Undyne had her fair share of fun sleepovers before. But, they only involved people that she had known for a while.

The Skelebros.

Alphys.

That squirt.

King Asgore.

And yet -- despite all her experience -- this was the first time she became the victim of a surprise kick to the face.

“OW!!!” Undyne yelped. “What the heck?!”

One reaction led to another. Then it became a wrestling match.

“NGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!”

Frisk drew the curtains to let in the morning light. The sudden brightness stung Undyne’s single working eye.

With a grumpy frown, the human child pointed at a specific direction.

Following it led her straight to… Cenna.

“Morning Captain,” she said. “We done roughhousing yet?”

Undyne realised only then that she was grabbing a whole leg. If she remembered Alphys’ trivia right, it’s what the wrestlers would call a ‘kneebar’.

She released her grip pronto. Last thing she wanted to do was to further injure a wounded human. They already had enough trouble finding fresh gauze and bandages to change the dressing.

“Golly, sorry about that.” The fish apologized. “I thought someone ambushed us.”

Cenna waved her hand across her face. “No sweat, Cap. It ain’t your fault anyway. I’m just… ‘special’ when it comes to sleeping habits. K-keep that wrestling skill! It’s SUPER useful. Trust me.”

While massaging her leg, the Magus whined. “Damn. I hoped that I could go through one night without making a mess. This is why I can’t do sleepovers.”

Frisk sat down by their sister’s side. “Is this normal for you?”

“Unfortunately, yeah.” Cenna yawned out loud and rubbed her eyes, still sleepy from the sudden waking. “Mama and Papa tried all sorts of ways to keep me from rolling off the bed. In the end, they got me a queen-sized low-lying type.”

Undyne snorted. “Lots of space, eh? And even if you DID roll off the mattress, you wouldn’t hit your head so hard.”

Everyone had their quirky habits. Some were more annoying than others. Back in the Underground, fights sometimes broke out over small issues. How Undyne was glad that the citizens now have space to breathe.

Frisk asked: “How did you survive the academy, sis?”

“Uuuuh…” Cenna cleared her throat. “They tried to make me fit the standard gear. But, in the end they gave up and moved my old bed into the dorm.”

Much snickering happened.

The fish stretched her back. “Alright, I gotta get ready for my run. Hey squirt, you coming with me?!”

Frisk strode back towards their bed and tucked themselves right in.

“Don’t turn into an Alphys so soon, punk!” Undyne yanked the blankets off. “You’re not even a teenager yet!”

The kid groaned, putting their pillow over their head. Their muffled protest said: “Nope. I’m done with physical activity for today. I wanna relax before the Tsunderjudge appears.”

Cenna yawned again. “Well, Frisky did just come back from a crazy wild cave survival trek. Also, they’re SO right about Mez. That guy is a freaking adventure magnet. No breaks when he’s around.”

Hmm… they have a point. Sooner or later, the big boss will get himself involved. We’re gonna be busy then.

So, Undyne draped the blanket back on the kid. “Fine, squirt. You get a break today. Make sure you work hard on relaxing, you hear?”

They returned a thumbs-up gesture. The two grownups then left the bedroom so the little one could rest in peace and quiet.

As the two walked down the stairs, Cenna asked: “Well, what’s for breakfast?”

“Any one of you can cook?” Undyne asked back, “Toriel, uh, banned me from her kitchen.”

“Maybe Gaelic, if he’s home. Don’t bother asking Garamond. The cool guy can’t cook.”

Hearing the name ‘Gaelic’ and ‘Cooking’ in the same sentence shocked Undyne. “Excuse me? That ‘Snakeface’ can cook?”

“Only if he’s stable. Somebody’s gotta make sure Ol’ Mez doesn’t get food poisoning in the rural zones.”

A savoury aroma floated from the kitchen. Convenient enough. The less time spent on breakfast, the sooner Undyne could get into her routine workout. Gotta keep that body in shape.

A properly-dressed Gaelic watched the stove, while Garamond washed up. How early did they wake up?

The wall clock pointed at a little past seven. Toriel oh Toriel, with her sense of old-fashioned analog clocks. Everything was digital in Alphys’ place.

Then, the details clicked in Undyne’s head.

Wait, what? It’s already this bright?

Huh. So it’s like what Frisk told us. The days start earlier in Spring and Summer. By the time we emerged from the Underground, it was almost the beginning of Fall.

Dang… it’s already Friday.

Garamond wiped the knife dry with a cloth and set it on the rack. After turning around, he said: “Good morning. Is everything alright? We heard quite a ruckus upstairs.”

Cenna chuckled. “‘Me’ happened. No big deal.”

“Your animated sleeping habits still puzzle me to this day.”

Garamond proceeded to prepare the table. He first placed down a rope mat for the pot, then he distributed the bowls and cutlery. There’s a salad of wild greens. Fancy.

“Any updates from Lucy?” said Cenna, settling down in a seat.

“She’s been with the science crew since last night. Right here in Mount Ebott, at Doctor Alphys’ Lab.”

Three seconds of silence happened before both sides made a huge exclamation: “WHAT?!”

“Why didn’t anyone inform me?!” Cenna questioned, but then she hid her face behind her hat. “Nevermind. Suspension.”

Undyne was the one who’s rightfully upset. “They should have informed ME! I’m the Captain!”

“She might have,” he said, “Have you checked your phone yet, Captain Undyne?”

“Phone. Right.”

That’s when she realized that she had left the device upstairs in Frisk’s room. A quick trip later…

Jeez. Did I really sleep through all of that? There’s a whole briefing sent at what, 3 in the morning?

Damn. Alphys must have it rough. I’m gonna try calling her first.

Undyne stopped by the stairs to dial Alphys’ number. Maybe she’ll answer. Maybe not.

To the fish’s surprise, there was an answer.

“H-hi?” It really was Alphys.

Undyne’s eye lit up. “Alphys! Babe, you okay?” For a moment she sounded very Mettaton-y, but she couldn’t care less.

“I. Uh. Haven’t slept yet. But I’m surprisingly energetic? Must be the energy potion. I think I might doze off if I stay still for too long though.”

Someone called for Alphys in the background. It didn’t sound like Gaster. More high pitched. Screechy? Not an adult’s voice, that’s for sure.

“S-sorry. I gotta go.”

“I understand,” Undyne replied. “Give it your best shot!!! Show everyone what you’re made of!”

“Thanks. S-see you soon. I hope.”

The call ended. It’s time to head back to the kitchen.

It appears that she had walked into the middle of a conversation between Cenna and Garamond.

“Flowerboy and Rosypal are there too?! But, why?”

“They may be the only ones capable of communication. If it’s possible in the first place. Oh, Anise joined the team.”

“Was she overjoyed?”

“Over the moon,” Garamond said, “As for the rest of us… we’re to care for Crimson Keeper Frisk. That’s something even a suspended family member can do.”

Cenna pouted. “You gonna keep rubbing that in or what?”

“If you didn’t get suspended, you could help me watch over Gaelic too. Right now… I guess you can just focus on the preschooler.”

“Wait. If all we have is babysitting duty… it might as well be a day off!” The Magus pushed her bowl aside, just enough for her to rest her head on the table. “Aaaaah sweet glorious break day. I didn’t have any for goodness how many timelines now.”

I guess after working for that long, you’d wanna become a Sans too.

I wonder what’s for breakfast?

Undyne scooted over to the stove. Toriel may have banned her from using the kitchen, she never decreed against peeking.

There’s no mistaking the aroma of sauteed mushrooms, salt, butter, and…

“Potatoes?” she asked.

“Aye,” Gaelic replied. “Wild mushroom potage. The birds dinnae show up this morning. Squirrels be good eating, but ye all be pressed fer breakfast time.”

Gaelic continued to glare at the pot. Hard. It reminded Undyne of her own cooking attempts.

Undyne asked, “Is there a problem?”

He grunted at an empty box of dehydrated potato flakes. “‘Tis starch be o’ magic. Not good fer the wee bean and Cenna. Mighty fine for ye though.”

Cenna laughed as she approached with a bowl. “Aw c’mon, Gael. Magic food is awesome for a Magus like me! The innkeeper’s cinnamon bunnies? They gave me a bigger energy boost than any caffeine in the world.”

“Ya know that ye get more from true physical food, aye? Magickind spend much energy to digest physical food. Makes ‘em sluggish and heavy.”

He continued, “On the other hand, humans cannae get their full nutrition dependin’ on magic alone. Organic life be more than energy. Sooner or later they’ll need the little essential traces. Fall prey to diseases otherwise.”

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

Undyne recalled all the pizza-nights with the gang, and how TIRED she became afterwards. All the while she thought the slump was due to their heavy fattiness.

If that’s true… then so are the human-specific drawbacks!

She zoomed straight to the fridge, hoping that there would be something for the squirt and Cenna. Alas, it had gone bare from the lack of Toriel’s upkeep.

Closing the fridge, she sighed: “Out of stock. Dang.”

Gaelic said, “The fridge usually be well-managed?”

“Yeah. Fresh produce from the human farmers too.”

“Her Majesty be wise, makin’ the effort to obtain the fruits o’ the earth.”

The man was about to lift the pot. But, he suddenly froze: sockets widened, and colour filled his special Eye.

Gaelic backed away from the stove.

“Captain? Could ya ladle the portions? Bring the pot to the table too. Ah… ah need to sit.”

“No problem,” Undyne replied. “Get some rest. You’ve done good.”

It seems that the snake skelly didn’t completely recover from the hell Sans put him through.

Or. Hmm. I dunno. He had some quirks before that too. Thought I was sashimi.

…Poor guy.

* * *

What better way to brighten up the day than a casual tour? The citizens get to greet Frisk, and Undyne gets to survey the town’s condition.

At least, that was the plan.

Now… if only she could convince the Blancs to show their face to the world.

Garamond strapped his face-plate tight. Gaelic? He went hiding under the living room’s table, burying his face into one of the sofa cushions.

“Look, Trenchcoat Man.” Undyne tried to reason. “You saved the Temmies. Why don’t you make yourselves official?”

Garamond replied, “We technically don’t exist. The Temmies thought I was a tall human.”

“Temmies are the last monsters you should use as a gauge. There’s one who tried to hatch a hard-boiled egg. I’m sure the rest of the citizens will figure out that you’re not human.”

Still, he stood his ground. “I will not expose my face more than required. Not without explicit permission.”

“Okay,” said Undyne. “I can accept that. But the volunteers have already seen your cousin. I think the whole ‘secret Surface monsters’ deal is out of the bag.”

The human siblings tried their best to coax Gaelic out from his hiding place. Cenna kept to words, while Frisk made a trail of candy.

Cenna said, “C’mon Gael. Join us? It’s Ebott, man. A whole new town! Don’t ya wanna see the sights? Smell the smells?”

Muffled in the pillow, Gaelic replied: “No.”

“Why? Not like you’re walking alone. You got me. Undyne. Garamond. Frisky’s here too! We’re gonna protect you.”

The kid nodded with determined confidence.

Gaelic responded with a loud growl. “Me. Dangerous. Go away.”

Cenna huffed. “Buddy, I know you’re doing that primal speech on purpose.”

Undyne had seen her fair share of social anxiety. It came with the part and parcel of living with Alphys. But, she didn’t expect this issue to be on a person with Bravery as his main trait.

Then again, there was Papyrus. Maybe he realised it. Maybe he was oblivious to the real problem. Undyne didn’t want to ask too much…

Nevertheless, she had a situation to settle. She asked, “What’s his problem?”

Garamond was reluctant to answer at first. But, then he said, “Gaelic hasn’t walked openly in a town for years. The last time he did that was on Halloween eight years ago, with Cenna, near the Institute’s grounds.”

“I understand if it’s a human city--”

“Sorry. Lemuria included. It’s… it’s complicated.”

Undyne needed a moment for the facts to sink in.

Years? YEARS!

Gaelic is a shut in?!? Wait. He lives outdoors. Wouldn’t that make him a shut-out? Yeah. Shut out of town, that’s what he is!!!

Frisk looked at Cenna. “Sis, my ‘ACT’ needs more options.”

“Heard ya, Frisky. Any ideas?”

“Is it possible to contact the Tsunderjudge or Lady Lucy? I would do it myself, but my phone is busted…”

Interesting. Undyne asked: “Why them?”

Looking at her, Frisk explained: “They are Snakeface’s two most important people in the world. He will brave anything and everything upon their command.”

C’mon Undyne, think.

There has to be something you can do.

You can’t just be all dumb muscle.

…………………………

A giant lightbulb flashed then in her skull.

Fu. Fufufufufufufu! BRILLIANT!

Undyne lifted the whole table high over her head. Magazines and assorted table decorations poured on the floor. The move was sudden enough to stun everyone in the room. Except Frisk. The kid’s used to it.

Time for a CHALLENGE!

Undyne yelled: “Complete MY tour, and I’ll take YOU to Alphys’ Lab!!!”

Oh, Gaelic knew who’s there. He heard all about it during breakfast. That unsteady glancing was a sign of intense thinking.

It’s working. He’s seriously contemplating the challenge. Just a little more…!

Hint hint, wink wink at Frisk. The kid had a good head on their shoulders.

They showed their smashed phone to the reluctant skeleton. “You promised me that Lady Lucy will fix this, right? If you don’t accept Undyne’s suggestion we might miss her.”

Ooooooh the borderline-guilt-tripping promise move! Nice one, punk. Super nice.

“Phones are veeeeery important for a Crimson Keeper like myself. Gotta be able to keep in touch with the Tsunderjudge.”

OOF! Going straight to the call of duty, I see! Don’t let up!

“Above all, I’m sure they’ll be super proud of you. Praise? Hugs? At least a smile? You wanna see them smile, right…?”

Wohoo! THAT’s the final blow!!!

Final blow, indeed. Gaelic cried out: “Ah give, ah give!!! Argh, ye cheeky meddlesome spunky whippersnapping lot! Pitting e’rything under the sun. Guess I should loan more clothes from Mondie.”

Success! Undyne and Frisk fist-bumped each other for a job well done.

But Cenna said: “Hold it, folks. There’s still one more guy who needs to come out of his shell. Captain. Frisky. Help a gal out, will ya?”

Hint hint, wink wink at Garamond. Yup. Talk about being on the same wavelength. Grinning earfin to earfin, the Champion Fish stretched her arms.

“Sure thing, Cen. Sure thing.”

Just as the two girls wanted to pounce on Garamond, he vanished. Frisk didn’t call him ‘Mister Invisibone’ for nothing.

“I refuse to break protocol.” he said.

Frisk’s first reaction was to throw a handful of candy at the direction of the voice. The bits missed and scattered on the floor, so they kept throwing more in any other direction.

“Nani?” Undyne blinked.

“He’s still solid.” The kid explained, “Throw candy until it bounces off his body!”

Too late. While they were trying to plan their strategy, the main exit opened and closed. All three groaned ‘Aww man’ at the exact same time.

Gaelic laughed hard at their failure.

“Mondie be two centuries older than you lot. Ya think he dinnae try to cover his weakness?”

* * *

Things went better than expected. Undyne was prepared to fend off crowds and crowds of monsters who had no sense of boundaries, but that didn’t happen.

Everyone treated Frisk as they would on any other day: a greeting, a question about their well being, some chit-chat, then they let the kid go where they wanted to go.

No swooning, no excessive curiosity: just the right balance of acknowledgement and distance. At least, so far…

They walked through the new morning marketplace. Produce of both magic and matter mingled in this spot.

Remembering what happened earlier this morning, Undyne bought two apples from a human farmer. One for Frisk, and one for Cenna.

“Eat up,” she said. “You gotta get some REAL vitamins!”

“Thanks.”

“Thoughtful of ya, Cap!”

Gaelic then picked up a box of cherry tomatoes. “Apples dinnae have that much. At least, not compared to these--”

Upon the sound of deep-fried batter, he froze. Then his attention snapped to the right.

A few stalls down the road, the neighbourhood’s worth of Froggits waited eagerly for a fresh batch of food.

Hey, I recognize that sign. They sell deep fried insect fritters. A super popular hit with the Froggits.

The incident hypnotized Gaelic so much, he walked off without paying for the cherry tomatoes.

Cenna called him back. “Gael! GAEL! You forgot to pay!”

“Pay?” When he looked down at the item in his hands, he realised his mistake. “Oh, right. S-sorry there, mate.”

Apologies given, money exchanged, then it’s time to check out the fritter stall.

The Froggits were delighted to meet Frisk.

“Ribbit! (How are you?)”

“Ribbit. (Did you sleep well?)”

“I’m fine, thank you,” said Frisk. “What’s good here?”

“Ribbit ribbit. (You should try the worm fritters. I don’t know what kind of worms they were, but definitely not the earthy ones. These taste like clams.)”

And, sold! Frisk bought a bunch of worm fritters to share with everyone.

Other than Gaelic’s occasional focus issue, the rest of the market trip went fine.

That’s not too bad. I can handle hyperactive-kid levels of attention span. He comes back when you call him anyway.

Down the road, Aaron showed up. Talks with this guy tend to get… interesting.

Flex. “Hi Frisk.” Wink. “You should hang out with more muscles.” Flex. “Your group is getting too skinny.”

Undyne’s eye twitched. “Aaron, you wanna wrestle with me?”

The horse started winking nervously. “Maybe next time. I wanna know which neighbourhood that tall Sans-type came from.” Wink.

Conflicted feelings, intensify.

…Well that explains the normality. The citizens have yet to put two and two together.

Gaelic had to suppress a growl. Must be the comparison with Sans. But, he managed to regain enough composure to point westward. “Somewhere there. Very, very far. Don’t come here often.”

I… I can’t poke any holes with that. Lemuria could be in the west. He just didn’t tell Aaron HOW far ‘west’!

“Oh, cool.” Aaron replied, going through his wink-and-flex routine. “That’s some crazy makeup you have there. Friends would call it ‘Radical’. Awesome. You do that every day?”

Blushing, Gaelic answered. “N-nay. ‘Tis be part o’ me.”

“Extra radical. I like that. Wanna compare flexes?”

Somehow, the invitation turned into an arm wrestling match. Nobody ‘won’ so to speak: their arms stayed in the same position, but whole persons circulated around the sidewalk in the meantime. Frisk had to end the match before the scene got weirder.

“You’re strong!” said Aaron. “Like, a ton of invisible muscles. Thanks for the fun. I gotta go.”

Then off he went, flexing away.

Cenna bust out her finger guns. “Eeeey, Gael! You did it! That’s a hundred-percent peaceful interaction with a stranger~”

Chuckling, Frisk added. “One of the more eccentric ones to boot.”

“Ah… ah did it?” Gaelic was happy, but he’s still unsure.

Time for more positive reinforcement. Undyne joined the cheering party. “See? You can do it! Ready for the next challenge?”

“Aye. Aye!” If he had a tail, it would be wagging right now.

So the fish said: “Why don’t you decide where to go next? Anywhere you want.”

Zoom! Gaelic climbed on the tallest object in the vicinity, which was the lamp post. He perched on it like a bird and scanned the town with his Seer’s Eye.

Crossing her arms, Undyne nodded with approval. “This guy has great taste for the high view. I like that.”

“Mom doesn’t.” said Frisk. “She was so mad when you did that in front of our school.”

“Eh. Toriel doesn’t know how to appreciate the art. Getting to unconventional high places is a true test of strength, finesse, and balance! YEAH!!!”

Gaelic slid down from the pole, jumping off midway for an aerial headstart back to the group.

“Ah wanna go there!” He pointed southeast. “To a bakery run by a spider!”

“Oh yeah.” Cenna rested her hands on her hips. “I promised to buy her stuff. Send a truck of free bread to all the guys working hard repairing the Institute.”

“Muffet’s, huh?” Undyne commented. “Still feeling peckish?”

“Food always be good. But this be more than that! This town, since ah arrived. M’lord’s scent linger in the air. Puzzling, puzzling. I think ah found the source.”

Cenna dropped her jaw. “Did you just say Mez’s scent… is at a bakery? The fuck?”

Undyne shared her sentiment. She couldn’t help but be a little bit concerned.

* * *

At Muffet’s bakery cafe…

What was supposed to be a fun trip became a serious affair after all. Muffet had some suspiciously realistic doughnuts on display.

Those racks would normally be filled with plastic or resin imitations. But in this bakery? They were all actual doughnuts, immortalized via dubious application of Determination.

Gaelic squealed like a total fanboy. “Determination! Determination belonging to M’lord! Many, many doughnuts filled with them! Ah dinnae know why, but the spider baker has them displayed as pretty samples o’ her wares. Curiouser, curiouser. Ah wonder, do they taste well? Are they edible? Can ah finally drink M’lord’s waters without sin???”

They called the establishment’s owner, plated some of the questionable evidence, and had a private chat with Muffet at a quiet corner.

Garamond dispelled his invisibility for business. Kept on his face plate though.

Muffet began explaining how she accidentally caught Sans in her web. Undyne did remember that Alphys paid the spider lady to protect her lab. The only flaw lay in the fact that Sans had incredible PR skills.

He needed to use the DT-extraction machine. Muffet let him do so at a cost, and…

“It was a superb deal!” Muffet explained. “A whole bottle of Determination for just the price of a mid-range phone? That’s a complete steal! A businesswoman like myself can’t give that up, ahuhuhuhuhuhuhuhu~~~”

So THAT is how Sans got the materials to make his bracer! Judging from everyone’s looks, they’re probably thinking of the same thing.

Cenna breathed in deep. “Ma’am. I super appreciate all your help searching for Frisky. And, yeah I am still buying lots of your bread as thanks. But. But. You gotta understand that unauthorized tampering with Determination is illegal.”

Investigator Garamond agreed with his colleague. “We may need to confiscate your display doughnuts. Please understand that Determination is a more dangerous substance than you realise. It’s not safe for your establishment.”

“How so?” Muffet asked back, completely innocent.

Frisk answered, “They can melt monsters.”

“Well, I know that much dearie. I handled them with the same care as I handle deep-frying! Maximum safety, ahuhuhuhuhu~~”

“They can poison humans too.”

The spider lady started to grow perturbed. “T-they’re not supposed to be eaten anyway.”

Gaelic… crooned over the baked goods. Determination does weird things to him. More than the normal monster folk.

“Aww,” said Muffet. “Somebody’s in love with my pastries, ahuhu~! Which one is your favourite?”

Cenna facepalmed. “No, ma’am. He’s loving the owner of your pastry’s DT.”

“Sansypants?”

Again, the mere mention of Sans set off a low growl from Gaelic. That instant reaction was both amazing and worrying.

“No. Definitely not him,” Cenna corrected. “Ever heard of Supreme Judge Mezil Thyme? Black tailsuit? Fancy cane? White hair? 50 years old?”

Popping out their glowing Red Psychia, Frisk added: “He has the same Aspect as me.”

The unfamiliar segments shocked the spider woman. “Eek, what happened to your SOUL?!?! It looks like floating jigsaw pieces!”

Everyone’s focus shifted to calming Muffet down. Then, while they're distracted, an unfortunate accident happened; Gaelic had chomped down on the DT goods. Maybe Undyne had overestimated his ability to restrain himself after all.

“Mmmmmgh???? MMMMMMMMGH!!!!”

The Determination Doughnut outright refused to be eaten. Its magic glued Gaelic’s teeth into the dough. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t escape the grip of a very determined piece of pastry.

Defeated. Frightened. The ferocious one was reduced to a sobbing pile of bones.

Undyne and Garamond phoned their respective science experts posthaste. The rest did their best to comfort the poor victim.

They were given three choices:

One, have Frisk try to overpower the target with their Mark.

Two, break the offending Determination with Undyne’s spear.

Three, take Gaelic to Alphys’ Lab to use the DT-Extraction machine.

Frisk summoned their star. They had it in their hand, but they had trouble applying it to the doughnut.

“…I think my Mark is standard-size,” said Frisk. “I can’t make it smaller than what I have now. What about you, Undyne?”

Undyne tried her best to balance the spear. Maybe a tiny prick was all she needed to settle the crisis.

But, that’s easier said than done. The object had a repelling force similar to a Mark. Then… there was the aftermath to consider.

Even if she could make a toothpick-sized spear, the NGAAAAAAAAAAH would be too dangerous.

…For safety’s sake, she gave up.

“I rather not,” Undyne said, “I mean, I could try. But most of my break attempts have resulted in a flaming explosion. Would Gaelic still have a skull after that???”

“Point taken.” Frisk dispelled their Mark. “So… I guess that leaves us with Option 3.”

In other words, the Lab.

Though, they were going to go there anyway -- and Undyne did want to see Alphys again -- she just wished that it was under nicer circumstances.