PATCHWORK SOUL - NEW MEDIUM

by Spark the Barkivist

DIRECT SEQUEL TO "PATCHWORK SOUL" — A few months later. A family of monsters and their little human kid try to start life anew beyond the confines of a giant mountain. Maybe they find something. Maybe they lose something. Time flows ever onwards, but sometimes it goes sideways, and it's heavier than they thought.

88. Setting up some bits of junk

Setting up some bits of junk Chapter 88

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The stream that ran behind the ancient dog's villa dropped down a cliff and into a deep, clear pool at its base. As the water tumbled, it surged with flecks of silver and gold that gleamed like fish right beneath the surface, only vanishing once the flow moved on into a river that passed through the sparse woods and on towards Aurum Falls. The faint spray of the water and the dappled shade from twisting trees offset the heat of the sun, and the pleasant smell of vanilla wafted down from the orchids up above.

.

Papyrus, an empty glass flask in hand, stood on his toes and carefully reached his arm out across the water, the other hand grasped firmly to the stone of the cliff. Watching from the edge of the pond, Frisk sat with her legs in the water, her pants rolled up past her knees, her fingers digging tight into the grass.

"You're making me anxious," she teased.

"Don't you worry, friend, I am the great… ungh… Papyrus!" He strained to dip the neck of the bottle into the waterfall. "So I have great balance, in fact! I—! AaaaHAH!" The boy cackled triumphantly and pulled back with his prize: clear water dotted with shimmering, metallic blobs.

"Nice!" Frisk said.

.

Papyrus corked the flask quickly, then held it above one hand and illuminated it with deep blue. The gravity magic shimmered across the surface, but fizzled out quickly, dropping it solidly into the skeleton's palm.

"Gosh, strong stuff," he said. "Just like I suspected." He stashed it in his pocket and pulled out another bottle. "Just two should be okay for now, I think."

"Does it, like, disrupt magic?" Frisk wondered.

"Soooort of," Papyrus said as he stretched to reach the falls again. "As far as the books say— and since this place is like Aurum but smaller, as far as I can tell— all these crystals and the vibrations charge the water with a bunch of different kinds of magic all at once. When it's flloooowing, ah…!" He pulled back with another filled flask and flashed a proud grin. "When it's flowing, it doesn't pick a frequency, I think."

"So it confuses the other magic," the kid said.

"Sort of, yes! And apparently it can also go stale, which is pretty weird, but!" He held up his prize and gave it a little shake, the gold and silver shimmers spinning around the glass. "You just have to shake it up a bit again every once in a while! I read that it might not last too long if you don't. But! What's interesting is, because of all those different magics, it attunes to basically anything. That's why it's supposed to make such a strong base for whatever you'd want to make."

"Hm. That's pretty cool." Frisk leaned back on her hands and cocked her head to the side. "Az and I got some books about potions and stuff; I hope it works back home. Kinda sounds like cooking but with, like… super powers."

"Nyeh heh! It is sort of just like making herb and rock soup all the time, to be honest," Papyrus said.

.

The skeleton bounded back to sit on the bank with her. As he settled, he leaned over to look at her leg.

"How is this, by the way?" He pointed out the circular scar above her knee. "It hasn't been bothering you anymore, has it?"

The kid shook her head. "Nah, it's just a mark now, no biggie."

"Good." He patted her on the shoulder and smiled fondly. He levelled his claw at the mark above her eyebrow and his brows bent with worry. "…Humans mark up a little easy, don't they?"

"Oh! Yeah, guess so," she said, absently running a finger over the mark. "It's not bad, though, they're not all from big dramatic things." She held out her arm and pointed out some faint lines on the side. "See, that's just from falling in a bush one time. Ooor, um." She lifted one leg out of the water by her ankle and pointed out another small mark. "I don't even know what that's from! I noticed it like a week or two after getting it, I think. So." She sat back and kicked her feet gently. "Don't worry too much."

Papyrus nodded. He ditched his boots, rolled up his pants, and dunked his legs in the water like she had. A shiver ran up his spine and he dipped his fingers into the water. The blobs of magic set a little glitter up the bones of his hand when they passed through him.

He let out a little sigh and leaned back on his hands the same way she had. "Aaah. The water's nice, right? Do you feel the way the magic shifts?"

"A little," she said.

"It's kind of relaxing, isn't it?"

Frisk cracked a little smile. "Yeah."

.

Papyrus leaned his head back. His lids drooped closed, shoulders sagging, and after a few moments, he stuck his tongue out. Frisk stifled a quiet laugh.

"…Do all skeletons have snake tongues?" she wondered quietly.

"Hm?" The boy opened one eye and smiled. "Of course we do, why do you think skeletons hiss?"

"Skeletons hiss?" she repeated, wide-eyed.

"Yes, obviously, rattling and hissing, that's the classic skeleton noises! We're snake cousins, you know!"

"Really?!"

Papyrus laughed, cheekbones flushing. "Nyeh heh, no, sorry, Frisk, I was just joking. To be honest, I don't really know," he said. "Most things about skeletons, I don't really know. Sans was a kid himself when he had to raise me and Mistral didn't have skeleton parents either. We're not a super common kind of monster, unfortunately, soooo we're a little mysterious, even to ourselves!" He blinked and sat up swiftly. "Wait! You live with skeletons, too! Do you know any more skeleton lore?"

"Aah! Not a ton," Frisk said swiftly. "My brothers were the only skeletons left until my dad came back. All I ever got told was skeletons were born out of ice cream, but like, as a joke."

"Aah! You're kidding, did Asriel tell you that?!" He let out a coo when the kid shook her head. "That's a joke we have here, too, that's a fun coincidence!"

Frisk snickered and smiled fondly. "It's cute. I've only seen a baby monster born, like, once, I think? They hatched out of a little fireball. So, I guess ice cream wouldn't be totally out there"

Papyrus laughed. "I guess not."

.

The skeleton stretched his arms above his head and then settled again. He rubbed at his eye socket with the heel of his hand. Frisk shot him a curious look. The second he caught her, he perked up quickly, straightening his shoulders. The kid rolled her eyes and grabbed his hand. Her magic flared, warm and consoling, little red motes drifting upwards from her fingertips. Papyrus slumped a little and he blinked slowly.

"Oomf." He flopped backwards into the grass and snickered tiredly, putting his arm over his eyes.

"Little tired, huh?" she said.

"Nyeeeh, maybe a little more than I thought," he said.

"Do you do that thing where you don't sleep when you're worried?" she asked.

"…Nnnnooooo—maybe."

"Welp." Frisk flopped back, too, to stare up at the clear, blue sky. "I get it."

"I think we're okay now," he said.

"Hope so!"

.

Frisk folded her arms behind her head. They both remained flopped over, resting in a comfortable silence for a little while, until the kid cleared her throat.

"Paps?"

"Yeeees?"

"Do you think I'm really weird to wanna talk to Gaster?" she wondered.

"Hm. No, not weird," he said. "I very much understand. I wanted to convince him to stop on his own, right? So, actually, I still kind of would like to talk to him, too, even if he doesn't agree to stop being a villain." He scratched at his cheek and frowned. "But, then again, he was always pretty polite to me and I'm not entirely sure why, so I still think I might be able to get through to him."

"It was 'cause you look like his kid," Frisk said.

Papyrus blinked. He sat up swiftly. "Excuse me?!"

"Paps, he's like my dad," Frisk said, raising her brows. "Meaning he's like… my brothers' dad, too? Papyrus's dad. You're Papyrus."

"So I…?! OH! Wowie, that… That's extremely weird, actually, I can't believe I didn't really put that together."

Frisk shook her head. "Nah, if he's not your dad in this world— or if he's not even here and you never even met him— why would you? Even if I, um, have no clue how that works."

"…True, I guess." The skeleton pouted nonetheless, but, after a moment of thoughtful frowning, he began to grin. "Well! Then I extra might have a chance, don't you think? If he won't talk to you, he might talk to me. GASP! Or to Sans! I bet he'd talk to Sans a lot, he's very easy to talk to."

"Ooh. Maybe." she said. "Hopefully he doesn't just, like, rip up the letter or something."

"I wouldn't," Papyrus said. "I'd be extremely curious. Maybe he would also be extremely curious."

"Man, I really hope so."

.

A call of Asriel's voice drew their eyes up to the top of the cliff. He and Chara stood just up the large, steep stairs carved from rock and imbedding into it. The goat boy waved and Papyrus waved back. Frisk sat up and rubbed her head.

"Done already?" she wondered.

"I hope it worked," Papyrus said. "HEEEEY! DID IT WORK?!"

"We dunno yet!" Asriel called back. "She said she needs some time! I think—!"

Chara nudged him and pointed at the stairs.

"OH! I'm gonna come down so we can stop yelling!"

"GOOD!" Papyrus yelled.

.

Chara and Asriel carefully climbed down the steep, stone steps. Approaching the pond, Asriel looked up at the falls, wide-eyed, and let out a whistle.

"Yooo, that's nice," he said.

"Come sit!" Frisk called.

"Pasithea's waiting," he said. "She has snacks."

"Ooooh."

"Did you find what you were looking for, Papy?" Chara asked.

"I did!" He hopped to his feet, pulling on his boots as he went, and bounced over the mouth of the river and went to her side. "Yoooou look a little worried, sister, did something go wrong?"

"No. No, nothing," she said. She looked to Frisk. "She, uh… Pasithea's grandmother wants to meet you."

"Me? Um. Okay, sure," Frisk said. "Why, what's going on?"

.

Chara grimaced. She puffed out a little sigh and beckoned Frisk closer. The kid got up and picked up her boots, and Papyrus grabbed her in a shock of blue magic and brought her over to their side of the water. As soon as she touched the ground, she quickly fixed her baggy pants to cover the scar and wiped her feet on the grass.

"You remember that crystal I asked you to hold on to?" Chara asked.

"The one that turned red?" Frisk asked as she put her boots back on. "Yeah."

"Good. The… process we're doing is to try to… I guess, copy it exactly. But in a crystal attuned to me, instead." She tented her fingers. "Magic reaches for itself. And yours is… Well. We know what it can do."

Frisk tilted her head to the side. "…You wanna use it for time magic?" she asked curiously. "Are you gonna put it in your sword or something"

"What?! No! No, no." Chara chuckled quietly. "It's… The point is that it reaches for itself. Hopefully, no matter where it is." She cautioned a smile. "So… maybe we could—?"

"Yo, wait, are you making a weird dimensional phone or something?!" Frisk squeaked.

"Ah! Well! I… I don't know," the girl said. "I'm just trying… If I can. To at least get something that'll reach out to… itself, I guess. And maybe we can use that to—"

"To talk to each other?! Even from home?!" Frisk's eyes were big and glittering, the red of her irises gleaming bright. "Is that what it's for?!"

"Well…"

"We're hoping," Asriel said quickly. "We… We don't know. Maybe we can… We might be able to—"

"How do I help?!" Frisk said quickly. "Why didn't you wanna tell me?!"

"You don't need to do anything," Chara said swiftly. "It's… It's all up to me, okay? It's… It'll be what I do that determines whether it works or not, yeah?"

Asriel cut his eyes at her but she stared resolutely forward at Frisk. She clenched her fists tight.

"So…" The girl continued. "So. If… If it goes wrong; if it doesn't work, it's because… I'm not strong enough. Got it? It's—"

"What? Okay, so?!" Frisk said. "You didn't wanna say 'cause of that? You didn't think I'd be mad, did you?"

"…D…" Chara's voice caught for a moment. "Disappointed, maybe? But I—" Her words fell to a grunt as Frisk yanked her into a tight, strong hug.

"Never never never," the kid said swiftly. "H-How could I ever be if you're trying all that?"

"Oh… Ah…" Chara floundered for a moment, but then put her arms around the smaller kid lightly. "Thank you, Frisk." She took a deep breath. "I… I think the old dog just… wants to see you, to get a better feel for your magic, since she needs to work with it."

"Mhm. Okay. Of course, that's fine." Frisk pulled back and balled her fists with determination. "What do I gotta do?"

"We'll see in there," Chara said.

"Do we go now?" the kid asked, already bouncing towards the stairs.

"Like I said, the dog needs a little bit," Asriel said. "Um. They got tea and stuff in there, though, if you want."

Frisk looked back to Papyrus. He smiled and stuck his thumb up.

"I'm done," he said. He rushed over to her to scoop her up. "Let me give you a hand!"

"I can do it!" she said.

"I know you can, but you are very small and it'll make you tired."

.

As the skeleton ferried Frisk away, Chara let out a little sigh of relief. Asriel looked down at her, brows raised.

"Never tell her," she said under her breath.

"Uh. Which part?" Asriel asked.

"If it doesn't work. Promise me you'll never tell her about why," Chara said. "Okay?"

The boy scrunched his snout up. He crossed his arms. "…It'll work."

"Asriel."

"Chara."

"Just…!" She huffed in exasperation, scowling up at him. "Just promise me, will you?!"

"Okay, okay! I promise." He offered her his pinkie and she scoffed, but locked hers with his for just a moment. "It's gonna work, though," he said.

Chara grimaced. She waved him off dismissively before following the others back up the cliff.

.

Frisk and Papyrus beat them inside, but as the short kid wandered, looking up at everything in awe, Chara slipped away as fast as she could back to the old dog's workroom. Asriel puffed himself up a little and headed back towards the tea table. He reached for Frisk and helped her up onto one of the large chairs before taking a seat himself. The kid's eyes bugged out at the sight of the spread laid out before them.

"Whoa," she breathed.

"Here." Pasithea poured some steaming tea and stirred a spoonful of sugar into it before carefully passing it to the kid and looking to Asriel. "Would you like some more?"

"I… Uh. You know, yeah, that'd be good," he said.

"You sound nervous, friend," Papyrus said, putting a steadying hand on Asriel's shoulder. "Is this whole thing a little stressful, somehow?"

"…Yeah. I guess," he said. "I just… Y'know. Really… want this to work. Whatever this ends up being, exactly."

"It's gonna," Frisk said steadily.

"I sort of know how you feel," Papyrus said. He looked bashful all of a sudden. "Not to the same extent, obviously! But… I want it to work, too. I really want to keep in touch."

"It's gonna work," Frisk said again.

"Just give my grandmother a little more time," Pasithea said as she began to prepare a cup for Papyrus, as well. "If a crystal can do it, she can figure it out."

.

"Is crystal stuff really complicated?" Frisk asked. "We don't have it as much back home."

"Complicated?" The pesanta tilted her head. "I guess it's… Well, maybe just a little more complicated than most other magic. Do you…? Wait, no you just said…" She laughed at herself, shaking her head. "Okay, so, while crystals are really great conduits, they do come out of the earth on their own, unless you actually grow them yourself. Which can be pretty hard. Whiiich means the ones we use are mostly the natural one, and those usually need to be attuned before they're usable."

"Did we pick up any books about it?" the kid asked, looking to her brother.

"I think so," he said. "It's a tech we used to use back home. Like, a worse version of here, because it was, like… a long time ago and I don't think it developed very much outside of batteries after a certain point. But, for us, charging them didn't work super well without sunlight, for whatever reason."

"Oh! Yes, for sure, you definitely need a full spectrum of magic," Pasithea said with an eager nod. "What happened that you didn't…? Was there a mountain incident in your home, too?"

"Big one," Frisk said.

"Thousand year kinda thing," Asriel said.

Pasithea shuddered, but she nodded. "When the mountain was up, there was a small hole in the peak, but access to the direct light was pretty strictly regulated by the, um… You know, the people that were taking advantage of the King being… Um… Insane."

"…Wait, there were people like that?" Frisk asked, wide-eyed. "What happened to them?"

"Ummm…" Pasithea blinked. She frowned thoughtfully and let out a loud, ponderous hum, "You know, I can't remember, I'm sorry. I guess maybe they…? Got fired, or something? Anyway! So, because of that, a lot of crystal tech was either hard to get or really expensive, or only what the monsters running the Inner Circle wanted everyone to have. Once the mountain was gone, we had a big boom of inventions and everything, which was really nice." She smiled. "Maybe that'll happen where you're from, too."

"That'd be cool," Frisk said.

"We've mostly been using stuff we… Or I guess, Frisk's dad— backwards engineered from what the humans in our place were doing," Asriel said. "Or stuff he and a bunch of other monsters just made up out of their parts. Crystals got partially phased out sorta slowly, but… I mean, if it works, I can't see why we couldn't do both. It'd probably short out a lot less than forcing human tech to run on magic."

"So are the humans beyond steam and things like that where you live?" Papyrus wondered.

"Oh, yeah, way beyond that," Asriel said.

.

Frisk took a sip of her tea from the huge cup. She sunk in her seat and her mind flitted homeward. A Starhome full of crystals might be nice, she thought. "Maybe… after everything going crazy back home, if we bring this stuff back, they might… kinda feel like it was at least a little worth it?"

"I mean, I think they'll think it was worth it that we come home in general," Asriel said. "But… it might smooth things over."

"What, you don't think they're going to be mad at you, do you?" Papyrus asked shrilly. "You didn't do this on purpose!"

"Wasn't it that man who was trying to… you know, kill you, that was the issue?" Pasithea wondered.

"Yeah, but they're still going through a lot." Frisk gulped, hard. "Oh, no, you don't think anyone'll blame it on Sans, right?"

"Sans will," Asriel said.

Frisk rubbed her face and groaned. "Ugh, why you gotta be right?" She looked to Papyrus. "Does your brother do that, too?"

"Do what? Blame bad things on himself even when it's completely out of his control or a hundred-percent understandable and objectively the less-bad consequences of a hard choice nobody should ever have to make?" Papyrus smiled sideways. "How did you know?"

"So what do you do?" she asked.

"That is a good question!" he said with a laugh. "Honestly. Whatever you can."

Frisk sighed. She turned to the side, but a question stalled in her open mouth and she looked confused. "…Did Chara not come in?"

"She'll be back soon," Asriel said. He quickly skimmed the table and pushed some fresh, crusty bread. "Here."

"You tryin' to distract me with toast?" she said.

"…Maybe?"

.

"I'm here!" Chara hurried back in from the hallway. "I'm here, you don't have to go looking or…" She steadied herself and marched over to join them. "Ugh. You guys better not have eaten everything without me."

"Yo, we didn't even start," Asriel said.

"Chara, what do you do if Sans is feeling really bad and blaming himself for stuff that isn't his fault?" Frisk asked.

"Three steps. One: make fun of him. Two: make him tea. Three: sit around reading with him or whatever. Repeat as necessary." Chara took a seat beside Asriel and reached for a chocolate biscuit instantly. "Why?"

"Just… Just thinking about home stuff, never mind, it's fine," Frisk said.

Pasithea looked between the two kids, befuddled. "Sans and…. Sans…" Her eyes grew large and she looked to Frisk. "Do you come from a land of doppelgängers or something?"

"I think kinda everyone does," Asriel said. "Infinite doppelgängers."

"Does that mean there's one of me?!"

Asriel frowned thoughtfully. He looked to Frisk. She gave a little shrug.

"I… I dunno, I don't know everyone," she said.

"Oh. Right." Pasithea chuckled sheepishly. "Nobody does. That was a silly question, sorry." She looked to Chara. "Are you alright? Sorry, you just look a little—"

"I'm fine," she said swiftly. "Thanks."

The pesanta shot her a sympathetic smile. "More tea?"

"…Yeah."

.

As they settled in, snacking and chatting, Chara couldn't hide that her thoughts were a million miles away. Asriel kept pushing the cookies close to her, but she hardly managed two of them, and barely as many words. When the sound of the door to the hall opening cut through the room, the freckled girl was on her feet again in an instant, arms crossed, fingers lightly clenched into them.

.

The tall dog emerged and Pasithea got to her feet as well. The dog smiled warmly, swooping in to pull the gangly monster into her arms.

"My little Pipa, I'm so glad you came," the dog said warmly. "And you've played a very good host for me, dear, thank you."

Pasithea's cheeks flushed. "O-Of course! Hosting's all part of the job! Ah." She gave her a squeeze. "Good to see you, grandma."

.

The dog drew back, patting the smaller monster affectionately on the head, and looked around the table, her dark eyes warm and gleaming. She aimed her sharp snout right at Frisk and her light brows raised up, as did the ridges of her ears.

"Oh! Please don't be perturbed!" Papyrus said swiftly. "I-If you've been hearing the news, this little human is the Demon of Starhome, so you don't have to worry at all!"

"I see." The dog smiled warmly. "Hello. All of you. I am Aethra." She readjusted her robe and beckoned to them. "Come. Both sisters. We will not be long." She turned, silky tail swishing, and headed back the way she came.

.

Frisk looked at Chara, but the girl had her eyes locked on Pasithea.

"Pipa?" she asked.

"That's what I said, too," Asriel said.

"Oh! Y-Yeah. That's, um. That's my name!" The pesanta smiled sheepishly and shrugged. "Just, um, if you could keep it a little quiet in the city." Her dark cheeks flushed with purple. "If it even comes up. Not that it would, really, I can't really imagine a reason for that to even happen so—"

"You're embarrassed of your real name?" Frisk asked with a quizzical frown.

"N-Not embarrassed, really! But who's going to even bother checking out the mystical shop of the Magnificent Pipa? It's not very, um, dramatic, right? Doesn't really have any theatrical flare. It's, um…" She counted quickly on her claws. "I think Pasithea's probably the fifth one I tried."

"Oh! It's a stage name!" Papyrus said.

"Yes! Yes, exactly, a stage name," Pasithea said, nodding quickly. "But call me whatever you like, honestly."

"Oh." Chara smiled slyly. "Funny. I was sure you were keeping some secret but I didn't think it'd be something so pedestrian."

The monster laughed. "I'm, um, really not very interesting at all, you know?" She gestured after her grandmother. "Go on, don't keep her waiting too long."

.

Satisfied, Chara grabbed Frisk's hand and lead her back to the chamber filled with crystals where Pasithea's grandmother waited. Mirror-like chunks of glinting stone floated in the air, circling two pedestals that supported the crystals Chara had been working with. Motes of magic in deep indigo danced lightly around them. Frisk's eyes raced around the room and she let out a little, awed coo.

.

"This is… the time god, is it?" Aethra asked curiously.

Frisk jolted a little, wide-eyed, and she looked to Chara. The freckled girl nodded and she held Frisk's shoulder.

"Yes." She gestured at the tall dog. "Frisk, can you show her your magic?"

"Oh! Yeah, sure." Frisk held out her hand and, brow creasing with focus, her magic swelled in her palm into a small, red bubble that glowed faintly. She carefully held it out towards Aethra. "Is this okay?"

The old monster leaned towards her, brushing her long fingers through the energy. A little spark of red travelled down her pale strands of fur. Cocking her head to the side, she knelt and cupped her hand beneath Frisk's, dwarfing it completely, and she drew a claw gently along her palm. Motes of indigo bubbled up under her touch, drifting out into the room to the others. Frisk's eyes grew wide and she watched them, holding in a little sound of awe. The dog let out a little, ponderous sound and she drew back, towering over the kids.

.

"I must confess, when I saw you were human, I did not expect you to be a puppy," Aethra said.

"Uh." Chara looked to Frisk, brows shooting up.

The kid shrugged a little. "I… get that a lot," she said.

"Nor did I expect you to have a blessing such as that upon you," Aethra continued. "But. That may make this a little easier."

"What blessing?" Chara asked.

"Dog's," Aethra said simply.

Frisk tried to conceal her puzzlement, but could not. The words reminded her of something Soleil had said. "How'll it help?"

The dog smiled. "It is good luck."

"Oh." Frisk cracked a sheepish smile. "That'd be pretty nice. We, um… We haven't been having a whole lotta that, y'know?"

"We just finally got a break after days of… You heard about the Interloper?" Chara asked.

Aethra's ears pinned back a little. "I did. Such a fretful tale."

"Yeah, we've been dealing with that since he got here."

The old dog's expression drooped, as did her ears and tail. Frisk put her hands up quickly.

"It was okay! We were fine! Oh! And Pasithea totally fought him," Frisk said. "She helped me against him on a roof, with her, um, sleep magic or something."

"…Pardon?" The dog's eyes widened. "My little Pipa did that?"

Frisk nodded. "She was scared but she did it anyway, she was really really cool."

"Ah…" Aethra seemed to glow, her ears lifting up again. "You know, she's really quite the introvert, so to hear that pleases me greatly."

.

The huge dog turned to the crystal closest to her and raised her hand above it. It lifted into the air and floated there, spinning slowly in place.

"This will just be a moment," she said. "You may go, soon."

"We're not in a rush," Chara assured her.

Aethra dipped her head. She spun a finger around the crystal, tracing lines of magic in the air. The light formed small, orbital rings, and motes lined up along them, each flicker letting out a faint note of music.

"The crystal amplifies." Though her tone was soft, her voice dropped, resonating with a calm, sturdy energy.

The stones around her replied, humming in tune as the indigo motes circling Chara's crystal pulsed and shifted.

"The crystal contains," she continued. "Time. Unending. It comes and goes, like the tide. It reaches. It…" She stalled, closing her eyes. Her ears perked up high, trembling gently.

.

The kids looked at each other. Chara could only shrug.

.

Aethra straightened up, her neck and shoulders stiff. She raised both hands, the rings on her fingers gleaming with light. Her soul pulsed and loops of magic spiralled out from her body. The other crystal Chara had brought lifted and mimicked the first. The dog spoke again, but in a different language this time, one neither of the kids could understand. The rings around the crystals responded to whatever she was saying, altering their melody as she went.

.

The dog paused. Her snout wrinkled and lips pulled back to reveal many more sharp teeth than any dog should have. She breathed out a long, slow stream of air that tinted with deep blue. It wafted around her like smoke before dissipating to nothingness.

"One more thing," Aethra said softly. "I must ask one thing."

"What do you need?" Chara asked.

The dog levelled her finger at Frisk. "An aspect of your essence."

Frisk blinked. "Um."

"Is the magic not enough?" Chara said.

"What's my essence?" the kid asked.

Chara put a hand on her shoulder. "Hang on. Why do you need it?" Chara's face fell. "Did…? Was the attunement not enough?"

"I direct the crystal on its purpose. I direct the magic to never use itself up— to never reach below a certain threshold. It belongs to time, so I direct it to refresh itself, but it cannot without something of its owner to wrap around."

"So… Ugh. It'd just be a problem on my end, hers would be fine," Chara grumbled. "…Frisk, essence in a human means soul, mind, or living body. There's nothing you can—"

"…Wait, isn't that super easy, though?" Frisk asked.

"Two of those are completely impossible and I can't ask for—!"

"Here." Frisk held her finger out to the dog. "Could you just take a drop of blood or something?"

Chara froze. "…Blood?"

"Yeah, why not? That'd count as body, right?"

"I…" The freckled girl's cheeks flushed. "Maybe?" She looked at Aethra with large eyes. "Would blood work? Like, you wouldn't have to take a whole finger or something?"

"I confess, I have never done this," the dog said. "Not with a human. Not with the essence of time. But we may try."

.

Frisk let the dog take her by the hand. Aethra cradled her carefully, separating the index finger from the others and holding it tight. With a quick prick of a sharp claw on her fingertip, a little red dot of blood bubbled up from her skin.

"Oh dear," she said softly.

"It's fine," Frisk assured her.

The dog nodded. Her magic dragged a drop upwards, a perfect, gleaming sphere of red suspended in the air. Her lip curled slightly again as she straightened up, her eyes locked upon it. As Frisk put her finger in her mouth, the dog turned swiftly, calling a clear, cut crystal shell to her from the wall. She cupped it over the droplet as if she was carefully catching a bubble in midair. The blue magic sealed the bottom and she carefully took the crystal in both hands, then gave it a spin. Within, the many facets seemed to mirror the blood alone— a duplicate appeared, and then more, reflected on each side from within the crystal.

.

Aethra listen the crystal up and stared at it intently. "Hm. I think… Yes, I believe this will serve nicely."

"That'll work?" Frisk asked quickly.

"…It may," the monster said. She turned and placed the container on the final of the three pedestals. "Alright. That is all."

"Wait. Really? That's it?" Chara said. "There's nothing else for us to do?"

"No, dear. I will send them to you once everything is complete." The dog gestured to the door. "I will continue; please eat your fill before you depart, if you wish."

"Wh…? O-Okay, but—?"

"Oh. Also. I'd advise you each bind your crystal to your soul if their function is to your satisfaction." The tall dog looked to Frisk. "That instrument around your neck is a similar object, yes?"

"Oh! Y-Yeah. It is," Frisk said.

Aethra nodded approvingly.

.

"How do I pay you for this?" Chara asked quickly. "I—"

"Do not think on it, Chara Dreemurr," Aethra said. "Perhaps you may do me a small favour in the future, but—"

"If this works, I'll…! I'll do whatever, I'll pull any string, I don't care," Chara said quickly.

The dog chuckled. "We can speak on it some other time, dear," she said.

"Thank you so much," Frisk said.

The monster dipped her head, then turned back to her work, her long tail swishing calmly, motes of magic drifting back and forth like light flakes of snow.

.

The kids went out to the hallway. As soon as they pulled to door closed, Chara almost collapsed. She threw her arms around Frisk and squeezed her tight.

"Whoa, you okay?" Frisk squeaked.

"Mhm. Y-Yeah. Yeah. It's…" She let out a little, rough laugh. "It's fine." She pulled back and grabbed Frisk to look at her fingertip— it had already stopped bleeding. She clasped the kid's hand in both of hers and puffed out a heavy, relieved sigh. "Okay. Okay! We…! We have a shot!"

"Yeah." Frisk nodded resolutely. She reached up to gently pull Chara's head down so she could bonk their foreheads together. "Don't worry. It's gonna be fine. No matter what. Okay?"

Chara snorted out a laugh. She playfully mussed up Frisk's hair. "Stop it, I might actually start believing you!"

xXxXx

As the sun slowly sank over the Kingdom, the streets just beyond the castle were overcome with the makings of a night market and festival. Volunteers— citizens and guards alike— set up stalls and game booths, as well as baubles of brightly coloured light strung about on the buildings. Toriel mingled with the excited workers, lighting enchanted torches and bonfires all throughout the area.

.

The construction of a wooden stage was also underway, Undyne herself doing most of the assembly as Mistral dragged materials over for her. Crowds of curious neighbours had already begun to gather, especially in spots that were giving out food.

.

Lethargy stiffening his already uneven gate, Sans strolled the cobblestone road, taking note of a miniature ferris wheel and some other spinning rides Alphys had been so keen on. They'd spent a bit of time setting them up, and now some other monsters were decorating them with paint and glitter. Down the road, he picked out the sight of a smartly-dressed flame elemental preparing a seating area before a large, swirling cooking station of enchanted fire and ice. Sans caught his eye and stuck a hand up in greeting, and the elemental replied in kind.

.

Alphys, meandering at the skeleton's side, let out a quiet, amused snort, and gently nudged him with her elbow. "I don't think we've had this much excitement since Undyne's c-coronation."

"Probably right," he said. He shot her a lopsided smile. "And no protestors this time."

"Thankfully!" Alphys let out a tired laugh. "I… I mean, I'm really happy T-Toriel's back, especially for your s-sister, but I hope it doesn't… You know. Kick off again."

"Haven't seen a sign of it yet, but hey, when ya take over in a coup, there's always gonna be some pushback, even if the old monarch was insane."

"T-True."

"And even if he literally told Chara he agreed with her once the curse went kaput."

"Yeah…"

"And even if Toriel herself plunked the Cap into the hot seat." Sans gave a wide shrug. "Unfortunately for the Royalists, the, uh, royals don't wanna rule, so it's not like y'can force 'em."

"That's true, for sure, I j-just…" She paused in her tracks as a little vibration in her pocket interrupted her and began patting down the sides of her coat.

.

Sans felt the same hum, as did a plethora of other monsters on the street who instantly began rummaging in their clothes. He pulled a crystal from his pocket and lifted it up to his good eye.

"Hm. Royal Decree just dropped." He looked towards Undyne, but she was still busy. "Archon, I guess."

Alphys plucked the crystal from his fingers, skimming the words that shifted on its surface. "On the eve of our first-ever Chaos-Star V-Victory Day, the castle is p-preparing a festival to last over the next two days, beginning tonight. All are welcome. This is t-to honour the victory of the Demon of Starhome and Captain Chaos against the mysterious Interloper, protecting the Soul of the World and the Kingdom capital," she read. "A holiday f-for naps and parties. Official foods: fries and chocolate milkshakes, and b-butterscotch pie…?" The lizard let out a little laugh as she plunked the crystal back into Sans's hand. "Interesting."

"Sounds like my kinda holiday," he said.

Alphys chuckled. "Anyway," she said, "I g-guess I was just thinking, and I know I'm b-biased, but Undyne's d-doing a pretty good job, right? So…" She smiled. "Maybe a… an ice cream, fries, and pie holiday is a good thing right now."

"After the sudden weird dome thing and the crap this Gaster guy did, probably."

.

As they strolled, vibrations of magic thrummed softly in the air, floating up from the homes and the excitement of the workers. Pleasant embers in all different colours drifted along with the breeze.

"He's, um… He's interesting, you know?" Alphys said quietly.

"You mean disturbin'," Sans joked.

"That too," she said. "I d-don't think I've ever seen anyone be so relaxed to be, um, in j-jail before." She gave him a sideways look. "Um… Does he… seem familiar to you?"

"Nah. You?"

Alphys's eyes narrowed ever so slightly, but the skeleton's expression didn't budge. She pursed her mouth for a moment. "I'm… n-not really sure, but… Chara s-seemed kind of, um… upset, though."

"Sure. Just watched the guy try to kill her siblings. Ain't fun," he said.

"Sans." Alphys peered over her glasses at him. "Come on."

The skeleton grinned widely and shrugged.

"I know y-you know that's not what I m-meant."

"And I know y'know that—" Sans froze in his tracks. "Wuh-oh."

"What?" she asked.

"Hang on." He took a very deliberate step to line right up in front of her, then vanished.

.

Alphys cast about quickly, but the skeleton was just out of sight, stashing himself behind one of the completed stalls, just in time to avoid Mettaton running up to the lizard with a whole sack full of letters. He demanded the skeleton's whereabouts and, as Alphys denied knowing a thing, Sans wandered off with a smug grin on his face. Toriel caught his eye as he slid by and a knowing smirk curled her lips, but she said nothing.

.

Sans slipped over to the fire elemental, an old pal of his, to catch up for a little and pick up a chilled drink, before he circled the block at a leisurely pace. Once he returned to where he'd started, he was pleased to see Mettaton had rushed off to the forming stage, where he and Undyne were already arguing about decoration placement. Alphys was left with the bag he was sure was for him, but he was more than pleased to see his batch of kids and the pesanta from downtown had arrived in his absence and were chatting with her.

.

In a blink, he joined them and was inundated with greetings he didn't get a chance to answer as Chara crushed him into a hug. He snorted out a quiet laugh and lifted her up off her feet, faintly glad that she was still just barely short enough to allow it. She flopped her arms heavily over his shoulders.

"We actually have a shot," she whispered to him.

He smiled fondly and gave her a squish. "Glad to hear it."

.

"Brother! Our new friend," Papyrus said, gesturing to Pasithea, "has family that lives right near Aurum Falls! We went to the small version while everything was going on."

"Oh yeah?" The light in his brother's eyes made Sans's grin widen. "That's great. Got your stuff done, then?"

"Think so!" Frisk said.

"My grandmother said it looks really promising," Pasithea said.

"From all this, it sounds l-like I'd really love to meet your grandmother," Alphys said quietly. "Did she ever, um, work up here?"

"Oh, a really, really really really long time ago, I think. I think the, um, original Prince and Princess were still around back then," the pesanta said. "Mostly she was a professor out east, though, as far as I know." Her ears perked and her eyes widened. "W-Wait, you'd r-really want to meet her, Archwizard?!"

"Yeah, of c-course!" Alphys said brightly. "Anything more I could learn from a specialist like that, I'd really l-love to!"

Pasithea couldn't help but beam, clasping her talon-like hands together. "Wow! O-Okay!"

"I'd also love to talk more, b-but I shouuuuld probably go get dinner to you-know-who," she said apologetically.

"Hey," Sans said, plunking Chara back down onto the ground and patting her on the head. "How 'bout ya keep chattin' and I'll handle it."

"…Huh?" Alphys blinked. "What, really?"

"I can come with," Asriel said swiftly.

"Or me," Chara said.

"Nah," Sans said with a dismissive wave. "You kids have fun tonight." He looked to Frisk and winked his bad eye. "Catch up with ya later, I'll let y'know how the letter goes over."

"Ah! Thank you!" Frisk said brightly.

"Oh! Wait," Alphys said, holding up the big sack she'd received. "M-Mettaton said this was for you?"

"Ah. Right. Uhh." He shrugged and looked to Asriel. "I'm sure y'can figure out somethin' funny to do with it."

"Why, what is it?" the boy asked.

"Let's just call it, uh, fan-mail." Sans shot finger guns their way. "See ya."

.

Sans teleported back to his friend's outdoor eatery set-up in the blink of an eye. It was already complete, looking little different from a full restaurant and bar, minus its roof. Big letters of magic along the nearest wall proudly proclaimed the area as Grillby's popup. The place was packed.

.

The skeleton snuck around some exuberant patrons and slid up to the counter as he had before, raising a hand to greet his bustling friend. "Hey again, Grillbs," he said, "if my sibs and some other kids swing by with 'em, put stuff on my tab, yeah?"

The fire man nodded curtly. He brushed his hand over the burning stove at his side and a whip of flame whisked the food off it and out over the tables where diners waited eagerly.

"Didn't expect you to return so quickly," the elemental said quietly as he laid out fresh paddies across the fire.

"Gotta bring somethin' to someone currently, uh, indisposed," he said. "Couldn't think of anyone better. Got time to whip up whatever the festival special is?"

"Done." Grillby turned and deposited a large paper bag onto the counter before the skeleton.

Sans grinned. "How many of those you got?"

"Enough." He raised his brows. "For someone special?"

"Eh, specially annoyin', more like," Sans said. "But, y'know, responsibility and all that."

"Hah…" The elemental turned back to his work. "Good luck."

"Need it. Thanks a million." Sans clunked some gold down onto the counter, gave a little salute, then shifted away.

.

Firelight gave way to bright, clear crystal glow as Sans arrived before the large statue in Alphys's Academy that guarded the path down to the dungeon. He took a second, bracing himself for the feel of the binding magic, then opened the way.

.

Alphys's spell struck him as soon as he pushed the door open and he held back a grunt. There was a dog guard waiting at a table between the stairway and the second door, eating fries and playing cards with himself. Sans flashed a silver pin of Undyne's Delta Rune hidden on the inner collar of his jacket, gave the pooch a pat on the head, and moved on in.

.

The room housing the cell was quiet, save for the soft, magical vibrations of a few flowers left around on stools to refresh the area. Sans stared across and through the bars, pulling out the sight of the other skeleton, partially concealed by his privacy wall. He gritted his sharp teeth for a few seconds, drew in a long, calming breath, then strolled up to the bars.

.

"Yo," Sans said. "Brought ya dinner."

The skeleton within the cell jumped to his feet, eyes flaring. He stared at Sans blankly for a few long, silent seconds. Sans held out the bag and pushed it towards the bars. They grabbed it in a bubble of clear magic and transferred it through, drifting over to the prisoner. He steadied himself and carefully took it as the bubble popped.

"…Thank you," Gaster said. He placed the bag down on the table, amongst a plethora of scattered documents. "No Archwizard tonight?"

"Busy," Sans said.

"Hm. Shame." The old skeleton carefully tugged at the opening to the bag with his fingertips. "I didn't mind our chats. She seems like she's got a good head on her shoulders."

Sans stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Know 'er?"

"I'm not sure what you mean."

"Yeah y'are."

.

Gaster's mouth pulled into a thin line. He let out a little sigh and cautiously opened the bag. His dark eyes grew wide. He carefully plucked out a container of crisp, fresh fries and a tall, covered, frosty cup. He placed them on the table, along with the final item: a generous slice of pie in a special Grillby's dish. The empty bag vanished into glitter the moment he released it.

"This is… thoughtful. Thank you," he said.

Sans shrugged. He stuck a finger up and his blue magic whisked over an empty stool. He plunked down, one leg propped up higher on the seat. "Mind if we chat?"

"I see that I don't have much of a choice," the skeleton said. "But. I don't mind at all, actually." He gestured to the cell. "The accommodations are more than I could have asked for, really, but it is fairly quiet here."

.

Sans's brow furrowed a little. He tented his fingers, catching as the other skeleton's eyes jumped down to his damaged hand. The question was clear on Gaster's face, though he didn't ask it.

"You heard the rundown on what's goin' on tomorrow yet?" Sans asked.

"I have. The, uh. Archon, I think? Came in and gave me these." Gaster gestured to the documents on the table. "It explains the process of the hearing and things like that. I've waived my right to an advocate."

"Y'sure 'bout that?" Sans wondered.

"I am. I'll take whatever punishment your Queen sees fit to give," he said.

"…Hm." The sharp-toothed skeleton leaned forward. "Y'got a death wish or somethin'?"

"I've been told that's not a punishment here, but it… doesn't matter much," he said. "There's nothing I can do, regardless." He sat down heavily and cautiously took a fry. "I don't see a point in resisting."

.

"Yeesh." Sans smiled sideways. "Nihilist, huh?"

"Realist, I'm afraid." He peeled back the cover on the cup and froze, wide-eyed. He turned from it quickly and knitted his fingers. "I could attempt to fight my way out, but what would that accomplish? If not even the…" He shook his head. "You saw what my attack did to that… entity, didn't you?"

"Not sure what ya mean," he said.

"It ate it. Its power only grew. How am I supposed to…?" The skeleton winced and he gritted his teeth. "I'm sorry, I can't imagine that makes much sense."

"Eh." Sans shrugged. "What does make sense anymore? You sure don't."

.

Gaster eyed him up and down. His sharp fingertips drummed on the table and he lowered his voice. "Are you sure? …You are Sans, aren't you? I know you're very clever. I don't think you would have pushed me about Alphys earlier unintentionally. You were the one who told her about the other worlds?"

Sans grinned a little wider. "No. Not me. But we're on the same page."

"I'm glad for that, at least."

"Might not be for long," Sans said, his eye gleaming faintly. "The way you been fightin'. The tools you got. You planned this. Came prepared. For an assassination. Prospects ain't lookin' too good."

"I understand," Gaster said.

"So. Tomorrow. I figure, you'll probably get a couple options," Sans said. "We can, uh, talk about 'em once it's settled. I'm the, uh, Royal Oracle, so I got a little pull."

The old skeleton frowned. "I'm not sure I follow."

Sans got up slowly. He pulled Frisk's note from his pocket and held it through the bars. "The kid wants to talk to you."

.

The light in Gaster's eyes diminished to tiny specks. "What?"

"See what y'think of this, first," Sans said.

Gaster stood stiffly and cautiously took the note. He stared at his name written on it for a few, long seconds before opening it up. His shoulders went rigid.

"This is the Prince's handwriting. And…" His face softened. He held up the note and pointed out the little cartoon drawings of a goat and a kid pulling faces at him. "May I keep this?"

"Whole thing's yours."

"Thank you. I…" He skimmed the first few line of the note and his soul let out a tremor loud enough for Sans to hear. "Wh… What is this?"

"Exactly what it says," Sans said.

.

Gaster's eyes rushed over the paper. A hand went to his face. He had to draw in a long, deep breath through his teeth. "Impossible," he muttered.

Sans could only shrug. Gaster sat up a little and jabbed his finger at the paper.

"How is it in my mind?" he demanded.

"Dunno," Sans said. "Time travellers do that sometimes, apparently."

"But then… Then I… If this is true…" He grimaced and rubbed his skull. "I… need to think about this."

"Sure," Sans said.

.

Gaster dropped down into his seat, a faint franticness stirring in his magic. He took a deep swig of his drink and clenched his fingers into the note so hard that they ripped into the side. "…What…? What are the chances…? I may return home?"

"That's… Heh. Well. Up to the Queen," Sans said. "She takes recommendations.'

Gaster put a hand to his head. He muttered low under his breath in a language Sans couldn't understand. Sans shoved his hands in his pockets and the other skeleton got up quickly.

"Wait," he said. "What…? How do I…?" He all but growled to himself. "This is impossible, how do I—?"

"Like I said, the kid wants to talk to ya."

Gaster grimaced. He drew back and rubbed his hand over his skull. "I… I have nothing to say," he grumbled.

"Really? Sounds like y'got a lot to say, actually." Sans winked. "Welp. I'll leave ya to it." He sent the stool back against the wall and began to wander off. "Talk tomorrow."

"I…" Gaster looked down at the letter. He nodded stiffly. "A-Alright. Tomorrow. And, Sans?"

Sans stalled in his tracks and tilted his head.

"Be… Be careful with the entity, alright?" Gaster said, his voice quiet and urgent. "It's not as it seems."

The sharp-toothed skeleton's grin widened a little. "Oh, I know."