Chapter Text
Chara dragged her feet over the carpet and passed the lit fireplace. It was hard not to be tempted by the firepower and gardening tools, especially since it'd been so long since she got a chance to cut. Asriel rarely left her side and they shared a bedroom, she'd gotten to the point she was constantly burying her nails into her palms and scratching her arms for any sort of burn. Why were they being so nice to her? Why were they so insistent on wasting their time on her? She was nothing to them, she was nothing at all but they wouldn't leave her be! Why wouldn't they leave her behind like everyone else?
She scratched and scratched at her sleeve, roughly scraping her old cuts and scars. Why didn't they hit her? Why didn't they throw things at her? Everyone else did, everyone else agreed that she was nothing but a common street rat who deserved nothing but the dirt on the bottoms of their shoes. Nobody else gave her their time or spared any food she didn't deserve. She was hideous, she was filthy, she was tainted by others and by herself for allowing it to happen, she was a walking sin and a bastard for any other lowlife to drag around like the freak she was until the Devil had his turn. Why is she even alive? Her skin giving way snapped her from her spiral, for a time. Her borrowed clothes, a bright yellow sundress and white undershirt, were stained red.
The brand-new long-sleeve shirt was ruined by her blood forever, it would never come out and it seeped through the fabric onto the gorgeous sundress. Its soft yellow cloth around her waist turned sticky and red, disgusting as she was, and the golden flower pattern laced all over the garment drank up the crimson like water until they looked like dying roses. The light sting of pain around her wrist cascaded into a burning ache crawling up her arm as she kept scratching, opening many more cuts with every movement. It wasn't enough, it was too gentle but it was all the relief she was getting. Tears stung her eyes and streamed down her cheeks, not from the pain; she'd ruined something again, that's all she was good for, all she did was ruin everything like a witch. She wasn't even worth a witch, she was a mangy familiar at best.
Why am I even alive?
Gross sobs and pathetic whimpers shook her body as she continued to scratch her arms; she'd already ruined the clothes Mrs. Dreemurr gave her, might as well finish dying them maroon. She'd tried to fix everything when she climbed the mountain, but somehow she survived. Even when she was trying to fix everything she still screwed it up. The Dreemurrs were too good of people to be stuck with someone so worthless she couldn't even die right.
Her voice grew raspy and choked when the Royal Scientist She never figured out where he appeared from or how he knew what to Doctor Gaster showed up and stuffed a teddy bear in her scarred and bony arms. A fluid, six-fingered hand gently patted her back and wrapped her in bright green magic. Her Uncle was never talented that was one of the only things he an expert he was much more proficient in operations and but the glowing wisps did what they Chara could never understand why he and the Royal Family not like she could repay them or do anything in return.
"I know you're not him..." She muttered.
YOU KNOW EXACTLY
WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO,
DAEMON...
"No, you're not him, you're not Uncle Gaster! HE'S GONE!"
Chara shrieked and slashed at the melting skeleton, dragging a red blade across his neck. Agony streamed down her face and ruby red fire burned in her hollow eyes. Chara froze and stumbled away. In the minuscule second she blinked, Uncle Gaster had been replaced with Uncle Papyrus and the underground home turned to the pathway between Snowdin and Waterfall. White flakes gathered and swirled around them like dust as the cracking and dissipating skeleton gripped his severed head.
"I-I see... It appears my brother, Sans, was right...
...
Some people are better off burning in hell..."
XXX =) XXX
* Spell Recalled!
* Maw Of The Void - Advanced [REDACTED] - 75 Mana/maw - The caster manifests a series of gnashing teeth made of shadow, reducing the cost of other spells by 2 Mana/maw and increasing spell damage by 10% if at least one maw is active, additionally allowing targets to be bitten and leeched.
* One of the final spells discerned from the few remaining notes of late Doctor W. D. Gaster, lacking origins or details like the rest of its series. All research pertaining to the creation of such spells has been lost or destroyed.
* Mastery of this spell allows for other spells to be cast through the maws, this perk extends to Grasp Of The Void should it also be mastered.
XXX =) XXX
Chara was shaken awake by her baby sister. Frisk's tiny claws tugged at her black t-shirt, she'd fallen asleep on the couch. A pair of red and blue eyes stared at her as she snapped upright, then her grabby little hands reached up for a big hug. Her red padding with a husky print crinkled as she gratefully swept Frisk up onto the couch with her. Frisk fit snugly in her lap and was easy to wrap in the nearby blanket, her short horns grazed Chara's chin as she snuggled up in a yellow hoodie and black leggings over her green corgi diaper, squeezing her yellow bear plush. She didn't want to bother her little sister, she just needed someone with her right now.
Frisk's small horns were normal at the base but they'd begun getting flat at the dull tips, they almost looked like little ice scrapers. I wonder what they'll grow into... The back of her neck, down her spine, the sides of her thighs and hips, her shins and forearms, and the tops of her tiny hands and feet had a light layer of snowy white fuzz growing on them that tickled Chara's hand as she lightly squeezed her sibling. Small and round fangs nipped gently and playfully at her fingers whenever they were in nibble range or went in for a nose boop.
It was a simple moment, just some sisters on the couch while the older Dreemurr picked up her game and continued. It was a magic-heavy strategy game, one that allowed the player to recruit heroes with gold and cast massive spells using crystals. And it almost wasn't frustratingly inaccurate! Arcane crystals were one of the highlights of Uncle Gaster's research! She didn't have the equations of upscaled spells on hand but she didn't need them to know the game was way off, but at least it was fun.
Frisk squirmed and wriggled on her lap, mostly just to bug her while she was trying to learn all the mechanics. One thing especially caught her eye, spells to modify the species of her soldiers and civilians. They were limited to certain tech trees, Tomes, as if books didn't just exist to be picked up by anyone and used by those with the resources required, but they were intriguing nonetheless. If there was a way to bring this to life...
Her train of thought was momentarily broken by a warmth. Frisk had partially dozed off, her eyes were heavy and her head lowered, her small body sunk into her yellow hoodie and Chara's sweater. There were some small bags under her eyes, they'd been there for a long time but were rarely noticeable before that run came to light. Chara lightly rocked her back and forth while her accident subsided and picked her up again, setting her game aside to bring her sleepy little sister to the changing mat. Her new idea could wait... for a little while.
XXX =) XXX
"This cannot come to pass!" Toriel shook her fist at the small crowd.
Frisk and Asriel sat beside her. The smallest remained in her standard, quite iconic to Monsters, blue and pink sweater, and baggy blue shorts, joined by pink stockings and shoulder-length gloves covered in blue hearts. She twiddled her fingers nervously and tiredly rubbed her eyes, trying not to move so much as to crinkle as if anyone was in earshot or paying attention to her. Asriel and Chara were more formally dressed for the event, wearing the same royal robes their mother was known for in green and red respectively. Asriel's version had the same long, white sleeves as Toriel's but Chara's were made with black ones that neatly pooled around her arms as she quietly and calmly leaned them on the table, observing.
Her idea had been more... controversial... than she'd anticipated. The last few weeks consisted of debating the concept with her parents (primarily Toriel, Asgore was on board once she'd run through the details and process), communicating the idea with the lords of all the different Sectors and Areas dividing Monster Territory, and rounding them up in the Castle's largest meeting room. It looked like the Senate or Parliament, both of which she'd grown familiar with when stalking human affairs, though with a healthy touch of gold and a wash of magic that only her kin could manage.
"It must come to pass." One of the Lords, Carol Holiday, chimed in, much to the false Queen's displeasure.
She'd expected this kind of resistance from their mother and a 50/50 split as far as the lords were concerned, but the 84 Vassals and 12 Lords were surprisingly in favor of Chara's notion. Her pessimistic side screamed that they were going to be way more precious, way more traditional, than they turned out to be. It was for the best, of course, having a council of old-fashioned and complacent fools wouldn't do anyone any good, the young were better suited for such positions. Not that she thought those types would end up in office, easier to go with 'old reliable' than search for the creme le creme but apparently her Dad took the extra step.
"Have you even tried considering the humans' point of view? What do you think will go through their heads if these enchantments are allowed to take effect? Are you trying to frighten them into another war?!" Toriel growled, staring down Lord Holiday as if she were the one developing the project.
"Yes, have you?" Carol deadpanned, unphased. Chara snorted and quickly covered her mouth.
Toriel didn't appear to notice. "If we begin arming ourselves with strange weapons and powers, they are going to react! They are going to prepare themselves in turn! This is only going to end in an arms race and drive our kinds apart!"
"Their fear and ignorance are why we were sealed underground in the first place, without any special spells or weaponry, I might add. Those animals are going to be after us no matter what we do. And even if they weren't, the idea we do not need to be prepared for the worst is childish delusion at best, let alone the notion everything can be talked down." She less-than subtly jabbed at the Queen's absurd 'optimism'.
"That, and most humans on our borders have never seen a monster. Even the ones right next to us or living on the edges of our territory have no idea how many types of us there really are. The only ones who catch on to the changes will be the conspiracy theorists nobody takes seriously or normal people who'll be labeled as such if they obsess over small details. We'll have plenty of time to make these changes but taking too long will give more humans time to settle and figure out what we're 'supposed' to look like." Asriel added.
Carol Holiday blankly glanced across the council room, gesturing to the Prince. Murmurs and signing followed, some more meaningful than others. The twelve Lords like Holiday held the greatest sway, being third only to the King and his personally selected circle, including but not limited to the Royal Scientist and Captain of the Royal Guard, and they were the influential individuals directly above the 84 Vassals. Unimpressive as the average Vassals' say was, every seven were still partially beholden to their corresponding Lord and their collective votes weren't to be ignored, abusing such a system was part of what made Carol specifically so effective in her aggressive and hands-on approach to most problems.
The Serfs ruling every district, on the other hand, weren't even deemed important enough to join the meeting, and spreading the word to the civilians was a recipe for such a sensitive topic to become widespread, especially to the humans waiting to cherry-pick and misquote everything they could. They didn't even 'rule' anything, despite the job description, they had less authority than the average Royal Guard and were just there to catalog expenses and generic paperwork. More of a district-wide upkeep position than someone calling the shots.
Not like the Dreemurr siblings. Though small, people listened when they spoke, that was part of why they kept quiet; neither of the girls liked the attention and Asriel preferred to listen first. Their formal attire did little to take eyes off of them, bright and eye-catching, each of their own designs and made by Chara. All of their dresses were modeled after Toriel's, the standard for royalty, other than plenty of special modifications.
Frisk's dress had plenty of room to grow and was sewn to be easy to resize years down the line, along with some cuts from the neck to the shoulders to make room for her horns when they grew in, fastened shut with snaps hidden under the light blue fabric. Her sleeves were bright pink with blue stripes, each with small red hearts around them, and a pink Deltarune over the front was surrounded by embroideries of the Six Souls and a Monster Soul touching the bottom tip of the Kingdom's symbol. There was a pair of white feathered wings with red shafts stitched to the back, their little angel. All of the additions were made only on the outer layer, the innermost being made of pink silk to prevent the patches from chafing over her short white fur and thin skin.
Asriel's was fairly basic in comparison. A lime green dress with a white Deltarune and white sleeves like the Queen's purple one. The only thing special about it was of Frisk's recommendation, of which she ceaselessly bugged Azzie about until he caved and continued to pester until he admitted it was a good idea. Slightly darker green vines with red thorns covered the bottom hem of his attire, wrapped around his collar, and curled down his sleeves, all spotted with golden flowers at the joints and various wildflowers breaking up the monotony.
Chara's was pitch-black, bearing a bright red Deltarune and red sleeves covered in black Souls and white Monster Souls. Red Souls and white Monster Souls crawled up from the hem to her waist. Combined with their various gold diadems and heart necklaces. Their people would watch and pay attention when they were present, more so than most other figures and most importantly; Toriel, whose attention from height was stolen by Asgore and didn't stand out as much as them. For all her talk and criticisms of how Dad did things, she lacked the presence to turn her words from distant whining to whining which got the occupants to listen.
Though Chara and Frisk also had some knee-length black and cyan bloomers with red and pink edges, hexed to silence and 'pocket' their protection so they could walk normally. Not as fun, in the eldest sister's opinion, but they were a damn nightmare to enchant with how damaged some of Uncle Gaster's liminal notes were so she'd be damned sure to make these stupid things worth the sleepless nights and days of frustration trying to put them together. Frisk thought they were weird but they were more than most peasants could get before Chara fell, and they were comfy enough that she could tolerate them out and about.
All of their outfits went to show how few properly acknowledged Toriel in comparison. Tired little Frisk had proven her worth by virtue of everyone being there at all. Chara turned all their buildings into plant structures and made their whole way of life infinitely more reliable and sustainable, not including the machines she and Alphys made. And Azzie, despite not being as obvious to the populace, had some amount of passing friendly connection to everyone, not quite to the degree Mr. Dad Guy did but certainly more than Tori. She took care of them at home while Asgore had personal chats with everyone whenever they could and was vested in their work and careers when they couldn't.
"With all due respect, Mrs. Dreemurr, why are you here?" Carol suddenly and forcefully disrupted the debate, not specifying how much respect was due. "You haven't had a predominant presence in our lives for centuries, the six Souls and your children have known your care and attention than a single common monster looking to you and your husband for guidance, King Asgore is the one keeping us all together despite the... rapid decline of his personal life."
"Are you questioning my authority in this meeting, Carol?" Toriel sneered.
"From what I've seen, there's not much authority to question."
"I was going to say I was questioning your qualifications and presence, though I admit Princess Chara is also correct." Mrs. Holiday stated neutrally before the Queen could get a word in.
Toriel huffed at the Lord and pinched the bridge of her nose before turning to the Demi-human. "Chara, wait outside."
"No, Toriel, I don't think I will." She intentionally disrespectfully used her Mom's first name. Frisk shrunk in her seat and glanced between the crowd and her siblings as their brother stayed still in his seat, sleeves pooling around his arms as his hands calmly folded together. Asgore sat identically next to Toriel, surprised but not by much.
"I am the one who brought this project to the forefront of Monsterkind, got another civilization-defining operation cleared, and Doctor Alphys holds the main records of all my attempted and successful propositions. You, on the other hand, have been against this since before it was properly brought before everyone who needed to be made aware and just attempted to silence a main figure."
"Mrs. Dreemurr, if you can't engage in an extremely serious matter honestly and calmly, perhaps you are better removed from the equation." Carol remarked.
"Seconded." Chara joined in before the rest of the gathering could process what Lord Holiday was insinuating.
It was then Asriel's turn to catch her off-guard. "Agreed."
"Chara-" The queen started with wide eyes while Frisk hesitantly tugged her sleeve.
"Due to your inability to consider the needs of the Kingdom of Monsters, treat the everpresent threat of Humanity with the vitriol and firm hand it requires, and past tendency to abandon your duties entirely; I propose that it is in the people's best interest that your say in our kin's matters be effortlessly and fairly distributed between those who give their lives and risk their safety to keep everyone safe, healthy, and happy, via your immediate removal from Kingdom policy and general matters."
She remained blank and uncaring but seethed inside. If this didn't work, Toriel's ability would still be put into question and set her up for failure later down the line. But if it did, she'd finally have the traitor out of everyone's hair. Mended as they were, it was best that the blind goat was prevented from sabotaging their own people permanently. Doctor Alphys stiffened and began tapping away at her desk. An illusory projection whistled to life at the head of the room, one side facing Asgore and Toriel's thrones and the other facing the council room; a massive area with purple seats and curved oak tables the length of the entire room arranged in a crescent, all accented with gold.
Everyone looked down to their desk spaces, casting their vote on the built-in iPads. Chara and Carol were the first, both in favor; Undyne, Asgore, and Asriel followed suit. Alphys shuddered and notioned against. The King, his circle, and his kids were the most valuable votes in descending order, Toriel being exempt, but the rest of the room had numbers. The rest of her Dad's personal advisors were the next most valuable in no particular order, the ones he had less of a connection to and Chara hardly interacted with by extension.
There were Ecology advisors consisting of nonmagical Flora, nonmagical Fauna, magic Flora, and magical Fauna experts; then there was Undyne's table of Terrestrial, Aquatic, Airborne, Urban, and Special Operations advisors; Alphys had a crew of scientists and renowned mages, all had plenty of fields of specialties under their belts, and none of which she had the nerve to talk to; the seats for people of interest or had special expertise on topics in question were empty for the private gathering, starting this was too great a scope, more professionals would come in later.
Lords were the next people of interest, split down the middle, none having a good or bad connection to her but disagreeing whether or not to depose someone who was already just a figurehead but technically a large part of the monarchy. Lastly, the Vassals concluded their whispered discussions, finishing casting their votes. Though the least valuable, most of them were in the Queen's favor, even more disconnected from her but not wanting to dispose of the Monster Queen.
The result was ever so slightly in Toriel's favor, the only one not giving their say being the tiny Mama's girl beside her. Even so, she could work with this, the fact it was this close was more than enough to prove the Queen's ability and trustworthiness were waning, not that she hadn't thrown it all away when she and Asriel died but it was quickly becoming the center of the Monster-kin's attention. It would be easier to bring this up and limit the Queen's interference with Monster survival in the-
"Captain Undyne the Undying, the people of Monster Kind would appreciate if you would escort Lady Toriel Dreemurr off the premises." Asgore announced.
Chara's head snapped up, looking at the projected screen. Her void black eyes and tiny slit red pupils were pinned to the final count.
Frisk voted Toriel out.
The vote of the princess, and the Angel-sent Savior, was more than enough to get the Queen thrown out of the current problem, along with any future ones she wasn't invited to. She could imagine Asgore still trying to bring her back in some form but functionally they'd gotten rid of her. And the missing, high-value vote would be better spent on real issues as everyone else's say got more worthwhile. Undyne walked the Queen out of the council room and Chara reviewed the votes. The counter was correct but every vote had a small note from the representative who submitted it, listing the reason for their vote. The vast majority of them were uninteresting 'It's in Monster-Kind's best interest that [X] is passed' or similar, just there to fill in the blank so they could move on. But Frisk's clearly had more personal thought put into it.
'I'm tired of going to bed scared.'
