Chapter Text
??/?/2010
UNKNOWN
??:??AM
The sky was dark, no sun, no moon, no stars, only a pitch black void that consumed everything it touched, a cacophony of various sounds filled the environment, people screaming for their lives, the roaring of rampant infernos, and the most notorious sound, large THUMPS that shook the ground as they hit.
They slowly opened their eyes, witnessing the scenario of utter destruction, an entire city, devastated by gigantic jet-black humanoid figures that lifted their massive hands, only to bring them down onto the buildings, causing them to crumble to dust in seconds.
Their breath was shaky, heavy, and they could feel their body shivering, as they looked up and saw a massive piece of debris coming straight towards them at a speed so rapid it was impossible to react in time, all they could do was look on, as they were inevitably…
19/10/2009
MONDAY
6:12AM
SECTION 1
“AAAAAAAHHH- OW!”
They yell, as they wake up hitting their head on the shelf above their bed, it was all but a dream, although one that felt real…a little too real.
Asriel, being scared awake by Kris’ sudden yell, turns to his sibling’s bed, he loudly speaks with concern.
“Kris! Are you alright?! What’s happening?!”
They lower their head in embarrassment after accidentally waking up their brother, as they respond while placing their hand on the bump caused by them hitting the shelf.
“Sorry to wake you up, Azzy, i…had a terrible nightmare, it felt a little too real…oh Angel i sound so childish right now”
But Asriel doesn’t judge, for this isn’t the first time Kris had nightmares, in fact they were quite frequent ever since Dess’ disappearance, he gets up from his bed and gives his sibling a hug
“It’s okay, Kris…it’s not your fault, it has been hard for everybody ever since that day…especially for me, so don’t worry, i get you, we just…need to find a way to get rid of those nightmares. Has mom taken you to therapy yet”
Kris looks at Asriel, hugging him back as they respond:
“She plans to, but we’ve kinda short on money ever since dad got fired, and the divorce…didn’t make things any easier”
They seem to be getting more uncomfortable the more they talk about this, and Asriel noticed that, saying:
“I see…we’ll find a way to solve this eventually, for now, just know that you’re not gonna have to face this alone, i’ll help you out in any way i can”
“Azzy…don’t worry about me, you’ve got your own problems to solve and i don’t wanna get in the way, i mean, you gave up college to come back here, you’re clearly not fine either”
“Heh, i guess that’s true…but you’re not getting in the way, Kris, we’re siblings, we have to do these things together, so even if i’m not the best mentally either, i’ll…do what i can to help”
“...You’re still as stubborn as ever huh, well…”
Kris struggles to come up with a response, for they still feel responsible for being another burden in Asriel’s life, but they can’t do anything to stop him, they look around until spotting the alarm clock beside their bed, and realizing that they have to get dressed for school.
“Oh man, look at the time, i gotta get ready for school”
“You better get dressed then, heh, as if you aren’t gonna put the same old striped sweater again”
“Actually Azzy, ever since you left, i…had a little change of wardrobe…”
After saying that, Asriel gave Kris space to get changed, and when they came out of the room, he was quite shocked to see how differently his sibling dressed now, they wore a red hoodie with a green plaid jacket on top instead of the usual striped sweater, this look was heavily inspired by Dess’ before she went missing, it seems this was Kris’ way of remembering her…or remember someone else of her. Kris also wore their lucky golden heart-shaped locket with the DELTARUNE symbol on it, a gift from their mother that they have since kept and never stopped wearing.
“Wow…now that’s an…interesting new look”
Asriel couldn’t help but feel slightly uncomfortable to be reminded of Dess by his own sibling, but he understood that Kris wasn’t doing it on purpose, this was likely their own form of coping with the loss, and he had to respect that
“Yeah…do you like it?”
“...It’s freaking perfect”
“...Thanks, it really means a lot”
Despite his feelings, Asriel decided to encourage his little sibling, all in the effort to help them.
Later, the Dreemurrs were sitting at the dining table, having breakfast before Kris had to go to school. Toriel was simply delighted to have Asriel home again, but was worried about him, as she noticed he clearly hasn’t moved on from Dess, her second child had the same problem, but for a different reason, Kris blamed themself for Dess’ disappearance, if they haven’t been so stubborn, followed after her, if they haven’t been a LIABILITY, she would still be with them.
Since the incident, Kris has changed a lot, their typical prankster and mischievous attitude slowly faded, they couldn’t bother with that anymore, they spoke less to people, they got distant…from everyone. Even Noelle, their childhood friend who they had a special connection with, they were nearly inseparable back then, now…barely see each other.
The room was quiet like it never has been before, neither Asriel or Kris felt like talking at the moment, and Toriel noticed that, deciding she should chime in to make things less awkward.
“So Asriel, this is your last day here before returning to college, yes? What are you planning on doing today?”
“Umm…actually i’ve been meaning to tell you that, i decided to stay in Hometown a little while longer, i just…really missed this place and…i’m not sure if i’m ready to go back to college yet”
There was a hint of honesty in Asriel’s voice, what he’s saying isn’t necessarily a lie…yet there were still an ulterior motive for him to stay in town, one he could not tell his family, he had to aid a man named Umbra in his investigation, in order to find Dess once and for all.
Toriel gasps for a moment, before giving a warm smile, she was happy that she’d get to spend more time with her beloved son, but…she was worried about his mental health, as any good mother would, she doesn’t want what happened in the past to hold back his future. She places a hand on his shoulder and speaks
“Asriel, i understand that being here again can bring a lot of unpleasant memories, but you can’t let them hold you back forever”
“I know mom! But this isn’t something i can just-”
“However, i do understand how difficult it is to overcome something like that, so i'll let you stay here for as long as you need, while also actively working to help you get through this, okay?”
Asriel smiles, something he rarely does, he gets up from the table and hugs his mom in gratitude. Though…a feeling of guilt lingers in his mind, he isn’t telling the full truth about what he’s doing.
“Thank you…mom”
After this rather wholesome moment, the Dreemurrs finished their breakfast, Asriel hugged Kris goodbye before they and Toriel headed to school
Little do they know what would go down there today.
7:00AM
SECTION 2
Toriel’s minivan parks right in front of Hometown’s school, with her and Kris exiting out of it and entering the school right after. Once inside, Toriel noticed Kris looked a little down, which has been the norm ever since the incident, but that didn’t stop her from trying to cheer up her child every time
She gives Kris a warm motherly hug, before saying:
“Don’t you worry about anything, Kris, i’ll always be right down the hallway if you ever need anything, but i know you’ll be able to get through the day, you always do, in spite of everything”
She then gives Kris a kiss on the cheek
“Thank you mom, i promise everything will go smoothly”
They say it with a tone of genuine promise, like it was somehow their duty to make sure everything goes alright in order to not make their mother sad
Toriel wasn’t oblivious to this kind of behavior from Kris, so she just pat them on the head and said:
“Don’t worry too much, okay sweetie? Just be yourself, above all else”
These words, despite being simple, always put a small, barely noticeable smile on Kris’ face, they nod to their mom before heading to class.
Once inside the class, Kris was greeted to the usual crowd of students they were all too familiar with.
Noelle, their childhood friend, always with that cheerful smile on her face, one has to wonder how she can smile so much all the time, it’s almost like she tries very hard to stay positive, she looks at Kris and gives them a friendly wave, to which they respond with another, though less enthusiastic one, interactions between these two have been really awkward since the incident, they always act like they’re still good friends, but barely talk to each other anymore, she even started wearing different clothes, her usual red and green sweater now gave way to a black, white and blue one, maybe her tastes just changed over time, or there might be something she’s been repressing. Both of them feel strange when they meet, a pulsating sensation on their chest, like they both have something to say…but somehow can’t.
Berdly, another one of Kris’ friends, though this one is quite the character, he tries way too hard to look smart, and worse, to look like a gamer. Always speaking fancy and emphasizing his love and skill at anything videogame. He wore a black shirt with a symbol on it, looked like a blue wing, it was the symbol of his favorite character in Super Smashing Fighters, a mercenary that was blue bird just like him, he was also wearing a pair of cheap headphones connected to an mp3 player…it was filled with video game osts. Kris just awkwardly waves at him, while he waves back with a cocky smile.
Catti, the local goth girl, also Kris’ friend, obviously bonded over their shared “edginess” and interest in the supernatural, however one day, Kris started looking at her differently, like she gives them the creeps, they were never scared of her before nor showed to be off-puted by her antics, something…changed, but only they know what happened, and Catti just stares at them, with a smirk, the girl that always has a frown on her face, smirks confidently while looking at them, she knows something, and so does Kris, but perhaps that’s a subject for another day…
Oh yeah, there’s also Jockington, who’s always besides Catti, though unlike her, he always has a big old grin on his face, like life is all sunshine and rainbows, he has an unbreakable confidence despite literally being made a hula hoop by Catti once, he seems to go along with her antics and when she stares at Kris, so does he, however he doesn’t get the same creeped out look Kris gives Catti.
And then there’s the rest, Temmie, Monster kid and Snowy, they’re not particularly close to Kris, but they do know each other, it’s nearly impossible not to know somebody in such a small town.
At last, the teacher arrives, Alphys, a yellow lizard-like monster who was rather short and had a hunched-over posture, she walks over to her desk and turns on her computer, before walking back to the front of the class to speak to the students, she makes a terrifying announcement.
“Alright class, we’re doing group projects this month, groups of 2, pick a partner and good luck!”
Picking a partner wasn’t a hard decision for Kris, they always partnered up with Noelle in projects like this, all they have to do is get over the awkwardness of it all, make the project, and be done, right? Well…that is until they see Berdly of all people partner up with Noelle right in front of their eyes, this made them audibly gasp, the one person they always did projects with, suddenly…isn’t an option anymore.
They tried talking to the rest of the class, but all of them already had partners, even Temmie…though her partner was an egg, lost to a freaking egg…awesome.
Since no one else was around, Kris had to muster up the courage to ask Noelle if she was okay to form a group of 3, they approach her and say:
“Hey Noelle, uh…i know you already have a partner, but…can i join in? I was kinda left alone”
She turns to Kris, her usual smile seemed to get bigger when they asked to be partners, she responded:
“Oh sure! I’ll ask Alphys if we could make a group of 3. Miss Alphys! Is it okay if we make a group of 3?”
But someone had something to say about it…
“Hey! What? No! I do NOT approve of this! Abort!!”
“What? B-but Kris doesn’t have a…”
“Noelle, what were you saying?”
Alphys overheard them.
“She was just saying we’re FINE being alone!”
Berdly responds, and Kris obviously wasn’t happy about this, how DARE this stupid bird try to speak for Noelle, and stop her from partnering up with them, against her will mind you, so as a form of silent protest, they slowly raise their middle finger towards the meddlesome bird
“What was that, Kris?!”
They immediately put their hands behind their back, looking away and pretending nothing happened
“I don’t know what you’re talking about”
Noelle attempted to speak to the teacher and correct Berdly, but she was unfortunately not very good at protesting, her voice came out low and hard to hear, like a whisper
“A-actually i just wanted to know if…”
“Noelle, can you please SPEAK UP?”
Says Alphys, unable to hear Noelle, but before she can say anything else, a loud SLAM from the door is heard, someone had just arrived…
“H-Hi Susie…”
Says Alphys.
Of course, how could we forget about Susie, the infamous lizard girl who had quite the reputation around the school, but not a good one, she usually wouldn’t mess with you if you didn’t mess with her, however, if you ever tried to do something she doesn’t like, or even remotely approach her, you’d be in for a terrifying experience, she was freakishly tall, really bulky for her age and had a set of scarily sharp teeth, she could bite your face off if she wanted to, she wore a ragged orange jacket with spikes on the shoulders, it wasn’t very condition, with a few holes here and there, probably was found in the trash, but she probably thought it’d make her look more intimidating so she wore it anyways.
Kris and her had a few encounters before, none of them were really friendly, she would usually try to intimidate them, one of the few people she would actively go after, not caring much about the rest unless they messed with her first, but Kris…there was something about them, they were different from everyone else, the only human in class, and they were so…well liked for a reason she couldn’t understand, they barely spoke, barely did anything, yet everyone would go on and on wondering how Kris is doing, perhaps…she was envious of them? And every time she tried to give them a scare, they…barely even reacted, or worse, clapped back in subtle passive-aggressive ways, this angered her to no end, what was so special about this stupid emo-looking human anyways?
After her dramatic entrance, she spoke:
“Am i late?”
“Ohh, n-no! You’re fine! W-we were just, uh…ch-choosing partners for the next group project, and…ummm, Susie, you’re with Kris!”
Kris is flabbergasted, their eyes widen, but it’s not like anyone can see them under the bangs covering their face
“Wait, what?”
“...Great”
Awesome, just what both of them wanted to hear, partnered up with the person they get along the least in the entire school, life is just cruel like that sometimes, like it tries to tell a joke in really poor taste. Alphys then continued:
“...N-now that everyone’s here, i’ll write the assignment!”
She walked over to the black board, only to realize there was no chalk for her to write with…
“H-has anyone seen the chalk? This is the third time it’s gone missing, and…y-you all know i can’t start class without some!”
She got no response, the class was dead silent
“H-how about this, if no one speaks up, everyone gets in trouble!”
Still…no response, from anyone, it seems she didn’t have much authority with the students, could’ve been due to the lack of conviction in her voice, or the fact she was a relatively new teacher who’s yet to gain respect from her class, whatever it was, she couldn’t get a single peep about the dang chalk.
“A-anyone…please?”
It started getting sad, until Noelle decided to chime in.
“Hey, there might be a box in the supply closet…Miss Alphys, why don’t Susie and i…”
Kris’ eyes widened again at the mention of Susie, it wasn’t a mystery to them that Noelle had developed a crush on her recently, however this fact didn’t sit well with them, they didn’t understand why, perhaps it was a protective instinct? Not wanting Noelle to get close to someone so dangerous? Whatever it was, they tried to get over it, they didn’t have the right to interfere with her life, but even using logic, they couldn’t shake this feeling off, perhaps seeing someone they were once so close to start approaching someone else, especially someone they didn’t like, may have struck a nerve…
“G-good idea, Noelle! Susie, s-since you came in last…why don’t you go get it for me?”
Alphys didn’t even let Noelle finish her sentence, and Susie just couldn’t seem to care less
“...Whatever”
She turned back, walking through the door, and slamming it behind her
“Yes, break the door, why don’t ya?”
Kris makes a sarcastic comment about Susie’s aggressiveness, their voice had a hint of venom to it, this attitude wouldn’t last long however, as Alphys said:
“And K-Kris…why don’t you go with her, to make sure she…um, actually gets it? And…stays out of trouble?”
“What? Why me?”
“Y-Yeah, miss Alphys, i can-”
Noelle tried to chime in, another attempt to get closer to her crush, but she once again, gets cut off, by Kris of all people
“On second thought, nevermind, i’m going with her”
“Thanks Kris! I’ll see you later”
Kris rushed out of the classroom to avoid the awkwardness of Noelle’s stare, she probably wouldn’t be too happy they took the one chance she’d have to be with her crush, deep down though, Kris was feeling sorta remorseful for it, they didn’t have the right to do this, Noelle should be able to do what she wants, yet…they simply didn’t allow her to get close to Susie, why? Why does this feeling keep haunting them and why can’t they shake them off?! Before they can worry about any of this, they had to get the chalk for Alphys, that’s when they bare witness to a very peculiar scene…
Susie pulls out something from her pocket, a piece of chalk, exactly the one that Alphys was looking for, she stared at it for a bit…before eating it in a single bite. She had already noticed the door opening behind her, and right after downing the chalk like it was light snack, she turns to Kris, staring daggers at them, a shame they couldn’t see it through the hair in her eyes, she would’ve loved to see the fear in their face once they saw it.
“Kris…didn’t see ya there”
“Hello…Susie”
“Hey…you didn’t see anything just now, did you?”
“See what? You eating the freaking chalk? …No, nothing at all”
Kris’ smug response sets her off, she begins to rapidly approach them
“Smartass…couldn’t have been more subtle about it, could you?”
She places a hand on Kris’ shoulder
“Hey, let me tell you a secret…”
Without further warning, she grabs Kris by the shirt and pushes them onto the locker, a loud metal bang echoing through the hall at impact
“Smartasses like you PISS ME OFF!”
Despite being literally pushed onto a locker, they display no fear, keeping their mostly neutral expression
“Oh really? I totally couldn’t tell…”
“I know EXACTLY what you’re thinking right now…”I caught Susie eating ALL the chalk! This was her last chance, she’ll finally get expelled!” ”
She says, making a mocking imitation of Kris’ voice
“Haha, come on Kris, don’t act shocked, you know it’s true”
“First off, i don’t sound at all like that, second, i couldn’t care less about you eating the stupid chalk, i’ll just get a new one on the supply closet and then we act like none of this happene-”
She pushes them again, this time even harder onto the same locker
“You’re a TERRIBLE LIAR! I know you’ll try to get rid of me the first chance you get, you got a reputation to uphold, and i’m the biggest threat to it you know”
“Threat?”
They smirk
“Don’t make me laugh, you’re just a pathetic little bully that’s been on my ass for no reason ever since you got here! And now you’re just mad because i never actually cared for your poor attempts at intimidation, i don’t know what Noelle sees in you to be honest, you’re really not that impressive…”
She growls at them like an angry crocodile, slamming them into the locker once more, this time with actual force to hurt, and Kris snarls at her like a mad dog in response, the confrontation now started to look like two animals fighting for territory, something you’d see on Animal Planet
“Say, how do you feel…about losing your face?!”
She opens her massive mouth, proudly showing her sharp teeth, as she slowly approaches Kris’ face, seemingly with the intent to bite it off, but before she can even do anything, Kris right hooks her right in the snout, causing her to drop them on the ground, where they land on their feet
“OH THAT’S IT!”
She left hook Kris so hard it sent them slamming onto another locker, causing a dent in it, and they fought back, trying another hook to the snout, this one however gets blocked
“Is that the best you can do?!”
Susie tries punching Kris again, but to her surprise, they grab her arm and hold it in place, only for them to BITE it like a rabid animal, causing her to yell in pain before punching Kris in the eye. Kris screams, the punch hit so hard they get a black eye, but they don’t let go, still holding on and biting even harder
“YOU’RE FUCKING INSANE!”
Susie yells, but before they can continue their fight, the door slams open, revealing a very shocked Alphys, she had heard to commotion and had to check it out
“KRIS! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO KEEP SUSIE OUT OF TROUBLE, NOT…THIS!”
“SHE STARTED IT!”
“I DID NOT!”
“IT DOESN’T MATTER WHO STARTED IT, YOU’RE BOTH KICKED OUT OF MY CLASS UNTIL THE END OF THE DAY!”
She then slams the door shut, keeping the duo locked out of the classroom for the rest of the day, neither of them are happy about this situation
“Nice going dumbass!”
“You tried to bite my face off!”
“I wasn’t actually gonna do it!”
“Then why did you-”
Before they can continue, the door opens again, and to their surprise, Noelle and Berdly come out. Noelle didn’t have her typical smile anymore, instead, she had a concerned expression, worried about both Kris and Susie’s wellbeing, but before she can say anything, the pompous blue bird chimes in:
“Well well well, i knew you were a troublemaker, but i didn’t expect you two to straight up fight like wild animals out there, how did you steep so low, Kris?”
“Shut the FUCK UP Berdly!”
“Wow, not in the mood huh? Understandable, anyways, me and Noelle are going to get the chalk ourselves since you two are clearly too incompetent for the task”
To everyone’s surprise, Susie had something to say about this:
“...For once, i agree with Kris, you SHOULD shut the fuck up”
“Cry about it-”
Before the childish chain of insults can continue, Noelle speaks up:
“Why don’t you two come get the chalk with us? It’s not like you have anything better to do right now”
“What?! Are you seriously going to-”
She grabs Berdly’s hand and squeezes it with massive force, she was surprisingly strong for her size, he felt like his hand would get crushed as he squealed in pain and then spoke in a squeaky voice
“Okay…we take them”
“So, what do you two say?”
The duo looked at each other, they both indeed had nothing better to do and enjoyed Noelle’s company, so Kris and Susie turned back to her and said, respectively:
“Sure, why not?”
“Whatever…”
“Good! Let’s go then!”
Noelle had her big dumb smile on her face back in a flash after they accepted to go with her, as they walked through the hallways she tried to stick as close to Susie as possible, slightly blushing when near her. Kris took notice of this, they couldn’t get near her because Berdly was in the way from one side, and Susie from the other, the remorse began to settle in from their fight with Susie, what were they going to tell their mom after they arrived home with a black eye? But even more than that…why would they have to grow so distant from Noelle? They clearly missed her, and she probably missed them, but somehow…they could never approach her the same way again ever since the incident, they blamed themself for the disappearance of her sister, and now they fought with her crush, couldn’t they stop ruining her life in every way possible? It was all their fault, and now…how could they possibly redeem themself from this?
They finally make it to the supply closet, as Susie opens the door, they see…nothing. The room was more than pitch black, darker than dark, so dark that it seemed to cast shadows onto the lit up hallway, which shouldn’t be possible in any way.
This creeps Susie out, in a rare display of fear from her
“Hey uh…is it me or is it REALLY dark in there?”
Noelle responds, just as creeped out:
“Yeah…it really is”
Susie steps back, putting a hand on Kris’ back and pushing them towards the closet
“W-what are you waiting for, Kris? Are you gonna get in or…”
They step back, refusing to go inside, something about that darkness made them silent in fear…
“H-hey! Did you forget WE were supposed to get the chalk? Let me go in first, i’ll find a light switch”
Berdly proclaimed, he tried to sound prideful as usual but he clearly had fear in his voice, he tries to walk towards the closet, only to stop right by the door, he couldn’t continue as he started shivering in fear. Susie, impatient, yet still fearful, yelled at him
“Fine! If you’re gonna be such a WIMP i will…”
She tried pushing Berdly aside and get in herself, only to stop by the door as well, staying silent for a moment before saying:
“You know…how about we all go in at the same time”
Noelle nodded in response
“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea…”
Berdly and Kris also nodded in agreement, this leads to the whole group entering the closet at the same time. Once inside, the place was just as dark as it seemed from outside, only a couple sheets of paper visible amidst the darkness…somehow.
Susie chimed in:
“See? Why were you so scared, there’s nothing in here…”
“Though i don’t see a light switch anywhere”
Berdly responds as he rather desperately looked everywhere for it
Suddenly, a loud slam is heard, the group turns back, realizing that the door had simply closed behind them. Susie loudly protested:
“HEY, THIS ISN’T FUNNY, OPEN UP!”
She tried to get to the door and open it up again, but it wouldn’t budge
“Susie?!”
Kris said, as the desperation grew among the group
“I’m trying, dumbass! It’s stuck!”
“What do you mean it’s stuck!”
The group feels something shaking underneath them, as a sheet of paper falls off…into nothing, like there was some sort of void right below their feet, and soon, more and more sheets began to fall beneath them. Noelle tried to warn them of the danger:
“G-guys! The papers are falling!”
“H-how is that possible- AAAAAHHH”
Berdly is the first one to fall into the abyss below
“BERDLY- AAH!”
Noelle lets out her characteristic high pitched scream as she falls right after
Before they can even do or say anything, Susie and Kris follow suit, falling to the unknown darkness…
They have no idea where they have gotten themselves into.