Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Mt. Ebott is not a particularly well-remembered place.

For many years, its place in the human consciousness remained static and unchanging. It was a visually unremarkable pimple in the landscape of New Hampshire, looming over Hometown, a sleepy community primarily known for its tentative connection to the founding of the Ice-E franchise.

Nobody would give Mt. Ebott a second thought, let alone consider that it was where the legendary monster people had been sealed away.

The reason that the location where monsterkind is sealed has been lost to time is fairly simple: The humans of the time did not want any chance of monsterkind potentially being freed by human soul power. Ironically, they did not even consider that this would come about as a result of the humans of the future willingly freeing monsterkind: They simply predicted some kind of accident may occur that would let the human souls into the hands of monsters.

In time, both these things would happen. And yet, Mt. Ebott was not made that much more famous once it had been revealed that it was an entrance to the secret underground cave that the lost kingdom of monsters was sealed in. No, it was significantly overshadowed by Mt. Emmet, the second “entrance” to the underground, and the place that monsterkind actually emerged from..

Should Mt. Ebott be remembered better? Perhaps. This is the place that monsterkind entered the underground from, and the place where the humans that would allow them to escape fell in. That’s special, in its own way. I’m sure that you remember it well. That’s your role in all of this, after all. To remember. Because to this world, Mt. Ebott was remembered primarily as a nice-looking mountain with a cave inside containing a big hole that nobody could pass in and fall into.

Aside from a few.

Eleanor is not a particularly well-remembered person.

She has no last name, and has never needed one. She will inevitably disappear before the conversation reaches that point. The person speaking to her will remember a vague image of her, but they would likely be hard-pressed to even mention her first name. “That nice patient girl” is enough. It may very well have been her real name, for how much it was used.

When she disappeared, there was nobody that could remember her well enough to be able to be sad about her. There was a little bit of anger, maybe, but nothing of substance. Some people knew her in passing, enough to give the police distinguishing features such as “a big red bow she wears in her hair” and “that pale cyan dress she’s usually in”. Those were people that she had hung in the mind of for a little longer, but soon they would only be able to give her name as “that nice patient girl”.

Eleanor is going to be dying soon. When she does, her name will be buried along with her.

But her story is not one that deserves to be forgotten.

This is the story of the first to be taken. The first to fall into a world of monsters that will fight against her, driven by vengeance to take her soul. This is the story of those that will remember her as something more than just “that nice patient girl”.

This is the story of Eleanor, the Patience Soul.

Chapter Text

Obviously, the first thing that Eleanor was shocked by was the fact that she was still alive. The ground below her was incredibly spongy, and she didn’t even feel like she’d been hurt at all from the fall. She just lay there for a while, just letting herself rest on this strange ground. It was like a mattress, but even softer than any she’d slept in her entire life. It took her a bit to realise that she was also lying in a bed of flowers. They also felt good, a cold smooth feeling. She’d laid down in the grass before, but this was like that feeling amplified a hundredfold.

The next thing that she noticed was that she had miraculously managed to land perfectly face up. Back to the ground, head to the sky. She could see a little glimmer of the sunset light shine through the hole she had fallen down, casting a brilliant glow down the little room she was residing in.

“Maybe”, she thought, “This is enough. Maybe I could just capture this moment and live it forever.”

And so, she laid there. Just appreciating the moment. Not questioning where she was, or if she was going to try and escape and get home. Just… a moment to rest.

But it couldn’t last. Eventually, something pulled inside her, and she forced herself to get up. The room she was in was a cavern, sure, but the ground seemed to be well-trodden, and there was a gate that was clearly built by the other side of the room. It would be more likely than not that Eleanor would find people here. That would be both a blessing and a curse. Still, pressing onwards would be necessary if she wanted to live.

After passing through both the gate she could see and a second gate that appeared after it, Eleanor found herself in a far more developed area. The room she was in was large, built primarily out of purple brick. There was a pile of what appeared to be fallen leaves by the sides of a pair of staircases, which carried themselves up to a doorway with a sign over it. As Eleanor got closer to pass through the door, she managed to see what was written on the sign.

“Welcome To The Last And Eternal Bastion Of Monsterkind: Home”

However, the words “Last And Eternal” were crossed out, with some strange emoticons of a birdlike man with a big dot eye that seemed to indicate… silliness? Mistakes? Either way, Eleanor could tell that this part of that slogan didn’t hold up.

Eleanor had heard stories about Monsters. Who hadn’t? She didn’t even remember the first time that she’d heard the lines “Long ago, two races ruled over the earth: humans and monsters. One day, war broke out between the two races. Eventually, humans were victorious, and they sealed monsterkind underground with a magic spell.”

So was this that legendary place where monsters resided? A little part of Eleanor hoped not, but the evidence before her was too glaring for any hopes to overcome her rational thought. A whole race of strange creatures, sealed away years ago by human wizards… Eleanor didn’t even really know what to fear. But her guard was up. Still, there was nowhere to go but forward, so she proceeded to the next room.

There was a locked door, a series of switches, and a sign by the wall that read “Brave ones, foolish ones, both walk not the middle road.” It was some kind of puzzle. But it was fairly simple. Sure enough, after Eleanor walked over all the switches other than the ones in the middle, the door opened.

There was an even simpler puzzle in the next room. All Eleanor needed to do open the door was flip a bunch of switches that were marked by a path on the floor. From there, an empty room that Eleanor nonchalantly passed through, leading to another larger room. The sign here claimed “The left room is the right room’s blueprint”. It was seemingly another floor pattern puzzle, so Eleanor memorised the pattern on the floor and passed through the corridor to see where she would apply this…

And saw a massive plane of spikes.

So, was this what whoever had set all of these things up was going for? She would believe the instructions in the previous room because they were right before, walk on these spikes, and be impaled and die? It was so unabashedly obvious that it was a trap. But, it seemed to be surrounded by some water. Maybe she could wade through it and come out to the other side unharmed?

But wait, what if that’s what they wanted her to think? Maybe the spike board really was able to be passed through with the “blueprint” in the previous room, and the real deadly trap that was waiting for her was in the water? They couldn’t both be dangerous, there needed to be a way for whoever created it to pass by… unless there was some kind of secret passage around here that let them through!

Eleanor quickly darted back to the passage and the previous room,carefully trying to feel around the sign, the vines at the back of the room, and any strange indentation in the bricks. But no matter how much she checked, there was nothing there. She was forced to return to the other room, and choose a way to get past it.

Eventually, she decided to go through the water. It was less obviously dangerous, and it would be less difficult than actually trying to walk through the exact path marked out by the previous room. Besides, it wasn’t like she had anything on her that could be water-damaged.

She dipped down, and discovered that the water was rather shallow. It probably wouldn’t even have reached the top of her legs if she wasn’t so short. She carefully stepped through it, and when she reached the other side, quickly hopped out. She was safe. The water had been safe.

The next room was a very, very long corridor. Before setting down it, Eleanor sat down and caught her breath. Nothing at all had been tiring, but it had been a little mentally draining. After gathering her thoughts, Eleanor had been struck by a new thought: Where were the monsters in this kingdom? So far all she had done was walk through large empty rooms without meeting a single person, or even something vaguely recognisable as a person.

Maybe this was why the sign had been vandalised, and something had happened to these monsters? But the only part that was scratched out was the part of the sign that read “Last and eternal”, so maybe it was only this place that this something had happened to? Maybe some sort of calamity had gotten them to leave and migrate to another part of this cave…

Oh shit.

As Eleanor had been sitting down pondering all of these things, she’d let her guard down for too long. She had spotted something in the corner of her eye, and that something was moving towards her. At least she’d gotten her answer on the situation regarding the monsters in this ruin-

She wasn’t alone.

“Hark! You there, do you be… a human?”

The creature was small, only around two soccer balls tall. It was insectlike in shape, with mandible-like arms and legs, and similarly insectoid wings. However, its muscular chest reminded Eleanor more of a gorilla. And to top the mishmash of parts off, it seemed to be wearing an astronaut’s helmet with two antennas coming out of it. It looked ridiculous, it looked bizarre. But it was, above all else, living proof that this really was the home of monsterkind.

“As a bastion of chivalry, I shall be fair on thee, vile human!” the monster spat “Surrender to I, the great Ro-Man-Tick, and you shall suffer no harm in thy capture!”

Dammit. It was everything that Eleanor had feared upon reading the word “Monsterkind”. The war that had broken out between their two races was still ongoing. Monsterkind was going to fight humankind no matter what.

But she had to quickly figure out her answer to the question she was being posed. Obviously the creature was aggressive. If she denied its request of surrender, she would be attacked and put in danger. However, this process of “capture” will likely put her in danger as well, and so-

“I shall take thy spiteful silence as a harsh NO, then! Have at thee!”

DAMMIT! She hadn’t been able to control the situation at all! And now she was in danger! Suddenly, a spear appeared in the creature’s hand, and was thrown towards Eleanor. She felt a pulse inside herself, and scrambled away, barely managing to not be hit by the deadly weapon. She desperately scrambled inside herself, trying to find some kind of action that might diffuse the situation, but before she could think of anything, another spear manifested into thin air, and flew towards her. She tried to move, but it wasn’t enough, and it hit her arm. But it didn’t damage it. Instead, it disappeared, and Eleanor felt a much deeper pain within herself.

Magic. Of course. Monsters all have magical abilities. That was a common fixture of all the stories about them, and there had been no reason to not assume that it was fact. Eleanor had managed to see a magician in real life once, and so she was well acquainted with the power that magic holds - the power to directly harm one’s SOUL. Even though Eleanor had just experienced a burst of agility, she was at an absolute disadvantage here. She just needed to focus. Analyse what it says. Find some way to appeal to it. Defuse the situation and press on.

“Hah! Does the bite of my stinger ail thou, hume? Tis your fault for daring to tread in these lands, after everything thou hast done!”

Wordy. Air of eloquence. Blames humankind as a collective. Likely for their victory in the war.

“But I should thank thou!” It readied another spear. “For thine defeat shalt grant glory to I, the great Ro-Man-Tick!”

Egotist. Believes he will be praised for the capture process. Likely would. She would have to remember all of these traits and try and see how they compare to other monsters she encounters. Do these reflect the culture of monsterkind, or are these individually cultivated ideas? Ok, here comes another spear…

There was a subtle twitch in Ro-Man-Tick’s arm before it threw the spear, and once that twitch happened, the direction that the spear had been aimed was set. Eleanor had managed to quickly pick up on this, and had started to try moving exactly as the twitch happened. Perfect. As she kept doing it, her enemy’s aim would always be off.

So she could consistently avoid the enemy’s attacks, but Eleanor still needed to figure out how to end the encounter. Giving her foe what they wanted seemed to not be an option, since they seemed to not want anything other than her defeat. So, the best possible option seemed to currently be to try to flee, and lose her attacker. Maybe they would drop a hint about something else they wanted while she carried that out.

“Perish, vile dream-stealer!”

The insults were beginning to blend together. Still, Eleanor remained focused on them to try and pinpoint anything beneath this bug’s carapace that she could use against it. Once she figured out gaps in its attack patterns, she started to carefully retreat whenever she was safe, and tried to dodge away from Ro-Man-Tick. It didn’t seem to be advancing, so she was steadily able to gain ground from it. It didn’t seem to be noticing…

But where would she go? This was just a long open hallway, if she ran then her enemy would easily be able to see her… So she needed a distraction! Something to make sure that it wouldn’t track her and find where she went. She didn’t have anything physical to work with, though…

“Fall before mine glorious blade! I mean pike!”

So she needed a psychological one. This would be pretty easy to pull off, if she’d gotten her view of her assailant right. She waited for a spear to be thrown, and then let it graze her.

“Gah!” Eleanor spat out “You damn… I’ll never let you get the glory of taking me down!”

“Glory! Bah!” Ro-Man-Tick scoffed as it turned its head up and put its hand on its chest “I need no mere glory! The reward of taking thine down is the benefit of all monsterkind, the smiles on the faces of children as they learn that their enemy is-”

It was completely self-absorbed now. There was no way it was even paying attention. Eleanor scrambled and dashed down the room, looking back as she did. As she thought, the monster wasn’t even moving at all. Near the end of the hallway, she discovered a pillar, and quickly hid behind it. As the distant mumbling stopped, she saw the creature come closer out of the corner of her eye, so she waited and waited and…

It went the other direction! After waiting a while longer, Eleanor made another dash, and escaped into the next room onwards.

The hallway had opened up into another room, with different pathways now branching off. There were signs of activity here, and Eleanor knew that even if that Ro-Man-Tick character didn’t come back, there would be even more enemies coming her way.

A mysterious underground world of magical monsters that wanted her dead. She could handle that. And so, Eleanor pulled herself together, and pressed on.

Chapter Text

Heave!

Eleanor pulled herself over a small wall, and landed in a street. She’d finally managed to reach a more open area. Even if the ceiling wasn’t that much higher than the hallways she’d walked through before, she could at least go in many directions and see individual buildings. Those cramped linear corridors were just so suffocating. Still, this new environment was going to pose a new challenge to Eleanor.

The simple walkways that she’d passed through meant that she had a simple goal in the direction that she was moving, and how to hide from any potential attackers. She’d seen a few monsters on her way here, but none of them had seen her. But now she was in what seemed to be a residential area. The concentration of monsters was going to be heavily increased. Her goal needed to be to find the exit to this “town” and move onto the next location.

Wait, dammit. She could see one of those cyclopic walking head-type monsters coming near. Eleanor quickly dived behind one of the trashcans she had landed next to. It was a good thing she was short, or it wouldn’t have hidden her entire body. She waited a good while, and nobody came for her. Ok, good, she was safe. Now she needed to plan out the path she was going to travel. Going along the outskirts seemed to be the safest option. There were some pillars to safely hide behind on both the left and the right, so either path was viable. She observed the street before her, and when nobody was walking down it, she darted behind the pillar to the right. Repeating the action until she reached the end of the street, Eleanor surveyed the road in front of her. It seemed she didn’t have the luxury of repeating this easy hiding process, as there was no clear cover along the road that she could hide behind. There were some alleyways by the side which would have less open space, but would they really be safer?

After weighing up all her options, Eleanor eventually decided to shoot for the alleyways. It would be too risky to try and check if there was a better pathway to the left. To her luck, they seemed nice and empty. Still, she kept her guard up as she walked through them as she tried to reach the other side of the-

“Ribbit, ribbit (Excuse me, human?)”

Eleanor snapped around in panic, and saw one of those white froglike creatures standing directly behind her. She hadn’t even heard it walk up to her!

“Ribbit ribbit, ribbit? (You are a human, right?)” the monster continued “Ribbit ribbit (I’m not very familiar with different types of human.)”

Incredible! Eleanor could recognisably understand that the monster was just ribbitting at her, but she instinctively understood it as a full language. So this was probably another form that magic took. The monster’s intent seemed to be unknown, but a lack of immediate aggression like the previous encounter was probably a good sign. Initial behaviour simply suggests curiosity. Best to give what it wants.

“I am a human, yes” Eleanor chirped “How does this concern you?”

Pretending to be a monster would be objectively more preferable, but it would have been far too fragile of a disguise. A less uninformed monster would be able to shatter it at a glance, and even this frog suspected her. All that remained was for her to lean into what she had, and try and spin it into something in her favour.

“Ribbit… Ribbit ribbit (Wow… I guess humans do really look a lot like each other. I was very curious to find out if you really were one.)”

Well, Eleanor supposed that based on the wide variety of monster forms that she’d seen so far, human drawing from a base template would make them rather samey from the perspective of these monsters.

“Well, it’s good to ask” Eleanor responded “You’re very polite.”

“Ribbit ribbit… (Aw, thank you… I don’t want to really fight you anymore.)” the monster sighed “Ribbit. Ribbit (It’s hard to fight someone that complemented you. This must be how Toriel feels, ribbit.)”

A situation defused before it could even begin to escalate. This is good. This is great. Eleanor could leverage some vital info out of this monster.

“This “Toriel” person that you mentioned, what’s she like?” Eleanor nervously ventured.

“Ribbit, ribbit (She lives in a big house on the eastern outskirts of town.)” the monster explained “Ribbit, ribbit ribbit (She’s probably the most sympathetic to humans in the entire underground, but she spends all her time holed up in there. Only comes out to get what she needs. Most people here are a bit scared of her, to be honest.)”

Somebody that would probably help her, with very little nudging needed. Eleanor now absolutely had a goal to strive towards, and she was in the roughly right direction she needed to travel anyway. Everything was going smoothly.

“Well, I’ll be leaving to find her then” Eleanor responded “Thank you for being so kind and helpful towards me. It’s far more than most others would do.”

“Ribbit, ribbit (Well, you won’t need to worry about those others that would want to attack you that much, human.)” the monster replied “Ribbit (Home is a ghost town anyway)”.

Eleanor thought about it for a little bit, and immediately realised the monster was right. The streets were so wide, and yet she had barely seen anybody walking down them. She had managed to avoid sight in a wide open space so easily because there was simply barely anybody there to see her. The crossed out “Last and eternal” ringed in her mind again. Still, the answer to this question wasn’t relevant to her right now, so she didn’t bother asking the monster she’d appealed to for the answer. She would ask Toriel once she found her and was in a more stable position.

That’s all in the future. Time to focus on the present. Eleanor cut through the alleyways, notably not seeing another monster, until she eventually reached an end, which opened up into a wide open square, containing what was seemingly a fountain with a coffin in the middle as a decoration. The immediate problem here was that there seemed to be a gelatinous monster sleeping on a bench nearby the fountain. The task here was going to be passing through both without waking the ticking time bomb and making sure that no other monster passing through noticed her.

When she was sure that nobody else was going to come, Eleanor started to lightly tread through the square. Her movements were nothing as exaggerated as tiptoes, just very slow and subtle motions which made no noise at all. The thing that Eleanor was most scared of was honestly just the idea of a monster running into her while she was moving so slowly, not any possibility of the sleeping monster waking up.

But nobody came. This place really was a ghost town. Eleanor stopped for a moment to take it all in, and then immediately realised her mistake when she heard a rumble.

“Hrng… whu?”

Had she misstepped? Had she made some noise without realising it? Had she touched something? Was she simply unlucky? Either way, dammit, the gelatinous monster was waking up.

She was almost at the other end of the plaza, so she quickly tried to rush for a pillar and hide behind it. However, she could see the monster starting to get up. She had been spotted.

“You… you’re that, uhh… human!”

The monster was the most vaguely humanoid that Eleanor had seen so far. Still, it could never be mistaken for one. It was angular, blocky. It had no neck, head was directly connected to shoulders. Form was composed of translucent gelatinous substance.

“Take, ugh… that!”

Its arm extended and swang at Eleanor, which she dodged easily, on account of how slowly the attack travelled.

“I'll… beat you!” the monster sighed “And then get back to my nap…”

Its sluggish movements are on account of how tired it is. It wants to return to its rest. Unenthusiastic energy in its voice suggests its heart is not in this. Must be some kind of higher social decree ordering the enmity towards humans rather than it being a conclusion that monsters reach individually.

“Maybe if you rested first…” Eleanor noted “Maybe you could more easily defeat me?”

“Ooh… maybe you’re right…” the monster sighed. It then sat back down on the bench, and returned to sleeping.

Encounter diffused. Good. This is great. Eleanor would be able to de-escalate any hostile encounters with monsters she had if she was able to properly poke their buttons, to find out what they want, and then appeal to it. This is what she was good at anyway.

Eleanor dashed through the streets, ducking behind whatever she could find before pressing onwards. She could see where she should try and go now. There was a set of stairs leading out of the town and into a nook, by the east side of town just as the frog monster said. If she could just reach there, she would be able to talk with this Toriel person and figure out some kind of agreement. Reaching the end of the street, Eleanor scoped out the area, and then after judging that it was safe, she leaped out…

And was instantly spotted by a trio of floating heads.

“That’s-” one gasped. “That’s a human!” another noted. “Get it, dudes!” the third yelled.

They began spitting orblike projectiles. Eleanor simply fled. The situation was too heated, diplomacy is not currently an option. Due to her close proximity to Toriel’s location, locating her and getting aid from her seemed to be a preferable option. Quickly dashing up the stairs, Eleanor kept her head over her shoulder to make sure she could properly ascertain the aim of her enemies, and dodge their attacks. However, she was multitasking without any time to fully focus on either task, and thus she was inevitably hit a few times. Pain to the SOUL was very different to pain to the body, which Eleanor was starting to really understand as she started to repeatedly feel it. It reached over the entire body, and yet you couldn’t feel it in any specific parts. Still, Eleanor managed to scramble to the top of the stairs and run out to the front of her location - or at least, what seemed to be it.

It was built of purple brick, the same as the rest of the underground, but it was connected to the very walls themselves. In front of it, there was a big tree whose leaves were falling off. Eleanor rushed through the leaves and knocked them into the air as she rushed into the house. There wasn’t a door or any glass in the windows: anyone could enter or leave whenever they bothered.

Inside was just… so cozy-looking. Eleanor could smell something recently-cooked too. Still, she was in a crisis situation right now, and had to press on. Eleanor ran to the left, and she saw her.

She was sleeping in a chair, a book in her hands. She was definitely humanoid, and vaguely resembled a goat. She wore a purple robe that had a strange symbol on it, a heart shape with a winged circle and three triangles within. Thinking back, Eleanor could probably recognise it plastered around a few times in that small residential area. A question for when she was secure. But right now, she needed Toriel to wake up and help her. That could only mean one thing…

“HEEEEEEELP!”

Eleanor didn’t have much experience in yelling loudly, but she put her all into it either way. The woman stirred, and as she simply woke up and turned her eye to the monsters attacking Eleanor, they just got up and fled. So Toriel has that level of respect and slash or fear towards the rest of the monsters.

“Were they tormenting you, my dear?” Toriel sighed “Well, they are gone now. But you do understand I would rather keep my- wait. Are you not a human?”

“That is correct, miss” Eleanor chirped.

“Well…” Toriel said with a yawn “Stay here for a little bit, then. I can heal you, if you’re injured-”

“Actually…” Eleanor said “There was a reason I was trying to find you. There’s something very important I want to talk to you about.”

Chapter Text

“More tea, dear?” Toriel chimed.

“No, I’m fine.” Eleanor noted.

Toriel had seated Eleanor at the main table in the living room area, while she was sitting on a bigger, more plush chair. The tea was a little bitter, but Toriel had loaded it with enough sugar that Eleanor could barely make that bitterness out. Sipping it down was totally easy, despite the heat.

“Oh, I insist!” Toriel said “I’ve been trying to get rid of these boxes of golden flower forever, but every time I try to do so I just can’t stand to do it.”

Toriel’s body language, her tone, her everything, was strange. It was as if she was desperately trying not to care. Eleanor had clocked her as the type of person that would naturally want to put all of herself into love, and yet she restrains herself from giving it her all.

“How fascinating…” Eleanor replied “How long have you been trying to do that?”

“Hmm… It’d probably have to have been… seven or so years?” Toriel noted.

Eleanor gave it her all trying not to choke the ancient tea out of her mouth. It would have just been rude. She just kept sipping and focused on the sugary flavour.

The house as a whole was very cosy. Toriel seemed to have some fire-based magic abilities, and so she had created a nice fire in the fireplace. Eleanor wasn’t that cold, but the extra warmth was always appreciated, and the look of it and the faint background noise of its crackling really bought the place together. Helped Eleanor think, focus. She finished her cup of tea, took the atmosphere in, and got ready to start the conversation.

“Miss Toriel?” Eleanor asked.

“Yes, dear?”

“There’s a lot of things I’ve been curious about.” Eleanor said “I’m sure you can teach me all about them!”

“Oh, how wonderful!” Toriel responded “To be honest, it has been my dream to become a teacher for a long time.”

A lucky incision. Eleanor was playing to the exact things that Toriel wanted. She would probably be able to get anything she wanted, provided that Toriel also knew the things she wanted to know. Probably should start with something that all monsters should know.

“Well, first of all… Why do monsters hate humanity?”

Toriel’s reaction was controlled, but Eleanor picked up on it. She was uncomfortable with the question.

“Well, I suppose…” Toriel ventured “It all links back to how we all ended up down here. The monsters never let go of the fact that humans created the barrier. I have tried to convince them in the past to reject blaming you for the actions of your mothers and fathers… but never successfully.”

It was a logical and convincing reason, which had cleanly lined up with what Eleanor had experienced from the other monsters in the underground. But she had seen Toriel’s reaction to her question. The hesitation in her voice. This wasn’t it. But the question was, was this a complete lie, or just an incomplete truth? Eleanor didn’t think pressing her host about her secrets would lead to an agreeable reception. She would have to figure it out based on how she responded to her other questions. Next, a new avenue of questioning.

“But then why…” asked Eleanor “Are you different? Why do you care?”

This was even more hurtful. On the surface, she looked fine, but Eleanor could tell that Toriel was barely holding it together. She’d struck an old nerve.

“Maybe… maybe it’s just because I’m old.” Toriel said softly. “I’ve seen a lot of things, good and bad. And I’ve been strong enough to be able to learn from them, and understand that it’s better to just be kind.”

It was clearly a way to cover up the actual core reason that it all spread from. But… it was genuine. These little pieces of body language, those unconscious falters in the voice… Eleanor knew that you couldn’t fake those. It seemed that Toriel really did care.

“I see.” Eleanor said. “Then I’m glad to know you’re here for me. Do you have anything for me to eat?”

Eleanor hadn’t been able to find anything to eat while she was down in the underground, and it had been a long time since a meal on the surface as well. Either way, this may have been one of the best opportunities to be able to refuel herself she would get.

“Oh, of course!” Toriel responded “You can come over to the fridge to pick something out, if you want?”

“No, it’s fine.” Eleanor said “You can just choose something on your own.”

“Are you sure?” Toriel noted.

Eleanor just nodded as Toriel agreed to go and fetch something. She didn’t need to be a potential burden on this woman by potentially eating something that she would have wanted for herself. She would likely be allowed to, sure, but it could provoke a subconscious dislike for her. Besides, she didn’t care what she ate. It would all be nourishing. Flavor doesn’t matter.

“Oh, I almost forgot I hadn’t finished this!” Eleanor could hear Toriel’s voice chirp up from the next room. She came back holding a large tray with a big slice of pie on it. “One last slice of my latest Cinnamon-Butterscotch Pie! Still warm!”

It looked amazing, it smelled amazing. It looked so golden and comforting. Such a generous portion. “I- should I be allowed to have this?” Eleanor quickly asked.

“Young Eleanor,” Toriel said sweetly “You are not just a human, and you are not just a growing girl. You are also my guest! Which means that you deserve the largest portion, and more!”

Eleanor picked up a fork, and started to cut off little pieces of the pie and eat them. It was… amazing. She started to pick off bits and eat them faster, until she just dropped the fork and embarrassingly shoved the pie in her mouth, unable to get enough of it. She’d never eaten anything so sweet and luxurious before. It didn’t matter that she barely felt any fuller, she…

Actually, that made her think. The feeling of eating this food was completely different from the feeling of eating normal food. Eleanor knew about things that felt “melt-in-the-mouth”, but this literally just felt like it had completely vanished on the spot in her mouth. And she felt… invigorated? It was hard to explain, but she felt as if she had energy in her body despite still feeling hunger in her stomach. Maybe this is how magical food functions?

Then it hit Eleanor. This was the first time that she could remember wanting more after finishing eating something. Even after finishing a meal that still left her hungry, she would be fine accepting that she’d finished her opportunity. She wasn’t even worrying about what effects eating magical food could… She needed to press on.. Ask Toriel the next thing that she’d been wondering.

“Miss Toriel?” Eleanor said “May I ask you something else?”

“Of course, dear!” Toriel replied absentmindedly.

“Some time ago, I saw a sign that referred to this place as Home, the last and eternal bastion of monsterkind…” Eleanor explained “But the words “last and eternal” were crossed out. What happened here?”

“Oh, people just stopped living here.” Toriel said casually. “New Home was built a long time ago, and has far more space in it. The only people that stayed in these old ruins are the stragglers and the people that couldn’t brave the cold needed to reach it.”

That was a lot of information, a lot of good information. She now knew about the capital city of monsterkind, as well as the fact that she would have to “brave the cold” to be able to reach it. Was that cold right outside of these ruins, or was it only on the pathway to that city? Either way, Eleanor would probably have to prepare to go through it: If she wanted to escape the underground, it’s more likely than not she would have to pass through there.

Then, two more thoughts hit Eleanor. Ones that while not truly urgent, were nagging at her so strongly she needed a quick answer for them.

“So then, does this mean that this place has far less monsters than anywhere else in the underground?” Eleanor asked.

“Oh, yes. It is rather quiet here.” Toriel responded.

So she was safe here. At least, comparatively safer to any other place in the underground, especially if she was going to be around someone that wanted to keep her safe. Yes, she was safe here… But she still needed to press on. She still needed to reach the surface.

“So is that… part of why you’re here?” Eleanor ventured “Because of how the rest of the underground is more… populated with people that are at ideological odds with you? Or is it one of the other reasons you listed?”

“I… suppose so.” Toriel said. “I far prefer the peace here, young Eleanor.”

Safer. It was safer here. It was better here. Toriel was around, she could protect her, she could give her this same comfort she was feeling. But she had to return. She had to… She had to ask her third question…

“Miss… Miss Toriel…” Eleanor asked, her voice shaking. “I have one last thing I want to ask you.”

“Of course, young Eleanor!” Toriel said cheerfully. “Anything you wish to know, and I’ll tell it to you!”

How to exit the ruins. She needed to ask how to exit the ruins.

Eleanor’s lips quivered.

How to exit the ruins.

She couldn’t stay here. She wouldn’t be allowed to. She had to return to the surface.

How to exit the ruins.

For the first time she could remember, a tear was swelling in Eleanor’s eye.

How to-

“Miss- miss, miss Toriel…” Eleanor choked out. “Can I- can I stay with you?”

“Of course, young-”

Eleanor rushed over and hugged Toriel. Toriel quickly hugged her back, and let her stay there, just appreciating the comfort.

Maybe this could be it, Eleanor thought. She would finally be able to get a restart. A square one.

Maybe she’d found a place where she belongs.

Chapter Text

News travels quickly in the underground. Monsterkind’s communities are small, but tight-knit, and so if something reaches one of them, it won’t have much distance to travel to reach the rest. Plus, barely anything ever happens in the underground, so every monster knows that they’ll take whatever shakeup in their lives that they can get. In fact, part of why puzzle creation is so ingrained into monster culture is in order to give some form of entertainment in every aspect of their endless routines.

So, to a society where a small bake sale being opened up will have a whole town shaken up and talking, you just have to imagine what kind of effect the knowledge that another human has fallen down will have.

“Iiiii don’t believe it! I won’t!!!” cried out a shaggy fuzzball by the sacred and ancient candy bowl, deep in argument with his mothlike friend, both of which were holding their own pieces of classic peppermint-liquorice candy. “Another human in the underground? It’s just implausible!”

“Ya don’t believe ANYTHING, Bigs!” the moth monster cried out “We have five good monsters that we know and love independently telling us that a human has been sighted!”

“It’s a hoax! A wider elaborate form of modern mass hysteria!” “Bigs” splurted out. “Think about the facts! Think about the numbers! Gap between humans zero and one? 200 years! Gap between humans one and two? 9! It’s improbable!”

“Improbable ain’t mean impossible” the moth replied leisurely as it popped the candy it was holding into its mouth.

“Well then answer me this question, man!” “Bigs” replied “If a human is really among us… Where’s the evidence? Where’s all the dust they’ve left in their path? Why haven’t they killed anyone?”

Elsewhere, an imp and a dove playfully crinkled through some fallen leaves, wrapped up in an argument about their predicament just as heated.

“Do you… r-r-really think so?” the dove asked “That the human is… okay?”

“Well…” the imp sighed in a nasally grawl “Nobody has been reported missing or dead yet. Plus, we know that Chara existed, so not every single human is against monsterkind.”

“But if we’re talking about Chara…” the dove replied weakly “T-their… their speech… speech-”

“Speeches, yeah.” the imp completed “Speeches about the harshness of life on the surface. About the raw abject cruelty of humanity.” the imp sat down on the floor and flipped some of the leaves into the air, and watched them fall. “Those were s’pposed to be about how life underground compared, and the kindness our royals showed them in comparison. But I suppose our childrens’ history classes are more focused on their negative aspects these days, huh?”

“So… you’re really…” the dove stuttered out.

“Yeah. I’m giving the human the benefit of the doubt.” the imp replied “Hoping that they might have some good in them. Is… is that something that’ll drive you away from being friends with me?”

The dove waited for a second before giving a response.

“I don’t know.”

And as these rumours and arguments started to swell, the witnesses who were spreading them were just stoking them even more. Back in the very residential centre of Home itself, the three flaming skulls had attracted a rather large crowd.

“And you know what the CRAZIEST THING about it all was?” one of them screamed out.

“Toriel actually PROTECTED the human!” another responded.

“She shot FIREBALLS at us and said ‘I’m protecting this thing!’” the final one posited.

The crowd immediately went wild, whispering and yelling amongst themselves to try and make sense of what they’ve heard.

“Has she gone crazy?”
“Of course she has, she’s locked herself up for so long!”
“Liars! No monster would ever do that!”
“Wasn’t she supposed to be the best of us?”
“This is all wrong!”

“Now, now!” one of the skulls spoke “I know this all seems uncharacteristic of her, but think about what she’s ALREADY DONE!”

“Everyone ALREADY KNOWS that she’s only hiding out here to avoid the rule of Asgore!” another continued “To avoid her RESPONSIBILITY!”

“She probably doesn’t even CARE that her children were killed by humankind!” the third finished “At the VERY LEAST, she doesn’t love them as much as WE DO!”

And with that, the crowd exploded into uproar. Some were angry at the skulls for suggesting these ideas, but most were angry at Toriel for her “betrayal” of monsterkind. Until eventually, one bought something up that calmed the crowd down.

“Well then, shouldn’t we come down to her house and call her out?”

The crowd immediately simmered down after that. Their murmurs had changed from cries of anger to murmurs of reservation.

“Who would be crazy enough to do that?”
“Isn’t she… yknow… a boss monster?”
“Her magic is terrifying!”
“She’s as strong as Asgore! If not stronger…”
“There’s no monster alive who’s stronger than her, right?”

And so, as the crowd’s arguments grew louder and louder, the sound started to spread all across the town. Across the buildings, through the alleyways, and over its center. And it started to reach a certain coffin.

A scratching noise started to come from it. Nobody was close enough to hear it, but if they were, it would have driven itself deep into their core. Its scrapes so deliberate, so insidious. Until eventually, a small hole was poked in the wood, and a bony finger covered in sagging, clammy flesh poked its way through it.

And from this hole, if you were unfortunate enough to be close enough, you would be able to hear something being muttered.

“A… human?”

Something that should have been forgotten has begun to wake anew.

Chapter Text

As Eleanor awoke from a dreamless sleep, she was initially shocked by the fact that she was not in a bed she recognised. She quickly ran through dozens of possibilities of what could have happened to her and what she could do to save herself, before remembering that she was staying with Toriel.

The bed she had been sleeping in reminded her of the comfortable ground that she had first landed in when she fell down into the underground. Was the mattress stuffed with the soft dirt, or were there mattresses built into the ground there? Perhaps the ground and the mattress were simply both affected by some unknown third party, possibly a type of enchantment. Whatever. It didn’t matter.

The “guest room” that Toriel had fixed Eleanor up with had very clearly been lived in before. It was filled with children’s toys and simple drawings. Toriel had probably had a child before, and they’d either grown up… or passed away. Maybe Toriel was seeing her as a kind of replacement to them. Maybe she could segway into that topic whenever it felt most natural to bring it up: if she tried to touch that wound on her own, it would probably lead to Toriel developing some dislike towards her, or at the very least completely shrug the question off.

There was a wardrobe right next to the bed, which upon a quick look, did have some free clothes in Eleanor’s size. Scoping out the selection, Eleanor discarded her dirty dress and switched it for a simple combination of shirt and pants. She wished she could wash, but she hadn’t seen a shower anywhere in the house. Monsters probably had another magic-powered way of keeping clean. She would have to ask Toriel about it as soon as she could.

There was also a little music box on the bedside stall that played a rather sweet and sombre tune when wound up. Eleanor had given it a listen before she’d gone to sleep, and was giving it another listen now. She didn’t recognise the melody, so it was probably a monster song, and probably a famous one that’s ingrained into their culture if a music box that plays it is just lying around. Maybe that could be something else that she could-

It was then that it hit Eleanor that she was stalling getting out of bed - or rather, getting fully ready. Usually she was capable of just pulling herself together on a dime and getting on with whatever during the day. But now, she wanted nothing more than to just snuggle back into bed and sleep for a few extra winks. Maybe it was the fact that the new environment that Toriel was putting her in was overtly comforting, or maybe it was simply the fact that she didn’t have anything set out to do during the day that she was motivating herself to get done.

She couldn’t do with this. She needed to get out and talk with Toriel. Set up something to do with her day. Even if Toriel wanted to be lax with any proper tasks at first, deciding some degree of activity would obviously be needed to be done. So, she just pulled herself together, walked towards the door and…

She was still hesitating. Then, the subconscious effects in Eleanor’s head reached her conscious mind. She didn’t want to leave her room. Why? What was she scared of? She knew that Toriel was on her side. Was she scared of doing something wrong that would turn her against her? Was she scared that she wasn’t genuine? Was she scared of… accepting her help…

Her thoughts snagged on that one. If it was hard to confront, it must logically be the correct answer. Which was bad. If her psyche was out of focus like this and was rejecting things that objectively only benefited her, she didn’t know how she was going to be able to make it…

She didn’t know how she was going to make it.

She already knew that she needed to get past this. Above all else, she needed to survive. She reached for the doorknob, pulled it, and walked out into the hallway. Nervously, she walked down the corridor, into the main living room… and sure enough, Toriel was already awake and ready, sitting by an unlit fireplace reading a book with a title that Eleanor couldn’t make out.

“Miss Toriel!” Eleanor quickly exclaimed “I’m sorry for sleeping in so late, I-”

“It’s not a problem,” Toriel responded calmly “It’s great that you managed to get a big long sleep! What would you like for breakfast?”

“Oh, just buttered toast, please.” Eleanor said.

“Now, now dear! You don’t need to only have that! I can make croissants, pancakes, crumpets, I still have some pie in the fridge, and I’ve even been working on trying to make some pain au chocolats recently!”

All baked or baking-adjacent goods. Seems that Toriel has a passion or particular level of skill in that regard. “Pancakes sound lovely.”

After a few minutes, Toriel returned carrying a small stack of four pancakes, all dressed up, with a melting slab of butter on the centre, various berries adorning the top and sides, and maple syrup dripping down the side. “Thank you.” Eleanor quickly said, and was about to dig in, before quickly asking “Oh, where do I get cutlery?”

“I can just get that for you, dear!” Toriel replied cheerfully, and quickly popped out and back in with a knife, fork and spoon. “Is there anything else that you need?”

“No, I’m fine.” Eleanor said, and started to cut out bits of the pancake and eat them with the fork. It… wasn’t as good as the pie from last night. The syrup was rather cloy, and the lingering taste of potato in the pancakes didn’t clash well with the rest of it. Eleanor supposed that Toriel just had more practice making pie. Still, it was good. But even if the pancakes were small, four of them felt like too much. She felt stuffed after the second one, but still soldiered on through the other two, making sure to eat the berries too, as they were the closest thing here to something good for her. What type of berries even were they? They didn’t taste or look like blueberries or strawberries… Probably a unique breed that was being cultivated in this cave. Still, if they’re served like this, then they’re probably good to eat, and they tasted fine as well.

After Eleanor set down her knife and fork on her plate and placed her unused spoon next to them and got up to carry the plate to the sink, she came to a realisation. Her and Toriel were fundamentally incompatible people. One would try and give everything she has to ensure that the person she was taking care of is the happiest that they can be, while the other simply wanted nothing beyond the bare minimum that would allow her to keep going. If Eleanor wanted this to be sustainable, she… Something needed to change. Toriel didn’t deserve being forced to change to suit according to her whims. Eleanor…

Dammit. That was her finally admitting it to herself. She wanted this to be sustainable. She could live a good life here. At least, a good life with Toriel. She had no idea how the rest of monsterkind would react. How they would try and shake it up. She supposed the only way that she could be able to keep herself safe… would just to spend her life here, with Toriel. Like she was in a fishbowl, kept away from the world with her…

Yes, like a fishbowl…

Maybe a fishbowl would be cramped. But for a little fish, it would be better than being thrown in the entire ocean.

Eleanor finished cleaning her dirty plate, placed it under the sink and returned to the living room, where she found that Toriel had set herself up while she wasn’t looking. She was sitting in her big chair in front of the fireplace and next to a cupboard, reading some book. Would Eleanor tell Toriel about what she was thinking right now? No. Of course not. She didn’t need to worry about those kinds of things. Still, some kind of conversation would probably be the best for both of them. Eleanor pulled out one of the chairs from the main table, pulled it out towards more of the middle of the room and sat down in a position that would allow her to properly speak with Toriel face to face.

“What are you reading?” Eleanor asked.

“Oh, this?” Toriel responded. “It’s just a book about various snail facts! Would you like to hear some?”

“Uh… I think I’m fine.” Eleanor said.

The two sat around in awkward silence together for a moment, before Eleanor finally managed to speak up again.

“Is there… anything for me to do?”

“Well, dear…” Toriel said “What do you want to do?”

Eleanor thought for a moment, then replied “I suppose I could finish looking around the house, see what’s in the basement?”

Toriel laughed “Oh, there’s nothing there at all. Just the back door to exit the ruins!”

Eleanor chuckled with her lightly “And we both know that I don’t want to go there, do I?”

“No, no,” Toriel responded.

The two just let the awkward silence take them over again. They tried to stay attentive, anticipating whenever the other may make a move. Eventually, Eleanor turned her gaze away.

“I… I just need something to do. I don’t want to be useless to you, miss.” Eleanor said quietly.

“Now, now, sweetheart.” Toriel responded “You do not need to be thinking like that. You do not need to be “useful” to me to stay here.”

“Even-”

“Child, I- You do not need to be thinking like that.” Toriel said quickly. “You will not be a burden to me. Simply enjoy anything you wish.”

Eleanor became a lot tenser, then relaxed herself. And from then on, Eleanor had her first day in a very long while where nothing of note happened.

Chapter Text

“Are you ready, dear?”

Eleanor nodded. It had been a couple of days, but Toriel had already suggested trying to try and go out of the house. She had told Eleanor that it would be good for her to try a variety of experiences, to stretch her legs and whatnot. Eleanor had enjoyed being able to just do nothing, but she supposed that if Toriel thought it best for her, it would be the best thing for her.

Toriel wanted to bring her to a bug catching spot. Eleanor had never done it before in her life, but it seemed like something that Toriel was very passionate about. Besides, the whole process with the nets seemed very simple to grasp.

“Ready as you are, miss.” Eleanor responded.

Of course, she was still nervous. Paranoia still rang in her head, all the possibilities of what could go wrong. Of who could attack her, of whatever calamity they might face. Toriel had reassured her that she was safe as long as the two of them stuck together. Eleanor had chosen to believe it.

“Alright, then!” Toriel chimed “Just follow me, and we’ll be able to get there with no trouble at all!”

Eleanor slung her net over her shoulder as she followed Toriel, the two of them walking through the tree blush with red leaves outside her house that Eleanor had passed by when first arriving at Toriel’s house, and moving into a semi-hidden passage that opened fairly easily.

Now that she was “Outside” again, Eleanor took in the sights of the ruins’ architecture again. What she hadn’t truly focused on before was how much it seemed to be falling apart. The bricks seemed very, very old, with lots of hasty fixes of different brick types being inserted in places where the walls had obviously fallen apart, giving the entire place a sort of patchwork look. She was almost scared that there may be a cave-in at some point, but she trusted that if an entire civilization had been living down here long enough to fade into legend, then they would have been able to at least maintain themselves for that long.

She wondered a little who had built these passages. She initially thought that Toriel had created them specifically for herself, but then she remembered that she was seeing the same wear and tear here. These passages couldn’t have been new, they had to be as old as the rest of the ruins. For Toriel to have had a hand in these, she would have had to be as ancient as this kingdom itself.

After a couple more twists and turns through the tight but still wide enough hallways, the two of them reached what seemed to be a dead end. But, of course, Toriel pressed down on a few bricks, and the wall opened up again, revealing their location.

The only time that Eleanor had seen the unblocked beams of the sun before in the underground was in the initial room that she had fallen down into. This made sense, since of course there won’t be many other entrances into this massive cave system. In fact, it was somewhat of a miracle that light was still even able to reach that one location at all. Eleanor didn’t think that there would be any other locations that sunbeams would touch.

But, despite it all, she could see natural light beaming down into this room.

It was full of the most greenery that she had seen too, with tall grass that reached far past her waist and bright golden flowers, probably the same type that Eleanor had landed in. Sometimes, she was able to catch bugs flitting from one spot to another, giving the complete confirmation that yes, this is that bug catching spot that Toriel had been talking about. Eleanor took a deep breath of the freshest air that she had been able to breathe in the last few days. This room wasn’t all that big, but it was undoubtedly the most idyllic place she had seen in the entire underground.

“It’s beautiful” she said softly.

“Well, I did tell you it was my favorite bug-hunting spot!” Toriel said with a little giggle, some of the most ecstatic that Eleanor had heard her be. “No matter what is going on, I can always rely on this place to make me smile.”

Eleanor smiled softly. Both from the same effect that Toriel was talking about, and from the knowledge that she was able to get her own happiness.

“Can I… have the jar, please?” Eleanor asked, after taking a moment to soak it all in. The place itself was great, but she had come here to perform a specific activity, and she needed to be able to pull that part off too in order to enjoy herself to the fullest.

“Oh, of course dear!” Toriel said with another giggle. Eleanor held the jar carefully, making sure not to drop it. The bug-catching process was simple: just a test of patience, perception and reaction speed. After landing a bug in the net, quickly move it to the jar with the holes poked in the top, then remove it after you’ve admired the bug for long enough.

Eleanor lay down stomach first onto the grass, observant of anything before her. Just like the bed of flowers that she had initially fallen into, the grass seemed far softer and more comfortable to lie in than “regular” grass. Eleanor guessed that this further proved her assumption that there was some sort of magic spell that was creating this degree of “softness”. It really did feel like how you would expect lying down in grass to feel, soft and comforting… If Eleanor was still tired, she may have started to become drowsy again. But she was wide awake, and focused.

Holding her net steadfast, Eleanor kept her eyes peeled. She didn’t see any bugs, so she just focused on the shape of the grass. Toriel had taken a much more different approach, walking around to see if she could see anything. Eleanor supposed it was as good an approach as any.

After a while, Eleanor asked “Have you seen anything?”, which Toriel jovially responded to with “Nothing at all!”.

“Must be a slow day.” Eleanor said.

“It does not matter!” Toriel replied “You are having fun, are you not?”

Eleanor was. But she couldn’t really vocalise it, or even really explain it. Which was a shame, because she liked being able to have a conversation with Toriel about something-

WAIT! Eleanor saw something crimson move and flutter a little, standing out from the greens and yellows of the landscape. She quickly brang her net down upon it, pulled it towards herself, and flipped it to make it go into the jar that she was carrying.

As she quickly fastened the lid, she managed to get a better look at what she had captured, and sure enough, it was a butterfly! A real butterfly, with bright red wings.

“I got something!” Eleanor said excitedly, causing Toriel to come over and look at what was in the jar she had cusped in her hands. “Oh my!” Toriel said “You got a Red Marvel!”

“Are they rare?” Eleanor asked.

“Everything is rare down here” Toriel chuckled “After all, the only insects that come down here are ones that passed into the cave from the surface! But this one is even rarer than most. Good work, dear!”

Eleanor knew that getting something like this came down to dumb luck, not skill. Still, she couldn’t help but feel accomplished. She took a few more moments to really remember what the butterfly looked like, and then unscrewed the jar, and watched as it flew away into the sunbeams.

“It looks so… free.” Eleanor said softly.

“Haha… well, of course.” Toriel responded. “They can come and go through the barrier as they please.”

“Do you think,” Eleanor asked, “That even if we built a big ladder all the way to the top of this cave, I wouldn’t be able to pass through the barrier?”

“Oh, I know so, dear.” Toriel responded. “Even if they can enter, humans cannot exit the barrier.”

So that fully confirmed it: Eleanor was fully unable to return to the surface. In a way, it was somewhat comforting to hear that. She was essentially going to be going through a full reset, leaving her old life behind in its entirety. All she needed to worry about was how to match up to Toriel’s ideas and needs to appeal to her the best. And, of course, to try and enjoy herself.

“Well, shall we get back to-” Eleanor asked, before being quickly interrupted.

“Wait!” said Toriel. “I can hear something. We should get back to the passageway.”

Eleanor couldn’t hear anything at all, but she trusted Toriel’s judgement. Toriel opened the secret door again, and the two rushed into the passageway as it closed behind them.

“Do not be alarmed, dear.” Toriel said. “It is simply another monster that has come to use this space. We will have to attempt to avoid them as much as we can.”

Eleanor nodded wordlessly. She understood the danger. She needed to maintain the fishbowl, no matter what. If a monster came and attacked them… maybe formed a mob to chase them to their house… She couldn’t let anybody know that she was there.

And so, Eleanor waited, as Toriel kept listening. And as she did, she started to analyse the walls of the passage that they were in. Because although she had not noticed them before, she could tell now clear as day that they had some kind of carving in them. It had been partially broken up as some of the bricks had been replaced, but she could make out figures in the older spaces. And most interestingly of all, she could make out one figure very clearly. Although it was a rough depiction, it couldn’t have been anybody other than Toriel, standing proud with a crown over her head next to another similar monster.

How old was Toriel? Was she some kind of royalty? Eleanor was just glad that Toriel was facing away from it and was heeding it no mind: otherwise she probably would have some attempt to cover it up. She couldn’t hold it back any longer, she NEEDED to press Toriel soon. She had probably built up enough goodwill that Toriel would freely reveal some details about her history. But not now. Making a stressful situation even more complicated would just make Toriel unhappy.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow, she would begin asking some tough questions.

Eventually, Toriel gave the word to go. She opened the door, and the two returned to the bug catching spot. And from there, the rest of the session went without a hitch. From then on, they returned home, and had some dinner. Eleanor was happy. There is nothing more to say on the matter.

Chapter Text

Awaking from strange dreams, Eleanor pulled herself out of bed, got dressed, and walked into the living room. Toriel had gotten up before her as usual, although Eleanor had no idea what her motivation to do so was. Perhaps she just wanted to be there to greet her.

“Good morning, Toriel!” Eleanor said.

“Good morning, my dear!” Toriel responded cheerfully. “What would you like for breakfast?”

“Can I have the croissant again, please?” Eleanor asked.

“Of course!” Toriel noted.

Eleanor sat down in her chair as Toriel quickly went off into the kitchen. Toriel’s cooking was something to always look forward to, especially since she was able to get it so hot off the presses. The tea that she usually drank with the breakfast was finished, which Eleanor was deeply glad for, even if she would never tell Toriel that. Eventually, Toriel finished baking it, and Eleanor dug in. Good as ever, good as ever. She finished quickly, and then just sat in silence as she let Toriel enjoy her own meal.

What would she even say? She knew that Toriel’s past was too suspicious to not ask about, but any direct acknowledgement of that would just make Toriel hate her. Maybe she should wait until there’s a good opportunity to bring the conversation to that point? But that would probably never happen naturally, or at the very least it wouldn’t happen for months, maybe longer.

Then maybe she should just ignore it? Everything weighed together, that seemed like the best possible option. Even if something happens regarding Toriel, prying would do nothing but trigger it earlier.

…Agh. She couldn’t come to a conclusion. With everything rattling around in her head, she couldn’t figure out what the option that would be best for her safety would be. So then just keep on going on as normal. As standard. Just keep thinking about this and try to reach a point. By now, Toriel was finishing her own breakfast, another pie of some kind. Just talk to her a bit after she’s finished with it.

And in a few minutes or so, Toriel did finish, and got up to put her tin away. But after that, she also left to go somewhere else. Eventually, she returned to the living room with a wrapped box in her hands.

“I know it is not your birthday or any sort of Festival…” Toriel said “But I would like to give you a present, dear.”

“Oh, thank you,” Eleanor replied.

She got up, and took the box from Toriel’s hands. Carefully unwrapping the ribbon as to leave it intact rather than tearing it to release it, Eleanor opened the box to find that what was inside was… a knife? No, on closer inspection, its blade was made of plastic. It was just a toy. She put the box down, and picked it up. It was small and light - probably enough to be kept in a large pocket. It comfortably fit in her hands. It was good for what it was, and Eleanor was definitely grateful, but it seemed strange for Toriel to give her something like this.

Likely reading the expression on Eleanor’s face, Toriel piped up again “After our near encounter with that other monster, I just wanted to make sure you were equipped to be able to deal with a real dangerous encounter, my dear. But of course, I do not wish for you to hurt anyone! You can simply use that tool as a way to intimidate and scare off any who trouble you.”

That made a decent amount of sense, Eleanor supposed. In the end, more tools at her disposal to defuse any potential threat to her were appreciated, even if it was in the form of an absolute last resort. Even so…

“Did someone teach you this idea?” Eleanor asked.

“What makes you want to know that?” Toriel replied, with a noticeable tang of emotion in her voice. There was something of substance here. This was probably the best opportunity Eleanor was going to get to naturally make this question. She had to commit.

“It’s… I wouldn’t usually imagine you wanting me to be aggressive in this way.” Eleanor explained.

Toriel gave a powerful sigh. “I suppose… I can let you know, dear. I… Yes, I indeed learned this from another. A good friend… ah, I suppose I could call them… yes, they were indeed family.”

“Were they like me?” Eleanor asked.

“Ah, of course. Your situation is very similar to theirs, and…. I suppose you are very similar to how Chara was.” Toriel sighed. “The ways in which you carry yourselves just… albeit, they were not as frugal as you are, my dear.”

So Eleanor’s suspicions were confirmed. Toriel had indeed once had a child of her own, who she was no longer connected with, either estranged or deceased. And so, it seemed that she was acting as a sort of replacement to “Chara” in Toriel’s mind. She knew the type, albeit Toriel seemed more restrained than those she’d seen. At least this seemed to mean that there was no risk of Toriel suddenly turning on her - she was going to fill too meaningful of a psychological role to Toriel. Maybe she should find out more about Chara to… better understand what their relation to Toriel was? And maybe try and fill that even better.

“You… keep saying “they” in regards to Chara.” Eleanor asked first “Was Chara a boy or a girl?”

“Oh, they were neither!” Toriel chuckled. “Don’t worry about that part, dear.”

Eleanor stayed silent for a moment. “And… were they a human, like me?” she asked after some deliberation.

“Yes.” Toriel replied solemnly. “The first human to fall in the underground.”

“How long ago was it? That they fell down?” Eleanor asked.

“It would have to have been… nine years ago. Nine years…” Toriel replied.

“And… how long ago did monsters go underground?”

“About 200 years.”

“Were there any others to fall into the underground between Chara falling here and me falling here?”

“Oh, no. You’re the first to fall since… Ever since.”

That was obviously suspicious. Not on Toriel’s part but… in general terms. 200 years of no humans falling into the underground, and then once the first falls the next arrives comparatively quickly. Something had to be going on, possibly surrounding the barrier itself. But then even so, why would “something flicking” in it only cause two to fall down into the underground in nine years?

“What… happened to Chara? Why are they… not in your life anymore?” Eleanor asked, before seeing a look on Toriel’s face that said everything. “Oh. I see.” she followed up softly. “I didn’t mean to-”

“It is alright, dear.” Toriel said quickly, cutting Eleanor off. “It is not your burden to be troubled with.”

But Eleanor was still worried. She didn’t want to see Toriel feeling like that, especially as a result of her own actions. She wanted to cheer her up, but didn’t have a grasp on how she should go about doing so. The only idea that she had was trying to bring the conversation back round to Toriel’s “better days”.

“So, what kind of person was Chara like?”

“Oh, they were such a sweet person… always so shy, but they would always perk up when talking and playing with us. They were always so engaged whenever they tried to make something creative… I remember those macaroni drawings and that big itchy sweater so fondly. Oh, and they tried to get the most out of everything they could… always spilling water because they wanted to fill it to the brim every time they made a trip to the sink.”

“I… see. I see.” Eleanor responded, with a weight in her chest. “And… was Chara happy? Living underground like this, in a kingdom of monsters that hated them?”

“Well, back then, monsterkind was not as hostile as this.” Toriel responded “Chara was… a lot like a symbol to monsterkind. They were hope that our races could be happy together once more. And now, they’re…”

“I’m sorry.” Eleanor said softly. She tightly gripped the toy knife in her hands. It felt weighty now. As if it were a symbol. A symbol of the legacy of “Chara”. Of the way that fought, being passed down onto her. Of how Toriel would view her in relation to how she viewed Chara before. Of how monsterkind would view her in Chara’s wake.

Eleanor bought the knife closer to her chest. She accepted this, in its entirety.

“But… were they happy?” Eleanor asked. “All I want to ask right now is “were they happy?”.”

“Yes. They were very happy, my dear.” Toriel replied.

“Then I’ll be happy here then.” Eleanor said softly “The monsters being different doesn’t matter. I just want to be able to live with you. We can be like a fa-”

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Grim knuckles rapped against Toriel’s door. Someone was outside.

The fishbowl had broken.

Chapter Text

“Come in!” Toriel said.

The door slowly creaked open, as the figure behind it entered the house. The monster was unlike anything else in the underground, most strikingly because of how close it resembled a human. And yet still, its clammy skin seemed stony and unnatural, its “hair” more resembled a pattern on its body, its figure seeming bony despite its massive frame. The monster pulled its cloak with it as it sauntered into the room.

“It has been a very long time since I have seen you last, Dracula!” Toriel chimed in. “Please, take a seat opposite to me, and we can have a chat for old times’ sake.” she noted as she sat down in the chair with a back to the wall.

“Ah, yesss. It has been far too long.” Dracula replied as he sat down in the chair facing the wall. “Tell me, Toriel. Do you still drink… vine?”

“Oh, not anymore.” Toriel responded “I have had to quit very recently, in fact.”

“Oh, that iss… quite unfortunate.” Dracula said. “I had obtained this special gift, just for you.”

From his cloak, Dracula produced a bottle of wine.

“Do you recognise it? This is no ordinary chardon, Toriel.” Dracula said. “This is genuine human wine, washed down from the surface. For it to not only be washed down into the garbage dump and for it to be undamaged, with all of its miraculous flavour intact… nothing less of a miracle, milady. A true miracle.”

From there, Dracula produced a pair of wine glasses from his cloak, and placed them on the table, and began to fill one. After doing so, he gently placed the bottle down, and picked up the glass.

“It took great trouble for me to obtain this delicacy, and I have been taking care of it for a very long time. I had simply hoped that… I could share a little of it with an old friend now that I have resolved to drink it.”

Toriel sighed deeply. “Alright. I shall have a glass or two.”

“That’s the spirit.” Dracula said, before taking a sip from his wineglass. “Ah. Just as I remember it. Even someone as fascinated with human food as me is… still surprised by its striking properties on occasion.”

Dracula continued to slurp the wine down, until the glass had been emptied. “How wasteful.” Toriel butted in. “Something as rare as that should be savoured rather than used up all at once.”

“Ah ah ah… So that is your perspective!” Dracula laughed “Do not vorry, Toriel. This is how I have resolved to live. This is happiness to me.” With that said, he poured himself another glass, and began to drink from it.

“Besides, I do believe that soon it will be… not as rare as it was before.” Dracula said with a smirk, as he began to drink his next glass. “The passage of time is a cruel mistresssss… And yet she still will give fruitful rewards, ha!” With that, Dracula took another sip from his glass.

“I see. What makes you believe that such an event will happen?” Toriel asked.

“Toriel, Toriel, Toriel. I know you know what I am talking about.” Dracula sighed “Zhe human. After all these years, another has fallen down into our little community.”

Toriel sighed deeply. “I had been hoping to… not need to discuss this yet. Could you not just pour me another glass of wine for the moment?”

“Ah ah ah… What happened to the Toriel that just quit? Back to avoiding our problems with drink, are we?” Dracula laughed.

“Please… do not mock me.” Toriel sighed. “Let us just talk about this then, if you need me to do so.”

“Ah, so so cold…” Dracula sighed “I had been hoping to keep the jovial mood throughout our whole meeting.”

“You are the cold one, are you not?” Toriel retaliated. “Returning to an old friend after who knows how many years with only business on your mind.”

“...I have come here with purpose. If you want to take a break for your own needs then… just try and finish the wine I have given you.” Dracula said.

Sipping from the glass, Toriel eventually finished what she had been served. The two of them sat in silence for a moment, before Toriel eventually restarted the conversation.

“Say what you have to say.”

“Well… I’m sure you’ve heard the hymn monsterkind is singing by now.” Dracula said. “The human, the figure of those who slayed the very symbols of our hope, has fallen into our reach. Into our clutches. Many have pulled up arms, many are storming down to try and get vengeance, to finally give us the first step to reclaiming our freedom that we so desperately need.”

“Then I imagine you do share that rage, do you not?” Toriel said softly.

“Rage? Ah ah ah… Toriel, Toriel. You do not understand me at all.” Dracula laughed. “My mind is not clouded by visions of spite. For the first time in decades, I am finally thinking clearly. I can feel the hearts and voices of monsterkind beating as one. Do you not see? I have a role. I am purposed. I must seek and destroy, until it is done.”

“So, do you believe that killing the human and presenting the soul to Asgore on a silver platter will give you your redemption?” Toriel asked.

“Toriel, Toriel. You ask that as if it were a troubled dilemma.” Dracula sighed. “You know… the monsters of the Ruins are saying some dreadfully awful things about you. I had been hoping that the rumours were not true.”

“...The human is gone.” Toriel said.

Dracula scowled. “Toriel. Is this an admission of guilt?”

“The human is gone! The human is gone! They have gone and left!” Toriel yelled suddenly.

“But they WERE here, then? Staying here, in this house, with your permission?” Dracula retorted.

“They simply momentarily passed through. You- do not bring your anger out at me! I did not… I did not foster them!” Toriel said.

“You spared them. You ignored them. You let them pass.” Dracula sneered. “It does not matter what else you did. That alone is enabling them. I don’t care how much you loved them or if you really did not care. Those are all irrelevant! All that matters in the end is the human’s life. Its death must be inevitable, its death is the only path for monsterkind to move forward! The only path for the world to move forward!”

“Do you want to get physically violent with me, then?” Toriel sighed.

“Ah ah ah… using that privilege of being a boss monster against me, are you?” Dracula laughed.

“It is not as if you are a normal monster either.” Toriel said with a scowl on her face. “If you wish, I will meet you at any level.” After stating this, fireballs flickered around Toriel’s hands, filling the room with warm light.

“Ah ah ah!” Dracula continued to laugh. “No, no no. I am quite fine, Toriel Dreemurr. Blood is my purpose, not dust. The only time I would ever raise a bullet towards you is if you were blocking my ability to aim at zhe human.”

Toriel jumped out of her chair, rushed to the doorframe, and stood in front of it. “Then this is it. I will stop you! I am blocking you! Stay away from the human!”

Dracula got up too, and began to walk towards the door. Slowly, he simply walked around Toriel.

“They are… just a child.” Toriel choked out. “They deserve… to have a chance at life.”

“It was wonderful to talk to you, Toriel.” Dracula said as he walked past Toriel, and through the doorway. “Keep the rest of the wine.”

And so, Dracula pressed on, leaving Toriel behind to break into tears.

*******

The roaring blizzard fell through the late-night underground, faux water crystallising in magical clouds. Every footprint that Eleanor left behind was covered up moments later, leaving her with no path to be tracked with. Even so, the bitter winds grasped around her, her clothes not enough to keep her warm. She kept running, knowing that stimulating her body heat would be her only chance to not be claimed by the harsh change in climate.

Tears crystalised on her face, gripping to her skin and causing stinging pain. She did not have time to wipe them away, forced to huddle into herself as she kept running. She had no idea where she was running to. Twisting between the trees of the forest, she was beginning to tire herself out in the middle of nowhere.

All she knew was that she needed to run from Dracula. She had hidden in the cupboard until Toriel gave the signal, and overheard most of their conversation. She understood the threat he was posing to her. It had been the best possible option to ensure her survival. She understood that. She needed to survive. To survive she needed to keep running, she…

Eleanor stopped in her tracks. She fell to her knees. Why did she have to keep running? Why did she need to keep running?

She had found a place where she belonged. She had found a place where she had been happy.

Why did she need to keep running? Why couldn’t she just live? Why couldn’t things just go differently? Why couldn’t she just be allowed to be happy?

Why did she have to die?

Chapter Text

So that was it.

Toriel stood in the doorframe leading out of the ruins, letting the heat creep and the cold seep in. Snow pooled around her as she stared into the underground outside, the underground under Asgore’s rule. Now that Dracula had chased Eleanor away, everything that she had gained had once again been lost. Maybe she could chase after them but… where would she even go? What would she even do? Would she…

Was she so much of a coward that her shame of stepping foot in Asgore’s kingdom again overpowered her desire to protect an innocent child’s life? Her desire to… protect HER child’s life?

Quickly, Toriel rushed out a few steps, and then stopped in her tracks. The snow felt cold on her bare feet, even with her layer of warming fur. Maybe she would have to put on a pair of those socks she had kept away, that she was so scandalously ashamed of because… because she kept them with her so that she could walk through Snowdin like this.

Instead, Toriel just disregarded this thought, and pressed on. She staggered forward, crunching through the snow. Was… she drunk? No, no no no she usually needed to drink much more than this to feel like this…

She was just… unstable. She couldn’t hold the weight of her own body. Everything that had happened was pulling it down. Shambling towards one of the trees to her left, she grabbed onto it to prevent herself from falling over.

She couldn’t stop shaking. She just needed to take a moment. She just needed to take everything in, and then she would be able to move forward.

Grabbing onto the branch of the next tree, Toriel used it to keep herself up as she moved forward, more and…

Quickly, Toriel stumbled back. Back through the door, back into the ruins. Why couldn’t she do this? Why couldn’t she help someone?

She thought back to the day after Chara and Asriel died. The day when Asgore announced in his anger that he had damned all humans.

Why didn’t Asgore listen to her when she told him that his rule would have sentenced Chara to death?

She thought about the argument that she had with Asgore in the snowy forests, and how he brushed off everything that she had told him, everything that she had yelled at him.

“If you truly regretted passing that rule, then you would retract it! Do you not understand that? Or are you just too much of a coward?”

Was she too much of a coward too? She knew what was happening, what she was doing, and yet…

Toriel gently closed the door behind her. The cold was no longer seeping into the ruins.

She turned around, and walked back upstairs.

Returning to the empty living room, Toriel sat back down in her chair. Sitting around, letting everything…

The fire in her fireplace crackling was the only noise. It was faint, but regular. The flames moved back and forth, in simple waves. It was the only part of the room that was not completely static. Every book, every plank, every chair simply stayed as they were. Water did not drip, passersby were not seen. The sun did not rise and the lights were not turned off. Nothing will be done, because there is nothing to be done. There was no meaning, there will be no change, and there is no exit.

When Chara was there, there was noise. Even though they were shy, you could hear the pitter-patter of their steps, the sound of them pouring their tea, the distant conversations they had with Asriel.

Is this house haunted?

When Eleanor was there, there was noise. Even though they were reserved, you could hear the click-clack of their steps, the deliberate chewing of her food, the way she muttered to herself.

If Toriel listened hard enough, could she hear those sounds again?

Could she reset everything again?

Wipe it all clean, and live like she had done before again?

Toriel got up from her chair, and got to the table. She stared at the last present of Dracula, his wine. She didn’t want it in her house. She didn’t want to look at it and remember Dracula. Nervously, Toriel pulled over a glass, and began pouring.

This house is haunted.

Chara’s spirit rests before it. Eleanor’s spirit will rest after it. And yet, those are not what haunt a place. It is the memory. The memory of better days will never leave this place. The drink cannot kill it. The isolation cannot kill it. Hope cannot kill it. Change will not kill it.

Toriel had her wish. She got a figment of the past back. But in return, she must see her hope die before her once again.

Toriel’s rare tears had returned to her once again as she began to drink every last drop of the wine. Despite everything, her clean slated state had come to a close.