Work Text:
Cold wind swept through the town, brown leaves brushed by its momentum. Today was none other than Festival Day, the day where monsters (and a human) hold a traditional celebration of the festivities.
It smelled of pine and roasted food, a few crowds from here and there gathering at each stand. The sun was beginning to set off the horizon, and Kris, Susie, Noelle had just finished some rides in the festival.
And the SOUL.
You, the angel, who was not entirely supposed to be walking behind a group, was following behind them.
It had taken you a lot of energy to fully manifest a physical form, and a whole lot more to project what seems to be "normal" in Hometown; to blend in rather than causing shocks by floating around as a red, bleeding heart.
You have thought this all throughout, and being a human was definitely not in your options, it would be far too odd to have another out of nowhere in a town where Kris was the only known human—and so you ultimately decided to take the form of a hare. A charcoal-gray fur with spots and stripes of little white accents.
Here you were, in a striped sweater that had gone a bit off your shoulder unnoticed as you walked, paired with jeans and black studded boots.
How'd you manage to get such clothes in the first place? Well, it was quite easy.
You traded a super cool rock you valued the most to Sans (of all people). Surprisingly he accepted the trade, mostly because he didn't really need the clothes anyway.
Being stuck in Kris' room all day long was sometimes nice, with their accompany of course. You only ever get to explore the town when you're controlling their body.
But, now that you're here, being with more people felt much more nicer.
Exploring your freedom was much more than you ever asked for.
"Heh, why don't we grab some food before we head to the lake?" Susie suggests as the group makes their way down the street. The crisp, brown leaves crunching beneath your steps.
"Faha! Sure, why not?" And they all ended up in the cinnamon bun stand just near QC's Diner, with Noelle insisting on paying the fee—and Susie promising to pay back later.
Meanwhile, you didn't know what to choose, scrambling to make a decision as you stared at the many flavors that sat in front of you. You furrowed your brow, struggling between Brown Sugar and Caramel Pecan flavor.
You stood in front of the stand for approximately five seconds before deciding that, you don't need food whatsoever and wasting your time deciding is rather exhausting. You take a step on the side and—
Kris tugged at your sleeve, pulling you back slightly and as they pointed at the Caramel Pecan cinnamon rolls. "It tastes good, promise."
A small, reassuring smile formed on Kris' lips. You merely nodded and offered a shy smile back, trusting their decision.
After all, you didn't know that much about food anyway; it felt best to just leave it up to Kris.
Kris tapped on the wall mounted table to catch the attention of the vendor, who then tended to them after serving Noelle and Susie's order.
"Two Caramel Pecan, please."
In the meantime, you were busy observing Kris as they ordered. So this is how humans order food. Fascinating.
Frankly, you didn't know how the world works; you only learned the basics and whatnot but not how humans live their life, let alone how they should function in general.
You observed the way Kris quietly taps their fingers on the ledge as they waited for their order to arrive.
You looked at the wooden menu just beside the food truck, your eyes scanning over the flavors and then landed on the add-ons section.
"Honey syrup..." You whisper, Kris looks at you. "You wanna try?" They ask, their red eyes watching your perplexed expression.
"If... it's fine."
Kris nodded and asked for the honey syrup add-on to your cinnamon roll once both orders were handed directly in front of you.
The vendor nodded and smiled, drizzling the syrup on your roll.
You made your way beside Kris and followed behind Noelle and Susie.
When the group received their order, they began walking towards the lake path. Susie and Noelle walked ahead on the sidewalk, the deer laughing over something Susie might've said, while the other two trailed behind.
You hesitantly glanced at the bun and munched, the cream oozed out of the bite, your eyes slightly widened. You had to admit, you've never tasted something as delicious as this. Albeit you never had food on your own.
"It's good, right?" Kris said, looking over at you with a grin. You nodded intently.
"...Very good," you hummed, your eyes sparkling as you stared down at the bun in your hand. As if you were overcome by sudden anxiety, your delighted expression vanished in a split second; your eyes turned downward. "Is... this okay?"
Kris tilted their head. "Is what okay?"
You lowered your head and mumbled, "Me being here..." You looked away with a faint blush dusting your cheeks. "I—I mean, it's just, what if people start to ask? I've never been around here before..."
Kris looked at you for some time before they reached for your free hand and held it in their own. "Then I'll talk for you. It'll be okay."
They looked away. "...And whatever it is, I'll make sure they know you're with me."
You looked back at them, blinked a few times, and finally let the anxiety go; you heaved a soft sigh and nodded. "Okay."
If it weren't for Kris' rising body temperature, you wouldn't have noticed that both of you were flustered to the point of turning visibly red.
You glanced sideways, just enough to see Kris' olive skin turn into a deep shade of red matching the color of their eyes, and their grip on your hand had gone a bit tighter. You pretended not to notice.
"Hey! I found a spot right here!" Susie exclaimed and waved at the two of you with a toothy grin, "Lemme just drag a table and a bench for us to sit!"
Noelle giggled in return. "Susie, it's fine! We could just sit by the trees over there."
She gestured towards it. Internally, she was thinking, she's so adorable!
Susie glanced over, her brows raised and her lips pressed into an awkward, downward pout. "Oh yeah, you're right."
Her head swiveled to the other two standing next to each other as she smirked. "Well then, c'mon and get comfortable already."
———
It was sometime in the afternoon when you began waking up from your nap.
You heard a few rustles near the lake while you were asleep, but when you looked up—Noelle and Susie were nowhere around.
You yawned before glancing around a few more times, turning your head back to see where you were resting on; assuming you fell asleep on the tree bark this whole time... but the place you were resting on,
Was none other than Kris.
"K-Kris—?!" You jolted and immediately grew flustered, tumbling and nearly falling to your side if it weren't for Kris' grip on your waist.
'Imust'vemovedinmysleepwhadahell.' You panicked, carefully lifting yourself off Kris' lap. "I—I'm so sorry I must've fallen asleep and, uhm, slept on you..." You murmured, fidgeting with your hands. Your eyes refused to look at Kris as your face grew more and more red with each passing second.
"It's okay." Kris replied, briefly glancing at you before shyly looking away. "You seemed comfortable, so I didn't want to move you." Their hand scratched the back of their neck.
So it really was me.
The silence between you lingered, though it didn't feel as heavy anymore. Just... warm. You didn't particularly know the kind of feeling it was.
Kris reached down, picking up a stray leaf that had gotten stuck in your hair during your nap. Their fingers brushing against your ears, causing them to twitch.
A beat.
"You're a quiet sleeper," Kris murmured, a tiny, genuine smile, though it may seem teasing, finally breaking through their blush. "It was nice."
You tucked your knees to your chest, burying your burning face into your arms. "...You should've pushed me off..." Your words are muffled.
"Didn't want to." Kris simply said, giggling at your expression, showing a bit of their tooth gap.
Later, you scooted over beside Kris after regaining your composure, admiring the view in front of you as the wind blew towards your direction.
"...You can rest on me again, if you want to." It was hard to see from the hair shrouding almost half of Kris' face, but you could make out some of it and knew they were as bashful as you were.
You inched closer. And closer. Until your shoulders bumped and you grew awfully stiff. Kris huffed and pulled you closer by the shoulder, your head plopping on their side. "No need to be so shy."
Once again, you became red-faced, if it even was possible to become even more red, and your hand rested on your side just near Kris', twitching.
As if the world was in your favor, Kris quietly held your hand in their own, their fingers closing the gaps.
Kris had always been... surprisingly gentle with you. The contrast between forming an alignment.
You remember the first time you were brought to this world, served with a vessel you were supposed to inhabit,
Yet, the connection severed, turning everything into chaos until you woke up trapped inside Kris' body.
At first, neither of you got along; Kris resented this unknown entity that invaded their life and pulled their strings, and you were terrified of piloting someone's life you didn't choose.
Because in this world, you don't get to choose who you are.
After Kris learned your situation that you were just as stuck as they were, you eventually came to an agreement that you'd work together.
...Soon enough, Kris grew fond of you, and you were oblivious for a long period of time until you grew feelings for them too.
As you nuzzle quietly into their shoulder, Kris said,
"It's nice to really have you here."
Their face grows warmer.
"Just... Let's just stay. Stay for a little while."