Felicia, my little sister, Peggy, and my parents, Albert and Kiara. My birthday is February 2nd, and my Dad and Mom work as a historian and a model. My favorite color is light blue and my favorite food is pasta, while my interests are… art, baseball, and music. When I grow up, I… I kind of want to be a dancer or something. Maybe an artist or a singer…"
"Toriel Damiani."
Toriel seemed to have no problem standing up and talking to the class. She seemed… calm, almost. She also mentioned Fate.
"I'm Toriel Damiani and I live here with Dr. Gaster and my friend, Asgore, Sans, Papyrus, Alphys, Undyne, Destiny and Fate. My birthday is September 30th and my favorite color is purple, and my favorite food is pie. My interests are baking and reading, and when I grow up, I wish to be a baker."
"Asgore Dreemurr."
Asgore was calm, much like Toriel, but also a little fidgety. He mentioned Fate with ease.
"I'm Asgore Dreemurr and I live with Dr. Gaster, Toriel, Sans, Papyrus, Alphys, Undyne, Destiny and Fate. My birthday is September 10th and my favorite colors are pink and white. My favorite food is pie and I like to drink tea. My interests are gardening and origami, and when I grow up, I want to be a gardener."
"Jamie Eccleston."
Jamie was a girl with short, wavy, golden-blonde hair and dark green eyes.
"I'm Jamie Eccleston and I live with my Dad and Mom, David and Helen. My birthday is March 22nd and my Dad works as a delivery driver. My favorite color is olive green and my favorite food is a grilled cheese sandwich. My interests are baseball, old computer games, adventure movies, and action figures. When I grow up, I kinda want to be a scientist, but Dad says that I should be a baker or something."
"Abraham Fairclough."
Abraham was a boy with short, curly auburn hair and dark brown eyes.
"I'm Abraham Fairclough, you can call me Abe. I live with my twin brother, Eugene, my little sister, Hallie, and my parents, Brent and Linda. My birthday is November 30th. My Dad is a tailor and my Mom is a teacher, working here in fact! My favorite color is a dark pink—I mean, blue, and my favorite food is pizza! My interests are art, music, soccer, and romance movies. When I grow up… I, um… I want to be an illustrator!"
"Eugene Fairclough."
Eugene looked exactly like his twin with short, curly auburn hair and dark brown eyes, but his face was more round.
"I'm Eugene Fairclough, my birthday is November 30th. I live with my twin brother, Abraham, my little sister, Hallie, and my parents, Brent and Linda. My favorite color is a light pinkish-beige or a teal green and my favorite foods are pizza and meatloaf. My interests are soccer, action movies, and classical music. When I grow up, I want to be a musician!"
"Papyrus Gaster."
Wait, so Gaster was their last name? What was Dr. Gaster's first name, then? As per usual, however, Papyrus was full of enthusiasm and very bright.
"I am the Great Papyrus! My birthday is July 24th! I live with my Dad, my big brother Sans, and our friends! My favorite colors are red and orange, while my favorite food is spaghetti! My interests are cooking, being a hero, and playing games! When I grow up, I want to be a chef!"
"Sans Gaster."
Fate would have to ask Gaster's first name later, but she noticed that Sans only sat up more straight instead of standing and seemed very laid-back about everything.
"My name is Sans. My birthday is September 3rd. I live with my Dad, my younger brother Papyrus, and a group of my friends. My favorite color is blue, my favorite foods are hot dogs and burgers with fries and my interests are sleeping and science. When I grow up, I want to either be a scientist… or nothing, because being nothing means I can be lazy."
"Fate Konno."
Oh no. Fate froze, unsure of what to do and how to tell anyone that she really didn't want to speak. She was anxious and now that all eyes were on her because she had to raise her hand in order to not get marked away, she felt like she was going to have a panic attack. Oh God, she was holding up her left hand. Now everyone could see her missing fingers and her birthmark!
"Um, Mrs. Bush? Fate has anxiety and has barely ever left the house before, so could I read for her? It would definitely help out a lot." Destiny told her, standing up on his chair again and gently grabbing Fate's hand to tell her that she could put it down. She did without missing a beat, putting her head down as well. Mrs. Bush gave a small, understanding smile and nodded, in which Fate passed Destiny her paper and tried her best to ignore all of the eyes on her fragile little body.
"This is Fate, she lives with Dr. Gaster, the others and I. Her birthday is August 7th, her favorite color is green, and her favorite foods are pie, chocolate, and macaroni and cheese. She's allergic to Avocados, though, but likes to drink tea! Her interests are music, drawing, and reading books if she's not writing! When she grows up, she wants to be a police officer or an author!"
Destiny sat down again, passing Fate's sheet back to her, and without missing a beat, Mrs. Bush gave a nod, checked off Fate's name, and then continued down the list despite some of the whispering throughout the class.
"Chara Oakley."
Chara was a child with chin-length light brown hair and red eyes, who seemed very chill with everything as they took a stand.
"I'm Chara Oakley and I live with my twin sibling, Frisk, and our parents, Georgia and Bradley. My birthday is October 31st and I was actually born a day later than Frisk, really put our Mother through hell. Also, I'm Agender, so please use they/them pronouns. My favorite colors are black, green, yellow and red, and my favorite food is chocolate anything. My interests are horror films, horror games, horror books, theatre, and medieval things. When I grow up, I want to be an actor or game designer."
"Frisk Oakley."
Frisk was a child with chin-length dark brown hair and brownish-red eyes who stood up, but had Chara still stand with them. They put their hands up and Fate suddenly understood why. Frisk used sign language and Chara was going to translate to those who didn't understand.
"Hi! I'm Frisk Oakley; my birthday is October 30th because I was born a day earlier than my sibling, Chara. I'm also Agender with they/them pronouns and my parents are Georgia and Bradley Oakley. My Mom is a reporter and my Dad is a receptionist. My favorite colors are blue and purple, and my favorite foods are pudding, pasta, and pie. Tea is nice to drink, but not too hot. My interests are drawing, exploring, movies, and theatre. When I grow up, I want to be whatever I can be to help people!"
"Undyne Segreti."
Undyne shot up from her seat just as Frisk and Chara sat down, super excited and ready to use her loud voice that was the perfect match for Papyrus' very loud voice.
"My name is Undyne Segreti! I live with Dr. Gaster and my friends, but my besties are Papyrus and Alphys! My birthday is April 19th, my favorite colors are blue and yellow, and my favorite foods are sushi, spaghetti and ramen noodles! My interests are anime, sports and playing the piano! When I grow up, I want to be a strong hero!"
"Karina Valerio."
Karina was a girl with platinum blonde hair and small green eyes, who sent a side-glare at Fate and her little group. It made Fate uncomfortable because she wasn't even sure what they had done.
"Hello, I'm Karina Valerio and my birthday is on January 26th! I live with my little brother, Logan, and we live with our parents! Our Dad, Ian, is a security guard and our Mom, Diana, is a teacher who works here! My favorite colors are pink and gold and my favorite foods are grapes and yogurt! I like to go clothes shopping, I like to dance, and I love to listen to music plus sing! When I grow up, I want to either be a model or an actor!"
Karina took a bow, a couple of people clapping very loudly and obnoxiously for her, but Fate couldn't help but giggle at how Undyne and Sans discreetly booed from between their hands. Destiny even went so far as to disguise a "you suck" in a pretend sneeze. Mrs. Bush seemed used to this and that made Fate want to giggle more, but she didn't want to be mean to Karina considering that they didn't know each other very well.
"Logan Valerio."
Logan was a young boy with short, messy platinum blonde hair and hazel green eyes.
"H-Hi, I'm Logan Valerio and my birthday is June 12th. I live with my older sister, by one year, Karina and our parents, Ian and Diana. Y-You already know her and what they do for a l-living. M-My favorite colors are purple, blue, gray, black and green, and my favorite foods are pears, corn steak, sausages and bagels with cream cheese. I'm allergic to crab and kumquats, though! My interests include sports, music, e-even dancing… When I grow up, I-I actually want to be a dancer or an engineer!"
"Alphys Willoughby."
Alphys immediately covered her face with her hands and Undyne carefully grabbed her paper from her, standing up again to read for her friend.
"This is Alphys; she lives with us and Dr. Gaster! Her birthday is December 18th! Her favorite colors are blue and yellow, just like me, and her favorite food is ramen noodles! Her interests include anime and science, and when she grows up; she wants to be a scientist!"
"And lastly, MK Zingel."
MK was a small monster with no arms, but he seemed full of potential and very ecstatic as he stood up.
"Yo, my name is MK! I live with my Dad, who's a construction worker, and my Mom, who is a part-time midwife and a part-time film producer! My birthday is October 16th, my favorite colors are orange and yellow, and my favorite foods are lemon cakes, French fries and strawberries! My interests include drawing, painting, just art in particular, camping, treasure hunting, action movies and soccer! When I grow up, I want to be an artist!"
And with that, the whole class had been introduced and Fate felt a little better, a little more comfortable, even as Eugene leaned over Destiny's desk to talk to her.
"Hey, do you like comic books?" He asked although Destiny was frowning at him, and Fate decided to just answer honestly. She shrugged a bit.
"I… I've never read one… Sorry…" She replied, in which Eugene gasped, seeming excited about that.
"I have plenty of good recommendations! I'll write a list of what's in the library and give it to you, if you'd like?" Eugene questioned, in which Fate quickly nodded. She wanted to make friends and she wanted to seem normal. Eugene continued talking. "Also, you have nothing to be sorry about!"
"Except for being a nerd." Felicia giggled, leaning forward in her seat. Logan seemed embarrassed and ashamed for his sister's words and Fate couldn't help but feel a little offended, biting her bottom lip gently.
"Why don't you apologize for being ugly?" Chara suddenly spoke up, leaning back a bit. Fate felt her face heating up at being defended by some sort of stranger. It was nice…
"Excuse me!?" Felicia gasped, looking offended, but Chara only continued.
"Why, did you fart?"
The whole group started giggling and Fate felt a smile pulling at her lips. Chara was… great! The bell rang just in time and Felicia scoffed, standing up angrily and sashaying away from all of them. Chara gained multiple high-fives and Abraham turned to Chara to high-five them and then point at them.
"That was great. I like you." He stated, in which Chara shrugged.
"It's all in a day's work." They stated, giving Fate a small smile before standing up and pulling Frisk up with them. "Come on, Frisk! Let's go run around on that big field for all of our fifteen break minutes!" Frisk nodded excitingly and then the pair of siblings were off.
Fate found this okay.
Fate pulled her jacket hood over her head, sliding down her chair with a comic book recommended by Eugene because of the PTA meeting. It happened every Monday and Friday night, after school, and the kids were supposed to go with the adults. Since Gaster was part of the PTA, she had to be there with him and the others.
She didn't mind it. It was fairly quiet except for some chattering at the moment.
The kids were in a separate part of the room from the adults anyways, so Fate wasn't really worried. Eugene came and sat down beside her, a couple of simple nods passed between them before they both just went back to reading to same series of comic books.
However, Fate found herself putting down her comic book to help Eugene make a fort out of pillows, blankets and chairs. They both sat in there and then continued to read… again. They were joined by Eugene's younger sister Hallie and Frisk, who was also reading a comic book. Chara eventually came to check on their sibling and joined them as well, bringing Judith and her older brother Klahan in with them. Klahan was tall and muscular, so he had to sit by the door to fit into the fort with them, which no one minded.
However, a blonde Mother suddenly walked by them, probably to go to the bathroom, but stopped upon seeing the fort. Almost immediately, Klahan, Judith, Hallie and Eugene climbed out of it, rushing away to do their own little things again. Eugene looked close to having a panic attack alongside Klahan. Chara crawled out with Frisk and Fate behind them, although Fate stayed in the fort for a sense of security. This lady was glaring at the three of them, after all.
"Greetings, Linda." Chara greeted, but the blonde Mother only glared more. Fate was uncomfortable.
"Take this thing down right now." Linda ordered, but Fate found herself not wanting to listen. She liked her little fort of protection.
"I-It's a fort, ma'am…" Fate told her softly, only to bring the glaring upon herself.
Everyone stared at her in shock and she wasn't sure why, but she got really scared when Linda stormed forward and started to take it apart herself. Despite Fate not wanting to leave, she immediately got out and ended up clinging to Chara. She didn't like being close to strangers, but Chara had already proven to be kind. However, Linda still turned to her with a look beyond pissed, getting far too close.
"Clean it up." She ordered, but Fate was already breathing too harshly to respond properly.
"P-Please, g-get back…" She mumbled, mostly for Linda's safety and not her own. By then, some of the parents had come in to see what was taking Linda so long, including Gaster.
"Not until you clean up your mess!" Linda yelled, in which Fate started dry heaving by then. It wouldn't stay that way for too long.
"Linda, I suggest that you step back." Gaster told the human lady sternly, walking towards her. "Fate has anxiety and you're triggering her, somehow."
"Bah, that's bullshit! She's just a child and this anxiety doesn't exist!" Linda argued back, but Gaster continued to try and get her to step back before Fate did something.
"I have a literal PhD, Linda. Take a step back." Gaster early ordered, in which Linda only crossed her arms and stood her ground.
It was too late by then for Gaster to pull her away. Fate had already thrown up, all over Linda's brand-new sparkly shoes… and every single kid was laughing as Linda screamed in disgust. Chara was laughing so hard that they couldn't comfort Fate, but Destiny was luckily able to make his way over, gently rubbing Fate's back and trying to calm her down.
"Everyone is dismissed!" Linda shrieked, quickly storming away. Her kids quickly followed her, Eugene giving Fate a quick pat on the shoulder before picking up his sister and running off.
Fate felt awful. She was crying and she didn't know how to apologize, especially since Linda was already long out the door with her three children. She was rocking back and forth and sobbing loudly, unable to even get up to leave. Gaster quickly and carefully picked up the small, fragile girl, gathering his kids together and then having them take their leave. This wasn't Fate's fault, after all, it was Linda's.