Cinzel's POV
"W-wait a second, Paps, did you say human?" I stuttered and stared up at my younger brother incredulously.
"I INDEED DID, SISTER," Papyrus replies casually. He looks down from filling his steel pot full of water and at my surprised expression. "WHY SO SURPRISED?"
Being with my father, Gaster, I wasn't able to wander anywhere—I was restricted to stay inside the house. Not only did this stop me from getting out of the house, it prevented things from coming in such as news. I've never heard of a human in the Underground before. Gaster could go outside, but even so, he never told me what goes on outside the front door of our cave-like house in Waterfall.
I made my expression wipe clean off my face and replace it with a smile. "Sorry. I don't get out that much," I answered him with a shrug. I didn't want to tell him the full truth. I don't want my sweet, naïve, innocent little brother knowing the dark truth about our father. Seeing him upset earlier was sad enough. How heartbreaking would it be to tell him that his long-lost father is actually a neglecting, abusive excuse of a monster?
How would Sans react?
He is much different from the skeleton standing before me. From what I've learned so far, he doesn't mind lying and apparently gets away with it. He hides. Yet again with that smile. . . . He also doesn't seem like the innocent type. Not like that! Like he's seen and experienced things no one should ever go through. That would explain his nightmares. But the question is: what has he gone through? Hopefully, that question would be answered soon.
"Who should we ask first?" I ask, tapping Papyrus on his basketball-covered shoulder. Papyrus thinks for a moment before somehow grinning even wider.
"I THINK WE SHOULD ASK MISS TORIEL," Papyrus answers. "I HAVE A COOKING LESSON WITH HER, SO IT WOULD BE CONVENIENT TO SPEAK WITH HER TODAY."
I start daydreaming of who might Miss Toriel be. She must be a good cook if Papyrus is getting lessons from her. I hoped she was nice. She would be the third person I meet outside of my house, and I had my fingers crossed that she would be as kind as my brothers.
Papyrus leads me out of my thoughts and out of the house out in the snow. The frigid temperature didn't affect me for obvious reasons, but I could tell that it was below zero. Papyrus plowed through the thick, heavy snow like he was pushing aside feathers. I hopped into his footprints that were heavily left behind in the white powder as to not fall into the white abyss.
We passed a small town named Snowdin. There were few buildings made of weathered logs, and the roofs were covered in a thick coating of snow. As distressed and old the buildings looked on the outside, it was the inside that caught my glowing pupils. Each window the buildings possessed was emanating a bright, warm light that showed many monsters laughing and having a good time. I smile as we passed every one of the windows. I looked ahead to see a tall, full tree decorated with brightly colored ornaments and lights. A glowing star on the top of the tree was the pièce de résistance (Hamilton Reference. #NoRegrets) of the whole tree.
We finally made it past all the buildings and were met with trees on all sides with a snowy path winding between the massive trunks. The wind decided to pick up, and snow whirled around my eye sockets and blinded me. Papyrus strutted along the path with a knowing confidence which I lacked. I had no clue where we were going or even what lies ahead—I could barely see my own feet.
Finally, from what seemed like forever trekking through the snowstorm, I bumped into a large set of purple, wooden doors with a decorative arch around them. I heard a loud banging and looked up to see Papyrus knocking on the heavy doors with a large grin. I gave a smile of my own. I couldn't help it—his smiles are contagious.
Suddenly, a giant mass of white enclosed over my head, and I toppled over from the weight. I landed on my back and felt dazed for a few seconds before finding my arms and hands and digging my face out from the white around me before my eyes finally filled with the snow-covered forest. I heard a loud, strange laughter fill the air and found my brother laughing at my state. I shoveled more of the white substance weighing me down only to find the same substance covering the ground and trees around me. I looked up at the arch around the doorway to find a large section missing. Relieved to find out that nothing but snow attacked me and because of Papyrus's infectious laughter, I started laughing as well.
Just then, a giant, white teddy bear emerged from the doorway and took the scene in confusedly. I looked up at it, almost intimidated at its size. I stared at it longer and realized that it wasn't a bear, but a goat. Albeit Papyrus lacked the glowing pupils Sans and I owned, his eyes seemed to shine when he saw the new monster. "GREETINGS, MISS TORIEL!" Papyrus greeted the furry being cheerfully.
"Hello, Papyrus," Miss Toriel replied with a soothing, mother-like voice. This may be weird, but I like her very much already. Her furry head swiveled around to meet my curious gaze, her white fur swishing as she did. "And who might this be?"
"CINZEL, THIS IS MISS TORIEL, MISS TORIEL, THIS IS MY SISTER, CINZEL," Papyrus introduced proudly. Toriel's head jolted up in surprise to learn this.
"I didn't know you had a sister, Papyrus," she murmured as she scanned me up and down. Miss Toriel then held out a big paw, and I grabbed it, pulling myself out of the powdery snow. She then pushed one of the heavy doors open and gestured for us to enter. Papyrus thanked her before strutting into the dark hallway. I ducked my head as I passed by Miss Toriel and followed my brother. I heard soft padding behind me and assumed Miss Toriel was close behind.
We soon came across a small flight of stairs with, finally, a flickering spark of light at the top. I pushed past Papyrus and flew up the stairs, hungry for the light that this hallway and my home back in Waterfall lacked so much of. I dived into the warm glow and found myself in a front room. Papyrus and Miss Toriel catch up, and they give me questioning looks.
"Are you afraid of the dark?" Miss Toriel asks me softly, no trace of judgment at all.
I rub my smooth, bony arm up and down, full of embarrassment. I still refused to spill my past to anybody. I was thinking of an answer that wouldn't reveal too much but wasn't a lie. "I guess I've been in the dark for a while," I answer sheepishly. Toriel gives me a soft smile, and my feelings of childish embarrassment fade away. It was as if her smile evaporated anything negative like the sun evaporates water.
"Well, no bother," Miss Toriel says, putting a hand on my shoulder and guiding me along the brightly colored halls, "there is plenty of light here." I nodded as my eyes drifted around our surroundings. We were in what looked like a living room. To my right, a stone fireplace housed a crackling bundle of flames. Strangely enough, no smoke was emitted from the flickering tips of the fire. Fire magic. A big, cozy-looking chair rested in front of the warm fireplace. A bookcase stood tall to the right of the fireplace filled to the brim with books. My smile grew wider as my hungry gaze crawled over the rows of books. I loved reading. An oak table with chairs to match stood to the far left of the room. It was a very lonely and dark corner.
Papyrus then struts up and strikes a pose—one bony hand on his hip, and the other is holding an imaginary pizza way above his head. I struggled to hold back laughter, but a smile broke loose. "THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS READY TO COOK," he announces proudly. Miss Toriel smiles motherly and beckons him to the kitchen with a graceful wave of her furry paw. Pappy lets out a 'NYEH HEH HEH' and follows her with huge, over-exaggerated footsteps. I let my feet follow them, and I peek into a cozy kitchen. Ingredients and cookware were already sorted out on the counter in front of me. There was flour, milk, measuring cups and spoons, eggs, and more ingredients that suggested that they were going to bake a pie or a type of cake. But other ingredients that really surprised me was a large container of cinnamon and a small tub of a creamy, brown substance. Butterscotch was printed out on the bright label. I screwed up my face in confusion. Cinnamon and butterscotch? How does that combination work?
Before I could stop myself from acting rash, I blurted out, "Miss Toriel, how do cinnamon and butterscotch go together?" I slapped a hand over my jaw and closed my eyes, expecting a blow for my bad behavior. The only thing that came down on me was a soft paw on my shoulder.
"You will see soon. You don't dislike either of the two, do you?" Miss Toriel asked softly. I slowly lifted my head, still cautious, to see a concerned frown etched on her furry face.
"No, I like both," I murmur. "I'm sorry I asked that. That was rude." I fixed my ashamed gaze on the floor, not letting myself look up at her face.
Miss Toriel lifted my head up and gave me a warm smile. "It's alright. I know that it is an unusual combination. But I'll assure you that everyone who tried my recipe gave me positive reviews." Then she bends down and whispers softly to me, "And you can call me Toriel or mom, if you would like."
I stared up at her. Mom? I haven't had a mom for a long time. It's been 23 years. She died when I was 2. I don't remember her that well. The only thing that I could look back to was photos. They were hidden in a secret compartment in Dad's room. It was almost as if she was supposed to be a secret. Even though I don't remember her, I felt a special connection whenever I picked up a photo of her. She was gorgeous. The sadness of never being able to spend a lot of time with her started seeping into my SOUL. Then this kind monster that I barely met—less than Mom—was offering to be a motherly figure for me. I'm sure she doesn't know that we don't have a mother and is just offering us the comfort of calling her such, but this meant the world to me. To show my gratitude, I leaned into her and gave her a tight hug. I felt her tense up at first, but she quickly hugged back. Her fur around my bones felt warm and comforting.
"Thank you," I whispered softly into her ear.
"Of course, my child," she replies, just as soft. I then felt another pair of arms around my midsection and looked up to see Papyrus joining in on the hug, not yet understanding why we're hugging. I was hoping to feel another pair of bony arms embracing us, but I remembered that he isn't here.
But he's the reason why we came.
"Mom." I pushed myself away and gazed up at her red yet soft eyes. "Pap and I wanted to ask you something—it's important." Toriel's brows furrowed then she guided us to the living room so we could sit down and talk. Papyrus immediately remembered and followed us and took a seat next to me in front of the fireplace.
"What do you need to talk about?" Toriel sits down into the chair and sits up so she can hear us.
"It's about Sans."