Normal guys don't put monsters in pods Chapter 21
Two voices humming in harmony worked their way into a silent, exhausted darkness. Frisk didn't know if she was awake or asleep. She was scared to check. Her whole body felt like it was pinned under blankets— warm, but crushing. Her heart beat too hard in her chest.
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Something cool touched her. She managed to force her eyes open despite the stickiness of her eyelashes. Smooth white filled her vision, punctuated by a spot of red and a spot of blue. She leaned back, eyes wide, trying to figure out what she was looking at.
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It was a skull— like one of Sans's blasters, but massive. With more horns and a long, boney body. She knew it. Had to be asleep, a hundred percent. She felt their hands like they were hers even as they moved towards her. They were hers, after all.
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She was wrapped tight in a hug by the giant, draconic beast. Her soul swelled with music and she went limp as an amalgamation of her brother's song and the sound of the universe flowed through her. She choked.
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The big, boney fingers on one hand cupped her face and the thumb of their talon brushed her tears away. They smiled fondly down at her. "Don't forget," they said in a voice that was mostly Sans.
"…D-Don't forget what?" she squeaked.
A warm sensation spread from her soul and she thought she heard her brother's voice in the back of her mind. The colours of the skull's eyes forced themselves into her brain and her vision went dark.
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"I'm lost," she said quietly. Her heart hurt. A phantom grip touched on her shoulder and, cautiously, she turned around.
There was something there. Silver wisps carving a shape out of the shadows. A skeleton. Looked like Sans. She stared, surprise hitting her hard. His features were faint, but she could have sworn he looked worried.
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She hesitantly reached out to him, hoping beyond hope. "Are you… you?" She touched her hand gently against his soul spot and concentrated hard.
The blue light of his soul glimmered under her fingers. She thought she heard a note of his song. breath caught in her throat, her heart pounded, and she lost any composure she might have clung to as she buckled and wrapped her arms around his ribs, pressing her forehead against him. The form of silvery blue bones slipped away into bleak nothing and she collapsed, sobbing in the dark, holding herself. The massive arm of the boney dragon found her; wrapped around her again and rocked her gently. She wanted to wake up. Did she have time to waste sleeping like this?
"S'okay, kiddo," they said. "Go on. Get some rest."
Her heart hurt. She just wanted to be home and for him to be okay for real. Why did her brain keep replaying his voice?
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Her stomach dropped like she had plummeted from a cliff. When it finally stalled, the cozy, heavy lethargy returned. She saw a light shining in the dark. Heart shaped through the glow. It was blue at first, then shifted seamlessly to red. She didn't get it but, for some reason, she felt safe. The dragon cozied her once more and she drifted away.
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Then, sudden as a bolt of lightning, the kid awoke. There was a weird song playing, but it was only in her mind. She couldn't believe she had been asleep. She had a splitting headache and the blankets around her weighed like the earth on her small form. She could hardly open her eyes. She wanted to, but her body was numb. Frosty dread clutched in her chest.
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A cool, careful hand rested on her head. "Kid. You awake?"
Was that her brother's voice or was she hallucinating? Why did it feel so hard to breathe? Cold blue magic seeped through her skull like ice water.
"You're alright." He patted her shoulder. "Relax. Bad dream, huh? Just chill out and you'll come out of it."
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A dream? That made sense. Frisk let out a breath she felt like she'd been holding for an hour and she slumped. Her vision refocussed and she managed to lift her hand to wipe her eyes.
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Sitting up out of blankets, her heart stuttered at the sight of the short skeleton sitting beside her. Dazed, she propped herself up, wondering if the world was real or not. Before she could make a sound, the skeleton's eyes fixed on her. Wasn't her brother. His brow bent sympathetically and he reached out to gently pat her shoulder.
"Relax," he said quietly. "Little disoriented, huh? You're alright."
She couldn't help her eyes welling up with hot tears and her throat from tightening. She nodded and quickly brushed her hand across her face. "S-Sorry."
"S'okay," he said.
She shook her head.
"It's called sleep paralysis," he said. "Mind's up but the rest of you's not. Makes sense?"
"Y…Yeah." There was an uncomfortable memory lurking in the back of her mind. The horrible feeling was pretty similar to when Sans spaced out with intrusive time memories. As if she needed another reason not to sleep.
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She was jerked from her thoughts when the skeleton sat in front of her and held her shoulders. Frisk froze up. She forgot how much that one arm hurt. It felt so selfish, but she wanted to hug him; very badly, too.
"You're havin' a bad time, right?" he said.
"Guess so," she said sheepishly.
"C'mere? Sorry. Don't mean to get up in your space, but…" He rolled up his sleeves and a glitter of magic shone between his fingers. "I'm not a great healer, but I'd guess you're probably gonna need a little help with that headache, right?"
"Y-You don't…You don't have to do anything for me, w-we're not—"
"If it helps," he said, "just, uh, think of me like, uh, your weird cousin, y'know? Haven't met much, but we're still family. Right?"
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The kid's eyes went wide and her heart thumped. She nodded quickly and couldn't help a small smile. He put his hands around her head, resting his thumbs on her temples. His magic was pleasantly cool and it took the edge off within seconds.
"Thanks. Um. Th-That helps," she said.
"Heh. Haven't totally lost it, then," he joked.
"That, um… That sleep pa… par…? That thing?" she said nervously. "Is that… normal?"
"Oh. Uh. Well, I mean, it's not abnormal in that it happens to a lotta people. Usually doesn't happen too often in general, though. So. Y'know. Don't worry too much about it."
"I… I guess you have the time dreams, too, right? It's one of those?" she asked worriedly. To her surprise, he chuckled and shook his head.
"Nah," he said. "Happens sometimes from stress, sometimes if you don't sleep for a long time." He shot her a knowing look. "So when's the last time you slept?"
"Um. Maybe, um…? I dunno, a few days ago," she said sheepishly. "I, um, turned back time but I guess it didn't, um, actually help all that much, I dunno."
"Jeez, kid," he said.
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He pulled back and shook off his hands, sparkles of magic floating down like snowflakes. "Was it a nightmare just now? Noticed you kinda goin' weird before you went a bit stiff."
She shook her head. "It's… nothing that means anything." She wilted under a questioning look he tossed her way. "Sometimes I dream about… this thing my brother and I turned into when he, like, kinda took my soul and stuff. It looks like, um, kinda a skeleton dragon I guess. He usually shows up if I'm not doing… great. It's kinda weird though: he always says the same thing."
"And what's that?" he asked as he sat back down properly, leaning back against the bed.
"He always says don't forget," she said. "I… don't know. I guess it's maybe just a way for my head to kinda deal with… junk?" She smiled weakly and shrugged, tenting her fingers. "Weird, huh?"
"What doesn't he want you to forget?" he wondered.
"I dunno, never figured it out," she said. She cupped a hand over her soul spot. "Maybe… something from then. It's supposed to help or something? Or maybe it's just junk, I dunno. It's not like a real thing, or something from another world, y'know? Does that make sense?"
Sans nodded. Frisk sighed with relief and laughed quietly.
"Thanks, that makes me feel a little better," she admitted.
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Sans nodded again. He folded his arms and he drummed his fingertips on his opposite arm. "You, uh… You really miss him, huh?"
"Oh. Gosh. Like crazy," she said. "I wanna, like, throw up all the time. It sucks. I… I guess that's pretty weird, though, right?"
"Nah, I feel like that when Papy even gets a cold," he said with a laugh. "But I'm a little confused. You're the youngest one, yeah? So why're you responsible for all this?"
"Because I'm the only one that can do it," she said with a blank, confused stare.
"You sure?" he said. "Seems Az isn't out for the count."
"Oh! He's not. But the universe is… my thing and… I dunno," Frisk said sheepishly. "I just… want Sans to be okay and I don't want to have done this to Papyrus, and I just wish that… whatever I did, whatever happened to make this Gaster cut into our place, if that's even what happened… I just wish I had noticed it. You know? I wish I had, like… I wish I had predicted it. I wish I'd seen that the way I fixed another thing just made all this worse and… and I'd do it different, maybe? I dunno."
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She looked at the skeleton worriedly. He was lost in thought. She drooped and snuggled into her blankets.
"Hm… Welp. I think I figured out somethin' you shouldn't forget," he said.
"Um. What?" she asked.
He put a hand on her head and gently patted her hair. "That your brother loves you. And you shouldn't be so damn hard on yourself."
The kid stared at him with big eyes.
"If it were me," he said. "If this guy's anything like me. I'd be real proud of you, goin' all this way to do this. But I also would never blame you for whatever went down. And I sure as hell wouldn't want you sittin' up for days messin' yourself up."
Tears came again and she wilted and quickly wiped them away. "Th-Thanks," she said hoarsely. "I… I know. I know. I'm just… a mess. I'm always a mess."
"Carin' a lot isn't really a mess," Sans said. He winked. "Cryin' a lot, maybe, but it's not too bad to mop up, right?"
She snickered and sniffled, and wiped her face again. "Thanks."
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Sans shot her an amused grin. He got up and stretched, and then turned to check on Papyrus. His expression softened. He checked his wrist as if he were wearing a watch. "Pretty sure you have time if you wanna go back to sleep."
"Kinda hate dreaming right now," she grumbled. She tried not to scoff at herself. What else was new? She pulled up the blanket and made a cocoon.
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Sans stared down at her silently for a few moments. He rubbed the back of his skull. "Hey. Uh. You hungry?"
"Oh. Um. It's okay. I have some sandwiches in my phone," she said quietly. Her eyes darted upwards. "You want one? Then you wouldn't have to cook. I guess I interrupted your lunch, huh? Sorry."
The skeleton's expression turned to one of sympathy. He tilted his head towards the door. "How 'bout a trade?"
Her only reply was a blank, confused stare. Stepping carefully around her and over the blankets, the skeleton stretched lethargically again.
"Welp. I'll be in the kitchen," he said.
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He slipped out silently. The room was quiet except for soft skeleton snores. Frisk certainly wasn't getting back to sleep. She hesitantly stood up and tiptoed to Asriel. She reached up and held his cheeks.
"Az?" she asked at a whisper.
"Hm…?" He didn't open his eyes and his voice was low and heavy.
"I'm gonna be downstairs, okay?" she said.
"…Downstairs. Mhm," he said groggily.
She kissed him on the snout and he blew out a tiny, warm flame that brushed her cheek gently.
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Back on the ground floor, Frisk was greeted with some beeps and the low hum of a microwave. She rubbed her shoulder and edged over to peek into the kitchen. It looked just like home except for the sink, which did not almost reach the ceiling. She wondered if there was a door back there even without room.
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Sans was sitting on the counter beside some plates and a toaster. A package of hotdog buns was tossed haphazardly a little ways away. He shoved the stuff over and then beckoned the kid.
"Mind if I lift ya?" he asked.
She shook her head. Blue magic gripped onto her soul, cool and solid, and she was lifted and plunked up beside him. He shot her a sideways grin.
"Real trustin', ain't ya?" he asked. "Listen. You go to other worlds ever and you be careful, okay? You never know."
She shrugged. "I dunno, you're… Sans."
His brows raised and he chuckled. "Jeez. You're a strange one, huh? Honestly? Didn't expect this kinda thing from a human. No offence."
She shook her head. "I spent basically the only part of my life that matters with monsters, so…"
Sans gave her a strange look. She wondered if she'd said something wrong.
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The toaster let out a ding like a bicycle bell and two toasty buns popped out of the top. He twirled his finger in the air and his magic opened the microwave and floated out some steaming hotdogs. He set them up and passed her the two on a plate. He reached for a bottle of ketchup and held it up, offering it. She shook her head and he shrugged. Frisk pulled out her phone and brought one of the sandwiches out of it and passed it to him, swapping it with one of the hotdogs. He took a swig of the ketchup and Frisk felt a twinge of a smile creep over her.
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"Go on." He nudged her with his elbow. "Got hotdogs in your universe? They're not dogs, it's just a name."
"Yeah. Um. Thank you." She took a bite. Her stomach roiled. She hadn't realized she was sickeningly hungry. She couldn't help but wolf it.
Sans peered at the sandwich curiously. He took a bite and his eyes lit right up. "Ooh. Wow. That's nice."
"My mom made it," Frisk said.
"Think we're the first dorks to eat stuff from another universe?" he wondered.
"Y'know, I got no clue. Maybe!"
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The skeleton chuckled. There was a little bit of benign smugness in his voice. "So. While we're here. Tell me about your world."
"Oh! Um. I'm not sure where to start," she said apologetically.
"Hm. Smaller, then," he said. "What kinda place you and the big guy live in? Nice town or somethin'?"
"Oh yeah, sure, it's called Snowdin," she said, smiling as he froze with surprise. "It's got a nice inn and a store, and a library, and a place called Grillby's. I bet you'd love it."
"That's somethin' else," he said.
"Our house is basically the same exact one as this one," she said. "Which is… really weird to me. Um. Everything here, it's like… um… What was it called? Uncanny valley?"
"That'd be a good name for a town, too," Sans joked.
Frisk snickered. "Anyway. It is sort of nice to see you and Paps in this place, though. Even his bedroom is almost exactly the same as ours back home, except your brother doesn't have as much stuff yet. But it's weird, since, you know, it's a totally different universe."
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Sans nodded thoughtfully. "You guys stuck under a mountain, too?" he wondered.
"Not anymore," Frisk said. "We fixed it, like… three months ago, I think? I mean, we're still under, we haven't built the new house yet but…" She caught the skeleton's wide-eyed expression and shrunk. "O-Oh. Um. Sorry. That's… probably still a little while for you guys."
"No, no, that's…" He sat back, his hard fingertips drumming on the counter. "Could you tell me how it happened there? In, uh… In detail. If that's okay."
"Oh! Um. Yeah, sure, that's… It's a long story, but basically Asriel was dead. And he was brought back to life by accident through a determination experiment to make a, um, soul vessel from a flower that grew outta a seed his dust was on. But he came back as like, a mean guy because he had no soul, and he caused trouble for a long time until time kids started showing up. Then they caused trouble until I showed up." She put her plate aside and reached into her pocket for her phone. "I think I might have a picture of him… Um." She scrolled through her camera roll. "Anyway, that all happened after the CORE kinda blew up and Gaster had to go melt into a time void and it was a big mess. I think he said the CORE blows and he dies in most universes where he exists, but our universe's thing is that that made our anchor— me, I guess. Then when I got underground, I had no family or anything so I got really attached to… monsters. Y'know? And I learned about the barrier and everything, and about who Asriel really was, and I went to see Asgore. When I did, Asriel stole all the human souls his dad had, and then stole all the monster souls, and um… Well, we fought, and then we became friends, and he used all those souls to break the barrier and everything worked out sort of okay, but we had to make him a soul too for everything to be normal. Um. Eventually. It took a few tries. Ah! Here."
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She pulled up a really old photo she'd taken back when Asriel was still a flower and showed it to the skeleton. He took her phone carefully and held it up close to his face.
"Huh. That doesn't look like him at all," he said.
"Yeah. I know. It was a pretty bad time for everyone," she said. "So, um… Watch out for him. He's… gonna have time powers for a while. And he's gonna be really awful. He has no empathy, like, at all; it was really rough."
"And I guess he was tryin' to take your soul," he said. "That's the trigger."
"Sorta," she said. "Sorry. I, um… I hope it doesn't take too long for you guys for a nice anomaly to show up."
"Me too." He looked tired instantly, but he smiled at her nonetheless. "Welp. Gotta make use of the time I got while things aren't nuts, right?
"Right," she said. "Jeez. I'm not sure if it's good or awful that you saw it so far ahead."
"Yes," he said.
She snorted. He grinned. Lacing his fingers together, he stretched out his arms and cracked his knuckles.
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"So. You. You're a weird one, huh?" he said. "Human made by a monster. I didn't know that was possible."
Frisk shrugged. "Yeah, same. We still dunno how it worked, really. I don't even know how I was, like… born, I guess? Like how my body was made. We figure I sorta… appeared, I guess? It's weird."
"And did you know this the whole time or—"
"Oh, no, jeez, I only found out, like… a week ago?" Her voice caught. "I, um… I o-only found out that my brothers were… really my brothers… Ah…" Her eyes welled up and she quickly wiped them away. "Sorry. It's just…"
"You're real close, huh?" he asked gently.
"Yeah. Y-Yeah. They're my best friends and… Papyrus is just the sweetest guy, he's so… good and helpful and positive. And Sans is like…" She had to wipe her eyes again. "He's everything. Like, when I was time travelling, he was the only one who could remember, and it felt like he just knew everything and he was so nice to me, even before we knew… Even before he really… took me in, you know?" She sniffled, catching Sans's puzzled look. "They didn't know who I was. I didn't either. It was just… Lucky that they ended up liking me as much as I liked them, though! Even though I'm… what I am." She laughed weakly and rubbed her eyes with her knuckles. "S-Sorry."
"Don't," he assured her. "And your mom?"
"Toriel," she said quietly. "She's the best. I dunno if you know her in this world, but she's like, huge, and really powerful, and really nice, and she always made me feel really safe and stuff. We got separated for a while when I went out from the Ruins, and that was pretty hard. It was really good when we were all together after the barrier broke. I, um… I didn't really have a family before that, so it was really nice when she wanted to adopt me and stuff."
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Sans nodded thoughtfully. He pointed at the phone screen and raised his brow.
"Go ahead," she said.
He didn't get very far in at all before he froze, his left eye glowing faintly blue. "Oh. Jeez. Um…" He tried to gather himself back up. "And… your dad. Gaster. You got somethin' in here of him? Does he look real different or…?"
"He looks almost the same, but his bones are scarred on his face and hands, and his eyes do one in gold and one in blue. He said it's called a magic split."
"Hm. Never heard of it," Sans said quietly. "Do they change colour?"
"I've only ever seen some people's eyes get a little bit red with the determination colour," Frisk said. "Or Sans's blue will sometimes get a little of that gold colour in it if he's using a lot of magic. It doesn't happen very often though."
"Hm. Here— it's sorta a skeleton thing— ours sorta have a base colour but we get what we call a flicker if we're really havin' a mood, y'know?" He shot her a cautious smile. "Mine's the same colour as my brother's. So. Same result, maybe a different reason. Interestin'."
She nodded.
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"Lot of pics of the same people," Sans commented. "…I know most of 'em. That's… really weird."
When Frisk leaned over, she could see he'd found one of Gaster. It looked like he'd accidentally taken a selfie while holding her phone. Sans stared at him intently and silently before moving on. He found a picture of Sans and a chill seeped from his soul.
"Uh… Hey. Do you…? Uh. Do you want me to, uh, draw some eyebrows on my face or a weird scar or somethin'? Or wear a hat?"
"Um. What? Why?" Frisk asked, unable to hold back a confused laugh.
"He looks just like me," he said. He pointed to a photo of Sans on the screen. "Even wears the same kinda clothes. I mean… If it'd be easier…"
Frisk's eyes went wide. She laughed and raised her hands, quickly shaking her head. "No no, that's okay!" She couldn't help a grin, picturing him with stark black, cartoonish eyebrows drawn on.
There was a sparkle in his eye. He grinned sideways. "S'not too hard, is it?"
She shook her head. "A-Actually. It's not too bad. I mean, seeing you, it makes me miss him, obviously, but you're a lot like him, too, so it's kinda comfortable. Sorry, is that weird?"
"This whole thing's weird," he said. "Doesn't mean it's bad, though."
Frisk smiled and shrugged. "Thanks again for helping us."
"Eh. It's not all that much effort," he said.
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The kid slipped her empty plate into the sink and then slid back onto the floor. She pointed to the stairs. Sans stuck his thumb up. He finished his sandwich and kept browsing through photos of another universe as the kid returned to the bedroom.
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Tiptoeing in, Frisk grabbed the blanket off the floor. She huddled up with it beside Asriel. When Sans returned a few minutes later, he passed her the phone and then edged over to lean over the bed, peeking in on the skinny, snoring skeleton.
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A little discordant pulse of sound made Frisk jump and immediately jarred Asriel awake, just in time for the lights in the room to flicker. Sans's eyes darted upwards and his brow furrowed.
"That's… weird," he said quietly.
"Then it's probably my fault, sorry" Frisk said.
The skeleton scoffed.
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Asriel got to his feet, fur bristling. His nostrils flared. "Don't trust that for a second."
"Feelin' that," Sans said.
"Big brother, what is that?" Papyrus squeaked, pulling his sheets up to his mouth. "It hurts my head."
"S'okay, kiddo," Sans said gently. "Probably just the CORE actin' up a little is all."
Frisk stuck one finger up. Papyrus scooted off the bed and hugged onto her tightly.
"Don't go there," he whispered. "We have to stick t-together, okay?"
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Before she could say a word, a phone began to ring from somewhere in the room, muffled by cloth. Sans fished the thing out of his pocket and looked at it with confusion.
"Huh." He poked the screen and raised it to his head.
An eruption of babbling and sobbing burst forth from the speaker and Sans had to hold it back a little.
"Alph?" he asked.
Words came out, but they were incoherent. Sans put one hand against the side of his head.
"Alph. Alph. Alphys. Stop, I can't understand," he said.
She heaved in a deep breath and hiccuped. "S-S-Sans you h-have to c-c-come to the lab. I n-need your h-help, p-p-please!"
"Alphys, I told ya—"
"N-No, no no no, y-you don't understaaaand," she whimpered. "G-Gaster h-had me help link up the magic b-boosters from the CORE to one of h-his basement w-workrooms and…! A-And then h-he brought in the new L-Lieutenant and h-he took her in there and th-the door is locked and the p-power's going w-weird and the s-security p-p-protocols booted up and I don't know what he's thinking or d-doing and—! And! I d-don't know what to do, I n-need your help!"
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"Undyne," Frisk squeaked, wide-eyed. She looked back at Asriel worriedly and he grimaced and nodded.
Sans winced. "Alright. Breathe. On my way," he said.
"Hurry," Alphys said shrilly.
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The line went dead, and so did the air in the room. Sans stared at the phone in his hand as if it was leaking. Papyrus snuck up very slowly and grabbed his other hand gently.
"Big brother, what's going on?" he asked worriedly.
"What's he doing with Undyne, though?!" Frisk asked, scrambling to her feet.
"Why would he take her?" Asriel asked.
"You know her well?" Sans asked.
"Yeah, really well." Frisk looked like she'd seen a ghost. "We have to go. Can you teleport more than one person?"
He smiled sideways, a little surprise in his eyes. "Not yet."
Frisk grimaced and she grabbed Asriel's hand. "Right now," she insisted.
"But the snow!" Papyrus said.
"I'll deal with it," Asriel said.
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Throwing open the door downstairs let in some chunks of frosty, powdering snow. Asriel pushed Frisk back behind him, cracked his knuckles, and then raised fire up in his paws. He shot it forward and it blasted through the white wall that blocked them in, steam erupting back into the house like an invasive cloud. Papyrus cheered and clapped from the stairs.
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Asriel whipped around, puffing a little flame out of the side of his mouth. "We'll deal with this."
"But I want to come!" Papyrus clenched his fists and looked around the room with wide, worried eyes. "I want to see Alphys! She sounded so upset, we have to help her, right?" He looked up at Sans and grabbed his hand. "We'll go, too, right?"
He dipped his head. He looked at Asriel. "Meet you there?"
The goat boy grinned sideways. "Yeah."
xXxXx
With Frisk on his shoulders and Papyrus in his arms, Asriel ran like his paws were on fire. Worry was making the kid's mind race and her heart was pounding. The blue glow of the grass under every step her brother took put an uncomfortable daze in her brain.
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"Why the heck would Gaster, like, trap Undyne, though?" Frisk asked worriedly.
"I got no clue, it doesn't make sense to me," Asriel said. "Do you think she's actually trapped? Could he even do that?"
"If he's a boss monster here, then, maybe?" Frisk said, her voice unwillingly shrill.
"He is really strong," Papyrus volunteered.
"I hope this is just a big mistake," she said.
"You okay if we have to fight him?" Asriel asked.
"I… I don't wanna hurt him," she said. "But, um… I can pause him? Probably?"
"Good enough," he said.
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With the orange glow of Hotland approaching and the looming white of the lab, the door was marked with unusual blue. Sans was waiting outside; he raised his hand to greet them. Papyrus jumped down from Asriel's arms and grabbed onto his brother.
"So, uh, bad news," Sans said. "Can't get in."
"Can't?" Frisk repeated as Asriel put her down.
"Yeah, uh… I dunno what's goin' on in there but it's volatile. Tried and I ended up somewhere else."
"So that's gotta be that weird CORE thing, right?" Asriel said. He reached for the door and pushed on it, but it was stuck fast. "Oh." He banged his fist on it and then leaned his ear close.
"Is Alphys there?" Frisk asked.
"Tried that," Sans said, holding up his phone.
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Frisk took a deep breath. She let the red magic sparkle through the skin of her fingers. "W-Well, maybe I can…?"
"Yes. Yep. Try that," Asriel said, pulling her forward.
She rested her hand on the door. Her mind swam with an assault of magic that was on the other side of the metal. She grimaced and squeaked, but didn't move away. "Oooh gosh why's it like that?"
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It hurt to focus, but she searched for the lock. Metal clunked and spun in her head with a sparking, discordant bristle of magic. She tried to ignore it and forced it away, and shoved the door backwards. It clicked. The monsters all turned their eyes on her. She cautiously grabbed the door handle and pushed. It opened a crack.
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It was dim inside, punctuated with flashes of faint red from slow-flickering alarm light.
"Alph?" Sans asked.
"Doctor Alphys?" Papyrus called. "Are you here? Are you okay?!"
They heard a whimpering noise from somewhere and the little skeleton took off towards it. Frisk gulped and shot Asriel a worried look.
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They caught Papyrus ducking down under a desk where he hugged tight onto a quivering little lizard in a lab coat.
"Allllphyyyyys," Papyrus cooed. "It's okay, it's okay, we're here, don't cry!"
Sans sighed. He bent down and reached for Alphys's hand. "C'mon, Doc."
"Y-Y-You actually came?!" she asked shrilly. She sniffled and awkwardly pushed her back up onto her feet. "I… I don't know what t-to do, I c-c-can't…" She rubbed her palms over her headspines. "I can't…"
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Her eyes drifted off over Sans's shoulders to the unfamiliar forms behind him. The skeleton raised his brows curiously. Alphys screamed. Papyrus screamed. Asriel covered his ears. Sans grabbed the lizard and held her face, squishing her cheeks.
"Snap out of it, Doc," he said gruffly. "Breathe."
"Th-Th-That's a—!"
"I know. She's gonna help," Sans said.
"Yeah, she's super nice!" Papyrus volunteered.
"Sorry to scare you, Alphys," Frisk said.
"We don't have time," Asriel said. "Where's that loser?"
"Wh…?! Um… H-H-He's downstairs, I'm locked out of everything, I c-can't—"
"Won't be a problem," Asriel said.
.
Alphys still looked like she might faint, but she nodded stiffly and she lead them to the elevator. Her fingers were shaking so hard it took her a noticeable length of time to press the right combination of buttons to shoot them downward. As they dropped, she tried to catch her breath and pressed herself into the corner, clutching tight to her own hands. Sans thumped her heavily on the shoulder. Frisk kept her distance so as not to make it worse.
.
The lower floor was unrecognizable despite the hallways looking utterly banal. Three unassuming paths were laid out before them. Frisk froze up.
"What the heck?" she said quietly.
"Did he move all the rooms?" Asriel asked.
"Umm…" Alphys gulped and sucked her tongue. Her voice came out rough and weak. "I-It's a security system? I-It makes, um, a r-randomized maze?"
"Ooh! I love mazes," Papyrus said. "I'll find the way though, follow me!" The little skeleton took off at a run, putting his hand on the wall and sticking close to the side as he dashed off. "See?" he called. "All you have to do is stay on one wall and you always turn the same direction! Then you come out eventually!"
"Smart kid," Sans said proudly.
"Or I could just bust through the walls," Asriel said, locking his fingers together and stretching his arms out in front of him.
"Only if you're a boss monster," the skeleton said. He raised his brows. "Oh. Are you?"
The kid grinned wide. "Sorry for being so smug about it."
"Aaah, wait, maybe don't," Frisk said shrilly. "We don't know where Gaster or Undyne are, we could hurt them by accident like that, couldn't we? And if Paps is running all over the place…"
"Well…" Asriel looked at his claws and then shot her an apologetic smile. "Guess you're right. I'll follow him." He held up a hand when Frisk took a step towards him. "Wait here. I'll come back for you guys." He vanished around the corner.
.
Frisk took a deep breath and rubbed her hands through her hair. Every second made her heart ache. That skeleton better not have been hurting Undyne. "What the heck is he thinking?"
Sans shrugged. "Not sure. Doesn't make sense to me. What's a scientist workin' on temporal energy junk got to do with some girl in the Royal Guard?"
Frisk's heart thunked. "Temporal…? That means… time?" she asked hesitantly.
The skeleton nodded. Frisk flinched and her mouth dried.
"Oh. Oooh no. I… I think I know?" she said shrilly as both monsters turned their eyes on her. "Undyne has super high determination. Like, you know, the red magic energy stuff? That's—"
"R-Related to the t-temporal… Oh no…" Alphys said softly. She rubbed her brows. "Oh no no no."
"It's fine." Sans seemed steady as ever. He clapped Alphys on the shoulder. "Give them a minute."
Frisk nodded to herself. "Az's got this."
.
Alphys let out a cautious squeak that sounded almost like a word. The kid turned to her to see that she still looked shellshocked, but she'd edged slightly closer.
"Um! Don't worry, we'll fix this," Frisk said quickly. "S-Sorry for causing all this trouble."
"Wha…? Y-You…?" Alphys looked flummoxed.
"Not your fault," Sans said.
"Whatever's he's doing, it's because we're here, I'm sure of it," she said, folding her arms.
"Do…? D-Do you two… know each other?" Alphys squeaked.
"Kinda complicated," Sans said. "…She's a good kid."
Frisk's cheeks flushed and she smiled sheepishly. Alphys squinted thoughtfully and then traced between the two of them with her finger.
"And y-you know the Lieutenant?" she asked.
"Um. Y… No? Um… It's complicated, too, I'm really sorry," Frisk said. She tapped her fingers together, and then nodded to herself. "We'll fix this."
.
A tingle ran through Frisk's body and a flicker of blue made her turn towards the wall before them just in time to see a chunk blast outwards, a hole with sparkling edged punched out. Sans hadn't flinched, but Alphys yelped loudly and hid behind him. Asriel poked his head out of the large hole and beckoned to Frisk.
"Paps found it," he said.
"Super great." She ran over and he lifted her through the gap.
The other monsters followed. Papyrus waved at them from the end of a long section of wall with similar ovals blasted out of it.
"The door's locked, though!" Papyrus called.
.
Indeed, the doctor had sealed a door, and a little light above it shone, a warning that an experiment was going on. Sans hesitated.
"Might be rough in there," he said.
"We'll go," Asriel said. "If it's determination, we can handle it."
"B-But he sealed the d-door, I d-d-don't have the keys, w-w-we can't…" Alphys whimpered.
"I think I got it," Frisk said. She rolled up her sleeve and her red magic sparked along the skin of her fingers. She touched the door. "You guys stay back for now. Um. Please."
It hadn't been sealed for very long at all. Even with the headache that came with it, shifting it backwards an hour was a breeze. She looked at Asriel and took a step back. He nodded at her and she hesitantly stuck her thumb up.
.
Asriel barrelled through into the room, catching the skeleton inside off guard. His glasses were askew, papers on a desk a mess, and clinging tight to an armful of vials of shining, red liquid. A strange, egg-shaped, crystal and metallic pod behind him humming with cyan energy, tinged with red streaks was connected to a tube and vat that was starting to pool that same red inside.
"I got him, you get fishface," Asriel said to Frisk.
"Get back!" Gaster yelled.
Asriel's paws were filled with magic and red flames burst between his fangs when he snarled. He charged at Gaster like an animal, putting a hand through the table as the skeleton scrambled to get out of the way. All but two of the vials slipped from his boney fingers and cracked on the floor where the red evaporated instantly. The air exploded into bombastic battle resonance and Gaster had no choice but to draw up some bones in reply.
.
Frisk took the opportunity to run for the pod. Ducking around a smattering of pointed femurs, she skid across the tile and grabbed onto the vessel. She quickly skimmed it and found a port for a power crystal on the side. As she reached for it, a flicker of energy shot warnings all through her head and she hit the ground just in time to avoid a javelin of bone aimed right at her.
.
She looked up urgently as Asriel roared and burst fire around himself in a wall, blocking much of the room. She scrambled to her feet and grabbed for the crystal. It was stuck tight. Her fingers slipped on the smooth surface, unable to grip its facets. She patted down her pockets. Papyrus's little gadget knife. She pulled it out and, heart pounding, trying to ignore the energy whirling around the room, she gripped into a notch in the metal with her fingernails and pulled out the blade. Though her hand was shaking, she tried to hold herself steady. She, very carefully, slid the blade along the side and into where it was socketed in. Just one careful pry had it slip barely loose, and she grabbed it and yanked it free. The momentum sent it flying against the wall.
"Whoops, uh…" She couldn't help a sense of relief when the energy through the pod's front began to calm. "Okay, okay, Undyne, I gotcha." With quick, shaking fingers, she checked around the hatch and found where it was clipped closed. She unflipped a simple latch and opened the pod up.
.
The fish monster was out cold, droopy-eared and limp. Frisk hurriedly closed the knife and shoved it back into her jacket. She realized rather suddenly that she was probably too small to get her out. Wasn't going to stop her from trying though.
.
Asriel seemed to have forgone all semblance of even remote civility. The battle resonance died down and he was simply using his weight to pin the skeleton to the ground. He looked back at Frisk.
"You got her?" he grunted.
"I… I think so, ah…" She grabbed Undyne by the arms and tried to drape most of the weight of her torso over her body. It was awkward, but she managed to drag her out onto the floor.
.
Hurriedly, Frisk grabbed her face and lit red magic up, hoping just a little extra energy would rouse her. "C'mon Undyne, c'mon, you got this, you gotta wake up."
The fish's lip curled upwards slightly to show those wickedly pointed teeth. She grunted and her eyelids fluttered open as she sat up slowly. Frisk couldn't help but beam.
"Oh man, thank god," she said, grabbing her into a hug. "Are you okay?!"
"…Oooh, hey pupper," she said groggily, patting Frisk on the head. "Whahappa?"
"S'okay, just… just rest for a second," the kid insisted, pulling back quickly. "You're okay?"
Undyne nodded, but closed her eyes and put the heel of her hand to her brow and grumbled some swears in the direction of her chest.
.
"Oh thank god," Alphys wheezed out, collapsing onto her knees.
"Yay! It all worked out!" Papyrus cheered.
Sans wandered into the small lab and glowered down at the older skeleton on the floor. "What the hell were you thinkin'?"
"I could ask you the same thing," he grumbled.
Sans grinned. "And yet I'm not the one smoochin' the tile," he said. "I don't know what's better about this: the fact that you were so resoundingly wrong, how easy that kid stomped you, or that Asgore's finally gonna read you the riot act after this shit you pulled."
"Saaans, no swears," Papyrus said.
"Sorry, kiddo." He grinned a bit wider. "Heh. This's just kinda vindicatin', I guess."
"There is a human in the lab, what was I supposed to do?!" Gaster demanded.
.
"Human?" Undyne asked groggily. Her eyes flashed and she tried to stand. "Where?"
"Um, Undyne, wait, wait, sit down," Frisk said, holding her shoulders gently. "You're still all dizzy, right?"
"Aaah, you're right," she said. "But if there's a nasty human around here I've gotta ponch 'um right intoooo—"
"Ah. Um. Okay. Hi?" Frisk waved awkwardly at the other monsters. "Um. My name's Frisk? I'm a human."
"Whaaaat? No way, pupper, that don't make no sense," Undyne said.
.
Gaster suddenly looked intrigued. He looked her up and down, the fear fading from his face, replaced mostly be incredulity. "Frisk, you said?"
She nodded. "Y-Yeah. Um. Hi. Sorry we, um, kinda got off on the wrong foot? I came through your time hole. With my brother, there." She pointed at Asriel.
"Wait… My…" The skeleton's jaw dropped. "You WHAT?!"
.
"You ripped a hole into her timeline, you numbskull," Sans said. "I told you the calculations were wrong. I told you it was all messed up."
"Well, if you had been here—!" Gaster growled.
"After what you did?" His eyes narrowed. "Nah. Not interested."
"Wait, what d-did he do? I-I'm lost," Alphys said sheepishly.
"He's being a child," Gaster said.
"You're being a jerk," Asriel snapped.
"Will you get off?!" the skeleton growled.
"Haaaa, nope."
"Let's not fight!" Papyrus said quickly.
"Sans?" Alphys asked worriedly.
.
Sans folded his arms and a grumpy look clouded his face. He scoffed and drummed his fingers on his arms. His eyes went black, though he stared pointedly at the older skeleton. He gave off a forbidding chill. "You know exactly what our beef is."
"I have no idea," the skeleton protested.
"Hm. Guess you're way dumber than I thought," Sans said, grinning.
"Saaaans, don't be mean, Frisk and Az might need his help," Papyrus said, tugging on his sleeve.
.
Alphys let out a warbling noise and finally stumbled into the room. Shooting Asriel a cautious glance, she grabbed onto Gaster's hand. The large monster backed off and Alphys gently helped the doctor up onto his knees. He pulled his hand away, stood up, and quickly straightened out his coat.
"Finally," he grumbled. "How childish."
Asriel got to his feet, crossing his arms. Though he was shorter than the skeleton, somehow he loomed. "I think you're just salty 'cause you lost," he said. "Twice."
Gaster retreated a step. "Salty? I can assure you my sodium levels are—"
"Oh my god stop," Sans said.
"Pffff, salty, oh my god," Undyne snickered. "Like, you totally are though, Doc, reeeelax."
"Maybe I was a little too rough with her," he mumbled to himself, readjusting his glasses.
"You think?" Asriel growled.
"Yeah, um, what the heck were you doing anyway?" Frisk asked shrilly, holding the big blue monster closer. "You can't just, like, steal monsters and put them in creepy pods."
"I will not answer to you," Gaster said.
"Th-Then answer me, please," Alphys said with a warble in her voice. "What were you doing?"
"We are under attack by a human invader, can you blame me?!" he said.
"Yes," Sans said.
"No," Frisk said, "b-but I did try to talk to you first and you just sorta freaked out, so…"
Gaster's eyes went wide and he fumbled for words as Sans began to laugh. Papyrus snickered, too.
"Gee, that's kind of silly, I could feel Frisk was nice right away," he said. "Why couldn't you?"
.
The tall skeleton was visibly flustered. He coughed into his fist and then frowned deeply. "This is insanity. Sans, Alphys, join with me, I'm sure we can defeat these creatures."
"Pffff, you're jokin', right?" Sans said. "That's hilarious."
"Have they threatened you? Blackmailed you?" Gaster asked Alphys.
"Um… N-No…?" she said sheepishly.
"This makes no sense at all."
"We just wanna talk, I promise," Frisk said worriedly. "We don't wanna fight."
.
He shook his head and pushed past Asriel towards the door, but the kid grabbed his arm tight and stopped him handily.
"Hold it, smart guy," he said. "We still wanna know exactly what you did to Undyne."
"I can't see why it's relevant, she's fine," he said.
"G-GASTER!" Alphys shouted shrilly, freezing the room. "ENOUGH. YOU TELL US R-RIGHT NOW!"
"Yeeeeeah!" Undyne cheered.
Gaster looked like he'd been slapped. Alphys sniffled and wiped her eyes, puffing her cheeks that had gone bright red.
"Alphys…" the skeleton said, stunned.
"No, no, don't Alphys me," she protested. "You drive my b-best friend away from work, you don't trust me w-with the determination studies, you KIDNAP someone?! And put her in a w-weird pod machine I've n-never seen in my life?! And on top of that, there. Is. A. H-Human. RIGHT. THERE! …N-No offence." She shot Frisk an apologetic look. "I d-don't care if you think she's dangerous or that you want to fight her friend, I don't care that y-you and Sans hate each other right n-now, I th-think…! I think I d-deserve at least some sort of answer f-for what you're doing here with this guard girl!"
"…Fine. Fine," Gaster said. "It's… It's not…" He grumbled under his breath and pinched his brows. "I worried my experiments had been tampered with; I… We needed more determination to protect ourselves. It would not have harmed her to have it removed, you know."
"Th-That's no excuse and you know it," she snapped, and she gestured to Frisk. "And is what sh-she's saying true?!"
"I have no idea," he said defensively.
.
Alphys cast her eyes desperately at Sans. He shrugged.
"Pretty sure I trust her," Sans said.
"Me too!" Papyrus said.
"You're both idiots," Gaster said.
"Wow, you're awful," Frisk said, disappointment clear all over her face.
Asriel barked out a loud laugh, and was absolutely rolling with it when the tall skeleton's soul lit up with blue and he was tossed unceremoniously out the door and through every hole in the walls beyond.
"Saaaans!" Papyrus whined, pouting.
The skeleton, eye blazing, grinned and shrugged, and then patted the boy on the head. He wandered to the nearest computer and began to tap on the keyboard. The lights brightened and all the alarmed flickering of the red lights stopped. With a whooshing sound, several of the walls outside dissipated.
.
Alphys sighed shrilly and hurried out of the room, muttering to herself. The only sound left was Asriel choking with laughter. He straightened up, wiping his eyes, and he patted Sans on the shoulder.
"Oooh, I like you," he said.
"I don't like that guy," Frisk grumbled, pouting.
"I'm actually shocked you said anything," he said. He bent and scooped up Undyne, who was quite large, though he didn't have an issue. "Hey, fishface, you doin' okay?"
"Mmmhm," she said groggily.
"Guess we should get you outta here. Yo." He nodded at Sans. "Can you heal?"
"I can, I can!" Papyrus said, sticking his arm up eagerly. "Let me do it, I'm great at healing!"
"Perfect, let's go," he said. "Hopefully Alph has a handle on the bonehead."
"I'm sure she does," Sans said.
.
As Asriel left with the little skeleton on his heels, Frisk let out a long sigh. Tears bubbled in her eyes and she wiped them away quickly. Her head hurt. She curled up in place, holding her knees. She was surprised to see blue encroaching into her peripherals. Sans plunked down onto the floor beside her.
"Need a minute, huh? Don't blame ya. Just, uh, tell me to get outta here if you wanna be alone."
"Why is he like that?" she asked softly.
"Who knows?" Sans said. His eyes narrowed. "Don't cry over him."
"S'not that," she said, wilting.
"…Ah. Sorry, kid," he said quietly. "I forgot for a sec. Can't be easy."
"I g-guess I just didn't expect him to still be such a jerk after all that. For some dumb reason." She sighed. "…Guess I am really naïve, huh?"
"Nothin' wrong with hopin' for the good in people, except that it might get you hurt sometimes."
"That's fine, I guess, I can't die," she said softly.
"Not the kinda hurt I mean," he said. "Look. Uh. He may… try to tell you he's the answer to your issue here. He may be right, but, uh… Don't trust him."
"Right," she said.
.
Sans smiled sideways. "Just takin' my word for it, huh?"
"Well, yeah," she said. "Pretty sure I'd be able to tell if your soul was mean and stuff."
His gaze turned sympathetic. He reached out— hesitated for a moment— and patted her gently on the back. She huffed and then looked up at him worriedly.
"Can I ask? What did he do to you?"
"Aside from being an insufferable egomaniac?" Sans joked. "Kept throwin' junk in my eye sockets on the job. I ain't a trash disposal, y'know."
She raised her eyebrows. He snickered.
"Not flyin'?" he said.
"Nah. But you don't have to tell me," she said. "It's okay."
.
A twinge of darkness settled over the skeleton. He rested his arm across his knee and he squinted off at the wall. "Uh. Keep it on the down-low, huh?"
"If this goes well, I won't even be in this universe soon," she assured him.
He smiled tiredly and the light faded from his eyes. "…Truth is, I'm a broken mess. Among other things, I can't have kids. Never can. Kinda wanted to someday, y'know? He said just one more year of work and he'd fix me. And then another year. And then another. Couldn't actually do it. Just wanted me for the determination my bones make and the second I stopped cooperatin', he went right for my brother." He smirked. "So. Guess that's it. Pathetic, huh?"
"What? No, no no, it's not," she said quickly, her eyes going wide. "He lied about something that important to you, that's… That's really wrong. And you had to protect you and Paps, it's really important, too. He can't just be using you for weird experiments because you have a lot of determination in you."
.
Sans nodded to himself. "Is your guy like me?" he asked quietly.
"Yeah," she said. "He's, um… He's too weak to ever… But it's not like he, um… He's not into… A-Anyway, he's always really been great about taking care of people. I bet you are, too, right? Papyrus really loves you."
"Welp. I, uh, try my best," he said.
Frisk smiled. "Even when he gets tall and stuff, he's always gonna need you."
"…Heh. Maybe it's for the best, then." He got to his feet and stretched his arms above his head. "Hey. Thanks. You're a good listener, kid." He offered his hand. "Need a hand?"
"Better not pop it out," she joked, grasping onto him.
He snickered and pulled her up. "Called me out again, huh? Jeez."
She smiled and shrugged. She tapped her fingertips together and looked up at him.
"What?" he said.
"Um! Nothing. Nothing," she said. "Let's go check on the others."
"Hm. Right behind ya," he said.
xXxXx
The lights were back on upstairs as if nothing had happened at all. Alphys paced uneasily around Gaster, who was stiffly sitting in an office chair, a notepad in his lap that he was intently focused on. Within a few steps of them were the others. Undyne was set up in a reclining chair and Papyrus was sitting with her, hands flared with bright orange magic. Asriel leaned against the closest desk; he raised his hand to greet Frisk and Sans as they returned.
.
"She's coming out of it okay," he told her.
"Thank god," she muttered. "Jeez. Gaster, you can't be doing that stuff, it's super messed up."
"How did you know my name?" he asked, mostly ignoring her words. "I do not recall introducing myself."
Asriel snorted with disdain. Frisk shrugged.
"Well, I mean, we already said we're from another timeline, right?" she said.
"Ah." He turned back to his notepad and began to write furiously. "Interesting."
"S-Sans, can I talk to you for a minute?" Alphys said. Her voice was still uncharacteristically high and her eyes darted swiftly between the skeleton and the kid.
He shot Frisk a look. She shrugged and he shrugged in reply.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Alone?" she said.
"I just figure these kids'll be able to answer you better than I can," he said.
.
Alphys bit her lip. Gaster peeked up from under his glasses, and then quickly went back to his notes. He was only pretending to write, now. Frisk took a deep breath. She walked a little closer to Alphys and extended her hand.
"Hi, Alphys. I'm real sorry about this," she said. "Um. I'm Frisk. I know I said that before, but, um… Hi?"
The lizard stared. She snuck a step closer. Then another. And another, until she reached the kid and carefully grabbed her hand. "O-Oh. Oh, wow, you're soft…" she muttered.
"Yeah, we're kinda squishy," she said.
Alphys smiled awkwardly and tentatively shook the kid's hand. When she let go, she ran her fingers over her opposite palm. "W-Wow…"
"I'm really sorry we spooked you," Frisk said.
"It w-was, um, just a r-really big surprise, is all," Alphys stammered. She turned her eyes on Asriel. "Um. S-Sorry. You are…?"
"Her brother." He folded his arms.
"You, um… Y-You look f-familiar," she said quietly. "D-Do…? Do you exist over here?"
"Shouldn't," he said. "Anyway, we'll answer what we can."
.
"I have a question," Gaster interjected.
"Cool, I'll tell you when I care," Asriel said.
"Az, come on," Frisk said gently.
He snorted and rolled his eyes. The skeleton frowned. Before he could say something more, Undyne stuck her arm up.
"Question," she said. "Where am I and why am I so tiiiiired?"
"Oh! O-Oh, um, L-L-Lieutenant Undyne, um…" Alphys scampered over to hold her hand. "It's… I-It's okay. You're, um, in the lab, in Hotland. I-It's going to be fine."
"Mmkay." She turned her eyes on Papyrus and she held his little face in both hands. "Lookit this cute little thing, wow."
"Nyeh heh heh! I'm helping," he assured her. He giggled when she squished him into a hug.
"Ugh, honestly," Gaster said, rolling his eyes.
"You some kinda sociopath or somethin'?" Asriel whirled on his, fangs bared. "I'm gettin' real sick of your attitude."
"Yes, well, that is your problem and not mine," he said.
"I wouldn't make it my problem if I were you," the monster hissed— there was a darkness to his tone that was frosty and low. "I'm real good at solvin' them."
"Haaaa, okay, let's just calm down," Frisk said, grabbing Asriel's hand and pulling him away. "Um, excuuuuse us for just a sec?"
.
She dragged him back towards the elevator and huffed out a deep breath. "Dude, what are you doing?" she asked, trying to whisper but her voice going shrill.
Asriel frowned slightly, his ears pinning back. "I think I hate him."
"Okay, but, like, you keep threatening to beat him up a bunch," she said.
"He'd deserve it." He paused and stared into her eyes. "I'm… not soundin' right, am I?"
"N-No, not really," she said. She reached up and took both his hands. "Can we talk?"
.
He knelt down to her level and, wincing, he brushed his claws through the scruffy fur between his horns. "I'm sorry." He shook his head. "I'm… I'm a mess."
"You're not," she said quickly. "Just chill out a little bit, it's gonna be okay."
"I shouldn't be like this," he muttered. His eyes darted away to the side. "I mean, maybe you noticed? I know you did. Right? That I'm not… right? I'm still… angry, sometimes? And when he talks like that about Papyrus, or you, or anyone, I just wanna knock his head into the trash can and roast his stupid glasses."
"I th-think that might just be the Toriel in you," she said sheepishly.
He snickered and smiled at her fondly. "Well. It doesn't help," he joked. He sighed to himself.
"We're all kinda on edge. Except, like, Papyrus I guess."
"And I need to stop being such a freak," he muttered.
She reached out and hugged him around his shoulders. "Az, I totally love you, okay? No matter what."
He bared his fangs. "I just, uh… I dunno. Forget it."
Frisk held his big face in both hands. She kissed his nose. "Even if you feel angry or bad, it's still better than not feeling anything. It's okay to feel like that. 'Cause then you get to feel the good stuff, too."
He wilted; grimaced. He hugged her tight. "How'd you get so smart and stuff?"
"I'm not. Someone had to tell me some feelings are okay, too. It's just…" She looked up into his eyes. "I really want you to be happy. Everyone's so glad you're back. Even if it didn't mean the barrier, or saving the world, or any of that junk, they would be happy, y'know? Me too. As long as you are."
He snorted and nodded, booping the tip of his snout against her forehead. "Yeah. I am. I'm just—"
"A mess, I know." Frisk grinned. "That's just us, though, it's okay."
He huffed and laughed roughly. "Okay. I'll only set him on fire if he really, really deserves it."
"Progress," she said with a grin.
He straightened up and casually wiped his thumb under his eye. "Heh. Glad I'm outta the royal running for bit, actually, I'd be a crap King."
"Oh stop," Frisk chided.
He snickered and then made a beeline for the other monsters across the lab. The kid followed.
.
Asriel grabbed a chair and plunked down heavily, folding his arms. "Okay. I'm gonna lay this out once. No interrupting." He glowered at Gaster. "We're from another universe and another set of timelines that's a lot like this one. We came here because your… whatever you did, skeleton man, ripped into our world and threw a bunch of shit off balance and knocked our older brother into a coma. We followed the energy and now need to fix whatever happened."
"S-So… So… You… are the anomaly?" Alphys asked cautiously.
Asriel shook his head. "If I am, it's only because I have part of her soul." He pointed at Frisk. "She's the anomaly. She's the one in charge of our timeline."
"We'd, um, really appreciate any help you guys could give us?" Frisk said. "I tried to close the rift from out in the, uh, kinda time void place out beyond that rip in time you guys have in the basement, but the flow going in felt strong enough that it was dangerous to do that, so if you could maybe just, like… shut off any experiments with that you have going, that might be a start?"
"Shut it off?! That's decades of work!" Gaster protested.
"Do you ever listen to yourself?" Sans asked sharply. "Stands to reason if it's messin' up their world like that, it's gonna mess up ours, too."
"I'll shut it off if this anomaly lets me study it," the skeleton said, pointing at Frisk. His gaze had gone frigid.
Asriel stepped between them, noting the kid's obvious look of discomfort. "Not happening. And don't call her an it again."
"Everything I've done was based on reaching an anomaly," Gaster said, getting to his feet. "I saw one distort time itself. Was that this one or not?"
"It doesn't matter, it's not happening," Asriel said.
Gaster folded his arms. "Then no deal."
.
Alphys let out a long, rough sigh. "Gaster, j-just help them."
"Surely you want the answers as well as I do?" he said sharply.
"It d-doesn't matter," the lizard insisted sternly. "Your experiment h-hurt their world. They're right. If it's really that much energy pouring out from here, it'll h-hurt our world, too. It's not f-fair to do what you're doing."
"I am protecting us," he insisted sternly.
"I wonder if it was the energy from closing the last rip," Frisk wondered quietly.
"What?" Gaster snapped.
"Oh! Well, it's just… I mean. You recorded this thing that happened, right? Can I see it?"
"I doubt a creature like you could make heads or tails of it," he said dismissively. "And there's no way I am letting a human near any of my work."
Sans rolled his eyes and beckoned to the kid. "I'll show you." He turned his attention on Asriel. "Babysit Papy, will ya?"