Chapter Text
The door creaked open cautiously.
“Howdy!” - A deep, dopey voice rang through the quiet and sterile hospital room as Asgore walked in with one hand behind his back.
“Well, jingle my goddamn bells! Looks like Santa Claus finally came to town! Gorey! Where the hell you been?!” - Rudy greeted the big goat man with a warm, if tired, smile. - “I thought you'd forgotten all about your ol’ pal!” - The handsome buck let out a deep laugh, which was quickly followed by a barrage of raspy coughs. - “Agh, shit!” - The man had to take a few seconds to catch his breath.
“Easy there, my friend.” - Asgore immediately stepped forward, placing his warm, fuzzy paw on the buck’s shoulder. - “Here, drink up!” - The fluffy goat picked up a half-filled water bottle, which rested atop the wooden table next to the hospital bed, holding it up to his friend’s mouth.
“T-Thanks, man… ugh…” - Rudy’s voice was hoarse and fatigued as he gulped the water down, finishing off with a loud gasp. - “You can stop petting my head now.” - The man shot Asgore a look.
“Oops, sorry!” - Asgore yanked his hand back, having petted the man’s head out of pure instinct.
Rudy chuckled weakly. - “Whatever. Anyways, the hell took you so long to come visit anyway? You got any idea how boring this place is without you here?!” - He said while elbowing the hefty goat standing next to his bed, there was no real heat behind his words.
Asgore chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly - “Forgive me, friend. These last few weeks have been… a little rough. I didn’t mean to leave you all alone, I’ve just been so busy managing the shop and cleaning up your house.” - The large monster pulled out a beautiful bouquet of yellow flowers from behind his back. - “But you shouldn’t concern yourself with any of that! Hopefully, these little blossoms can make up a little for how long it's been since I last visited!” - Asgore held the intricately crafted bouquet in front of him, a hint of warm pink coloring his chubby cheeks.
“Woah, Gorey…” - Rudy picked the flowers up, carefully analysing his friend's handiwork. The flowers were wrapped in a pretty red bow, their round petals swaying back and forth against the chilly breeze coming from the AC unit, rich and healthy hues of golden yellow reflecting off the obnoxiously bright ceiling light. - “This is beautiful, man.” - The rugged old buck said before raising an eyebrow. - “How much time did you spend workin’ on this thing?”
“Oh, it was nothing really. These little beauties are very resilient; they’re able to withstand going without water for days and the worst of weather without wilting!” - The paunchy goat spoke with enthusiasm about the little blossoms, looking at them with a fondness that made it seem like they were some priceless treasure. - “They, um, reminded me of you, Rudolph!” - He said while scratching his fluffy beard, nervously looking away.
“ Pft! My god, Gorey. Could you be any more corny?” - Rudy burst out laughing and once again began to cough. - “Ack, shit! Y-You’ve always been so earnest and sweet, it makes me wanna puke.” - The man hunched over, still laughing hard.
“Rudy! Please, you can’t be laughing like this!” - Asgore leaned over, his eyes widened and brows furrowed with concern. He gently patted the man’s back.
“Ah, I’m fine, I’m fine!” - The reindeer halfheartedly swatted at the chubby goat. - “Seriously, though, these are… really nice. It’s good to have some color inside this bland ass room.”
“ I’m glad, heh-heh!” - Asgore jumped up suddenly - “Ah, forgive me. It seems that I am petting your head again…” - The man said while running his big fingers through the buck’s hair. - “Your hair is, ah, very soft…” - He muttered, finally backing away.
“... okay.” - Rudy rolled his eyes before shoving the flowers at Asgore’s chest. - “Go and put these on the desk, Fluffybuns.”
The two men proceeded to chat about life, Asgore having to come to Rudy’s aid every time he laughed and started to have a coughing fit.
“ I’ll tell you, Noelle’s gonna be president someday! That girl’s smarts?” - Rudy whistled - “Can’t be beat, haw-haw!”
“She certainly has always been a talented young lady, very polite too! You and Carol have raised her well!” - Asgore took a sip of water from a plastic cup.
“Ah, that was all Carol. She’s the one who’s always pushed Noelle to be her best. I just kinda… provide moral support, I guess.” - Rudy ran a hand through his hair.
“You’re selling yourself too short, friend. You’ve always been there for her!” - The chubby goat blinked with a smile quickly forming on his face - “Like that one time when you yelled at Kris for putting a bunch of snails on Noelle’s lunch box! Or when you chased them down after dumping a bucket of slime on top of her!”
“Haw-haw-haw! Agh- shit!” - The slickly buck clutched his side as he laughed, face contorting in a mix of pain and amusement. - “God, that kid is… something else, alright. Always tormenting my girl- I’ll kick that little weirdo’s ass as soon as I get better, I swear!” - Rudy paused - “Uh, no offense though, Gorey!” - The man winked, flashing his signature gap-toothed smirk.
Both men shared a hearty laugh. - “Ah, Noelle…” - Rudy sighed. - “Poor girl. Love her to death, but I can’t even count the number of gray hairs I’ve grown worrying about her. She’s… soft, y’know? Shy, scared of everything, doesn’t know how to say ‘no’ to save her life.” - Rudy huffed - “I swear that’s half the reason she’s still hanging out with that little feathered freak- what’s his name? Gerdly? Nerdly? Whatever it is, I’ll kick his ass.” - The buck shook his fist at the ceiling indignantly.
Asgore snorted - “Rudolph Holiday! You can’t say that!” - he said with a big belly laugh - “But yes, Noelle is indeed… very, ah, delicate? Sometimes I get worried about her too. I remember this one time she and Azzy came into the store bawling their little eyes out after Kris had shown them a scary video on the library’s computer. Took a lot of candy to get them both to calm down, ha-ha!” - The big goofy smile on his face was contagious, Rudy powering through the pain as they both laughed.
“That’s the thing, though. Noelle, she’s… always had someone at her side to comfort her when she was scared or cried.” - He sighed, looking down - “That’s why I’m worried. You, Tori… me, we’re not always gonna be there to protect her. I dunno if she’s gonna be able to handle being on her own once we’re all gone.” - His tone was quieter now, more thoughtful and vulnerable.
“Rudy…” - Asgore placed a warm paw on the buck’s shoulder - “I understand how you feel. When Azzy first left for university, I felt the same way. I was worried sick, afraid that the big, wide world outside of our little town would eat him alive, erm, metaphorically speaking, of course.” The chubby goat cleared his throat, Rudy chuckling in response - “But… when I see the photos he sends every weekend, all the new people he’s hanging out with, the smile on his face, how much of a dashing young man he’s blossomed into… I just know that everything will be alright! I’m sure that Noelle will grow into her own person at her pace!” - He smiled at Rudy, the kind of genuine, kind, supporting smile that always managed to calm the buck’s spirit.
“God, Gorey…” - The man couldn’t help but snicker - “You’re such a dope!” - He said while playfully shoving the smiling goat away.
“Wha- I’m trying to comfort you here!” - Asgore’s cheeks were flushed a soft shade of pink as he staggered back, falling down to the floor and landing on his massive, fluffy butt with a loud thud.
Rudy lost it; his loud, deep laughter boomed throughout the quiet hospital’s hallways.
“Will you two please keep it down in there?! We have other patients here too, y’know?” - The nurse, a bizarre-looking monster with a mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth where her head should be, yelled from the front desk.
“S-Sorry, ma’am!” - Asgore yelped out, wincing in pain as he got up rubbing his sizeable rear - “Ow, ow… Rudy, stop laughing!” - The goat’s face was beet red, which only made Rudy laugh even harder, tears starting to well up at the sides of his eyes.
“Fuck, man- oh god! You’re killing me here!” - The laughter was occasionally broken by dry, aggressive coughs. - “I swear I felt the room shake for a sec there, haw-haw! Ugh!” - The buck lurched forward, a painful wheeze escaping his lungs.
Asgore immediately ran to Rudy’s side, patting the man’s back. - “Breathe, friend, breathe…” - The goat’s voice trembled with worry. After a few seconds had passed, the reindeer’s coughing fit finally subsided. Asgore breathed a sigh of relief - “Are you feeling better now?” - The goat’s ears lay flat against his chubby face, his brow furrowed.
“I am now. Huff… puff…” - The man threw his head back into his pillow dramatically and whistled - “Man! That was a good one, though. Haven’t laughed that hard in years, haw-haw.” - He turned his head to face Asgore, who was now sitting down on the little cushioned chair that faced the bed, the sides of his rump spilling out of the sides, the small seat unable to fully contain the sheer enormity of the man’s fluffy snow white cheeks.
There was a beat of silence between them before Asgore finally began to chuckle. - “Gosh, Rudy, that was so embarrassing, heh-heh!” - The big goat giggled with a hand held up to his mouth.
“Psh, it sure the hell was, haw-haw!” - The buck looked down for a second - “But… yeah. That stuff you said before about Noelle and Azzy? You’re right. I guess I shouldn’t worry that much. Noelle’s a smart girl, got a bright future ahead of her, but- ugh.” - Rudy put both hands behind his head. - “I just can’t help it, man…” - He sighed.
“I understand that feeling all too well, my friend.” - Asgore shot him a sympathetic smile.
Both of them stood in silence for a good minute, it wasn’t awkward, at least, not completely. There was a quiet understanding between the monsters, the kind of silence that came from two people who had known each other for decades, two people who had been through hell together, two people who just… ‘got’ each other.
“Pft! The hell’re we doing getting all sentimental like this? Being cooped up in this damn room for so long has got me going all soft, haw-haw!” - Rudy turned his head and pointed at the big goat, winking - “I swear, I’ll bust on outta this damn bed soon! Then I’ll finally stop having to worry about all this crap!” - The buck huffed - “And I also won’t have to wait a goddamn eternity to see you again, dammit!” - He said with a smirk.
Asgore smiled meekly, Rudy’s bravado making his cheeks flare up slightly. - “I’d like that.” - His smile faltered for a second - “Things haven’t been the same without you there, Rudy. The Flower King has felt… very empty without you there to make fun of my silly ideas for flower arrangements, o-or without you complaining about all the dirt on the floor…” - Asgore looked down at his feet, his voice quieting - “Business has been rather slow for a while now, not that many people are interested in buying flowers, I suppose.” - The man’s fluffy ears hung low as he spoke.
“Gorey…”
“No, it’s not just the shop that’s been emptier without you there. It’s everything, Rudy.” - He said, voice barely above a whisper - “I miss having you around. You and your foul mouth, your constant teasing, your everything… I miss my Rudolph.” - Asgore went quiet for a second, breathing out a long, tired sigh. He raised his head suddenly - “Ah, forgive me. I did not mean to dampen the mood like that.” - The big goat flashed a forced smile.
“The hell’re you apologizing for?” - The handsome buck chuckled - “Listen, Gorey. You, uh, you know I’m terrible at all this mushy stuff.” - He scratched his goatee nervously - “But, the feeling’s mutual. I’ve missed you too, big guy! This room gets real lonely without you or Noelle here.” - He said while looking at the orange-hued sky out the window, the curtains flowing gently against the wind.
“Rudy…”
The buck cleared his throat - “It’s hard, y’know. Being all cooped up in here while life outside just goes on without you.” - The proud reindeer let out a forced cough - “God, I can’t believe I’m telling you this, but since we’re both being vulnerable right now…” - He hesitated for a second.
“When you’re not here, I, uh, sometimes like to imagine myself hanging out with you. Just us two, doing stupid crap like drinking so much eggnog that we puke or… handing out presents to the kids at school like we used to.” - The man chuckled, a hint of red coloring his cheeks - “You wearing that old ass, god awful Santa Claus costume, and me wearing that stupid candy cane harness and muzzle with fairy lights on my antlers, and I can't forget the glowing red nose, haw-haw!”
A pause - “I guess I just…” - He sighed - “I really miss my Santa Claus, man…” - Rudy whispered, his eyes closed.
“R-Rudy…” - Asgore’s shaky voice broke the brief silence, sniffling loudly.
The reindeer’s eyes shot open upon hearing that - “Gorey, c’mon. Don’t tell me you’re cryi…” - Before he could even finish his sentence, he was already being pulled into a tight hug - “Agh… Gorey… can’t… breathe!!” - The brown buck’s skinny arms flayed wildly as he tried to wedge himself out of the much larger monster’s affectionate vice grip.
“R-R-Rudy, I… I miss you so much! I’m so sorry for not visiting you as much as I should have!” - The chubby goat nuzzled his face against the spindly deer’s chest, completely soaking his hospital robe with tears - “I’ll visit you more often, I promise! I’ll come over as much as I can until you’re out of here! A-And when you get out… w-we’ll- we’ll do all of those things!” - The man sobbed quietly as his grip around the buck’s body somehow managed to get even tighter.
“GOREY! YOU’RE ACTUALLY KILLING ME HERE!” - Rudy barely managed to yell out as his face had fully turned purple now, violently swatting at the goat’s face, which seemed to barely do anything.
Asgore’s eyes snapped open, immediately dropping the man back on his bed. Rudy let out a weak-sounding “oof!” as he hit the soft mattress. Gasping violently, finally able to breathe again.
“Great way to remind me why I never get emotional with you, holy shit.” - The buck laughed breathlessly, a few dry coughs accompanying.
“I’m so sorry, Rudy areyouokaydidIbreakanybonespleasetellmeIdidn’tbreakanythin-” - Asgore was practically hovering over the bedridden deer as he apologized profusely.
“I’m alright, Gorey!” - The man yelled out, finally getting the big goat above him to cease his apologetic rambling nonsense.
“I’m really sorry, Rudy… I’ve, uh, things haven’t been going too well for me, and I suppose that that has left me feeling a bit… unstable.” - The chubby goat chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand and with the other…
“You really do just like petting me, huh?” - Rudy grumbled.
“You have very lovely hair!” - Asgore smiled.
The two men kept on chatting as the hours quickly flew by. Talking about life, their children, favorite flowers, and Christmas jingles, the works.
“Oh, dear! Would you look at the time!” - Asgore said as his old wristwatch beeped suddenly - “I really hate to leave, Rudy. But, the flowers aren’t going to water themselves…” - The chubby goat’s face deflated. He wanted to stay with Rudy, and talking to him again after so long was nice. For a few short hours, Asgore simply forgot about his issues, forgot about the unpaid bills, the loneliness, the emptiness… he didn’t want to go back to all of that.
“Hey, don’t let me keep you here, buddy! You got things to do, I get that!” - Rudy smirked, lightly elbowing his friend’s fluffy stomach - “‘Sides, visiting hours are about to end anyway.” - He shrugged - “Was nice, y’know. Shootin’ the shit with you, heh.” - He looked up at Asgore - “Don’t keep me waiting for too long ‘till next time, okay? You and Noelle are the only things keeping me from going completely insane in here.” - He gave his friend a playful grin.
“I won’t, I promise!” - Asgore said, bending down to give Rudy a hug, his underwear beginning to ride up his rear as he did so - “I’ll be back as soon as I can!”
“Heh, you better! Otherwise, I’ll break outta this damn bed and walk my sorry ass all the way over to your crib and make you spend time with me!” - He said while wrapping an arm around the goat’s thick, fluffly neck and giving him a noogie.
“R-Rudy!” - Asgore yelped helplessly.
As Asgore walked back to his truck, he looked back at the hospital and smiled warmly. The gentle chilly breeze blew against his face, his lush golden mane fluttering. The sky was a beautiful mix of orange and purple hues as the first few stars appeared, twinkling high above.
He'd come back as soon as he could. After all, what's a good Santa Claus without his Rudolph?