p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"uspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"Chapter 23- Birds of a Feather/span/u/em/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanWithin a day of the disastrous battle in MelonTale, Ink was back to being his energetic, bubbly self. He'd forgotten a few details, which unfortunately included the sleepy commentary he'd added to Dream's story. The basket of apples was completely lost on him. He was excited about the snack, though, and Dream and I got a chuckle out of it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI was surprised how quickly I'd missed Ink's company. Though he was unconscious for mere hours, the Sphere felt empty without his aimless chatter. I missed swapping lame puns with him, or hearing his mischievous giggle as he plotted a prank. He'd gradually grown from annoying to endearing, and I hadn't even realized it. I determined not to take my friends for granted, anymore. I was lucky to have them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Hey, Serif!" the Artist called, hopping down from a portal into the Sphere./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah, ink?" I answered, glancing up from my origami and a bowl of roasted cinnamon-apple slices. He grinned./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Close your eyes." I noted the mischievous twinkle in his own and hesitated./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"um… why?" I murmured, standing, prepared to leap away. I didn't fancy getting paint-bucket pranked. Again. Ink huffed, a comically childish frown across his face./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Oh, just do it," he complained. "I won't pull any stunts. And no peeking!" My gaze drifted to his hands, then squinted at his pockets. They seemed to be empty. Maybe this wasn't a trick./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShrugging, I complied. Ink sprang forward, grabbed my hand, and whisked me into a portal. My eyes snapped open. Just as quickly, they were clouded by a band of color. The distant words em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;""No peeking!" /emreverberated around me. I quickly discovered blind portal travel was twice as dizzying as usual. It felt like the cinnamon slices were threatening to make a reappearance./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanInk narrowly kept me from falling as my feet hit solid ground. Disoriented, I stumbled forward a couple steps until hands caught and steadied my shoulders./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Ink," I heard Dream scold, "please don't send Serif through surprise portal trips. Especially blindfolded! He's not used to this kind of travel, remember?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Oh," Ink realized. "I forgot." He huffed. "But, he opened his eyes! I said no—!" I assume Dream frowned, because Ink sighed. "Sorry, Serif," he concluded genuinely./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"s'alright, ink," I assured. "you did say no peeking." I could sense him smile in relief. "so, can i see emnow/em?" I asked hopefully./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Well, almost…" Ink murmured, evidently waiting for something. "… yes."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe color band disappeared. I blinked, stunned by how bright the light was. I stared at the scene before me in disbelief. Surely, some of the magic paint was still in my eyes. There was no way the world was really this colorful…!/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"We stood on a craggy ledge, high on a mountainside. From the lush green trees far below, songbirds began chirping their cheerful morning melodies. Dazzling splashes of deep-orange, rosy-pink, and marigold yellow painted the endless skyline. It was breathtaking. Then, from beneath the gorgeous colors, a blinding sphere of warm, brilliant light slowly dawned over the shifting jade grass. The emsun/em. Tears welled in the corners of my eyes. I sensed Dream come stand beside me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Stunning, isn't it?" he asked, smiling wide. I could only nod; my voice would surely break if I tried to describe aloud the wonder I felt. "Have you ever seen a sunrise, before?/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"never," I breathed./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Come on, Serif," Ink teased. "Don't get emtoo/em choked up. Company's due any minute." I couldn't tear my gaze away, but distractedly murmured—/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"… company?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanS/spanspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"uddenly, blurred figures shot past the ledge. They soared skywards in a glorious rush of wind and laughter. I stared after them, gasping in amazement. They were flying. They were emflying! /em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"emspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span/span/emspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"Three forms chased each other, tracing loops through the golden light. They were moving too fast for me to get a clear fix on them. Then, one broke away from the flock and disappeared above the clouds. I squinted through the wispy white waves, wondering where they'd gone, until something audibly dropped onto the ground behind me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"sup', ink," a voice greeted. I whirled./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Hi, Raven!" Ink exclaimed. Dream replied similarly. Then the speaker turned his attention on me. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"wings, /emmy mind stammered uselessly. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"so big. so cool./em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"hey. serif, right?" Raven asked. I stared at him stupidly. Thankfully, my idiocy was ignored, for he seemed to be busy inspecting me, too./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe Sans pulled a hand from his padded black jacket, which boasted the fluffiest feather-rimmed hood I'd ever seen. As he pushed his yellow-tinted pilot goggles to rest on his forehead, I briefly feared I wasn't welcome here. His left eye blazed an electric yellow and blue, suggesting he'd activated his combat magic. But to the right was a simple white sphere of light, and his calm expression assured he wasn't planning to attack./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanA cornflower-azure turtleneck peeked from under the jacket, and loose black shorts fluttered in the breeze. Bunched-up blue socks were tucked inside warm grey slippers. At the ends of both were three curved metal pieces, perhaps for traction and grip. They resembled a bird's talons—which made sense, considering he seemed to actually em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"be /ema bird./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanPositively enormous, midnight-black wings sprouted behind him. They were nearly twice my wingspan in length. Every feather was in perfect symmetricity, smooth and sleek, and just downy enough to reflect a mere glimmer of light. A tail, feathered like the wings, tilted behind him to counterbalance the push of the wind gusts./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanMy gaze drifted back to the magnificent wings. Raven, who was apparently done sizing me up, gave a quiet laugh. I glanced nervously at him just in time to get playfully swatted in the face by the tip of one of his wings./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"seriously, kid. you can touch em' if you want," he chuckled. "you look like you've never seen wings before."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i've only ever seen mine," I breathed, hesitantly touching then running my hand down the sleek feathers. "and they're not totally majestic like yours. well, not quite." I smirked. "i guess i'm pretty em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"attached /emto them, though." Apart from Ink's muffled snort, no one laughed. There was a dumbfounded silence./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Your puns are… getting better?" Dream offered. My grin grew until a voice balked—/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"That's 'em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"better'?"/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanTurning, I discovered the rest of the flock had landed. I'd felt small beside Raven, but now I felt like a moth among eagles. An Undyne and a Papyrus stood at the edge of the precipice, staring at me. A human child peered from around Papyrus's shoulders, clearly curious about this unfamiliar visitor. And they all had wings, just like Raven. Just like me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanCrimson, draconic style wings webbed out behind Undyne. The ribbing was cyan, and each scale across its surface shimmered in the sunlight. The colors perfectly matched her poppy-red hair and sea-blue skin. They were magnificently arced, clearly strong and reliable./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanPapyrus's wings were the purest white, feather tips fading to a pale, marigold yellow. The downy clusters looked incredibly soft in the morning sun's glow. He seemed rather angelic. It was fitting. He sported a pair of flight goggles akin to his brother's. A yam-orange cape fluttered from around his shoulders, atop which the human was perched./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAs the kid climbed off Papyrus's back, I realized this one was considerably smaller than my hacker had been. This appeared to be a child instead of a teen, and the face suggested it was a female. A row of deep, walnut-brown feathers faded from caramel to a tawny white. Despite the size of the kid, the wings seemed disproportionately small. She timidly peeked from behind Papyrus's tall boots, clutching the edge of his cape nervously./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"OH, HELLO!" Papyrus greeted. "VISITORS!" He blinked between the three of us. "YOU SEEM QUITE FAMILIAR. HAVE WE MET BEFORE?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Come on, Papyrus. Don't you recognize them?" Undyne prompted. "It's Ink and Dream! They kicked butt during that glitch-freak's attack last year." She cut me a glance. "You gotta be new, though. You're not short or cute enough to be Blueberry."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"thanks. i think," I murmured, suddenly bashful./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI wondered if it'd be better to apologize. I likely stood where Blueberry belonged, right between Ink and Dream. Compared to these brave warriors, I was nothing special. I was just lucky to tag along. While Undyne eyed me, the child came scampering over to Raven and reached up, vying for his attention./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"hey, kiddo," Raven greeted, lifting her to sit on his shoulder. "what's up?" The child pointed excitedly to the edge of her wings. He squinted closely. "oh, i see the tips. told ya' you'd get another row of feathers, soon!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAt this affirmation, the kid beamed. Smiling too, now, Raven addressed Undyne./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"blue couldn't come today. he's, ah, kinda tied up right now." Based on Ink's flinch, I concluded that was likely a poor choice of words. "this is serif. he's been hanging with ink and dream. he's flying with us today."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i am?!" I gasped, soul surging with excitement. Raven turned to me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah. if you wanna."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"He can fly?" Undyne interjected. "How?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI turned my gaping expression on Ink and Dream. Ink whispered em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;""Surprise!" /emand Dream smiled warmly and gave an encouraging nod. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"they did this for me. /emspan style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"A grin overtook my shock. /spanI turned back to the flock, and with a burst of semi-transparent feathers, snapped the wings wide and shook them out. Papyrus gave a gasp of delight. Undyne seemed equally fascinated. I glanced at Raven; his eyes flashed in curiosity./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i was wondering where you were hiding those," he mused./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanTo my surprise, I felt a small hand pat the edge of my wing. The child, who had clambered off Raven, gently patted my feathers. Her young face was etched with wonder. When she saw me watching her, she stopped her stroking and simply held my gaze. Then, the tiny child went on tiptoe and tried to give me a hug./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShe only managed to wrap her arms partway around my waist. But the sentiment wasn't lost. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"a human just hugged me. /emThe last of my apprehension melted away. I felt less like an outsider and more like… a new hatchling. These guys were just like me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"come on," Raven said to the flock, spreading his own wings, "let's fly."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanOne by one, they leapt from the cliff and took to the sky. Raven snatched Sparrow, the human child, before she could go over the edge. After being reminded that her wings were still too small to fly alone in the strong winds, the kid settled for a piggyback ride. Before I leapt over the edge, I turned to Ink and Dream, and smiling wide, simply said—/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"thank you guys. so much."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe day passed in a blissful blur. I raced the others, competed in a diving contest, chased, and was chased by, my new friends. Raven taught me tons of tricks and maneuvers, as did Undyne and Papyrus. Despite how hard I tried, though, I couldn't replicate even a fraction of their dexterity. My wings just weren't strong enough. I would have shrugged it off and moved on. Raven, however, decided to investigate./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"Despite their bizarre design, Raven soon concluded my wings were structured just like those of a common songbird. The only thing missing was the defining edge that enabled precise flight. After tentatively feeling along the outer rib, Raven gave an em"ah-ha!" /emof revelation. Without a single word of warning, he shoved abruptly up against the wings' base. The sensation was akin to smacking my elbow just wrong; numb tingling shot across my shoulders. I was teased for my hilariously avian-sounding squawk for hours. But I was too elated to care./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAt Raven's shove, something deep inside clicked into place. In a flash, the wings' soft edges straightened, strong and defined. The tips extended, forming sturdy primary feathers. The rest of the plumage took on new definition. Some was downy, some was stiff and sheeny. As if that wasn't thrilling enough, I discovered I could emfeel /emthe wings. I could feel every little edge, every joint. I could rotate and wrap and curve them effortlessly./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanJust like that, everything changed. I could turn corners on a dime, pull up from a dive with mere seconds to spare, tuck the wings in a cocoon around me, and a million other little tricks. I finally stood a chance in the games and contests, and even managed to bag three wins. My feathers didn't feel like an awkward add-on, anymore. They finally felt like they were truly part of me. They weren't emthe /emwings—they were emmy /emwings./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAs the sun dipped towards the far horizon, we found a high cliff and took a break. We laughed and chatted, debating who'd pulled off the best trick. Eventually, Undyne and Papyrus split to go talk with Ink and Dream, while Sparrow, Raven, and I stayed atop the crag./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe human scampered about, exploring the sea of lush wildflowers in the evening sun's light. Occasionally, her little head would break the surface of the petals, and swivel side to side like a submarine's periscope. Then, she'd duck back under and scamper off somewhere new./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanBefore long, Sparrow returned to beg a handful of gummi worms off Raven. He unpocketed a whole bag and split it between us. He found it funny that gummi worms were my favorite candy, too. We were both practically birds, he pointed out, so eating "worms" was probably "healthy." It was a perfect ending to a perfect day./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanSwinging our legs over the edge, the three of us watched the sun slowly sink out of sight. Undoubtedly, it was one of the most stunning views I'd ever seen./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"cool, isn't it?" Raven asked./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"pardon?" I responded./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"the sunset," Raven clarified. I nodded, unable to tear my eyes from it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah. it's spectacular. never seen one, before."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"your human hasn't broken the barrier, yet?" Raven balked. I glanced at Sparrow. The child had fallen asleep./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spana name="_Hlk122611026"/a"my human wasn't keen on freeing us," I murmured quietly. "they were too focused on making our lives a waking nightmare."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122611026;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"sorry," Raven replied simply, then questioned— "'wasn't'? past tense?" I nodded./span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spana name="_Hlk122608867"/a"i got rid of them."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"how'd you manage that?" I shrugged, absentmindedly brushing my hand through the rustling grass./span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"a name="_Hlk122612977"/aspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"well, it wasn't me, emexactly. /emthe kid couldn't be dissuaded or defeated, but the phrase, 'mutually assured destruction' still contains the word 'destruction.' i just broke out of my world to banish them." Raven shook his head, amused, still staring at the horizon./span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122612977;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"you did all that em'just'/em to overthrow a human?"/span/span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122612977;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i—uh, yes?" I answered hesitantly. "are there better ways to outwit them?" Raven chuckled./span/span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122612977;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i have no idea. most of us sanses never even try. people tend to just accept their circumstances and make it work. but you seem about as determined to write your own happy ending as the humans are. you're headstrong. i respect that." Grinning, Raven turned to me. "when are you going back?"/span/span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"back, where?" I asked, tearing my gaze from the sky to give him a puzzled frown./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"when are you going home?" Raven repeated./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI hesitated, and glanced at the far ledge. Papyrus and Undyne still stood talking with Ink and Dream. Undyne made a passionate, boastful exclamation, and—ignoring Ink's desperate headshaking and hand-waving—grabbed both him and Dream and took to the sky. Oddly, Dream's elated laughter and Ink's panicked shrieking didn't bring a smile to my face. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"when am i going home?/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"actually… i don't know," I admitted. Raven shrugged./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"well, whenever you do, i hope a kind human soon follows." He glanced down at the child draped across his lap and smiled. "a human like sparrow."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanWithin mere minutes, the last of the sun slipped beneath the tree line. The sky began to dim, and Raven carefully scooped the kid into his arms. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"it's a school night. tori will have my feathers if sparrow misses her bedtime." He grinned at me. "drop by any time, serif. don't be a stranger. we're birds of a feather, you and i, and paps and undyne. you're always welcome in our flock." I smiled, and returning my thanks to him, rejoined the others on the ledge./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanSoon, the flock flew off towards the distant city. Ink, Dream, and I watched them go. I turned back to my friends. But before I could thank them, I noticed their expectant grins./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Was today a good kind of surprise?" Ink asked hopefully. I nodded./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah. i emguess /emit made up for the crazy portal trip," I joked, earning smiles from both. "thanks, really," I said. "it was an amazing day." Ink and Dream exchanged a glance./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Well, there is one more surprise," Dream admitted, nudging Ink./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe Artist dug in his scarf. From a deep fold, he lifted a pendant free and eagerly held it out to me. Hesitantly, honored and curious, I took it. The heart-shaped glass was filled with a glimmering, teal substance. Paint, probably. A cord crisscrossed around the narrow end, attaching at the top, and looped up like a necklace./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Blue's got destroyed, so it took a while to recreate without a reference. But! I finally got it right," Ink announced happily. "It's a replacement for portals!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"for real?" I balked, inspecting the pendant with new interest. Ink nodded excitedly. "that's amazing," I observed. "how does it work?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Stand inside a protection bubble and shatter the glass," Dream explained simply. "Don't worry; it will reform."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"So!" Ink continued, "Now you can go anywhere you want, whenever you want—and that pendant will always bring you back home!" My soul skipped a beat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"home?" I asked, a numb, dizzy excitement washing over my every nerve./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Yeah!" Ink affirmed eagerly. "Back to the Doodle Sphere!" I nodded, trying to conceal my immense disappointment. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"that's not home. /emDream opened a portal and tossed a warm smile back at me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Meet you back at the Sphere." I forced a smile of my own, formed the golden bubble around me, and broke the pendant./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe shield rapidly filled with liquid, ethereal teal. The moment the bubble was full, it popped. The sphere shattered outwards, leaving nothing but a glowing, fading puddle on the ground. As I hurtled back towards the Doodle Sphere amidst waves of spectacular magic, I found myself wondering—em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"when will i go home?/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanWithin a day of the disastrous battle in MelonTale, Ink was back to being his energetic, bubbly self. He'd forgotten a few details, which unfortunately included the sleepy commentary he'd added to Dream's story. The basket of apples was completely lost on him. He was excited about the snack, though, and Dream and I got a chuckle out of it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI was surprised how quickly I'd missed Ink's company. Though he was unconscious for mere hours, the Sphere felt empty without his aimless chatter. I missed swapping lame puns with him, or hearing his mischievous giggle as he plotted a prank. He'd gradually grown from annoying to endearing, and I hadn't even realized it. I determined not to take my friends for granted, anymore. I was lucky to have them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Hey, Serif!" the Artist called, hopping down from a portal into the Sphere./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah, ink?" I answered, glancing up from my origami and a bowl of roasted cinnamon-apple slices. He grinned./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Close your eyes." I noted the mischievous twinkle in his own and hesitated./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"um… why?" I murmured, standing, prepared to leap away. I didn't fancy getting paint-bucket pranked. Again. Ink huffed, a comically childish frown across his face./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Oh, just do it," he complained. "I won't pull any stunts. And no peeking!" My gaze drifted to his hands, then squinted at his pockets. They seemed to be empty. Maybe this wasn't a trick./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShrugging, I complied. Ink sprang forward, grabbed my hand, and whisked me into a portal. My eyes snapped open. Just as quickly, they were clouded by a band of color. The distant words em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;""No peeking!" /emreverberated around me. I quickly discovered blind portal travel was twice as dizzying as usual. It felt like the cinnamon slices were threatening to make a reappearance./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanInk narrowly kept me from falling as my feet hit solid ground. Disoriented, I stumbled forward a couple steps until hands caught and steadied my shoulders./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Ink," I heard Dream scold, "please don't send Serif through surprise portal trips. Especially blindfolded! He's not used to this kind of travel, remember?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Oh," Ink realized. "I forgot." He huffed. "But, he opened his eyes! I said no—!" I assume Dream frowned, because Ink sighed. "Sorry, Serif," he concluded genuinely./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"s'alright, ink," I assured. "you did say no peeking." I could sense him smile in relief. "so, can i see emnow/em?" I asked hopefully./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Well, almost…" Ink murmured, evidently waiting for something. "… yes."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe color band disappeared. I blinked, stunned by how bright the light was. I stared at the scene before me in disbelief. Surely, some of the magic paint was still in my eyes. There was no way the world was really this colorful…!/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"We stood on a craggy ledge, high on a mountainside. From the lush green trees far below, songbirds began chirping their cheerful morning melodies. Dazzling splashes of deep-orange, rosy-pink, and marigold yellow painted the endless skyline. It was breathtaking. Then, from beneath the gorgeous colors, a blinding sphere of warm, brilliant light slowly dawned over the shifting jade grass. The emsun/em. Tears welled in the corners of my eyes. I sensed Dream come stand beside me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Stunning, isn't it?" he asked, smiling wide. I could only nod; my voice would surely break if I tried to describe aloud the wonder I felt. "Have you ever seen a sunrise, before?/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"never," I breathed./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Come on, Serif," Ink teased. "Don't get emtoo/em choked up. Company's due any minute." I couldn't tear my gaze away, but distractedly murmured—/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"… company?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanS/spanspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"uddenly, blurred figures shot past the ledge. They soared skywards in a glorious rush of wind and laughter. I stared after them, gasping in amazement. They were flying. They were emflying! /em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"emspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span/span/emspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"Three forms chased each other, tracing loops through the golden light. They were moving too fast for me to get a clear fix on them. Then, one broke away from the flock and disappeared above the clouds. I squinted through the wispy white waves, wondering where they'd gone, until something audibly dropped onto the ground behind me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"sup', ink," a voice greeted. I whirled./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Hi, Raven!" Ink exclaimed. Dream replied similarly. Then the speaker turned his attention on me. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"wings, /emmy mind stammered uselessly. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"so big. so cool./em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"hey. serif, right?" Raven asked. I stared at him stupidly. Thankfully, my idiocy was ignored, for he seemed to be busy inspecting me, too./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe Sans pulled a hand from his padded black jacket, which boasted the fluffiest feather-rimmed hood I'd ever seen. As he pushed his yellow-tinted pilot goggles to rest on his forehead, I briefly feared I wasn't welcome here. His left eye blazed an electric yellow and blue, suggesting he'd activated his combat magic. But to the right was a simple white sphere of light, and his calm expression assured he wasn't planning to attack./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanA cornflower-azure turtleneck peeked from under the jacket, and loose black shorts fluttered in the breeze. Bunched-up blue socks were tucked inside warm grey slippers. At the ends of both were three curved metal pieces, perhaps for traction and grip. They resembled a bird's talons—which made sense, considering he seemed to actually em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"be /ema bird./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanPositively enormous, midnight-black wings sprouted behind him. They were nearly twice my wingspan in length. Every feather was in perfect symmetricity, smooth and sleek, and just downy enough to reflect a mere glimmer of light. A tail, feathered like the wings, tilted behind him to counterbalance the push of the wind gusts./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanMy gaze drifted back to the magnificent wings. Raven, who was apparently done sizing me up, gave a quiet laugh. I glanced nervously at him just in time to get playfully swatted in the face by the tip of one of his wings./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"seriously, kid. you can touch em' if you want," he chuckled. "you look like you've never seen wings before."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i've only ever seen mine," I breathed, hesitantly touching then running my hand down the sleek feathers. "and they're not totally majestic like yours. well, not quite." I smirked. "i guess i'm pretty em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"attached /emto them, though." Apart from Ink's muffled snort, no one laughed. There was a dumbfounded silence./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Your puns are… getting better?" Dream offered. My grin grew until a voice balked—/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"That's 'em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"better'?"/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanTurning, I discovered the rest of the flock had landed. I'd felt small beside Raven, but now I felt like a moth among eagles. An Undyne and a Papyrus stood at the edge of the precipice, staring at me. A human child peered from around Papyrus's shoulders, clearly curious about this unfamiliar visitor. And they all had wings, just like Raven. Just like me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanCrimson, draconic style wings webbed out behind Undyne. The ribbing was cyan, and each scale across its surface shimmered in the sunlight. The colors perfectly matched her poppy-red hair and sea-blue skin. They were magnificently arced, clearly strong and reliable./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanPapyrus's wings were the purest white, feather tips fading to a pale, marigold yellow. The downy clusters looked incredibly soft in the morning sun's glow. He seemed rather angelic. It was fitting. He sported a pair of flight goggles akin to his brother's. A yam-orange cape fluttered from around his shoulders, atop which the human was perched./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAs the kid climbed off Papyrus's back, I realized this one was considerably smaller than my hacker had been. This appeared to be a child instead of a teen, and the face suggested it was a female. A row of deep, walnut-brown feathers faded from caramel to a tawny white. Despite the size of the kid, the wings seemed disproportionately small. She timidly peeked from behind Papyrus's tall boots, clutching the edge of his cape nervously./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"OH, HELLO!" Papyrus greeted. "VISITORS!" He blinked between the three of us. "YOU SEEM QUITE FAMILIAR. HAVE WE MET BEFORE?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Come on, Papyrus. Don't you recognize them?" Undyne prompted. "It's Ink and Dream! They kicked butt during that glitch-freak's attack last year." She cut me a glance. "You gotta be new, though. You're not short or cute enough to be Blueberry."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"thanks. i think," I murmured, suddenly bashful./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI wondered if it'd be better to apologize. I likely stood where Blueberry belonged, right between Ink and Dream. Compared to these brave warriors, I was nothing special. I was just lucky to tag along. While Undyne eyed me, the child came scampering over to Raven and reached up, vying for his attention./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"hey, kiddo," Raven greeted, lifting her to sit on his shoulder. "what's up?" The child pointed excitedly to the edge of her wings. He squinted closely. "oh, i see the tips. told ya' you'd get another row of feathers, soon!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAt this affirmation, the kid beamed. Smiling too, now, Raven addressed Undyne./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"blue couldn't come today. he's, ah, kinda tied up right now." Based on Ink's flinch, I concluded that was likely a poor choice of words. "this is serif. he's been hanging with ink and dream. he's flying with us today."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i am?!" I gasped, soul surging with excitement. Raven turned to me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah. if you wanna."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"He can fly?" Undyne interjected. "How?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI turned my gaping expression on Ink and Dream. Ink whispered em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;""Surprise!" /emand Dream smiled warmly and gave an encouraging nod. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"they did this for me. /emspan style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"A grin overtook my shock. /spanI turned back to the flock, and with a burst of semi-transparent feathers, snapped the wings wide and shook them out. Papyrus gave a gasp of delight. Undyne seemed equally fascinated. I glanced at Raven; his eyes flashed in curiosity./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i was wondering where you were hiding those," he mused./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanTo my surprise, I felt a small hand pat the edge of my wing. The child, who had clambered off Raven, gently patted my feathers. Her young face was etched with wonder. When she saw me watching her, she stopped her stroking and simply held my gaze. Then, the tiny child went on tiptoe and tried to give me a hug./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShe only managed to wrap her arms partway around my waist. But the sentiment wasn't lost. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"a human just hugged me. /emThe last of my apprehension melted away. I felt less like an outsider and more like… a new hatchling. These guys were just like me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"come on," Raven said to the flock, spreading his own wings, "let's fly."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanOne by one, they leapt from the cliff and took to the sky. Raven snatched Sparrow, the human child, before she could go over the edge. After being reminded that her wings were still too small to fly alone in the strong winds, the kid settled for a piggyback ride. Before I leapt over the edge, I turned to Ink and Dream, and smiling wide, simply said—/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"thank you guys. so much."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe day passed in a blissful blur. I raced the others, competed in a diving contest, chased, and was chased by, my new friends. Raven taught me tons of tricks and maneuvers, as did Undyne and Papyrus. Despite how hard I tried, though, I couldn't replicate even a fraction of their dexterity. My wings just weren't strong enough. I would have shrugged it off and moved on. Raven, however, decided to investigate./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"Despite their bizarre design, Raven soon concluded my wings were structured just like those of a common songbird. The only thing missing was the defining edge that enabled precise flight. After tentatively feeling along the outer rib, Raven gave an em"ah-ha!" /emof revelation. Without a single word of warning, he shoved abruptly up against the wings' base. The sensation was akin to smacking my elbow just wrong; numb tingling shot across my shoulders. I was teased for my hilariously avian-sounding squawk for hours. But I was too elated to care./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAt Raven's shove, something deep inside clicked into place. In a flash, the wings' soft edges straightened, strong and defined. The tips extended, forming sturdy primary feathers. The rest of the plumage took on new definition. Some was downy, some was stiff and sheeny. As if that wasn't thrilling enough, I discovered I could emfeel /emthe wings. I could feel every little edge, every joint. I could rotate and wrap and curve them effortlessly./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanJust like that, everything changed. I could turn corners on a dime, pull up from a dive with mere seconds to spare, tuck the wings in a cocoon around me, and a million other little tricks. I finally stood a chance in the games and contests, and even managed to bag three wins. My feathers didn't feel like an awkward add-on, anymore. They finally felt like they were truly part of me. They weren't emthe /emwings—they were emmy /emwings./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAs the sun dipped towards the far horizon, we found a high cliff and took a break. We laughed and chatted, debating who'd pulled off the best trick. Eventually, Undyne and Papyrus split to go talk with Ink and Dream, while Sparrow, Raven, and I stayed atop the crag./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe human scampered about, exploring the sea of lush wildflowers in the evening sun's light. Occasionally, her little head would break the surface of the petals, and swivel side to side like a submarine's periscope. Then, she'd duck back under and scamper off somewhere new./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanBefore long, Sparrow returned to beg a handful of gummi worms off Raven. He unpocketed a whole bag and split it between us. He found it funny that gummi worms were my favorite candy, too. We were both practically birds, he pointed out, so eating "worms" was probably "healthy." It was a perfect ending to a perfect day./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanSwinging our legs over the edge, the three of us watched the sun slowly sink out of sight. Undoubtedly, it was one of the most stunning views I'd ever seen./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"cool, isn't it?" Raven asked./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"pardon?" I responded./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"the sunset," Raven clarified. I nodded, unable to tear my eyes from it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah. it's spectacular. never seen one, before."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"your human hasn't broken the barrier, yet?" Raven balked. I glanced at Sparrow. The child had fallen asleep./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spana name="_Hlk122611026"/a"my human wasn't keen on freeing us," I murmured quietly. "they were too focused on making our lives a waking nightmare."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122611026;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"sorry," Raven replied simply, then questioned— "'wasn't'? past tense?" I nodded./span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spana name="_Hlk122608867"/a"i got rid of them."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"how'd you manage that?" I shrugged, absentmindedly brushing my hand through the rustling grass./span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"a name="_Hlk122612977"/aspan style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"well, it wasn't me, emexactly. /emthe kid couldn't be dissuaded or defeated, but the phrase, 'mutually assured destruction' still contains the word 'destruction.' i just broke out of my world to banish them." Raven shook his head, amused, still staring at the horizon./span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122612977;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"you did all that em'just'/em to overthrow a human?"/span/span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122612977;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i—uh, yes?" I answered hesitantly. "are there better ways to outwit them?" Raven chuckled./span/span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122608867;"span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk122612977;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"i have no idea. most of us sanses never even try. people tend to just accept their circumstances and make it work. but you seem about as determined to write your own happy ending as the humans are. you're headstrong. i respect that." Grinning, Raven turned to me. "when are you going back?"/span/span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"back, where?" I asked, tearing my gaze from the sky to give him a puzzled frown./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"when are you going home?" Raven repeated./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanI hesitated, and glanced at the far ledge. Papyrus and Undyne still stood talking with Ink and Dream. Undyne made a passionate, boastful exclamation, and—ignoring Ink's desperate headshaking and hand-waving—grabbed both him and Dream and took to the sky. Oddly, Dream's elated laughter and Ink's panicked shrieking didn't bring a smile to my face. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"when am i going home?/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"actually… i don't know," I admitted. Raven shrugged./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"well, whenever you do, i hope a kind human soon follows." He glanced down at the child draped across his lap and smiled. "a human like sparrow."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanWithin mere minutes, the last of the sun slipped beneath the tree line. The sky began to dim, and Raven carefully scooped the kid into his arms. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"it's a school night. tori will have my feathers if sparrow misses her bedtime." He grinned at me. "drop by any time, serif. don't be a stranger. we're birds of a feather, you and i, and paps and undyne. you're always welcome in our flock." I smiled, and returning my thanks to him, rejoined the others on the ledge./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanSoon, the flock flew off towards the distant city. Ink, Dream, and I watched them go. I turned back to my friends. But before I could thank them, I noticed their expectant grins./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Was today a good kind of surprise?" Ink asked hopefully. I nodded./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"yeah. i emguess /emit made up for the crazy portal trip," I joked, earning smiles from both. "thanks, really," I said. "it was an amazing day." Ink and Dream exchanged a glance./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Well, there is one more surprise," Dream admitted, nudging Ink./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe Artist dug in his scarf. From a deep fold, he lifted a pendant free and eagerly held it out to me. Hesitantly, honored and curious, I took it. The heart-shaped glass was filled with a glimmering, teal substance. Paint, probably. A cord crisscrossed around the narrow end, attaching at the top, and looped up like a necklace./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Blue's got destroyed, so it took a while to recreate without a reference. But! I finally got it right," Ink announced happily. "It's a replacement for portals!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"for real?" I balked, inspecting the pendant with new interest. Ink nodded excitedly. "that's amazing," I observed. "how does it work?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Stand inside a protection bubble and shatter the glass," Dream explained simply. "Don't worry; it will reform."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"So!" Ink continued, "Now you can go anywhere you want, whenever you want—and that pendant will always bring you back home!" My soul skipped a beat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"home?" I asked, a numb, dizzy excitement washing over my every nerve./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Yeah!" Ink affirmed eagerly. "Back to the Doodle Sphere!" I nodded, trying to conceal my immense disappointment. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"that's not home. /emDream opened a portal and tossed a warm smile back at me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Meet you back at the Sphere." I forced a smile of my own, formed the golden bubble around me, and broke the pendant./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 182.05pt;"span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe shield rapidly filled with liquid, ethereal teal. The moment the bubble was full, it popped. The sphere shattered outwards, leaving nothing but a glowing, fading puddle on the ground. As I hurtled back towards the Doodle Sphere amidst waves of spectacular magic, I found myself wondering—em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"when will i go home?/em/span/p