By the time you woke up, it’s noon.

Maybe you had a little bit too much sleep.

The waking routine went on as usual: bathroom breaks, shower, oral hygiene regimen, then finish off with a fresh change of clothes.

Then it’s time to check the kitchen for lunch.

Mom sat at the dining table with a box before her, but she’s not alone. Napstablook hovered beside her while a goopy skeleton managed the stove.

…Uh, who? Oh, it’s Doctor Gaster.

“‘Morning’ dear.” Mom’s lips curled into a cheeky pout. Despite the teasing, she seemed lethargic.

“Good afternoon, Frisk.” Gaster then flipped the grains of couscous in the pan. Wow. So pro.

You greeted back.

Your white ghosty friend floated up to you, crying tears of joy. “Oh………I don’t know why……… but looking at you makes me so happy……… so very happy………”

Aww Blooky. You told him that he’s so cute. What brings him here today?

“Mettaton told me that you had a rough night……… so I went over to Muffet’s to buy some doughnuts………”

He opened the box for you. It’s an assortment of spider doughnuts, but with new flavours.

Cranberry glaze, vanilla-chocolate, hazelnut coffee, butterscotch cinnamon, chunky apple, and orange cream.

Muffet expanded her selection to fit human tastes. Seems like she’s doing well. Though, you’re definitely reserving the butterscotch cinnamon doughnut for Mom.

You grabbed a plate and a fork. Singled out that piece then placed it in front of Mom.

“Thank you, my child,” she said. “But, I don’t have an appetite for sweets just yet. Maybe after a proper meal.”

That’s a little worrying. On a normal day, she would tell you that deserts are best eaten after lunch. Word for word.

You asked Mom if she’s fine.

“Oh, just drowsy,” she replied back. “Remember the medicine that the doctor gave me for my migraines?”

There were two packets. One medication to stop the migraine early, and the other had painkillers that double as sleeping tablets. Strong side-effects.

You asked her if she had another episode.

She nodded back at you. “It was late and I couldn’t sleep. I felt the sting, so I took both the blocker and the painkillers together. Maybe that combination was too strong.”

Did… Mom just wake up? You asked her about it.

She blushed at your deduction. “That’s right, my child. I woke up about half an hour before you. That’s way past my usual schedule. Not long after, Doctor Gaster knocked on the door and offered to cook for us.”

What’s with everyone and the Sans timing now? Then again, it was a long and stressful night.

Glad that’s over for good.

Doctor Gaster plated the fried couscous. Four servings, Napstablook included. Snails compulsory.

The infamously shy ghost started to fade from embarrassment. “Doctor Gaster……… you didn’t need to cook for me……… I’m so sorry for the trouble………”

“It’s no problem,” he said, “My two friends used to cater for hundreds of children. An extra person in a lunch setting is of no issue. Please, enjoy it without guilt.”

“……I can’t eat human ingredients……they pass right through me……”

There was a day when Napstablook tried to eat a Surface-made sandwich. It dropped straight on the ground, much to his embarrassment. Poor thing.

“Don’t fret about that,” Gaster answered. “These are all magic-based.”

“Oh……… thank you………”

The four of you had lunch together. Maybe ‘six’ would be more accurate, if you count the rumoured skeleparents. You didn’t have a chance to talk to them yet.

Gaster kept glancing at you with a curious gaze. Then again, you’re just as curious about him.

“Your Majesty,” he asked, “Did you notice any changes in Frisk’s health due to their long-term consumption of magic-based facsimiles?”

That. Was a mouthful.

Mom scrunched her brows as she tried to remember. “No, not that I’m aware of.”

“Do they still need to use the bathroom?” Gaster asked.

“Eventually, yes,” Mom nodded. “Come to think of it, Chara would often grab one of Asgore’s shovels before excusing themselves to strange isolated corners. They’d also bring some water and tissue papers. They never told me why.”

Ha ha ha. Okay. So Chara was too ashamed to talk about human bodily needs.

You wondered if the garden bloomed better with them around, but you kept that question to yourself.

“Hmm,” he pondered. “It appears that the human body synthesizes magical matter at a similar rate to their physical counterparts.”

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You and Blooky blinked at each other. That just completely flew over your heads.

“Translation, please.” Thank you Mom for the timely request.

Doctor Gaster then explained: “Unlike monsters, humans cannot completely digest what they consume. Not to mention that they require a system to cleanse their cellular makeup. It’s one of the downsides of having a physical organic body.”

He paused for a moment. “I will not go into further detail since we’re having our meal. Thank you for the information, Your Majesty. They’re very helpful.”

Out of sheer curiosity, you asked Gaster why he’s interested in that subject.

“Ah, Judge Mezil Thyme favours a particular dish that hurts him in the long run. Since he had helped us so much, I thought that we could show our gratitude by providing a safer alternative.”

Mom raised her brow in confusion. “You mean it’s worse than junk food?”

“Perhaps,” he replied. “He’s intolerant to excessive levels of hot spice and coconut milk. Yet, he’s addicted to that combination. As a result he… suffers quite a bit.”

You completely understood what Gaster tried to say. And here you thought Sans’ ketchup and grease diet was bad enough.

Mom’s expression changed to one of concern and pity. “Oh dear, that does sound bad. Almost like he’s poisoning himself.”

Doctor Gaster had to ruminate on a few spoonfuls of couscous first. You could tell that he’s not used to explaining details at a layman’s level.

“Well, Your Majesty,” he began. “That’s both true and untrue. To make it understandable, there’s a particular chemical that stimulates the pain receptors on a human’s tongue. In doing so, their brain releases a hormone associated with pleasure.”

No response from Mom. Her mind was blown by the sheer paradoxical science behind humanity’s double-edged love for burning spices.

“Human biology can be strange. Even by their standards.”

After Doctor Gaster’s closing conclusion, lunch went on in relative silence. Nothing much happened other than some small talk.

You tried the butterscotch cinnamon doughnut with Mom. It’s tasty, but it’s not the same as Mom’s famous pie.

Napstablook started to shrink into himself. “Oooh… I’m so sorry…… maybe the doughnut was a bad idea………”

Mom patted him on the head. Well, as much as she could pat a ghost anyway. “Dear, dear Napstablook. I did enjoy the doughnuts, so please don’t blame yourself.”

“How about this? I’m feeling much better now. I’ll bake some pie for everyone! You could pack a slice for your cousin too.”

Yay for impromptu pies!

You didn’t realise just how much you missed Mom’s pies until now. It’s been over a week since you last had one.

After washing up, you wanted to check your phone. However, you left it in your bedroom. Oops. Hopefully no one tried calling you during lunch.

The chatroom was as lively as ever. You typed in your greetings and informed them of your good health.

Here comes the emote spam celebrations. That made you smile.

Your phone informed you that you had received a mail. It’s a message from Cenna.

‘Frisky. Check yourself ASAP. If you see a red butterfly anywhere on you, don’t panic and message me right away.’

A red butterfly?

Your thoughts flashed back to Mezil’s brooch.

Face? Checked.

Back? Checked.

Belly? Checked.

Arms and legs? Checked and checked.

You messaged back and told her that you didn’t find anything that’s red or a butterfly.

‘Have you checked your SOUL?’

That message made you hold your breath. Nervousness bubbled up from your stomach.

You pushed out your SOUL without a second thought.

Red on top of red isn’t going to be obvious. Your first instinct was to lift it up against the light to look for any discrepancies, but your SOUL glowed too bright.

You recalled how the Magus did his inspection. If something couldn’t be seen, maybe you could touch it.

So you ran your fingers across the surface. You felt the difference. It reminded you of a sticker or a thick layer of glossy paint.

Tracing it revealed the shape of none other than a butterfly.

Breathe in, breathe out.

Don’t panic.

You updated Cenna with the new information.

‘Damn. So it’s on your SOUL after all. Makes sense in hindsight. Okay Frisky, meet me at the Bunny Inn. 4.30 PM. We need to talk. This is major with a capital M.’

‘If you need someone by your side, you can bring one. I don’t recommend any more than that, though. Sensitive information.’

You locked the door and sat down on the edge of your bed.

Again, you told yourself to not panic. Take it one step at a time. Be logical, not emotional.

You pushed yourself closer to the wall, dug your hands into your pockets and slouched just like Sans.

Once upon a time, you were a frightened little kid. Lost in the power of RESETs.

He noticed. Calmed you down. Analyzed the problems before you, and taught you how to do the same.

Sans became your mentor in more ways than one. Again and again, in all the timelines you decided to approach him.

That’s why he’s forever a treasure to you.

Does he remember?

Maybe. Maybe not.

It didn’t matter. The point was, you learned his thinking skills. Now you must put them into practice.

Cenna said you could bring only one person. By process of elimination, that would be…

Mom? No. She’s not feeling well. You don’t want to trouble her more than required.

Dad? No. Probably would be lost half the time. Let him live in peace.

Alphys? No. No, no, no. You don’t think she’s emotionally strong enough. She’s much better compared to the times in the Underground, but she still had a long way to go.

Undyne? Maybe, leaning to ‘no’. She handled herself quite well thus far. Then again, you don’t know the true meaning behind the red butterfly. One controversial detail without explanation would send tables flying.

Mettaton? No. You don’t think it’s okay to drag him into some complicated magic conspiracy. He won’t understand anyway.

Doctor Gaster? You don’t know enough about him to decide. This is not the time to gamble.

Papyrus? Protect the cinnamon roll. Besides, the hero needs a break from that night of hell.

Sans? The best choice. He had the brains, skills, and education to become your guide.

…………

But he’s worn down to the bone. You, of all people, know just how much the timelines burdened him.

It left you with the only option: to go alone.

This way, you could decide who to share the information with at any time. Prepare the other party in advance. Gently set them down. Then present the most relevant details. That should remove the element of nasty surprises.

The aroma of Mom’s famous butterscotch pie filled your room.

You told Cenna that you’ll meet her by yourself. With a slice of Mom’s pie too. She makes the best.

‘Whoa Frisky. I’m impressed. Guess that’s why he thinks you’re ready.’

‘See ya at the Bunny Inn.’

With that settled, it’s time for you to resume your day. You unlocked the door and returned to the kitchen.

The pie had just started to bake. Mom and Doctor Gaster cleaned up the kitchen while they waited for the deliciousness to complete.

Blooky noticed your absence, saying, “……You took quite a while……”

You chuckled and told him that you were busy on the phone. Sorry about that.

“……Oh……I just wish I could stay longer……I got to follow Mettaton back to the studio tonight…… His break is over.……”

“…I almost forgot…… We’ll have our live concert in a few months…… It’s uh… please give me a moment……”

He took out his ghost wallet and placed down a business card. There’s a map on the back side of the card. You recognized the stadium.

That’s a big concert.

“…Yes…” Blooky smiled, “……This is the first time we’re debuting so many original songs…… I’m a bit nervous……”

It’ll be awesome! Keep it up and everything will be alright. Mettaton thrived so well on the Surface after all.

Whatever happened to Burgerpants by the way? Mettaton dragged him into the acting field, then you’ve never heard of him again.

“……He resigned and entered college……Took a theatre course…… Broadways and operas, I think……… Oh, and he made many human friends…… Something to do with his ‘cat’ look I suppose…… He’s happy…”

You’re happy for him too. He was… quite bitter a fellow down in the Underground. Nineteen and wasting his life already? C’mon.

Mom and Doctor Gaster joined you after their chores. All four of you continued merrily chatting away until the timer chimed.

Then it’s time for the star of the show: not Mettaton, but the butterscotch cinnamon pie.

It tasted just as good as the first time you had it.