Work Text:
It started as an admiration. Kris was never an extrovert to any extent, always sticking to one or two people. Asriel, Noelle… Dess. They were all dear to them, but naturally, they couldn't stay friends forever. Asriel moved on with his life and went to college, Noelle drifted further apart with her own problems, Dess… they wouldn't speak of it even at gun point. It was just Kris - the empty bed besides theirs, the empty spot on the couch, the empty seat behind them in class - there was no one. After what happened, something that was always predicted in the Prophecy. Follow the pointed tail, see the things you weren't supposed to. Lose the sight of someone important, attend art therapy, never forget. But they tried to, Angel, they tried to forget so hard. Blocking the memories with pain, something they could always cause with a little help of a knife and a locked door behind them. It was okay. Everything was fine, nobody had to know. Nothing happened back then, it was just imagination. Maybe this pretending was the reason Kris and Noelle drifted apart.
Since then they were alone, and that was supposed to be their whole existence - a boring life full of emotionless choices. Sometimes Berdly showed up to play competitive games, trying to out-nerd them in every possible way to get a chuckle out of Kris. They also made a nice team when it came to battling against someone else, and sat until the sun was rising to beat the final level, not acknowledging each others existence in school afterwards. This was fine, Kris didn't ask for more. They kind of just… accepted their fate of having one game buddy and a childhood friend who avoided them most of the time. That is… until Susie showed up.
The Seed Was Planted in The Ground.
The new girl in town- Susie, was always in trouble either with the teachers or the students. Nobody seemed to like her, to be frank even the teachers were intimidated by her attitude. Well, except Noelle of course, but Kris didn't pry too hard. After all, they weren't as close as they used to be.
Long story short - Susie was a dangerous classmate to have, but Kris didn't seem to be swayed when she pushed them against the wall in the empty classroom or beaten them up. Susie was someone Kris has been looking for this whole time, someone real. No matter how much others tried to pretend they liked Kris, or how Noelle tried to pretend nothing changed - they were all fake. Fake for the sake of fitting in. Susie was an exception, a breath of fresh air. No matter if their relationship was "negative" or "positive", Kris enjoyed it nevertheless. She was scary, unstoppable and best of all - she didn't care about the consequences.
After being pressed to a locker and threatened by Susie, Kris alongside her went to the closet looking for chalk. It was their mistake, they thought at first when they fell down into the dark prism. But the realization slowly sank in, when Susie showed her true colors. She and this "Lancer" were really starting to get close friend-style, even if they were on the enemy team most of the journey. She was truly something else, making Kris' admiration only grow stronger. At this short period of time Susie changed so much, opening up in an environment not as suppressing and controlling as the reality. Well, not for Kris - they were still controlled by the SOUL pretty much all the time, but Susie… she was… free. Maybe that's what started Kris' interest - Susie was something else they could never be.
But as the final battle grew near between The Fun Gang and The King of Spades, just when she was about to be seriously wounded, Kris without any instructions from the SOUL blocked the attack with their shield, like a true hero. And that's when they saw them - Susie's alluring eyes, burning with a certain power she possessed like no other.
The Flower Sprouted.
Since then it felt like their life was full of different colors that weren't there before. Susie ate moss with Kris, drew inappropriate gestures on the windows, slept over, heard them play piano, ate with them in the diner, even went to church with them once. They were the weird kids everyone avoided, before there was nobody there for Kris, but now they had Susie who's smile could outshine any Dark World they created. It was nice to finally have someone like-minded as a friend.
It was easy to keep things under control at first, but that time while watching TV, Susie asked them about the festival, and they couldn't help but stiff in their seat.
"So the festival is coming up, right? That thing where the town becomes a carnival." Susie started, turning her head to face Kris properly. "Stupid, right? But say you had to, uh, take someone." She smirked. "Noelle… or Ralsei?" The silence of anticipation filled the air before the SOUL chose an answer. It was surprisingly the one they wanted to say all along, the true answer to the question.
"You."
When it was the third day, the third adventure, by the end of it Susie met The Roaring Knight face to face, her fierce eyes saw no fear. Only hope crossed in her heart. Everything was going according to plan, the fight was rough and everyone got hit. Except Kris. They tried coughing, hoping that The Knight will get the hint and hurt them too at least a bit, not to get suspicious. But this one thought was bugging Kris for a while, the thought of Susie eventually finding out about Kris, about their correlation to Noelle's mom, to The Roaring Knight, to other unnamed entities Susie didn't get to see… the SOUL, too. It's never going to reach her ears - the truth about The Cage in the Prophecy and the one behind it. Susie. Won't. Ever. Know.
They. Can't. Lose. Her.
After all, Susie was the reason their knife laid in their pocket, unused and unneeded in its service anymore. Kris could do just fine only if Susie was around, being herself.
Kris didn't know what they were hoping for, but the next day was one of the most uncomfortable they've even been in a while. Getting into Noelle's house was a bad idea, yes, but it was Susie's Idea. Kris couldn't say no to that. So now they were trying to catch their SOUL inside Dess' closet while trying to keep quiet. But while aiming the hokey stick at the red heart they kept getting distracted by the talking outside of the closet. Susie and Noelle were having a moment - they were all alone, in the dark, completely forgetting of Kris' presents somewhere in the house. Noelle was getting what she wanted while Kris…. well never mind that, as long as Susie's happy…
The Flower Bloomed.
Despite today's events, things were still coming around, even going so far as to throw the SOUL in the birdcage and hang out with Susie alone, at night. The breeze tickled their bare neck, as they walked alongside Susie on the dark street.
"So…. uh, what the hell was that?" Susie questioned, turning back to Dreeemurr 's house. "Was that suppose to happen, or…? Kris shook their head. They felt nauseous without the SOUL in their ribcage, but they could hold out. For Susie.
"I don't want to come back." Kris murmured, and Susie nodded thoughtfully.
"That's fair. You wanna hang somewhere then? Y'know, no adventures this time - just our own time to spare." Kris didn't expect that kind of wording, but it sounded nice. To finally let loose. They looked up, meeting Susie's gaze that was… so confident it was charming. Before they could respond Susie grabbed them by the hand, setting to run towards the lake. "Don't bother with words, idiot! It's written all over your face." Both of the teens crashed near the lake's shore, sitting across from each other. Susie grabbed a bug crawling in the grass, laughing when Kris already had one in their hand. "It's a race then." But in the process of them trying to place the insects correctly so they would crawl in the same direction, a conversation sparked between the two.
"I'm not sure what do we do after tomorrows festival… We need to investigate more, make some progress on the case - Undyne is still in there, in the bunker! What if there's, like, more people than we actually think?! I mean I'm new here, and you… probably don't go out much. No offense, Kris." They smirked at the comment. "For starters, did you notice any of your neighbors disappearing? Maybe someone went missing?" Kris' smirk faltered, all the memories they were trying to block out of their head kept rushing back.
"N-No…" They muttered under their nose, looking away. Susie can't know, what if she connects the lines? What if she figures this out, figures the Shelter codes? No, they can't let it happen.
They promised.
"You said you wanted to relax… let's forget about that for now?" Kris spoke up again, even if it wasn't much like them. They could finally speak for themself without somebody controlling them. At least the SOUL wasn't here to encourage Susie's theories.
"Alright, I'll drop it for now…" Susie said, as if almost suspecting something. "You're chatty tonight, any occasion-- Ohhh, I get it. You're excited about the festival tomorrow?" Kris shrugged in response, putting the bug back on the ground for it to make its way back to the grass. "Well I-- Huh…? Oh yeah, I guess it's already today." They both chuckled. "Anyway, I just thought… You'll defiantly go, right?" Kris nodded silently. "Well good. Because, um…" Her cheeks flushed just a bit, making Kris pause. Was she about to ask them out? Like a date? Kris clenched the side of their chest, almost as if there was a quickly beating heart. Right, there wasn't. So they held their breath for Susie's next words that might change everything between them. Susie continued, not noticing Kris' nervous posture and hand placement. "Noelle asked me out, kind of... She-- I'm just kind of… just grateful for you being here right now." She brightened up, smiling with her usual wide smile. "Cause who else is gonna help me tomorrow, right??" Kris' eyes fell down back to the ground. Right, why did they even think Susie would...
They crawled back up to their room through the window early in the morning, when the sun already started going up. Not a second after they came back the SOUL possessed them and immediately pushed to go outside. After making honey toast for their mom, Toriel wished them to have fun before going back to sleeping on the couch. At least someone is getting some shut-eye after yesterday.
The Festival, the big day for the town was in its finest element. Everyone seemed happy, indulging in different ways of celebration. Some went to the stage to hear people perform, some just bought street food, some enjoyed the attractions, and some… were forced to go with Noelle and Susie. They obviously had a thing for each other, at least Noelle did for sure, and the thought of going with them didn't sound so bad at first. Accenting "at first". Ice cream? Noelle and Susie shared one. The Ferris Wheel? Kris let them ride together, they'd ruin the moment if they went too. In fact, Kris felt the urge to splash them both with water and while they were distracted - drown themself in the lake. It would be a better fate than listening to the same love-filled conversation two were having while thinking Kris was asleep, sitting on the bench next to them. Why would they even need them here anyway? As a device to rule out the awkwardness if things took the wrong turn? As a guide who decided where they will go next? It was too cruel.
Before Kris knows it they get pulled out of their thoughts by laughter. Susie's and Noelle's laughter. Were they in the water? What's going on? They turned their head slowly, meeting the view of Susie standing on the shore of the lake, holding Noelle in her arms. The same shore she and Kris were this morning. Kris' face scrunched, lips pressed in a straight line, biting on the lower lip until they felt the warm taste of blood. Eyes welled up with tears, they turned their head back down as if they never even looked up to begin with, leaving the two blurry figures laughing by the shore.
The Flower Withered.
As they were told, they made a fountain in their father's shop, that also happened to be his house. When Noelle finally ran away, clenching the phone in her hand, Kris exhaled. It's not like they hated Noelle, they used to be great friends! But what happened before definitely left a mark. One they can't heal by magic.
The adventure was going pretty smoothly, if you ignore the tall annoying idiot Flowery who's existence Ralsei didn't even want to acknowledge. It was fun like every other times, they get to finally have their time with Susie - but she just didn't seem to forget about Holiday. "I wish Noelle was here" this, "What flowers should I get for Noelle?" that - it was as if even she wasn't here - Noelle would still always be on Susie's mind.
How. Romantic.
But hey, need Kris remind themself they valued friendship more than fleeting feelings, so why… why did seeing Susie being happy and love someone else hurt them so? They want better for Susie, so why are they so selfish about this? Noelle was not a bad person, the two seemed really compatible because they were so different. Kris should just be a good friend and let them be happy, swallow their feelings until they go away eventually. That's what a good friend would do. All the time Susie and Kris spent together this night, they were just reading into it. There was nothing there. Susie wanted some encouragement for her date with Noelle, nothing more.
Later they've met a bunch of new people, Asgore's flowers to be specific. They weren't objects, but still got a physical form in this Dark World like any darkner. The Blue flower in this Castle seem to know everything about the language of flowers and who had feelings for who. Kris just tried to stay away from him as much as possible without giving themself away, but they saw the complicated look on his face when Blue approached them.
"And your flower…" Thick silence, like a silent conversation passing between a criminal and a judge lasted a second before Blue spoke up. "….would be The Bleeding Flower." He announced, making Susie gasp.
"Hey, why doesn't mine get a cool bloody name? Bummer." She complained, nudging Kris in the shoulder. "Yours must mean you're a total badass or something." Kris' heart clenched, they did not respond. Stay on track - be a better friend and ignore your heart hurting every time it thumps when Susie's around.
A little time passed, and Susie was hanging out with Blue again, looking for the right flowers. Ralsei suggested to give her privacy, but Kris just couldn't stand another command thrown their way. They went to watch anyway. There was nothing special in the flowers, but Susie's face gave away of who she really thought was special. Just as they were about to leave, Susie noticed them in the doorway and thew a single flower their way in surprise and stumbled out of the room in embarrassment. They shouldn't have looked, now Susie is going to be awkward about it, Kris quickly regretted their actions and followed Susie outside, seeing her sitting on the edge of the floor, legs touching the hot water of the sauna… or whatever this place was, a giant hot spring?
"Sorry Kris, guess I just… got embarrassed." No matter, Kris sat beside her, looking down at their own reflection. What have they got themself into, crushing over a friend who's now taken. It's a waste of Susie's time, they should just-- "Hey, earlier, at the beach with Noelle… I guess, you were asleep, right? I dunno how much you overheard, but… I think…" She smiled, her cheeks a bright color. "Ahh, why is it so hard to say? Me and Noelle… we kinda like each other." She confessed, moving her legs in the hot water back and forth. "Yeah… I know I shouldn't be concentrated on that. But… all I can think about is her." Kris didn't move, didn't reply back. Their eyes we squeezed shut, SOUL hurting in their chest like they were taking actual damage. Thankfully their bangs hid every emotion. "Her smile…" Kris' eyes opened, and they looked back into their reflection. What were they missing? Was their smile not as gentle as Noelle's? "Her laugh." Susie continued. "Her… heartbeat." Kris looked up at Susie, her face embarrassed, smile honest and wide. A smile never intended for Kris. "I… Kris, I guess you were seeping, but I… At the beach, when I carried her… into the water. It felt like… I… I could've kept holding her, forever." Their eyes met, but Susie quickly looked away. Her bangs covering her eyes completely. Kris didn't like the sight of that. "What am I saying? This is all stupid… I can't… someone like me… it's not gonna work, right? Kris, be honest… what do you think?"
They exhaled through their nose, giving the SOUL two choices. One was a to joke and say for Susie to carry them next, but the other one was picked. To tell Susie she and Noelle are going to work out. They bit on their lip, whispering the answer so that Susie won't hear a single word. They were not going to admit this. They refused to. Even if the SOUL itself wanted them to say it.
"Dude, when you mumble I can't hear you." Susie squinted in an annoyed smirk. "If you're gonna say something, just say it." The SOUL chose another answer again, this time something Kris would actually say.
"You're not stupid!" Kris said loudly, making Susie shudder slightly.
"Okay, you don't gotta yell." Her face relaxed again. "I guess I just… I already… I was already just excited to be her friend, being more than that… I want to, I'm just… " She went silent, and Kris already knew she was about to say something they won't like.
"Kris, did you ever… like anybody?" They looked in the opposite direction to Susie, getting embarrassed themself. Why was she asking all of a sudden?
"Yeah…" Kris mumbled, making Susie smile like she was relieved.
"Hey, don't be embarrassed. It's cool." It all must look like they were gossiping or something. They weren't. Kris didn't want to hear another word about Noelle out of Susie's mouth. "…can't even imagine what your, uh, type would be though." They were a bit surprised, holding everything back to not say her name. "Human, or monster?" There it is, this question again that put Kris on the spot, just like they were sitting in front of the TV and Susie started prying about Kris' festival companion. Why is the world tormenting Kris like this, couldn't they take a break from this torture? No, they couldn't. Not letting the SOUL to chose another answer that's gonna dig their grave - Kris looked back up at Susie. Their eyes were barely visible under the bangs, but their gaze pointed at Susie was suppose to be an obvious answer. "Hey, don't stare like I'm stupid!" Susie chuckled and Kris… they didn't know what they were expecting in the first place.
….
…
..
Their dad was taken by The Roaring Knight, Flowery's stem broke in two, heh, and the adventure was over. Balloon in hand, they "walked Susie home" that instead was the door to the closet. The door to the Dark World.
"We have to tell someone." Susie stated, her face bleak and melancholic. "Someone closer to the Shelter codes. Someone who can help us fight." Pause. "Kris, this can't just be a me and you thing. It needs to be… Noelle's thing, too." Susie walked over the the closet, opening the door and turning around, closing the door almost fully before saying, with a smile on her face that lacked her usual uplifting mood. "Kris… Thanks for walking me home." And with that said she closed the door, her smile disappearing in the dark.
Kris stood in the middle of the hallway, empty inside. Not also metaphorically, the SOUL was right in their hand - inside a balloon. Kris turned their head, thoughts overwhelming and at the same time not enough to make them move out of the place. Susie will prepare everything for Noelle's arrival, maybe place some holiday decorations, maybe ask Ralsei to make a room for her there. Maybe…. They realized they stopped blinking, eyes burning in the closet door. Kris sighed, walking out of the empty school and outside. It was also absent of any people, after the bright festival everyone went home - leaving the streets behind.
When Kris opened the door to their room they and Asriel used to share, the first thing to do was to pop the balloon and throw the SOUL in it's usual place. A cage. The room was empty, but if only Susie came over… Toriel wouldn't mind, she could take Asriel's bed, or… they could stay up all night again and talk about their favorite games, or movies, or what they ate for breakfast - anything, if only Susie would just… look at Kris the way she looked at Noelle. But who are they kidding, that was never bound to happen. After all, it was a matter of time before The Flower Withered to Its Core.