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Far above the Dunes, the swelter stone radiated harshly. Its rays bore down on the shimmering sand, stained with arid warmth. Tugging the small cart behind him, Starlo paused for a moment and fiddled with his hat. He sighed, wiping sweat from his brow and taking a quick glance around him. Off in the near distance, Cactony stood unwavering in the heat. Starlo gave them a short salute, and Cactony waved in response. Starlo took a few more minutes collect himself before continuing on towards the entrance to Waterfall.
It had been some time since the day that he and many others happened upon Clover and had their lives changed – for the better. The journey Starlo and the others had with them touched them each uniquely, with each of them gaining a new perspective or outlook that changed their trajectory. Starlo, in a way, thought he found himself again, and the aftermath resulted in him and Ceroba growing closer together after a long time of distance between them. They also ended up making new friends, including a monster who had once shut himself up in the ruins. But through Clover's kindness, he had found the strength to leave it behind and move to Snowdin.
Starlo grimaced slightly as he made his way through Waterfall, taking the quickest path to Snowdin. The creaking wheels of the cart echoed as he walked; the occasional Echo Flower picked up on the sounds and reverberated them. As he trekked deeper into Waterfall, the familiar heat of the Dunes wavered and dwindled, replaced with the much more temperate coolness of the caves. The still, crispy air and distant sound of flowing water brought a calming ambiance to the trip.
In due time the dimly lit caverns of Waterfall opened up to the vastness of Snowdin – the snow-covered forest where many monsters called home. Snowdin also acted as an outpost down of sorts, where travelers would stop and spend some time before moving on to their destination. A very light snowfall greeted Starlo as he stepped into the frigid forest; his breath came out in visible wisps of white. He kept moving forward, his boots leaving impressions in the snow that were then cut through by the cartwheels behind him.
Starlo passed by a few familiar faces, giving a friendly smile to the likes of Trihecta, Slurpy, and the Shufflers. He didn't know them all too well, but just like everywhere else in the Underground, monsters were always friendly with each other. The familiarity was shared among monsterkind. Starlo took a deep breath of the icy air, his eyes taking in the beauty of the forest. He loved the Dunes, but Snowdin was a nice change of scenery. After some more time traveling along the paths, he came upon a quaint wooden house.
He walked up to the door and put the cart to the side of it. He knocked on the door a few times and waited.
“Just a moment!” A voice from inside spoke. Starlo heard some shuffling and clattering of things moving, and then a few seconds later the doorknob twisted. The door opened and a wave of hot air blew at Starlo. In the doorway stood a friendly, familiar face. “Ah, Starlo! Sorry for the short delay, I was a bit behind with the chores I was going to do today.”
“No need to worry about that, Dalv.” Starlo chuckled. “It's great to see you again.”
“Well, don't just stand there in the cold! Surely you must be freezing from the walk all the way here. Come on in.”
“Sure, lemme just grab this here...” Starlo reached into the cart and pulled out the large crate that was sitting in it. Dalv stepped to the side, allowing Starlo to come inside. Dalv then shut the door behind him, making sure it was closed tight. Starlo placed the crate next to the door and took a few steps inside. Dalv's house in Snowdin was laid out similarly to his home in the Ruins – namely, a spacious living room with a bedroom and a few other rooms off in the side. Flames crackled in the fireplace, aiding the lamps in lighting up the room. Starlo could smell something coming from the kitchen – an earthy, almost savory onion aroma. A few chairs were arranged around a table, with some of Dalv's artwork sitting in a pile next to some pencils.
“I'm glad we're having pleasant weather today. I remember the last time you came out to Snowdin, you said that storm started just as soon as you left Waterfall.” Dalv walked over to one of the windows and peered outside. “Much nicer today. Oh, and I have a potato and onion soup simmering on the stove. It would be a most delicious way of getting you warmed back up!”
Starlo took off his gloves and placed them inside one of his pockets. “Wouldn't mind that one bit. I had a pretty light breakfast today and that walk always leaves me hankering for a feast.”
Nodding, Dalv disappeared through an open doorway. “Have a seat,” he called out. “I will bring a bowl for the each of us.” Starlo sat at the table and waited a few moments. Dalv reentered, bringing two black bowls filled to the brim with a creamy soup. “I used a new seasoning for this batch... nutmeg! I got a jar of it from someone passing through Snowdin the other day, traded them some corn and squash for it. It should bring out a nice sweetness to the soup unlike anything you've tasted before.”
Starlo grinned. “I'm sure I'm gonna love it, just like everything else you've made for me. Had it cooking all day long as usual?”
Dalv nodded as he put a bowl in front of Starlo and took a seat for himself. “Of course, it's the best way to prepare it. It's hard to resist the temptation to dig into it early. I tasted a small bit a few times to make sure it was coming along well, but I didn't want to have a proper erving until you got here.”
“Well that's mighty sweet of you. Guess we're gonna get to enjoy this together,” Starlo said as he picked up a spoon. Dalv did as well, and the two of them began to eat. True to his word, the soup had a sweetness unlike the other ones that Dalv had served before. Starlo couldn't help but smile as the soup trickled across his taste buds.
“You've outdone yourself again!” Starlo grinned. “Never heard of that nutmeg stuff over in the Wild East, but this is delicious. Might have to take some of it off yer hands and bring it back with me.”
Dalv blushed for a moment and nodded. “You're more than welcome to. I wish I had thought to ask how it is grown, then I could grow some and have my own supply here. Oh well, maybe I can ask around town later to see if anyone else has any knowledge of it.”
“In the meantime, I'll have to cook you something when you come up my way next. I'd wager that it'd go well with the beef brisket my Pa taught me how to cook.”
“And I'm sure I'll just love that too,” Dalv replied. Starlo quickly finished his bowl, and before he could say anything, Dalv stood up and took it from him. “Let me get you some more.”
“Come now, I can serve myself!” Starlo said with a faked annoyance.
“Not when you're a guest you won't,” Dalv laughed as he went into the kitchen. He returned a moment later and placed a fresh bowl of hot soup in front of Starlo. Starlo sighed contently and started on the new bowl. “I'd be a bad host if I had you doing everything yourself.”
Starlo rolled his eyes, chuckling with a smug smile. “Grabbing a bit of soup isn't doing everything. And now I'll have you know, I'll be helping you wash the dishes when we're done eating.”
Dalv smiled and shook his head. “Ah, I know better than to argue with you on this matter.”
“But really, it still surprises me how soul soothingly swell your meals are. Hasn't been a single thing you've ever cooked up that's disappointed. They've all hit the spot.”
“I did have a lot of time to myself to practice back in the Ruins. But I think I'm just okay, my food isn't really anything special.”
Starlo shook his head. “Nonsense, Dalv! You're a damn fine chef. Why, I bet you could take something like this up to the resort and they'd be happy to let you serve it to their guests.”
“You think so?” Starlo saw a small sparkle light up in Dalv's eyes. He continued.
“Without a single doubt! Trust me, after running The Wild East for as long as I have, you get a feel for this sort of thing. Imagine wandering through these snowy paths here in Snowdin, the cold napping at your fingers, the chill stinging your ears, and then you stop at the resort and get to chow down on something like this? Monsters wouldn't want to ever move on if they're getting to eat this every night for supper.”
Dalv smiled and rubbed his neck. “Ah, well, who knows. Maybe I'll pitch the idea to them sometime.”
Starlo finished up his bowl, stood up and grabbed it along with Dalv's empty one. “I can maybe come along too when you do it... in fact, no, I insist that I come. You and I, we'll make sure we give the best argument for you cooking in their kitchen that they've ever heard.”
“I appreciate that, Starlo. You're really too sweet to me.”
Starlo tipped his hat. “Ain't no such thing as being too sweet to ya, Dalv.” Starlo turned and brought the bowls to the kitchen, while Dalv blushed again. Starlo put the bowls in the sink, filling them with some water, and went back to the living room.
“Oh, I didn't ask,” Dalv began as Starlo reentered. “What's in that crate that you brought with you?”
“Ah, in there?” Starlo nodded towards it. “Heh, you'll never believe what it is.” He walked over to the crate and pried open up the top.
“It's corn, isn't it?” Dalv playfully asked.
Grinning, Starlo reached in and, sure enough, pulled out an ear of corn. “It's corn. Grown right at my folks' farm.”
“I don't think I could ever tire of getting corn.”
“And that's not quite all now.”
Dalv tilted his head. “Huh? What do you mean.”
“I mean, I got a bit of a surprise with this batch.”
“Oh? A surprise?” Dalv stood up. “What have you brought?”
“Well, recall a conversation we had about two... maybe three months ago. We were in the Dunes, having an adult soda at the bar when Moray walks in with an ear of corn.” He paused for a moment. “You remember how shocked you were?”
“Moray with the ear of... oh, yes! The corn's kernels were red. They were red and I never knew that was actually a thing.”
Starlo nodded. “And for the whole rest of the night you kept bringing that up, igniting your love of corn and going on about how we can keep learning new things about the world that make us appreciate its beauty and all of that deep stuff.”
Dalv chuckled. “Yes, it might be such a small and simple thing, but I felt so much joy learning that it could come in different colors. Even multiple colors on a single ear, you told me. To think that after all that time I spent growing it in the Ruins myself, harvesting it, eating it, I never would have guessed that you could grow it in such lovely colors.”
“And that's why I've got this here. I was worried it might take a few attempts, you know, to get everything to come out all proper... got a few plants at the farm with different combinations I was trying, but believe it or not, I managed to get it right on my first try.”
“Hmm, got what right?” Dalv asked, his curiosity growing strong.
Starlo dug into the crate, shuffling through ears of corn, and pulled out something wrapped up in a plain white rag. “Here, Dalv. This is for you.”
Dalv took it in his hands, looking down at it, back up at Starlo, and back down again. “Well I wonder what it is.” Dalv began to unwrap it, feeling that there were multiple somethings covered up inside of the rag. After he unraveled it, he let out a gasp.
“Starlo, you... is this...I...I...” Dalv couldn't hide the massive smile on his face even if he tried. Dalv looked at the ears of corn splayed out on the rag, bringing them over near the fireplace to get a better look at them. On the rag were three ears of corn. But not just any regular corn; the kernels were various shades of purple. All the shades matched that of his skin, hair, and clothes. Dalv took one of the ears and held it next to his arm, staring in disbelief.
Starlo walked up next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “And you know what I learned that day? Growing up on a farm, I knew corn could come in all sorts of different colors. Never thought much of it, really. So I took it for granted that it was just common knowledge, and it never crossed my mind that it could be a new bit of information for someone else to learn. So imagine my shock when it turned out you didn't know that. That awestruck look on your face when you saw the red corn for the first time, that's a look that I ain't never gonna forget. I loved every moment that I got to hear the excitement in your voice that day, and after you went home, I made up my mind and knew I needed to do this.”
Starlo took one of the ears of corn and held it up to his face. “I'd say I did a pretty good job.” He let out a quick chuckle. “Every day that I was out tending to the plants, I was thinking of you. When I saw that my first shot at it came out like this and I managed to match your colors, well, I reckon I had about the same expression on my face that you're having now. These here,” he said, placing the corn back down on the rag, “I think out of everything I've ever made in my life, this is what I'm most proud of.”
“This is...,” Dalv began, “This might be one of the most thoughtful things I've ever gotten from someone. Thank you so much.”
Starlo leaned down and gave Dalv a quick kiss on the cheek. “My pleasure, partner.”