Chapter Text
“Kris. Kriiis.”
Something sharp poked into the side of their face. They scrunched their nose reflexively, trying to bat it away.
Instead, the clawed hand closed around their own, and gave it a rough shake. Kris forced their eyes open, blinking drearily in the warm morning light.
The first thing they registered was Susie grinning smugly at them. “Knew you were awake.”
“I wasn’t,” they protested, sitting up and rubbing their eyes. “What time is it—?”
The second thing they registered was the unmistakeable waft of buttermilk.
Susie’s grin expanded. “It’s goddamn breakfast time,” she answered, with no small amount of enthusiasm. Kris wondered if this was really the same girl who’d threatened to bite their face off approximately 48 hours ago.
“Kris, honey, you are awake!” Toriel’s voice was cheerful, if a little sleepy. “Come, eat. I have made pancakes. Susie, you like pancakes, do you not?”
Susie was practically drooling. “I do like pancakes.”
“Help yourself, then, there is plenty to go around...”
Kris found themself being dragged by the wrist towards the dining room table. They obligingly took a seat, and a plate, and a generous helping of breakfast. Susie did the same, seated beside them, though she was particularly liberal with the whipped cream.
“Can’t believe I slept through our movie marathon,” Susie said through a mouthful of pancake. “That’s, like, embarrassing. What are you laughing at?”
“Nice beard,” Kris said, amused.
Susie hastily wiped the whipped cream from her chin and licked it off her fingers. Toriel giggled.
While the two of them were distracted, Kris cast a cautious glance at the television set. It was turned off now, but...
A loud thump startled them out of their thoughts. “You still half asleep or something?” Susie asked drily, clenched fist resting where she’d pounded the table. “What are you staring at?”
They shook themself. “Nothing. Just... still waking up.”
Luckily for them, any further questions were diverted by Susie’s apparently very intense approach to breakfast. “Yo, how many strawberries do you think I can fit in my mouth?”
“Safely?”
“Just in general.”
“We have extra containers in the cupboard,” said Toriel, unhelpfully.
Susie looked ecstatic.
Once breakfast was demolished and the dishes cleared away, Toriel announced her departure.
“Ms Alphys and I are having a ‘girls day’, as I believe you young folk would call it,” she declared, much to Susie’s entertainment. “I trust you two will be alright on your own...?”
“We’ll be fine, Mom,” Kris answered, sounding slightly hassled. Susie had the impression that they said this phrase a lot. “If I need anything, I’ll call you,” they added, which seemed to satisfy Toriel.
“Yeah, we can fend for ourselves,” agreed Susie. “Maybe we’ll take a stroll through town. Nice weather for it,” she continued, hoping Kris caught the meaning behind her forceful covert nudge.
“Oh, have fun! I believe it rained last night, perhaps you will see a rainbow.”
“Maybe,” said Susie. She wondered if the Dark World had naturally occurring rainbows, or if that was more of a Light World thing.
“Very well, then,” Toriel said. “Be good, you two. And if you are going somewhere, be back before dark,” she added, giving Kris a stern look. “Goodbye now!”
And with that she took her leave.
Kris released a breath. “Sorry about her.”
“What? Dude, she’s awesome. She made pancakes.” Susie patted her stomach. “Sure, she’s a teacher, which is kind of a negative. But it’s hard to top pancakes.”
“You think highly of anyone who cooks for you,” Kris commented.
“And is there something wrong with that?”
They threw their hands in the air defensively. “No, not at all.”
A silence filled the room. Susie stuffed her hands in her pockets. “Sooo...”
Kris gave a thin, mischievous smile. “Wait here. I’ll go steal her keys.”
Susie barked a laugh, surprised, while Kris ran upstairs. “You little scoundrel! I didn’t think you had it in ya!”
“She has, like, three copies,” their voice answered distantly. “She won’t notice it’s gone.”
Susie waited patiently while the sounds of rummaging descended from above. Finally, Kris returned with a key in hand, and a triumphant grin on their face.
“Dark World?” they prompted, offering it to Susie.
She didn’t have to be asked twice.
“Dark World,” she echoed gleefully. Kris handed her the key.
It was a lovely morning in Hometown. A gentle breeze rustled through the autumn leaves, and birdsong filled the crisp, temperate air. Kris took a deep, clean breath, looking up at the cloudless sky.
Lovely days like this weren’t, by any means, an oddity, though they did merit some appreciation. Though, with any luck, Kris wouldn’t be sticking around long enough to enjoy it.
“Here we are,” declared Susie. “The gates of hell.”
The entrance to the school loomed large in front of them. Kris folded their arms. “We should bring Clover up here,” they suggested, while Susie cautiously approached the door. “She’d make a great Cerberus.”
“What does that even mean?” questioned Susie, fiddling with the key.
Kris shook their head. “Nevermind. You’re holding that upside down, by the way.”
Susie paused. “I was just... testing it,” she lied, to Kris’ amusement. She flipped it over, and it slid into the lock with a satisfying click. She turned to Kris, victorious. “Test passed.”
She turned the handle, and the door swung open. Kris followed her inside.
The loud thud of the door closing behind them didn’t help to ease their swiftly mounting sense of uncertainty. It wasn’t that they were unsure of what they were doing, but being in the school after hours always instilled a certain nervousness in them. It was too quiet, too hollow, and they always had the distant sense that they’d turn a corner and a teacher would suddenly materialise and demand to see their hall pass.
They wondered if Susie harboured the same fear. Judging by the uneasy look on her face, it wasn’t impossible.
That expression changed the moment her eyes landed on the closet doors. She cracked a grin. “Oh, man, I can’t wait to see everyone. Now that it’s the weekend, we can hang out with Lancer all day...”
“Did Ralsei ever get you your monogrammed track jackets?” Kris asked idly, as they walked towards the doors.
“Nah. He’s probably still workin’ on ‘em.” A thoughtful expression crossed her face. “Unless he can pull them out of the cauldron?”
“I think that only works for food.”
The two of them slowed, then came to a stop. The entrance to the Dark World stood shut in front of them, so visibly plain but so enticing. Kris felt like the door was inviting them to reach out and close their fingers around the handle...
And so they did. Susie did the same with the opposite handle, before giving them a nod.
Simultaneously, Kris and Susie flung open the doors. Kris barely had time to react, before—
“GERONIMOOOOOooooo!”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Susie did a cannonball jump directly into the portal. For a few seconds, Kris was too dumbfounded to follow her, and instead watched as she became smaller and smaller and further away. The darkness rapidly consumed her, and Kris could no longer hear her chant for glory.
They raised their eyebrows and took a deep breath. No time like the present.
Spinning on their heels and holding their breath, Kris allowed themself to fall backwards into the void.
The trip down was the same as always—equal parts predictable and impossibly exhilarating. They watched as the light from the door disappeared above them, and felt the rising wind whip their hair across their face. A familiar buzzing sensation soon overcame them, and they watched curiously as their hand changed from a warm shade of brown to the electric blue they had come to recognise so well.
They gave their metal chestplate a few taps for good luck, before turning to face the ground and bracing for impact.
The ground rushed up to meet them. Kris closed their eyes.
Of course, they stuck the landing.
A jolt shot through their legs on impact, but they were unharmed. They’d touched down perfectly, just like they somehow always managed to.
Susie also appeared to have landed safely. She helped Kris to their feet with a warm smile. “Damn, they should put you in the Olympics or something. Saw that flip thing you did.”
Kris dusted off their shoulder scarf once they were upright, and once Susie had released their hand. “That was just my warm up routine,” they said drily, and Susie laughed.
“C’mon, let’s go find the others.”
Susie ran ahead, and Kris followed her into the town, albeit at a more leisurely pace. Though they were less vocal about it, they were looking forward to seeing their Dark World friends again.
Needless to say, they were rather surprised when they reached the town’s entrance and instead walked into a large wall of purple scales. They stumbled backwards, looking up at Susie inquisitively.
She was still for a few seconds, breathing shakily, until she finally turned to Kris.
“Where, um...” She faltered, then swallowed nervously before continuing. “Where the hell is everyone?”
Kris froze. A feeling of dread gripped their chest.
What does that mean...? they wondered nervously, a chill running up their spine as they returned Susie’s fearful glance.
She stepped aside, and Kris rushed past her. She kept pace behind them, breathing heavily.
Besides their own footfalls, the town was completely silent. Kris had no idea how they hadn’t noticed it when they landed.
They kept going at a more careful pace, slowing from a panicked sprint to a cautious amble. Susie slowed to match.
Kris couldn’t help but notice she’d drawn her weapon, and they had half a mind to do the same. Something about this felt deeply, terribly wrong, and they figured they were probably justified in feeling a little unsafe, considering whatever it was had somehow hit pause on the entire town.
There was no damage anywhere. No signs of struggle. Buildings stood perfectly intact. But besides Kris and Susie, absolutely nothing moved.
They were walking past the café when they saw it.
They froze in place, heart pounding. It shouldn’t have been possible. Ralsei had said...
“Kris? What is it?” Susie demanded with a tightness in her voice.
Kris shut their eyes. I really hope I’m wrong, they prayed to themself, before their eyes flew open again.
Their hand hovered over the hilt of their sword as they slowly approached the windows on the side of the café. Standing on the tips of their toes to see better, they peered inside.
A cold sense of dread overtook them. “No.” They stepped back slightly, trembling. “No, no, no...”
Susie hurried to their side, following their gaze to inside the café. Her face paled. “What the hell...?”
The café was filled with statues.
At one of the tables, Hathy and Ruddin sat opposite each other, exchanging frozen looks of worry. Beside the jukebox, Tasque Manager looked fearfully at her solid stone whip, while a petrified Tasque clawed desperately at her dress. Behind the counter, Swatch stood rigid, with their arms stretched out in front of them. They looked like they’d been shouting.
Kris finally tore their gaze away from it to meet Susie’s eye. She let out a sudden exhale when they did, as if for a moment, she’d forgotten to breathe.
For a while, neither of them knew what to say. They were almost as still as everyone inside the café.
Susie was the first to break the silence. “Do you think... the whole town... is...” She trailed off, staring at the ground with a disturbed look in her eye.
Kris could only bring themself to nod. Susie swore loudly.
“Ralsei said it would be fine!” She flung the blade of her axe into the ground in a fit of frustration, before turning away from Kris. “This Fountain is supposed to be compatible with everyone, right?”
“I have questions, too,” Kris said gently. “But we can’t—“
“Oh my god, Lancer.” The waver in Susie’s voice was strikingly apparent. “He’s probably terrified.”
“And we can’t help him if we don’t calm down and figure out what’s going on,” Kris interjected, before Susie could get worked up any further.
She balled her fists, breathing through clenched teeth. But she eventually picked her axe up off the floor, and turned to face Kris.
They pretended not to notice the tears brimming in her eyes.
“If anyone has answers,” she began haltingly, “it’s gotta be—“
“Ralsei,” Kris finished for her, and she nodded in agreement. “He’ll probably be in the castle, right?”
“I hope so,” muttered Susie. “It’s just... what if he’s... you know...”
Kris took a wobbly breath. “He can’t be. He... he’s the prince of darkness. He has to be fine.”
Susie didn’t look convinced. Despite Kris’ best efforts, they were inclined to sympathise.
They drew their sword, flustered, and hurried towards the castle without another word. Susie fell into rhythm beside them, axe slung over her shoulder.
Neither had any witty commentary to add when Kris slammed open the doors. Nor did they have anything to say when they saw Ralsei standing behind the cauldron, facing them.
One arm was outstretched towards the doors. The other stayed close to his chest, clutching a key. His mouth was agape and his eyes were wide, and his motionless body was completely, entirely—
“Stone,” Susie choked. “Every last one of them. They all... turned to stone.”
Kris felt sick to their stomach.
“Why?” Her voice was almost a plea.
Kris bit down hard on the inside of their cheek, and tried to control their breathing. If only they could answer that question.
Susie moved first, carefully stepping around the cauldron and stopping in front of Ralsei’s motionless form. After a moment’s hesitance, Kris followed, approaching from the opposite side.
They glanced at the key nestled in his stone paw, and then to the locked door just beyond. Susie followed their gaze.
“Should we...?”
Kris shook their head immediately.
“Why not?” She turned to them with an angry expression on her face. “Maybe it’ll help us. Maybe it’s the only thing that can help us.”
“Or maybe it’ll hurt us,” Kris rebutted through gritted teeth. “The Fountain’s through that door, Susie. I know you’ve figured that out by now.”
“Well, obviously.” She rolled her eyes. “Where else would it be besides directly behind the massive and ominous and— temporarily —locked door?”
“We’re not unlocking it,” Kris repeated firmly.
“Why the hell—“
“What if it kills us?!”
Susie fell silent. Kris swallowed.
“It turned the entire town into statues overnight,” they continued in a quiet voice. “What’s to say it won’t do the same to us?”
“Okay, two things.” Susie’s voice was dry, and Kris had to turn and take a few steps away. “First off: we’re not Darkners. It can’t do anything to us.”
“We don’t know that,” said Kris. “Everyone else was supposed to be safe, too. I’m not sure the normal rules apply anymore.”
Susie sighed. “The second thing is, we don’t know the Fountain did all this.”
“What else could have?”
“I DON’T KNOW, OKAY!?”
Kris flinched.
“I’m sorry! I just...!” She turned and punched the wall. “If we have the chance to do something, we have to, right?! Even if it’s dangerous.”
Kris was silent for a few moments. “No.”
“No?”
They turned towards the door, trying not to let Susie see how much they were hurting. “I’m not risking it. If anything happens, I can’t lose you, too.”
And with that, they stormed towards the exit.
Susie’s heavy footfalls quickly pursued them, but they broke out into a run once they were in the courtyard, resisting the urge to look back.
“Kris— Kris! Wait!”
“I’ll see you at home,” they shouted, not breaking their stride.
“Wait, come back! Actually come back!”
They sped up, ignoring Susie’s calls.
“Goddamnit, Kris, look!”
They skidded to a halt. They knew, logically, that Susie was just trying to get their attention, but the desperation in her voice had struck a nerve somewhere, and they found they couldn’t help but to comply.
As soon as they turned around, they were very glad they’d stopped.
Susie was pointing urgently to the ground, and when Kris squinted they could see something lying in the middle of the courtyard—too dark to make out against the black stone from where they stood, but most definitely there.
They took a few steps forward, and their breath caught in their throat.
Resting on the ground before them was a collection of loose cotton threads, coloured a deep purple like the sky just before dawn. They were haphazardly placed, and the overall image was wonky as a result, but Kris understood the message instantly.
A large, hollow circle, with three smaller circles inside.
The thread was twisted into the shape of a plastic button.