"Frisk, darling! This way !" cried the robotic voice of Mettaton in humanoid form, more dazzling and glamour than ever in the midst of his assistants.

The ambassador and his troop, arrived on site with Papyrus' car, had just arrived at the gates of a castle-like building, where the Council meeting would be held. A security perimeter had been installed to control the crowd, held back by the police. Frisk watched as the famous robot waved at them with its long arm, surrounded by its camera crew checking out the advanced and expensive equipment; there was even the monster cat BP (Burgerpants) - still in his fast food outfit and also demoralized as he tried so hard to assemble a camera - with Shyren towards the microphones. And among them...

"Yoooo, Frisk! I'm here, too!"

Monster Kid, aka MK, a close friend of Frisk since the Waterfall episode, rushed over to the group. He was beaming, more excited than ever, and brimming with energy as he straddled the mess of cables, unstoppable despite the multiple protests that erupted as Kid passed. And what had to happen, happened. Before Frisk or anyone else could warn him to slow down, the little armless lizard accidentally caught his paws in the hookup wires, lost his balance, and...

"Whoa!"

Kaboom!

Carried away by his run, the poor monster sprawled hard on the grassy ground, under the incredulous gaze of the adults, and downright panicked by Frisk who quickly joined him.

"MK! Are you ok ?"

"Don't worry man, you know I'm used to it" his friend reassured him with a bright smile, agreeing to eat the candy the human offered him upon seeing his bruised muzzle.

Frisk helped him to his feet by grabbing his woolly striped sweater and, before letting him go, he placed a magical kiss on his forehead; not to flirt, like Frisk did very regularly with everyone and was famous for this temper throughout the Underground - now the Second House too -, but only to comfort him like Toriel with Asriel and him. The little yellow monster, not slowed down at all by his fall and very happy after the care of his friend, ran energetically towards the rest of the gang, shouting enthusiastic "Hi Undyne, Papyrus and Mr. Dreemurr!''. With an amused smile, the child turned to Mettaton who was giving a few rounds of instructions to his team.

"Thank you again, Mettaton, for agreeing to take MK with you. He begged to come see us."

"Oh, that's a real pleasure, Frisk darling!" replied the robot-star, appreciating his thanks. "This little one is among my most loyal viewers; I couldn't decently refuse his request, or that of our ambassador. And then I thought tonight, the more friends you have by your side, the better off you'll be."

His words were kind and sincere, Frisk had no doubt. However, without wanting it, the star had stirred a thorn lodged in his heart. Because, of course, he would have liked everyone to be there with him. Toriel, Sans, Alphys... he understood that their work was important. As for Asriel, he was still terrified of his previous treatment the humans had given. Forcing him to come wouldn't have been right. Frisk knew it, but that didn't stop him from being a little disappointed. To hide his embarrassment and silence his gloomy thoughts, the boy continued:

"How are you doing? On the Undernet, it is said that you were about to sign a contract with a surface broadcasting channel.

"Wonderful, you can say that!" exclaimed Mettaton with an enthusiastic and excited twirl. "In fact, many have been dazzled by the MTT content, including the replay of our dance fight – by the way, they are also very interested in you and would like you on stage – and offer to sponsor me. Not to mention the many cosmetics and fashion brands that are ready to pay colossal sums to partner with me!"

Mettaton continued for a moment to talk about his activities, referring to his meetings with other celebrities, some engineers very interested in his steel body "Nevertheless, I categorically refused to reveal my manufacturing plans, to avoid the slightest plagiarism" , his first photo shoot for a fashion magazine, etc... At the mention of Napstablook as DJ of the MTT group, Frisk was particularly attentive to his words; he cared a lot about the melancholy ghost, especially knowing his rather depressing background. The knowledge alone, lying on the floor all day to feel like garbage - even if the experience was most fascinating to live - make him sad.

"Bl-Napstablook is doing a remarkable job," Mettaton told him, stopping himself in extremis from pronouncing the ghost's nickname. "I must admit that for an ectoplasm, some of his compositions are passable, even very good. His mastery of acoustics convinced me to hire him on the team some time ago and, unsurprisingly, he was more than happy to have the privilege of working for me".

The robot's remarks might have sounded rather detached and purely professional, but the child knew that Mettaton - aka Hapstablook - genuinely cared about his young cousin. After their battle that left him nearly destroyed, Napstablook's surprise call left him feeling guilty for abandoning him in the past in an effort to become a star. Making him work for him was his way of reconnecting, indirectly, and without the ghost knowing the true identity of the idol he admired. What would he say when he learned that it was one of his cousins, having left him to manage the family farm alone?

Although he knew the truth, Frisk preferred to let Mettaton have the courage to tell him and not rush things by revealing his knowledge, to the detriment of everyone's feelings. Besides... it would involve revealing his little illegal trespass, as well as the indiscreet reading of the diaries scattered on the floor. Apparently, Mettaton also preferred to change the subject and moved on to another question:

"But enough about me! How is my dear Alphys? I haven't had the opportunity to come lately and her Undernet account hasn't been so active lately."

"She and Sans continue their research on Amalgamates. When I saw her Monday, Alphys looked really exhausted. Undyne is worried that she's not getting enough rest...and she's not the only one."

The robot produced a thoughtful mechanical growl, pouting disapprovingly behind his abundant hair. Tapping his heels, he muttered, "The same as usual: her poor scales will fall off prematurely" and promised himself to visit her as soon as possible.

Frisk was happy to see that despite his newfound fame, Mettaton was not forgetting his friends, including Alphys. After all, she was the one who crafted his current body and then enhanced it before he started his showbusiness career on the Surface. Maybe seeing him will relieve her a little. While they were talking, the child noticed that his friends had just entered the building and were waiting for him; he had to join them.

"I have to go, Mettaton. It was nice to see you: I hope your future contracts will go well!"

"One moment, darling!" the star stopped him before he got too far away, causing him to turn towards the robot. "Before you run away, I wanted to warn you that members of the Anti-Monster League will be present, including that dreadful Senator Jordan. He might act up again during your speech; anonymous sources - whose names I will not mention - warned me. I have personally verified their information and, unfortunately, this will be the case. So get ready."

On this warning, he left to return to his team, leaving Frisk to ponder his words which didn't surprise the child. He expected it a little, it's true, but the ambassador would have preferred to avoid any confrontation.

With the Anti-Monster League there, it was inevitable.

In the space of two years, Frisk had had to face some difficulties, like disproving the prejudices of humans and slowly making them accept that the monsters returned. Trying to mend past faults between men and monsters, or at least make them less heavy, was not small feat either. Fortunately, the child had managed to find solutions and compromises that the parties would accept. However, there remained rather stubborn black spots. One was about the acceptance of the people of Ebott, who lived near the monsters, and not all of them accepted it. It had caused more or less major problems, but nothing irreparable beyond a few scuffles and, as the neighborhood got used to the new residents, things had softened.

However, several anti-monster groups had had time to emerge, and their views of monsters cast them in a very unfavorable light.

One of them, called the Anti-Monster League, had enjoyed great popularity in its early days. Even today, it was made up of many members and supported by a few influential politicians. Senator Jordan was one of its leaders. Their arguments were numerous, to refuse that the monsters do not return to the Surface and, alas, they had been able to convince a large public of the "dangerousness" of the people of the Underground. "Our ancestors buried them for a good reason," they would say to whoever listened to them. "It is a mistake to let them do this, knowing that at any moment one of them could steal our Soul and decimate us!"

Despite Frisk's many pleas to dispel this misunderstanding, the child had only once been able to speak with one of the leading party leaders. Without shaking the friendly hand extended to him by the ambassador, Senator Jordan Krim had looked at him with cold, piercing reptile eyes. The politician, tall and hairless - even from his eyebrows - had lifted his lips like a snake ready to bite.

"I don't know what you are exactly," he had plagued through gritted teeth, "But whether you're another abomination or a human hypnotized by their curse, I'll prove to those poor people you fooled, that your pacifism is just a lie intended to down our guard".

Then, with all the disgust he could show, the man left him there. Frisk never saw him again, except in propaganda footage edited by his group and his severe anti-monster accusations.

As they entered the huge circular chamber of Ebott's Council, the child watched the room fill up as they walked. Towards the upper bleachers, Mettaton and everyone else aimed their cameras at him. MK was bouncing around with encouraging "You got this!".

Other teams of journalists arrived and imitated them, so as not to lose a crumb of the historical scene. Frisk began to feel frozen with apprehension; which didn't help when his eyes met those of Senator Jordan, seated up front. The ugly man did not take his eyes off him, who flared up at the sight of the monsters accompanying him and answered a woman – probably from his party – by nodding his head. That expression of satisfaction he wore right now...

Frisk didn't like it at all.

"Tell me this is a joke; there's the other moron and his group of full idiots!" grumbled Undyne, refraining from showing her sharp teeth, ulcerated by the presence of the one who had spoken so badly to her friend.

"Now, Undyne. He has the right to come with those who support him; here, anyone can express their opinion. Even more at times like this," Asgore reminded her cautiously, though he moved closer to Frisk so that his large body blocked out that disturbing vision.

The child was greatly relieved, but remained silent due to stress, as Papyrus joined in Undyne's words, though he was more worried than upset.

"STILL, YOUR MAJESTY, I HAVE A FEEL THAT HE IS WAITING FOR ANY OPPORTUNITY TO ATTACK THE HUMAN-FRISK."

"Which we will prevent, obviously. However, I doubt he will do anything wrong in front of the cameras. But worst case scenario, both of you remember that if things get out of hand, we just have to pick up Frisk and leave."

Saying this, Asgore crouched down to the level of the ambassador. Frisk locked on his green gaze, a shade close to Asriel's. He felt his absence more strongly, but under these circumstances he was more relieved that his half-brother wasn't there.

"Listen me, Frisk. Undyne, Papyrus and I must go to our seats now. However, have no fear, dear child. At the slightest trouble, we'll come to pick you up immediately. We will never let you face a perilous situation alone. And do not forget..."

He brought a clawed finger to his chest, which the monster touched lightly like a bird's feather. Frisk's Soul beat louder, as if in response to his touch, and the king continued with more soft tenderness:

"Speak with your Soul. I know that you'll reach them, I am sure of it."

"Yeah, do what you know best, punk! Show us again how determined humans are when they want to!" Undyne added, scrunching his hair – and messing it up in the process.

"IT'S TRUE, MY DEAR HUMAN FRIEND! AND REMEMBER THAT ALL OF US BELIEVE IN YOU!" Papyrus finished with a bigger smile than he always wore.

Frisk's fear dissipated as he heard their encouragement. And when they left to sit in the part of the room dedicated to them, the young ambassador headed for the podium where he would speak. It's true. As long as I have my friends by my side, here or in thought, everything will be fine.

-oOo-

"Quick, mom! We gonna be late!" Asriel exclaimed at the front door, impatient and afraid they'd missing the beginning of the program, barely wiping his paws on the carpet.

"If a certain little person had shown up sooner, or at least taken his phone, so I wouldn't have to search all over the village - thanks to Sans, I was able to come back quickly - and we would have finished earlier," Toriel scold, glaring her son through her glasses, making the culprit squirm in discomfort.

Both Boss Monsters had just returned from school, after dropping off together several boxes of textbooks and a quick inspection of his mother in the school almost finished. The establishment had been renovated, only missing a brush stroke on the facade. Originally an old abandoned church, the mayor had given permission to use it to build the new school which would welcome monster and human children. It was a very important step to consolidate the ties between the two peoples, going through the younger generations who were the future. Many rooms had been fitted out and enlarged, the walls had been destroyed then built; a small playground had even been set up, with a small football-basketball field for play, several benches in the shade of the trees where echo flowers were growing and, further on, a vegetable garden for growing fruit and vegetables. Toriel had lingered inside, chatting with the workers, while Asriel waited for her on one of the new swings to inaugurate it. The sun was setting when they were finally gone.

Spinning to the living room, the little goat threw himself on the television to turn it on, then chose the MTT channel. When Toriel sat down in her big chair, carrying Asriel on her knees who settled comfortably against her, the two were relieved to see that the session had not started.

"Look, there's Frisk!" Asriel gestured to the small human on screen, standing in the speaker's place.

As if overheard, the camera zoomed in on the ambassador's face. His brother kept a neutral expression, but the young monster could tell he was nervous. His eyes were much more narrowed than normal, a small but telling detail. Nevertheless, he stared straight ahead at the assembly, ready to speak. It was something he admired about Frisk: no matter what was in front of him, he never was intimidated and held his head high.

Cheer up, Frisk! We are all with you ! Asriel encouraged him, feeling his mother's arms wrap around him more tightly as the Council President announced the start of the session.