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Kris is not fine.
Kris hasn’t been fine for a long while, even before the [SOUL] had invaded them they hadn’t been fine.
And after the day they’ve had? They’re even less fine.
Kris turned violently on their bed, knees curling up into themself. They wanted nothing more than to sleep, don’t they deserve that much? But no, no, that won’t be happening anytime soon. Not with the music blaring downstairs.
Kris grabbed their pillow— a vein in their hand bulging— like the thing had owed them money and pulled it over their head in hopes it would drown out the noise. It didn’t. Kris wasn’t sure anything would. That music, the laughing, it felt like it was coming from inside their head; So far away, but also so close and loud that it felt like something was pinned up against their skull, pressure building as if it was going to burst out any moment now.
Feeling restless and agitated Kris kicked their legs out away from their body, though banging their knee against the wall in the process. A jolt shot through them and they flung the pillow away. It hit the edge of their dresser and plopped uselessly onto the floor.
Kris pushed themself up and swung their legs over the edge of the bed, relenting to the fact they weren’t going to get any sleep soon.
The strain. The exhaustion.
Kris stood.
…The invasive, not-truly-there sensation of a thousand millipedes skittering around their organs, their bones-
Their spine.
.
Kris knew a way to get rid of at least one of those problems.
They brought their hand up to their chest, their body stiffening in preparation as their fingers pressed against it. A soft, red glow emanated from their chest, rippling out from the centre in the same way as when a pebble is dropped into a pond. Their fingers had started sinking down into their chest, feeling something quake and scramble deep in their being filled Kris with a sense of satisfaction. Not even the consuming, mind-numbing pain damn near paralysing their body could overshadow that.
Kris’s fingers were about to enclose around the foreign existence in their body.
Thunk!
Something hit Kris’s window and gave them pause.
The [SOUL] was safe for now.
They pulled their fingers out from their chest, the glow disappearing, the pain tensing their body leaving and giving Kris the ability to freely move their limbs. They walked over to the window right as another object thumped into it.
When the window opened Kris was met with the heavy rain and a gust of air that mussed their hair, bangs fluttering chaotically over their eyes. Whatever object that was being thrown at their window had caught their attention, and when they peaked out their window, also caught them square in the face. Kris didn’t react much, just watched it fall to the ground below where they found the culprit.
Susie. Wet and struggling with her own wind swept hair being blown into her face.
Kris also noticed she was missing a shoe, said missing shoe laying on the grass right below their window. She had been throwing her own shoe at their window.
Below, Susie was struggling with what to say. She had just left them at the door whenever they saw whatever bullshit the two of them walked into earlier…with Toriel and that skeleton. But now, here she was— wet, a little cold and her left sock was muddy thanks to standing on the wet grass without a shoe. Truthfully, this whole thing was done completely out of impulsiveness. If she was bothered by what had happened, then how was Kris feeling? Trying to sleep with all that going on just downstairs?
That was the train of thought that led her to be standing here, tossing her shoe at Kris’s window. Now that Kris was actually looking down she didn’t actually know what to say. She opened her mouth, ended up getting her hair blown into it, and spluttered while angrily pushing it out of the way.
“Hey.”
Was all that she thought to muster. Anything longer and she’d be eating her own hair. Not that her eating random, non-edible things is a rarity, it’s just that she rather likes her hair.
Plus it’d taste awful when it’s wet. Soggy hair, ew. She kept staring up at Kris, waiting for them to do something, and when she saw them throw up two fingers before dipping their head back inside, Susie knew to go wait by the door.
Meanwhile Kris was kneeling by their dresser, opening the bottom drawer where their coats were kept. Rummaging through it they take out a green raincoat, go to close the drawer, and stop. They pull out a second raincoat that is conveniently the only purple one they have, and probably the only article of clothing they have that isn’t green in the slightest.
Kris stood up, booted the drawer closed, then turned to the door. Would the [SOUL] try to interfere with their time with Susie? Should Kris just tear it from their chest and deal with the pain while they’re out?
The [SOUL] doesn’t react.
Normally when it’s in control it feels like there’s a second heart beating in their chest— one that glows and fills their body with a pleasant but overwhelming warmth that would make someone want to give in to it, to relax. To let it take over. It’s so strong that it feels like it suppresses Kris’s own heart.
Despite how pleasant that warmth is. Despite how much Kris’s body wants to surrender to it.
They won’t.
It stops feeling pleasant when you realise that it’s not a second heart and that it’s this incomprehensible, foreign thing that can puppeteer your body. It’s not pleasant, it’s wrong and disturbing.
But there’s the absence of that warmth, the absence of a second heart beat. It’s remaining dormant for now. Kris hopes it stays that way, at least for tonight. It must be one of those times where it agrees with what Kris wants, that or it just doesn’t want to be left in its cage again.
Kris put on their own raincoat, and while carrying the other in their arm, left their bedroom. Walking down the hallway they heard, even through the noise of the music, their phone ring, then a voice talking through it. They knew who it was, but they can talk to themself for the time being, Kris has plans that take priority.
When Kris walks down the stairs they see Toriel and Sa— the skeleton, in the kitchen. Kris looks at them. Neither look back.
Kris walks past to get to the front door, pulling it open. They see Susie standing with her back turned a little further down the road. Kris closes the door as slow as they possibly can, not to stop it from alerting their mother— they don’t think she’d notice in the state she’s in— but to stop it from alerting Susie. It’s difficult to sneak up quietly, sure the rain should theoretically drown out their footsteps, but it was so heavy that it was puddling up on the ground, making each step they took emit a distinct splashing noise.
Though apparently Susie was too distracted by her thoughts, because she hadn’t noticed Kris until it was too late. Kris held the purple rain coat by the hood and jumped at her back, clinging on while pulling the hood over her head and even further down over her eyes.
Susie let out an undignified noise she would vehemently deny ever making, shaking side to side to get the weight of the human off her back. She grunted, though breathy giggles bled into her pleas
“Urgh! Get offa me, asshole!”
Eventually she’d swung Kris’s body off to the side enough where they scrambled at her shoulder to stop themself from being flung to ground and set their feet back down.
Susie pulled the raincoat off her and shot an indignant glare at them. Whatever insult she was brewing up though was shelved as she looked down at the raincoat, inspecting it
“Kris I dunno why you thought any of your clothes would fit me.”
Kris shrugged. They knew it wouldn’t fit her, but they didn’t feel like keeping Susie waiting out in the cold while they searched through Asriel’s stuff for one of his raincoats instead. After everything that’s happened today, Kris didn’t want Susie to feel like shit AND get sick on top of that.
“…Not my fault you’re this big.”
Kris speaks in a quiet voice, raspy and rough in a way that someone who doesn’t talk a lot very often is.
“Do you think humans make good frisbees?”
“I’m not sure…”
“Wanna find out?”
Kris isn’t very enthused about figuring it out.
“At least put the hood on?”
Susie grumbled something out, unintelligible because of the noise of the heavy downpour, but complied. She pulled the hood of the raincoat over her head letting the rest of it hang down her back. She pushed Kris’s head forward with her hand to urge them forward, the two walking further down the road. Away from the house, down the darkened streets, walking in a comfortable silence.
The wind picked up, the gusts causing the raincoat hanging down Susie’s back to billow behind her. Kris side eyed her.
“Nice cape.”
A snort. Susie lifted her snout haughtily
“Of course it is, I’m the one wearing it.”
She brought her hand behind her and used it to push up the ‘cape’, making it flap with a flourish
“Was thinking about getting Ralsei to make me one, but, y’know, I didn’t want to steal your flow. We both know I’d look so much cooler with it.”
Kris hummed
“But it still wouldn’t look as good as your church outfit.”
Susie snapped her head towards them, eyes squinted in offence.
“…Smartass”
The insult sounds more fond if anything, which takes away whatever sting there might’ve been.
They continued to walk in silence after that, aimless in where they were going. Susie hadn’t really thought things through, shocker, when she decided to get Kris out of that house. She simply wanted to spend time with them while they could, and she was worried about how they were holding up with that after what went on today.
So beyond that, she didn’t really know what the hell they were supposed to do now.
Splash
Susie flinched, pulling her leg up after something wet hit it. Not just the rain, that is.
She looked at Kris, who was innocently looking away. Or it would be innocent if not for their shaky shoulders and the shit eating look on their face. Kris had decided while Susie was distracted by her thoughts again, to kick water out from a puddle at her.
“Really?”
Kris looked at her and tilted their head, acting confused.
“You’re an ass— after I got my sock wet and muddy trying to get you to notice I was outside, you wanna kick a puddle at me?”
Kris was silent for a few seconds before saying, amusement in their voice
“It’s my fault you wanted to throw your shoe at my window?”
“Obviously!”
“What type of weird, roundabout logic IS that?”
“MY logic.”
Kris scoffed at her lunacy and faced forward. Again, silence stretched between them. It didn’t last as long as the others because Susie coughed into her fist and said
“So uh, any bright ideas?”
Kris’s head turned slightly, not fully facing towards her as it was more an inquiring gesture.
“What? We can’t just walk around doing nothing like weirdos! Wait scratch that, you ARE a weirdo— we can’t walk around like TWO weirdos.”
“You have such a way with words, Susie.”
“Cut the snark, would ya? It isn’t helpful.”
Kris sighed, shaking their head. It took a minute but they eventually offered
“The diner?”
“Isn’t it closed this late?”
A shrug in response. Whatever. It was a better plan than she had, which was to say, she didn’t have one in the first place so any plan was better. Using her superior, longer legs she sped up and walked ahead of Kris, stopping at the corner that would take them down towards the diner. She leant against the wall, arms crossed, feigning boredom as she awaited Kris catching up. The moment they did, she ‘accidentally’ put her foot out and tripped them—
Leading Kris to face plant into a puddle.
The quiet was no longer comfortable. Mocking, to Kris, and sweet with revenge to Susie. She crouched down next to where Kris was still face planted and hadn’t moved, patting them heavily on the shoulder as she snickered
“Ah, you okay Kris? It’s a shame how that happened right? Maybe if you just walked a little faster and didn’t drag your feet you wouldn’t have tripped.”
The way she spoke, it was pretty obvious she didn’t really think it was a shame. Kris gave no response.
Susie being the ever so benevolent, awesome, amazing being she was, grabbed Kris by the back of their neck and hoisted them off the ground. Due to the height difference, she had been able to lift them clear off the ground with legs dangling.
Susie noted that like this, Kris looked like an angry wet cat. The angry coming from the look on Kris’s face that promised that they would have their retribution against her…At some point. Some day in the future. Probably.
Susie put Kris back down on their feet so they could actually stop fucking around and get to where they need to go. Eventually the two stood in front of QC’s Diner— Kris walked up to the door and opened it, going inside with Susie in tow. It was empty, no surprise there, except for a lone purple rabbit in uniform sweeping the floor.
She spoke before she turned, sighing
“Sorry, but we’re closed you’ll need to-“
But she cut herself off as she saw Kris and Susie, perking up she smiled brightly at them
“Oh, Kris and friend!”
“Susie.”
“Kris and Susie! What’re you two doing here so late? Shouldn’t you be home?”
Kris remained quiet, looking around the empty Diner, so Susie spoke for the two of them
“Well we uh, we’re just out for a late night walk. Yeah. We were curious if the diner was still open.”
“We closed just over an hour ago, so I’m sorry you two, you have to leave.”
But before the two of them could even sigh in disappointment, her smile became even brighter, so bright in fact that Susie and Kris contemplated covering their eyes, it was as if an angel had descended
“But not without giving you both something warm to drink, it’s freezing out there, I can’t imagine those raincoats are warming you up much. Wait there and I’ll get you some hot chocolate.”
Susie was going to ask why she thought they wanted hot chocolate…But then she thought about hot chocolate and realised hot chocolate would be amazing right now, actually.
While they waited, Susie looked over to where she and Kris had sat earlier when they took her here. She remembered how Kris had just…smiled at them. Susie hadn’t said anything particularly funny, so she wasn’t sure why they had. Kris wasn’t a human of much expression, there was the occasional dirty look or tiny smile or something pained whenever they’re hurt in the dark world…But other than that? They were blank most of the time. The way they smiled at her then? It was soft, fond, like they were just happy looking at her.
The memory made something tighten in her chest.
A nudge.
Susie took herself out of her feelings and looked down at Kris
“What, freak?”
Kris, meanwhile, was rummaging through their pockets
“We need to pay for them.”
“Shit- yeah- how much you got on you?”
Kris finally grasped something and pulled it out, opening their fist to procure a measly two dollars.
Susie started patting through her own pockets, what did she have?…A tiny hairbrush and a crumpled leaf. The two looked down at their collective belongings— it wasn’t promising. When Kris looked up at Susie from their palm, she was looking back at her with that stupid looking, wide eyed expression she had sometimes when she screwed up.
Kris always thinks of Barney when they see that expression.
“You don’t need to worry about paying me hun”
Susie nearly jumped out of her scales when the shopkeeper materialised beside them, two paper cups filled with hot chocolate in them. She looked at Kris as they were told they didn’t have to pay, Kris just shrugged in response to her silent question.
“You sure? I mean you’ve already— earlier you…gave us some extra for me when Kris ordered earlier. Are you sure you wanna give away more free stuff?”
The shopkeeper responded by shoving the cups of hot chocolate into their hands
“What my boss doesn’t know won’t hurt them. Now scram! I got to finish up so I can go home.”
As Kris and Susie are all but pushed out of the door, they have to fight the urge to squint against the imaginary light coming from behind their beverage offering saviour as they thank her— Susie uttering a ‘thanks’ while Kris offers a grateful nod.
Then just like that they’re back out into the cold, wet streets of hometown. Only now they’re equipped with some hot chocolate which is undoubtedly going to disappear before long and they’re both going to regret drinking it all so fast.
Susie looked down at Kris
“You think if we took these to the dark world they’d turn into items or darkners?”
“Probably items. It’s only objects that become Darkners right?”
Susie lightly took Kris by the arm and tugged them away from the diner, letting go when they were idly walking side by side
“These cups are objects.”
“Don’t they need some sentimental value or functionality though?”
“These cups FUNCTION as cups. There were water coolers remember?”
Kris took a sip from the cup
“They were inhabited by other darkners, that’s why they moved.”
“Yeah- but- who’s to say the water coolers aren’t the reason they exist over there?”
Kris opened their mouth, nothing came out. They buried the lower half of their face with their palm and looked off to the side, hummed philosophically like this conversation was at all intellectual, relevant or riveting.
“See? See? There was those little red cups too. So, dude, hear me out…Little cups like these with legs and an infinite amount of rejenerating hot chocolate”
“Regenerating.”
“Go fuck yourself.”
Kris huffed out a smug breath while Susie chuckled into herself, both falling back into a comfortable silence. Susie led the way and Kris followed since it looked like she had an idea on where to go next.
Susie didn’t feel the need to check if Kris was following her, she could hear the wet slaps of their feet behind her. Though they started to get more distant the closer they got to flower king, and when she couldn’t hear them walking at all, she turned around. Kris was staring up at the sign for flower king with a complicated expression.
Susie didn’t say anything, just waited until Kris was ready to keep going again. She didn’t want to rush things, she didn’t mind waiting if it meant she got to spend even just a few more moments with Kris.
Kris eventually looked down, a few moments later turning to follow Susie again. She threw an arm around their shoulders, Kris let her, so she started to lead them along down the path. Kris thought she was going to lead them down to the lake, but around halfway down the path she pulled them through the bushes and into the forest.
Dirt squelched wetly beneath their feet, orange leaves crunching. The trees were being pelted by rain causing the air to be filled with the pattering that was made by it hitting the leaves above. Where the canopy was densest the rain didn’t hit Susie or Kris, but occasionally a fat dollop of water would fall from above to land on their heads.
Susie pushed a branch out of the way revealing a clearing, in the middle of it? An old playground. Inside of the circle of short, bow top iron fences it was pretty barebones— a slide, roundabout, a few seesaws and swings. The slide had cobwebs beneath it and the metal was discoloured and rusty, same with…basically the rest of them. The park had clearly not been touched in forever, forgotten and abandoned. Made for a nice quiet hangout spot though.
When Susie turned to Kris, she had a big toothy grin on her face
“Was wandering around when we split up after our first adventure and hit the jackpot with this place. So? What do ya think? Great ain’t it!”
Kris sipped their hot chocolate, the place was pretty cool
“It’s depressing.”
“Well tough shit, I don’t see you leading us anywhere cool.”
She snatched Kris’s hot chocolate which, same as hers, had already been drained more than halfway. Susie kicked Kris lightly on the side of the foot.
“You first Doofus, go on.”
Kris stared at their empty hand, fingers still curled holding an invisible cup, and sighed like they were sick of Susie’s antics. They weren’t. Kris walked forward to brace their hands on top of the fence, jumping and pushing themself up— not even able to put their foot up finish climbing over Kris slipped, hands sliding forward away from them. They grunted as they folded over the fence, lower stomach smacking against the top before they tipped forward and their lower body followed the top. Kris ended up on their back, staring blankly up at the dull raining sky.
Susie snorted. Kris appreciated the attempt she made to keep her laugh in, really they did, and they could tell she wanted to laugh with the frantic, nasally huffs leaving her nose behind them. It was an attempt, a failed one. Not a moment later she wheezed long and hard, then broke into that loud, ear grating guffaw she often let out. Others found it intimidating, Kris found it aggravatingly endearing.
Susie when she finally got ahold of herself, kneeled down to place the two cups of hot chocolate on the ground beside the gaps in the fence so they could grab them from the other side.
“It was a…”
Another snort
“An attempt, Kris. Let me show you how a pro does it!”
She put one hand on the top of the fence and hopped it.
Squeak
The foot that landed on the top of the fence slipped and she fell. Onto Kris. Poor, poor human.
They wheezed beneath her— not in the way she had, the amused way, no they wheezed like a balloon losing air. Susie, who was half on top of Kris, winced to herself in embarrassment. Way to go her! Make an idiot of herself, why doesn’t she?
Susie pushed herself off of Kris, stood up, and chose deliberately to stay facing away to hide the ways her cheeks were flushing. She heard Kris grunt once, then groan, couldn’t help her curiosity so she looked down at them. Kris was twitching subtly, reaching their hand out ahead of them and pulled themself along the wet ground.
.
.
“Stop being dramatic.”
Kris shook their arm as they reached out again, only to go completely limp after.
“I’ll drink your hot chocolate if you don’t get your ass up.”
Kris sat up immediately. They reached through the fence to grab both of their hot chocolates— they don’t know who’s or who’s but they don’t really care— then handed one of the cups to Susie. They’re also clutching the one in their hand with a death grip, Susie looks at them with exasperation because she was just saying that to get them up, she didn’t mean it.
They walk over to the swings, three side by side. Susie sits on the furthest to the right while Kris walks to the furthest left.
“Don’t sit on that one.”
Kris looks over at her. Now in moments like this, they should probably just shrug it off and sit on the one next to Susie. It doesn’t make much difference what swing they sit on really. Kris looks back at the swing. Curiosity gets the better of them. They sit down, the chains of the thing give a pitiful noise before one snaps and Kris falls off of it.
The hot chocolate miraculously does not spill, but Kris is still sprawled in a weirdly comedic way.
“Are you stupid?”
Susie as always does not sugar coat it.
Kris themself is quiet. They don’t move a muscle, but their quiet voice speaks up
“This is the third time I’ve fell tonight.”
Susie nods solemnly
“Yeah. You’re clumsy today.”
“One of those times was your fault.”
“The one at the fence wasn’t”
“You fell there too.”
Susie growls irritatedly
“Stop being such a baby! I can just heal you if you’re so hurt.”
Kris pulls themself up into a sitting position
“You’ll heal me?”
Susie lifts her chin with a very pleased look on her face
“Obviously. As you know, I’m a healing master now! Ralsei’s got nothing on my skills.”
“Sure you are.”
“Sure I am.”
Kris stands up, then sets their hot chocolate down next to the middle swing. They take a step back. They lower themself and widen their stance, looking down at the ground while their hands clasp together into a ball. They pull their hands back then thrust them out the next second while splaying outwards, keeping the heels of their hands pressed together. An overly dramatised mockery of the way Susie uses her healing magic in the dark world
“You mean this?”
Susie glares at Kris’s demonstration, scowling and averting her eyes. Her cheeks are flushing again.
“I do not look like that.”
“Mmm…yeah, you do.”
“No”
“Yes.”
“You’re just being an ass, that was totally over dramatic!”
Kris wipes the rain off of the swing seat, as much as they could really, and wiped their hand on their raincoat to get it off while sitting down. Their hand didn’t get any drier.
“Did you learn that pose from dragon blazers two…’Susan’?”
Susie turned in her swing to boot the side of Kris’s, making it jerk and twist. Kris, the annoying little bastard, was snickering away to themself.
“I’ll use that swing to launch you across town and back through your damn window!”
Susie couldn’t help it when she started to stare at it Kris, this close she noticed all of Kris’s details. Their skin was sickly pale, not just because it was cold, it looked…unhealthy, worryingly so. Susie was able to see past their bangs for once and found there were dark, heavy bags under their eyes. As if Kris hadn’t got a lick of restful sleep in Weeks.
Kris looked frail too. Their face seemed thinner than it should be. Kris’s raincoat was unzipped so Susie could see just how much their sweater hung on them despite being the appropriate size for them. Or it should be. Susie gets the impression that if she poked Kris all she’d feel is bones. Why had she not noticed just how ill Kris looks?
Kris didn’t look like this in the dark world. Apart from the obvious changes, like you know, turning BLUE. Kris in the dark world was still scrawny but not..emaciated like they were now. They didn’t seem necessarily full of energy in the dark world, and taking such a close look at Kris now, they seemed so devoid of it. They seem lethargic in a way. Susie had joked about Kris being the school zombie, though she only now realises that Kris does genuinely look close to being one.
“Dude, do you EAT?”
Kris’s lips angled downwards, subtle, not quite a frown or a school but definitely something negative and complicated. They averted their eyes like they were ashamed at the question. They didn’t give Susie enough time to decipher any of it before they were smiling at her suddenly
“No, I eat souls.”
Susie exhaled heavily through her nostrils
“That’s not what I meant.”
“I know.”
“Ugh nevermind, if you’re gonna be such a smartass don’t bother answering. But if I find out you’re not feeding yourself, you’ll have to deal with me doing for you.”
Kris’s smile stretched unnaturally long, like the corners of their mouth had been slit. It was admittedly creepy, and Susie could understand why others might feel unnerved. Deterred. Susie didn’t feel that way though— no matter how uncanny their smile got it would make Susie feel the exact same way. She wanted them to keep smiling at her. The way Kris does when Susie does something unhinged.
The way they did at the Diner, the memories of which make her chest tighten. And of course the way Kris is smiling at her now, which has the exact same effect.
She wants to say she can’t say why this is affecting her the way that it is, she can’t. It’s guilt.
Because she knows that Kris is going to die.
Could die she needs to correct herself. Sure the prophecy is scarily accurate about everything that’s happened so far, but it can’t be set in stone, it must be able to be changed. She refuses to believe otherwise. Susie won’t let it happen.
Susie isn’t able to see the way Kris frowns when she hangs her head and rested it in her free hand.
Kris opens their mouth but can’t find the right words to say to her. They look up and think— how late is it? It’s been a while since Kris joined Susie outside and they went on their little night walk. Would their mother and…Would their mother be asleep and that skeleton gone?
Kris eventually comes to some sort of decision. They held a hand out to the side, hanging between them
“You could still stay at my place you know? If you want. I’ll never tell you no.”
Susie is still quiet so Kris tried to sweeten the deal
“We can make pie together. I’ll even let you feed me it since you’re so eager, how does that sound?”
A wobbly grin was her response, scoffing she straightened up
“Pie? That’s all you had to say doofus, I’m in.”
She reached out her much larger, scaly hand and took Kris’s into it.
Seeing Toriel drunk may have made her bitter, may have hurt, and was certainly the reason she had chose to leave in the first place. But now that doesn’t matter. She’ll take any chance she can get going forward to spend time with Kris.
She knows that if the worst comes to pass, it’d hurt so much more knowing she could’ve spent just one more moment with them and passed on it.