Blooming hearts

by Czarnyzelek

Summary:

What if there was no dark worlds? What would happen to our heroes? Can they become friends and maybe more without their crazy adventures?

Notes:

If it ever gets published, which I doubt, then I have a few things to say before you start reading. It is my first fic and not my first language. The work you will read is almost certainly beta read by someone much better than me. If it still has many mistakes then please excuse me. During my past projects I always lacked conviction to finish what I have started so I hope this time it will be better. Updates will happen depending on how motivated I will be and how much can I manage my time. Hope you will enjoy what I'm about to make.

Chapter 1: A Troubling Start

"Kris wake up, it's time for school"

Kris opened their eyes slowly. The voice of their mother, even if soft, conveyed an urgency that they hated. It was another day of school. They didn't even know what day it was. It wasn't surprising, Kris rarely paid any attention in class and spent all their time either sleeping or trying to sleep. If you do the same thing every day it tends to blend together.

Finally, after a few minutes of resting their eyes they decided to get out of bed. It was a warm day and the sun was peaking through the blinds. Kris slowly made their way to the closet. They took a few seconds staring at the rather poor collection of clothes. Kris had already decided what they would wear. Same old striped sweater and the same brown pants. It was their usual go to and Kris never liked to change things up.

Their mother wanted to buy them some new clothes but Kris just ended up never using them. If they weren’t broken then why fix them?

"Kris darling we will be late again, you know I can't keep telling Alphys that we were stuck in traffic"

She was right, it was a rarity when Kris wasn't late for class and their mother always made up some excuse to get her child off the hook. They quickly took off their pajamas and threw them onto their bed. After a minute they were out of their room and heading down the stairs to meet their mother standing dressed next to the door.

"Oh Kris don't forget to take your lunch, I left it on the table"

Kris slowly made their way to the small brown paper bag and put it in their backpack.

"Are you ready now, darling?" Their mother asked. Kris nodded.

"Good, maybe if I will be fast enough we will not be late this time" 

Toriel chuckled and opened the front door. Kris made their way into the car and put their backpack on the back seat. They were off, on the way they saw many neighbors waving at them. Toriel was well liked by everyone so it was not weird for people to wave. They drove past houses and next to a librarby. The drive wasn't long, Kris could probably make that distance in 2 minutes if they ran. But it was better to drive, they didn't have to do anything and no one would bother them on the way.

They finally made it, Toriel held their hand as they walked down the hall. Their mother was in a bit of a rush considering that they were already late to school. Toriel quickly hugged Kris, pulling them into her soft fur.

"Have a nice day honey, today I have to stay a bit late so you will have to make something to eat for yourself"

"okay mom"

Kris was used to it, their mother had many important things to do, she was practically running this school and sometimes she had to stay up late to work on some minor things. The festival was coming and she wanted everything to be perfect. She always said that the school needs to have a great stand during the festival, otherwise no one would take them seriously. Nothing new, they will just warm something up from the fridge as they sometimes did. 

They made their way to the class. The first thing they heard was Alphys.

"O-oh good morning Kris, don't worry you are not that late..."

Kris looked at her and with a small nod they came to their chair. Maybe a nap will make this class more interesting? Kris sat down and put their hands on their arms, drifting off to sleep as they were thinking about the upcoming festival. Normally they wouldn't give that even a second thought but this time it was different. This time Azzy was coming back to town, it was their chance to have fun together like in the good old days. 

Kris rarely came to the festival as a teen, it was a major event in town but they never enjoyed it as much. They remembered going there as a kid and playing stupid carnival games with their brother. Of course they were mostly rigged and they never managed to score a single price, but Dess always managed to steal a plushie or two for them or Noelle to lighten their mood. They thought about Noelle, Kris is wondering, were they still friends. I mean it's not like they didn't like her and they were pretty sure that she liked them back, but are they still friends after all that happene...

*smack*

Kris nearly jumped out of their chair, their train of thoughts rudely interrupted by a loud noise. The class went silent and everyone looked at the door. It was her, Susie was standing and looking at everyone.

"S-susie, good morning, you missed a bit of class..."

Susie glared at Alphys with her death stare

"Bu-but it's not a problem, just take your seat and listen carefully, I will be explaining what your group projects will be about"

"Sure, whatever" Susie said as she slowly walked to her desk. She was a bully, a tormentor. Strong and mean, even Alphys gave up on making her do anything. If there was anyone Kris were scared of, it was her. Of course with their luck Susie decided that her favorite victim is them. For a few good weeks or maybe even months she tormented them with anything that could still get a reaction out of them.

"Well Susie, since you came last, you will be paired with Kris..." Kris didn't even realize that Alphys was talking about some project, maybe if they knew they could have asked Noelle to be their partner. Well no, scratch that she was probably paired with Berdly so that was not happening. Maybe MK was down to be their partner, or even Jockington, even Temmie. Well they were probably dead, everyone in the class knew that by this point. Every person stared at them with a look of concern and sadness.

"It's such a shame that Kris has been sent on that mission with a monster, you will be truly missed" 

His voice was like scratching a fork on a plate. 

"Berdly, please don't interrupt the class, we still have many things to cover about our projects"

Susie wasn't listening to her anymore, the only thing she heard was that she was paired with the freak. 'Great, just amazing' she thought to herself. Maybe Alphys was trying to get back on her for all the carnage that she did, maybe she just hated her like everyone else here. Either way she is now paired with them. She hated Kris although she wasn't entirely sure why. Kris came from a nice family, they had loving parents that always cared about them. This damn kid had everything, they were well off financially, they never had problems with studying or school. Everyone liked them even though they barely said anything in class or outside of it. They seemed so ungrateful for their privileges.

It infuriated Susie, this stupid kid had everything that she could ever want, and yet they never smiled, never laughed. It pissed her off, more than she could even understand. Not once did she notice Kris pull up their lunch made by their mother and throw it away. Sometimes they ate but never even paid attention to the notes that their mother left for them. Why didn't they understand, people would kill to be in their shoes, and yet they did nothing about it.

The worst part is, they seemed okay with anything, no matter what Susie said or did to them, they never cried or screamed, it was like they barely even cared. She had to come up with more and more elaborate things to do, for them to even give any emotions. She was livid, squeezing sides of her desk, her claws leaving marks at the bottom. She would kill to be born into their life. But that would never happen, the only thing she could do is to be strong, that was the only thing that was going for her through all those years. She was strong and mean and if she stayed like that, she would make it. With no friends maybe, but at least she was safe from pain and she can do it all by herself. She reminded herself that it was all that mattered, the only thing she could do.

But then, why did she feel so sad, why did thinking about that freak make her so sad?

"O-oh we have a problem, I can't do anything without my chalk" Alphys looked around the class looking for someone that would be willing to go find some more.

"Can I depart on this grand adventure and bring this class the holy knowledge sticks" said Berdly

"Su-Susie, would you be so kind and go find some chalk, it should be at the supp..."

Susie stared at her, for a moment the class went silent

"whatever, this place sucked anyways" 

She stood up and left for the door. Kris felt a claw rub their hand as she walked past him. It made them jump up from shock. It hurt, not enough to draw blood but it quickly became red. She didn't even look back, she knew what she did and how hard to do it not to leave a mark. Kris suspected that it was only the start of this horrible group project. The doors shut with a huge slam that made their ears hurt.

"Kris, would you be so kind and make sure she actually brings back the chalk, and keep her out of trouble"

Was she kidding them? How could they stop this monster from getting into trouble? She could probably rip them in half the second no one was looking. It was never a good idea, they were now sure, it was their last minutes on this earth. They were going to walk out of that class into the claws of Susie only to be killed. Worst is, they would die on an empty stomach and in school. They couldn't even imagine a worse fate. 

Kris slowly got up from their desk and made their way to the door. They looked around the class seeing other monsters looking at them. Noelle looked a bit scared, she mouthed 'Good luck Kris', or at least that is what they thought she said, after all they couldn't read lips. Berdly was sitting straight as a pole, he knew what was about to come, all the memories of playing Dragon Blazers together came back at once. Was Berdly actually about to cry for their gaming companion? MK and Snowy looked at each other and then at Kris, worried smiles shown on their faces as they could only watch the oncoming slaughter. Even Catti put down her phone for a second, that meant it was a serious matter. 

Kris finally reached the door and slowly opened it. They quickly made it past the door and closed it behind them. Kris made it just in time to see Susie put the last piece of chalk between her teeth. With a swift jaw movement Kris heard a crunch and the chalk was gone. Susie turned around and saw Kris looking at what had just happened.

"What you looking at creep, mom never taught you that staring is rude"

She made a step towards them, her fist closing.

"Oh I know, you must have seen me, you must think that you finally have something on me" she grinned at them showing her giant teeth. 

"Well let me tell you something you freak, if you ever decide to tell anyone" she rushed them and held the collar of their sweater "I will make sure those will be the last words you ever say, you get me?"

Kris stared blankly into her eyes, her big bright yellow eyes staring deep into their soul. They couldn't say a single word

"I will bite off your little head, you hear me?" She picked Kris up and slammed them into the lockers. The noise was loud enough that someone in class would have heard it. Someone was going to come for me and save me, they thought to themselves.

"I will maybe do it right now and save myself the trouble later, what do you think?"

Kris gulped, but then something happened, Susie loosened her grip. Kris felt their feet touching the ground, they looked at Susie. Kris couldn't believe it, was she crying?

A small tear came down her face as she quickly turned away

"Well not today at least, you have a good mother, would hate for her to bury her child" 

Kris wanted to say something to her but no words escaped their mouth.

"Let's go, I don't want to spend any more time here"

She moved fast, way faster than Kris could, the difference in height made it hard for Kris to keep up.

"What was that?" Kris asked after a quiet minute

"What was what, nerd?" She sounded angry 

"I thought you were going to kill me right there, why didn't you" Kris sounded scared and confused. They didn't know what was going on, maybe it was some prank, or maybe she just saw someone coming. Either way it was weird

"I made a promise to someone, and I can't break my word, not to her..."

A long silence fell on them both. Finally they made it to the supply closet, it had a big black door that stood out in front of every other part of this building. They both moved closer to it and pulled the handles, the doors opened to show a deep darkness. Susie and Kris made a step back, surprised by this sight. It was dark, maybe even darker than dark, Kris thought that if they put their hand in there it would completely disappear. They looked at each other for a second.

"Well are you coming or not?" Susie asked in a spooked out voice

No answer. 

"Fine we will go in at the same time" 

Susie counted down from 3 and then went in with Kris right beside her. It was really dark. They made their way further into the closet. Who even thought of putting the light switch at the back of the room? Susie thought to herself. Finally she felt something, her snout had just come into contact with something cold and dusty. In that second the whole room flashed with a bright white light. She must have turned the light on with her face. The light hurt their eyes for a second but then, they could see everything in the room. 

It was dusty and dirty, it shows that no one has cleaned in here in a while, or maybe even ever. The metal shelves had many strange things on them, a castle replica made by some kids many years before Kris and Susie went to school there. Some balls and broken sports equipment, old papers that no one is going to use anymore, and at the furthest shelf was the chalk. A new box, although a bit dusty, still had all the pretty colors one could find on packages of school products.

"Let's get this and get out, this place is hella scary" Susie said as she made her way towards the box.

"Yeah this place is giving me the creeps"

Susie grabbed the box and switched off the light, it wasn't that hard to get out of the closet due to the light outside guiding them. Either way it was still a dumb design to put the light switch deep into the closet. They finally made it out of there and shut the door. 

"Okay freak, two things. First you did not see anything today or I swear on my mother and father that I will end you. Second thing, we have to do this stupid project."

"Yeah I know"

Susie stopped for a second. 

"Maybe we can go to the library and work on it tomorrow after school, and by that I mean I will play, you will work"

"Sounds reasonable" Kris would have said anything to keep their head on their shoulders, although they always liked working alone rather than with someone.

The walk back to class was spent in silence, not one of them had anything meaningful to add.

Kris opened the door and went inside, all their classmates looked at them in shock. Did Kris really survive the encounter, did Susie speared them? No that couldn't be, all of them heard the bang, although no one wanted to admit it. They all thought that Kris was as good as dead. To their surprise Susie followed soon after and handed Alphys the chalk box.

"Th-thanks Susie, and Kris you too of course, now let's get back to the topic of ..."

Kris didn't hear the rest of it, their rudely interrupted nap was waiting to be resumed this instant. Yet again they chose the most comfortable position and started drifting off. They were thinking about their time spent together with their brother, Dess and Noelle. The sleepovers at the Holidays’ house and the happy faces of...

*RING*

Shit, yet again their nap was cut short, this time by the horrific sound of the school bell. Well I guess Kris will have more time to sleep at home then. Kris slowly got up from their desk and made their way into the hall where everyone was watching them. 'Did they really survive that' , 'Didn't Susie hate them' , 'what happened in that hallway'. Kris didn't even react to their classmates gossiping. They just walked out of school and headed straight to their house.

Susie walked out of class after Kris. Turns out she was a heavier sleeper then Kris because she didn't get woken up by the bell. It was actually Alphys who had made her wake up from her slumber. She said something about paying attention during class and all but Susie decided not to pay much attention to her and just walked out of the class.

The hallway was full of students, they all looked at her but after she made eye contact they quickly changed the person they were looking at. She knew what they were thinking, 'Susie must have gotten weak and soft', 'Normally she would kill that poor kid'. They were all too scared to say anything but all of them were interested. She hated it, her hard personality and her need to be strong even if it meant never having any friends, this mentality was bothering her.

Was she really hated by everyone? Did she become the monster that no one could like, was there no chance for her to be normal again? And worst of all, did she really fail to keep her promise to Toriel. She quickly made it out of school and went straight to her house.

Kris finally had a chance to lay down in bed and relax after a stressful day. And stressful it was, they thought that it was it. That Susie was finally going to do something big to them. When he already made peace with that thought staring into her mouth, something weird happened. Was she crying? Why was she crying? What was that promise she made? Did the school bully have something more going on in their life than just torment and evil? 

Kris' head was racing with thoughts. Them being paired with Susie at first seemed like a problem but now she agreed to go with them to the library. Even though she never said anything about actually doing any work on the project she agreed to spend time together. Kris was sure that she would have never done this, but here they are. Maybe she made that promise to some high and influential monster? That had to be it, she needed to stay on her best behavior to avoid trouble. 

Kris couldn't stop shifting on their bed. Their thoughts were killing them. Were they really alive, were they really considering what they thought. Wasn't it dangerous, maybe it was some prank, she wanted to lure them out into the open and then beat them up or make fun of them. It could have been a cruel joke. What should they do?

Whatever it was, Kris decided to lower their guard just a little and see what comes out of it, worst case scenario they will lose their face or even a whole head, but on the other hand they may learn something interesting about Susie. Maybe their mother was right and they needed to open up and make new friends, maybe this was the first step to getting normal after all that happened.

Susie punched her training bag. A powerful right hook landed dead center onto the bag. Another one, and another one, every punch was made with conviction. She wanted to be strong, she wanted to be so strong that nothing could hurt her. Strong enough that the stares and quiet laughs didn't hurt.

Another punch, this one made the whole stand tilt out of place. She relay was paired with them huh, the class weirdo, the zombie, the kid she promised to... Another punch, why did she even say that? Why couldn't she just not say anything? Was it because of her? Or maybe it was a cry for help? Maybe she finally wanted to have some real frien...

Another punch has landed, Susie was drowning in thoughts that she didn't understand. Maybe this Kris kid wasn't such a bad idea? She promised after all that she would give them a chance, that she would try to be there for them. Maybe that was her chance to get normal or just less like she was now. 

*Bang*

With the last strong hit the punching bag has raptured. Not the first time and definitely not the last, she was getting stronger. She went to her drawer and pulled out a bit of silver tape that she always used to repair her stuff. Maybe after all these months she may finally lower her guard. Worst case scenario she will get hurt again, made fun of again, people will laugh that she thought anyone could like a monster like her. On the other hand she may find this little human interesting enough to talk to. 

Maybe her father was right and she needed to open up and make new friends, maybe it was the first step to getting normal?

Notes:

Well it is done, I didn't think I would get this far. I had a lot of fun writing it and now it is done. Well by done I can only say one of many chapters to come. Stay tuned and happy :D

Chapter 2: Good day for a school project

Kris woke up to the sound of rain droplets falling on their window. First time in a while when they haven't been woken up by Toriel. It was a gray morning, the sunlight covered completely by the clouds. It was going to be a horrible day all things considered. Kris was tired, more than usually, they never woke up ready for school, but this time all they could think about was to go back to sleep and bury themselves deep into their quilt.
Kris checked their phone. It was 7.32. Fuck, they have to start moving if they want to be on time today. Not like they especially wanted to do it but Toriel would be rather upset if they were always late. Well whatever, if they have to then they have to. Kris slowly rose up from their laying position. They sat up on the bed and put their feet on the floor. They instantly felt goosebumps on their legs and hands. It was cold, even their rug was cold, they hated it.
They quickly made it to their dresser and pulled out the same, good old clothes. What a horrible day to start the project. They only wished to go back home after classes. Maybe they could still cancel, tell Susie that they will do it some other time. Probably not, they didn't want to play with their luck. The fact that they were still alive could have just been a fluke. Changing their plans after a single day may not be the best idea.
‘Well I guess I will have to suffer through it’, Kris thought to themselves. The library wasn’t that far from school and maybe it would be warm inside. Maybe they would even have a heater working, nah that would never happen. Well whatever, the project had to be started no matter what was going on outside.
"Kris it's time for you to get up, we can't be late yet another day"
Kris heard the door opening.
"Oh you are up already? That's strange, did the rain wake you up"
Kris nodded while they were putting their sweater on.
"My poor child, it was rather loud wasn't it? I know you are not used to getting up this early"
"It's fine"
Kris looked at their mother and managed to squeeze a smile, just big enough for her to be satisfied.
"Okay, either way you should really take an umbrella, it will be raining all day long"
Great, just amazing. The only piece of hope left was just snuffed out by their mother. Guess the day will be horrible and there was nothing that would change it.
Kris made their way down stairs and took a few bites of the breakfast that their mother had cooked. It was fluffy pancakes with some sweet syrup, and a glass of OJ. It was not anything new, but it was warm and sweet food was so needed on this cold and sad day. It was good as always, Toriel's recipe was so good that people had offered in the past to pay for it. Of course she never gave them any information since it was one of her 'secret family recipes', she always said that after she dies all of those recipes will go to Kris and Azzy but before that she will be the only one to know them.
Toriel's cooking has always been a hit among everyone, during festivals people were making lines and reservations only to buy some pies and cookies. During holidays she usually had a few orders from people around town. She was not a baker but it was a good side hustle, and all the money made this way went for the christmas presents or some school appliances.
"Kris honey please hurry up, we can still make it on time"
Kris quickly moved to the passenger seat. It was ugly outside, the downpour had left many massive puddles of mud and water. It was called windy and raining. Not a single good thing could happen on a day like that.
"Oh Kris I nearly forgot, when you come back I should have an apple pie ready to eat, it should warm us up a little"
Toriel smiled at Kris and patted them on the head. Kris smiled, a warm pie could make this day better after all, maybe even make it bearable. Toriel chuckled seeing Kris smile for the first time today.
The drive to school was uneventful as always. After they got out of the car Toriel quickly rushed them into the building, she didn't want them to get wet. This time they really made it in time for class. Their mother quickly hugged them and told Kris to have a nice day.
Kris went into an open classroom and saw a few of their friends. Noelle immediately stood up from her place and walked to their desk. What could she want?
"Hi Krismas, it’s a terrible weather out there, isn't it?"
That was weird, Noelle and Kris were friends but she would never talk to them about the weather, she definitely had another reason to talk to Kris.
"Well yeah" Kris looked at her and smiled a little. They liked Noelle, she was kind and helpful and always cared about others. It was always nice talking to her, she was the only person that could endure their endless pranks as a child.
"Soooooo, I wanted to ask you about what happened yesterday, we all know Susie can get a bit carried away and especially around you so..."
Of course she wanted to know about this. Everyone wanted to know what happened, what was that bang, how did Kris survive and why did she run out of school. They had become the next big class mystery, a microcelebrity,  the weird kid that survived the bully.
"It's fine, don't worry about it"
"You sure Kris? You know you can tell me anything right? We are friends after all"
Noelle smiled, making Kris smile as well. Hearing this from her made Kris very happy, even after all that happened Noelle still considered them as a friend.
"Yeah we are, but really there is nothing wrong. Thanks for asking though"
"Well I'm glad you didn't die"
Noelle flashed them a quick but heartfelt smile and turned around. Right as the bell announced the start of the class.
Everyone was there, except her. Well it was nothing weird, Susie generally was late to all her classes. She never took school too seriously, her grades and attitude reflected that mentality very well. It wasn't the same nonechalant attitude that Kris had, Kris found school boring and repetitive, yet they understood all that was going on. Susie found school boring and useless, she didn’t care about the lessons and she barely understood what was going on in class.
The door to class opened and there was Susie. With her typical outfit of a long jacket and torn up jeans. She was all wet, well her clothes at least. It appeared that all her scales were hydrophobic. Her outfit wasn't, it was soaked. More than that, there was a brown wet stain on her jeans, she must have fallen in the mud or something. She had some leaves in her hair.
She slowly walked to her desk, she passed Kris giving them an unassuming look. That was weird, she would normally kick their backpack or say something, but this time nothing. Maybe she was too tired for that?
She slumped on her desk, a small puddle forming under her chair. After a while she opened her pencil case and took out a small paper. She scribbled something on it and handed it to Kris. They were a bit confused but they took the note and opened it.
The paper was an old quiz that they had done a few weeks ago, marked as a D-. On the bottom with a pencil was written: 'Library today - don't you dare to dip on me now nerd'. Kris wrote something next to it and handed it back to Susie.
She opened it up, 'Wouldn't dare to try'. Susie crumpled the old test and put it back in her pencil case. This day sucked, it was the worst day ever to start the project, but she couldn't dip now. Her dad made her go to school so she might as well start this damn thing, or at least make Kris start it. The weather sucked, she fell and was all wet, she hated to be here in a cold classroom, but she had to.
Class passed as always, Kris went for a power nap, Noelle quietly made notes, Berdly made his smartass remarks interrupting Alphys. Susie was half sleeping and thinking about things.
Was it really worth it, shouldn't she just go home? Kris could make that project alone, they were smart enough. She saw their grades, they were all B's and C's, she could trust them with her grade. Unfortunately it was already decided. She made her decision to try to be friendlier to them and this had to be the first step. It sucked, everything sucked, this day was the worst.
The class ended quickly for Kris, a nap definitely sped up the boring lecture. Now they were, well, less tired than normally, and halfway ready to face that storm outside. They made their way out of the classroom and to the hall. Everyone was already gone and only Susie stood next to her locker.
"Damn dude you can sleep through anything, huh"
"Like you are any better"
Kris was right, in both of their cases it was just luck if the bell would wake them up.
"Whatever nerd, let's go, I don't want to sit there ‘till night"
Susie looked slightly annoyed, Kris nodded and followed her out of the hall.
It was pouring, Kris took out their small umbrella that they had since childhood.
"Even your umbrella has those stupid stripes? Gosh you are so weird"
"It was a gift" Kris said quietly, clearly embarrassed at their mothers choice.
"Whatever nerd leave me some space under it and we are cool"
Kris looked at Susie confused.
"Don't make it weird, I just don't want to get wet"
Susie quickly snatched the umbrella from Kris, she held it high enough so that her maw could fit under it alongside her left side of the body. Kris slid in and took as much space as they could, pushing into Susie's arm. She was huge compared to them, towering at over a head higher and taking most of the space underneath the small umbrella. Her jacket, still damp, was touching the side of Kris face and their sweater.
Since none of them were completely covered by the umbrella, it was an awkward and uncomfortable walk. They slightly pushed each other to find more space under it but in the end both of them got wet. More than that, the walk took them twice as long as it usually would, since they were constantly getting in each other's way.
Finally they made it inside the library, it was warmer than outside but not enough to give immediate comfort. Kris took their umbrella from Susie and placed it next to the exit. To their shock there were around 7 more umbrellas on the ground. Everyone was here, Kris wanted to come here since they thought no one would work in the library, but the rain had apparently changed their minds. No one wanted to go home to do the project so all of them stopped here to do it.
There was a red umbrella covered in a winterlike design, next to it a lame umbrella that looked like a bad computer game merch, it must have been Berdly and Noelle. Umbrella with cats on the side and the coolest umbrella someone could ever have, Catti and Jockington must be here. The rainbow umbrella was probably Temmies, weird that the hard boiled egg didn't have one. And two unassuming umbrellas must have been from MK and Snowy.
Susie and Kris walked to the computer room and looked through the window, all the laptops were being used. It was a tragedy, they couldn't stay here and do their project. This day just became the worst day ever for a project.
"What now?" Susie looked at Kris with a defeated look
"I don't know"
"Well you are the smart one, figure something out, I can't get this wet for nothing"
Kris really couldn't think of anything to do here, they couldn't do research with books, mostly because Susie would straight up leave if she had to read anything after school. They couldn't go inside since every laptop was occupied. Then it hit them.
"Well we can do the project at my place"
Susie looked at Kris with a shocked face.
"I have a laptop at home and you can play games on my pc or something"
"Well I don't know, seems weird to go to your place to just play games"
"There will be apple pie"
Kris was really only looking up to eating a warm slice of pie and having some calm time in their house, they didn't want to stay in the library this whole time.
"Wait, the same pie your mother baked for the school holiday party"
Kris nodded with a small smile.
"Sold"
Susie took the umbrella and put it over her head. She even made some space for Kris to go under. However Kris had a different idea.
"First at my house gets the bigger slice" They yelled and dashed through the door.
Susie took 3 seconds to even register what was going on, losing her valuable time. She dashed right behind Kris catching the door before they closed. She was slowed down by the umbrella she was holding. Shit did Kris think of that before they made the bet. That cheeky bastard. Running she closed the umbrella, slowing her pace not to destroy it. Kris was gaining ground fast. They anticipated that Susie would have to close it before she picked up some real speed.
They would definitely lose this race if it was done fair, but they had a few advantages that they knew of. First of all they had a few seconds head start due to the confusion. Second they counted that Susie's big stature would slow her down on uneven terrain. Third they noticed that her shoes were not good for running on a muddy trail suggested by the brown stain on her jacket.
They still thought that it would be a very close match. But they would never back down from that kind of challenge, not if the odds could give them an advantage. The run was around 2 minutes, Kris gained a bit of ground at the start.
"Oh you fucker, it is ON now"
Susie started to pick up speed after she closed the umbrella, she was around 20m behind Kris. She was far faster than Kris anticipated, her cardio trainings were really paying off this time. This was bad, at that speed she was sure to win that race, only a miracle could save them now.
Suddenly Susie's foot slipped on the mud, it was their chance they could still win. Susie managed to stay standing but it took her a few seconds to get her balance back. She was battle hungry, she couldn't lose to them now. She sprinted as fast as she possibly could. It was the last stretch she had to win.
Kris felt something fall on them from behind, Susie had tackled them right in front of their door. They could almost touch the door, but they couldn't move.
"I got you fucker"
Susie said with a proud voice, she pulled Kris away from the door and touched it in front of them. Kris lost, their calculations were wrong, they didn't anticipate the speed of the dragoness.
"You really thought you could beat me in a physical challenge, even if you cheated I'm still faster and stronger"
Kris made a small groan as they stood up, their hand hurt after the tackle. They hit the hard pavement with it. Susie noticed it right away.
"Oh dude you okay, I like didn't mean to..."
"I'm fine, nothing serious"
Susie felt bad, even though she used to bully Kris, she never wanted to actually break them physically. More than that, she did it by accident, she played too rough and hurt someone. She felt horrible, all the childhood memories coming back. She always played too rough as a child, never knew her strength and she ended up hurting other kids. She couldn't make friends, everyone was scared to play with a big bad monster. It wasn't her fault that she didn't know how strong she was. After all these years she still hadn’t changed.
She looked at Kris expecting fear and resentment, yet again she would hurt someone when she didn't mean to. It wasn't like bullying, that was her defence mechanism, she did it otherwise she would be constantly harassed and hated as always. This was different, she hurt someone when she didn't mean to. She could feel the hate coming out of Kris right now.
"Uf that was something, you are faster than I expected"
What? What was that, was Kris not really hurt? Weren't they scared? Didn't they hate her?
Kris noticed her worried face.
"It's fine, it's probably just a bruise or something"
"Aren't you mad? People were always mad at me after that"
"Well it was a bit of a dirty play but who am I to talk"
Kris opened the door and walked in. Susie followed right after them.
"Although my sweater is now completely dirty, this one I'm mad about"
Susie felt a bit of relief, were they really not mad at them?
"Please leave your wet shoes next to the door, my mom would kill me if we brought mud on the carpets"
"Y-Yeah sure"
Susie took her shoes off and put them next to Kris's. Both of them were completely covered in mud, maybe it was better to wash them after she got back to her place. Now that she got comfortable she had to ask the big question.
"So where is that pie I just won"
Kris peaked their head out of the bathroom and pointed at the oven.
"It is still baking I think, we will eat it when my mom gets home"
"Well shit, that's not fair at all, you promised me pie"
"And you will get the pie, just wait a few hours"
"HOURS?!?!"
Susie screamed with pure rage. Not only was she all wet but now she had to wait for Toriel to come back. This was terrible, at least she can take the bigger slice.
Kris walked out of the bathroom in some new dry clothes. Some big fuzzy socks, black shorts and a white Tshirt. Susie stood there in shock, she couldn't believe what she saw. Kris had other clothes then what they wore to school?
"Wow dude, didn't know you had any other clothes" She laughed
"Well I can't sit in my room in wet clothes"
"Y-yeah I suppose, I just didn't expect it you know"
Kris made a gesture for Susie to go upstairs. She followed close behind them, clothes still wet and dripping on the stairs. Kris opened their room and walked inside. Susie immediately noticed a difference between the left and the right side of their room. One was full of posters, rewards and trophies from various sports and events. Football, spelling contest, maths, even a choir award.
The other one was empty, a shelf full of dust and nothing more, it looked depressing, as if someone never used that bed or that side of the room. Kris made their way to the drawer. They pulled out some old Asriel's clothes and handed them to Susie.
"Change your clothes, otherwise I am as good as dead"
"Whoes clothes are they"
"My older brother"
"Isn't he going to be mad"
"I doubt it, after all he left them behind"
"Sure whatever"
Susie took the clothes and made her way to the bathroom. She never knew Kris had a brother. She never knew he left. She didn't even know what was his name.
She opened the bathroom door and closed it behind her. It was a small space, still bigger than hers but definitely not some huge mansion type bathroom. It was small and cozy, she could say that about the whole house. It wasn't that big, much bigger than a typical apartment but not as lavish as she expected. It was a friendly house, full of joy and calm. It was very inviting even if she wasn't here.
It was the type of house Susie expected Toriel to live in, her warm demeanor surely had a role in how this house was decorated. Even when she wasn't here it still felt like she was close. The smell of cinnamon and apples spread around the kitchen, the yellow lights gave a sense of calm. This house felt safe, even if it wasn't hers Susie felt safe in here.
Susie hung up her wet clothes on the heater and put on Asriel's clothes. It wasn't anything special, a plain white sleeveless shirt, long brown jeans and a green jacket. It was comfy and warm, definitely beats the wet cold clothes she thought. It was a bit too long on the sleeves but it had to do. Kris didn't give her any socks so she had to go around the house barefoot. Well, it still beats the wet socks.
She made her way up the stairs, her uncut claws making noise on every step. She opened the door to see Kris laying on their bed with some small laptop. It had a few stickers on it, mainly from some dragon blazers games but also a few cats and a goat.
"Sup nerd, what are you doing with that old thing?"
"I had to open it up before we start working"
"You mean you start working, remember I didn't come here to do stuff for this project"
"Even after the pie and new clothes?"
Susie looked at Kris weirdly. Were they really expecting her to do anything, she wouldn't even know what to do. Do they want to get a bad grade?
"Listen here you fu-nerd, the pie was promised to me, and the clothes... well... I don't know they are to big"
Kris raised their eyebrow and looked at Susie.
"Well whatever you say, you can use my pc to play something I guess"
Kris shrugged and started doing something on their laptop.
Susie started up the pc, for a moment it sounded as if it was going to explode and kill them all, however it quickly became quieter. An ugly wallpaper of hand drawn game fanart showed up on the screen. On it were two users Asriel (God of Hyperdeath) with a weird profile picture and Kris with no profile picture. Susie didn't even want to open the other profile so she quickly clicked Kris icon.
The wallpaper has changed to basic pc wallpaper and a few folders. Games, films, school and music. Susie opened up the games folder.
"Hey Susie, do you even remember what the topic of this project was?"
Kris asked, clearly embarrassed by the situation. Susie slowly turned her head towards Kris. Her yellow eyes wide open staring in shock deep into Kris's soul. The room went silent for a looong moment. Longer than Kris and Susie liked.
"Dude, I didn't listen to her, I never do"
Kris felt even more embarrassed, they both didn't know, both of them forgot that they had to know what they were supposed to make.
"We are so stupid huh?"
Kris asked while slowly lifting their head to match Susie's eyes. Their face was red from embarrassment, Susie's face had a deep purple shade they had never seen before.
"Well what now?"
"I don't know Susie"
"I guess we will just wait for another day at school and ask Alphys about it"
"For now we can play some games together until my mom comes back"
"You want me to kick your ass again, you know you can't beat me"
Kris smirked, it was now on.
"Double or nothing then, either you take my slice of the pie or we both get the same amount"
"The game is on then, bring it up loser"
Kris stood up straight and walked out of the room.
"Where are you going, getting cold feet all of a sudden"
Susie stood up from her chair and followed Kris to the living room. Kris pressed a button on the small console under the old tv. Nothing happened. Kris made their way behind the tv and plugged it in. The screen shot up with bright colors and weird sounds. Finally Kris ran to their room and came back with a cd and two controllers. The disc had a crappy graphic on the top side depicting some two characters engaged in a fight. The big text Smashing Fighters 3: Total Death Combat.
"Oh you are pulling out the classics, be careful what you wish for, I played this game a lot as a kid"
Kris smilled, she may have played it as a kid but Kris played it way longer, it was their favorite game that they always played with Azzy. They mastered almost every hero, one day they even considered going to a tournament but their underachiever mentality stopped this idea from coming to fruition.
Susie didn't know what she just started, on the track or in the gym she may be better, but this, this was Kris’ domain. They were born for this game, molded by it. Susie didn't stand a chance, the powerful dragoness was just led to the lion's den. And now there was no escape.
Susie in full confidence mocked Kris by picking one of the weakest characters.
"I bet I can kick your ass with this one"
Kris smiled and picked the same character, it was a mirror match now. Susie looked at them confused.
"You sure you want to play a mirror match against me? I won't show you any mercy"
Kris simply nodded and sat comfortably on the couch. Susie selected the map and sat down in her battle position. She didn't know yet what would happen. Kris is about to show her why even Berdly stopped playing with them.
The first thing that Kris did was figure out what level Susie is on. Took them six or seven moves to understand, she wasn't bad, she relied too much on the combos, but she was not horrible. But Kris had a plan, a terrible plan. They took a bunch of hits, lured Susie into a false sense of security and then they won by a slim margin.
"FUCK"
Kris turned their head in Susie's direction. Susie looked at them pissed off and ready for a rematch.
"Okay loser double or nothing, who wins can have the other person's piece"
That was what they were waiting for.
"You sure of that, wouldn't want to make you cry like a baby"
They got cocky, maybe even too much, they shouldn't forget that they were playing with someone that can and probably would kill them if they overstepped.
"You are so dead right now"
Susie picked her main, the best in the game, commander anaconda. Kris knew it was a solid option but they had other plans, they were ready to pull out their big guns.
"The Big Ape? Are you serious? You know this one is completely useless?"
"Are you scared of a monkey? You want me to change?"
Kris knew that the common player wouldn't like the big ape, it was a hard character to master so everyone thought it was the worst one. But it was the other way around, if you would get past the awkward controls and their big hitbox then you would find a character that packs the biggest and the meanest punch out of the entire cast.
Random map. Game Start. Kris started by pretending that they didn't know what they were doing, taking some hits, missing some easy attacks until it was time.
"You should have picked someone else, you really suck at this one"
That was it, Kris was ready. They sat up in a leaning position, pulled their hair back. Susie saw as their big red eyes flickered with determination and skill. Kris dodged an attack. They baited another one out and when Susie was defenseless The Big Ape punched captain anaconda hard in the face. It was not a fight anymore, Kris opened a slaughterhouse and the product of choice was dragon meat.
They avoided each attack, made some perfect combos, dragging the fight as long as they could. They watched Susie struggle and panic. They weren't fighting, they were dancing around her. It was beautiful, a tear nearly formed in the corner of their eye. Kris heard Susie struggle, she had pulled her tongue out and she didn't even notice. She was holding the controller so tightly that she could brake it, she was tapping her foot more times per second than Kris could count. It was time to end it.
Kris made one last combo and knocked Susie out of the arena.
"What the FUCK was that about?"
"I dunno, maybe I just got lucky"
"Oh no no no you little cocky bastard"
Kris got a bit stressed, did they step a bit too far, was she going to kill them?
"You were much better at this game then you said you were, that's cheating"
"Well I wouldn't say it's chea..."
Susie looked at them with her yellow eyes, smoke coming out from her nostrils, oh fuck she was MAD.
"Since you cheated I want to propose one thing, a rematch"
Was she really thinking she can beat them, not after this show of strength, either way why wouldn't they take the challenge.
"If I win I get my piece back"
"And if you lose?"
Kris asked to see how much can they win from her stupid decisions
"If I lose then I will do the whole project by myself and not bother you with it any further"
Jackpot, they would hate to do this project at all, even more alone. It was perfect, that was their chance to have some fun.
"Bet"
Kris said with a cocky smile. But then, Susie grabbed their arm and pulled them to the table. What was that, what was she planning? Was it bad, well yeah of course it was bad, just how bad is the question. Susie pulled off her jacket revealing her muscles. Something about that sleeveless shirt made her extra dangerous looking. Oh no, Kris now realised what will happen.
"Didn't think I would let you play another one of those tricks on me, we will fight in a contest of pure strength"
Kris gulped loud enough that the whole town could have heard it.
"We will arm wrestle"
She looked down at Kris, they were now panicking. They couldn't beat her, her biceps were the size of their head, they were finished. Susie will surely snap them like a twig.
"Go on nerd, no more tricks now"
She put her hand on the table and held their hand. Their palm was half the size of hers, when she squeezed their hand they could feel how royally fucked they were. They will die or lose an arm.
"Okay nerd, ready or not."
"One"
Kris started shaking a bit
"Two"
Kris looked at Susie with puppy eyes trying to plead with her.
"Susie, wait plea..."
"Three"
In one moment Kris saw all her muscles tens up, her  face changed to a serious one.
*BANG*
Instant pain in their palm. The table shook or maybe even jumped up. Their body was slightly pulled onto the table.
The front doors just opened. Toriel walked in on a weird scene. Susie in Asriel's tank top was holding Kris by their hand while they were half laying on the table. The tv was plugged in and that annoying game was running.
"Did I come in at the wrong time, children?"
She chuckled as Kris and Susie quickly stood up and parted their hands. Both of them were flustered.
"Hello miss. Toriel"
"Oh Susie outside of school just call me Toriel"
"Okay yes, sorry m-Toriel"
Toriel laughed a bit and turned to Kris
"I saw you brought a friend over, more than that you didn't even offer them anything to eat or drink"
Kris looked even more embarrassed than before.
"This wasn't the way you were raised my child, you have to take better care of your friends"
"Sorry mom, it won't happen again"
Said Kris quietly, trying to burn a hole through the ground with their eyes.
"Well I think that the pie should be ready right now"
"Fuc- I mean hell yeah"
Toriel looked at Susie and started laughing, now Susie was flustered.
"Well first of all both of you need to wash your hands"
"Of course" said Susie as she quickly run to the bathroom
"Yhhm Susie, I know my son does not use this jacket anymore but you shouldn't leave it laying on the floor"
"I'm sorry Toriel, I'm on it"
Susie rushed to pick the jacket up and quickly made her way back to the bathroom to wash her hands.
Susie sat down and looked at the pie. There was still steam coming out of it, it smelled like fresh apples. It looked delicious. She reached her hand to grab a piece and then.
BAM
"Ouch!"
Toriel lightly slapped Susie's hand away.
"It is still too hot, use the knife to put it on your plate, would hate for you to burn yourself"
"Oh okay..."
Susie took a piece the intended way and started devouring it. Toriel and Kris looked in unison as the dragoness ate the whole slice in one go. They both laughed loudly, Kris looked at their mom and said.
"I remember when dad was eating that pie, it looked similar"
Toriel's smile dropped, she looked rather angry.
"Yeah he used to eat like that huh"
She said in an angry voice
"Oh Kris speaking of your dad when will he be coming back home, it must have been a hell of a shift if he isn't here now"
The room went silent, Kris looked at Susie, Toriel looked at Susie. The silence was deafening.
"Kris maybe it will be better if you took Susie to your room and I will clean things up here okay?"
Susie was weirded out by the sudden mood change. None the less she got up and went with Kris up the stairs. The second Kris closed the door Susie turned to them.
"Kris what the hell was that about? Did I say something wrong?"
"Susuie... I don't think my dad will be coming home any time soon"
Kris had a sad look on their face. They slowly walked to the bed and showed Susie a place beside them.
"I don't get it, I saw him like yesterday, he has this flower shop doesn't he"
"Susie, my parents are divorced"
"Wh-..."
The silence yet again came to the room, this time even worse. How could she not know, she knew many people from broken homes in her life. How did she never pick up on this? She just assumed that if no one was talking then it meant that all was good. She was so stupid.
"Look Kris I'm-"
"Yeah I know, you are sorry, everyone is always sorry when they hear about it"
Susie looked down on the ground. She should have known, she thought that Kris had this perfect life but they didn't. She bullied a kid with divorced parents because she thought that they had it so good in life. For the first time in a while she felt bad about all the bullying, I mean she always felt weird with it, but this time. It was different, she missed that simple fact covered by her beliefs.
"I didn't know, I'm sorry..."
"It was a big thing before you came to town, my parents were the couple of this town. The whole thing was a big deal, a messy divorce made quick news around town. Everyone wanted to ask about it but they never did, and now no one talks about it. It's one of those topics you never bring up"
"I'm so... I don't know what to tell you."
Kris started to tear up, they looked at Susie and asked them.
"Can you hug me for a moment?"
"Y-yeah sure thing..."
It was weird, it was all so weird. Kris slowly wrapped their hands around Susie and stayed there for about a minute. They could feel her scales brushing against their face, they were warm, turns out that dragons generate a lot of heat. It was like hugging a heater. Susie felt the tears soak into her clothes. She pulled Kris closer, she knew what it was to miss the life that once was. She felt them, even if they didn't feel the same, she could understand them on a deep level.
Kris finally pulled away and looked at Susie, their eyes were even more red now, staring into her.
Her phone started vibrating in her pocket. It was her dad, it was late. Very late, later than she expected.
"Sorry Kris but I think I have to go now, we can meet tomorrow and play some games together okay?"
"Yeah sure, come on in whenever you like, my mom seems to like you"
"Are you better now?" Susie asked, concerned.
"Yeah, it's all fine now, we will talk tomorrow"
Susie quickly ran away from the house into the dark night. She said a quick goodbye to Toriel and ran as fast as she could back home. She hoped that her dad wasn't that mad at her. Turns out it was a horrible day for a project after all.

Notes:

Hey everyone, I had lots of fun writing this chapter and I hope you will enjoy it. If anyone is wondering, updates should stay consistent around 1-4 days max, for a few chapters at least. Uni starts in a month and I have a lot of motivation to write.
Hope you like it, see you guys next time :D

Chapter 3: Late nights and early mornings

Susie had just exited the room. Kris sat there in complete silence. What just happened, not only did they spend a whole day with her but they also told her what was bothering them. They overshared, they cried... Kris never cried in front of others, they never showed negative emotions. What was that? Did they lower their guard too much? Did they get too comfortable with a school bully?
She left abruptly, one second they were crying into her shirt the other she dashed out of the room in panic. What was that about? Was she really so scared not to make her parents angry? She will come here tomorrow though, they can talk. 

'I should probably apologise to her for all this stuff' They knew that they overshared and put Susie in an uncomfortable situation. What were they even thinking? Asking for a hug, crying, it was all so stupid. They definitely lowered their guard far too much. The fun time they had together had made them open up about something that they never wanted to talk about. She didn't need to hear about it, they could have just evaded the question, made something up. But no, they always had to push too far, always had to scare anyone around them.

Safe to say that Kris would not have an easy time falling asleep.

*******************

Susie dashed out of the house, she messed up. She was supposed to finish a lot earlier and go home before her dad made it there. It was bad, she didn't text him or called him. She missed 3 texts, it was bad. As soon as she closed the door behind her she started running as fast as she could.

The worst part is, her dad wouldn't even be angry, he never was. He would just give her a talk about how worried he was and how disappointed he felt. It was much worse, she would rather listen to him being mad than to see him sad. She needed to run faster.

It stopped raining, but the ground was still slippery and muddy. It was dark, the only source of lights were sporadically placed lamps with a dim light coming out of them. She should probably slow down not to slip and stain her jacket anymore. 'Wait a second. Oh no... Oh fuck no'. She didn't have her jacket, she didn't have her jeans, she didn't even have her own shirt. She was running home in some other person's clothes. Her outfit was still hanging in the bathroom of Kris's house.

Great, just amazing, it couldn't get any better. She rushed out so fast that she didn't even notice what clothes she had on herself. She abruptly stopped, maybe she should run back and take her clothes. No, changing into her outfit would cost too much time. She would also look like a complete idiot running back to the house. The other option was going home in some other person's clothes, a bad idea. Her dad would think she robbed some poor guy, or she was getting into some bad circle of people. She stood there for a second deliberating her options.

She was done either way. At least she can be done in some dry clothes and not be late even more. Susie was fast when she wanted to, she showed it with Kris and she definitely showed it with running back home. The run was so fast she didn't even notice that she left her socks in the bathroom. She was focused only on making it to her apartment as fast as she could.

She stopped in front of her door and slowly put her hand into the pocket of Asriel's jacket. FUCK, she left her keys in her own jacket, oh it couldn't get any worse. She knocked on the door and heard someone get up. Slow steps toward the door, then keys turning and door opening.

"Where were you? I was worried, I even went to the library to see if you were there"

Susie couldn't look him in the eyes, she evaded his stare as much as she could. It was hell on earth. Her father made enough space for Susie to come inside. She slowly walked in, eyes still looking at the ground. Just as expected, no yelling, no anger, just concern.

"I-I'm sorry dad, I was at a friend's house" Were they friends? No? It was hard to say, strangers generally cry into someone's arms but also, they have been acting all friendly for a day. They were undisclosed, a mystery, a weird thing.

"Friend’s house? Are these their clothes?"

Susie blushed, her face turning deep purple shade. She started tapping her claws on the table. It was so awkward.

"Well you know, my clothes got wet so they gave me something to get changed."

"Must have been a big friend, you never told me of a monster bigger than you in your class. You are not lying to me are you?"

Her dad looked her dead in the eyes, she quickly averted his gaze. She was nervous, now she didn't know what would happen. Does he think she got into some trouble, maybe he is worried that she is hanging out with some adults. She didn't know what he was thinking.

"No no, it's their older brother's clothes. They said he wouldn't mind"

"They hmmm? Were you at that Dreemurr kids house?"

Susie finally met her fathers eyes, his face was confused. Thankfully she didn't sense any sadness on it..

"Yeah, this one" Susie said quietly. 

"I thought you hated that kid. What did you call them once? A pampered little shit that had more than they deserved?"

"I don't think I said pampered..." Susie looked at the floor yet again, it is weird to explain to her dad why she was hanging out with the weird kid that she openly hated just a week ago.

"And what, you came there to beat him up or what?"

"I think I misread them back then..."

"Oh that's interesting. Either way you should have called me, you know how worried I can get"

"Yes, I'm sorry dad, it won't happen again." 

Her dad stood up from his chair and hugged Susie. She couldn't believe that he was still taller than her. She always felt huge around everyone, but standing next to him made her feel small as if she was still a child. 'Shame her mother can't see them right now'. Susie made a sour face.

"What happened honey?" Her dad asked, concerned.

"Nothing, just thinking about mom, that's all. She would love to see me almost as tall as you." 

Both of them stood there in silence looking at each other. Her dad made the same sour face as she had.

"Yeah, yeah she would. I miss her a lot you know"

"I miss her too dad"

They gave each other another heartfelt hug and Susie started to walk back to her room. Her claws tapping on the wooden floor.

"I'm glad you are making friends but you should really take back your socks from them"

Susie quickly looked at her dad and flashed him a quick smile. She would, she would take all her stuff back from that nerd. And maybe take more of that pie. She would still need to wipe the floor with that cocky bastard at Smashing fighters, she just had to unrust a bit.

Susie closed her door and sat on her bed. 'Now seriously, what was that all about', was it the "being strong" that she talked about so much? No, she started to feel like she opened up too much, Kris saw her true colors, they will tell everyone that she is weak. Why did she let them hug her? Did she just feel bad about bringing their dad up, was she just awkward and didn't know what to say? Shit, it was all so weird. That hug, what did it mean? Were they now friends? No, one hug does not make a friend. Then what? Lesser friends, companions?

Susie was confused, she didn't know what to think about this situation. One thing she had to admit was that she really had fun. She was not used to it, spending time at someone's house, playing games, eating pie. She never had that growing up, she always had problems making friends, and with how frequently she was moving out with her parents, maintaining any relationship became impossible. 

It's not like many people wanted to talk to her. Everyone her age looked at Susie as this big scary thing, no one wanted to play with a big monster. In result she never had any friends, she decided that if everyone is already scared of her she may as well get something out of it. She never liked being a bully but it was much better then being an outcast. At least she could take control of her social life this way.

But this was something different. Of course Kris was still scared of her, nothing unpredictable, she bullied them for months. But yesterday didn't feel like that, they had fun with her even though she was a big scary monster. It was as if Kris stopped paying attention to her big stature, sharp claws, huge teeth and rigid personality. She played games and had fun, it was weird.

Susie sighed and fell down on her bed, safe to say it would not be an easy night to fall asleep.

*******************

Kris rolled in their bed. What was it now, 10th time? They couldn't sleep, not today, not in this quiet room, not after all that happened. This sucked, usually they would have Asriel's snoring as a white noise, it helped in sleeping. This time it was quiet, too quiet. Kris hated it, after Azzy left their sleep schedule fell apart. Not like it was ever good, but after all that happened with their parents, Asriel and Dess leaving, it was never that bad before. 

Well if they won't sleep they may as well go out for a walk. Kris quietly made their way down the stairs into the hall. They wanted to take their hopefully dry clothes. Kris turned the light on and saw something weird. Not only their clothes were drying on the lines, there was also Susie's jacket right next to her jeans. 'Oh yeah, she never gave back Asriel's clothes, guess she had some explaining to do back home'. Kris checked their sweater, fuck it was still wet. Their pants were dry and so was Susie's jacket, well I guess it's better than being cold.

They quickly put everything on and made their way to the door. Kris needed to be extra quiet, Toriel was a heavy sleeper but if she woke up to Kris going out, it would be better for them to be pulled into hell then to have that talk with their mother. Kris slowly opened the door and walked out as quietly as they could. 

It was a chilly night, not freezing but still cold from the recent rain. The sky was clear and the moon was bright, nicely illuminating a way forward. The stars were visible, the hometown always had a great night sky since it was far away from any major city. Kris walked down the road avoiding any puddles.

Her jacket was warm, warmer than Kris expected. It had a certain smell to it that Kris couldn't really recognize. They liked that smell, it was something like a flower scent with a hint of some heavy perfume. Kris put their hands in the pockets of her Susie's jacket. Maybe there will be something worth of interest right there?

They felt some loose paper scraps, one used up tissue and keys. Well maybe the other pocket? Bingo! Some old candy, perfect late night snack. Kris looked around to make sure that Susie didn't see them, she would probably gut them if she knew they took candy from her jacket. Or gut them for having their jacket, or gut them for even meeting them this late, or gut them for that stupid hug. Yeah Kris was done for if they ever meet her again. Well at least they can be done for one candy fuller.

Kris unwrapped the candy and put it in their mouth. It was one of those candies that hairdressers had in those funny bowls on the counter. It was hard, and OMG, lemon flavor, they really hit the spot. Susie definitely missed out on this one. They were walking to the lake, slowly eating the candy and staring at the stars. It was such a great night for a walk, or generally anything that was not sleeping.

They walked past their dad's shop. It was late, Kris wondered if their dad was still awake. They haven't visited him for a while now, sometimes they met him around town but other than that they barely spoke to each other. Kris didn't even stop, it was not their destination. They just finished their candy, it was so good, a small treat for a trip. Kris found the nearest trash can and disposed of the wrapper, maybe Susie won't notice that something went missing.

They finally made it to the lake. The ground was still wet and muddy but whatever. Kris managed to sit down just right so the only thing touching the ground was Susie's jacket. They felt it getting wet but who cares? It was nice sitting here. Calm waves, the stars reflecting at the surface, and the moon glowing. They remember coming here with Azzy when they were younger. He showed them that place, it was his favorite ever since he took Dess here for a date. 

Asriel was right, this place looked romantic at night, not that he was some major player back in the days. Kris still couldn't believe that the goody two shoes like Asriel dated the hot headed rebel cool girl. They missed that duo, it was never boring around them, the late night at Holiday's house, playing stupid pranks on Noelle, the lake house. It was all so distant now, with Dess gone to who knows where and Asriel in college, Kris was sure that those days would never return. Their blissful childhood lost to time and change.

They would give so much for those days to return, for the endless fun to come back. To go back to the forest late at night and find Asriel, Dess and Noelle in their usual spots. To just do stupid stuff with them. They were sure that Dess would make good friends with Susie, their personalities would fit each other perfectly. Asriel would have to keep eyes on both of them, to save them out of any trouble. They could play three person pranks on Noelle, explore abandoned buildings to the dismay of Asriel and just goof around the whole summer. 

"Oh you have to be fucking KIDING me Kris!" Someone roared from behind them.

Kris quickly jumped up into a standing position, they turned around to see Susie looking at them with anger all over her face.

"First you give me clothes that are too big, then you cheat at games, and now you are sitting on MY JACKET in MY SPOT!"

Kris was scared, they were petrified. No noise came out of their mouth. They were staring death right in the face, or maw. They could count all the yellow teeth in her mouth, it was many, too many for their comfort. They were dead, even worse, extra dead, extra super fucking dead with a cherry on top. The Death had come to meet them, maybe all the stupid things they did in their life were coming back to bite them? Maybe their mother was right about not going out late at night? 

"You idiot, look at what you've done, it's all covered iin mud now" Susie looked even more annoyed.

"I'm s-sorry, I-there wa... My sweater was still wet so I took it..."

Kris struggled to say anything of value, the panic has set in. Maybe they should drop to the ground and beg? Or play dead and hope she leaves them alone? All those thoughts crossed their mind. Nothing would work, they can only face their death with bravery.

"Whatever, it was dirty either way, and I took your stuff also" 

Susie came closer, now around a few centimeters away from Kris. She quickly pulled her arms out of the pockets and grabbed them by their hair with one hand pulling their head back. Her other hand gave Kris a flick right between their red eyes.

'Were they always so big?' Susie was confused, it was the first time she saw Kris's eyes in the open like that. They were blood red and huge, she didn't expect it. Maybe it was a human thing, or maybe Kris was special in some way, she didn't know anything about human physiology.

While Susie was clearly lost in her thoughts Kris started a counter attack. Their hands managed to quickly free their hair from Susie's claws and they moved in for a bite, right on the hand. The same hand that hit them a second ago was about to face the wrath of Kris.

*chomp*

"Ouch, you idiot what are you doing?"

Kris didn't even think their attack would succeed, their mouth was now wrapped around her hand. Their teeth biting into her hardened scales. They didn't manage to draw blood but they were still surprised. With scared eyes they looked right at Susie. Smoke coming out of her nostrils.

"Now you've done it"

Susie brought her arm higher, lifting Kris off the ground. Her second arm wrapped around their side forming a firm grip. She only had one idea, revenge. She took two steps forward and threw Kris as far as she could into the water. Kris made it around 3-4 meters before landing with a big splash. It was still shallow but they fell on their back so they were still soaking wet.

"HAHAHAHA you went flying" 

Susie could barely stand she laughed so hard. Tears coming down her face and dropping onto the ground. Kris, still in shock, made a few steps and climbed out of the lake. The water was cold, the air was now even colder. They were freezing.

"What did you even think was gonna happen, you can't just bite the dragon like that. Play with the dragon and you get the wings, or something like that" 

Kris was soaked, their wet hair covering their eyes completely. They quickly grabbed the side of their arms to somehow warm themselves up.

"Shit, you good Kris, you didn't get hurt or anything right?"

"Cold..."

Kris said quietly while rubbing their hands together.

"Take that jacket off, you can have this one"

Susie took off "her” jacket and handed it to Kris. Kris quickly took it and wrapped it around themselves.

"Thanks, it's much warmer"

Susie smiled and put her jacket on the ground. They both sat down close to each other. The silence was deafening. They had so much to say but so little words to put it. Kris decided to start.

"Sorry for the whole thing today, I think I just did too much"

Susie sat there in silence, looking at the small waves. She didn't know what to say now. Was it alright? What can she even say to it?

"It's okay dude, I shouldn't have asked about your parents"

"The hug was nice though."

Susie looked at Kris, she was shocked. Weren't they ashamed of it? Why did they say that?

"Shut up weirdo, you are making it weird"

Susie blushed and turned her face away from Kris, her face turning deep purple. Were they trying to embarrass her?

"You are like a big heater. Seriously, how are you this warm?"

"One more word and I will kill you twerp!"

Susie sounded angry but Kris got too comfortable now. They would not back down, not a chance.

"No you won't"

They said looking at her with a cocky smile. They were gambling with their life but the pay off would be worth it.

They were right, she wouldn't kill them, she couldn't bully them anymore, not after all those things. 'This damn kid has warmed me up', how can I be so weak? I can't even threaten a small human.

"It's okay, I wouldn't hurt you too, Susie" Kris pushed further, going right for the throat.

It was bad, they were onto her. She knew now, this battle was lost. She only blushed more and turned her head away from Kris mumbling some slurs and threats.

And now it was time for the final act. Kris came closer to Susie and wrapped themselves around the dragoness. She was warm like the last time, it felt amazing. Kris was finally feeling better, not bothered by the cold and the wind.

"WHAT THE ..." 

Susie stopped, she looked at Kris, their big eyes staring deep into her soul.

"Dude, what are you doing?"

"I was cold you are warm, quick math Susie"

She started tapping her foot, she was burning up, the embarrassment was killing her. This damn kid. She wanted to hate them, after that, she wished she had the strength to shout at them, hit them and leave them here. But looking into those eyes, she couldn't find any hate for them. This was bad, she liked them, she liked the stupid weird kid from her class.

"That's a dragon thing." Susie said quietly.

"Huh?" Kris asked, confused, raising one of their eyebrows.

"The heat emission thing, my dad says it is a thing that dragons do"

"Oh, I wasn't sure you weren't just a lizard type monster"

Susie grabed their arm rather hard. 

"Don't you dare to say that, I am a proud dragon, strong and amazing and cool."

She made a few gestures with her body. Like flexing and doing cool poses while trying not to detach Kris from herself.

"Well I think you’d still be cool, even as a lizard"

Susie stopped for a second, Kris could feel that she got even warmer. Maybe Kris should say more stuff like that so that they can warm up a bit.

"Well yeah lizard are still cool, my mom was a reptile, and my dad is a dragon"

"Was?"

Kris felt Susie grow colder, her voice changed from flustered to completely serious.

"Yeah, she died when I was 10, some health problems, doctors said she didn't have a big chance"

"I'm sorry, I didn't know..."

"Yeah and I didn't know about your parents, it's not a big deal, you couldn't know"

Kris slightly loosened their grip around Susie. She was stiff, as if all her muscles were turned to rocks.

"Since then it was just me and my dad, and medical bills of course"

Kris felt horrible, they could have just kept their mouth shut and all these things wouldn't happen.

"My dad had to move a couple of times and has to work several jobs to keep us afloat" 

Susie slightly relaxed, the warmth coming back to her.

"He is sometimes worried about me, like that I will get with some bad people or something like that."

Kris stopped hugging Susie and sat up straight. They were now looking at the lake, trying to avoid her stare.

"He would be happy to see us talking though, you may be weird but you are not a bad person"

Kris blushed slightly. What was that about, why was she saying it?

"He really hoped that I would make some friends here since we will be staying in this town for a long while"

"Long while?"

"Yeah my dad found a stable job, so it will stay like this for a long while"

"Do you miss her?"

Kris looked at Susie.

"Yeah, I do, not as much as my dad, but I do"

Silence has returned. They both stared at the sky, trees and everything else around them.

"So what brought you here today nerd?"

"Can't sleep, too quiet"

"Too quiet? Bro I would kill for that. My dad put on a loud movie andI just can't get any shut eye with this noise"

"Yeah since my brother left it's been too quiet to sleep, my bedroom once felt safe with him near. Now it's just strange"

"You miss him don't you?"

Kris shuffled around with their fingers in silence.

"Yeah I do, I miss them, I miss the fun we had, I miss his girlfriend, I miss the old times when we were all together."

"His girlfriend?"

"Dess, Noelle's older sister"

"Major league nerd number two huh? Glad I didn't meet her, I can live without hearing more about school and equations and whatever else you nerds talk about"

Kris laughed, they looked at Susie with a big smile on their face.

"Well you are quite wrong, Dess was the coolest girl I ever got to know, she was a part of a rock band, she played baseball, she was a champion at paintball. During one summer she got arrested around 10 times for some petty crimes. A true rebel at heart"

Susie noticed Kris's eyes. They had a certain spark in them, they must have really looked up to that girl, or at least they hold her in a very high regard. One thing annoyed her though. Kris felt her burning up again.

"COOLEST GIRL YOU KNOW?! Oh no no no nerd, this space is reserved for me and me only, not some mediocre deer friend"

"Get arrested few more times and maybe you will be cooler then her"

"My first arrest will be for killing some cocky human by the lake" 

She put one of her claws right on their neck. Pressing it lightly, not to harm them.

"No you won't, you are now a big softie"

Susie was shocked, she couldn't move a muscle. She was giving so much heat in that moment. Kris could have sworn that she overheated. Nonetheless, Kris seized the occasion and fell onto her lap, getting comfortable before she even knew what happened.

"A BIG FUCKING WHAT?!"

She looked at Kris with murderous intent, but it was too late now. Kris has already closed their eyes. 'Were they planning on sleeping here, like that?' Susie wanted to throw them off, tell them to get out and walk home. But she couldn't, something about it made her feel weak. It was as if a cat had fallen asleep on her lap and she didn't have a heart to wake it up. 

God she really turned into a softie. Nobody can ever know.

*******************

It was starting to get bright. Susie slowly opened her eyes, she was still at the lake. She looked down and saw Kris, leaving a puddle of spit on her pants. Fuck it was morning and they were still at the lake, they must have fallen asleep. 

Susie poked Kris's side and they quickly jumped up. Their eyes wide opened looking at Susie.

"What was that for?"

"It's morning you dumbass, we went asleep."

Kris shot up in an instant. It was bad, very bad, Toriel might have been up by now. They had to do something quickly. Probably run back to their house as fast as they could. 

Kris checked their phone. 5.49. Okay it was not that bad but they should probably go back home as fast as they can. They gave Susie a quick look, she had the worst case of bed face since the invention of beds and faces. Messy hair, eyes that were practically glued together, a small imprint on her left cheek. Kris barely contained their laugh, only letting out a small chuckle.

"What are you laughing at dweeb?"

Susie looked annoyed which only worsened her condition. Kris made a gesture pointing out her whole head, trying not to laugh. 

"Yeah said who"

She ran her claw alongside the big imprint on the middle of their face. Kris instantly froze, their face slowly turning red. Susie quickly made a gesture pointing out their hair. It was horrible, not only were they messy, they also had a few sticks and leaves in them, courtesy of sleeping half on the ground. Kris quickly shook their head like a wet dog, trying to get everything out of their hair.

"Shut up softie. Either way I gotta dip"

Kris started to run to their house. Hoping she wouldn’t catch them in time.

Susie sat there for a moment, not knowing what really happened.

"See you today at my place softie"

She squeezed her hand in anger, she was going to kill that human one day. But maybe not today, that would mean no pie at their house. Can't play like that with a pie on the line. She picked up her dirty jacket from the ground and put it on. Her keys were still inside, her tissue too. Wait a minute, where was…? THAT FUCKER STOLE HER CANDY. They were as good as dead when they would meet again.

Kris opened the door quietly, they slowly moved into the house and put their shoes away. Thankfully their mother was still sleeping, a few more steps and they were in front of the bedroom door. They twisted the knob and went inside. Thank angel that she didn't know. Kris made their way to the bed and fell on it face straight.

Another nap wouldn't kill anyone?

 Kris was woken up by their mother poking them on the side. Why does everyone do that nowadays, what happened to talking or gently shaking someone, or what about just letting them sleep.

"Kris wake up"

"Ughhhhhhhhhhhhh"

Kris was not happy but they turned around to see their mother standing next to them.

"Kris I don't want to be nosy but how do you have that jacket on you"

'Angel save me' Kris had completely forgotten to change, their mother saw Susie leave the house with the same jacket just a few hours ago. They were done, no more escaping, nothing they could do now. Just waiting for death or even worse, no pie for a month, strict bed time.

"Susie came back later to pick her stuff up and trade."

Yeah it was a good excuse, no chance Toriel would see through it.

"And you just put it on?"

'Damn it, so close, quick Kris make something up or you will be done'

"Well it still smelled like Asriel, it helped me fall asleep"

Amazing, that would take her off their back for sure. She wouldn't poke anything around that subject.

"Oh... I'm glad you could get some shut eye then, it would be horrible if you started going on those night walks again, you can meet strange people wandering the town"

She was right, Kris has managed to meet the weirdest of those night dwellers, and they even fell asleep on her lap. Well either way, Susie is here and she has been waiting for quite some time downstairs.

Huh? What time was it? She wouldn't be here so early in the morning. Kris checked their phone and it was 2.33 p.m. Damn that was a good nap, also that means that Susie has been waiting for a long time as their mother said. That's not good, she will be pissed right away and they haven't even started playing.

Kris got up as Toriel walked out of the room. They should probably wash themselves after a night outside. Kris took some fresh clothes and went downstairs.

"Here you are nerd, Kept me waiting for a long time you know."

"Yes, yes I'm sorry, but first I gotta take a shower"

Kris rushed into the bathroom before Susie could even protest any of this. Were they realy making her wait longer? This is ridiculous, she brought some new games and she hoped to kick their ass this time. However it appears that she will have to wait again. 

"Susie, sorry for that, Kris is a very heavy sleeper after all."

"Yeah I know, I'm sitting behind them at school, all this time they are just na.."

Maybe she shouldn't say that. Maybe Toriel didn't know and now she was digging a grave for Kris. Toriel noticed her hesitance.

"Yes I know, they were always sleeping in class, nothing new"

"Yeah..."

This talk was rather awkward, sitting with your friend's mother has got to be a bottom five of all activities on this planet.

"I'm glad that Kris had found a friend, and I'm glad you gave them a chance"

Susie was stunned, she didn't think Toriel would start that topic any time soon. Especially with Kris still in the house. What if they heard this talk, what would they think about it?

"Well after all I made you a promise..."

Susie sat on the couch drilling holes in the floor with her eyes. This was soooo awkward.

"Well yes, I'm aware of that, but you still chose to hang out with them. I didn't force your hand to be their friend. I just asked you to give them a chance."

Susie said nothing. Toriel was telling the truth, Susie only promised to give Kris a chance and to talk to them a little. No one forced her to do any of the other stuff, like hanging out, hugging, or sleeping together... They slept together outside, if the hug was a bit out of place then what was that all about. Not that she minded that much, she just didn't expect any of this to happen. It was good to have someone to talk to, even if they were a bit weird.

"I shall go to the shop, I will be back in a bit"

Toriel exited the house and got into her car. For a short while it was just her and the silence.

Kris just got out of the shower, they had the same outfit as yesterday, black shorts and a white tshirt. They quickly made their way towards the couch and they sat down on the opposite side to Susie.

"I see you brought some games with you, didn't the last time teach you anything?"

Kris said with a huge smile. Susie showed all her teeth in a grin and then got up.

"You played me on your best game, now it's time for me to show you what I can do loser"

Kris watched as Susie pushed in the first disc.

"It's game on"

The title flashed on the old TV. 'Plumber Racers', a racing game developed in the world of The Plumber Guys. Kris played it a bit but they found it was not for them. Susie smiled seeing Kris hesitant, she knew she had them. There was nothing more that they could do, it was revenge time.

They quickly picked their characters, Kris didn't know if they had any different abilities so they just chose the red plumber, main guy in the whole franchise. They had no mustache but a huge beard, Susie picked the 'Big Turtle guy', like of course she would. Playing as a bad guy that is also a reptile.

The race was about to start, it was a rainbow map, no ground beside the rainbow. Any fall would force a reset back onto the track. This was bad, Kris knew that Susie had played this game longer than them, they knew it was a bad idea to try to fight her in her own domain. 

3...2...1... GO

It has started. Kris was moving as fast as they could, trying their best to keep on the track. To their surprise Susie has fallen off at the first sharp bend. Was she just pretending to be good at the start? What was that about? Kris looked at her half of the screen. She was alive, even more than this, she was in the 1st place and by a long shot. Did she fall down on purpose and manage to stick the landing on another track?

It was bad, Kris was going to lose, not only that, they would be left humiliated. Kris decided to speed up, they were doing anything that they could, using all the power ups, getting all the corners right, but they were no match for Susie. She knew this map as her own pocket. There was no chance anymore. In the last love of desperation Kris decided to go for a dirty tactic. They ran to the console and unplugged her controller.

"WHAT are you doing you bastard!"

Kris didn't say anything, they sat near the cord and guarding it they were still playing. Susie rushed to them trying to find the cord.

"You are such a sore loser" 

She was right but that didn't matter as long as they won everything was permitted. Susie threw Kris to the ground trying to locate the ending of her controller. Kris, still playing, put it under their feet and pressed as much as they could. Maybe it would be enough? Susie still had a half lap lead but it was shrinking by a second. She had enough, Susie grabbed Kris by their ankle and pulled them up. They were now upside down and Susie managed to get her cord. She plugged it back into the console.

Player 2 wins

Damn it, even that was not enough. She was truly amazing.

"What was that about you, dirty cheater? Couldn't even win with your underhanded tactics."

Kris looked at Susie with as much confusion as they could muster. Looking her straight in the eyes they decided to play oblivious. Maybe it was their best bet to survive.

"What was what? I don't know what you are talking about."

Susie stood up, pulling Kris even higher. They were getting dizzy already.

"Either admit you are a dirty cheater and I am better at games then you, or you will stay like that forever"

"NEVER"

Kris screamed with determination, resistance against violence is never futile. They were ready to pull even more dirty tactics to get out of this one. And they had one just perfect for it.

"You would never hurt me, softie" 

They said it in a soft and provoking voice. Susie was flustered, she looked at Kris, still holding them. They felt a grip loosen a bit. Well this didn't free them but they had to keep going.

"You won't be able to make me lose my temper and drop you. Admit I am better or you will stay like that forever."

"You look even cuter from this angle"

Kris felt her grip loosen. They were falling, it worked, she got flustered enough to drop them. They were a genius. 

'What?' Susie stood there not knowing what just happened. Did they really do that? What was that about? She was burning up, her brain scrambling for answers. Cute? Out of all things, she has never been called cute. They were now out of her grasp, they were just messing with her to win a pointless argument. She didn't know what to do.

"What..."

Susie sounded confused, well she was confused. It was weird. Very weird.

"I said you look cute"

"What?"

The silence was deafening. Kris slowly stood up, they looked at Susie, she was burning up. Did they go too far? Was that too much? Maybe it was better to admit defeat.

"You okay?"

Kris looked at her concerned. Now it wasn't a joke. They were stressed that they did something wrong, maybe they said a word too much.

"Did you mean it?"

Susie asked quietly. Kris barely heard her. Well now they have to deal with this, what an amazing move by them, turning a small problem into a major awkward situation. What if she would never talk to them again? What are they even supposed to say? Were they supposed to say no? Would she be more mad if they lied to her or if they told her the truth? Did they even lie?

"Did you mean it" Susie said once again now staring at Kris.

"I did"

"Susie, Kris I'm home"

Toriel just went inside and saw both of them standing next to the TV.

"Will you help me make some pie for us to eat?"

"Y-yeah sure, we can do that"

She made her way to the kitchen completely ignoring Kris by that point. Susie washed her hands and put away her jacket so as not to get it dirty with flour. Kris in this time made their way onto the couch. They laid down on the spot where Susie was sitting just a few moments ago.

"Kris would you be so sweet and bring the rest of groceries from the car?"

Kris got up and walked outside. Right as they closed the door they felt weak. Their legs failing them as they walked to the car. They messed up, Susie hated them now. It was just a stupid argument, yet they couldn't back down and said some stupid stuff. She was weirded out, disgusted maybe. They opened the car door and made their way back home with all the bags.

Kris looked at Susie, she gave them a lighthearted smile, maybe she was not mad. Kris joined them in making the pie, this time it was a cinnamon pie, their brother's favorite. 

When the pie was ready and all of them were dirty from flour that Susie had thrown away around the kitchen, they all sat down to have a great meal together. The pie was still a bit hot but Susie didn't care. She ate 3 slices leaving Toriel and Kris 2 each. She figured out it was a fair deal since she was the biggest out of them. No one protested.

"Susie, do you want to stay the night?"

"Huh...?"

Susie made a confused face.

"Oh do not make that face, you know it is not a big deal for us, I will call your dad and tell him so that he will not have to worry okay?"

Susie smiled, she would like to have her first sleepover.

"Well if you insist, then why not. I wouldn't mind to have a sleepover with my friend"

Kris hearing it felt warm inside, despite everything that had happened Susie still called them her friend. They didn't fuck anything up, or at least enough to make her super mad.

"You can sleep on the couch, it is used to it by this point"

"Yes of course. Kris come, I will show you some real good movies"

Kris followed Susie to the couch, they sat close to her. Not as close as yesterday but closer than they were while playing. As Susie started picking some movies, Kris felt the sleep coming in. It was quick, they were out in a matter of minutes, the starting credits just started to roll in and Susie took a comfortable position. It will be a long night of marathons.

 

Notes:

Hope you enjoyed it :D See you guys next time.

Chapter 4: Family history

Kris gently opened their eyes. It was dark, they didn't remember how they got here. They could hear snoring, it was near them. It sounded like they were next to a massive grizzly bear. More than that, they were trapped. They couldn't move, even a bit. Something has wrapped around them constricting their every possible attempt. They were pinned between this something and another thing. This one felt like... 

'It's my couch' Kris deduced after a few seconds. What were they doing there though? Suddenly they remembered, they were watching a movie with Susie, well more like she wanted to watch it and they just went to sleep. Does that mean that the thing holding them was Susie? The strength would suggest it, and there was frankly nothing else this thing could be. But just to be sure Kris struggled to get their hand out of the monster’s grasp.

They finally managed to free their hand. Kris moved it alongside the thing holding them. Yeah it was scaly, must have been her. Her arm was huge, Kris never paid much attention to it but now. It was wrapped around their waist, holding them in a tight grip, her hand two or maybe three times larger than their hand. Kris took their time examining it, if they were better at anatomy they could have pointed out each muscle on her hand. They were well defined even if Kris didn't know what they were called.

Her arm was covered in scales, they made a tough layer, hard to penetrate with anything sharp but, when they poked it her arm was completely soft underneath. Kris ran their fingers over her scales feeling how rough they were. Suddenly they felt a force pulling them closer. A low grumble came from behind them. Kris got careless and nearly woke Susie up. They got so invested in what they were doing they forgot that she was sleeping right beside them.

Kris felt how warm she was, it was as if they were laying down next to an oven. It was incredibly comfortable, even if they were squeezed between the couch and her, even if she was holding them with incredible strength. Even if they wanted to get out, it would be hopeless. They felt the heat on their back and a tight grip on their waist. It was all so nice. A small blush showed on their face, it was much better than sleeping alone. Kris closed their eyes and let the sleep consume them.

"Wake up kids, it's morning already"

*click* *flash*

"Oh sorry didn't know this was on" 

Toriel laughed as she looked at her camera.

"You looked so cute laying down together, I couldn't resist it"

Both of them woke up at the same time. Susie quickly turned over to see Toriel smiling with a camera in her hand. It was early in the morning, why was she taking photos of her? She felt something squirm under her arms, she turned around and...

'Oh no'. Toriel just took a photo of that, a photo of her holding Kris while sleeping. This was horrible, she quickly released Kris from her grasp. She was flustered, she didn't remember doing anything like that, they must have laid down together after they had fallen asleep.

Kris, still half asleep, turned around and wrapped their free hands around Susie. They put one leg over hers and got even closer, she was warm, practically smoking. Enough was enough.

*click*

"This one will be a perfect addition to our album"

Susie decided, that was it, she needed to get out of there as quickly as she could. The fastest way it was, Susie rolled off the bed, hitting the ground hard.

"Ouch"

"Oh my, are you okay?"

Susie didn't even answer, she stood up and started shaking Kris.

"Kris! What the hell was that? What were you thinking?"

Kris opened their eyes and saw Susie shaking them, her face was deep purple. Kris smiled with the same cocky expression they always had.

"Well I tried to get out during the night, but you didn't want to let go"

"WHAT?"

Susie yelled, at the same time they both could hear Toriel laughing in the back. She was laughing so hard that she laid down on the ground.

"Oh my every one should see this photo, Kris you ought to show it to Noelle"

Kris nodded and got up. Susie was still frozen in place. Kris extended their arm to look at the camera, but their hand was grabbed. Susie stared at them, even more flustered than before, her hand was very warm. With all the strength she could gather and all the composure this moment allowed her to have, she said.

"No chance you will show it to anyone"

Her voice was shaky, she was still petrified, those two photos could probably kill her tough girl personality. What if everyone would know that big scary Susie got cuddly with Kris, it was a big misunderstanding. She didn't do this, Kris must have cuddled up to her while she was asleep. She can't have those photos see the light of day. It would be over for her.

"Well if you insist, but it still will go into the family album"

Toriel said with a big smile, slowly standing up from the floor. She walked away with her camera and went upstairs, still laughing a bit under her breath. The second she was gone, a silence fell down on both of them. Susie looked at Kris, Kris looked at Susie. Their eyes moved from her flushed face to her hand, she was still holding them. Kris smiled even more.

"You really have something for holding me don't you?"

She didn't even notice that their hand was still in her grasp. That was an underhanded tactic, they knew she was still confused and they capitalized on it. She dropped their hand immediately, her face became even more flustered, now sporting a deep purple that Kris had never seen before. She looked annoyed and surprised.

"If anyone will see this photo then…"

"I know, I know death suffering and more death, heard it a lot recently"

Kris interrupted, they were still smiling and having a lot of fun with it. Turns out that flustering Susie was rather easy and most importantly - fun. She looked them dead in the eyes, this time with no anger or embarrassment.

"I mean it Kris, I don't want anyone to have it, can you make sure of that?" she said quietly.

'Damn it, she was good at it' Kris felt bad with all the things that they said. They were practically making fun of something she didn't have any control over. Their smile dropped, they will make sure that this photo stays between 3 people that were involved in its creation.

"Yeah, I will tell my mom not to give it to anyone"

Kris said quietly in a serious voice, they didn't want to upset her. It was clear that she cared a lot about what she said. It was now their mission to not let this photo out. Maybe they will tease her with it later but for now it was on them to keep it under wraps.

"Thanks buddy"

She flashed him a small smile. She calmed down, with the emotions gone she needed to know.

"Did you really wake up at night?"

"Yeah, I did, didn't try to get out though. I knew I had no chance"

They stood there not saying anything for a long time. Finally Susie decided to break the silence.

"You have a family album?"

"Yeah my mom kept some of our old photos and put them there, it was a fun little thing."

"Can I see it?"

Susie was now interested, maybe she can find some funny childhood photos of Kris, a good blackmail material. She was also genuinely curious about what their brother was like. Maybe she can hear some more about their childhood.

"Yeah sure, we gotta talk to my mom about it though, she keeps it in her room"

"Great, then let's go" 

Susie and Kris went up the stairs and knocked on Toriel's bedroom. They stood there for a short while until she opened the door.

"Oh my children, what is it? Did you come to see the photo." 

She smiled at Kris and Susie waiting for a reaction, instead Kris stepped forward.

"Susie wanted to see the album."

"Well let me just put the last photos in it and I can give it to you."

She closed the doors and after 3 minutes she came back with a big brown book. It was halfway full and on the top was a big text saying "Dreemurr’s family album". Susie took in and made her way downstairs. Kris looked at their mother and quietly said.

"Mom, could you not show those photos to anyone, Susie wouldn't like that and it would mean the world to me if you could just keep them for yourself."

Toriel looked at Kris with a curious face.

"Well I guess I can keep it to myself. More importantly, should I print you a copy?"

"Yes" 

Kris said it with a straight face then ran down the stairs to not keep Susie waiting. 'What a weird thing' Toriel thought. I have to keep my eyes on those two, maybe there will be something more interesting that will come of it. She slowly turned around and closing the door she said to herself

"My small Kris is finally growing up"

Kris saw Susie laying down on the couch laughing. She was crying from laughter. Oh no, it must have been something bad, maybe there were some stupid photos in that album. Susie fell down to the floor, she couldn't stop. When she saw Kris walk up to her she erupted even louder. What did she even find?

Kris looked at the page the album was opened on. Oh no, oh angel why. They forgot it was even there, nobody used it in years, why did their mom put it there. On the first page were sets of names and photos of those people. Full names. Kris looked at theirs. It was there, of course it was. It was so over, Susie already knew. It was such a bad idea to show her this, they could have just said no.

"Your second name is..."

She had to laugh before saying the second part out loud. Kris braced for the impact, it was so bad.

"TOGORE?!?!?!?"

Angel save them.

"Kris motherfucking TOGORE Dreemurr"

It was a stupid name, but their parents wanted to continue the tradition as they did with Asriel.

"It is from my parents names, like Asriel"

Kris tried to plead, tried to beg, they even thought about running away. Nothing would calm her down, tears coming down her face, her eyes glistening in the morning sun, her arms slamming the ground, there was nothing anyone could do.

"Oh I was hoping for some stupid photo from childhood, but this, it is more than anything I could ever wish for"

Embarrassment wouldn't even cut it, the only way out would be dying here and there. Maybe they can make a run for the lake and drown. Other plans would be to throw themselves next to a car and hope for a quick death. Maybe a heart attack from all this? Anything at this point would be mercy.

"Oh bro now you definitely can't show that photo to anyone."

Kris sat down with the album and waited for Susie to calm down. It took a while but she finally got up and sat down next to them. Kris was sitting calmly, nothing could bother them now. They made peace with the fact that they won't hear an end to it. She would forever look at them as Togore. 

What type of stupid name was it anyway? It sounded so goofy that they didn't give it to Asriel as his second name. But no, they had to get it, it was just their luck. Maybe their parents lost a bet with the Holidays, or maybe a momentary fit of insanity made them think it was not the worst idea in the world. Whatever they thought, they quickly changed their minds. They never wrote their name like that, Kris didn't know their second name was Togore until they were 10. Their parents regretted that choice but whatever could they do after they already gave such a name? The worst thing is that their drivers licence and all the documents will have it.

Kris couldn't imagine their marriage certificate with a name Togore on it, their high school diploma with Togore , even their house lease will have it. It was hell. There was hardly anything worse that their parents could have named them.

"You good, Kris?"

Susie asked while sniffing and wiping her tears off her face. They didn't even know. Could they ever be good after that, could anyone ever be good with that stupid name?

"Yeah, let's get into the photos"

"Sure thing Togore"

Kris's face cringed, they flipped the page.

It was a picture of their parents in college, they were smiling, next to them were the Holidays.

"Yoooo Kris I didn't know your parents were friends with Noelle's parents for so long"

"Yeah, they all went to the same college together"

Susie, now invested in the lore, had to know everything. 

"What were they studying?"

 "Well my mom always wanted to be a teacher, my dad studied criminal justice, Carol politics and Rudy... I don't remember anymore, but something math related I think."

"Well all checks out, look at those nerds, they look if they haven't seen a party in their life"

Well Susie was partially right, they may have looked like that for sure. With their nice demeanors and the books they had in their hands. However that bunch of young adults back in the days were the biggest party animals you could ever know. The whole campus heard legends of those four. 

Susie flipped to the next page and there it was. A photo, Toriel was drinking straight from the bottle, Rudy and Carol were arm wrestling on the table while Asgore was doing a dive from the couch to the floor, right on some poor fellow student. Toriel never talked much about that time, she said she didn't remember it. Well it was now clear why. Susie sat there without moving, her maw wide open. Kris smiled and gently closed it back up.

"Said something? Maybe you are the boring one after all?"

Susie quickly turned the page, not saying a word.

This page was full of lake and forest photos. Toriel and Asgore were sitting at the beach holding hands. The other was similar just with Rudy and Carol. The next one was a campfire, Rudy was playing the guitar while everyone was staring at the flames. The last picture was a tree with two hearts carved into it. One had A+T and the other C+R. There were some smaller pictures of the views. Some lake houses, a campfire site, the beach, sunset and a small hill. It all looked so peaceful. 

"Hey Kris, where was that?"

"Oh it's a lake house, they all went there in college. It's on the other side of the lake. My parents and Holidays bought it a few years ago so that their children can go there whenever they want"

"Oh dude you gotta take me there"

"You want to go to Lovers’ Lake?"

Susie wanted to say something but she didn't make any noise. Her face quickly flushed as she looked at Kris.

"Well of course I didn't know it was named like that, you weirdo. Quit making everything weird loser"

"It was called that after those hearts, it was a place where my parents confessed their love, so did Noelle's. Later the same thing happened with Asriel and Dess. This tree has a history of family and love engraved on it. It's a nice story."

"Well I don't know dude, it still looks dope apart from all that kissy face bullshit"

Kris smiled and looked her deep in the eyes.

"You still want to go to Lover’s Lake?"

"If you stop calling it that"

"Can't do, well you can call me when you change your mind."

Susie flustered, Kris noticed her face turning again. She was warmer than a second ago. It is so funny to tease her.

"Whatever nerd, have fun making kissy faces at the lake"

Kris turned the page. This time it was the graduation photos. Everyone was dressed up in their robes and those funny hats. It looked like a warm summer day, everyone was smiling.

"That's what I expected, a bunch of tight ass nerds getting their papers. Only looking at it makes me want to sleep."

Susie fake yawned, to the amusement of Kris, who started laughing.

"What are you laughing at, turn the page before I go to sleep."

"If you want to cuddle again you don't have to make excuses you know"

Kris looked at her just as she grabbed their head and pushed it away. Kris fell on their side.

"Stay there until you learn how to act properly, weirdo"

She took the album from Kris's hands and turned a page.

"Oh angel, can they stop with this cringe kissy shit already."

Kris quickly sprung back up to inspect what she just noticed. It was the famous photo. The double engagement, of course at the lake. Made by a secret photographer, it was a perfect shot. Sunset at the lake, Ruddy and Asgore perfectly placed. Almost the same reaction on Toriel's and Carol's face. Kris remembered that their father still had that photo framed in their shop. Carol and Ruddy probably had it in their house. For their mother Kris wasn't certain, maybe it was still in a frame by her bed, or maybe she put it away to some obscure place.

"You gotta admit it was a nice shot, even Asriel said he will one day try to recreate it."

"Pfffft sure, whatever he wants I guess"

Kris turned another page, this time it was pregnancy photos. Kris looked at Susie and they both turned the page without saying anything.

Next up was baby Asriel, in his photo was a red heart next to their head. Toriel always had this one in her wallet. Kris never knew why, it was an ugly photo. Asriel had no fur and was all pink. He was crying for angel knows what reason. Either way their mother always liked this photo the best. Maybe it had to do something with motherly love.

"Oh my angel, he looks like some little hellish creature. Like a small rat."

"Yeah and you looked so pretty as a child. I bet you looked like an overgrown tadpole with a small tail"

Susie didn't say a word more

"He looks stupid though, you are right on this one. But everyone does as they are a newborn"

"Yeah whatever dude"

Susie turned the page to see Asriel playing with what appeared to be a baby brown dear. They were playing with some colored blocks.

"Damn dude, is that the 'coolest monster you ever knew', she don't look that cool here"

Kris chuckled as they turned the page. Susie was enjoying it, it was a fun thing. Maybe if she had one of those she could show Kris what her family was like. But allas there was only one album between them two and she had yet to find a stupid photo of Kris.

Next page. Bingo! There was a picture of Kris, probably one of the first. They were sitting with a dipper on the floor. One strand of hair standing up. Their bright red eyes looking dead into the camera. On the bottom of the picture was scribbled 'bebikri'. It must have been made by a child, presumably Asriel. Kris quickly turned the page.

Susie began to laugh, she couldn't contain it.

"KRIS what was that? You were even weirder as a child then Asriel. And that bebikri thing. Perfect, just perfect. I knew it was a fantastic idea"

Kris sat there, looking into space, their mind went blank. The thousand yard stare continued for some time until...

*poke*

Kris jumped up. Why did everyone poke them? Susie looked at them weirded out.

"Bro are you even there, you went idle for like 2 minutes"

"Yeah yeah just let's see some more photos"

In the next photos they were a bit older , it was Kris and Noelle sitting together and drawing in a coloring book. Noelle had wings on her back and Kris had a small red headband with horns. The next few pages looked the same. All Kris and Noelle playing together, some holiday photos and then. Asriel and Dess, they were much older than in previous pictures, probably the last class of high school. It was a photo taken by the lake in Hometown. They were holding hands and watching the night sky. The next photo was taken as Dess was running towards the camera with murderous intent.

"Oh I remember this one, my mom wanted some photos of them together but she never could catch them. So she stayed late one night and followed Azzy with a camera to the lake. Then she took this shot. Dess was not happy but after all it's one of my favorite ones."

"Yeah the more I look at it the more I like it, the sky is amazing. If it wasn't for the two lovebirds in the picture I would even call it great"

Susie laughed a bit and then looked at Kris. They were still staring at this picture, as if they were hypnotized by something in it. Their face looked sad.

"I mean it looks great, it's a nice shot." 

Susie tried to explain herself, she didn't know why Kris got quiet all of a sudden.

"Glad I will see him again"

"Him? Where even is Dess then, is she not coming back?"

"I don't know, Dess always had a weird type of life, she would sometimes vanish for months at a time, last time I heard she was a few states away doing some band stuff. I have no clue when I will see her again, maybe Noelle has some news"

"Well we gotta ask her next time then"

Kris nodded and flipped the page. There were three pictures left. One was the tree with a new heart added D+A. And two last pictures were Susie and Kris sleeping this morning. 

"Dude why is your mom such a pain, I gotta take those with me so no one will see them"

She pulled the pictures out of their slots and put them in her jacket.

"If you wanted to keep them you could have just asked my mom to print some more, I know she would be more than hap-"

"Shut up"

Susie said with her hand covering Kris's mouth. She would have none of it. Those pictures are staying with her, no way that Kris or Toriel can be trusted with them.

Susie checked the time.

"Well shit, I think it's time for me to go Kris"

"Awwwww, are you sure? We were having so much fuuuuun"

Kris pawed at Susie making puppy eyes. She quickly averted their gaze, no chance that she would fall for it. She stood up with Kris and gave them a quick hug.

"Seriously I gotta go bro"

Kris didn't expect it, out of all things they never expected a hug from her. They stood there with a red face, hopefully their hair would cover most of the damage. 

"Ha! Got you this time. You can't be the only one making people flustered around here."

She made her way to the door and as she was closing it behind her she quickly said.

"See you around, nerd"

Kris sat down on the couch.

"Oh Kris, I got the pictures that you asked for. Where is Susie, I thought I would give her a copy too."

Kris smiled and turned to Toriel. They walked up to her and took the photos.

"I'm afraid she already took them herself, and then she left. Said something about time to go or other stuff like that"

"Oh she can be so eager sometimes" 

Toriel laughed, Kris laughed, it was a good day. They will for sure put those pictures next to their bed.

Susie was walking back home. It was still bright, but it was definitely time to go. She didn't want to keep her dad waiting. Walking back she took the pictures out of her pocket. She couldn't let anyone get them. She will for sure hide them somewhere in her room. 'Maybe on a stand next to the bed?'. No, it is not the time to think about it like that. For now she had to go back home.

The walk home was quiet, I mean there were people all around but she didn't have anyone in particular to talk to. Maybe it was better, she sometimes valued her peace.

"Oh excuse me, are you by any chance-"

Susie jumped up, she turned around in a battle stance. It was Asgore, he was standing with his colored shirt and a bouquet of flowers.

"Oh sorry I didn't want to startle you, I just wanted to know if you were that girl that was you know"

He gestured to her to come closer, as she did he quietly said.

" sleeping with Kris by the lake the other night? "

Susie stood there in silence, she didn't even know what to say. How did he know, did Kris tell him? What did he want?

"I'm sorry I just sometimes visit the lake on my morning walk. And it so happened that I saw both of you sleeping. I didn't want to disturb you so I just walked away but now I feel stupid about it"

"Well yes it was me mister Dree-"

"Don't bother, just call me Asgore, it is weird if everyone would call me that"

"Okay.. Asgore, it was me. Did you want something?"

She said now completely embarassed, what was her luck that now both of Kris's parents saw them sleeping together. She started to dig in the ground with her shoe.

"Well would you care for some tea and a talk?"

"I wouldn't but I really have to go you know my dad is pro-"

"I promise it won't take long, I will just take a few minutes."

Susie could refuse, but now it would be even weirder. She had to go with him now. But who knows what he wanted to talk about? 

"Then come, my shop is just around the corner"

The trip was short and spent in complete silence, some people were saying hello to Asgore and naturally he responded but other than that, it was dead silent. They made it to the shop. Asgore opened the door and flipped the sign to closed . He went to his kettle and turned it on.

"Well we can talk while the water is warming up"

"So yeah, what did you want to ask about?"

Susie was watching the room. It was full of flowers, it was well maintained. The plants were watered and blooming, many colors and shapes. It was almost pretty, Susie wondered which one of them would taste the best.

"I wanted to ask if you are Kris's friend"

Susie snapped back to the conversation.

"Well yes, we are friends"

"That's good, they need friends, it is important to make those connections early. While I was your age I met Toriel."

"Yeah..."

It was quickly growing to be another awkward conversation that she would rather never have again.

"Well I don't want to make you any trouble of course, don't have to be so tense. I just wanted to know you better. So what do you do after school?"

"Huh? Well I mostly train or play games in my room. Really, nothing more than that."

"Oh that's interesting, what do you train, maybe I don't look like that now but in college I was the star football player"

"Mostly fighting stuff and some lifting as a past time"

"Oh that sounds fun, maybe one day you can teach Kris. They are not that strong after all and some tips on fighting might be useful"

"Yeah sure, maybe one day"

"How old are you now?"

"Early 17. Almost a grown up"

She tried to make as serious of a face as she could. Asgore laughed.

"Well just in case that you will be looking for a summer job or something, I wouldn't mind some help around you know"

"Well if I find some free time then maybe I will"

Susie thought it would go much worse but she was actually killing it right now. Asgore looked like he was having fun, she didn't say anything stupid, it was all around going great. The kettle started whistling. Asgore got up and made two cups of tea. He placed them on the counter in front of Susie.

"Did you think about taking them to the festival?"

"Huh? Isn't it like a, I don't know, a couple thing?"

"Well not particularly, it is for people that are close, as friends or as partners. I think Kris would like to go with you as a friend"

Susie blushed a little.

"Well if you say so then yeah, I could take them. I have never been to that festival though. I wouldn't know what to do"

"Haha, you just go and have fun, eat good food, buy some stupid things, maybe even visit my stand. I can even give you a couple bucks to spend there"

"No need"

"As you wish"

Asgore took a sip out of their cup.

"Yeah it's good now, you can drink"

Susie took a sip, the tea was now warm. It had a soft flower taste, very good. Not too sweet, not too hot, it was just right.

"Well either way it was all that I wanted to say. Have a nice rest of your day"

Susie finished her tea and stood up. Asgore extended his hand for a shake. As soon as Susie shook his hand he pulled her closer and gave her a big hug. 'I guess this is one thing he was known for'. Susie didn't even notice that during this hug Asgore managed to slip her 20 dollars into her jacket.

She walked out and started to head to her home. The door closed behind her as Asgore flipped the sign to open. He was a nice man, strange at times, but nice. She even liked him a bit. maybe she will take him up on this job offer?

Susie made it home without any problems. Her father opened the door and gave her a big hug. What was with everyone today? Why all the hugs?

She made it to her room and closed the door. She put her hands into her jacket. Still there, that's good. She took the pictures out. She needs to find a safe space for them, but for now they will stay in her drawer. She gave them one good look before hiding them. They were some good photos, she liked them, even though she would never admit it to anyone. Kris would never let this go and their mother,it was better if she would never find out.

Damnit she liked that little nerd, she liked them a lot. And now she was about to take them to the festival. Maybe the whole letting her guard down wasn't such a bad idea after all. She closed the drawer and laid down on her bed. 'Kris Togore Dreemurr' she chuckled to herself, what a stupid name.

 

 

Notes:

Today I have a shorter chapter. I didn't know what to do between the last chapter and the school day so I just threw this one in. I also decided to throw some stupid memes in. Next chapter will involve more then just Kris and Susie. It will have Noelle and maybe even Berdly (The goat). Hope you enjoy it guys and see you in the next one :D

Chapter 5: Hopeful reunions

Kris was sitting in a car waiting for their mother. It was the first time in a long while when they were ready before her. It was Monday, usually Kris wouldn't be excited to go to school, but recently things had been going in a good direction. They were going to see Susie today, Asriel is coming back this week and they even planned to talk to Noelle. The recent album watching made them want to reconnect with her, also she may have some news on when Dess is coming back.

Kris and Noelle were still friends, disconnected in recent times but still friends. Outside of Azzy she spent the most time with them. Kris thought it would be nice to have a big get back together when Asriel makes it back home. Maybe they can have one of those sleepovers again, that would be cool.

"I'm very sorry Kris, I had to dry my fur. I cannot go to school as a wet goat, can I?"

Toriel closed the door and started the engine. She put a new photo on a dash board. Now next to Kris and Asriel, Dess and Asriel, Kris and Noelle, was the recent photo from the couch. Susie would flip out if she ever found out. Toriel looked at Kris apologetically.

"I know you did not want me to show it to anyone, but it's such a nice photo. And it also fits so nicely in here"

"Yeah sure, whatever mom. Just make sure Susie won't see it. I swore you wouldn't show it to anyone"

Her expression has changed. This time it was a wide smile. Kris knew that this change couldn't bring anything good. Their mother doesn't grin like that without reason.

"Awwwww you two are so cute. Making promises and standing up for each other. You remind me of how Asriel was when he was young and in -"

"No no no, not a topic for now. Just shut up and drive please"

Kris was all red on the face. It wasn't like that, they didn't like Susie in this way. I mean they liked her, just not like like her. They did it in a spirit of self preservation. Now she had stuff on them, they had to be on their best behaviour. Their mother knew nothing. It was all so stupid.

Toriel pinched their cheek and started to pull it lightly.

"My child is finally growing up. I remember when you went on play dates with Noelle, it's hard to imagine that in a moment you will be going on a real ones with Su-"

Kris pushed her hand away. They turned around and crossed their arms. Why was she still talking, there was nothing there to discover. Just two friends who cuddled by accident. It was nothing big. Them and Susie were just friends, just good friends.

"You are so red Kris, you cannot hide it"

"It’s hot in the car, that's why"

Kris turned even more. Toriel laughed and started driving, she was giggling all the way. They finally made it, Kris felt like the trip took at least an eternity, or even longer. Eternity of torment and pain, that was delivered by their all so caring mother. Before they parted Toriel gave them a warm hug. 

"I'm sorry Kris, I know I can get a little too excited about things like that. You need time to think things through. If I can suggest one thing, you should probably invite her to the festival"

Kris, now a lot less red, smiled at her and gave her a reassuring look. Maybe they will ask her to go to the festival. They still had to think about it. It was very embarrassing to do so, what if she didn't want to go. Or she called it boring or cringe and made fun of them. Maybe it would be better to just not say anything about it?

Kris walked into the classroom. It was still a bit early so not everyone was here. Only the usual suspects, Berdly and Noelle. Kris walked up to Noelle to strike up a conversation. They were worried, maybe Noelle changed her mind about them.

"Oh hi Krismas, glad to see you made it in time, Alphys will be so happy"

"Sure, bet she will. Listen, I just wanted to talk to you about some stuff..."

Angel, this was awkward.

"Yeah what is it Kris? It's not some elaborate prank this time is it?"

"No, no I just wanted to know how are you, and how is your dad.... Look, we haven't spoken in a while and I think it was my fault that it all went like that, I want to fix stuff now. I was a bad friend for some time now, but I was in a ba-"

Kris felt someone touch their hand. It was a warm feeling, fuzzy even. They looked down and noticed that Noelle was holding their hand.

"Kris... I know that you didn't have it easy for a long time now, you don't owe me any apologies. If you want to talk, I think it would be better to do it after class. I have some things to tell you that should interest you"

"Yeah we can talk later"

Kris looked a bit happier, maybe they didn't have to worry that much.

"I will go to my dad after school, you can tag along, he recently talked about you and your family"

"Okay, see you after class then"

Kris said excited, all negative emotions now gone. Things will go great now, they will still be friends like back in the days. Kris felt a hand grab their shoulder.

"Sup nerd, didn't expect you this early"

They turned around and saw Susie standing in front of them. 

"Finding out what our assignment was supposed to be about?"

"No, just talking to Noelle"

Susie leaned out to see behind Kris. Noelle smiled and waved at her.

"Hi Susie"

"Ummm, sup"

"Well anyway, I was thinking that maybe we can go to the lake after school, you know just hang out and stuff"

Susie looked away from them and rubbed the back of her neck.

"You know, I would like to but I am going with Noelle to visit her dad at the hospital"

"Don't worry, you can like... come with us"

Noelle said and immediately turned her head away from Susie. 

"Well, I guess I can"

"Yhm what is all this commotion about?"

'Oh Angel it’s him', three of them thought at the same time. It was Berdly.

"Are you simpletons bothering my poor Noelle? You are trying to make us fail the project aren't you? Well to bad, we have already finished it"

Noelle mouthed in their direction 'I finished it' and nodded.

"You are trying to spoil her mind with your simple caveman brains, putting some bad ideas in her mind like eating chalk and being late"

It took Susie all the strength she had not to strangle him on the spot. His voice was so annoying, every second was as if someone was punching her straight in the gut.

"Oh shut up already, can't people even talk to each other now?"

"Well I mean - maybe - I -you..."

"It's okay, Berdly, we were just talking about my dad, you know. No plotting to destroy our project, you can feel safe"

Berly walked away without a word. He was clearly not ready to take on a dragon or even Kris. Well maybe another day.

"Why does he have to be so annoying? Every word he says is just pissing me off. How did you even manage to play with him Kris?"

"He rages at every loss"

"Oh yeah, you go man, beat his ass in front of me next time, I want to watch his rage"

"He promised he will never play with Kris again, after the last loss I don't even blame him Fahaha"

Noelle laughed. It was a good memory, after Berdly pissed Kris off they challenged him to a duel in FIFA. Kris took any team while Berdly played some 5 star best stat, super optimalized team. Noelle was called on as a witness to what Berdly promised would be a 'definitive victory'. The score was 32-3. 

"You remember it Kris? Oh angel I thought he was about to kill you or cry his eyes out. I remember walking him back from your place to his house. He was dead quiet, the first and last time in his life"

"And you never told me nerd? You have to tell me stories like that! Angel I wish I would be there to see it"

"Well I forgot this one, he already promised me that like a thousand times. He always wants a rematch"

"Next time I'm going as a witness"

*ring*

"Well shit, time for us to go Noelle, we’ll meet after class"

She took Kris by his collar and dragged them into their chair. Noelle laughing at them.

Kris and Susie slept through the whole class. They didn't hear Alphys get in, they didn't hear the attendance, they didn't even hear Berdly saying some nerd things and interrupting the lesson. They were out. They only woke up when Noelle started spraying them with her water botle. Maybe it wasn't the most elegant way, but it sure worked.

Both of them were now up, slowly making it out of the classroom in a sleepy stupor. Leg after leg they made it out of the school and onto the road. It was bright, hurting their eyes. 

"You two are always this tired after class?"

"YES"

They both said in unison. What can they say, it was a good sleep, so rudely interrupted by someone. 

"Well what was the news then?"

Kris asked, after all it was supposed to be something incredibly exciting. Kris was waiting to ask that question since they heard about some news from Noelle.

"Well you know that Asriel is coming back this week right?"

"Well yeah, hardly any news at this point"

"Then you may be excited that driving with him, back to hometown will be Dess"

"OH MY ANGEL"

Kris ran up to Noelle and started shaking her excitedly. It was happening, all of them, back together. After all this time alone, they will see each other again, the whole gang.

"How do you know? Did you text her? Where was she this whole time? Why didn't I hear this from Azzy? Questions. You. Answer. NOW"

"Well first of all she is my sister so she tells me things. Around half a year ago she moved in with Asriel, and got some part time jobs to get some cash"

"SHE WAS LIVING WITH HIM? That goat bastard didn't say a single thing"

"Yeah they both thought it would be better if you and your mom didn't know. She would freak out, and you, they decided you couldn't keep your mouth shut for long"

"Wait wait, is Kris bad at keeping secrets?"

Susie was now nervous. If they were then they could blabber on about what happened, that would be horrible. She would have to kill them if that's the case.

"They never kept a secret in their life. What, you gave them your bank information? Fahaha"

"Yeah something like that..."

Yeah she will kill them the second they will be alone. Her plan for today is finding out how to do it without leaving any evidence.

"So yeah they will be coming back, Dess said around Wednesday. Just to have some time home before the festival"

Kris was so happy, all the ideas that they could do together, flooding their minds. It will be a grand time, they will invite Susie, spend time together, explore abandoned buildings in the forest, go to the festival, maybe Dess will take them all to the lake house. It will be awesome, Kris couldn't wait for it.

They made it to the hospital. Last time Kris was here, was when their mother forced them to go and talk to Rudy, when he got sick. Kris didn't like hospitals, they sometimes came there to play the piano, but since Carol bought one they played at their house. Hospitals always had this weird vibe, seeing sick people wasn't the best idea of a pastime. 

Even though Susie had never been in this hospital, she didn't enjoy it at all. It brought back bad memories of her mother. Coming to visit with her dad right after school. It felt so similar to what Noelle had going for her right now. She even felt sorry for her thinking about it. 

They made it to Ruddy's room. He was sitting and playing something on his pocket console. Ho looked up and saw everyone.

"Oh wow, what is this gathering about?"

"Well I thought you will be a bit bored of talking to same people every time so I brought new guests"

"Oh it's you Krismas, glad to see you again. And the other one is...?"

"I forgot, dad this is Susie, Susie this is my dad"

"Hello"

Susie said in an awkward way, flashing him a smile. He smiled back and looked at Noelle.

"So this is the girl I heard so much about huh? She is a bit shorter then you described also her eyes aren't as pre-"

"shut up daaaad"

She moved her hands over his mouth to stop him from speaking. He just laughed and looked back at Susie.

"Well it's nice to meet you Susie, Noelle told me great deal about you"

"She did?"

Susie looked confused, the room went silent for a moment. Kris decided to say something.

"So how are you? Is it getting better, my mom updates me from time to time but I assume you have more recent information"

"Well, it's going Krismas, thanks for asking. The nurse said I'm getting better and maybe I will be able to go to the festival this week. For now though only the hospital bed for me fahaha"

He laughed for a moment then stopped to cough for a bit. It did sound better, the first time Kris was there when Rudy got admitted it was way worse. Since then he apparently started eating more, and now he coughs for a small bit and not 3 minutes. It was great news, maybe soon he will be able to leave this place for good.

"I'm glad to hear, my dad would be very happy if you were to visit his stand"

"Well now I practically owe him that, he brought me flowers every day. Come to think of it I got more flowers from him then from my wife"

"Well you know him, giving flowers to anyone he likes, that's the life of a florist"

'Wait he didn't give me any flowers, or does flower tea count as flowers?' Susie thought to herself.

"And how are you doing at school, still sleeping through every class?"

Rudy asked Kris

"Well yeah, it is rather comfortable"

"I bet, back in my days I slept through all my classes"

They both smiled lightly. The talk was quickly coming to an end.

"Well as much as I would like to keep you here longer, I am out of any energy. Noelle you should probably go home before Mom finishes work"

"Yeah yeah dad, we will be going, love ya!"

She leaned to her dad and with all the strength he had left he gave her a kiss on the forehead. They all went out of the room and back onto the streets. 

"Well I guess I have to go now, we will meet tomorrow, see you two"

She went away waving her hand. Susie looked at Kris and gave them a little punch to their side.

"What did I hear about you not keeping secrets? Do I have to kill you now?"

"I can keep this one, plus you wouldn't kill me"

Susie looked annoyed.

"You still think I'm too soft for that? I can snap you in half if I wanted to"

"Well first of all, you are soft when it comes to me, but more importantly. Who would make sure my mom doesn't show those pictures to anyone when I'm dead?"

"Would she dare?"

Kris shrugged and started walking.

"I don't know, are you going to gamble on her restraint?"

Susie rushed to them.

"Where are you even going?"

"Well to the lake, the offer of hanging out still stands right?"

Susie nodded and walked with Kris. She was planning to invite them to the festival. She needed a quiet and peaceful place to do so in case Kris said no. She needed it so that no one would hear them scream if she killed them for laughing at her. She was doing it because Asgore asked her. She would never ask anyone out. Not out of her own will. Not even Kris...

If she didn't care for that then why was she stressing? She would hate to be rejected, but that would be by anyone. Who even cared about some stupid festival, maybe she would just stay home if not for them. Asgore asked her about it and she would deliver, she could never break a word. Even if it was going to be some cringy festival time.

They made it to the lake, the sun was shining bright. The water glowed a deep blue color. It was beautiful, even for two people that didn't appreciate the views in their life that much, it was still pretty. They sat down and stared into the distance in silence.

"Nice hanging out, it was a good idea Susie"

"Shut up dude, we just sat down"

Kris looked at her.

"So what did you plan for today?"

"I don't know, hanging out?"

"Cool"

They were sitting like this in silence, no words exchanged between those two. They were just hanging out, looking into the horizon. Okay now Susie was really stressed, she wanted to ask them about the festival for a while now. She couldn't muster up any strength to do it.

"I know you were drinking my apple shampoo"

"WHAT? No no no, you must be mistaken, I have never eaten it"

"Yeah sure, like I would believe you. After you left my bathroom it was half as heavy as it was a day before. If you want to eat it just buy your own, don't waste mine"

Susie was now flustered, she was caught. She thought it would be a perfect crime. Kris would just find it strange and forget about it the next day. Why did they have to find out? Wait a minute, she had her own business with them. 

"Oh yeah fucker then tell me who took my candy? It was in my jacket when I was at your place, later you gave it back to me and it was nowhere to be found. You have no right to tell me anything, you loser. You thought I didn't know?"

Fuck, so she knew. That was not good, Kris thought they had her dead to rights but now the situation was flipped around and they were being judged.

"Yeah you thought you were so smart huh? Susie won't notice a candy missing. Well no you idiot, I noticed and all this time I was thinking about a way to get back at you for that"

Kris looked mortified, she looked serious. It was not a good sign, she was thinking about a way to punish them. Susie was many things but she was not proportional. Maybe she told everyone about their second name, maybe showed everyone their baby photos? What could it be?

"Well I still don't know, but one day you will pay for it. Live in fear Dreemurr"
Well that was arguably even worse. She played them and now she left them in a state of constant fear. This was exactly what Susie wanted, she didn't want to harm them or even to do anything about it. In her years of watching scary movies she learned one thing, waiting for something bad to happen is far worse than an actual jumpscare. 
It was a perfect plan, she thought she was so smart when she came up with it. Kris will for the rest of their life second guess everything in fear of her. Opening a door, they will look for her. Sitting in class, she will be right behind them. Going to sleep, they couldn't think of anything else.

Well now was the time, Kris decided that they had to ask her out to the festival. They just needed to muster up some strength and courage. They will do it now. Just a few seconds, and they will say it. Three, two, one. Nothing, okay let's start again. This time for real. Five...four...three... With every number Kris felt more and more dread, they imagined Susie laughing at them or straight up walking away. She will think they were weird, or more weird and cringe then she thought. Two... One..

"You are really excited for those two coming back huh?"

'Fuck, I was just about to say it, why did she have to interupt me?'

"Well yes, we haven't seen each other for months now, back in the days we were an unstoppable team"

Now Susie grew concerned, was she going to be replaced with some people. I mean of course, Kris was only hanging out with her because they had no one better to talk to. And now with them coming back she will be left alone. Kris was talking with her for a few days, but they were friends with those people all their life. She couldn't compete, she was scared and jealous of someone she never even met.

"I think the team could benefit from a new member, what do you think?"

As they said it Kris poked her on the cheek.

"I bet they would like you"

Susie smilled.

"Well I wouldn't mind being a part of this team, I bet it would need a new coolest monster. Plus you could use some extra strength on your next adventures"

"Well maybe we need it, but I want you to be there because I like you, and want you to have fun with us"

Okay what were they even saying now? So yeah, that was out of line, and by a lot at this point. Why would they even say that now?

Susie blushed and turned her head away from them. Why were they so direct all of a sudden, why did it make her flustered like that? Was she just not used to being close friends with someone, that must have been it.

"Well... I like you too bro... I would like to spend more time with you too"

They both blushed and looked at the ground. This conversation was slowly getting more and more embarrassing for both of them. Susie was tapping her foot on the ground and Kris was rubbing their arm. Super awkward. The worst part is, they still hadn't even come close to inviting each other. They still were scared to say anything.

*brrr*

A notification from Kris's phone, it was Toriel.

"Damn it she wants me to come back early today and clean the house before they arrive"

"Well if you gotta go then better hurry, loser"

Kris stood up but before they made it all the way Susie grabbed their arm. She brought them down, face to face with her. Kris instantly turned red. Susie smiled and took their phone. Kris didn't even think of resisting it, they had other things on their mind right now. Susie typed something quickly and put the phone back in their hand.

At the screen was a new contact 'The coolest monster ever B)' followed by a bunch of dragon emojis. Kris, still petrified, sat there and looked her right in the eyes with an empty expression.

"You there, nerd?"

Susie waved a hand in front of their eyes. Kris quickly snapped back to reality.

"yeah yeah, you just took me by suprise"

They put the phone in their pocket, and started to raise up again. As they were half way up Susie pulled them down again.

"What was that about?" 

Kris asked confused and flustered.

"Nothing, just wanted to see that surprised face again. Dude you should have seen it yourself, like you were about to be hit by a train"

Kris put their head down to better cover their face. Susie instantly grabbed them by their chin and lifted their hair with her other hand. Their deep red eyes staring surprised right into her soul. There was just something about them, they looked so pretty... Maybe it wasn't the best idea to do it right now. Both of them sat there without saying a word.

Susie turned deep purple and Kris deep red. Kris felt her hand burning up, warming up their chin and forehead. They both sat there for a few seconds, none of them had any strength to do anything. Finally:

"Dude why are your eyes so big?"

Kris instantly was pulled out of their trance. They shot up. 

"Well, I don't know... I think I have to go now. See you later Susie"

Kris practically ran away from that place.

'What was that?' It was not normal what just happened. Susie pushed all those thoughts away from her for now. She will just stay here and enjoy the sun for a bit. She is sure this whole thing won't blow up in her face in a few weeks.

 

Notes:

So today I have a shorter chapter. Sorry for that but I have an ear infection that is really distracting. Also I spend a lot of time trying to put this one together, I wrote it in a very on and off style. Still hope you will enjoy it and maybe I will get better before the next one. See ya and have fun :D