Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

Many resets, and three years, later...

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It was what the humans called Christmas Eve Day, a seasonal holiday that was very much like monsterkind's own Gyftmas. It was a time for gathering with friends and family in safe, warm places, enjoying each others' company, eating lots of food, and exchanging thoughtful gifts. No one was quite sure what came first, Christmas or monsterkind's version of it, but it happened to take place at roughly the same time of year, so many monsters had adapted and combined the two into one event. Traditions of humans and monsters alike mingled into a time of great charity and kindness, families and friends of both races sometimes even gathering together under one roof.

It was a time of joy and good will for everyone...

Or.

Well.

It was supposed to be.

Undyne sat at the small kitchen table in her and Alphys' shared apartment, a frown of indecision on her face and a number of formal looking papers laid out before her. For all Christmas advertised kindness and the spirit of giving, some firms and businesses used it as a chance to squeeze the life from their clients, something Undyne had learned very early in their freedom. It had been three years since Frisk had led monsterkind out into the light of day, and from that point on Undyne had lost count of the number of times she had been gypped and cheated by people who took advantage of monsterkind's naivety. Not that all humans were like that; certainly not. Undyne was close friends with quite a few humans, especially down at the gym on North Street. But...it sort of hurt sometimes, the shear number of people that were out there that didn't care about whether they were being cruel or inconsiderate, as long as they got their payments on time. And their behavior wasn't just confined to monsterkind, they treated their own that way too. It was disgusting, and upsetting. Disheartening.

Undyne remembered a time when she would have killed a human on sight. Since her earliest age she could remember being told of how the humans had murdered her people out of unfounded fear and then sealed them all away beneath the mountain. It had filled her even then with the sting of injustice and the determination to correct the balance. She had spent much of her younger years dreaming about how she would bring her people to the Surface, no matter what it took. In the end, it had been a human child who had saved them all. An interesting twist, to say the least. Frisk had changed Undyne's mind about humanity, which was a pretty much impossible thing to do in general. And, for the most part Undyne found that her newfound faith in humanity was deserved...and other times not so much.

Sighing in a mix of annoyance and frustration, Undyne glared down at the mess before her. Bills, of every kind, stared back at her, the numbers and figures bold and blaring. Electric, water, heating, and rent were her foes in this financial battle, and Undyne hated to admit it, but it was a fight she wasn't sure she could win without unfavorable outcomes.

A year and a half ago, she and Alphys had agreed to branch off from the others, who were still living in Ebott City, thirty miles west of Marlborrow. They had been given a small amount of funds from the human government, as all monsters had, to begin their lives afresh. It hadn't been much, just enough to pay for about a months worth of rent and perhaps a week and a half's worth of groceries. Their money combined, Undyne and Alphys had managed to find a landlady in Marlborrow willing to compensate them until they both were able to secure a job. Alphys had ended up getting a position as a librarian, while Undyne had hopped from one job to the next, usually involving moving large objects or yard work. Neither could say that they were making above minimal wage; after all, monsters were still striving for equal rights, so they really couldn't complain. But it was a struggle. Undyne had fond it was easier for Alphys to find work than herself, mostly because Alphys was smaller and less intimidating. People were less likely to hire a monster who looked like she could or might eat you than one who resembled a chubby, yellow lizard with glasses.

It had been especially hard that first year, and Undyne had refused to ask Toriel or Asgore for financial assistance, seeing as the king and ex-queen, separately, were making a living just fine in the political department. That and Frisk, as monsterkind's ambassador, was given compensation as pay, allowing her to buy what she needed by credit rather than cash.

Undyne knew that any and all of their friends would have given their left arms to help her and Alphys regain their footing money-wise, but pride, stickler as it was, was stubborn in Undyne's soul. Aggressively. And so, as the months came and went, and the bills piled higher and higher, Undyne found herself feeling increasingly trapped, a feeling she loathed and had zero experience in dealing with. This wasn't an enemy she could punch in the face and be done with. She couldn't even face it head-on like she wanted, because humans always swathed stuff like that in miles and miles of useless paperwork. Just the act of living had become little more than a desk job, and Undyne despised it with a passion. She had never had to worry about her finances in the Underground. As Captain of the Royal Guard she had been well provided for. Alphys too, as the Royal Scientist.

Now, seeing as both of them no longer held those positions, things were far more complicated.

Bills. They gathered like vultures circling in a proverbial sky, waiting for her to drop so they could pick her bones clean of every penny she and Alphys had. Undyne snorted at the image and tossed a handful of receipts onto the table, her shoulders slumping as her brow fell lower. She didn't even know where to start with this kind of crap. The electric and water bill wasn't too bad; she and Alphys had cut back as much as they could, even forfeiting television and using more than one lamp at a time. It sucked, but, honestly, paying an insane amount of money just to see more clearly, sucked more. Besides, having lived underground all their lives, their eyesight was rather remarkable, so squinting a little to see each other in the dark wasn't really all that big a deal. And they, both more or less being reptilian in nature, didn't sweat much in the winter, so baths were taken only often enough that they didn't smell.

It was the heat bill and rent that was killing them. Both Undyne and Alphys hated the cold, as did their bodies in general. Their monster types were much more inclined to warm or wet, humid regions, something they probably should have taken into consideration when they moved away from Ebott City, not that Ebott was much warmer. If they had really thought things through, they might have moved down south, to where the seasons were more mild and typically warmer. Not that they would have had the funds at the time. Either way, lack of warmth left them shivering and sluggish, no matter how many layers they wore or how many blankets they wrapped themselves in. They'd tried cutting down on fuel, but the feeling of not being fully conscious, drowsy and shaky, had been so miserable they had both agreed that heat was something they couldn't skimp out on.

Rent. Rent was a doozy. Marcy Josephine, their landlady, had been very understanding at first. She had seemed warm and decent enough when Undyne and Alphys had been touring her rooms. But now, as time had passed and their payments had become less and less full and less and less regular, the woman had proven to be a stern and un-giving soul. Her true colors were showing through more and more often, revealing a tired, humorless woman who had little time for their excuses. Not that Undyne could blame her, necessarily. Undyne understood more than most the dignity and responsibility that came with keeping a contract, and it made her die a little inside to think she had sunk so low as to be scrambling for nickles and dimes and still not keeping her end of the bargain.

In fact...

Looking at the paperwork before her, Undyne could not find any foreseeable way that all their bills would be paid on time and in full. Not this time.

She dropped her head into her hands with a groan of pent up frustration. "I screwed up."

And she really had; even she couldn't deny it. Here it was, the holidays, and Undyne was going to have to tell Alphys that they were likely going to lose their home and get tossed out into the snow. What kind of Gyftmas surprise was that? Undyne knew well enough that the two of them would have no choice but to move back to Ebott City, probably crash at Asgore's or Toriel's until they were able to pay off all their debts, but...

Undyne didn't want to do that.

The others didn't need that kind of burden. And, all logical and moral reasons aside, Undyne just didn't want to admit that she had failed to make a life for herself and Alphys. That lack of success hung over her like a rabid beast, its fangs halfway through the act of sinking its fangs into her neck, going in for the kill. And to make all matters a million times worse...

She hadn't told Alphys how bad off they were.

In fact, she had outright lied about it. On more than one occasion. It was very out of character for Undyne, and she knew that, but...Alphys was a monster of a nervous deposition. She was a worrier, and had suffered most of her life from an almost crippling anxiety and depression. However, since their arrival on the Surface, Alphys had been winning ground. With Undyne's encouragement she had gained more confidence and self-worth; she could leave the house and go to work without Undyne having to walk her there and back because Alphys was getting better every day. And Undyne had refused to ruin that by adding something to Alphys' life that might stress her out.

So she had lied.

She had said they could afford a good meal when they couldn't.

She had assured Alphys when the other had expressed concern about their meager income.

She hadn't denied Alphys anything she wanted, willing to go without if it meant making Alphys happy.

But now it had all come back to haunt her. There was no getting out of this. Undyne had left it for too long. Her problems had piled up around her, no matter how hard she had fought to get them under control, and now she was in too deep. She was going to have to tell Alphys that she had lied, or at least omitted the truth, not once, but at least a dozen times. She was going to have to admit failure, and that pained Undyne to the point where she felt almost sick. Her soul felt heavy and putrid, made all the worse by her lack of honesty. She feared Alphys' anger. She had never seen Alphys angry, but she knew regardless of whether or not that anger turned out to be intimidating, it would wound her deeper than any sword or dagger ever could. What if Alphys didn't forgive her? What if Alphys left?!

The thought wrenched a tight sound from Undyne's throat as she sat alone in the kitchen, overwhelmed. This was not the life she had imagined for herself on the Surface. Yeah, it was still great to be free, nothing could take away that insurmountable joy, but this was far from what Undyne had wanted for herself. From what she had wanted for Alphys. And now it was too late. She was in too deep to just cover things up like she had been. As the one in their household to be in charge of the money - because Alphys wasn't good with restraint, and trusted her to use their money wisely- Undyne hadn't found it difficult to hide the truth. All it required was a few half truths and evasions. But that was all in the past now.

The truth was glaring her in the face, ready to break out of its cage she had meticulously built and show Alphys just how scummy she was. How all that trust, all that faith Alphys had put in her, was about as worthless as garbage. Undyne was garbage. When it all came down to it, she found she wouldn't really blame Alphys for leaving her at this point. And that scared her all the more.

Undyne jolted from her dark thoughts and back to full attention as she heard the door to their apartment open with a familiar high creaking sound. She quickly snatched up the papers and receipts from the table and shoved them into the briefcase she had set aside to hold her ever growing stack of secrets. She did so hurriedly, not particularly caring if it crumpled the papers or not. She slammed the case shut, latched it, and tossed it out of sight under the table just as she heard the jingle of apartment keys and the crinkle of rough paper shopping bags.

"U-Undyne?"

Trying to pull off a natural, easy pose, Undyne crossed her legs and picked up the, by now, cold cup of tea from the table, poising it near her lips as though she were in the act of drinking it. "In here, babe!" she called back with false cheer.

There was the sound of the keys being placed carefully on the coffee table, more dry paper crinkles, and then a moment later Alphys, yellow scaled cheeks tinged pink from the cold, staggered in with her arms full of balanced groceries. She was slightly out of breath, something that wasn't too uncommon when she had taken the stairs rather a little too vigorously. But, despite looking a little worn, her eyes were bright and she wore a smile that instantly restored some of the life that had drained out of Undyne's soul.

"S-Sorry it took me so long, but I r-really wanted to make sure I got something f-for everyone."

It took Undyne a moment to process what Alphys meant, and when it did she felt one more hefty weight added to the scale of her guilt. Alphys had asked weeks ago if they would have enough money to buy all their friends presents for Gyftmas, and Undyne had said yes. The conversation had then completely slipped her mind, cradled in the false assumption that their finances would all be in order by December and her answer wouldn't be changing. Another foolish step in the walk of shame Undyne had paved for herself.

Undyne had awoken that morning to being alone in the apartment, and a small, messily written note that stated that Alphys had gone out and would return later that morning. It was rare that Alphys got up before Undyne did, though it had become more common since they had cut back on electricity and Alphys wasn't staying up so late watching anime. With a full night's sleep, Alphys made a mildly decent morning person. So when Undyne had read the other's note, she really hadn't thought much of it. Looking back, she was almost disappointed in how stupidly she had failed not to connect the dots. She really was slipping, the weight of hard living telling on her physically and mentally.

It was Gyftmas.

That meant gifts.

Which meant they needed to buy gifts for all their friends before the end of the day, especially since they were leaving for Ebott by noon.

Where Undyne had been too occupied with finances to remember the holiday and its responsibilities with any true clarity, Alphys had been on the ball. And, apparently remembering Undyne's foolish assurances, had gone ahead and spent money that should have gone into lowering their bills. Not that it would have done much good at this point. Undyne inwardly swore at herself, knowing it was her fault, not Alphys'. Outwardly, she smiled, standing to help Alphys set the three, large brown paper bags down on the counter.

"No, it's...it's fine, babe," she said. Her smile felt so fake it resembled a mask. "I was just...you know. Drinking tea. You want some? I can brew another cup or two?"

Alphys smiled, excitement and energy -the kind that only comes with Gyftmas - raging through her, making her almost glow from the inside. "N-No, that's okay. They had free hot chocolate at one of th-the department stores I visited! It was only a small c-cup, but it helped keep me warm." Her expression turned regretful. "I-I'm sorry I didn't bring you back a cup. I asked i-if it was allowed and the man s-said no."

Not getting a cup of hot chocolate was, quite honestly, the least of Undyne's worries.

"It's okay," Undyne murmured, distracted as she peered into one of the brown paper bags. She couldn't really see much, seeing as Alphys had apparently covered the top with what looked like public bathroom grade paper towel. Probably to keep snowflakes from landing inside, keeping the contents dry. She reached in to move them aside, hoping against hope that whatever Alphys had bought wasn't of an expensive variety, but Alphys joshingly gave her a shove to the side. Or tried to. She wasn't strong enough to budge Undyne an inch, but it was pretty funny when she thought she could. Undyne usually humored her, purposefully stumbling back a step, grinning like a happy piranha.

"N-Not yet!" Alphys giggled, squirming between Undyne and the bad, blocking Undyne's reach. "Let me clean up and change into s-something a little w-warmer, and then I'll show you what I f-found. N-No peeking!"

Fair enough. Undyne gave a nod and took another step back. She took up her cup of cold tea again and gave it another sip, grimacing when she was reminded of its temperature. While Alphys removed her winter coat and mittens, Undyne put on another pot of water to boil on the stove. Alphys might be warm, but Undyne felt unnaturally cold inside. She had a hunch the tea wouldn't help, but she was feeling uncharacteristically desperate.

Alphys disappeared into the bedroom, and Undyne heard the door shut softly as Alphys went about cleaning up in the bathroom and finding something warm and seasonal to wear. The house still seemed uncomfortably quiet, almost stagnant, but with Alphys there it was at least a little less lonely. That was partially why Undyne was so antsy to leave for Toriel's; she needed to go somewhere where there was noise and movement, and life. Things to keep her mind from wondering, over and over, the issues she didn't have the foggiest idea how to fix. Maybe, if she rested up and had a little fun, she'd be able to think clearer when she got back.

Or not. But it was worth a try.

The kettle whistled and Undyne moved to dump out her old cup of tea into the sink. She was just taking the water off the burner, ready to refill, when there was a sharp knock at the apartment door. It broke the silence like a gong, harsh and sudden; enough so that Undyne nearly dropped her half empty mug. Man, she needed to chill. Her muscles were so uptight she felt like her tendons might snap under the pressure. Setting the mug down with a clank of ceramic, she quickly headed out of the kitchen and toward the front door.

"I'll get it!" Undyne shouted in the direction of the bedroom, terror shooting up her spine at the thought of Alphys finishing dressing and getting to the door first. Because, quite honestly, there were only two people Undyne could think of who would dare to knock on their door at eight-thirty in the morning: Jack, the local custodian, and Marcy Josephine. The latter being much more likely, seeing as it was Saturday and Jack had probably already left for the holidays. He had family further north, or so Undyne thought she recalled him mentioning.

Racing through the short apartment hallway, trying not to stub her toe as she passed the small lamp side table, Undyne reached the door in record time, flinging it open with an air of urgency. She probably looked half crazed, hair still uncombed and tank top straps all twisted and slipping off her shoulder. It probably didn't help her case when, just as she had expected - and dreaded - she was greeted by the less than charitable sight of their landlady.

Marcy Josephine, a rather rounded woman with cold eyes and a tight-lipped mouth, looked anything but cheerful. She was wearing a gray sweater that did nothing for her figure and a pair of lint-covered black slacks. She looked ruffled, like maybe she had slept in the outfit and had just rolled out of bed. Her hair was tied in a messy bun, sort of resembling those sumo wrestlers Undyne had heard about. Besides that, Mrs. Josephine's shoulders were slumped and lifeless, like a woman all too accustomed to dealing with sleazy individuals, all while being one herself. It wasn't a very nice neighborhood, cheap - the main reason Undyne and Alphys had been able to afford an apartment there - but it wasn't a crime alley or anything, so it wasn't too bad. Mrs. Josephine though, she had been dealt her fair share of bad luck, Undyne knew, and the woman was well versed in booting out people who didn't pay their dues.

Undyne had been expecting this visit.

"Miss Undyne," the woman greeted with a nod, voice monotone. A far cry from the more lively woman she had been while showing off her rooms for rent. Another face of human deceit. "I'm sure you have at least some idea of why I'm here."

Taking a page out of Sans's book, Undyne tried for a bit of innocence. "Were we being too loud or something?"

The woman's face hardened. "Please. Stupidity doesn't become you. I'm here about the rent."

Undyne cast a quick glance behind her, biting her lip in thought, before she stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind her in a solid, smooth action. The landlady gave her a wary look, like she were about to be mugged, but Undyne stayed her distance, trying to appear as harmless as possible. Life was hard enough as things were, she didn't need a false case of aggression stacked against her too. She kept her hands in full view, trying not to look as intimidating as she doubtless appeared to be. It was difficult, especially when Undyne typically towered a good head and a half over most human males, more so for short, stout human women.

"It's Gyft- Er, uh, Christmas," Undyne stated, grasping for the correct term. "It's Christmas."

"Yes," Mrs. Josephine countered. "Yes, it is. But I see very little relevance that has in regard to your three week old rent."

Undyne winced. "Yeah. Yeah, I didn't think you would." She sighed. "Look, I...I can't pay that right now. We-"

"Then you need to leave." The woman turned to go, but Undyne forgot herself and reached out to catch hold of her arm, maybe a little more tightly than she had intended. The landlady turned back sharply, tugging her limb free with a look that screamed both fear and anger. Undyne instantly backed away again, hands held up in a placating manner, her mind scrambling for answers.

"Sorry! Sorry. I just...Okay. I know we're really behind on the rent. Believe me, it's been on my mind a lot lately, I'm not just blowing you off. It's just, it's winter, and I'm not getting as many jobs as I was during the summer and fall. I've got all these other bills and...and..." Again she sighed, a headache pounding in her temples. "Can't we talk this over? Figure out come kind of a compensation?"

"Miss Undyne," Mrs. Josephine grumbled with strained patience. "You are three weeks late in paying your rent. I was quite clear when you first came here that the payments would be due regularly and on time, and while I was more lenient in the beginning I have to take into consideration that you have lived here for almost a year and a half. That is more than enough time to find one's financial legs. However, going by the ever growing unpaid bill on my desk, you have failed to do so." Again she turned to leave. "There is nothing to talk over. You have until tonight to get out of my establishment."

Desperation, of a kind very unfitting for an ex-captain of the Royal Guard, flared through Undyne's soul. She took a step forward, hands held out almost pleadingly as sweat gathered in her palms. There was no way she and Alphys could be out by that night. Even if they miraculously found a way to carry all their belongings, they would have nowhere to stow them or transport them to someplace safe for storage. they would lose everything.

"Wait! I- Rgh! I can get you the rent pay, just give me a little more time!" she hissed, hoping Alphys wouldn't hear. Hopefully, the other was still well inside, out of ear shot.

Mrs. Josephine gave her a tired look. "You've had three weeks. Isn't that enough? I have been very patient, but-"

"And we're grateful," Undyne cut in. "We really are. You've been more than fair, and you're one of the few people we've met willing to let a couple of monsters stay in their homes. But, we're...We're just really hard up for money right now. But I can get it! I'll pay it in full, I swear. We just need a little more time. Just a little bit of-"

"How much time?"

Undyne's hope ticked up a bit, wondering if this was a good sign or not. She grasped the first amount of time that popped into her head. "One and a half more weeks?"

"That's too long. You forget, for every day you live here, I'm losing money; if not from you than from someone else who could be living in this apartment. Someone with money to meet their dues."

Right. Right, that was true. Undyne didn't have much to bargain with at this point. She was already mentally going through her belongings, of all the things she could take to a pawn shop and sell for a bit of cash. She was walking a tightrope here, one wrong move and Mrs. Josephine would walk away for good, and that would be the end of it.

"Then how about half that?" Undyne tried. "If I don't have the money by this Friday, we'll leave. That day. No questions asked, and no fuss. Gone."

That seemed to settle a little better with the portly woman. She tilted her head, taking Undyne in with a curious, though still very tired expression. Carefully, like she was testing how far she could push, she haggled, "Thursday. Thursday and no later. That gives you the holiday, plus four days of work to come up with the money. That's about all the charity I'm willing to give you. And believe me, that's a lot more than most people would offer."

Undyne nodded, feeling embarrassingly humbled. "Thursday," she agreed, relief and dread mixing to make that sick feeling come back, heavy and cold in her gut. She tried for a smile, but it couldn't have been a very good one. Mrs. Josephine didn't even try to return it, giving a long, slow blink like she was only half present. "Thank you! I won't let you down again!"

"Mm," the woman grunted. Her eyes slid over to the closed door of Undyne and Alphys' apartment, the rusty metal '4' hanging there slightly eschew. "Are you both planning to leave for the weekend?" she asked.

Again Undyne nodded. "We've got family in Ebott. Friends really, but they're like family. Only family we have."

The landlady didn't look impressed. She blinked again, then turned to leave, and this time Undyne didn't move to stop her. "Well, make sure you lock up when you go."

"Will do!" Undyne replied with forced enthusiasm, grateful that the woman had at least refrained from commenting on what a bad idea it was to leave town for the holidays with so much money to earn. Undyne would have heartily agreed, but if it meant keeping Alphys stress-free for Gyftmas, in the dark a little bit longer, than Undyne would go with her to Toriel's. She could just as easily try and earn some extra bucks there as she could at home. Contact a few people; try and arrange a few quick jobs for Monday. Maybe try and win a little cash off Sans with a few card games or something. With luck, she'd make it. She didn't have much else in way of choices.

"Have a..." Undyne had to think a moment, dredging up the correct term once again. "Have a merry Christmas."

Mrs. Josephine gave a grunt of acknowledgement before she disappeared down the dark staircase, her dry palm sliding on the banister as she dismissed herself. And not a moment too soon. Just as the landlady was out of sight, the door to their apartment cracked open, Alphys' curious face appearing. She had finished changing it seemed, a bright red sweater and black leggings replacing the drab outfit of before. For a moment, Undyne feared the other had heard everything that had been said between her and the landlady, but it was very quickly apparent that Alphys had perceived nothing. She wouldn't have been smiling so genuinely if she had. There was no anger. No fear. No disappointment in those bespectacled eyes.

"W-What are you doing out here?" she asked with a confused, fond smile. Like Undyne was quirky enough to do things that didn't really make sense, but somehow made her all the more endearing. That was more Alphys' department. "Are y-you alright?"

"Just stretching my legs," Undyne supplied quickly, already moving to come back indoors. She squeezed in next to Alphys, shutting the door quickly and smiling down at the other with all the reassurance she could muster. "I didn't get to do my exercises this morning, and I'm a bit stiff."

Alphys frowned. "Y-You didn't? That's not like you." Concern began to bleed into that yellow-scaled face. "A-Are you feeling alright? You're not sick a-are you?" She did her best to reach up, intending to lay a hand on Undyne's forehead and not even getting close.

The sight pulled a genuine laugh from Undyne's chest. "No, no, I'm not sick," she chuckled, gently catching Alphys' hand and lowering it. "I'm just fine. Like I said, just needed to stretch, and I think the cold made me sleep in a little longer than usual. I was going to drink my tea, then do my morning routine. But you caught me in the act." She gave Alphys a nudge. "But hey, I thought you were going to show me what you got? I'm all curious now. You can't leave me hanging, babe! That's cruel!"

Life returned to Alphys expression, and chubby yellow hands closed around Undyne's own, tugging her toward the kitchen. "Oh! Y-Yes! I was very careful to get things that were o-on sale, of course; or on d-discount. I did fairly well, and I found things everyone sh-should really love!"

They made their way back into the kitchen, Alphys grabbing the goods while she instructed Undyne to go to the closet and fetch the fresh wrapping paper and tape, coaching that they would perform the task of viewing and wrapping the gifts all at once and in the living room. Undyne did as she was told, finding the required items and plopping down into a cross legged sit in front of Alphys on their small living room floor.

Alphys began digging around in the first brown paper bag, her smile so wide her eyes were squinting. "I suppose w-we should start with F-Frisk. Her b-being the easiest to f-find something for."

Undyne had to agree. Frisk was always easy to buy gifts for. She was a child of many interests, and, being a kid, there were quite a number of stores that catered to individuals her age. Undyne leaned forward as Alphys prepared to reveal her findings. With a bit of an introduction, naturally.

"It was in the very f-first store I went into. They had a science s-section. I originally thought I'd f-find something for Sans there, b-but, well..." She trailed off, grunting softly as she pulled a large, obviously heavy box from the bag. She held it up, eyes twinkling. "I found th-this!"

It was a science kit, the box still seamlessly wrapped in plastic - new. The front was quite colorful, a mix of blues, grays, whites, reds, and yellows. There was nothing on the front, picture-wise, to easily give away what it was, so Undyne's gaze focused in on the text. In large white lettered the box declared that it was a 'Volcano Lava Lab', in smaller letters underneath assuring the buyer that it was 'real science'. Like that wasn't obvious. Now that she knew that it was a volcano kit, Undyne recognized the spewing mountain in the background, a few rocks flying out of it in a weak representation of an explosion, just minus all the fire and magma that would have made it all so much more exciting. But it looked like a pretty good gift, and Frisk really did love science, something the kid had picked up from Sans.

"Whoa!" Undyne was sure to voice, peering closer. "That thing looks awesome!"

Alphys giggled with glee, turning the box around to start reading off the finer details of her find. "I-It comes with fifteen l-lava bombs, fifteen eruptions, l-lots of, um, f-fizzing? Fizzing mineral pools, p-poison gas - n-n-not real poisonous gas o-of course -and demons!"

That caught Undyne's interest. "Wait, what?! Demons?!"

She snatched up the box, Alphys laughing as Undyne grinned down at the image of what had to be a medium sized plastic demon on the back of the box. It was pretty ugly, exactly how a demon should be, and all one shade of tomato red. Big buff dude with horns in a loin cloth. Undyne grinned. Frisk was going to love it. To the left of the box inventory was a listing of what the kit could help a kid learn through its use, something that Undyne was sure Toriel would approve of. "Huh. Volcanology? Neat!"

She didn't see what a demon had to do with that, but hey! She was all for embellishment when it came to dramatization.

"Right?!" Alphys squealed in turn. She looked about ready to burst. "It's perfect, especially since T-Toriel said she was t-teaching Frisk about earth s-science in school this year!"

Toriel had applied for a teaching job at one of the local middle schools, but had been declined, seeing as monsters still didn't have a lot of basic rights. After three years they had come pretty far, but not quite that far. Toriel had been crushed, her dream postponed indefinitely. Frisk had been given the chance to enroll in the school on her own, but had refused. Seeing as Toriel had already written up a curriculum, it was decided, and somewhat hesitantly approved by the Ebottian school district, that Frisk would be home schooled, a task that Toriel took up with the utmost enthusiasm. Being literally centuries old, Toriel was a wealth of knowledge; more than enough to qualify as the young ambassador's teacher and guardian. While Frisk typically called Toriel 'mom', the ex-queen had not yet been able to work out any formal adoption, but no one dared separate the two; not man, nor monster, nor beast.

Undyne smiled down at the box in approval. "It's perfect, babe. The squirt's going to love it."

Alphys nodded, already convinced. Still beaming, she dug back into the bag and pulled out yet another item. This one was a hefty ceramic mug, obviously hand-crafted, and shaped like a snail. It wasn't hard to guess that this gift was for Toriel, and since the motherly monster had discovered the miracle of coffee, Undyne knew it would be well used. It was thick, and chunky, a snail head rising from the front end, adorned in a pale pink bow tie. The mug itself was spiraled, made to resemble a snail's shell. The eyes were kind of buggy, but it gave it a sort of humorous, ugly-cute design; one that Toriel would probably find very amusing. Having always been very fond of snails - for whatever reason - Toriel would surely love the personal touch.

Alphys tilted the mug from side to side, showing off every angle. "I-I know it's not a lot, but I s-saw it and thought of her, s-so-"

"She's gonna go nuts over it," Undyne reassured, grinning.

"Y-You think so?"

"No doubt about it!"

Alphys looked relieved. She reached into the bag again with one hand, pulling out a small packet of colorful shapes. On closer inspection, Undyne realized they were also snail themed. "I-I wasn't sure whether T-Toriel would want the mug for coffee or t-tea, so I also found these. Th-they're cute silicon snail tea bag h-holders. There's s-seven in the packet, and c-come in four different colors; b-blue, green, pink, and orange. They perch on the s-side of the mug, and you drape the tea bag s-string over their h-heads, and they keep the bag from sliding in t-too much."

Undyne nodded, smirking. "Uh huh. Now that is a good combo. As far as I know, she drinks both, so it's literally the perfect gift." Glancing at the nearby clock on the wall, Undyne felt a need to move forward a little more quickly. "What else you get?"

"Ah, well!"

Alphys set Toriel's gifts aside and reached for the second brown paper bag. "For Asgore, I g-got him a f-few gardening tools. N-Nothing fancy. I also found h-him a potted plant." She pulled said plant out of the bag. Miraculously, it had survived the trip, though it looked like it could have used a watering. It was a very vibrant red, its few flowers large and so perfectly star-like they almost looked fake. But, reaching out to rub the petals gently between two fingers, Undyne discovered they were very much real.

"I-It's called a poinsettia," Alphys explained. "The w-woman at the floral shop t-told me that it's a common symbol of the season for h-humans. And since Asgore l-likes learning a-about new kinds of botany, I th-thought this would be something he'd like. Wh-What do you think?"

Alphys seemed less sure of herself with this gift. Undyne couldn't blame her though, Asgore was notoriously hard to buy for. Not because he was picky, or didn't appreciate any gift he was given, but because his list of interests were so short. He liked three things: tea, gardening, and plants. That didn't leave much to creativity. It was like how Undyne's friend Marsha had been complaining down at the gym that all she could ever think to buy her father were ties. She always felt like Asgore deserved more, and yet he was always perfectly happy getting a new flowers or an unusual brand of tea. It seemed rather repetitive, or like he wasn't worth the effort, but truthfully Asgore was never disappointed.

Seeing as the king had been somewhat of a father figure to Undyne in her early years, she supposed she was one of the few who knew Asgore the best.

Giving the plant a final exploitative caress, Undyne rocked back on her butt, giving Alphys a confident nod. "I think he's going to be over the moon. You know how much he enjoyed that bamboo shoot you gave him last year. This has a lot of color. It's perfect, just like everything else so far."

Alphys blushed. She plopped the poinsettia down by her knee and leaned back to reach for the final bag, dragging it closer. "Almost l-last, but n-not least, is the skeleton brothers." She laughed. "Papyrus was easy." She pulled out what looked like a race car puzzle - 5,000 pieces - and a few other small boxes. Each contained various different odd shaped blocks or devices. "These are all d-different kinds of puzzles. L-Like, rubik's cubes, but a little more advanced. Like with this one-" She held up one that looked like two thick metal circlets woven together. "-you h-have to try and figure out h-how to separate the two links. There's only one way to d-do it, and they don't give hints. It should k-keep Papyrus busy for a week or so at l-least."

Papyrus was exceptionally good at puzzles. Undyne would have bet he'd have all the gifts figured out by next weekend, maybe before.

"And for S-Sans..." Alphys again dipped into the bag and came up with two items. A shirt, which was pretty typical of them to buy for the older skeleton brother, and something large, round, and very flat wrapped in plastic. Alphys held up the shirt. "I-It's a science pun," she explained as Undyne took in the dark lettering on the light blue background. "I-I'd explain it, b-but, um, I-I don't think you'd f-find it as funny as he will." She blushed again, apologetic.

Undyne gave an amused and fond snort. "Pfft. Nerds." She nodded to the round, flat thing. "And what's that?"

"O-Oh!" Alphys picked up the item and removed the out layer of plastic. "I-It's a star wheel."

"A what?"

Alphys giggled. "A s-star wheel. It's a s-sort of...circular map? Used to find and identify the s-stars in the n-night sky, at any season. All you h-have to do is line up the month with the t-time, and then hold it up to the sky l-like a map. It's also c-called a planisphere."

"Huh." Sans was such a geek for space, there was no way he wouldn't instantly fall in love with it. "And he doesn't already have one?"

"N-Not that I know of. H-He might have heard of one, b-but I don't know if he would have spent m-money on himself to get it."

Sans was like that. The only time he spent money was when it was for Papyrus or Frisk; outside of the holidays anyway. Undyne could imagine the skeleton drooling over a thing like that and then shrugging it off like it didn't matter. Sans could be frustrating sometimes. Undyne and him had never been terribly close. They were really friends by default, connected only by their common love of Papyrus. Undyne was secretly glad Alphys had done the shopping. She wouldn't have had any idea what to buy half of their friends, and probably would have just ended up getting them all stacks of cheap movies from the five dollar movie bin at the local mart.

Alphys shrugged, smile dimming a little. "I-I was having a hard time finding something for F-Flowey. He's...H-He's probably going to hate anything we give him but, um..." She pulled out a few coloring books, the kind with complex patterns, and a box of colored pencils. "I-I thought maybe h-he'd like something he can d-do alone. When he's, um, in a b-bad mood?"

Which was most of the time. Undyne couldn't have cared less if Flowey liked a gift or not, but in the spirit of Gyftmas she would refrain from saying so. Instead, she said, "That's a good idea, babe. He might toss it aside or something equally stupid, but I bet deep down he'll like it."

"R-Really?"

"Yup!" Undyne yipped. He'd better, or someone was in for getting his head shoved in the garbage disposal, even if only to shake him up a little. "You really got this whole holiday shopping thing down," Undyne praised. "Did it a lot better than I would have." She peered over the rim of the bag the skelebros' gifts had come from, spotting something inside still partially covered by paper towel. "What's that?"

Alphys squeaked and grabbed the bag to clutch to her chest. "Don't look! That's-! Th-That's..." She blushed, suddenly shy. "That's y-your gift."

"Oh." Undyne felt suddenly small and fortunate. Softening her tone as much as her rough voice allowed, she said, "You didn't have to do that, babe."

Alphys wasn't about to be swayed, lip sticking out in something not all that unlike a pout. "W-Well, I wanted to. And besides, you deserve it. You w-work just as hard as I do so w-we can live here. And I-i've loved every m-moment of it."

Undyne felt both like she was floating on air, and like she was going to puke. "Uh, yeah, huh huh huh..." The laugh came out all wrong, tight and so fake it was a wonder Alphys didn't notice. "Me too," she finished lamely. An uncomfortable silence fell between them, though the discomfort was decidedly one sided. Undyne sweated it out as long as she could before she coughed, ungracefully changing the subject. "So! What do you say we wrap these suckers, huh?!" She rattled the roll of wrapping paper over her had like a spear, pulling another soft, musical laugh from Alphys.

"A-Alright! It does need to be done, and we're l-leaving by noon, so. Y-Yes. Let me just p-put this somewhere safe, and then we'll g-get this all worked out."

She stood up with a grunt, stiff from sitting so long, still carrying Undyne's mystery gift. It was hard not to let curiosity get the better of the ex-captain, having always been a monster of action and inquire. But that look of joy in Alphys eyes sealed her fate, and Undyne pushed down the urge to go sneaking around for the gift later for a peek. She could wait. It would be frustrating, but she could wait.

Her own gift for Alphys was...Well. It was alright. It wasn't great, but Undyne at least knew it would be enjoyed. She had scraped together as much as she could spare herself and ordered the full series of Alphys' favorite anime, one that was particularly hard to come by. Alphys would be ecstatic, that was for sure, but Undyne feared there would still be an ounce of disappointment mixed in. She knew what would really make Alphys happy, but...they were in no financial standing to do that. Not even close. For now, a pack of Japan-inspired animation galore would have to do. It wasn't nearly all that Alphys deserved, but it was sincere. It was all Undyne could manage.

The blue-skinned monster sighed as Alphys disappeared back down the small apartment hall, then turned back to the items in need of wrapping, tearing open the wrapping paper plastic with her teeth in preparation as she waited for Alphys to return.

They left their apartment in fairly good time. Undyne locked it all up tight like Mrs. Josephine had requested, not like she wouldn't have even if the woman hadn't reminded her. The last thing they needed to have happen was to be robbed while they were away. Though, honestly, they had very little of value. Any crook stupid enough to take the time to creep around a place like east Marlborrow deserved whatever junk he found, and good luck to him.

Undyne and Alphys settled into the car with twin shivers, appreciating the fact that the vehicle had been started ahead of time - Alphys' idea - and that the heat was already well up and running. It was a small, compact little car; a 2017 gray Honda Accord, or so Alphys' co-worker from the library had informed them when he had let them borrow it. The girls had been very grateful, as they weren't quite sure just how they would have been able to plan their trip to Ebott City without it. Mark, if Undyne remembered the young man's name correctly, had found out about the get together at Toriel's, and how they wouldn't be able to make it without a ride. While the two had been working up the nerve to ask Asgore to send someone to pick them up, Mark had readily volunteered to let them use his older car, saying that he had two and could spare one for the weekend. When they had tried to decline out of courtesy, he had insisted.

Having been one of very few monsters to have been granted a temporary automobile licence, the government's way of compensating for poor transportation offered to monsterkind, Undyne took her seat behind the wheel. Most people would have thought her to be a reckless driver, Toriel in fact had been mildly horrified when she had found out Undyne had passed, but the ex-captain had quickly proven herself to be rather diligent while driving. Maybe that was because she took keeping the lives of others' safe very seriously. If she were alone in the car, on some empty stretch of smooth, straight highway, sure, she'd probably get a little over enthused and test the limits of how fast she could go. But while carrying the people she cared about...Nope. She knew all the rules of the road and followed them like running a red light would kill them all. Maybe a little over the top, but it was better than a wrecked car and a passenger seat full of dust.

"We got everything?" Undyne asked, adjusting the mirrors. The presents were piled in the back, fully wrapped in one pattern of wrapping paper, obscuring some of her visibility, but not enough to be an issue.

Alphys shut the passenger side door, buckling up and raising her shaking hands up to the heat vents, trying to warm up. Just the short time it had taken them to load the car had left the two feeling chilled to the bone. "I-I think s-so," Alphys chattered, teeth clicking. "A-And, really, if we d-did forget anything, it isn't th-the end of the w-w-world." She smiled. "The gifts w-were the main thing."

Still, it felt like they were forgetting something. Maybe that was because Undyne'd had it ingrained into her over the last few years that it was customary to bring a dish with you when you went to visit other people. It was a pattern she had quickly picked up on after multiple invites to friends' houses, mostly folks Alphys had managed to befriend at the library, and a few of Undyne's gym mates. Most humans were pretty accepting, and so the two female monsters had found themselves spending an evening with quite a few, kind couples. And a dish brought along was almost always secretly implied.

Toriel, however, had made a point of telling Alphys that they would not have to bring anything to eat with them. When Alphys had tried to assure her it wouldn't be any trouble, Toriel had brushed her offers aside and insisted on baking, cooking, and mixing up every morsel they could possibly want. But that was Toriel for you. She loved to spend time in the kitchen, and had probably been working up a buffet fit for royalty over the past week in preparation for Gyftmas. In the end, Alphys had given in and the girls found themselves seated and ready to go with only their gifts, a few extra blankets and pillows, and a bag filled with overnight essentials. Along with a few possible movie selections.

Undyne gave a chuckle, then pressed her foot against the break petal before shifting the car into drive. "Alright, then. Let's go visit some friends!"

And off they went. Alphys almost instantly hooked up her phone to the car's stereo auxiliary port, setting up a playlist that they turned up just loud enough that the bass thumped a bit in their chests. It was a mix of anime theme songs, Christmas songs they had come to love, and a spattering of some of Metteton's latest hits. The souled robot had become somewhat popular among the human media over the last few years, finding a human agent willing to get him into the swing of the human music business. He'd taken to it like a fish in water, and soon he had gained his own following, consisting of humans and monsters alike. Undyne wasn't too fond of his work, though it was a good deal better than it had been Underground. He had found a better genre, a mix of pop and funk that better matched his voice and style, and he had also gained notoriety as a show host. Still wasn't Undyne's favorite celebrity, but there were a few things he did that she thought were pretty good. And, besides, Metteton was more or less a being of Alphys' creation, other than his soul, so Undyne felt it was only fair to let Alphys enjoy the fruits of both her and his labor.

The loud music helped keep Undyne from thinking too hard about the problems that she was secretly carrying with them to Ebott.

The landscape around them as they got on the main road was mainly rural, then country fields. It was only thirty or so miles between Marlborrow and Ebott City, but seeing as traffic was backed up and the roads were still a little snowy, it was going to take them at least an hour and twenty minutes, at the earliest, to reach Toriel's house. That was okay. The atmosphere in the car was a cheery one, and even when traffic seemed at a standstill they enjoyed themselves, singing off key and waving to anyone who'd smile at them from other car windows. They switched to the radio for a short time, waiting for the weather report and some word on traffic, and when they found out that, yes things were slow, and yes they were in for another snowstorm that night, they switched back to a few classic Bing Crosby songs. For a human, he had quite a soothing voice, and Undyne managed to get Alphys wheezing with laughter as she lip-synced to the man's low notes.

It was well past two by the time they came within sight of Ebott City's towering structures. The landscape had become a bit more hilly, and behind Ebott's tall buildings and billboards on the roadside, the girls could see Mt. Ebott stretching high and ominous in the background, topped with a white cap of snow and looking very cold and lonely. It gave the two mixed feelings. Yes, the mountain had been the prison of their kind for centuries, but it had also been their home. Both Undyne and Alphys had been born underground. They had dreamed of the Surface, but had never had any memories of it themselves to spur that dream to greater heights. They'd had passion and desperation, sure, but that had mostly been passed on by their fore-bearers, monsters who had lost the sun and freedom personally, and suffered having their lives stripped to nothing. Mt. Ebott stood as a conscious reminder, to both humans and monsters, of what war could result in, and illustrated, or so many hoped, how it would not be worth it to repeat such an event in the future. Monster haters could scream and rant all they wanted, but most of the world's population had accepted monsters as good and harmless. Things might have been moving a little slow, politically, but it was a far cry from chaos. Things were steadily getting better, with only the occasional hiccup.

The ramp leading off the main road and into Ebott City was so backed up with traffic they were practically sitting still. A result of Ebott having become a center of sorts. Since monsterkind had emerged from the mountain, the city had become a blip of extreme interest on the map. It was always bustling with tourists, scientists, and gods knew what else, along with an ever growing populace of humans and monsters. Since their freedom, monsters had been upping the whole having children game. Seems being out of the mountain had kicked down a few survival instincts, and there were kids almost everywhere you looked, there no longer being a problem with overcrowding an already crowded Underground. Undyne knew of several couples who had already had young, and were on to their second or third. Dogaressa and Dogamy, for example, had just had a litter of seven pups. Alphys had seen the pics on social media and had cooed for a good three days about how cute they were.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the traffic started moving again. Undyne urged the car forward, and eventually they were able to squeeze off the main route and thread their way through the Ebottian suburbs. Toriel had refused to live in the midst of Ebott City's busiest regions. She remembered the days of old, when Ebott had been little more than a village nestled in the valley. She had instead decided to buy a small, one floor home out on the fringes of the city, where there was just enough people for Frisk to make friends and just few enough for Toriel to feel comfortable and at ease.

The Dreemurr household consisted of Toriel, Frisk, and the skeleton brothers; Asgore living alone on the other side of town, closer the the embassy. While Toriel was not quite as cross with the king as she had once been, there was still enough tension between them that living together had been out of the question. They got together during the holidays, and Toriel allowed Frisk to spend every other weekend with Asgore, as a sort of joint parenthood, but beyond that they stayed out of each others' way.

Sans and Papyrus had found themselves under Toriel's roof about six months ago. Like Undyne, they had found finding a job to be particularly frustrating. Seemed a lot of humans were superstitious, or just didn't like the idea of skeletons working for their businesses. It burned Undyne up inside just thinking about it. She understood that humans usually associated skeletal things with the dead, but skeleton monsters were far different. For one thing, they were very much alive. They ate, and slept, and breathed just like any other being. Their bones were malleable and soft, almost cuddly if Undyne had to put a name to it. The brothers were kind and respectful, even if Sans could be a bit of a pranking nuisance, and there was literally no reason that they should have been turned down from any job they applied to.

But they had been.

Over and over again, until what little funds they had been supplied with had run out and they had been left with nothing but the clothes on their backs and what little they'd had stored in Toriel's basement; things from their house in Snowdin. Toriel hadn't hesitated to take them under her wing, providing for them like they were an extension of her family, which in a way they all were. Toriel was a motherly being, and found it in her soul to care for all those she could. The brothers had lived under her roof ever since, and even though Papyrus had finally found a job as a night custodian at a local golf club, Toriel had still insisted they stay with her and Frisk. Neither brother had resisted the invitation and gave back however they could by helping clean and take care of Frisk.

The whole situation was almost an exact image of what would probably happen to Undyne and Alphys if Undyne didn't find the funds to pay rent by that Thursday. Stress flared in her soul, even as she drove on toward an evening safe and happy with friends. The issue hovered over her, threatening, and she resigned herself to the knowledge that it would doubtlessly be haunting her for the rest of that weekend. She would do all she could to secure some income, but as of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, there would be nothing she could do. Other than make a few phone calls and hope for the best. No stores would be open for her to try and apply to, and everyone she might ask to do some heavy lifting for were already out of town on holiday.

Which meant nothing could be done just yet.

Worrying would only make her feel worse about the situation.

Taking a deep breath, Undyne let it out in a small sigh, the sound thankfully covered up by a very loud rendition of Carol of the Bells by the Mannheim Steamroller. She tried to let the tension in her shoulders bleed away, trying to replace the dread in her soul with the anticipation of seeing her friends again. It had been three or so months since last they had all gotten together; not since that reunion picnic in Ebott City Park to celebrate the anniversary of monsterkind's freedom. They were all due for a bit of time together, as they had all grown extremely close in the weeks following their freeing from the mountain. With that goal in mind, Undyne felt a little better.

A little.