Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

"INDIGO? WHAT IS THAT? A FRUIT?”

Athena looked at the little skeleton who shared a suspicious resemblance with Indigo standing right at the top of the basement stairs with the door shut behind him—from the purple bandana, the purple top and pants and gloves (with silver linings by the hems), down to the heeled purple boots, and to his entire physique itself, one could say this was Indigo himself, except, this monster could not be Indigo—Indigo was not the size of an adult human head!

The monster’s question had Athena pausing by the bottom of the stairs. She hummed and tapped her chin in thought. “Well… as far as I am aware Indigo is not a fruit. However, it is a name that someone possesses, and you resemble him quite—”

“I WILL HAVE YOU KNOW, HUMAN, THAT I "—he emphasized by repeatedly jabbing a gloved finger against his chest—”HAVE A DIGNITY THAT IS ABOVE POSSESSING SUCH A LOWLY NAME LIKE INDIGO. I AM MAL. THE SMALL AND TERRIBLE MAL!”

“I… I’m sorry?”

“YOU ARE FORGIVEN,” said Mal with a dismissive flick of his tiny fingers. This action was of no help to his case; he resembled Indigo even more, and he sounded just like him too! (Albeit squeakier.) “NOW, I DEMAND YOU TO OPEN THE DOOR THIS INSTANT.”

“Huh? What do you mean I am forgi—” She gasped. “Now–Now, hold on! Your unwarranted forgiveness aside, how did you get here, Mister, er… Mal?”

Mal huffed. “HOW ELSE? WITH MY SKILLS OF COURSE!”

“Skills? What skills? The only way I know a monster can appear in another room without going through any entrances is….” Athena’s mouth went wide. “A shortcut! Is that what you’re saying, Mal? That you did a shortcut to my home? But then, how would you have—”

Mal gasped, mouth open wide with a stretched hand over his chest. “You Dare Accuse Me Of Doing Something So Lazy As… A Shortcut?”

“Oh… Is that not—”

“UNBELIEVABLE! UTTERLY UNBELIEVABLE!” he exploded, hands thrown in the air with a huff, and he began to pace left and right, heels clacking against the hardwood floor. “NEVER, AND I MEAN NEVER, IN MY LIFE HAVE I EVER BEEN ACCUSED OF SOMETHING SO… SO HEINOUS!”

Athena went cold. “Oh! Oh, no!” she exclaimed. She made an attempt to take a step up the stairs, then retracting it a second after. “I–I’m terribly sorry, Mal! Truly! I didn’t know my words carried such disrespect! Please forgive me!”

“YOUR APOLOGY IS NOT ACCEPTED,” he continued with a tsk, but the pacing stopped, and he stood proud in the center of the step. “BUT IF YOU WISH TO MAKE UP FOR YOUR INSOLENCE, I SUGGEST YOU OPEN THIS DOOR AND TELL ME THE LOCATION OF THE NEAREST BITTY SHOP”

“Bit… Bitty shop?”

Mal started tapping his shoe against the floor, lifting his wrist and checking it. “I DISLIKE TO REPEAT MYSELF, HUMAN. TELL ME WHERE IT IS NOW!”

“But… But what is a Bitty shop?”

Mal scowled. “YOU’RE A HUMAN, SILLY HUMAN! YOU SHOULD KNOW WHERE ONE IS!”

“I… I was not aware there was such a thing! What would a bitty shop sell then?”

“WHAT KIND OF A FOOLISH QUESTION IS THAT? YOU ARE LOOKING AT ONE OF ITS FINEST PRODUCTS AT THIS VERY MOMENT!” With a puff of his chest forward and fists on his hips, Mal closed his eyes and held his head high.

Athena held her breath. “You’re… You're a product of a Bitty shop?”

Mal huffed again, dropping his stance. “WHO ELSE? STARS. FOR A HUMAN YOU SURE ARE QUITE SLOW.”

“I… But, I… A bitty…? You’re…?”

He stopped. “HUMAN… DO NOT TELL ME YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT A BITTY IS EITHER?!”

“I… I haven’t the slightest idea, Mal! Are you saying you’re a… a Bitty?”

“WHO ELSE? YOU CAN NOT BE THIS CLUELESS, HUMAN. YOU CAN’T POSSIBLY BE!”

“I am very clueless of this, Mal! I really am! I was not even aware small monsters were being… being sold and labeled as a Bitty!”

“HEY, I WILL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT IT IS NOBLE WORK! I BRING JOY AND HAPPINESS AND COMFORT TO HUMANS AS A LIVING, YOU KNOW!”

“What? To humans?”

“OF COURSE! WHO ELSE?”

“What about monsters?”

“I'M THE MONSTER, IDIOT! AND IT'S OUR JOB TO MAKE HUMANS HAPPY!”

“What? In what world?!”

“LOOK, HUMAN, IT IS CLEAR TO ME YOU DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH INTELLECT TO COMPREHEND MY SITUATION, SO WHY DON’T YOU JUST OPEN THE DOOR SO I COULD BE ON MY WAY TO THE BITTY SHOP—MY USELESS BROTHER IS THERE AND I KNOW HE CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT ME!”

“You have a brother as well?”

“WHO DOESN’T HAVE A BROTHER?”

“I— W–Well, I don’t… have one myself.”

Mal scoffed and rolled his eyes. “THAT DOESN’T COUNT. YOU’RE NOT A SKELETON!”

“Are you saying all skeletons have brothers?”

“OF COURSE! SOME HAVE SISTERS TOO.”

“Oh! That explains why all my skeleton monster friends also have brothers—and they’re even cousins with each other too!”

Mal gasped. “WHY, SO YOU DO KNOW OTHER BITTIES AFTER ALL! YOU LIED TO ME! HOW DARE YOU!”

“What the—I did not lie, Mal! I swear to you! They may be skeleton monsters, but they’re not bitties! They’re big and tall, and more than half of them even tower over me!”

“WHAT? HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?”

“I would love to talk more about this, Mal, and I will explain to you what I can, but will you tell me how you got here first?”

Mal crossed his arms and pouted. “HMPH. WHY SHOULD I?”

“I’m certain you know why—to solve the problem, we must first find the root of the matter,” she explained as calmly as possible. “I can help you reach the bitty shop if you help me by telling me how you went from there to here.”

Mal considered it, then he sighed. “FINE.”

Athena beamed. “So you’ll explain?”

Another sigh. “YES.”

“Okay! Explain away!”

“RIGHT. WELL, I ADMIT, I DO NOT KNOW HOW I GOT HERE,” he began, head turning left and right. “ONE MINUTE I WAS IN THE SHELTER SLEEPING NEXT TO MY BROTHER, AND THE NEXT, I WOKE UP HERE.”

“Will you tell me specifically where ‘here’ is? As in the exact place you woke up from?”

“IN THAT AREA YOU CALL A LIVING ROOM.”

“I see. Then, can you confirm that you were the one that left those books on the living room floor?”

“BOOKS? WHAT BOOKS? I ONLY MESSED AROUND WITH YOUR LIVING ROOM FURNITURE AND KITCHEN.”

“And my bookcases.”

“AND YOUR BOOKCASES!”

She paused. “You look very proud of that.”

“WHY WOULDN’T I BE?”

“I—Never mind.” She waved her hand. “Tell me about your brother, Mal. What is he like?”

“OH, MY BROTHER? WELL HE'S A GOOD FOR NOTHING NINCOMPOOP! HE'S LAZY, SLEEPY, AND HIS GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT IN HIS POOR PITIFUL LIFE IS BALANCING A PILLOW ON HIS HEAD.”

“Mal! If he’s your brother, why would you say such mean things about him?”

“BECAUSE HE’S MY BROTHER. THAT’S WHY.”

“But… But I think if I had a brother, I wouldn’t want to say such terrible words about him!”

“WELL, THAT’S YOUR PROBLEM! I CAN SAY AND DO ANYTHING I WANT TO MY BROTHER. THAT’S ALWAYS HOW IT IS AND SHOULD BE.”

“That doesn’t seem right…”

“TO YOU, IT DOESN’T! YOU’RE NOT THE ONE WITH A BROTHER HERE!”

“I suppose so…”

Mal came from another world, and from a facility of which its system Athena was not familiar with, so if the act of being mean to brothers could possibly be a part of their customs, she had no say in that at all. Who was she to dictate the structure of a world she had never been to? No one. Nobody at all. But with that said, she still needed to gather more information.

“If that’s the case,” she continued, albeit with lingering hesitance. She rubbed one arm with the other as she sat down on the basement stairs, leading her to be looking up at Mal. “Can you tell me more about him balancing a pillow on his head? I’ve never done it before and, I must say, that does sound quite the achievement; how did he do it?”

Mal rolled his eye lights. “HOW WOULD I KNOW? A MONSTER OF MY LEVEL NEVER PARTICIPATES IN SUCH INDOLENT ACTIVITIES!”

“Right. Well, uhm, what about his appearance? What does he look like?”

“HE'S TALLER THAN ME, AND HE WEARS THAT HIDEOUS HOODIE AND JOGGER PANTS.”

Athena nodded. “I see, he sounds like Rus.”

“AND HE’S—” Mal paused. “HOW DID YOU KNOW HIS NAME?”

Huh?

“Huh?”

“I SAID HOW DID YOU KNOW HIS NAME?”

“His–His name is Rus?”

Mal scowled.

Right. He did not like to repeat himself. His scowl was still present while he narrowed his sockets with his head tilted to the side, and his heeled boots were tapping against the floor again. “WELL?”

“I… I don’t know?”

“WHAT LITTLE CREDIBILITY YOU HAVE IS FADING AWAY BY THE SECOND, HUMAN.”

Athena scrambled for an answer. “No, wait! I didn’t know, Mal! I swear! I didn’t know that your brother’s name is Rus, only that I know of another skeleton named Rus, and he is not a bitty! But again, I didn’t know that Rus is also…” she trailed. At that moment, she realized something. “But, wait a second. Your name is Mal, correct? Not Indigo?”

“HOW MANY TIMES MUST I REPEAT THIS?”

“What about cousins, Mal? Do you have any?”

“NO.”

“But you know of other skeleton monsters like you, yes?”

“WE ARE BITTIES, AND YES, I KNOW OF OTHER BITTIES.”

“What are the, er, other bitties like?”

“WHAT DO THEY HAVE TO DO WITH THIS?”

“Everything, Mal. Everything.”

“WHAT?”

“Yes, Mal. I cannot fully explain yet, but I truly need to know. We can start with you telling me their names.”

“UGH, FINE. THERE’S SANSY AND PAPY, RED AND EDGY, BABY BLUE AND STRE—”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“HUMAN, I’M GETTING REALLY TIRED OF THIS.”

“No. No. I’m sorry for interrupting. I simply… Are those… Are you certain about the names you have just given me?”

“WHY WOULD I BE UNCERTAIN ABOUT IT?”

“Ah, no, that’s not quite right.” Athena held her arms out in front of her, palms open in a grabby motion like she was picking words floating midair. “I… I suppose the correct question would be… you are being truthful with these names, yes?”

“WHY WOULD I BE DISHONEST ABOUT IT?” he said. “ARE YOU QUESTIONING MY INTEGRITY?”

Athena stared at him.

Mal threw his hands in the air. “OKAY, FINE, MAYBE I WOULD LIE TO YOU, BUT THIS TIME I DID NOT.”

“Truly?”

“TRULY.”

Her jaw dropped, then she pushed it shut with her palm. “But… But that can’t be their names, right? Sansy, Papy, Edgy—they must be nicknames instead, right?”

“NO, NO. DO NOT BE MISTAKEN. THOSE ARE THEIR REAL NAMES.”

“Oh. So… So for Sansy, that is their real name? Not Sans? And Papy is Papy? Not Papyrus?”

“SANS? PAPYRUS? WHAT ODD NAMES—I PITY WHOEVER OWNS SUCH MONIKERS.”

“Why, I beg to differ, Mal! I think they’re great names!”

“YOUR OPINION IS BARELY CREDIBLE.”

“What? That does not make any—”

“ANYWAY, I SHALL CONTINUE NAMING THEM ALL OFF NOW. SO, THERE IS BABY BLUE, STRETCHY—”

“Stretchy?”

“—WINEY, ALTHOUGH HE INSISTS HIS NAME IS BLACK, AND THEN COFFEE, DUSKY, GREY-GREY, AND THEN THERE IS ME AND MY BROTHER RUS, THEN DREAMY, NIGHT-NIGHT, AND ER-ER.”

No. No way.

“Black… Dusky and Grey-Grey… This is… I don’t…”

“WHAT? YOU DON’T WHAT?”

She couldn’t answer him, eyes downcast with her gaze on her hands that rested on her lap. She clenched and unclenched it before taking a deep breath.

Mother… she called. Her hands began to shake and she gripped her skirt tight for support.

The answer came.

Athena released her breath.

“Mal,” she spoke, fists still clenched. “I'm afraid you won't be finding your brother here.”

“WHAT? WHY NOT?”

She loosened her fists before she lifted her chin to face him. “What do you say we leave the basement for the kitchen and have a talk about this over some biscuits and beverages?”

Mal huffed. “AND WHY WOULD I AGREE TO THAT?”

“Mal, it is very late at night and my home is quite the distance away from the city, so how about you rest here for the night, yes? And I can offer you some sustenance as I assume you must be, er, tired from your… activities. And in the meantime I can learn more about your case while we’re at it! I promise I’ll try my very best to help you with the information we have.”

Mal was glaring at her the entire time, only dropping his expression at her mention of sustenance, then he fully turned his head away when she finished. A wave of silence followed after.

“So… what do you say, Mal?” she prompted.

Mal tsked. “HMPH. FINE!”

She nodded. “Alright.” She stood up from the stairs and climbed before kneeling again by the second step. She cupped her palms and offered it up to Mal.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” he asked.

“Well, it would be easier if I carried you with me on the way to the kitchen.”

“I AM VERY MUCH CAPABLE OF WALKING, HUMAN!”

Athena winced and pulled her hands back. “O–Oh. I am sorry, Mal, I did not mean to imply that you are unable to walk, I simply thought that it would be more efficient for you if we get there faster via carrying you in my palms, it makes it so that I could prepare foodstuff for you right away.”

“IS THAT SO?”

“Yes.”

Mal narrowed his sockets at her, and in response Athena sucked her lips in and bit them. He huffed and turned his head away.

“VERY WELL. SINCE IT CANNOT BE HELPED, I ALLOW YOU THE RIGHT TO CARRY ME TO YOUR KITCHEN. FOR NOW.”

“Alright!” Athena cupped her hands again and held it out. Mal then hopped on her palms (he was very light!) and off they went as the basement door finally opened and to the living room.

For good measure, and to make sure there was no one else around, Athena allowed herself to have a feel for the whole perimeter of her home, from within her cottage, out the fields, and to the surrounding woods in search of more unexpected visitors.

The coast was clear. Good. Perhaps she should’ve done that before already, really, and she could, but, then again, how could she say no to a little goose chase with a side of mystery solving?

As they were making it to the kitchen, Athena tried to piece everything together.

The monster skeletons. Sans, Papyrus, Stretch, Pollo, Dusk, Grey, Rus, Indigo, Blue, Mister Edge, Mister Black, and Red. And more. Possibly. Potentially. Nevertheless, with Mal’s case and the information he revealed as basis, there was a chance, a good one, that said skeletons truly weren’t cousins with each other, or perhaps they were, and Mal was the outlier. But still one thing was for certain, and that was that Mal did not belong to this universe, as confirmed by mother, and if the other skeletons truly weren’t cousins with each other either, then most likely they were also not from this universe.

Mal was nearly identical to Indigo, with the only difference being their sizes and names, and they both have a brother named Rus! How did this happen? How did Mal get here? Who was responsible for—

Wait. No.

Athena couldn’t know this. She didn't want to know this. This wasn't her business. This was not why she came here!

Her only recognized and clear goal here on this earth was to learn about it—to explore the earth for the first time again and be among its inhabitants, so whatever the reason was for Mal appearing here (and potentially the other monsters if her assumption was true), she had nothing to do with it! Mal belonged to another universe, and he had nothing to do with this earth in particular! Clearly, this was out of her scope!

“Mal, I have a proposition,” she announced, stopping in the middle of the living room. “I’ve mentioned to you that I know of other skeleton monsters, and I have a feeling they would know how to help you; I can take you to them.”

“WHAT?” exclaimed Mal as he turned on her palms to face her..

“Once you are there, I will erase this entire night from my memory,” she continued to explain, “as well as the knowledge I pieced together here, and I will forget I ever met you in my home and as a whole, alright?”

“WHAT?”

“I’d… I would do the same to you, and I could, truly, but… but I won’t! I can’t! All I can do is to request of you that, should we ever meet again, I would like it if you pretend that you do not know me, and that you have never known of me. Ever. Will you do that for me, please?”

“WHAT?”

“Okay, so perhaps this is a lot to take in, and you are very far away from your home as well, and you must be very tired so, for now, let me prepare you a meal just as promised.”

“YOU KNOW WHAT. SURE. WHATEVER.”

Athena thought back to all the skeletons as she continued walking. Nothing was confirmed yet with their case, but if she were to entertain the possibility, then it cannot be said for certain anymore if there were truly only twelve of them. There could be more, really, like Mal who stumbled into her home. Even more, which skeletons belonged in this universe and which ones didn’t also needed to be considered. At the very least, she had a lead in that one.

Every skeleton brother she met thus far came in pairs, and so did Mal and his brother ‘Rus’. So perhaps it can be assumed that at least two skeletons which equals one pair of siblings are from this earth. That, or this assumption applied to none of them at all—but that could easily be rebuked.

On her encounter with most of them, they gave off the feeling as though they did not belong—what else could she possibly gather from that besides the fact that it stood as proof that they weren’t from this universe originally? They weren’t from here, they belonged somewhere else! And, even more, there was only one pair of brothers that didn't give off that feeling, and it was Sans and Papyrus! Did that mean they were the only ones who truly belonged from this universe? It would make sense. The rest of the skeletons must be so discombobulated being on this earth that their bodies had already been expressing homesickness!

Or, at least, that's the best way she could describe it from what she knew thus far.

Either way, it was all making sense now!

They made it to the kitchen, and from there, Athena put her palms on the counter so Mal could relocate himself. She went and fetched two loaves of bread, procured a dip for it, put all of them on a plate, along with her smallest measuring cup that she filled with orange juice, and slid them all over to Mal.

“HUMAN!” he called suddenly from the counter.

“Oh! Yes, Mal?”

“YOUR POOR EXCUSE FOR A HOUSE IS A COMPLETE DIVE!” He gestured to the entire kitchen. “HAVE YOU NO STANDARDS?”

“Well.” She laughed. “It was tidy before, and quite the lovely sight, but then you came and wrecked everything in your wake.”

“WELL, I BET IT LOOKED JUST AS HIDEOUS,” he said as he tore a small piece from one of the loaves and bit into it.

Her smile faded. “You don't have to be so mean, Mal. I like how my home looks!”

“A PITY YOU HAVE SUCH POOR TASTE FOR A HUMAN. OH, WELL, I’M AT LEAST IN LUCK I WON’T HAVE TO STAY HERE. THANK THE HEAVENS!”

“Huh.” She blinked. “Just like Indigo. Well, I don’t think I’ve ever heard him say thank—”

“EXCUSE ME?”

She sucked her lips in. “Nothing.”

“NO, NO. YOU SAID SOMETHING, AND YOU WERE STILL SAYING SOMETHING. JUST LIKE WHO?”

“No one. Nothing. Will you tell me more about this Bitty shop you live in?”

“NO.”

“But… But we had an agreement?" she pushed. “I need to know more of how you got here so we can figure out how you can get home, and one way to do that is by backtracking.”

“I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU WILL BE TAKING ME TO A GROUP OF SKELETON MONSTERS THAT COULD HELP; WHY SHOULD I KEEP TELLING YOU MORE INFORMATION?”

“But, I could potentially still help, Mal. Maybe we’ll also be able to find something out on our own—we must exhaust all our options!”

Mal put the tiny piece of bread down. “FINE. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW ABOUT MY HOME?”

“Right! So, uhm, you and the other bitties aside, who else is there in the bitty shop?”

“THE HUMANS, OF COURSE! THEY'RE OUR CARETAKERS. THEY FEED US, BATHE US, GIVE US CLOTHES, AND THEY PLAY WITH US—ALL UNTIL VISITORS WOULD COME TO ADOPT US!”

“As your caretakers, that would mean they’re not small like you, right? They’re the same size as I am?”

“YES.”

“And, regarding the visitors, by adopting you, does that mean you will be living with them?”

“OF COURSE! ONCE ONE OF US GETS ADOPTED, THEY WILL HAVE NEW CARETAKERS.”

“Do you have to be adopted?”

“YES. IT IS A MUST!”

“But, why? What if you wanted to stay?”

“STAY? WHAT NONSENSE! WE ARE CREATED WITH THE SOLE PURPOSE TO BE LOVED AND CARED FOR BY HUMANS, AND WHETHER THAT IS IN THE SHELTER OR TO A NEW HOME, THAT IS NOT FOR US TO DECIDE!”

“And… and that is okay for you?”

“WHAT IS?”

“That you do not get to decide where to stay?”

“I DO NOT UNDERSTAND THIS QUESTION. I JUST TOLD YOU HUMAN, WHERE WE STAY IS NOT OUR PROBLEM, SO LONG AS WE FULFILL OUR DUTIES TO OUR HUMANS.”

Athena couldn’t speak. What was there to say? She hadn’t heard of such a system. The adoption center that Marcy resides in couldn’t possibly be like the shelter Mal was talking about right? Surely, the children had the choice of whether to stay or go, or where to be—it was a part of their right as a living being! Mal was also a living being, so he must have had the option as well, right? Perhaps there was something here she wasn’t understanding. Mal was, of course, from another earth. Like she had already concluded earlier, their customs must be truly different from this earth, and if that was the case, again, then she had no say in that matter.

Still…

“HUMAN, DO YOU HAVE ANY MORE QUESTIONS OR WHAT?”

“Just one more, Mal. One more question. For now at least.”

“WHAT IS IT?”

“Are you happy?”

“WHAT?”

“To fulfill your duty, as you said,” she continued, “your duty as a bitty—are you happy to do it?”

“HEH! BUT OF COURSE! IT IS MY PRIDE AND JOY!” he declared, assuming that same proud position he held earlier, with his chin raised high and chest puffed out, and he held a grin that she hadn’t seen from him before. Perhaps she truly didn’t understand.

“You seem truly happy saying that,” she noted.

“WHO WOULDN’T BE?”

“Right.” She nodded. “I think I see now.”

“GOOD. AND SINCE THAT IS YOUR LAST QUESTION, IT IS MY TURN NOW.”

“Of course. Go ahead.”

“I HAVE SEVERAL QUESTIONS, HUMAN, AND I WOULD LIKE IF YOU ANSWER THEM ALL.”

“I will try my very best!”

“VERY WELL. FIRST QUESTION THEN: WHAT DO YOU MEAN I WON’T BE ABLE TO FIND THE BITTY SHOP HERE?”

“Well… unfortunately that is because there's no bitty shop here.”

“HERE? YOU MEAN IN THIS FOREST?”

“No, on this earth in general. In this world.”

“THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE. HOW WOULD YOU KNOW?”

“Well, using my experience as a reference, I’ve never seen or heard of a bitty shop before, nor have I seen a skeleton of your size. But, of course, I understand that my experience is not the absolute basis for facts, and in that case, our next best option is to consult the internet for a confirmation!”

“INTERNET? WHAT’S THAT?”

“The internet is a global network holding databases upon databases of information and communication facilities. It is built and developed by humans, and now with monsters as well, and with its global wide knowledge of the world, we can consult it if bitty shops ever existed on this earth!”

“WELL, WITH HOW WELL KNOWN BITTY SHOPS ARE IN THE WORLD, SURELY SOMETHING LIKE THE INTERNET WILL HOLD INFORMATION OF IT TOO!”

“Okay! Let’s go check!”

Athena pulled out her phone. She leaned against the counter and placed her arms on it.

“WHAT IS THAT?” he said, positioning himself between her arms so he could look at what she was holding.

“This is a phone, Mal. It’s one of the ways to access the internet! You can also access it through a computer, a laptop, a tablet, and even from a tiny watch!”

“WHAT? HOW CAN SOMETHING SO SMALL HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET? ISN’T THE INTERNET HUGE?”

“That is a great question, Mal! You see, these devices didn’t used to be so small. Computers decades ago almost took up a whole room! But since then, developers are working overtime to make them smaller and smaller every year until they can finally fit in the pocket of your clothes! Innovation is quite the wonder, is it not?”

“HM. I SUPPOSE SO. THIS IS OUT OF MY EXPERTISE—JUST GET ON WITH THE CONSULTING, HUMAN!”

“You may call me Athena, Mal. I would prefer that.”

“WHATEVER, HUMAN.”

“I–I see… Well, if that’s what you’d like.”

“ARE YOU CONSULTING?”

“Yes, yes. I am.” She began typing and tapping on the screen. “Alright, let’s see here… Bitty shops.”

“THERE.” He pointed at something. “WHAT ABOUT THAT?”

“Well, that is indeed a bitty shop, but, er, these are toys, Mal.”

“WHAT? WHAT ABOUT SKELETONS? WHAT ABOUT THOSE SKELETONS?”

“I’ll tap on it. Hm. Oh, these appear to be miniature skeleton models. Another word to describe them would be dolls.”

“NO, NO. I DO NOT MEAN MODELS. I DO NOT MEAN DOLLS. I MEANT ALIVE! LIVING, BREATHING, AND FULLY ALIVE SKELETONS.”

“Let’s scroll further. Hm… This one is… Ah. No. And this other one… Well, not that one either. None here. I’ll check the next page. Hm… Skeleton plushies, puppet skeletons, skeleton displays, skeleton candies, skeleton keychains, skeleton posters... Okay, next page perhaps. Let’s see… Not that. Or that. That one isn’t it either. Maybe the next one. Huh… Maybe the next? Hm… Donuts. Clothes. Coffee. Next one then. Let’s see… Tiny slippers. Dollhouses. Oh, well. Next page again. Craft store. Cakes. Bikes. None here. Perhaps there’s—Oh. That was the last page.”

It was the last page. Athena was left staring at the screen.

“WELL?”

“Well.” She set the phone down and leaned away from the counter. “I’m sorry, Mal, but as you’ve seen as we went over one page after another, there are no results.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO RESULTS?”

“Let me correct myself: there were results, several, in fact, but, again, none of them pertained to living, breathing skeletons of your size that reside in a shop called Bitty Shop.”

Mal gasped. “WELL, I NEVER! THIS INTERNET ISN’T QUITE THE RELIABLE TOOL YOU CLAIM IT TO BE!”

“Mal, if the internet doesn’t have it, then the chance of it existing is very small!” she reasoned. “But in your case, you said bitty shops are very well known, and if they are, then they surely will be on the internet, but they aren’t.”

“THAT’S JUST… IMPOSSIBLE! UTTERLY IMPOSSIBLE!”

“And even without the internet, Mal, I can assure you, like I’ve said before I have never heard of such a thing as a bitty shop that, er, sells skeletons of your size. They simply do not exist.”

“I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS. SURELY THIS IS ALL A JOKE. A MERE JEST. YOU MUST BE TOYING WITH ME, HUMAN!”

“I'm afraid I am not, Mal.”

“NO, NO. YOU MUST BE. THERE IS SIMPLY NO OTHER REASON.”

“I promise you, Mal, I am not. Once I take you to your fellow skeletons, they may be able to give you the answers you need, and they may know more about your case than I do. They are, after all, skeletons like you.”

“HOW CAN I TRUST YOU EXACTLY? HOW DO I KNOW YOU HAVEN’T BEEN LYING TO ME ALL THIS TIME? FOR ALL I KNOW THAT INTERNET OF YOURS IS A MERE PLOY TO TRICK ME! MAYBE ALL THIS TIME YOU’RE IN ON HOW I GOT HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE AND THIS IS ALL MANUFACTURED TO TEST ME! TO PLAY WITH ME!”

“I… I…”

“YOU COULDN’T ANSWER, COULD YOU?”

“But… But I…”

“I KNEW IT! THIS IS ALL A LIE! A SIMULATION! ONCE I WAKE UP, I’LL BE BACK IN MY ENCLOSURE WITH MY BROTHER. YOU HUMANS AND YOUR EXPERIMENTS! PAH! HAVE YOU SERIOUSLY BEEN TAKING ME FOR A FOOL? YOU DIDN’T THINK I WOULDN’T FIGURE OUT? I KNEW IT. THIS IS ALL—HUMAN? WHY ARE YOU CRYING?”

Athena lowered her head, with eyes on the floor and fists clenched on her sides, but when she closed her eyes, more tears trickled down.

“SAY SOMETHING!”

“I’m sorry, Mal.” She hiccuped. “I had realized, in our entire exchange, not once had I thought to ask how you have been feeling.”

“WHAT? WHAT ARE YOU—”

“While someone appearing in my home out of nowhere and causing a few mess may have been quite a dilemma for me, I cannot imagine how distressing, how disturbing it is to suddenly wake up in an unfamiliar place, not knowing where to go, and not knowing who to turn to—only a human whom you’re understandably not certain you could trust. Truly, all this time, I had been selfish and inconsiderate, and for that, I sincerely apologize. I am very sorry, Mal. I’m deeply sorry. I hope that, in spite of my misdeed, you would be able to forgive me,”

“WHA… H–HEY, NOW, STOP CRYING! WHO SAID YOU COULD CRY?”

She tried to wipe her tears with the back of her hands, and when that didn’t work, she took her skirt by the hem and wiped her eyes.

“I am sorry,” she repeated while still wiping her cheeks. “By crying, I am committing a logical fallacy. Please do not be influenced by my tears.”

“YOU CAN’T SAY THAT WHILE STILL ACTIVELY CRYING! AND YOUR VOICE IS SHAKING TOO!”

Athena sniffed. “I am aware. Please allow me a moment to recollect myself.”

“WHATEVER, HUMAN!” said Mal, but he did stand there waiting (with one of the loaves in hand) while Athena recomposed herself. After a few more wiping and throat clearing, she finally faced Mal again.

“WELL? ARE YOU DONE?”

She nodded. “Yes. Very much.”

“THEN EXPLAIN YOURSELF!”

“Right, as I’ve said, all this time I was focused on what happened, on what caused this, and how to solve it. I asked you all those questions because I needed to know how you ended up here, so that perhaps I could figure out how to help send you back, but not once… not once did I even consider how you are, how you’ve been feeling.”

“RIGHT.”

“Again, Mal, I am very sorry.”

“UH-HUH.” Mal gave a slow nod. There was a slight crease in his bony brows, like he was deciphering a puzzle piece. “THAT STILL DOESN’T EXPLAIN ANYTHING, HUMAN. ARE YOU LYING TO ME OR NOT?”

“I would never, Mal!” She asserted. “Truly! I wouldn’t! I didn’t! I haven’t!”

“REALLY? AND HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BELIEVE THAT? BELIEVE YOU?”

“I want to help you, Mal, I really do, and I am telling you, I wouldn’t lie about the bitty shop not existing, nor my skeleton friends. Lying here would not benefit me at all—it wouldn’t help me nor you on bringing you back there. If the bitty shop was real I would have gladly offered to take you there, but I can’t, because there is no bitty shop on this earth. Our only solid lead by this point are my skeleton friends, Mal. They’re the only people I know who can potentially help you, so I need to take you to them. I wouldn’t lie about this. I promise you that.

“YOUR PROMISE MEANS NOTHING TO ME,” he dismissed futher. “I NEED PROOF OF EXISTENCE OF THESE SKELETON FRIENDS OF YOURS AND IF THEY’RE ACTUALLY AS TALL AS YOU SAY THEY ARE.”

“Proof,” Athena repeated, blinking. “Proof.”

“YES. THAT IS WHAT I SAID.”

“Proof. A proof that—” she gasped. “Oh! I can very much do that! If proof of their existence is what you need, then I can easily send a message to Sans right now and ask him for a photo of him!”

“A WHAT?”

She went and held her phone again on the counter so Mal could see, and she navigated her messages and tapped Sans’ name.

Athena: Good evening, Sans! I hope you are well and good. I have something to request of you if it’s alright.

The reply was not instant, and so they waited, but finally it came.

Sans: hey

Sans: whats the request?

Athena: The request is would it be alright if you send me a photo of yourself?

Sans: what

Sans: just me?

Athena: Well, to clarify, it doesn’t have to be just you. Your cousins could join as well, and even Papyrus!

Sans: whats this for?

Athena: An acquaintance wants me to provide proof that I am friends with skeletons, and they told me they wouldn’t believe me unless I have a photo of said skeleton friends.

Sans: im guessing you need it that bad huh

Athena: More or less. Yes.

Sans: if its proof you need then it dont have to be me right

Sans: can be my cousins?

Athena: I suppose so, yes. If it’s alright. If it isn’t something you’re comfortable doing, you have every right to say no, Sans.

Sans: its cool

Sans: hold on

“Alright, he agreed to it.” She put her phone down again but left it open. She then went to procure an apple (for the loaves of bread were surprisingly gone; it wasn’t enough!) from the refrigerator that she proceeded to wash. “And now we wait for him to take the photo and send it.”

Mal walked towards her phone with the orange juice in hand and peered at the screen. “IS HIS NAME TRULY SANS?”

“Yes.”

Mal tsked. “WHAT A BAD DECISION FROM HIS CARETAKERS.”

Athena frowned while cutting up the apple in tiny slices. “That is a very rude thing to say, Mal. Sans is a wonderful name.”

“YOUR WORDS ARE YET TO BE VALIDATED AS CREDIBLE.”

“What would validate them as credible for you, Mal?”

Mal narrowed his sockets, looking Athena up and down, then he turned his head away with a huff.

“PERHAPS NOTHING.”

“That’s quite unfair, Mal,” she pointed out while setting the plate of apple slices next to him. “I’m sure my—”

Ping!

She stopped. “Oh! That must be the photo!”

Athena grabbed her phone again, but before she could take a proper peek at what Sans sent, Mal downed the orange juice to its last drop, tossed it to the side, and jumped on the phone, covering her view.

“LET’S SEE THIS. HOW COULD THEY POSSIBLY— WHAT? WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT.”

“What is it, Mal?”

“WHAT AM I LOOKING AT? HUMAN, EXPLAIN THIS NONSENSE!”

“If you would let me see the photo, I would love to.”

Mal thankfully moved out of the way so she could view the photo, and the first thing that caught her eye was Stretch sleeping soundly on the couch, with scribbles of various shapes and forms like swirls and zigzags in different colors all over his countenance. On the left and right side of his cheeks, three parallel lines were drawn on top of the other, as though depicting whiskers, and drawn on top of his forehead was a space rocket. Around his neck was also a glittery blue bow along with a purple bib under it that said, “Give it to me!”

Atop Stretch was Rus wearing a cowboy hat with sunglasses over his sockets leaning with his folded arms on the backrest of the couch, one hand raised to do the peace sign, while the other held different colored markers. There was also Pollo sitting rigid by the far end of the couch, his shoulders and torso straight yet slightly leaning away from Stretch and Rus. Despite the toy duck on top of his head, it looked like he didn’t want to be a participant in the photo at all. Lastly, on the bottom left of the photo was a very blurry skeleton (presumably Sans) wearing a pair of rainbow heart sunglasses with a peace sign held up.

“W–Well”—Athena cleared her throat—”the–the odd elements of the photo aside, as you can see, Mal, they are most definitely skeletons, and for scale the markers and sunglasses are near the size of my hands and the couch is mostly similar in size to the one I have here. Although, having been there myself, their couch is relatively bigger.”

Mal was quiet for a second, his eyes searching for something in the photo, and then he huffed and looked away. “HMPH. PERHAPS THAT IS TRUE, BUT WHO IS TO SAY THIS PHOTO OF YOURS IS TRUE?”

“What?”

“FOR ALL I KNOW, YOU MUST HAVE FORGED THIS ALL ALONG ON YOUR OWN—TO FOOL ME!”

“Mal, you saw the conversation I had with Sans, you saw the image first before I did, and how would I have had the time to create that photo when I’m here waiting with you? Listen, Mal, I really do not see a reason why I would lie to you about anything right now. I really do want to help you, and I am saddened that you’re very far away from home. I know that if I were to get lost myself, I would be very grateful for whoever helps me home, and right now, I want to be able to do that to you.”

“This is all very troubling for you, I understand, or perhaps I do not. I do not know the feeling of being far from home, but nevertheless I—”

Ping! Ping!

Before Athena could do anything, Mal rushed over to the phone again, and she leaned to the left to peek. On the screen her and Sans’ conversation was still open and as it appeared Sans sent two messages. One is a video and the other a text. Athena and Mal said nothing, but the former reached a hand out to tap the screen so that the video would play.

The recording was shaky, but still they could see Stretch slowly waking up and lifting his arms above his head to, er, stretch. Rus was gone in the video, and so was Pollo, but there was the sound of someone snickering in the background, and Athena could see the very second that Stretch saw the camera; he froze, sockets open wide like dinner plates, and he rushed to get up and almost tripped on the way.

“what you— you recording? what the fu—” The video cut off.

Scrolling down, the text Sans sent said, "this enough? anw im sleeping now. night ath."

Silence.

“I… I suppose that is further proof that my skeleton friends are, erm, indeed real," she posited as she texted a quick goodnight to Sans before setting the phone back on the counter agani for Mal to look at.

Mal stayed quiet.

“So, uhm, do you finally believe me now? They are skeletons like you, Mal. They only happen to be bigger. But either way, I believe that they can help you, and they would understand you better than I can, so what do you say?”

Mal took one long look at the phone. A really long look. And she let him. She stood back as he went closer to the phone again and tapped the play button like she did earlier, and they heard Stretch’s voice getting cut off again. After that he replayed it. And replayed it. And replayed it. Over and over, as if he was looking for something, or hoping something might change in his next replay, but nothing did. Eventually he stopped replaying it, only staring at it. Then put a finger on the screen again and dragged it down, scrolling up to the photo that had Rus and Pollo. He took one very long look of that as well.

After some time, he sighed and turned around.

“HUMAN?”

“Yes?”

He sighed again, walking up to the plate of apples and picking up one slice. “IT SEEMS I DO NOT HAVE MUCH CHOICE IN THE MATTER.”

“I would say there are many more choices to pick from, but my offer is the one that would guarantee the best results,” said Athena. “Anyway, would you like to go now after your meal? Or would you like to wait until the break of dawn?”

“I'D RATHER WE GO NOW, ACTUALLY,” he answered as he picked up another slice. “I WOULDN’T DARE SPEND ANOTHER SECOND HERE IF I CAN HELP IT!”

“I… Alright.”

“BUT,” he continued with one finger raised, “BEFORE THAT, I HAVE SIMPLY ONE MORE QUESTION FOR YOU, HUMAN.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“YOU'RE A MAGE, AREN'T YOU?”

Athena raised her eyebrows. “That’s quite the guess, but no, I am not a mage.”

“I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT FOR A SECOND!” he declared, pointing an accusing apple slice at her. “YOU WERE ABLE TO CLOSE THE DOOR ON ME EARLIER BEFORE I GOT TO ESCAPE! HOW DID YOU DO IT?”

“Well, for one, that… wasn’t because I’m a mage.”

“IF YOU’RE NOT A MAGE, THEN WHAT ARE YOU"?”

She looked away. “I… I can't tell you.”

“WHY NOT?”

“Mal, I will help you, but I need you to promise you won't mention to them that you met me. At all.”

“WHY NOT? AND WHY ARE YOU AVOIDING MY QUESTION?”

“Please, Mal,” she pleaded. “My whole existence here depends on you keeping that promise. That's all I can tell you. I can't tell you more even if I want to. So, please…”

“YOU'RE GOING TO ERASE THIS IN YOUR MEMORIES, RIGHT? LIKE YOU SAID EARLIER?”

“Yes, I will.”

“THEN, WHY WON'T YOU JUST DO THE SAME TO ME?”

“I… I can't do that! That goes against… against everything I stand for!”

He huffed. “YOU KNOW WHAT? FINE. WHATEVER. I DON'T WANT YOU TO REMOVE MY MEMORIES ANYWAY.”

She nodded. “Yes, and that's exactly why I can't. So, shall we go now?”

“YES.”

Athena cupped her hands and put them on the counter, allowing Mal to walk over and stand on them.

“Just to confirm once again, Mal, you know of shortcuts, yes?”

“OF COURSE I DO, MY LAZY BROTHER DOES IT ALL THE TIME!”

“Alright, then that means you understand exactly what we’re about to do here right now. But, as I’ve said, please do not tell anyone about this, no matter who they are or what they say. Please?”

“YES, YES, WHATEVER!”

“Alright. I trust you will keep your promise. Here we go.”

And so they reappeared in the middle of the skeletons’ garden. Thankfully, no one was around. Perhaps because it was the middle of the night. Still, for safety Athena dashed to the nearest tallest bush and hid herself and Mal.

“Now, for a way to get in…”

“CAN'T YOU JUST SHORTCUT US IN?”

“But, there’s a chance they’ll be there and see us as we appear inside, Mal!”

“THEN BECOME INVISIBLE OR SOMETHING! CAN'T YOU DO THAT?”

“Oh! Good idea! Hold on.” Athena held Mal with only one hand while she dug for a hanky in her pockets. “Here. Wear this for a moment. I’ve read of a magical drape that can turn whatever it covers invisible.”

“RIGHT.”

With the two of them hidden to the mortal gaze, Athena sneaked inside the mansion, past the sliding doors and into a hallway. Most of the lights were turned off, making the surroundings quite dim, and for the meantime, she removed mother's cast so she could see in the dark.

“Where should we go?” she whispered.

“Just Take Me To The Kitchen, Human,” Mal whispered back. “I'll Take It From There.”

“Are you certain?” she asked.

“OF COURSE I'M CERTAIN!” he declared, voice booming. “I'M THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE MAL!”

“who the fuck is that?”

With a barely held back gasp, Athena quickly relocated the two of them to the kitchen, where there fortunately wasn’t anyone around.

“I'll leave you here now, Mal. Do you really got it from here?”

Instead of replying, Mal patted her hand twice.

“Alright.” She set him on the kitchen counter. “The next time we see each other, I won't remember you anymore, so please pretend you do not know me either.”

Mal nodded, offering her a salute.

Athena saluted back, and she thought of something else she could say, like a proper farewell, a good luck, or perhaps even a little overview on the mansion's floor plan just as a little more assistance, but then the sound of footsteps came from outside the kitchen, a heavy one, and so in a panic Athena returned home in a blink, in which she was pulled in for a surprising reminder of the mess Mal had left in his wake.

She heaved a heavy sigh. It was time for clean up, with the option of either having everything put back into their respective places in a snap or spending the next few hours manually doing so, and she could decide on one, yes, but, well, since she had already learned something against her will today, she may as well allow a coin to decide this one for her too.

Heads for the manual cleanup, and tails for snapping everything back into place.

Athena procured a coin and tossed it before slapping it on the back of her hand.

Heads.

That decided it. Thus she grabbed the broom and started in the living room. Then the kitchen. Then the basement. The latter was the one that took the longest with the amount of books strewn on the floor, and she had to rearrange them all again and put them in their assigned columns and rows on the bookshelf. She added the three mysterious books into the shelves as well, and she'll have to alter her memory for that, too. She had to make it appear as though she had bought them from the bookstore as well.

When everything was finally cleaned, she returned upstairs, washing up and changing into another nightgown. After that she went and snuggled into bed, where she would sleep and awake to an Athena that never had an unexpected guest come and wreak havoc in her home.

She would wake up never having had met Mal, nor having had brought him to the skeletons’ home either. There was never a Mal in her memory.

In her dream in the realm of slumber, she frolicked in the clouds, hopping from one puff to another, and how soft they all were! Very soft! They were quite cool as well, and with a giggle she let herself fall on her back, where the clouds curled around her body, almost fully engulfing her.

Eventually, she got up again and knelt instead. She cupped her hands and scooped a handful of clouds in her hands. She could make a snowman, but instead of snow, it was made of clouds! A cloudman! Thus she got to work. With a ball of cloud in her hands, she rolled and rolled it on the ground until it grew bigger and bigger. After that she rolled another one, smaller this time, then laid it on top of the other ball of cloud. Then she rolled another and stacked it on top of the other, revealing a tower of cloud balls. All that was left was to make it appear alive.

Athena then took another handful of cloud and molded it into the shape of a carrot, as well as changing its color to orange with three separate lines going around it. She stuck the thick end to the smallest cloud ball. Next, she took two tiny cloud balls and turned them black for eyes and positioned them from left and right of the carrot but just an inch higher. Then she made three more as buttons for the body. And then, of course, the arms. And a top hat and scarf.

And, voila! A cloud man!

She wasn’t done, of course, for next she created a cloud woman, which was an exact replica of a cloud man but this time it wore a red bow instead of a top hat. And next, a cloud child. It was smaller with a purple beanie for a hat, and right next to it was its cloud sibling—a smaller one with a green beanie.

It was a family of clouds!

She dusted her hands and stepped back and admired her work, her eyes moving from one cloud person to another in a circular pattern. Although, her gaze lingered for a while on the older cloud child.

It was beautiful, perhaps even lovely. And, maybe, in another set of realities, this could be—

“It is time to wake up.”

She opened her eyes, her torso rising from her bed.

“What…” she breathed out. She turned towards her nightstand, checking the time.

“Oh! Goodness. Rus will be here in an hour—I ought to get ready!”

Several minutes later, she had her morning jog attire and bag ready for the day. For her pre morning jog meal, one fresh apple would do. After taking the first bite, a series of knocks came to her door. That must be Rus!

“Who's there?” she called before biting into the apple again.

“dejav.”

“Dejav who?”

“knock knock.”

“Huh? Huh…” Five seconds of silence passed, and then…

“Oh! Oh! I got it!” She swung the door open, smiling up at Rus. “You fabricated a deja vu experience by saying knock knock twice!”

“yep.”

“Genius! Absolute genius!”

“thanks.”

“It makes me wonder, Rus. You must have a source for where you get your knock knock jokes, yes? You and your cousins.”

“nope.”

Athena’s mouth opened. “Really?”

“hm.”

“Are you saying you come up with them all by yourself?”

“you could say that.”

“Woah! Do you plan them? Do you have pre-conceived jokes at the ready?”

“sometimes.”

“Sometimes,” she repeated, looking down thoughtfully with a finger tapping her chin, and then she gasped, looking up. “Does that mean sometimes you’re able to come up with them on the spot?”

“sure.”

“How skilled of you! Unbelievable! You are amazing Rus! I’d love to be able to do that! While I did manage to make a joke before, it’s unfortunately not original—I got it from the internet.”

“yeah?”

“Yes. I’ve been learning with Sans, but like I said, I haven’t been able to come up with my own pun yet.”

“we all start somewhere.”

Athena beamed. “That is very true, Rus! Thank you for your encouraging words.”

Rus grunted.

After that, Athena’s smile wavered a little, then she looked away, sucking her lips in while her hands hid themselves behind her back.

“Rus, I… I have a question I need to ask of you,” she mustered, still looking away, “and it’s very important.”

“what?”

She maintained her gaze on the floor, but this time she was swinging her body a little from left to right and back. “It also might be a little personal and is related to you being a skeleton monster, so that means your cousins would be included as well.”

“okay…? hit me.”

“And… And you don't have to answer if you don't want to. There is no pressure, of course. I would very much understand if you do not wish to tell me—it’s very understandable indeed.”

“i get it.”

“I didn’t want to ask this either as, like I said, it is a very personal question, and it is very disrespectful of me to even consider asking you about it—I shouldn’t have asked about it, but I thought there would be no better way to get the answers I wish to have than by asking it straight from the source. And I know that—”

Rus huffed out a sigh.

She sucked her lips in again. Rus had never made that noise before! Oh dear, she must’ve babbled too much.

“I… Rus… I just want to make sure that—”

“just say it.”

Athena gulped.

“A tongue, Rus,” she blurted. “Do you have one?”

Rus stared down at her, and he was quiet, very quiet for a full minute.

Athena winced.

This was a mistake. She shouldn’t have asked that question, she shouldn’t have considered asking it in the first place, and she shouldn’t have—

“no.”

Athena blinked. “N–No? Is that a no as in you don't have one or a no as in you don't want to tell me?”

“don't have one.”

“Oh.” She blinked again. “So, then… Can you still taste food?”

“yeah.”

“Oh! Then how come you had no reaction to hot barbecue sauce at all?”

“i can take spice.”

“Do you mean you are able to handle its hotness?”

A nod.

“Ohhh, I see now! I’m asking you about it because yesterday I tried the hot sauce. It made me very hot. As expected, I suppose. But I was also sweating, my eyes were watering, and I've gone red in the face! But somehow nothing happened to you at all? What if you can't take spice? Would you have reacted the same way I have?”

Rus snorted. “ask stretch with that one.”

“Why? Is he unable to handle spice?”

“sure. are we going or…?”

“Oh, right! Of course!” She went and stood closer to Rus and held his hand. “I hope my question wasn't disrespectful to you as a monster skeleton or anything related to such…?”

“nah.”

“Did I overstep on any personal boundaries you have?”

Rus snorted. “nope.”

Athena heaved a sigh, and her shoulders slumped. “Phew! That's good to know! Very good to know!”

“yep.”

“And, well, now that I think about it more, it is quite narrow to assume that you’d have a tongue like a human would, huh? I am assuming it is more like it’s your magic composition that digests the food and registers its taste to your mind, yes?”

“something like that.”

“Of course. And I’m guessing when you consume food, it dissolves within you and sends all of the nutrients all over your body. And presumably the excess will then secrete itself out of your body with the help of bodily movements that will then result in perspiration, but it’s not exactly sweat, is it?

“you can call it that. doesn’t matter.”

Athena nodded thoughtfully, humming to herself. “I see. I see. That makes a lot of sense.”

“sure. how’d you know about it, though?”

“Well, I also—I mean, I’ve read about it?”

Oh no.

Rus hummed. “you don’t sound so sure with your answer.”

Oh no.

“I’ve read about it!”

“now it sounds like you’re trying to convince me.”

Oh… no.

“I… uhm….”

And so Athena underwent another stretch of silence for the umpteenth time today, and this time with no clear way of breaking it. Rus simply watched her, like he was waiting, which of course he was! She needed to explain herself! The problem was… how… As it stood the conversation wouldn’t be moving forward until she said something, but what was she supposed to say? Any more words leaving her lips then and she’d be incriminating herself! This was like that hypothetical trolley problem (although that predicament is worse) in which one is put in a clear lose-lose situation but one option is framed “worse” compared to the other, when in reality, no matter which you choose, there will always be—

“heh.” Rus covered his teeth with his palm, his shoulders shaking a bit, then he cleared his throat and let his arms drop to his sides. “so, you ready to go?”

“Hu–Huh?”

“‘said you ready?”

“O–Oh! Oh, yes!” she grabbed on to his hand (and his change of subject) with a vigorous nod. “I’m ready! Very much so!”

“‘kay.”

She was safe.

With new information gained and a lucky escape from scrutiny and her friendship with Rus still intact, the two friends once again appeared in Papyrus’ room, and like yesterday, everyone else was already there. Because of that, the morning jog commenced right away, and conversations filled the air flowing naturally like the morning breeze, but it wasn’t until they took their first water break that one of her skeleton friends approached her with a proposition.

“MISS HUMAN ATHENA, SINCE YOU HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN MORNING BREAKFASTS LATELY, HOW ABOUT YOU JOIN US FOR LUNCH TODAY INSTEAD?”

“Oh!” Athena set down her water bottle before clapping her hands. “That is a wonderful idea, Dusk! We should’ve thought of it sooner!”

“BETTER LATE THAN NEVER, I WOULD SAY!” Dusk returned.

“Very true! And the best part is that I do not have any exams to attend to by lunch time, so it’s perfect! I can be there! Although, I do have two exams right after, and then after that I will be attending a talent show with Stretch and Pollo!”

“A TALENT SHOW? AT WHERE?”

“At the Ebott square! It will start later this afternoon! Would you like to join too?”

“AH, WELL, I WOULD LOVE TO, BUT THIS AFTERNOON I WILL BE HAVING MY DENTIST APPOINTMENT, BECAUSE, WELL, YOU KNOW…” he trailed, scratching the back of his head with his gloved fingers.

“Oh, of course!” Athena nodded. “To ensure they remain healthy and shiny!”

“Y-YES! THAT’S EXACTLY IT, NYEH HEH!”

“And I suppose maintaining the health of your teeth is more important than attending a talent show, so I understand that you wouldn’t be able to go, but if another talent show ever came up, would you like to come and watch with me?”

“OF COURSE! I WOULD LOVE TO!”

“Wonderful! But until then, I am looking forward to us making lunch later!”

“SO AM I!”

Unbeknownst to them, they had an eavesdropper, and they only realized it when Blue made himself known.

“YOU GUYS ARE PREPARING LUNCH TOGETHER LATER?” he said, walking over to them.

“YES, COUSIN BLUE.” Dusk nodded. “ATHENA HAS NOT BEEN ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN MORNING BREAKFASTS LATELY, SO WE FIGURED WE COULD HAVE HER JOIN LUNCH INSTEAD!”

“I SEE!” Blue replied, beaming. “IN THAT CASE, MAY I JOIN? THE MORE OF US PREPARING THE MEAL THE BETTER!”

“Do you not have work, Blue?” Athena asked.

Blue’s smile wavered. “ER, I DO, BUT… I CAN ALWAYS TAKE AN EARLIER LEAVE TO HELP OUT WITH LUNCH!”

She frowned at his answer, tilting her head. “But what about your duty to serve and protect?”

“W–WELL, I DON’T ALWAYS HAVE TO SERVE AND PROTECT ALL THE TIME!” he reasoned with a shaky laugh.

“So… you are willingly putting off attending to your duties as a protector to prepare a lunch meal with us?”

Blue was silent for a second. “WELL, WHEN YOU PUT IT LIKE THAT…”

It was at this moment that Dusk interfered. “YOU HAVE LUNCH BREAKS, DON’T YOU BLUE?”

“I DO, YES.”

“THEN YOU CAN JOIN US FOR THE LUNCH ITSELF INSTEAD,” Dusk suggested. “YOU DO NOT NEED TO LEAVE EARLY WHEN YOU HAVE DESIGNATED TIME FOR LUNCH.”

“BUT–BUT I WOULD LIKE TO HELP WITH THE PREPARATION TOO…”

“WHILE THAT IS HIGHLY APPRECIATED, COUSIN BLUE, YOU HAVE A DUTY IN SOCIETY—A VERY IMPORTANT ONE! AND I UNDERSTAND YOU WANT TO HELP US, BUT THERE ARE MANY CITIZENS OF EBOTT CITY THAT NEEDS YOU MORE THAN WE DO. AND OF COURSE, THERE IS NO NEED TO WORRY, FOR WE WILL BE ABLE TO PREPARE LUNCH ON OUR OWN JUST FINE! AND REST ASSURED YOU ARE STILL WELCOME TO JOIN US IN LUNCH ITSELF EVEN IF YOU DID NOT HELP PREPARE IT, ALRIGHT?”

Blue looked like he still wanted to argue, but ultimately he let out a long sigh and nodded. “ALRIGHT… I SUPPOSE.”

By the end of the morning jog, the skeletons returned home for their breakfast while Rus stayed behind to send Athena to the university, then he went back to their home after. When her morning exams were finished, she made a quick stop in the orphanage to pay Marcy a visit. After that she went back to the skeleton household where she stood right outside their gate and rang the bell.

It was Grey who greeted her from the other side, and the two exchanged waves—one more lively than the other—before he opened the gate for her and let her through, the two walking side by side past the front lawn.

“How have you been doing, Grey?” Athena asked.

“great. you?” Grey returned.

“I’m doing wonderful!” she replied. “I have just finished my morning exams and visited a friend in the orphanage, and now I’m here for lunch! I take it you’re joining me and Dusk in preparing the meal?”

“yep.”

“Nice! I’m very—Oh! And you’re still wearing the slippers!” she noted, glancing down at his feet. “Aww, I wish I had brought mine, because then we could’ve matched!”

“you have one?”

“I do, yes! I got one last week, and they’re very comfortable! It makes sense to me now why you prefer wearing them. And Sans wears them too!”

“yep.”

They made it to the porch where Grey headed past the entrance doors and almost went straight to the dining room had he not turned his head around and found Athena still outside. He stopped and went back just before the threshold, looking at her with his head tilted to the side.

“Grey, I have an idea,” she proposed.

“yeah?”

“The doors,” she pointed to them, “may we close them?”

“why?”

“I would like to try a knock knock joke!”

“oh.” He blinked. “sure.”

They closed the doors. Grey was inside while Athena was out, and with a soft, ‘ahem!’, she knocked.

“Knock knock!”

“come in.”

“Ho— What?”

“come in.”

With her knock knock joke attempt derailed, Athena put her hands against the doors and spoke between the gaps. “Now–Now wait a second. You’re not supposed to say come in yet, Grey! You’re supposed to say who’s there!”

“oh. really?”

“Yes!” She nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. “May we try again, please?”

“okay.”

“Okay. And be sure to say who’s there this time!”

“okay.”

Athena repositioned herself. “Ahem. Knock knock!”

“who’s there.”

“Howdy!”

“hey, howdy. i’m grey.”

“Ho— W–What?”

“what? you said you’re howdy.”

“My name is not literally Howdy, Grey,” she explained. “I’m making a knock knock joke, remember?”

“you are?”

“Yes! May we try again, Grey? We can do this! I fully believe we can!”

“okay.”

“Alright. So, remember, Grey, when I say ‘knock knock!’, you will say, ‘who’s there?’ in response. After that, I’ll say ‘Howdy!’ and then you will say, ‘howdy who?’. Did you get it?”

“got it.”

“Great! Now let’s try that one more time.” Athena rubbed her hands in anticipation. “Knock knock!”

“who’s there.”

“Howdy!”

“howdy who.”

Athena giggled. “It’s howdy do, Grey! Not howdy who!”

“oh. you got me.”

She giggled again. “Don’t worry! Your cousins also got me several times at this point! Nonetheless, this was good practice for me. Thank you for participating, Grey!”

“hm.”

With the knock knock joke finished, the doors were reopened and Athena was welcomed inside where Grey led her to the kitchen. Dusk was already by the counter chopping up potatoes while next to him was Pollo sitting on one of the stools. He had a sketch pad in front of him and a pencil in hand.

Dusk looked up at the sound of approaching footsteps, but his hands remained at work chopping up the vegetables.

“OH, MISS HUMAN ATHENA, YOU ARE BACK! AND HELLO TO YOU TOO, BROTHER!”

“hey, bro.”

“Hello, Dusk!” Athena waved. “Hello as well, Pollo!” She waved again.

Pollo waved back with a tiny smile, then he ducked his head down and continued drawing. Whatever it was he was drawing, it was covered with his arms that surrounded the sketchpad. Athena approached him with a question.

“I’d love to know what you’re creating! May I take a peek?”

For a moment, Pollo seemed hesitant, then he leaned back and let his arms fall to his sides, and that way Athena could see that it was a sketch of Dusk’s gloved hands chopping up potatoes on the chopping board, as well as the knife on the counter’s surface. It wasn’t fully shaded yet overall, but Athena could already see the vision.

“Woah!” she breathed. “This is amazing, Pollo!”

Pollo finally grabbed the sketch pad, closed it, and set it on his lap with his head down.

“Thanks,” he said, and it appeared he didn’t want to share more.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it!” she said, then turned to Dusk. “Alright, Dusk, tell me where you need help with!”

Dusk set the knife down. “AH, YES, I WOULD LIKE IF YOU COULD CRUSH THESE BLACK PEPPERS AS BEST AS YOU CAN, AND THEN THE GARLIC, AND SLICE THE ONIONS AS WELL. WE WILL MIX THEM LATER TOGETHER WITH THE SOY SAUCE WITH A BIT OF VINEGAR. GREY WILL BE WASHING THE CHICKEN.”

Athena nodded along as Dusk explained the procedure, all the while letting her eyes wander the bowls of ingredients and proteins across the counter.

“I see now! I think I have an idea what we’re making!”

“GREAT! THANK YOU, MISS HUMAN ATHENA! I KNEW I COULD COUNT ON YOU!”

“No problem, Dusk!”

The towering skeletons and the goddess got to work (but not before washing their hands; very important!), while Pollo sat by the side watching them.

Athena stood across Pollo on the counter, and while she peeled a bulb of garlic, laid the individual pieces on the board, crushing them with the knife, and then moving onto the next piece, she watched Pollo work on another sketch.

Compared to the previous sketch, the strokes on this new one were more shaky. He was drawing the bulb of garlic she set to the side, and with his hands quivering, it gave the drawing a very rough look. It was a new style perhaps, and it did indeed give the sketch some sort of a way, and maybe even a specific texture. How interesting!

She’d query out loud, but that would certainly disturb Pollo’s creative process, and that wasn’t very good—it would be the last thing she’d want to happen! Thus, she focused all her attention on the garlic and onions. After that Dusk took over the rest of the cooking, leaving Athena and Grey to sit with Pollo, and while they waited, Athena’s eyes wandered over Grey’s head—specifically his beanie, and she must’ve been staring at it for a while now that Grey glanced down at her with one bony brow raised.

“something up with my head?”

“Not your head, no,” she answered. “It’s your beanie, Grey.”

“what’s up?”

“Would you say it’s comfortable?”

Grey shrugged. “it does its job.”

“But is it comfortable?” she insisted. “Does it feel nice?”

“does it matter?”

“Of course, it matters! Comfort is a very important matter when it comes to clothing.”

Grey watched her for a second. “it’s not the best.”

“Not the best, huh? I see.” Athena nodded with a thoughtful hum. “If that is the case, how would you like it if I knit you one?”

“you can knit?”

“Most certainly! Will you let me knit a beanie for you, Grey?”

“if that’s what you want.”

“I would love to! Say, any preferred colors in particular? Ones you’d love to see in your hat—perhaps you’d love a certain pattern of colors, one that would reflect colors of a certain season, or maybe the rainbow! The possibilities are endless!”

Grey considered it. “surprise me.”

Athena blinked. “A–Are you saying you’re letting me choose the colors for you?”

“yep.”

“Oh!” Athena clasped her hands. “It’s an honor, Grey! I’ll do my very best in delivering a snug, comfortable, and beautiful beanie for you!”

Grey chuckled. “thanks.”

“And while I’m at it,” she continued, one finger on her chin, “I’m wondering if I could knit pieces of clothing for everyone. What do you think, Dusk? Pollo? Would you all love to have your own knitted accessories?”

Dusk gasped. “DO YOU MEAN AS A GYFTMAS PRESENT, MISS HUMAN ATHENA? THAT WOULD BE LOVELY!”

Pollo nodded along. “That would be cool.”

“Ah, well, not exactly. I wouldn’t call it a gyftmas present because admittedly, I haven’t planned those out yet since it won’t be until next month, and I would love to give everyone more than knitted clothing for their gyftmas presents. I suppose we can all consider my knitted works as friendship gifts!”

“IF THAT’S THE CASE, THEN I OUGHT TO GIVE YOU A FRIENDSHIP GIFT AS WELL!” Dusk suggested. “HOW DOES THAT SOUND?”

“A friendship gift exchange!” Athena clapped. “That sounds wonderful, Dusk!”

“BUT, OF COURSE! IT IS NOTHING LESS FROM THE GREAT P—DUSK!”

With that, Dusk shared that he wanted a new scarf and knitted gloves, detailing the colors and patterns he wanted for each piece of clothing. Athena pulled out a mental note and wrote it all down. Dusk then returned to cooking right after while Pollo explained how he always wanted to have a set of coasters big and small for cups, mugs, and bowls.

And the rest of the skeletons were to be followed.

“LUNCH IS ALMOST READY,” Dusk announced sometime later. “BROTHER, IF YOU COULD PLEASE CALL EDGE SO HE COULD JOIN US. HE OUGHT TO TAKE A BREAK FROM THOSE… THOSE PAPERS HE’S GOING THROUGH!”

“alright.” Grey popped out of existence.

“RIGHT.” Dusk clasped his hands. “AND WHILE WE WAIT FOR HIM, LET’S SET UP THE TABLE!”

This time, Pollo helped by distributing all the plates and spoons and forks on the dining table, as well as the glasses and napkins. Athena helped out as well, and while she arranged the chairs, a movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention, then she froze when her eyes landed right on what it was.

Or who it was.

She blinked. Once. Twice. Then she rubbed her eyes.

That was definitely a person over there, a tiny one, peeking over the archway, and squinting further she could see that they were indeed another skeleton. How curious, they never told her there was a—

Athena gasped with a slap of her palms on her cheek. Another skeleton! A small one! And she was staring! Oh, no! Oh, dear. How… How terribly rude of her!

“Hello, there!” she greeted as she approached them. She must mend her first impression to the skeleton right away! She was already friends with most of the skeletons—she couldn’t, no, she mustn’t ruin this by being disrespectful to a family member of theirs!

When she was finally one step away from them, she knelt down so she could at least be a little near to the skeleton’s eye level. Said skeleton had said nothing so far, only looking up at her with wide sockets.

Oh, no. She had gone and done it, hadn’t she? It was too late, wasn’t it? She had—

“MISS HUMAN ATHENA? TO WHOM ARE YOU SAYING HELLO TO OVER THERE?”

“W–Well, I’m trying to say hello to whom I’m assuming is your cousin, but… but I fear I may have intimidated him with my staring…”

“WHAT?” Dusk joined Athena by the archway. “WHAT ARE YOU—OH…”

Concerningly, like Athena, Dusk stood by the archway and just… stared.

“Dusk?” She called. “Are you alright?”

“AH! RIGHT. THAT’S… THAT’S MAL. UH… YES.”

“I see! Uhm, well,” she paused to clear her throat as she turned to Mal. “It is very nice to meet you, Mal! My name’s Athena! And I apologize for my staring earlier. I acknowledge that it was very rude and I have no excuse. Nevertheless, I hope you forgive me.”

Silence.

She bit her lip. Was she too insistent with it? Too forward? Could she have said it in a better—

“I… HELLO. IT’S ALRIGHT… HUMAN.”

At his reply, Athena beamed. “Truly? I’m glad!”

“RIGHT…”

“So with that out of the way, will you be joining us for lunch too?”

But before he could reply, a purple, gloved hand grabbed his shirt from behind and lifted him up, and there was only one other person who wore purple gloves in this household.

Mal thrashed and squirmed in Indigo’s hands, while the latter glared at him.

“YOU SNEAKY RAT! WHO SAID YOU COULD ESCAPE THE MALEFICENT INDIGO?”

Athena shot up, heart beat spiking at the sight. “Indigo! How unkind of you to grab him like that! Release him!”

Indigo huffed. “SAYS WHO? YOU? LAST I CHECKED, I HAVEN’T FORGIVEN YOU YET!”

“That is irrelevant! There is no reason for you to treat your cousin like that! Let him go!”

“IT DOESN’T MATTER—HE ISN’T YOUR COUSIN EITHER WAY, SO LEAVE US ALONE!”

“COUSIN INDIGO, PLEASE DON’T HOLD MAL LIKE THAT,” Dusk intervened, standing next to Athena, “AND SINCE YOU’RE BOTH HERE ALREADY, WHY DON’T YOU JOIN US FOR LUNCH?”

Indigo scoffed and rolled his eyes. “AND LIKE I’VE TOLD YOU SEVERAL TIMES ALREADY, I DON’T EAT LUNCH WITH A BUNCH OF HOOLIGANS! WHAT DO YOU TAKE ME FOR?”

“If you don’t wish to have lunch with us, then at least allow Mal to decide whether he wants to or not!” Athena argued. “And please stop holding him like that!”

Indigo narrowed his sockets at Athena and she mimicked him with her own eyelashes. When her gaze didn’t waver, Indigo scowled.

"HMPH. FINE THEN.”

One second Mal was dangling in the air, and the next he was being flicked away.

Athena yelped and dashed to catch Mal in her cupped hands and the little skeleton landed on her palms with an oof. Tsking and huffing, Indigo turned round and marched away with his heels clicking against the tiled floor. When he disappeared into a corner, Athena went to set Mal down on the dining table.

“Are you alright, Mal?”

Mal huffed as well as he dusted himself. “THE SMALL AND TERRIBLE MAL IS NEVER NOT ALRIGHT, HUMAN! THAT FIEND INDIGO IS ONLY ENVIOUS OF MY GREATNESS.”

“I… okay…”

Next, Mal pointed a tiny finger at Dusk. “AND YOU, I DEMAND MY OWN PLATE AND UTENSILS!”

Dusk looked down at him with his arms crossed. “ONLY IF YOU SAY PLEASE.”

“THE TINY AND TERRIBLE MAL NEVER SAYS PLEASE!”

“NYEH! THEN I SUPPOSE THERE WON’T BE ANY LUNCH FOR YOU TODAY.” Dusk returned to the kitchen, and from there, he called, “ATHENA, POLLO, HELP ME SERVE THE FOOD, PLEASE?”

Athena’s lips flapped open and close like a fish. “But–But Mal is…”

Dusk poked his head from the kitchen. “PLEASE?”

She bit her lip, eyes alternating between Mal and Dusk. Mal deserved to eat lunch too, but… but she supposed Dusk had a point. They worked hard on preparing lunch, especially Dusk; it wouldn’t be right to demand lunch from him when the option of being polite was there!

Pollo had already followed Dusk into the kitchen, reappearing again with a bowl of the food in his hands and he set it on the middle of the table where Athena still stood to the side of it with Mal.

“ATHENA?” Dusk called again. “ARE YOU GOING TO HELP US?”

The goddess’ lips quivered, and she bit to steady them as she leaned down to face Mal.

“Please, Mal, I would love for you to have lunch with us,” she whispered, “but that can’t happen if you’re being rude. Will you please use please when asking Dusk to join for lunch? Please!”

Mal took a step back with a hand over his chest. “WHA— I ALREADY TOLD YOU, THE TINY AND—”

“Well that needs to change!” she interrupted, now half a whisper and half a yell. “Being impolite won’t feed you today, and it will continue that way unless you learn to say please!”

Mal hissed, narrowing his sockets and crossing his arms over his chest. Athena frowned down at him. Still, he huffed and puffed and turned his head away.

This was incomprehensible. What was so difficult about saying the word please? What negative consequence could there possibly be with saying such a polite word? Was its meaning somehow different in another or specific context? Did the word have a certain implication that would cause someone to hesitate and perhaps almost dislike to say it? Or, perhaps that was not it, perhaps…

“Mal…”

“WHAT.”

“Is it possible, in any way, shape, or form, that you are incapable of saying please?”

“WHAT!”

“I–I hope this isn’t an invasive or offensive question and if in any case it is then be assured that there is no need for you to answer and I will apologize, but is there something that’s keeping you from saying the word? Like a fear of it perhaps? I would like to help—”

“NO! WHO SAID I CAN’T SAY PLEASE? I ABSOLUTELY CAN! I’M NOT AFRAID OF IT!”

“O–Oh. You’re not?”

“OF COURSE!”

Before Athena could say anything else, Mal turned and marched over to Dusk who was setting up the table.

“DUSK!” he called.

“YES, COUSIN MAL?” Dusk replied.

“I WANT MY OWN PLATE AND UTENSILS,” Mal declared. “PLEASE!”

Dusk’s smile was big and wide. “WELL, COUSIN MAL! WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY SO? ALLOW ME TO ASSIST!”

When the time came that all four of them were settling down, Grey finally came back, notably without a Mister Edge beside him. Dusk pushed himself up with his palms on the table.

“WHAT HAPPENED, BROTHER?” he asked. “DID HE NOT WANT TO HAVE LUNCH?”

“says he’s busy.”

“I SEE.” Dusk hummed in thought. “I SUPPOSE I SHALL SIMPLY DELIVER HIM HIS LUNCH LATER.”

“Does Mister Edge always refuse to participate in lunch?” Athena asked.

“YES, MISS HUMAN ATHENA, I AM AFRAID SO.”

Athena put a hand over her lips. “Oh, dear. That’s not good, is it?”

“INDEED IT ISN’T, BUT THERE’S NOTHING WE CAN DO. IT’S VERY DIFFICULT TO PERSUADE HIM INTO DOING ANYTHING.”

“Oh.” Athena deflated.

“NOT TO WORRY! COUSIN EDGE STILL EATS THREE MEALS A DAY! HE JUST HAPPENS TO EAT THEM AT A LATER TIME THAN US!”

“I suppose that is at least a little reassuring.”

“YES, INDEED! NOW, WHY DON’T WE BEGIN WITH LUNCH?”

And begin they did indeed. To Athena’s right was Pollo, and across from them were Dusk and Grey, while Mal sat in the middle of the table with his tiny plate and utensils in front of him.

It was a wonder Athena hadn’t encountered him before, then again, perhaps Mal wasn’t one to leave his room, or this was the only instance he was at their home, or it could just be that Athena hadn’t spent a long enough time in the skeleton household just yet.

“HUMAN!”

Athena looked up, looking around for whoever called her (she assumed it was her, unless there was another human around) before her eyes landed on the skeleton on the table. At first he was only staring up at her, his eye lights darting left and right from one of her eyes to the other.

“Yes? What is it, Mal?”

“HAS SOMEONE BROKEN INTO YOUR HOUSE LATELY?”

“I… I’m sorry?”

“YOU ARE FORGIVEN. AGAIN, HAVE YOU HAD ANY UNEXPECTED VISITORS? LIKE LAST NIGHT OR TODAY?”

She only had Stretch last night, then her animals friends, then Rus this early morning, but none of them were considered as unexpected visitors on a technical standpoint, and there wasn’t anyone who broke into her house either, was there?

“I… I can’t say I have?” she mustered to say. “May I ask why you are asking me this?”

“NOTHING.”

“Huh? What are you—”

“hey ath,” Grey chimed. “what do you call a chicken that’s good with numbers?”

Athena blinked. “Oh, uhm, what?”

“a mathemachicken.”

“Oh!” She laughed. “That’s a good one.”

Dusk sighed from the side. “BROTHER, PLEASE.”

“got a problem with my yolks, bro?”

Dusk narrowed his eyes down at Grey.

“if you ask me i’d say they’re pretty im-peck-able.”

“BROTHER!”

Athena slapped a hand over her mouth.

“what? i’m just eggs-pressing myself, bro.”

“NO! THERE ARE OTHER, MORE ACCEPTABLE WAYS TO EXPRESS YOURSELF!”

“Do you mean eggs-eptable?”

Dusk stiffened in his seat, and his head turned slowly, very slowly, until he was looking over at his target.

“MISS HUMAN ATHENA,” he began, “DID YOU JUST—”

“I’m sorry!” she squeaked out, covering her mouth again. “I had to say it!”

Just then, a small thud erupted in the middle of the table. Mal was now standing, pulling and adjusting his gloves.

“I,” he started, “AM INCONCEIVABLY DISGUSTED! BOTH ON YOU”—he pointed to Grey—”AND YOU—” he pointed to Athena.

“UNBELIEVABLE. UTTERLY UNBELIEVABLE,” he continued with the sourest of expressions. “I AM LEAVING NOW. AWAY FROM THIS CONVERSATION, AWAY FROM YOU HOOLIGANS, AWAY FROM SUCH… SUCH LUNACY!”

As he announced his departure, he did indeed walk off the table and to the floor he hopped towards, making his way to the entryway of the dining room.

“good cluck,” Grey called. Mal hurried in his footsteps.

When he was gone, Athena returned her eyes to the skeletons remaining in the dining room. “I like Mal! As, er, odd as his questions were, and he even shares your and Papyrus’ dislike for puns. Why doesn’t he join in our morning jogs? Does he not like it like your other cousins do?”

“AH, WELL, YOU SEE…” Dusk trailed. He looked to his brother, but Grey only shrugged.

“IT’S, UH… IT’S…”

“Mal only returned yesterday,” said Pollo. She turned to him.

“He did? From where?”

Pollo nodded. “He was visiting our other relatives, and now he’s here again.”

“Oh, I see! Does that mean he’ll be joining us every morning from now on?”

“I… I’m not sure.”

“Oh, well, I suppose that’s up to him, isn’t it?”

Pollo nodded. “Yeah…”

“Hm, well, I do find it incredibly fascinating the variety of heights monster skeletons seem to have! Tell me, do you all have a relative or a fellow skeleton who is taller than Dusk? Sans told me Dusk is the tallest, but I’d like to ask again just in case.”

“AH, WELL, IF THERE IS A SKELETON RELATIVE OF US OUT THERE WHO IS TALLER THAN ME, I CAN’T SAY I’VE MET THEM YET!”

“Woah! Just how many relatives do you all have?”

Grey chuckled. “you have no idea.”

“Well, yes…?” she agreed, with her head tilted to the side, “I really have no idea, Grey. The delivery of that statement is quite odd. What are you trying to imply with it?”

Grey shrugged.

“Huh?”

Another shrug.

She blinked, then frowned. “Grey, you confuse me.”

“do i?”

“Yes. Will you explain?”

“nope.”

“Oh. Why not?”

“just ‘cause.”

The table was quiet. Utensils stopped clicking and scraping against the plates. Athena peered over at the skeleton right across from her, and she studied him with both intrigue and befuddlement in her eyes, like watching a river that flowed backwards.

Grey, in turn, stared her down all the same with that single bloated red eye light of his. It was sharp for a second, then blurring over, until it was fuzzy, as though his vision was going out of focus. Athena didn’t blink. She couldn’t somehow, as if Grey’s stare was holding her down, keeping her eyes wide open.

Her eyes were starting to burn, she must admit, but she couldn’t look away, couldn’t blink her eyes. She didn’t have the words to explain why.

“AHEM.”

She finally blinked. She shook her head a little, then her eyes moved over to Dusk, who was looking at her and Grey back and forth.

“Oh, yes, Dusk?”

Dusk’s sockets narrowed for a second, then he shrugged. “NOTHING.”

“Oh, okay.”

Lunch continued then. In an hour Athena would be leaving for her afternoon exams, but until then, she was sitting in the skeleton household’s living room with Grey and Pollo with the TV open.

Dusk was upstairs cleaning, having refused to participate in ‘unproductive behavior’ by staying in the living room with them. Athena volunteered to clean with him, but he forbade her, saying that as a guest, she had a free pass to be unproductive.

At the moment, they were watching an animated film of a young girl conducting deliveries of baked pies her grandmother made in her neighborhood. The girl was doing her deliveries with the help of her bike, prompting Athena to ask aloud, “Have you two ridden a bicycle before?”

“nope,” Grey answered.

“Me neither,” said Pollo.

Athena nodded. “I haven’t yet either, but I’d love to have one! I was thinking once winter passes, and bike lanes are finally implemented, then I’d get myself a bicycle! That way I won’t have to take the bus anymore and I'll cycle to the university every day!”

“Cycling?” Pollo said. “Wouldn’t that be more tiring than riding the bus?”

“Maybe, but you could say it’s also good exercise! And well, I used to walk to university every day anyway until Papyrus told me I shouldn’t do that, so now I commute instead. But I really miss the breeze, and with a bicycle I can experience it again! It’s a good compromise! Cycling is faster than walking, and I get to feel the breeze compared to riding the bus—it works! That, or perhaps a scooter. A kick scooter.”

“Which one would you like more?”

She hummed in thought. “Well, I suppose I like the bicycle because a certain type can have a seat at the back, which means I can have another friend riding with me! And there’s also a basket, so I have somewhere to store my things in! The downside is I’m very fond of wearing dresses and skirts, and I don’t think such garments work well for bicycles, so in that case, a scooter would be better!”

“Is it because in scooters you need to be standing?”

“Yes, exactly! It would very much be more beneficial for me to use a kick scooter since I wear skirts and dresses, it lessens the chance for my skirt to get tangled with the vehicle.”

“But, at least with bicycles, you can sit down, right?”

“True, yes. That would also be nice. It just means I might have to trade my dear skirts for pants.”

“I… I guess.”

“But, well, I suppose I can always get both. That wouldn’t hurt either.”

Pollo nodded. The film watching continued.

At some point, Athena had to venture into the bathroom to conduct some washing up. It was only polite that she returned to the university looking well kept, with her face clean, hands free from dirt, and attire in mint condition with no creases in any areas. On the way back to the living room, there came faint footfalls growing louder by the second, and when she turned, there was Sans coming down from a set of stairs.

“Oh, Sans! Hello there!” She waved at him.

He didn’t seem to hear her, nor even see her. His gaze was on the floor, his footsteps slow, clothes ruffled and his jacket slipping from his shoulders, with an empty mug on his hand. If the mug had any contents, it would’ve spilled all over the floor by then.

“Sans?”

That’s when he was pulled out of his daze, and he almost dropped his mug but tightened his grip on it last second.

“oh. ath.” He sighed. “it’s just you.”

“You look like you ought to get some sleep, Sans.”

“heh. way to be blunt about it.”

Athena slapped a palm over her mouth. “Oh, no! I’m sorry, Sans. Was that rude?”

“no, no.” He waved her off. “you’re fine. and i do need sleep.”

“So you’re off to bed now, I assume?”

“i’m taking a short nap. yeah.”

“Wonderful! Please sleep well, Sans.”

“thanks. and, hey.”

“Yes?”

“you up for another night of looking at the stars?”

She gasped in awe. “Really? I’d love to! When?”

“tonight?”

“Tonight?” And her awe was gone as quickly as it came. “But you need sleep, Sans.”

“yeah, but we’ve got a meteor shower tonight, and since you’re here i figured i’d invite you to watch with me.”

“But will you be able to enjoy it if you’re tired?”

“i can take a nap. we’ve got a few hours before we need to go.”

“I… I suppose a nap is better than no sleep at all.”

“yeah.”

“Will we do it here, then? On your home’s rooftop?”

“how about we do it at yours again?”

“Oh, but there’s not much space in mine, and on the contrary, there’s plenty of space to move around at at yours! We won’t be restricted to just sitting or lying down!”

“yeah, but we’d have more privacy at yours. no interruptions or anything.”

“I suppose that is true as well, and I wouldn’t mind having it again at mine.”

“cool, then i’ll see you tonight, yeah? bring more pillows.”

“Right! And be sure to bring your equipment as well! The tele—”

“what are you guys talking about?”

Athena jumped, eyes frantic as they wandered wildly until they landed on another skeleton in the hallway.

“Oh, Stretch!” she breathed out

“hey, ath.”

“hey, pal,” said Sans. “didn’t see you there.”

“Me neither!” She agreed. She had one hand on her beating heart while her shoulders drooped as she calmed herself. “That was quite the scare you gave me.”

“sorry,” Stretch replied. “it’s just that i heard something about you guys doing something tonight? and pillows? and… equipment?”

“Oh, yes! Sans and I will be—”

“hey, ath,” Sans inserted. “you’ve got somewhere to be, right?”

“Hm? I do, yes. I have my exams, then the talent show, and then tonight!”

Stretch looked from Sans to Athena and back as he spoke. “what’s happening toni—”

“hey, stretch,” Sans interrupted again. “why don’t you go take ath to uni now for her exams? wouldn’t want her to be late, would we?”

Stretch narrowed his sockets at Sans. “okay…?”

Athena was also looking at Sans, her head tilted with brows scrunched up. “I don’t understand why you’re being very secretive about it, Sans, we’re just going to have—”

“i just think he doesn’t have to know what we’re up to, y’know?”

“Oh. Why is that?”

Sans shrugged. “‘cuz it’s our thing and not his.”

She took a short intake of air. “Oh, oh! You mean the same way Papyrus and I have our own ‘thing’?”

“what?”

“what?”

Athena’s eyes widened. She stopped and slapped her palms over her mouth.

“I… I mean, nothing! Papyrus and I don’t have our own ‘thing’! There’s nothing of the sort! And… And even if there was, I’m not allowed to tell you, because it is our own ‘thing’ which is an idea or an activity that only the two of us would be privy to!”

“okay…”

With her lips sucked in, Athena turned and marched away. Fast.

That was bad. That was terrible. No one was supposed to know! No one but her and Papyrus! Now what? Was their secret in danger? Did she just blow it for the both of them? No, no. It couldn’t be. Most likely her mind was blowing it out of proportion! If considered carefully, she technically didn’t reveal anything important. She may have accidentally brought up the fact that she and Papyrus had their own thing, but they still wouldn’t know what it was! Besides, she even denied it! All they’ll have is suspicion, but nothing else! They know nothing! Nothing at all!

In conclusion, their ‘thing’ was safe.

But the planned stargazing tonight aside, she had one more agenda to attend to before the talent show this afternoon. Contrary to what Sans suggested, it was Pollo who transported Athena to the university. On the way there, she happened to bump into Alice. Their last interaction was on the phone where Athena inquired about Stretch appearing to take her home; she certainly hadn’t seen her friend’s face in a while!”

“Alice! I’m so glad to see you here!”

“Ath! Hey! I had just finished lunch. You heading over to your exam?”

“Yes, but there is still plenty of time before it starts. Would you like to have a chat?”

“Oh, sure! And I’ve been meaning to talk to you anyway. I just have to know what happened with Stretch yesterday. Like, did anything exciting happen? Anything weird?”

“Right. Well, on the whole, everything went well. There was this man offering to take me home and I refused him repeatedly. Thankfully, Stretch came and scared him away. After that, he helped me get home and I gave him honey in return. He really likes honey! And also I—”

“Hold on, hold on.” Alice lifted a hand. “Some guy came up to you before Stretch got there?”

Athena nodded.

“What happened? What was he saying?”

“Like I said, he was offering to take me home with his vehicle, and although I refused it, he kept insisting many times. I’m still not sure why.”

Alice smacked both of her palms on either side of her face. “God, Ath, no! You shouldn’t have talked to him at all! You should’ve just went back inside the cafe until Stretch came!”

Athena frowned. “But, why would I do that? That would be very rude of me, right? I can’t just leave a conversation like that!”

Alice was biting her lip, and her hands came down to scratch at her lap instead. She looked troubled somehow, like she was trying to solve a mathematical equation with the wrong formula then getting confused about the results.

“Alice? What’s wrong?”

Alice looked far ahead at the paths and trees and shrubbery surrounding them, then sighing and turning her gaze back to Athena. “You’ve got time before your exam, right?”

“Yes?”

“Cool. Let’s go sit somewhere. We’ve gotta talk about this.”

“Okay…”

They reached the courtyard and sat next to each other on one of the empty benches. Many other people passed them by but none that paid them any mind.

“Alright. Remember this, Ath. That man from yesterday? You don’t know him. He doesn’t know you. You’re not obligated to stay there and talk to him and you have every right to excuse yourself and walk away. You didn’t have to stay there. It was okay for you to go back inside while Stretch wasn’t there yet. Plus, isn’t it weird to you that that man just came out of nowhere and said he could take you home?”

“I suppose I understand that I’m not mandated to stay engaged in a conversation, but… but how is the man coming up to me to offer me a ride weird? Isn’t he simply being nice?”

“Yeah, yeah, sure. Maybe it was nice, but you noticed how insistent he got, right? You told him so many times but he still kept going! Tell me, how did you make him go away?”

“Well, Stretch came to scare him off with his height, and then he left.”

“Okay, and what if Stretch never came, Ath?”

“I… I don’t know. I still would’ve refused his offer. I didn’t promise to go home with him that night.”

“You didn’t… promise?” Alice repeated.

“Yes?”

Alice paused. Her expression started off blank, then it morphed into something of a wince, or at least akin to one, and her narrowed eyes searched something in Athena’s face.

“I just… Hold on… “ She struggled to find the words. A few times she would open her mouth but no sound came.

“Alice?” Athena called.

“This is bothering me, Ath. It’s bothering me really hard.”

“Why?”

“Because… Because what if we never made a promise to go home together? And what if Stretch never came either? Would you have taken that guy’s offer?”

Athena looked down and considered it. “Hm, well, I don’t see why not? He’s being nice with his offer, right?”

Alice’s jaw dropped.

“Is… Is that wrong?”

“Girl! That is more than wrong! That is dangerous! I told you! You don’t know the guy, and he doesn’t know you! Why would he just randomly offer you a ride? That’s extra suspicious!”

“I… Perhaps he saw that I was waiting outside all alone and thought to do a good deed?”

Alice shook her head. She shook her head hard.

“Uh-uh. Nuh-uh, girl. That is a no no right there.”

“Why? Will you explain?”

“Remember what happened with Blue? How you thought he was being nice but it turned out he had other motives?”

“What? Are you saying it’s the same for that man too?”

“Yes! That’s exactly what I’m saying!”

“But, how? He was just offering to give me a ride home, Alice! What other motive could he possibly have from that?!”

“That one, no idea. We don’t know, but do you even want to know? Who knows! He might’ve been planning to take you somewhere else instead and kill you and sell your kidneys for illegal money!”

Athena gasped. “My kidneys?! But, why?”

Alice took Athena’s hands and pulled her forward. With their faces a few inches close, Alice, in a very low voice, said, “Listen here, Ath, and listen good. Not everyone is nice. Not everyone who seems nice is actually nice. Some people have hidden agendas, and they’ve got secrets they don’t wanna give away, and to hide all of that they pretend to be nice. You shouldn’t trust people just ‘cause they seem nice, or kind, or whatever word you want to call it, because most of the time, that surface level kindness is just that—surface level. It’s all fake. Do not be fooled.”

After that, Alice leaned back, and so did Athena. The latter looked down at her hands while the wheels in her head turned round and round. Eventually, she spoke.

“But… I wouldn’t want to assume that every person is bad, or that everyone is only pretending to be good. That… That to me feels wrong. It’s also a very negative way of perceiving people, Alice! And, besides, Papyrus told me that sometimes people simply make mistakes, and those mistakes don’t make them a bad person, because they can always do better!”

Alice nodded. “Right, and I agree! Some of us normal people do just mess up and redemption is possible, but my point here is that not everyone is gonna be as kind as you. Not everyone is gonna be as kind as Papyrus. Some people out there just don’t give a damn and will do bad stuff! And they wouldn’t care about redeeming themselves! You get me?”

“But, why? I don’t understand, Alice. Why would they do that? Why would they purposefully commit bad deeds? And to even refuse to do better?”

Alice looked down and sighed. “Wish I knew. Some people just… yeah.”

“Some people just… yeah?” Athena mimicked.

“Yeah,” Alice agreed. “People aren’t black and white. They’re messy, confusing, and super frustrating. There’s no easy way to separate the ‘good’ people from the ‘bad’, and if there was, it’s a total lie. So… yeah.”

A wave of silence came over them. While Alice’s gaze wandered somewhere far away, Athena looked down at her hands and fiddled with it, taking in her friend’s words.

One of the first things that welcomed and introduced Athena to this earth were books. They were portable containers of information about various things about the world. Should she open one, its information would be there laid bare for her to read and take in. The book had done its job to supply, and all that it required from its reader was to collect and retain.

As it appeared… mortals were not books. Unlike an article of a journal issue that contained its own abstract and presented its own purpose, methodology, and discussion of its findings undisguised, people were anything but.

“The most important point here, Ath,” Alice spoke, “is that you’ve gotta be more careful. I know you’re smart. You’ve got a good brain there in your head, but you really shouldn’t just be using it for college. There’s life outside of college, you know! You seriously gotta start questioning things more, like, not to the point of paranoia, but, like, you know! I mean, think about it, why would that man just come up to you like that? And why you specifically? Doesn’t he have other stuff to do? What’s he doing in the night just looking for people to take home with? And why for free? The taxi driver people do those with a price, right? Also, why does he keep pushing to take you with him even when you said no? That’s kinda rude of him, right? Right, Ath?”

“I… I suppose that was a bit rude of him.”

“It’s totally rude of him! ‘Cause let’s say you were the guy in that situation, and you offered someone a ride home and they said no, what you gonna do?”

“Well, if my offer was refused, I would thank them for their time and I will leave.”

“See? But that’s not what he did, is it? Isn’t that suspicious of him?”

“I… I suppose so.”

“It’s super suspicious! Next time that happens, you walk away, okay? It’s not gonna be rude, I promise, and safety is definitely more important than being polite!”

“I… Okay.”

“You get me, right, Ath? You get why?”

Athena nodded. “I understand. It’s for safety.”

“Exactly! For your safety. Gotta remember that.”

She nodded again. “I will. Thank you for explaining, Alice.”

“Duh! We all have to look out for each other, right?”

“Right.”

“Alright.” Alice stood up and started stretching. “If you don’t have any more questions, I’ve gotta go back to the library. I got some books I need to borrow.”

Athena remained seated. “I may have to stay here for a while longer. I… I want to think about what you said.”

“Sure! That’s a good thing, actually. Just don’t forget your exam, okay?”

“I wouldn’t. Thank you again, Alice, for helping me understand.”

“No problem! I’ll see you, okay?”

“Okay. Perhaps later this afternoon at the talent show?”

“Oh. That one’s today? Hm. Uh. Not sure yet. I’ll see if I can, okay?”

“Okay.”

And so the two friends waved each other a hearty farewell. Alice went to the library while Athena stayed behind and watched her fellow college students (and occasional staff) pass her by.

Coming back to her recent conclusion of which she’d inferred that mortals were not books, she admittedly… wished they were. Or at least, they were like them. Perhaps there was the joy in that it could be a challenge to figure out what everyone was trying to say, but how exactly could she figure anything out if no one… told anything? It wasn’t as though she could force people to be upfront either—in that department she had no right, but it would be nice if she were, at least, given some breadcrumbs to follow.

Blue invited her on a date with the justification that he was interested in her, and that was a lie, but how could she have known that? Why couldn’t he tell her outright what he wanted in the first place? What could possibly be the consequences in doing so? And the man from yesterday, why did he want to take her home anyway? Taking Blue as a basis, what could the man possibly want? What were his motives?

Perhaps she was looking at this the wrong way, but how else should one look at it? Still, there must be a concrete way to figure out someone’s hidden motives, right? But what? And how?

Athena checked the time, then she stood up and headed for her exam for the day. Someday, the answers would come, but today, she had an exam to finish an array of mortal talents to witness hours from now.