Chapter Text
She didn’t know where exactly she ran. The rain and endless trees made the road almost impossible to see, and she surely wouldn’t turn around now. Not when they’re still there. That thought made her shiver, or maybe it was just the fact she’s alone, cold and wet like a weekend. Still, they could be following her. And if they found her, she didn’t want to even theorize what they’d do to her.
So the girl fled twice as fast as she did, only to trip on some stupid rock and fall face flat in mud. She tried to stand up and clean her vision, but some kind of inner fear screamed in her ears, so without making out the path, she slipped under the shaft to catch back her breath. Making sure no one saw her, she hid, finally getting some rest.
Did she cry? Probably, but those weren't sadness tears, more like unbearable anger mixed with disappointment. Disappointment that she didn’t fight back, that she couldn’t fight back. It was unfair, the whole troop turning their back on her. But she also wasn’t quite surprised, since she was acting aggressive and fierce like the beast she is, but still…
They all thought she was a killer.
“I should’ve really killed you, then at least it’d be justified.” She muttered under her breath, a threat to no one, and to everyone, even herself, at the same time. It’s ruined, she again didn’t have anything or anywhere to go. Fuck, what will she even do now? Come back with her arms up, trying to win at least some sympathy? Be on the run for the rest of her life?
After some time, she held her snout out of her hiding spot, to realize that it stopped raining. Nice, she needed to go now. Somewhere, doesn’t matter, anywhere far enough should be good. She, as quiet as she could, stood up, rubbing her one intact eye (just another reminder), and started wandering in some direction.
Maybe she zoned out while walking, or maybe it’s just the weird landscape full of never-ending trees, but she roamed for what felt like ages, until she stumbled across something.. out of place. A black puddle was pressing down the grass, so she decided to investigate it further, and suddenly, the girl felt her heart stopping for a second.
Right before her was nothing else than their ringmaster clothes - a red and white tuxedo, painted dark by what seemed like blood and ashes. She stood before the corpse of the man everyone accused she slayed. She’d cry again, but instead she tilted her head to the side, and with a blank expression stared at it. She really did not know how to feel about this.
Something up in the trees rustled, turning her attention to it, to see a short figure between the branches staring at her. Were they staring? Most probably, however something about their face was wrong, unreadable somehow.
‘Great’, she thought. All that fury was adding up until she finally burst out.
“So what ‘ya looking at, kid? Oh no, she killed someone! I should go report her!” The girl chuckled almost maniacally, keeping that uninterested tone, turning abruptly, to look the stranger right in their face. She smiled with all her teeth out, and said with a shaking voice “You know what?! I don’t care! But you know what? Why not bring some justice into this? If I know I’m getting behind the bars, why don’t I actually do something so horrible to deserve it? And what if.. I’m starting with you!”
Even after that, they didn’t move an inch, and their relaxed posture was mocking her. “Don’t you have anything to say? Heh..” she lowered her head, hiding her eyes behind the strands of dirty hair. “I’m not giving you a head start.”
With those words she sprinted towards the tree, making them flinch and run, covering their body behind the leafs. They were still visible to her, to continue the hunt. The girl didn’t care if her legs were going to give up any second, - she just wanted to rip that motherfucker’s face off.
Strangely, her ‘prey’ didn’t look.. scared, at all. The opposite - they were completely calm in their movements, almost like they were not escaping, but leading her somewhere. SHe didn’t have time to think about it though.
..Until she stumbled across a small house, seemingly out of place, but something about it seemed warm, the kind of warmth she never felt before. The stranger sat on the rooftop, giving her a quick glance, before disappearing in one of the top windows. She was confused, puzzled, ‘cause what the heck was that? Should she go away before anyone notices, or?
With a loud creak, the front door opened, and out of it came out an older lady in a purple-ish dress, adjusting her pair of glasses, before noticing her standing out.
“Hello-? Oh! My Angel! Are you okay sweetie?” The woman gasped, and only now she took a look at the condition she was in - her already worn clothes were now soaking with dirt, she also somehow tore them in some places, and her whole body was bleeding with small cuts she got when she was running earlier.
“Um-” she tried coming up with something, but the words suddenly were stuck in her throat, and after a few attempts she stood silently, as the kind lady tried comforting her with sweet phrases.
“Say, why don’t you join us at dinner?”
***
Now, she was probably in one of the weirdest situations in her life, sitting at the table with a normal family (whose names were Toriel and Asriel, she found out), and more importantly - actually eating a homemade dinner. Well, the third portion actually, those magical people had an infinite amount of stew and pie? Incredible.
No, she couldn’t let her guard down. Especially when she didn’t know why the stray brought her here, and where they were. And Toriel was looking at her.. weird. She didn’t eat, instead she observed her eating. She smiled at her, but not the same way the peers used to, when she was back in the circus. And after some time, the first decided to break the silence.
“So, what’s your name, sweetie?” The girl almost choked on the food. Right, the name, like normal people share when they encounter someone new.
“Uhh.. Susie, I’m Susie” Could she even say her name now? What if they now will use it against her, and go tell the officials she was here, or..
“Okay, Susie,” Toriel turned her attention back into conversation, “What brings you here? Are you lost, do you have somewhere to return?” The calmness in the air didn’t make sense at all, but some gut feeling made Susie feel safe and tell the truth. Almost.
“Yeah, no” She looked to the side, “No, not really. I- The kid, um, I followed them here.” It came out more flat than she expected, and she fearingly looked at the family, nervously scratching her spoon at the bottom of the plate, waiting for an answer.
“The kid.. Oh, you mean Kris?” Even though Toriel’s tone remained as comforting as hearty and soothing, something has definitely shifted in the room after she said that. She could see it in Asriel’s face, who, in the middle of taking a bite, paused, and glanced over Susie. She just let out an embarrassing chuckle. Were they going to kick her out now, knowing that she threatened the.. what exactly Kris was to them? Both Toriel and Asriel looked similar, goat horns, white fur and snouts, and overall light look, while Kris was nothing like them. But again, she didn’t really have time to examine their look.
Toriel continued, “I’m happy that Kris led you here, but next time don’t follow them, okay?” Now that was strange, what did she mean by that?
“Uh, Sorry, I-”
“No no, don’t apologize! It’s just for your safety! Never know where strangers in the woods could lead you, right Asriel?” She glanced over to her son, who coughed, and in a low bass said something in agreement.
“Huh, I thought they were, like, a part of your family?” Susie tried to smile it off, but it really came out more anxious.
“You could say so.” Now that was off. But she decided not to ask more questions, she really didn’t want to be a bother after what the Dreemurrs did for her.
So, after a hot cup of tea (on which Susie accidentally burned her tongue), she thanked them for the dinner, and almost left, before Toriel stopped her. “Sweety, why don’t you stay for the night? You could sleep on our couch.” As much as Susie would want to stay, to trust her, she couldn’t, just no. The same animal feeling in her soul made her freeze in place, before quickly throwing away something like ‘I can’t, sorry’. “Oh, then maybe you could wear Asriel's coat, it’s cold and windy outside.” Toriel rushed upstairs, where his room was supposedly, leaving her and Asriel sitting awkwardly in silence.
“Gotta thank you for coming here, Susie”
“Huh?”
“Mom’s been pretty lonely lately, and you coming here has made here her really happy.” Asriel elaborated, but Susie still didn’t understand.
“Okay, but.. what about you, and, well, Kris?” She rubbed her arm nervously.
“Well, I study far away from here, just came for the holidays,” he shrugged, “and Kris isn’t really good at keeping her company.”
“Oh, uh..” She didn't get the chance to say more, as Toriel came back with a seemingly old brownish green jacket in her arms.
“Here! Hopefully, it’ll keep you warm!” She put it in Susie’s arms, and stepped away to let the girl put it on herself. The coat was.. nice. Better than everything else she ever got to wear. It was soft to touch, and she actually felt something protecting her skin from the weather.
“Thanks, ma’am.” Susie said almost on command, but those words didn’t express a third of how she felt right now.
“Be safe, sweetie! You can come back any time you’d want.” Susie flashed a quick, genuine smile, before stepping outside.
She almost instantly felt this chill, moist air around her. It wasn’t as cold as before (thanks to the new jacket), so she breathed in with all her lungs. Any other day she’d find this annoying at least, but now it was pleasant. She stood there for a moment, looking at the twilight around her setting down.
But she wasn’t alone there.
A sound of someone munching made her wince, and she checked the surroundings to find Kris again, sitting next to the door, with what appeared to be a dog bowl with some of the stew she ate earlier. They were picking the pieces of meat, hunched over, and at that moment they almost reminded Susie of herself.
She also now got a chance to look at them more closely, and now she understood why she couldn’t understand their impression: over their face was a wooden mask, with two holes for eyes and wooden antlers with a 4-pointed star on each of them. None of the face features were visible, and shoulder-length hair was hiding away the rest of them. Their clothing was also quite different from Toriel’s or Asriel’s - they were wearing a blue striped cape and a skirt with shorts, complete with a belt with all kinds of pockets attached to it, and one specifically for the sheath with a knife. Over their chest was a necklace with a bottle of.. something.
It seems like Susie was staring at them for a long time, and they noticed her, now staring back. She gulped. How was she even supposed to act now?
“Why did you bring me here?” Was the only thing she could get out of her mouth. Kris just fidgeted with their necklace in their arm, and then shrugged.
“Just.”
Susie sighed. It was clear she wasn’t getting more out of them. She couldn’t even be angry at that. “‘kay” she slowly walked away from them and the house.
She needed to clear her mind. It was such a weird evening. Luckily, the silence around her made it much, much easier. It wasn’t for long, however, as she heard wet steps running towards her, becoming louder and louder.
Susie turned around and saw a white and green person far away, tripping while trying to keep balance with all their bags over their back. “W-WAIT!!!” The person screamed to her.
“Asriel?” she asked back, confused. But, as they got closer, she could see it wasn’t Asriel, but, in fact, a very similar goat-like monster in something like a priest’s costume, about two heads shorter than her, hurried, losing their breath.
“Susie! You’re the hero I was looking for!”