A/N: Brief warning-some violence is described in this chapter. Special thanks to my friend, Akinai, for beta reading for me!

After some time, in which Holly had gotten up to go help Papyrus clean up the kitchen, they all ended up in the living room. The taller skeleton sat next to his brother, Undyne taking up the spot on the other side. Holly chose an armchair across from them. Undyne made tea for them, though Holly was unfamiliar with this type. Papyrus had said it was golden flower tea, and as she took a sip, the aroma reminded her of jasmine tea.

"I hope you enjoyed lunch, human! The recipe is something I learned from Undyne," he said, smiling at his friend. Undyne glanced away and tucked a strand of her fiery hair behind a fin.

"Pff, you could learn better cooking from Holly, probably," she admitted, caught off-guard by the pride in Papyrus's voice. The tall skeleton gave Holly a surprised look.

"Oh? Do you know how to make spaghetti, too, human?" he asked, leaning forward in interest. Holly's lips curved upward.

"I do, actually—it's my grandma's recipe. She handed it down to me." She cast her eyes down to the coffee table, lost in a fond memory.

"Oh wowie! A family recipe passed down through the generations! She must be a very skilled chef," Papyrus commented.

"Yeah, she was," Holly smiled. "My grandma made lots of stuff, though. She was kind of old-school, y'know—made a lot of home-cooked meals." The monsters all fell silent for a moment, not missing the past tense.

"Sounds a lot like Tori," Sans finally said. "Her pies are awesome."

"Ooh, I'll have to try them sometime," Holly said. She really had a soft spot for sweet things. "Papyrus, maybe sometime I could show you how to make my grandma's spaghetti recipe? She would have loved to teach you, but I can do it in her place," she offered. Papyrus's palms came together under his chin, eyes lighting up.

"I would love that, human! It would be an honor to be a part of your family tradition!"

Holly gave him a big, genuine grin at this, feeling warmed by how honestly eager he was. He was just… so full of sincerity. People like Papyrus really didn't come around very often. "I'm glad! That gives me a reason to come back," she teased. She glanced over at Sans, who flashed her a thumbs-up that was hidden from the others' view.

"You and Frisk should meet! I could call Toriel and have her bring Frisk along next time you come for a visit," Papyrus suggested, caressing his chin thoughtfully.

"That sounds wonderful," Holly smiled, curling her hands around her teacup. Her thumbs rubbed against each other as she pondered how to say what was on her mind. "So… while you guys were telling stories about Frisk, I sort of noticed that you fought her a lot." She saw Undyne shift in her seat. "Why is that? Did she do something down there, or did you guys not know what she was at first…?"

There was a sudden, heavy silence, in which Papyrus nervously glanced between Holly and Undyne. Slowly, Holly leaned forward and put her empty cup down on the coffee table, wondering if it had been good idea to ask.

"…You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, I was just… curious," she amended, catching Sans's gaze. His pupils flicked towards his brother.

"Hey, bro, could ya do me a favor? I'm runnin' out of socks, can you run a load of laundry?"

Papyrus blinked, then gave Sans a disgruntled look. "Ugh, fine, brother, but you know perfectly well how the washing machine works!" He walked away, muttering. The other two monsters waited until he left to begin talking.

"It's sort of a touchy subject," Sans said once his brother was out of earshot. "But… if you're gonna hang around with us, it's probably better we tell ya the story."

"Does… Papyrus know?" Holly asked hesitantly. Sans shook his head, expression darkening.

"Nah. He doesn't need to know everything."

Holly's gaze lingered on him, an unspoken agreement passing between them. "Okay."

Undyne took the initiative and began speaking first. "Well, you know monsters were trapped underground for hundreds of years, right?"

Holly leaned back in the armchair, giving Undyne her complete attention. "Mhmm, and you said things could come in through the barrier, but they couldn't leave. But you broke through somehow, right?"

"Yeah, we did. But the humans who trapped us put certain… conditions on the spell." She held up a finger. "One, a single monster could only get through the barrier if they had one human soul with them. Vice-versa for a human."

Holly's eyes widened. "How… do you obtain a soul exactly…?"

"You kill the soul's owner," Undyne answered unhappily. Her visible eye never left Holly's face. "The second condition set on the spell was for breaking it completely. To do that, we needed one monster soul… and seven human souls."

Oh. She continued when Holly failed to comment.

"Over hundreds of years, a bunch of human kids fell into the Underground," she said. "They'd all wound up being captured by someone, and brought to King Asgore. And he would… take their souls. Frisk's was going to be the final one."

"Asgore… he killed kids?" Holly whispered in horror. Undyne lifted her lip over her teeth in a snarl.

"He was doing what he had to! He… he didn't want anyone else to have to… do it," she defended, though she sounded unsure. "When Frisk came down, Papyrus didn't want to capture her. He made friends instead." She shook her head, an affectionate smile curving her lips. "He had failed to capture the human. At the time, I was furious… he didn't understand the gravity of what he'd done. So I went after Frisk myself."

Sans stayed silent, but watched Holly intently. She could feel his restlessness.

"She kept running away—once, there was even a monster kid who stood between me and Frisk." Undyne snorted derisively. "I was so angry that the human would use such cheap tactics to escape me. When I finally confronted her, I didn't even tell her the reason I was attacking." She frowned. "I… had fully intended to kill Frisk," she admitted, looking Holly right in the eyes.

Holly stared at her, aghast. Her friend, someone she was starting to care deeply about, had tried to kill a kid? And yet… The look on her face was nothing short of pain and guilt.

Holly appreciated that she was telling the truth, and so bravely. Frisk wasn't dead, Undyne hadn't managed to actually commit an unspeakable act. But the intention behind her actions…

She dipped her head at the monster to continue. Holly noticed her fins droop with each passing moment.

"She ran all the way to Hotland. I went after her, but my armor was not designed for that place. I… passed out," she grumbled, looking embarrassed. "But then, instead of running off, that dork went and got water to splash on me," Undyne said, shaking her head and then frowning. "Now that I look back on it, she never once tried to fight back." She squeezed her eyes shut and dug her claws into the fronts of her thighs. "Frisk didn't deserve to be attacked. She must've been really scared…"

Holly got up and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Hey… you were doing what you thought was going to save everyone, right?" The monster looked up at Holly, surprised. "I'm… not saying I approve of what the monsters were doing. What you intended to do. But…" Holly let her hand fall off of her friend's shoulder. "I can understand why you all felt so desperate."

Undyne looked away, unwilling to speak. Sans took up the story in her stead. "Frisk managed to break the barrier, even without usin' her soul." He focused on something across the room, as if recalling a long-lost memory. "None of us remember exactly how she did it, and she never told us." He shrugged his shoulders stiffly. "But… we're free now, and she didn't have to die."

Holly's brows drew together as she sat back down. "But… what happened to the souls you guys already had? The six human souls that had been there before Frisk?"

"No idea," Sans answered, holding his hands palms-up. He got to his feet. "Anyways, that's about the long and short of it." He glanced down at Undyne, who was staring resolutely at the coffee table. "Almost everyone went after Frisk—not just Undyne. They wanted freedom. For themselves, for…" He jerked his head towards the hallway, where Papyrus had gone. "…loved ones. So don't judge us too harshly, huh?" He started down the hallway, pausing to add, "And, uh… not all humans know about all this. It'd probably be best if they didn't."

He scuffed away, leaving Undyne and Holly alone. Both of them were too lost in thought to say much to one another.

They left soon afterwards, saying their goodbyes to the skeleton brothers. The sun had already gone most of the way down, and Undyne wanted to get back to Alphys. She feebly joked that her girlfriend would get so into her paperwork, that she wouldn't even notice the time passing. Holly thanked Papyrus for a wonderful time, leaning into the hug he gave her this time. She gave Sans a little wave and he smirked before returning it.

The car ride was quiet on the way home. Holly rested her temple on the glass of the passenger window, eyes flicking back and forth as she idly watched trees passing by.

The monsters all seemed like really good people so far. She could hardly believe that most of them had wanted to claim Frisk's soul—to kill a kid—for the sake of breaking a spell. Though, being trapped for what was likely hundreds of years… she couldn't say that she would've sacrificed some stranger's life for the sake of Michelle's freedom. Hell, maybe even for her own freedom. Being stuck in a place that didn't even sound that big, having to live without seeing the sky or knowing what it felt like to have the sun on your back…

But at the same time, she felt betrayed, somehow. She had put her trust in Undyne, believed she was an innocent victim of humans trapping her underground along with other monsters, only to find out that she was an adamant human hunter. That she had sealed off her compassion enough to be okay with going after a lone child. Holly glanced over at Undyne. The monster looked pensive, and hadn't once yelled at any drivers on the road since she'd started driving back. Her fins had lowered down until they folded like collapsed paper fans.

Holly cared about her. It was far too late now to go back from that, even if her friend had done awful things. Undyne obviously felt remorse for her actions now, which was of some comfort. It would take a while to completely forgive this, but for now, it could be put aside. She hadn't known Undyne and Alphys for very long, but Holly could say with complete honesty that she loved these two people very much. She cared deeply for them, and this, too, would pass.

They finally arrived at the apartment complex parking lot. Undyne turned off the engine, but didn't open the door to leave. She heaved a deep sigh, not meeting Holly's eyes.

"Hey, uh…" She hesitated. "Would… you be okay with me coming over to your place still? I would get it if you, uh, didn't want me to come over anymore," she finished, sounding defeated.

Holly breathed in, then let the air go slowly through her nostrils. "Undyne, you are always welcome in my apartment." Undyne finally looked over at her, her visible eye lighting up with hope. "I… I'm not going to lie," she continued, rubbing her wrist with the opposite hand. "It does bother me pretty deeply that you attacked an innocent kid with the intention to kill. But… you didn't go through with it. And you couldn't hurt her once you found out how good of a person she was, and you obviously regret having done… that."

The monster nodded, frowning thoughtfully.

"I love you a whole lot already, Undyne. And Alphys, too. And I'm sure I'll keep falling in love with Papyrus and… Sans," Holly said, touching Undyne's hand. "I promise I won't mention this to anyone else. And I won't judge other monsters by it without getting to know them at first." She scratched the side of her face. "But it will definitely be on my mind."

There was a few seconds of silence before Undyne threw herself at Holly, engulfing her between two powerful arms. "I really can't ask any more of ya, Holl," she muttered. Holly returned the hug, smiling softly. They pulled away from each other, Undyne's eye shining with suspicious brightness.

They looked at each other for a few seconds, thought the silence felt much lighter than before. "Well, guess we should get back to our apartments," Undyne finally said. Holly chuckled.

"Yeah. C'mon, we can walk together part of the way."

They got up to the stairs where their paths split before Undyne said goodbye, giving her friend one more hug.

"Thanks, really," she said sincerely, ruffling Holly's hair. The human smiled and walked back to her apartment, unlocking the door and tossing herself onto the couch.

There was a lot to process. She felt a little better that she and Undyne were okay for now, but she wondered how exactly she was supposed to make friends with other monsters without her opinion of them being tainted before she got to know them. The excitement she felt about meeting new monsters dissipated; now, instead of bubbling warmth and happiness, she felt cold and sadness. A few moments passed until she got up, trying to shake the thoughts that invaded her mind. She slipped into pajamas and sat in front of her laptop, checking out Skype for messages from Michelle. If anyone could take her mind off things, it was her sister.

6:48pm You: heya

6:48pm You: haven't heard from ya for a while, miss talking to you. Give me a call when you're free, or maybe we can do a skype call? I got news to share about my life and stuff :3

A minute or so passed. She hesitantly keyed in the next entry.

6:51pm You: I made some new friends and I really like em, but

6:52pm You: I found out stuff about them that isn't so good and I dunno what to think. Just kinda wanted to chat with you about it when you get a chance

There was no answer, and she didn't really expect one at this point. Her sister had been busy with the move lately, and probably had spotty Internet at the moment. It didn't keep Holly from feeling incredibly lonely. She sighed and slammed the laptop shut, her head lowering into her hands. Her fingers threaded through her hair until she felt the sting of the roots pulling.

BANG BANG BANG BANG.

"HOLLY! HOLLY PLEASE, IT'S UNDYNE, OPEN THE DOOR! I NEED YOU, PLEASE HOLLY, IT'S ALPHYS—"

She sprinted to open the door, the note of panic in Undyne's voice making her heart lurch. She wrenched open the door to see her friend standing in the doorframe, holding Alphys in her arms. The yellow monster was limp and lifeless, face smudged with what looked like soot or dirt.

Holly's heart stuttered to a stop.

"Wh-what—"

"Sh-she was attacked, I don't know—I don't know how long ago, but I found her on the floor—Holly please, I need h-help—" Undyne's face was streaked with tears that kept flowing. Holly saw her whole frame hunch around Alphys's still body, as if using herself to protect her lover. The monster wouldn't stop trembling.

"Okay, okay shh, Undyne, bring her inside." Holly moved aside to let her inside. She didn't seem to want to put Alphys down, and she paced back and forth like a restless tiger in a cage. Holly saw the angry panic setting in.

"Undyne! Listen to me, Alphys needs to go to a hospital."

Undyne shook her head vigorously, her fiery hair sticking to the wet parts of her face. "Human hospitals won't do anything for her!" she snarled. "I… maybe Toriel? Toriel! Sh-she can heal, but…" She looked down at her girlfriend's face. "It's too far, I don't know how bad she is or how long she'll l-last!"

"Okay, Undyne, what about Papyrus? Or Sans? Do they know anything about healing?" Holly asked calmly, though she felt her breath tremble inside her own chest.

"No!" Undyne cried, her voice breaking. "Th-they don't know any healing—" Her eye lit up with insane hope. "Sans! Sans c-can teleport, he can take her—" She tried to fumble for her phone in a pocket, though she kept losing her grip on Alphys.

"Shh, keep holding onto her, I'll get it, Undyne." Holly reached into her pocket, the awkwardness of the action lost on them in the moment.

"C-call Papyrus, Sans never answers, but get Sans on the phone and tell him," she said. Holly nodded, scrolling through her friend's contact list until she saw 'Papyrus :D'. She hit the 'dial' button.

He picked up before the first ring ended. "Hello, Undyne!" came his cheerful voice. "Did you forget someth—"

"Papyrus, it's me, Holly," she interrupted. "Listen, is your brother there? It's an emergency, we need him."

Papyrus, thankfully, didn't question her. "Of course, human. Brother!" he called, voice sounding more distant. He'd probably moved his face away from the phone. "Sans, it's an emergency! The human from earlier is on the phone!"

The deep baritone voice was clipped. "What's wrong?"

"Sans, Alphys is hurt, and Undyne said you can get here and take her to Toriel," Holly explained quickly.

"…Where are you?"

"We're at my apartment. Do you need directions?" she asked him.

"No. Get a picture of the inside of your place. I know the general area of that complex, but I need somethin' to focus on in order to get to your place with my magic. Find somethin' specific, like a knick-knack. Anything unique."

"Okay, got it. Hold on," she said, and switched the phone to camera mode. The living room would work fine; Holly had a special knit blanket from her grandma draped over the couch, and Alphys's copy of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie on the table. She highly doubted anyone else had the exact same items in their living room, combined with her exact furniture. She sent it in an attachment to Papyrus's phone and got back on the receiver. "Did you get it?"

"Yep. Be there in a sec." The line went dead—he had hung up.

A brief, tense moment passed in which Holly could hear Undyne sniffling, when a soft pop sounded. She could feel a strange crackling in the air, and suddenly Sans stood in her living room.

"Sans, please, take her," Undyne said, holding Alphys out to the skeleton. He gently scooped up the dinosaur monster and gave the other two a nod. "I'll be at Toriel's. I can't take all of ya, but you'll be there in a bit, yeah?" he asked, and Undyne nodded. There was another pop, and a crackling that felt like the static when Holly would touch the front of an old television screen, and he was gone.

Undyne was already grabbing Holly's hand. "Come on, we've gotta get to Toriel's house," she insisted, sounding much more collected than before.

Holly nodded. "Lead the way."