"You know I'm going to make you talk about it." Fuku informed you simply as you pulled on your summer pajamas. The two of you had agreed to share her bed for the night since you hadn't gotten the chance to buy a mattress yet.
"I know." You replied, falling into bed next to her. She had placed it right under the skylight, making the night sky the number one thing to gaze at presently.
"Do you want to just tell me? Or do I have to drag this out of you?" Your bestie complained.
"Some dragging required." You told her honestly.
Fuku sighed before rolling to face you. Considerately, you copied her. "I already know how you intended to do it. How close were you?"
"You got doused during those riots. How much extra magic do you think I had to bring you back from that?" Fuku glared at you, unsatisfied with your answer. "Fine. Maybe a week? It isn't easy to pin exact times with overloads."
Fuku choked, eyes starting to fill. "So I almost lost you, and I didn't even know it?" You didn't respond. This question, you knew was rhetorical. "What changed?"
You shrugged. "You guys stayed. My magic had never brought me anything good until then. At least, nothing that brought me any happiness." You corrected. "But you guys were so happy, I figured maybe it was worth waiting it out."
You were suddenly engulfed by warm, fiery arms. You patted Fuku on the back as she sobbed into your pajama tank.
It was similar to the position Grillby had you in back then. He had hugged both Fuku and you so hard…It had been a first for you. When non-mage humans found out about your magic, they tended to distance themselves. When monsters found out, you never heard from them again.
Grillby had saved you then, and you doubted he'd ever known it.
A loud banging woke you in the morning. After a moment, you realized someone was knocking at the door. Seriously? Who wanted to disturb you at…six a.m. on a Saturday morning?
It took you a few seconds to detangle yourself from Fuku's grasp. She was really clingy in her sleep. Not that you were one to talk; you were just as bad. She groaned at the loss, and grasped for the empty space you had previously filled.
How could one person be so cute? You set a pillow inside her reach before briskly walking down the hallway to the main room. You almost tripped over a stack of Fuku's boxes on the way. The knocking started up again just as you reached the door. With all the irritation of someone who'd just been woken up, you wrenched it open and glared out.
A yellow, clawed hand was right at eye level to you. Alphys dropped it back to her side, taking a moment to inspect you before a large grin broke out over her face. Next to her, Undyne stood, holding a colorfully wrapped box of her own.
"Guys, housewarming parties don't occur before dawn." You complained, standing aside so the two could come in.
"DID THEY ANSWER YET?" An excited voice called from the street. Seriously?
You stomped outside and lifted the top gift from the stack Sans was carrying. It was a bit heavy, but it didn't irritate your shoulder at all, so you locked your gaze on him, one eyebrow raised. Like Alphys had before, your friend gave you a full once over. "You're going to wake up the whole neighborhood, you guys." You stated loudly enough for your houseguests to hear you as you turned to walk back inside.
"Damn, Punk. You've got a lot of moxie to be walking around outside like that." Alphys whistled, impressed. You set the box you were holding down just inside before turning back around to ask.
Undyne had turned her beautiful purple color again, and Sans, blushing heavily, seemed to absolutely refuse to look at you again. What? You looked down at yourself.
Your face lit up like a cherry tomato. You were wearing your summer pajamas. They were made to only just cover enough, since the weather tended to get unbearably hot. Which was fine…around Fuku. Maybe even Undyne and Alphys. They were girls.
Something Sans, notably, was not.
You let out an embarrassed squeak before dashing back down the hall to Fuku's room, tripping over that dangerous box on the way. A pained grunt escaped from your lips as you landed just inside Fuku's door. One that, sadly, woke her up.
"Wha…?" Fuku groggily gazed around the room until her eyes landed on you, dominant hand pressing on your shoulder as if the pressure would make the pain stop. "What happened _?" The fire elemental demanded, covering the distance between you in less than a second.
"I just tripped over a box. It'll be fine." You assured her as her hands hovered cautiously over your form. "Seriously. It didn't reopen or anything. We have guests." You informed her, reaching over to your bag to find some clothes.
She still paused for a minute to watch you warily before slipping out of her own pajamas and into clothes.
The blush had almost faded from Sans's face when the two of you remerged into the front room. It vaguely made you wonder: was he blushing for you, or because of you? Embarrassedly, you realized that you hoped it was the second option.
A flash of blue dragged you gaze to Fuku, who was checking her phone. "Muffet will be here soon." She told you, interrupting your question. You felt the smile spreading across your face as your other friends exchanged confused glances.
"Does this mean she's officially your girlfriend then?" you demanded, grasping Fuku's hands and holding them captive with your own. "I mean, I got the date rundown, but you didn't tell me about any future stuff!"
Someone behind you let out an amused snort, but you were far too interested in Fuku's answer to admonish them for it. "We…might be…" You tugged on her captive hands, bringing her closer to you. She was slightly taller than you, so the dark look you gave her seemed a bit less intimidating, but it got your point across. "Yes! We are, you cretin! We're just in the beginning stages though; why are you making me do this?"
"So excited!" You shouted, forgetting that the door was still open.
"About what, Dearie?" Muffet inquired, poking her head through the entryway.
"You and Fuku's relationship status!" You answered thoughtlessly, pointing at the monster vivaciously in your elation.
There was a long, silent pause before she smiled. Shifting her gaze to her girlfriend, Muffet stepped inside, saying, "I'm glad you have such a good friend, Dear." The lack of that 'ie' at the end really made a world of difference.
"Sorry we don't have the place a little more put together for you guys. I can run to the grocery store for some food." You offered.
"THAT'S OKAY, _. WE BROUGHT SOME DISHES. ALSO, ASGORE SAID HE WOULD DROP BY WITH SOME FOOD LATER, SINCE CHARA WANTED TO COME. I'LL GO FETCH THE FOOD FROM THE CAR."
"Okie then. More surprise guests. Anybody else I should know about?" As if on cue, your phone buzzed in your pocket. Who'd been listening in?
"Pa-papyrus was going t-to c-come later. H-he said th-this was t-too early." Sans confirmed this as he walked back in, arms filled with bowls.
"I've no doubt. I think it's too early." You replied as you flipped your phone open. A text from Jamie congratulated you on the new place and demanded pictures. Rolling your eyes, you sauntered to the kitchen for some breakfast.
Papyrus, Asgore, Toriel, and Chara showed up around ten, bearing gifts and lunch. Grillby was only about ten minutes behind them.
Muffet gifted the two of you an entire set of baking pans, a whisk, a rubber spatula, and two mixing bowls. Grillby supplemented your cooking needs with a full set of pans and saucepans, two more spatulas, assorted cooking spoons, and a cutting board.
Chara gifted you small, framed paintings to decorate the walls. Asgore ended up lugging in his gift through the front door: a slightly used burgundy couch and matching recliner. Toriel gifted you a dark grey area rug and a matching runner.
Undyne brought a collection of anime and a DVD player. Apparently, Sans had told Alphys of your plans for the backyard, since she gifted you both several yard games.
Papyrus's haphazardly wrapped gift contained a funny doormat that said "come in" when you looked at it from one direction, and "go away" when you viewed it from the other. Also included was a small card with your name on it. Inside was a hastily scrawled 'Sorry for being an ass to you'. Honestly, it was more than you'd thought you were going to get. You had a feeling Sans had made him write it. Sans had several contributions including a cookbook, a throw blanket decorated with bones, a toothbrush holder, and a five-hundred-piece puzzle picturing a kitten playing with a ball of yarn.
Several of them headed out to the yard to set up a game of ladder toss as your phone buzzed again. You excused yourself to the kitchen before tugging your phone out of your pocket to check the message.
You slammed the phone down onto the counter, dropping your head into your hands. That noise seemed to summon your friends. "What's wrong? _?" Fuku's voice reached you first, slipping into the kitchen right afterward, closely followed by Undyne and Muffet.
"Sorry." You mumbled, not lifting your head.
"What is it, Dearie? You don't seem like the type to keep things to yourself." Muffet inquired politely. It must be hard, trying to comfort your girlfriend's bestie when you hardly knew her.
"My parents are coming to town tomorrow to check out the place and visit." You stated evenly. "A bit more warning would be nice."
All three paused for a moment. "I-is that a-a bad th-thing? F-family is im-important." Undyne stuttered to you. It shouldn't be bad, but…
"Kind of. It's complicated." You weren't quite sure how to tell them why you were unhappy about it. Fuku spun your phone to face her and opened it, reading the most recent messages.
"Wait. This wording is odd." She interrupted her girlfriend, who'd been about to speak again. "Why do your parents think…?"
"It's a very complicated situation." You emphasized, hoping she wouldn't press you.
It turns out, Fuku wouldn't, but Undyne would. "Your p-parents don't know you-you're a mage?" And, there it was. Your head dropped to the counter, effectively cutting off your vision of the rest of the room, as well as their reactions, as you groaned.
"No." You whined. "They don't." None of them answered you. Not that you could blame them; if the situations were reversed, you wouldn't know what to say either. For mages, whose magic made up a good portion of who they were, it was ludicrous that the closest people in the world didn't even know about it.
Then Muffet asked why. How could you even explain this awkward set of circumstances? You had no idea.
Your parents disapproved of magic, strongly. Ironic, considering that all three of their children had turned out to be mages. Their disapproval was dangerous, however. Both in potentially causing children to overload from suppressing their power, and in the more physical sense.
To protect everyone involved, the three of you had been handed over to the academy, and your parents' memories wiped. For the time that they were clueless about you and your siblings' magic, they'd turned super-doting.
"What's happening, Punks?" Alphys loud voice boomed through the silent house.
"Nothing!" You called back, still trying to piece your words together. For now, explanations would have to wait. "Let's go play."
Though her introduction to you was quite a bit late, you had certainly left an impression on Muffet. It was hard not to, with how much Fuku talked about you. It might have made her jealous if Fuku hadn't clarified your relationship for her.
Having met you, she understood.
Muffet had been wary, especially hearing that you were a mage. Fuku gave you such a vote of confidence, though, that she had reserved judgement. You clearly didn't come without your own problems, but you seemed harmless enough.
You also had potentially presented a large hurdle for the budding relationship. It was impossible to get by without getting along with her girlfriend's best friend. Difficult if said friend didn't approve. This was just a simple rule of relationships.
You approved, though. You seemed to value Fuku's happiness more than just about anything, elated when she and Fuku did anything intimate. That made Muffet like you.