"So," Toriel closes the door behind Aofil, "this is your office, Toriel?"

"I insisted on it being the same size as the others, but since I'm the headmaster it needed to be bigger for logistical and ceremonial reasons."

Aofil takes the seat Toriel offers, "Ceremonial?"

Toriel sits down on hers, but it doesn't complain, "I was quick to call out Asgore on his language, but he promised me that it was necessary. I'm still hesitant towards the reasons he brought up, but I can't admit that I don't like it a bit more roomy."

"Oh, just look at me," Toriel laughs while realizing that her eyes are still wet, "I've gone and stained not only my dress, but your shirt as well, human," she hangs her eyes on Aofil, and are immediately filled with water again, "Oh my," she laughs again, "you're a bit more distorted than before," and moves her finger up to her eyes again, "or am I crying again?"

"It's been a while, Toriel," Aofil admits with a lowered head.

"Very much so, human," Toriel scoffs, and tears land on the desk, "Just listen to me, I'm still calling you human, and not your name. Guess I haven't shaken that off yet."

"How do you feel seeing me, Toriel?"

"What do you mean by that? I'm overjoyed, nothing less. Why would you ask such a question? You know I would never think less of you. Despite what happened. Never, my human."

Aofil still has to pry, they must know, "You don't feel like your mind is hurting? You still call me human," Aofil's worried. Wait, they're worried?

Toriel curses herself under her breath, "Forgive me, Aofil. I want to say that it's just a slip of my tongue, but it would be unfair to you to lie like that. You're my human, Aofil. Your our human, along with Frisk. Frisk saved us from the Underground, and you welcomed us to the Surface. There hasn't been anyone else these past years that have come close to you. I've met so many wonderful humans, but no one like you. No one has touched my soul quite like you did, Aofil. No one has done the things you've done for us. You're our human, Aofil, but calling you that isn't healthy. We live together now, and such language is something that we should've left in the Underground. I hope you can have patience with this old goat, Aofil. I promise you that I'll make an honest effort in calling you by your name from now on."

Aofil nods in thanks, but something else is on their mind. Something that Toriel appeared to just say in passing, but to Aofil it's a wall of a word, "So you're a goat now? Not a monster?"

Toriel smiles a proud smile, "The first step is to accept it, right? And lead by example? If I correct people and tell them that I am a monster, then I would be dismissing what I'm trying to make the norm. It's my way of easing the tensions between us, and I'm making it a rule of mine to not address someone as human. I have to be a goat, so that one day monsters and humans may be equal. So that we don't have to refer to us as species, but rather a united people. True, the words will never disappear, but I can take the edge off them. If I have to be called a goat for it to happen, then I'll gladly do it. I couldn't in the Underground, but times have changed."

"So you're comfortable with being a goat?"

"Truth be told," Toriel's shoulders sink as she heaves a tired sigh, "no. Maybe one day I can visit the zoo again, but not in the foreseeable future."

She has to be poking Aofil's curiosity willingly, she just has to, "The zoo?"

Toriel rubs her forehead, "Asgore's idea. He wanted to show the little ones the animals that inhabit the Surface, for them to learn more about them. I saw through his lie though, he wanted to go there himself. He has this smile when he's embarrassingly exciting over something. The fact that he isn't embarrassed over it makes it worse. He should be embarrassed, but he isn't. He was more childish than the kids once we arrived. When we got to the petting zoo..."

Toriel shakes her head and heaves another deep and annoyed sigh, "He," and moves her hand from her forehead to over her mouth. It doesn't cover her growing smile though, "he just stopped and stared at them, and them at him. The king of the monsters, mesmerized by a herd of goats."

"Did he find his true people?"

Toriel quells a laugh, "Don't say those things, Aofil. Now I'm questioning it."

"Sorry."

"Don't be, I'd rather laugh than contemplate over it. Anyways, after realizing that he wouldn't realize, I walked up to him and dragged him back by the horns. He bleated, and his people bleated in return."

Aofil tries their hardest to keep a straight face, "Really?"

"Why did I ever marry that fool?" Toriel wonders out loud.

"Has he done something like that before?"

"Only once, long ago, when we were still in the Underground. We were on a picnic with Char..." Toriel's mouth shuts close, but it's too late. They both know who she means.

"Yeah..." is the only thing Aofil can say, "You probably were..."

Toriel reaches out for Aofil's hand and lays hers over theirs, "I never had time to ask for your forgiveness, Aofil. About Chara. Me and Asgore, we had our suspicions about your relationship with them. Mostly about your cheeks," Toriel's own stretch into a warm and nostalgic smile. She blinks away a couple of new tears before nodding, "You and Chara have the same ones, Aofil. Your human parents must've been very fond of them. Did they have those as well?"

Aofil drags their hand out from underneath Toriel's, "No, they weren't, not when Chara was still with us. Chara and I," Aofil takes a deep breath, "we're cursed."

Toriel nods slowly, "I know."

Her eyes show no signs of lying, only understanding. Aofil struggles to form words, "H-how?"

"When you left us," Toriel struggles to form her words as well, "and as Frisk was explaining to us why, we were approached by the caretaker of the cemetery. He expressed interest over why monsters were among his flock. No anger, just curiosity. When he saw which grave we were in front of though, his tone shifted. Again, not to anger, but of grief, remorse. He watched the smoke trails of the car you left in dissipate, and then he invited us in for tea."

Aofil knew that they would find out given enough time, that one day they would know about Chara, Aofil, and their family. Still, Aofil feels like they've failed somehow, but they don't know in which way. Despite it feeling like a stone to ask, Aofil feels like they have to, "Did he?"

Toriel nods again, "Yes, he told us about your family, about you and Chara. About your curse. In a sense, I was relieved to know why Chara behaved the way they did. All this time I thought it was something I or Asgore did, something we didn't understand we were doing wrong. We did our best in raising them, making them family, and showing them that they indeed were the hope of the Underground. Yet, I could tell that there was something underneath, something that they were hiding from us, something that, despite me promising Chara that they could share anything that burdened their soul," Toriel stops to put a worried fist up to her muzzle, "Saying it out loud now, I now know why they didn't answer me, I couldn't have chosen worse words to say."

Toriel steadies her voice with a deep breath, "There was always something distant in Chara, but there was so much more love too. They were the hope of the Underground, they were family to us. We loved Chara, with all of our souls, but it was impossible for them to love us back equally. Looking back, I feel a bit disgusted feeling relief over knowing that it wasn't our fault. Asgore as well. When we heard the pastor explain the curse, me and Asgore, we shared a look, and a smile, but as the pastor continued, our smiles melted away."

Aofil braces themselves, but they know it won't help. Toriel does so as well.

"About what happened that day which I want to forget, but know that I can't, when our children died."

Here it comes.

"And when you died, Aofil."

Here it comes…

"I..." Aofil's throat clogs up. There isn't a single piece of them that want to talk about it.

Toriel makes her way around the desk. She knows what's coming. She puts her hand on their cheek before they have time to fall into the memory. Aofil grabs hold of her purple dress, and pulls it closer to them. They need something to hold on to, they need to stay in the now, they can't fall back. The pain, the fear. Aofil knows it, from both sides. They know their own fear, and Chara's fear. One is enough to be thrown into despair, but both?

Aofil hardens their grip, but Toriel allows them, "Whenever you're ready," she calms with a gentle thumb, brushing away Aofil's hair from their eyes.

A minute or two passes before Aofil feels steady enough to continue on their own. They're still tethering on the edge, but they know that Toriel's there to catch them if they fall. Aofil takes a deep breath, "Continue."

"For as much as he wanted to, the pastor couldn't forgive us for that which we had done, or the other kids that were killed. We told him that neither could we, and he thanked us for that. In time, he could perhaps be able to forgive us, but never our actions. Aofil," Toriel tilts Aofil's head to meet hers, "could you?"

"Toriel.." they cry.

"You don't have to, Aofil. It's not fair of me to ask you to either."

"I want to."

Toriel embraces Aofil, and presses her cheek against Aofil's back, "Thank you," she whispers with a quivering voice, "Thank you."

"I want to so much."

"That's all you have to," she whispers again as she returns to her seat, "The pastor then apologized for making demands, but he had to insist that we should tell the truth about the kids that fell. About what happened to them. What we did to them. Asgore, there was something about him that made the pastor stop speaking. Then, with only a look he convinced the pastor that he would. I couldn't see it through his hanging hair, but the pastor nodded with immense relief. I asked Asgore later what he did, but Asgore just smiled and told me that he did what a king should do. I didn't agree with him not telling me, but at the trial, it all made sense."

With their shirt arm Aofil dries of as much moisture as they can from their face, "How was it? What happened?"

"He took all the blame," Toriel clenches her fist. Aofil can tell that she's holding in a lot of anger, "granted, as he should. What he did, what he almost did to Frisk. What I almost did to Frisk. The Underground was our prison, and we were desperate. There was another way, I'm sure of it. I don't know how, but there had to be a way for us to escape without the heinous acts we did! Why did I leave him alone to do these things? What kind of queen was I? I could've helped, yet I abandoned the human kids to their death!"

Aofil opens up the top button of their shirt as they feel the air around them heat up. They reach their head over the desk to meet with Toriel. Her eyes are burning, and almost in the literal sense as well, "Toriel!" they shout to try and snap her back, "It's in the past. You're free now, you're on the Surface. I'm here, your human is here."

Toriel's clenching fists relaxes, and she moves them up to her face. She runs her hands over her rapidly breathing muzzle, "Thank you, Aofil."

"From what I've heard, you've done more than enough to make up for what you did, Toriel. You're a headmaster on a school on the Surface. You're interviewing humans to teach monster children. You've come so far, Toriel. Don't fall back. Don't return."

The last words echo inside Aofil's head, "Don't return," they whisper to themselves. Aofil puts their hand on their fur covered arm. The fur is tense, probably from Toriel's aura. Should Aofil take a pill? Or will that be too suspicious?

"Do you have a bathroom nearby, Toriel? I heard there aren't many here in the Monster City."

Toriel picks up her glasses and composes herself, "Certainly, Aofil. I plan to have humans working here, don't I?"

Her chuckle isn't as joyful as she wanted it to be, but Aofil pretends they didn't notice, "Where?"

"A bit further down the corridors. Would you like for me to fetch some tea for you when you return? Maybe a slice of pie?"

"Water, please," Aofil asks with a smile as they open the door. Toriel's smile is again not as sincere as she would've wanted it to be, but Aofil again pretends it is.

A inconspicuous glowing sign with the text 'Human Toilets' hangs over a door. Aofil takes a wild guess and enters it, only to find that they were completely right in their gamble. They rinse their face to alleviate some stress, and the heavy exhale they shed afterwards proves that it was a very good idea.

The pop of their bottle bounces around the room, but there's no one else in it so Aofil isn't too worried. They swallow one along with some water.

Three hard knocks on the door has Aofil choking on the water they just swallowed.

"Um, excuse me? How long until your interview is finished?"

Aofil doesn't recognize the voice.

"I don't," loud cough, "know."

"Sorry for bothering you."

When Aofil manages to suppress their coughing and opens the door, the knocker isn't there. The corridor is empty. After all these years on the Surface, have they still not learned that humans like to have some privacy from time to time?

Nothing has changed, even after all these years.

They return to an empty room. It takes a couple of minutes, but Toriel finally comes back with a tray. A jug of water along with some glasses are on it, and she pours one for Aofil who takes a mouthful to remove the last of their cough. Why she didn't use the water cooler in the corner of her office is a bit suspicious though.

"I want you to come work here, Aofil."

Why can't they wait until Aofil's done with their drinking before interrupting? Toriel stretches out a hand, but Aofil motions for her to sit back down, "Just give me a second."

"And I'm going to insist on you accepting."

Aofil fakes a few more coughs as they work their brain to try and figure something out. Toriel isn't buying it though.

"We will arrange living for you close by, and for transport of your belongings here."

"Toriel."

"No!" her eyes are watering up again, but her face is stern, commanding, yet still sorrowful, "I'll not let you continue down this path, Aofil. Your place is here, with your friends. With your family. We want to help. Let us. Please."

Aofil digs in their heels, "And what about the friends and family I have at the moment?"

"I know that you're planning on leaving them."

"How?" the question is vicious like poison.

"Sans and Frisk told me."

They did? Did they tell her about Aofil's arm as well? She's not looking at it, so perhaps not. Still, is that why she took so long? Dammit, this wasn't what Aofil had in mind, "What did they tell you?"

"That you're hurting, and that you can't ask for help."

"And my allergy to magic?"

"Alphys can help you with that," Toriel replies without missing a beat.

"And what about the things she can't help me with?"

"We have human doctors here."

Aofil runs a hand through their hair with an accompanying and irritated exhale, "Toriel, with all due respect, no. I can't work with you."

"This isn't the human that welcomed us into their home, Aofil. This isn't the human that did their all teaching this new world for the little ones, and the human that enjoyed every second of it."

"That was before."

"Then come back to before, Aofil."

"I can't ask for you help."

"And that's where you're wrong. That's why you're feeling the way you do. You have to put trust in your friends and family. We're here for you, never forget that..."

Aofil averts their eyes.

"Chara," Toriel finishes. Her hand shoots up to her mouth again, but again, it's too late.

Aofil scoffs tiredly, "I sure am their twin, aren't I?"

"Aofil, forgive me. I didn't mean..." she can't finish her lie, Aofil hears it. They both sit in silence while they contemplate what the other said.

Eventually Aofil sighs, and returns their eyes to Toriel's. She struggles to keep hers still, "Do I have to?"

Toriel nods, "You have to. For your own sake."

"And that's the only sake?"

Toriel looks down, and her ears flop down on the desk, "No, not even close."

Aofil looks at their arm, and recalling that Toriel hasn't done it once. Maybe there is a chance? Alphys made them like this, perhaps she can undo it as well? What about the others? What about the memories that are sure to flood back? They need advice.

Aofil has to return to their family, before they can return to their family.

"Toriel."

She nods, "Yes?"

"Can you get me to Mt Ebott? Please don't ask me why."

"Will you return here afterwards?"

"That's why I need to figure out. Mom studied law, she could help me smooth things over."

"Your mom?"

"I said 'please', Toriel."

She retracts her hand, and puts it over her chest, "Forgive me. Yes, I'll arrange for someone to drive you there."

"Papyrus?"

Toriel's stunned silence confirms Aofil's suspicion.

"Sounds good, actually," they smile, "I could use his optimism right about now."

Toriel picks up her phone, and dials the number, "Then I'll be pleased to inform you that he's still the same Papyrus since the last you saw him."

"Glad to hear that."

After a short phone call Toriel stands up and motions for the door, "Papyrus is busy this evening, unfortunately. I'll call a taxi for you at the front desk, and wait with you until it arrive."

Aofil follows her to the door, "Thank you."

"And if it isn't too much to ask, could I invite you over for dinner later today?" Toriel opens the door and holds it for Aofil, "If you decide to stay, that is?"

It's been a while since Aofil's felt this warmth inside them, but they welcome it with open arms, "Yes, I'd love to."

"Mom!"

It's that voice again.

"Oh, Asriel," Toriel answers.

Asriel?

"I just wanted to say that I'm probably gonna be late for dinner today. Fuku and her friend need a cameraman. It's been a while since I've filmed something so I thought..."

Aofil's eyes widen as much as Asriel's when the two of them meet. Asriel's thumb falls down from over his shoulder, and is left hanging in stunned disbelief.

A smirk grows on Toriel's lips, "I'm afraid you'll have to decline that, Asriel. Aofil needs someone to drive them to Mt Ebott, and you need some more experience for your license test later this month."

She fishes up a pair of keys from her handbag, "I'll pick it up from the parking. You two wait at the front."

Suppressed giggling can be heard from Toriel as she makes her way down the corridor.

Author's Note:

If you want, the One Falls anthology has a channel in the Fanfic Paradise Discord server ( discord. gg/sXVXy7w). I frequent it daily, so if you fancy, feel free to join. Be seeing you there!