Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When she thought about Mount Ebott, guilt would wash over her. The guilt would soak through every logical response and argument she had. It left Toriel with little to do but avoid the thought as much as she could. Avoid dwelling of what she once called her home, much less the people she left behind. She picked up the human sensibility of ignorance. All her time with humans meant she had learned from the very best when it came to pretending all was well.

She grew used to ignoring the silhouette of the mountain in the distance. It was a faint shadow hidden by the spires of the city. The flash of lights and glow of modern technology offered some shield from the mountain. Even then, days, days like this she would find her gaze drifting towards it. The looming presence was not something that could be ignored so easily.

Toriel closed the curtains, blocking the view of the city and the mountain ever present in the distance. She couldn't handle this right now. The guilt was not something she needed in her day to day life. She had become someone else, not the guardian of the ruins.

The padding of Frisk’s feet heading towards her was a good distraction, the sound yanked Toriel from her reprieve entirely. She gladly turned to face the child, summoning a smile to the surface for Frisk’s benefit.

“Ah, my child. What do you need?”

Small hands grab onto her own, brown eyes peering up at her through heavy bangs. “Can you help me with homework?”

“Of course.”

She laughed a little as Frisk tugged her towards the kitchen, school books and their backpack spread across the table. Sans was settled in a chair, helpfully placing colorful stickers on Frisk’s pencil case.

“Those are supposed to be a reward for doing homework.” She dryly intoned, finding comfort in her boyfriend’s presence. The uncertainty of earlier fading with the time spent around her family. His dark tight curly hair and different colored eyes were something she always was drawn towards. Even now she wanted to mess up his hair.

“Frisk’s earned it.” He offered back with a quirk of his brow. “Our little overachiever.”

Frisk signed something back, which only made the two adults laugh. Toriel moved to sit down at the free chair as Frisk clambered back into their seat between their parents. “Now you’re underestimating yourself.”

Math was never quite her strong suit, but it was easy enough with Sans there as well. The little goat monster learned quickly, far more quickly than Toriel did at that age.

She proudly placed one of the remaining stickers on Frisk's homework when they finished. Frisk proudly puffed up, only deflating a little when they glanced over at Sans, surprise taking its place. Toriel laughed more than she expected when she realized Sans had covered himself in stickers covertly throughout the tutoring. The three fell into laughter easily.

----

“One of these days, you outta sign up for college.” Sans’s voice draws her from her light doze, making the boss monster tiredly squint up at him. Sans is a shadow in the low lighting of their bedroom. His phone's backlight illuminated some of him to some degree. “You’re a natural teacher, Tori.”

“You’re biased.” She offers back, eyes closing a little again. Toriel could feel Sans’s hand brushing through her fur. He did it automatically some days, Toriel couldn't find it in herself to really mind. “Besides, we should save money for something fun… Frisk has been wanting to go on some kind of vacation for years now.”

“I’m being serious. If you want it, we could always apply for some kind of scholarship.”

Toriel finally opened her eyes again to peer up at her boyfriend. “Oh, do they have scholarships for old goats like myself?”

“No idea, maybe if you show goat around. It would impress them.” He winked playfully back, grinning in his usual manner. Toriel gave a very undignified laugh at that, bleating a little as she shook her head.

“I can’t baaaleive you would make that joke.”

She could feel the cocky grin in San's voice as he replied. “Hey, I had to get your goat sometime.” Toriel bit at her bottom lip trying to stifle her laughter and failing entirely. Amidst her laughing fit, Sans set aside his cellphone on the nightstand to shift further under the covers. When she regained her breath, Toriel rolled over to plant a kiss against the man's cheek.

"Just think about it sometime, alright?"

"I'll think about it." She promises, reaches out to touch his cheek. It wasn't long before the pair finally settled down to go to sleep.

The warmth of Sans next to her and the softness of their bedding easily lulled Toriel into an easy sleep, leaving her feeling odd nostalgic.

******

Everyone knew the story by now. It was ingrained as the tale of how monsters came to be sealed in the underground. ‘Every hundred years the barrier would flicker and weaken enough for monsters to pass through.’

The story was whispered from monster to monster in school yards, under fake crystal stars, into echo flowers in the dead of night and in heavy fields of snow. When it approached another 100 years, monsters would start spreading it again mostly out of habit.

Toriel had heard the legend for years at this point. As a child she heard it from a fellow classmate, a small froggit with watery eyes and quick nervous fingers.

She remembered how her mother had rolled her eyes irritably at the story being brought up in passing. The greying boss monster waving the idle words of idle beasts away with a dismissive snort.

‘Don’t believe everything you hear. It's a child's tale through and through.’ Toriel repeated the same words back when other children brought it up around her, much less adults. She was a sensible person after all. Her mother had not raised a fool. A false hope was hardly worth the effort. Not that it ever stopped the talk from spreading.

“Do you think the barrier would weaken?” Dogaressa’s voice broke the goat monster from her idle doze in the flowers. Toriel shifted, laying on her side to squint disapprovingly at the other monster. “Barrier weaken? Please don’t tell me-“

Dogaressa held her paws up defensively avoiding Toriel’s gaze entirely. “Hey! I’m allowed to think about it at least, Tori.”

The goat simply rolled her eyes, laying more comfortably in the flowers. The one blessing of moving back to the ruins meant she could bask in the fields of flowers growing under the opening overhead. The ruins had the one opening that showed the sky, it was the only time she could see stars or the sun in some capacity.

“Yes, yes you are fully free to think that. We both know it can’t be real though.”

“Well, why can’t it be?” Dogaressa poked at her friend trying to coax a smile out the other monster to some degree. The prodding was doing wonders as Toriel’s irritated frown started to weaken considerably. A smile was threatening to overtake her.

“Because, we both know anyone who tries it likely falls down from it.” She waggled her fingers menacingly back at her friend for emphasis only warranting another poke from Dogaressa.

“I really doubt the barrier turns you to dust, Tori. I mean… only the royal family can really access it. If something happened to one of them, we’d know.” There wasn’t much gossip that didn’t get around in the underground. The lack of anything really changing made everyone take quick notice of even the slightest shifts.

“Nothing has happened because they’re sensible enough to not bother.” Her words only made Dogaressa groan before flopping back into the flowers dramatically. “You sound just like your mom and it is truly terrifying.”

“Ressa-“ Toriel wasn’t sure if she should be offended at the implication on her behalf or her mother's.

“Well, you do.” The thought of the Protector of The Ruins made the dog monster glance warily in the direction of Toriel’s home in the distance. “Nothing wrong with that of course.” She gave a nervous laugh, half expecting the older goat to just appear as she tended to do.

Toriel rolled over fully to face her friend and start liberally poking her. Dogaressa barked in surprise, quick to retaliate against the onslaught. The two easily fell into the familiar poking match, eventually the situation dissolved into a giggle fit.

Dogaressa grinned back at Toriel as she stretched further across the flower patch. Toriel just watched her friend, a warm fondness settle in her chest as the dog monster relaxed under the warm sun beating down on the pair from above.

Toriel hesitated for a moment, gazing up at the small chunk of sky they could see before she found her thoughts running away with her before she could get her mouth under control. “Why did you ask about that myth anyway?”

Dogaressa opened her eyes, squinting at her friend. “Well, it’s almost been another 100 years now. We could try it within the next month or two.” Toriel opened and closed her mouth for a moment, confused by the sudden rush of mixed feelings.

“Of course, that would only require breaking into the royal palace.” Toriel blustered back, stumbling over her words as she wrapped her arms around herself. The thought was exciting and terrifying.

“I’ve been training to be a royal guard, Tori. I can tell you, the king never locks his doors.”

Toriel's brows went up at that, ears flattening against her skull aghast at her friend's words. “Should you really be telling me this?”

Dogaressa just squinted back at her friend a few moments longer. “Not like you’re going to do anything with it.”

Toriel just knitted her fingers together over her chest, staring back upwards. Placated by the truth in Dogaressa's words. As a frown curled across her features uncertainly. “Yeah.” She was a sensible sort. A sensible sort who wouldn't use that information.

She drifted easily back to a doze, inhaling slowly as sleep settled over her like a well worn quilt. Dogaressa's warmth next to her was a comfort in the slight chill filling the cavern.

----

She gave a slow exhale, lashes fluttering as wakefulness prickled at her mind. Her fingers were knitted together over her chest, head lulled back onto her pillow. Sans warmth next to her was a comfort in the chill of the morning.

Familiarity of pieces of events left her feeling dazed as she rested a hand against her forehead. "Ah." The dream had been unexpected, a faded memory from what felt like a lifetime ago. With some reluctance, Toriel eased herself out of bed moving to turn the alarm off. For once she woke up before the alarm could go off.

The boss monster only glanced back at the bed, smiling somewhat when she saw Sans buried under the heavy patterned quilt covering their bed. Knowing Sans, he wouldn't be up for another hour or two. The man was not made for mornings, much less being awake at times.

The goat closed the door quietly behind herself, glad to fall into her usual week day routine. Start up some coffee, make Frisk a lunch for school and make breakfast. The tasks kept her mind busied and full, away from the nostalgia that nipped at her heels. She snapped Frisks's lunch box closed when she finished packing it up. Turning to pull out her usual morning breakfast pans.

Frisk's arrival was a quiet one, but the soft padding of their feet and the small arms wrapping around her best they could was the way the boss monster knew her child was up.

"Good morning, my child." She shifted in their loose grip, crouching to give the smaller monster a better hug. "Did you sleep well?" She had to crack a smile at the haphazard ruffled nature of their fur. "It certainly looks like you did. Goodness."

Frisk snorted audibly at the comment, "Geeze, mom." The goatling stood up on their tip toes to press a kiss against Toriel's forehead.

Toriel gladly returned the gesture, pulling away to ruffle Frisk's hair once again. The goatling made a disapproving sound at that, fluffing up further. "What do you want for breakfast, dear?"

"An omelet?"

"That I can do. Get comfortable, dear." She moved to get breakfast going, gladly falling back into the familiarity of the task. The only disruption from the usual was Sans blearily stumbling into the kitchen's doorway. "Babe, omelets?"

Toriel felt slightly thrown off, but smiled back at the chubby human in the kitchen doorway. "Do you want one as well?"

"Please. I'm starving over here." He lurched towards one of the free chairs at the kitchen table, slumping into it gladly. Their morning routine flowed as normally as ever after that, Frisk inhaled their breakfast, ran off to change and brush their teeth. Sans more leisurely ate his meal, making conversation with his girlfriend as she made herself an omelet as well.

Frisk only reemerged briefly, partially dressed to drop off their backpack on the kitchen table vanishing back down the hallway towards their room. "Don't forget your homework." Sans lazily called back, propping his chin in his open palm. Toriel hummed lowly in agreement between bites of her breakfast, smiling wryly as Sans kicked his legs up into her lap.

“I see you’re feeling comfortable.”

“Hard not to be.” He answered content to lounge like this with his partner. “You’re pretty cozy.”

“Don’t get too comfortable, one of us has to walks Frisk to school.” She leaned over to press a quick kiss against Sans’s nose.

“I can always walk ‘em to school. You’ve been handling it most of this week.”

“It’s flu season, dear. You’re immune system can barely handle Frisk, much less other children.” Sans shrugged at her words, “I can just wear a mask, let Frisk draw a face and all.”

“That would be fun…” She mused simply in turn. Though any further pondering was interrupted by Frisk’s re-arrival to the kitchen, fully dressed and homework in hand. The little goat quickly scrambled over to open their backpack and put their homework in its proper folder.

“Hey, kiddo. Want me to walk you to school today?”
Frisk’s gaze snapped up, excitement clear on their features. Toriel had to stifle a laugh at that, she had forgotten the fact Frisk hadn’t quite seen a lot of Sans this past month. They signed a vigrious yes.

“Cool. Lemme grab a mask and marker. You can draw whatever on it. We got the time.” Sans shifted, his legs off of Toriel’s lap, settling feet on the floor. Toriel continued working on her breakfast, smiling a little at Frisk taking Sans seat. The goatling bounced in their stolen seat, wiggling happily.

Sans for being casual as possible, reappeared quickly from the bedroom, fully dressed, marker and mask in hand. “Get that imagination going, kid.”

Frisk popped up in their seat, taking the pen and mask happily to draw. Toriel rose from her seat, clearing off the table and placing the remainders of their breakfast in sink.

“Nice work, kiddo. I was feeling in a cat mood today.” There was a shuffle as Sans slid his mask on. “Now I’m all dressed, you better finish up too.”

Toriel turned to glance over at the pair, feeling a little sad to see Frisk’s real form slowly hidden by the glitter of magic. The goat monster replaced by a small human child. Frisk checked themselves over before grabbing their backpack to slide it on.

“Be careful you two. No short cuts!” Frisk just groaned in disappointment at that, wilting slightly. Sans reached out to nudge Frisk towards the kitchen doorway. “You heard the lady, c’mon kid.”

The sound of the door closing and rush of water from the sink left Toriel with her thoughts. She opened the blinds to steal a glance at the mountain. She was almost disappointed at the heavy cloud cover filling the skyline.

Chapter Text

Her teeth ached in such a way it startled Toriel awake, fur standing on end and heart racing as she sat up.

The lack of Sans next to her only made the feeling worse. Toriel rolled her eyes in irritation at her apparent clinginess. She rose from the bed to grab her bathrobe. She slid into it trying to shake off the remainder of the dream.

“I’m a grown monster for goodness sake.” She muttered to herself, preferring irritation to the prickling of loneliness settling low in her belly. The loneliness was only made worse when she wandered the apartment trying to empty her mind.

She had forgotten Frisk was at a sleepover this weekend. She had even left herself a note on the fridge to try and stifle the usual panic that came from separation. Toriel thought after years of being so alone she would be able to wear it like a badge, like a shield against everything else.

Instead all it did was drain her.

She threw together a sloppy breakfast and turned on the radio in the kitchen so she felt less alone. The songs being played only reminded of her Asgore and left her frustrated.

She rose from her seat, changing the station to something else before going about her business. Falling into routine eased the sourness of her start. By the time she was dressed, Toriel realized there was a message on her answering machine. She had time to listen to it before work.

She reached out prodding the play button. “My apologies for calling at such an early hour, but I have a request. If a Toriel Ziege lives here, please tell her to call me. I wish to speak with her-” The familiar voice made Toriel reach out and slam her finger down on the delete button.

“Asgore.”

*****

She lingered at the doorway, feeling out of place amongst the rush of people she had only met hours before. Music blared overhead, droning out the crowd. Were all human weddings like this? A sea of strangers? Humans who would never truly know her beyond being Asgore’s bride?

Toriel's fingers tightened around the doorway as she watched the humans mingle. She had to wonder what her mother was doing now. Was she resetting puzzles or watering the golden flowers that grew in lush rows around their home?

“Tori?” Asgore’s voice distracted her from peering out at the crowd. “Are you well?”

“Ah, yes-” She stepped away from the door smiling at her new husband. A rush of affection rising to the surface at the blonde man. “Just a bit overwhelmed.”

“Weddings can be a bit of a debacle.” He agreed reaching out to touch his hand against her cheek. “You’ll adjust soon enough.” Toriel leaned into his palm, seeking some form of comfort. She closed her eyes, her own hand rising up to rest over his own. “I hope I do.”

“We’re going to make our entrance soon, so if you need to sit down, now would be the time.” He gently lead her away from the door towards a chair. Toriel smiled at the attention, happy to be in her partners presence. The one human who proved he was full of compassion and kindness. “I can always get you some tea?”

“I’m sure we’ll have tea during the dinner. I can wait on it.” She gladly settled into the chair, leaning back into the wall behind it smiling up at the man. “I must admit, I’m still stunned. We’re married now.”

His smile could light up a room in Toriel’s estimation. “Yes, we are- I, I hope my crying earlier didn’t ruin things.”

She reached out to pat his arm fondly. “Hardly. It was very sweet. Somehow I knew you would tear up at the vows. My silly, sweet fluffybuns.”

He flushed under her touch. "Golly."

She snorted at that, her hand finding his again. "You're adorable." Asgore just squeezed her hand, seeming to want to say something. His words were interrupted by the bridesmaids and groomsmen coming up by the doorway.

"Now, now, you love birds." A blonde woman teased, "Save the sweetness for dessert." Her comment earned a bit of laughter and only made Asgore turn even redder. Toriel blew out a sigh, releasing her grip on Asgore's hand.

She stood up, leaning against her husband now, smiling as the bridesmaids and groomsmens left the back room in pairs one by one to hoots, hollers and excited cheering of the crowd. Toriel threaded her fingers with Asgore's own, smiling at him. "Shall we?" He smiled back at her. "We shall."

---

The cheering, chanting and shouting made Toriel sigh audibly. She dusted her hands off on her jeans as she glanced out of the barred window of the pawn shop.

"Lemme guess, you forgot about the football game going on?" Catty question with a sly grin. She rested her chin in her hand, leaning forward to peer at her employee. "Kinda surprised, I mean it's all anyone's been talking about for months!"

"I'm not much for sports."

"We figured!" Catty and Bratty chorused from behind the register. Toriel laughed a little, moving to check the locks on cases again before moving behind the counter herself. "I'll be relieved when things settle down."

"On this side of town? Get real, Tori!" The two naturally had a shared response, laughing easily. "On this side of town? You must be dreaming!"

"Yes, yes I know." She held her hands up in surrender as the younger woman teased her. It was a familiar pattern for her shifts at the pawn shop. Catty and Bratty were cheerful if not boisterous young women. The merriment in and out of the store was a relief against what likely lay in wait for her at home. Asgore wasn't about to give up too easily.

He was good at two things in Toriel's mind, persistence and murder. The thought made her grimly chuckle to herself as she finished shuffling through the stock in the back.

"Now, now, you love birds." She called when she emerged from the backroom, catching Catty and Bratty exchanging a kiss. "Save that for later. We have a business to run."

The two just laughed, mutually turning red. When they thought Toriel wasn't looking they would hold hands occasionally, giggling even when caught.

Chapter Text

Rain hammering down from the sky above only made Toriel quicken her pace, The boss monster tugged on her coat, ducking under an awning. “Goodness.” She breathed lowly back, staring up at the dark clouds overhead from the safety of her hidey spot.

She pawed at her pockets, pulling out her cellphone. The cold made her hands shake as she pressed against the wall of the building. She needed to text her boyfriend to make sure he knew what was going on.

*Sans, caught in rainstorm. Might be late.

She exhaled softly, tucking her phone away to avoid the possibility of it getting wet. She should have just drove out instead of walking. Now she was going to have to call a taxi or rush to a bus station when the rain let up. She simply wrapped her arms around herself watching cars splash by across the road and the few lingering people vanish back into buildings or towards their car. Toriel had to admit she was envious of the people with umbrellas. Even with knowing the forecast, before hand she had forgotten to grab an umbrella on her way out.

The jingling of a bell startled the boss monster, her gaze jerking towards the door of the building. In the doorway was a dark skinned man with red hair, he wore small oval glasses that seemed to be on the verge of sliding down the bridge of his nose as he held the door open gazing at her. His look was quizzical if anything

The man arched a brow back at her. A silent question therein.

“Ah, my apologies I just am trying to wait out the rain.” She answered with a sheepish smile. The redheaded man quietly adjusted his glasses, smiling a little and opening the door wider. He gently motioned for her to come inside.

“Are you sure-?” The man simply nodded at her question, motioning again. Toriel wasn’t about to turn the offer down. She smiled back, gladly moving to walk inside. The man closed the door behind them, moving to crank up the heaters.

The man was oddly familiar. She had to admit. His smile seemed kind. Kindness was always appreciated in her books.

*******

Grillby crackled in her direction, the fire monster lingering at the edge of the ruins entrance. The boss monster just waved at him as she walked over to greet him. “And hello to you too.” She offered back with a grin, more than a little surprised at the presence of the slightly younger monster. “I didn’t think Dogaressa would make you come all the way out here.”

Grillby simply shrugged back, digging his hands into his pockets. Turning a deeper red as the dog monster appeared. Dogaressa wrapped her arm around the fire monster readily. “I told him he had to come! We can see the sun here!”

“It can’t be that exciting.”
The fire monster crackled once again, adjusting his glasses. His response only egged the other monster on further. “See! He’s excited!”

Toriel gave a snort, shaking her head a she lead the two into the ruins, guiding them through the puzzles carefully. “My mother insists on puzzles both ways. It’ll take awhile.”

The fire monster popped off an ember in response, only making Toriel snort. “Anticipation, really? Ressa only made it sound so exciting because she’s excitable.”

“Heeeey!”

“You are. We all know it, Ressa.”

The dog monster blew an audible raspberry, only making Grillby rustle with mirth. The two easily exchanging a quick kiss when they were sure Toriel wasn’t looking. The goat made mock gagging sounds in response.

“Your energy is contagious, I swear.” Grillby crackled in agreement.
The walk to the flower cavern was a lively one. It made the ruins feel more alive than Toriel had ever seen it. It reminded her why she missed living with the rest of society.

“Here- the last puzzle.” She left it solved for now, ushering her guests forward past it into the greenery at the edge of where the ruins met the caverns.

Grillby popped an ember, clapping his hands in applause. Toriel simply flushed casting a glance back at the fire monster. “It is hardly a difficult puzzle…”

“Learn to take praise, Tori.” Dogaressa chimed in, offering the boss monster a friendly nudge before taking the lead. Only to discover when they arrived it was raining through the hole above.

“Well, looks like we can’t get as close now…” The young boss monster stated, stepping forward cautiously. She could feel the heat of Grillby moves behind her to peer over her shoulder curiously at the pouring rain.

----

The man polished a glass slowly, humming along to the low jukebox music playing in the background. Toriel was content to relax on the stool she had taken at the bar.

She gave into temptation to run her fingers across the smooth table top of the bar. The man didn’t seem to mind, smiling somewhat back at her as he worked on polishing the various glasses.

“How long have you had this place?” Her words made the bartender pause, glancing over his glasses. He set the glass down, quietly signing back at her. His ASL was smooth, practiced. It reminded her of Frisk's signing in dexterity.

“I see. You’ve been out here as long as I have then.” She tapped her finger against her cheek thoughtfully. “You have a lovely establishment. Very friendly and casual.”

He gave a bashful shrug, brushing off the compliment.

“Learn to take praise, dear.” She answered with a laugh, offering him a friendly nudge. The two simply stared at one another, trying to place the odd familiarity. The buzz of her phone in her pocket jarred the two from their thoughts.

*babe r u ok? where r u Toriel offered the redheaded man an apologetic smile before tapping out a response to Sans. She didn't want to make her boyfriend worry.

*I'm well! I've taken shelter in a bar nearby.

*which bar? I can pick u up

Toriel glanced up from her phone, smiling at the redheaded man apologetically. “May I ask what this place is called? I missed the sign earlier in my dash for safety.”

The man finger spelled it out for her. Toriel nearly dropped her phone in surprise, eyes widening as she stared back at him. "Grillby?" She had to be mistaken... but who named their child Grillby?

He tilted his head at her, concern written in his features. Her expression must have been quite the sight. She set the phone on the counter to avoid dropping it.

"Do you remember the flowers? You wanted to see them, but it was raining just like this."

He just stared at her, clearly hesitant before crackling audibly back. The pair just stared at one another before Toriel found her voice again. The boss monster hadn't realized how watery her eyes were until she blinked.

"It's been a long time, my friend."

She laughed softly back, wiping at her eyes. "How-? When did you?" Grillby crackled in turn, the heat around himself growing in strength from excitement. Conversation was fumbled but easy.

Her phone ringing from the bartop jarred the two from their conversation. Toriel fumbled with the phone, picking up from the counter. "Hello?"

"Babe? What's going on?"

"Oh- Sans. I forgot to text you." She wiped at her eyes to be rid of any lingering tears. "I'm at Grillbys bar."

"Grillbys?" Sans sounded relieved. "Thank god, I was wondering where you were. I can come get you."

"That would be wonderful. I'll ask Grillby the address-"

"No need, Grillbys is my usual hang out. I could walk there blindfolded." Toriel just lay a hand over her eyes laughing. "Tori-?"

"Your bartender is a monster. All this time..." She couldn't help but laugh uproariously. "First you date a monster and this?"

"Really? Cool. He better be a skeleton or a dog." Sans for his part was accepting of monsters, his relaxed nature didn't help Toriel's strained laughter any. Grillby just patted her back to help calm her down.

"I'll be right over. See ya." Toriel choked out a warning about short cuts before Sans hung up. Her day was a strange but good one.

Chapter Text

**********

The wind cut across her cheek as she clung against the mountain side. It felt like a slap, a punishment for finding freedom. Toriel breathlessly dug her fingers into the rocky surface trying to keep her balance. The pathway down was a slim one, it looked like it could crumble at any moment.

“Are you okay?” Dogaressa’s voice broke the boss monster from her panic. She caught her breath, glancing in the direction of her friend’s voice.

“Yes!” She forced herself forward away from the side, relieved when Grillby and Dogaressa emerged as well. The pair were clad similarly to Toriel in sturdy clothes made for work, each hefting a large sacks of supplies. They had come prepared for this night. All three of them stood on the path together marveling at the scenery before them. The sun had set hours ago, leaving the landscape in illuminated by the moon and twinkling of stars overhead.

“I can’t believe this worked.” Dogaressa murmured. Grillby crackled in agreement, his fire burning brighter as he looked around. The pair staring at everything in wonder. Toriel was no better, her gaze kept trailing upwards towards the sky.

“We best not just gawk.” Toriel managed, finally forcing herself to stop staring. “We’re… we’re leaving.”

“We are.” Dogaressa looked back at the mountain, faltering slightly. “We- we’ll have to come back with a way to break the barrier.”

Grillby nodded slowly, though he seemed as unsure as Dogaressa.

“We’ll figure it out.” Toriel stated firmly, trying to ignore the rush of guilt pouring over her.

They had left everyone behind without even a second glance. For all the planning and thought they put into escaping, they never thought of how they could help anyone else.

“We’ll do it.” She repeated forcing herself forward, still looking at her friends. Only to miss her next step entirely and lose her balance. Toriel yelped, realizing very quickly she was falling.

“Tori!” Dogaressa rushed forward to try and catch the boss monster, only managing to brush their fingers at most.

The fall was as cold and rocky as expected.

----

“Should I even ask who keeps calling our number asking for you?”

Toriel paused, glancing behind her uncertainly at her boyfriend’s words. Her tail swished uncomfortably as she spoke. “Ah, well… my ex husband.”

Sans grimaced in turn, even with his medical mask on, it was clear as day to the boss monster. “Yeeowch.”

“That is one way of putting it.” She turned back to the soup, stirring it before placing her wooden spoon aside to drop in more ingredients. “I would rather not talk to him.”

“I’ll block the number for you.”

She cast a smile back at her partner, relief settling over her with that bit of news. “Thank you.”

“Eh, no big deal, babe. He’s left his number so many times I could probably talk to Undyne and get his ass in trouble.”

Toriel waggled her wooden spoon back at Sans dismissively, “I’d rather just ignore him. Engaging him with some kind of legal battle would only draw him further into my life.”

“True. Restraining orders have to tell ‘em where you live I think.”

“If those crime shows we watch are anything to believe, then yes. I’d rather he have a number he can’t reach opposed to a house he can sadly stare at.” Toriel could already picture the whelp of a man staring at their apartment complex from across the street. Dark golden hair, unshaven golden beard and sad blue eyes looking out from under that mess of hair. Pitiable and pathetic.

Sans snorted at that, leaning back in the chair watching Toriel work on the soup. “Again, if he managed to get that close, I’d just have to sick Undyne on him.”

“One of these days, I do need to meet her.”

“Yeah. I’d think you’d like her. Asides her blowing up every kitchen she’s in.” Sans helpfully made an explosion sound to go along with his words. The most it did was get a look from Toriel.

Toriel paused for a moment, turning around again to just look at Sans. “Does that usually involve Papyrus somehow?”

“Yep.”

“Somehow I am unsurprised.” She shook her head, trying to contain a laugh and failing. “She and Papyrus must have been a handful as children.”

“Yep, it’s why my dad eats antacids like candy. Even now he keeps a few around just incase. Pap still lives with him after all.”

Toriel squinted back at him, a realization dawning on her. “...Is that why you bought him antacids for the holidays?”

Sans sly grin from under the mask was the clearest answer. Toriel didn’t even need to see it fully, she could feel it from Sans cocky posture and arch of his brows.

“You are a brat, Sans Gaster.” She laughed in turn, turning the soup down to a low simmer before sauntering over to her boyfriend. Snatching something from the cutting board and hiding it behind her back.

Sans just pulled his mask down to grin up at her. “You like it.”

“I do. Even if you’re the wurst.” She grinned, revealing the bratwurst, waggling it at him.

“Babe.”

----

Grillby sits uncomfortably in a kitchen chair, trying not to touch the wood best he can. Toriel can see him trying to not touch anything and looking intensely uncomfortable from where she’s standing.

“You’re fine dear, I’ve covered this whole kitchen in magic.”

That relaxes the fire monster marginally, he carefully leaned back resting his back against the chair. True to her word, nothing bursts into flames at his touch.

“After you called, I put down more fireproofing magic. I figured you’d be a bit nervous.”

Grillby manages a low crackling in response, smiling best he can. His smile becomes brighter as Toriel brings over a mug of tea. He accepts it gladly, breathing in the steam from the mug.

Toriel moves to set her own down at the table, settling in gladly. Aches from the night before still lingering as she leaned forward to rest her elbows on the table. (She could practically hear her mother shouting at her about manners.) She wasn't made for long shifts anymore, much less at the pawn shop. “Tell me, how did you end up opening a bar?”

Grillby take a sip of his tea, answering readily. Toriel had forgotten how nice his voice was like a bonfire growing in strength greedily engulfing anything placed into it.

“You’ve been here far longer than I have then.” She mused thinking over Grillby’s words, “I was nearer to the mountain, to the east.” Toriel uncertainly tightened her grip on her mug. “I met a human and fell in love. We lived there together for a few years.”

Grillby tilted his head curiously, wordlessly gesturing at a picture of Sans and Frisk hanging on the fridge. Toriel shook her head, “No, a different human. Things didn’t last between us.” Thinking of Asgore soured everything, from the tea to the smell of the cookies in the oven.

The fire monster could read as much from her face, reaching out to rest his hand against hers. Toriel could only offer him a soft smile back, “Thank you.”

Grillby crackled fondly back, earning a snort from the goat monster. “Yes, yes- I know. Humans. The one thing we should stay away from. Yet… here we are.” She gestured widely at the room around them, only making the fire monster rustle with amusement and agreement.

“The fact you have a daughter only proves we’re in too deep.” She shook her head, “Now- show me a picture! Don’t leave me waiting!”

The fire monster had no qualms about digging out his wallet, pulling out a few pictures, spreading them across the table for Toriel’s benefit. The child was a human teenager, with wild green hair and dark skin.

“Goodness- she’s lovely!” Grillby nodded proudly back, his fire growing brighter and larger at the praise. He crackled more loudly back pointing at a specific picture. “Ah! She looks just like her mother! How wonderful!”

The padding of paws broke up the discussion, Frisk plodding into the room. “Moooom!”

“Ah, my child!” She turned in her chair, holding her arms open for the small goatling to throw themselves at her. Even at 11, Frisk was a hugger. She readily gave the little goat a smattering of kisses in turn.

“Grillby, this is my child, Frisk.” She gestured with her chin down at the brown goatling. Frisk waved from where they were in her grasp. The goatling paused when Grillby spoke, frowning a little.

“It’s alright if you don’t understand, dear. Grillby is speaking an old language.” Grillby paused before signing back tentatively. Toriel had to laugh when she saw both monsters light up in excitement.

She simply leaned back in her chair, watching the two have a silent conversation.

Chapter Text

The hustle and bustle of planning their trip to visit Undyne left the boss monster more than a little tired. She gently settled into her familiar arm chair, letting her head rest against the back, giving a quiet exhale.

All she really had to do now was use that google maps for proper directions (Sans was awful, she had no idea how he got anywhere) and things would be set. Frisks’ school break was quickly approaching, which really was what prompted the entire idea of a quick trip to visit Papyrus. It spiraled quickly out of control into Frisk meeting Gaster as well, followed by Undyne and other local friends. Sans apparently talked up Frisk enough to make everyone excited.

Though her child seemed well aquatinted with everyone already somehow? Goodness knows what Frisk got up to before she adopted the little monster. Frisk had simply fallen into her lap one day and decided she was their mother.

Frisk would have piano lessons, hang out with their Uncle Papyrus and grandpa and have a nice break away from the city. Grillby had promised to watch their apartment for them whilst they were away.

Toriel closed her eyes letting herself relax, wondering if she should do some light reading or just relax. Her body answered the question by dozing off.

******

Life was as normal as it would ever be. Toriel tended to the flowers around the ruin, she shooed younger monster back the way they came and checked all the puzzles. Every few hours she would reset them out of habit. Better to trap a human between puzzles than let them advance any further.

Her mother had yet to return from the Capitol, not that Toriel was particularly worried. She reset the puzzles one last time before making her way through the ruins to the small house she and her mother lived in. It was comfortable enough, clearly meant for two monsters.

Toriel hip checked the front door open lazily, stepping inside with a quiet hum as she walked towards the small bookshelf crammed in the corner.

“Snails or History? Snails or History-?” She mused to herself briefly before picking up the book about snail facts. She had read it a million times, but it was a familiar tome. Not that she had much choice in reading material.

Books were rare, something that fell from the surface occasionally and were hoarded fiercely by the library. If not by the library it was squirreled away by the king.

Toriel made her way towards her favorite arm chair, settling down to skim through her book. Toriel brushed her thumb idly across the colorful pictures of snails on the pages. At best she already knew everything there was in this book. She closed her eyes, flipping a page and jabbing a finger at a paragraph.

Some species of snails actually hibernate during the colder months of the year. They cover their bodies with a thin layer of mucus, which prevents them from drying out. Sometimes snails are also able to hibernate in the summer to survive if they are faced with a severe drought. They live off of the stored up fat during this time of year. This process is one of the many reasons why they have been able to survive for million years.

Toriel quietly flipped to the next page, repeating the ritual. A finger jabbed a part of the page and she read the paragraph.

They are nocturnal animals, which means most of their movements take place at night. Snails don’t like the brightness of sunlight, which is why you will find them out more on cloudy days. If you keep on in an aquarium you want to make sure that too much sunlight doesn’t filter into the room. This can cause the snail to stop eating and to spend most of its time inside of the shell.

“Maybe I should make snail pie…” She mused to herself, only distracted from her thoughts by the loud slam of her front door being opened further on in the house. Followed shortly by harried footsteps. Troiel barely had time to close her book before a fearful Dogaressa stood in her doorway, sweat making her fur stick up in strange clumps. “Tori! Oh Tori!”

“Ressa?” She rose from her seat, quickly moving towards her friend away from her cozy hide away. “What’s going on?”

The guard in training struggled with her words entirely, breathlessly clutching at her loose robes. “Tori, it’s… your mom.”

Toriel felt her stomach drop out of under her. “My mom? What’s going on?”

“Tori… She fell down.”

Toriel could only open and close her mouth struck wordless. Dogaressa pushed on trying to fill the silence in her panic. "In the capital- she. she fell. Tori, you need to come with me."

The boss monster staggered back, feeling like her world had been ripped out of under her. "She- no, no-"

"Tori..." Dogaressa's paw reach out, gently catching her friend's hand. "I'm sorry."

"Ressa, please- please tell me it's some mistake."

"I can't, Tori. I can't."

----

Toriel did not startle awake or cry out. She simply blinked and found herself in her home, the radio buzzing from being turned to a dead channel. The monster quietly grimaced, shifting in her chair to turn the radio off, forcing herself away from her arm chair. She moved to the family computer, tapping in the password, 'ILUVFRISK:)' before beginning her search.

Sometimes the only thing she could do was pretend old memories didn't hurt as much as they did.

Chapter Text

----

The tinkling of the piano playing was relaxing. Even with the occasional sour note, the music would pick up again as Frisk learned the keys with Undyne’s urging. The two going over a simple enough song to learn from. Only Undyne’s voice overpowered the music when she got excited about Frisk’s progress.

Sans hung back, lazily sipped at tea as he slouched next to Toriel. The two had been banished to another room after Toriel’s hovering irritated Undyne enough to warrant it.

“Gotta admit, the kid is pretty talented.” Sans mused as he spared a glance in the direction of Undyne’s music room. “You said they only had a couple music lessons before, yeah?”

“Mhmm.” She sipped at tea quietly. “Frisk just is the musical type it seems.” Monsters back in her youth were drawn to music, sang regularly, made instruments, and tried to recreate what was lost to them. Toriel knew it was a lazy assumption to make, but it wouldn’t surprise her to know Frisk’s musical skills were because of what they were.

Sans nodded, blowing on his tea idly as the two fell into a comfortable silence.

“You said earlier… this was near your old neighborhood when you were married to Ex-y mc exerton?”

The odd nickname earned a faint snort from the boss monster, red eyes cutting to look at Sans. “Yes, though we lived much farther down, maybe a few blocks away?”

“That big pink house?”

“Yes.” Somehow she wasn’t surprised Asgore never repainted.

“It used to be real pretty once.” Sans mused, “Its kind of a dusky pink now.”

“The garden is overflowing with life though, isn’t it?” She knew Asgore well enough to assume he buried himself in the task of gardening to hide from what he had done. The soft pink house had turned into a mess when the divorce settled. When they had to bury two children.

Sans made a helpful slam dunk motion with his hand, earning a soft laugh from Toriel. “One and done, T.”

“Some things never change.” She hid a tired kind of smile behind her teacup as she took another sip. “Are you certain you still want me to come to Thanksgiving with your family?”

“Yeah.” The simplicity of his reassurance made Toriel’s lips quirk into a more genuine smile.

----

If any of them had known Gaster invited Asgore to thanksgiving, Sans would have likely found a reason to skip. Nothing personal against the guy of course, everyone else raved about Asgore like he was a saint. The real problem was Toriel and Asgore couldn’t be in the same room together without a lot of tension. Not that any kind of fist fights would break out of course. Just awkwardness. More awkward than a middle school reunion. Apparently old Gaster took pity on his sad sack of a boss without realizing his son's partner was his bosses ex. Whoops.

Asgore would just… stare at her in a desperately sad manner, while Toriel ignored his presence much as she could get away with. There was really no other way things played out between the two. Attempts at closing the gap never really worked out. She addressed him as ‘Mr. Dreeumr’ and he would always awkwardly fumble in using her full name.

Not surprisingly, the tried and true pattern was continuing.

Asgore was seated far away from Toriel as possible, sandwiched between Papyrus and Mettaton on Gaster’s large pleather couch. Toriel sat with Sans lazily laying next to her, his legs propped up on an arm chair. Gaster would pop in from the kitchen, barely restrain a grimace before vanishing again to check on the food. Frisk casually tried to smooth over awkwardness in conversation, worked on math sheets or helpfully finger gunn'd at everyone in attendance.

Asgore readily made light conversation, but still stared at Toriel regularly whilst the boss monster aggressively ignored him. Toriel was certainly friendly and attentive to everyone else present, but it was as if Asgore wasn’t there at all. Sans sunk further back into the couch, contemplating making a beeline for his old bedroom at this point.

His savior came in the form of Frisk starting to wind down. The kid was a champ, but little goats needed naps. Frisk wasn't a baby, but maintaining a human illusion was a drain on magic. It usually wasn't done with monsters, much less done constantly by monsters this young. Frisk hadn't had any down time to let go of the illusion. From the car ride over, to lessons with Undyne, to touring the neighborhood, and now this meal Frisk had been steadily draining themselves.

Frisk slowly starting to nod off into a nap on the floor to pull Toriel from her conversation with Papyrus. Concern lined her features as she shifted her attention to Frisk. She reached out to pick up her child from the floor by her feet, startling the little monster fully awake. “Seems it's nap time for you. Come now, my child.” She rose easily from her spot on the couch carrying her child off to Sans and Papyrus old room.

Sans rose as well, relieved at the chance to escape. Nap time was a serious event in this family. With how long this visit was he wasn't about to pass on one.

“It sure has been some odd weather we’ve been having.” Asgore started, awkwardly glancing back at the gathered group around him. “By golly, I think we’ll need coats. Heavy duty coats, even.”

Whatever was Mettaton’s reply was lost as Sans ambled after his goat wife and their goat kid. Toriel laughing softly at something Frisk signed to her. Her mood brightened considerably now that they were away from Asgore. She hip checked the bedroom door, reluctantly setting the sleepy child down and shooing them inside. She flicked on a light, rolling her eyes fondly at the silly posters on the walls, action figures everywhere, and neon clothing Papyrus had hung up to display. Frisk whilst only partially reluctant flopped onto one of the bunk beds, and was immediately out like a light. Toriel smiled glancing over her shoulder at her husband. “You better settle in too, Mr.” She waggled her finger playfully back at him.

Sans just grinned at her, warmth pooling in his chest at her tone. “like I’d miss a nap.” He gladly moved to flop back on the bottom bunk bed with Frisk. Toriel laughed a little, giving the pair a quick peck on their foreheads before leaving.

Really, Sans wasn’t about to complain about the reprieve. He figured Toriel would join them soon enough given some time to check on Gaster. It was nice to have some quiet. Naturally, Sans didn’t need much to fall asleep. He woke up a little disoriented, awkwardly shifting away from soft goatling curled against him. He only sat up from the bottom bunk when his stomach started grumbling.

“Ugh.” He patted at his stomach to silence the beast before rolling out of the bunkbed, sliding his slippers back on and ambling on out. Sans had full intentions on just checking to see if the food was ready by now when he heard his wife’s voice coming from his father’s the study. “Huh…” Toriel wasn’t one to snoop, much less go Gaster’s study.

Sans came to a stop by the door. His own curiosity on the rise as he listened.

“Don’t try and act like I owe you my time.”

“Tori…”

“Don’t. Do not speak to me in that tone.”

“Toriel. I just… please. Can we not be friends at least?”

“No. With what you’ve done, I can barely look at you, much less consider you a friend.” She growled back, snapping a book shut loudly enough to make Sans startle slightly. “You feel so satisfied with what you’ve done. I can tell, you regret nothing.”

“I only regret losing you. I did what I needed to do, Tori. I did right by our children.”

That sound was definitely a book being thrown and hitting a wall when Asgore evaded it. “Did right-? You- you’re disgusting. You’ve done the unspeakable and you try to act like it should be fine.”

“I couldn’t let Asriel die in vain. Our son deserved justice, Tori.”

“Justice?” She laughed, something bitter and angry. “Justice would be letting our child rest in peace. Not use him as an excuse. An excuse for your actions. You foul creature.”

Asgore simply sounded meeker the longer the conversation went. “Would you rather I do nothing then? You told me I was always so wishy-washy…”

“You could have done anything else. You could have been there with me, you could have planned their funerals, paid the bills, cleaned the house-“ She gave a frustrated sound. Her hand connected with the desk in frustration. “Instead you had a vendetta. You decided blood for blood was the only action worth doing.”

There was a long moment of silence between them before Asgore tentatively spoke again.

“If you hate me so, why have you not told anyone?”

Toriel paused before speaking again, her voice cold and sharp. “Because, because I know being alone the rest of your life, knowing you’ve failed is a greater punishment than anything else. You’re going to live in that mausoleum of a home and tend to it until the day you die, Gorey. You won’t regret those deaths on your hands, but you’ll never move on. I know you. I fell in love with you because of your soft heart. I know that soft heart will be your end.”

“Tori-“

“Don’t. Don’t touch me. Don’t breath my air. I can’t stand the ever sight of you.” Sans knew enough to casually duck into the bathroom next to the study, listening as his sort of wife exited the study. Asgore simply closed the door after her.

Now that was one hell of a conversation. Good thing he wore his 'Goat Fucker' shirt under his hoodie. That'd probably help lighten the mood. Puffy paint shirts always helped.

####

The knees of her pants were stained with dirt by this point. Toriel didn’t care too much really, clothes weren’t hard to come by these days. Asgore bought her gifts on a whim, the man hardly needed a reason. The thought made her smile as she plucked another tomato from a vine, dropping it in her basket. The tomatoes were so ripe this year. They were going to need to look into more recipes to use up all these tomatoes.

She could hear Asgore humming from here in fact. He was seated on the patio in his favorite lawn chair. She could guess from his humming he was putting together another model ship. That man always had a fondness for building miniatures. His office was a mess of bottled miniatures and pictures of their family.

She could hear the children running around the garden, Asriel’s laughter overpowering everything else. Toriel glanced up from her pruning to see the two chasing each other through the yard. Asriel’s arms were thrown over his head, his sibling on his tail. The warm summer afternoon cast a gentle pink glow over their garden in the backyard. It made Toriel think of pink lemon aid. She would have to make some later. She would surprise her family with it when they came home tomorrow from school and work.

“Be careful you two!” It was more customary to warn the children by this point. Toriel knew they would play safely enough. She smiled from under her straw hat, glancing back down at the greenery at her fingertips. She needed to keep picking.

“Flowers…?” She mused lowly to herself, confusion rising to the surface when she realized the tomato plants she had been picking were suddenly rows of golden flowers. The flowers were very beautiful. A delicate golden color that glittered beautifully in the sunlight. Toriel brushed a finger against the petals curiously.

“Mooom!” Asriel’s voice pulled her attention back in his direction. The boy was awkwardly staring back at her, biting down hard at his bottom lip. Chara stood next to Asriel at the edge of the yard, their own stare was empty. Chara looked so thin, sickly. Shadows sat under their eyes and they held onto Asriel’s arm in a death grip. Chara couldn’t stop shaking. Their lips were cracked and bloody.

Asriel’s voice became frantic now. “Mommy!”

“Asriel?” She jerked upwards, but quickly realized vines had wrapped tightly around her arms holding her in place. “Asriel! Chara!”

“Mommy!” The whicker of her basket at her hip and thorns of the vine held firm against her struggle. She could feel it dig into her skin, past her fur and into bone. It hurt so much, she couldn’t quite understand. The pain didn't stop the frantic struggle to reach her children.

“My children! Children! I’m coming!” She jerked in Asgore’s direction, the realization her husband was within reach of her making the monster struggle harder to get his attention. “Gorey! Gorey!” He could free her. He could save them.

All he did was stare at her. The bottle and ship were cracked into pieces at his feet. He had this sad expression on his face, empty and remorseful. “Tori…”

“Gorey! Please!” Pain be damned, Toriel struggled, pushing hard against the vines and whicker holding her in place. He simply stood up from his chair and walked back inside. The glass paned door closed with a solid almost deafening click.

“You can’t leave!” She screamed at him, her magic took over without Toriel even thinking about it. Fire raged against the plants, burning them away. Toriel struggled to her feet only to be pulled down again. Vines and wood wrapped around her, holding her against the grass.

Chara yanked Asriel back by his neck into the edge of the lawn. All she could do was watch her children disappear around her. Vines and wood biting at her skin, past the magic into her fur and bone.

----

"I would normally classify that night as a disaster but...." Her gaze dropped to Sans shirt. Two days later and he was still wearing it. The human grinned idly back, lulled in his very large monster partner's lap. The armchair in their apartment's living room usually doubled as a couch due to Frisk and Sans flopping into Toriel's lap regularly. "I suppose your shirt helped."

"I figured it was a special occasion, gotta gussy up for it." He mimed dusting himself off vaguely, at best he gave up midway through the gesture.

"I do hope you don't wear it when taking Frisk to school."

"Naw, I'll wear 'goat fricker' instead."

"...Sans, how many shirts did you make?"

The human simply shrugged back. "Dunno." He patted her snout, "Maybe if you tell me what's keeping you up, I might spill."

Toriel narrowed her eyes back at him, "You are a strange human."

Chapter Text

“What do monsters do at weddings?”

Toriel paused, glancing back at Sans. Surprise on her features before a smile rose to the surface. “Some things are similar. It's a party of course.” She set aside her oven mitts for now, walking over to where her husband sat at the kitchen table.

“A party is always good.” He mused back, watching as Toriel brushed her hands off on her apron. He could see the gears turning in her head at this point. “There are songs the partners are supposed to sing to one another. It varies since most change the lyrics to suit themselves. Other songs are just sung by everyone present to encourage the couple.”

“A song huh? Guess fine china plates weren’t in for monsters?”

Toriel arches a brow back, surprised by the comment to some extent. Even with her time on the surface, she was still learning new things. “Not usually. Is this a human tradition-?”

“To some extent, yeah. I mean-“ He waved his hand awkwardly. “Kinda like that fruit cake thing I told you about. People do it cause they’re supposed to.”

Toriel simply shakes her head, “Odd. I will never understand some human traditions.”

“I’m human and I barely understand ‘em.” Sans agreed lazily, slouching onto the table. His usual ghoulish grin settled on his features. Toriel snorted. “Because you’re a goblin.”

“You say that, yet I haven’t sprouted my horns yet.” He touched the top of his head feeling for horns through the mess of his curly dark hair. Toriel snorted noisily moving over to press two kisses against his head. “There, now you will sprout horns.”

“Finally, now my inside will reflect my outside.”

“Truly a blessing.” She huffed back in laughter. “…Did you, want to hear one of the songs?”

“C’mon, Tori, you gotta ask? We’re all married up now.” Mostly out of the need for Frisk’s school to let Sans continue picking up Frisk. Security had tightened and Toriel knew there wasn’t anyone else she wanted to be married to at this point. “Lay it on me.”

Toriel shook her head with a low laugh before she found the words she wanted. Old words, old words many had forgotten now. Songs she remembered from her childhood. Songs she remembered from friends' marriages. The words were inhumane by nature, odd to the throat. The sound was magic itself in a way.

Sans did not interrupt, he tried to join, his own voice nervous, tentative. He couldn’t quite match, but Toriel was happy enough to slow down her singing for Sans. She reached out to take his hand in her own, the two dancing in the kitchen together. Unsurprisingly Sans ran out of energy fairly quickly, Toriel was more than happy to simply carry him around the kitchen.

---

Out of all the humans Toriel had met, Sans proved to be the strangest. The one human who could see HP. Who could see her health bar. Most humans could not see that anymore. After the war it was a forgotten sight, lost in the haze of an evolving world. Another piece of magical awareness lost to humanity.

Toriel to some extent was glad of it. Whilst she could cast a glamor, hiding her health bar proved to be difficult. The lack of reaction when she couldn’t contain it anymore in a crowd one day said quite a bit about how far humans had regressed with magic. She stopped worrying about it as much, if at all. She would let her health bar float alongside her casually whilst she ran errands or picked Frisk up from school. Not a single human saw it was a comfort.

The fact one human’s eyes were so focused on it when they first met had terrified Toriel. Terrified her deeply. She was discovered in a way she hadn't expected. Only for the man in question to smile at her and make an awful joke. A terrible pun that made her choke on her drink in delight.

Now, now she did not care. Sans had become more. The odd human who could see monsters. The odd human who somehow knew too much. Sans always seemed to predict so much, but played it off casually.

Toriel didn’t quite understand, but, she supposed it was just another mystery of the surface. A single human mage existed out of millions of people, it ended up being the person she decided to marry. Sans Gaster.

Magic attracted magic after all.

She had tried her best with Asgore, and all she could hope for now was something better. Something brighter.