Discord and Rhymes (UNDERTALE)

[ParamountKeymaster]

"Oh, um... Th-Thank you, sir." Alphys nodded back to Captor, then to Frisk as the two disappeared down the hall to talk in private.

In the meantime, Roman smiled at Alphys. She awkwardly chuckled back as she started dishing the noodles into two bowls. "Uh... Forgive me... I-I'd most certainly offer you some, but these noodles really only amount to two servings..."

"Not a problem, Dr. Alphys," Roman politely responded. "The nourishment will do Frisk well. Smells quite appetizing, though."

Alphys chuckled again, placing a bowl of noodles at Frisk's spot before starting into her own.

"I do hope life above ground has been treating you well."

"Oh... Oh, yes. It's been... quite the experience... adapting to the surface, coming to the island, establishing this new lab..."

Roman nodded, looking as though he was greatly enjoying this conversation. "How has Undyne been faring?"

Alphys's cheeks were so red they were practically sizzling.

[gantzgun74]

.....................

Frisk looked down at this question, taking a moment to think.

...........

.... Then they looked up at Captor, eyes raised in confusion. ".... I've... Helped lots of monsters... Maybe I didn't improve their lives... But maybe a few of them didn't NEED to be improved. Some might just need a new perspective..." .... Frisk seemed to realize something as well... This..

This man knew? How much did Roman tell him?

"And... Even if I improved their lives or not... I still resonated with them. They all came to help me when they believed they were needed."

[Monolilith]

A pause. And Captor laughs. It's not a cold laugh, but it lacks joy. It's dry. He raises his hands in a shrug of apathy to accompany his bitter grin and sardonic tone.

"You know, I kinda hoped you could help me, you know? I get attached to kids. I want to protect them. But maybe I've made a mistake...

"It doesn't matter." He extends his hand, and with a flick of his wrist, a business card appears between his index and middle fingers. Whether it was real magic or a cunning hat trick is unclear. "Name's Dr. Aurthur Dahlstrom. Providence contractor. I've devoted my life to helping people.

"It's... good to have met you."

[gantzgun74]

.............

"......" Frisk looked at the card.... Then slowly took it. ".... I'm... Sorry if I said something wrong..." The child intoned. "If... If you're worried about Roman.... Then I'll look after him. Help teach him a few things." Frisk smiled. "Honestly... I don't think we can tell him that his dream of being a hero is wrong. It's not our place to. All we can do is support him and hope for the best."

[Monolilith]

He... flinches, just slightly, when Frisk mentions caring for Roman themselves. And he's silent, eyes directed pointedly away from Frisk, for a long while.

"... I found him in the forest, Frisk. He was dead meat out there, and he knew it. But the second he saw me, it was back in that... bullshit gameface. Pardon my French."

His voice is a little cold, yet... oddly distant.

"of course being a hero isn't wrong. But he can't be expected to learn if he clings to the idea that he already is one. that he's already strong enough. He's not, we could both crush him like an insect had we the mind to..

"He's lucky we don't. But he won't be safe forever. Do you really want to keep entertaining him? Do your once impending dooms at the hands of warlords, kings, gods, not still weigh on you?"

[gantzgun74]

There was a sigh that Captor knew. He knew that Frisk had more then realized this. And really, that was because he was right. Roman was a little too attached to his image of self-importance. Dangerously so to at least a few degrees...

Perhaps what stopped them from considering this, at least for a moment, was Captor stating that either of them could kill Roman if they felt so inclined... The thought dug into Frisk's mind but the child refused to give it a second consideration... They had moved on past that life... And besides....

"Well.... Yes..." Frisk admitted. He did have a lot of things tough. Taking on Papyrus, Undyne, Mettaton, all of them all by themself... But... "But... When I got lost... That was because I didn't have anyone there to help me... At first... I was scared... Terrified... Everything in the Underground wanted to kill me and any of them could have..." The child sniffled...

"But... Then I realized that... That I was never alone. That there were so many people ready to believe in me if I gave them a reason to. So many people that I could put my trust in, to help guide me down the right path."

Frisk's smile regained vigor. That gentle grace continued.

"I know you're worried about Roman... But... Don't worry... I'm going to make sure he has exactly what I didn't have my first time... Someone to be there for him and help guide him towards his own solutions. It... Might not be easy... Mom has taught me that much... But... In the end we all just want what's best for Roman don't we?"

[Monolilith]

Captor's shaking by that point. A hand presses against the wall, strangely glowing eyes locked on the ground near Frisk's feet. His shoulders jerk, just a bit, and then he forces a deep breath. Only then does it become clear that this entire time, he... hasn't been breathing at all.

At the same time, the wind picks up, cold growing just a bit more bitter.

It's a solid minute after, one full of labored breaths that gradually steady, that Captor manages to pull himself delicately upright. "frisk...

"While I... appreciate your good intentions, this is my job. As a providence contractor working for good, and a father, I have the skills and compassion necessary to teach Roman myself. I refuse to separate him completely from his fellow monsters, but... I would be hard pressed to let Roman go at this stage. I hope you understand."

[gantzgun74]

..... Oh.... Yeah, the child was seeing where the miscommunication was... But... The child looked up to Captor....

Then he placed a hand on the man's.

"Sorry.... If you want to look after Roman, I didn't mean to imply that you couldn't..." ... The child looks away grimly. "It's just... I thought that... Maybe you were dropping Roman off with me for a little while. You can't really look after Roman if you're not looking after yourself some right?" That likely caught Captor's attention some.

"You... Look really really tired."

[Monolilith]

It's a while before he responds. What's surely but seconds seems to stretch on and on in the emotionally loaded moment, Captor's half-dead eyes rising to Frisk's thin ones. Then, he smiles and lets out a light breath - like an exhausted laugh. His eyes drift down again, morose. The dim glows. The wind slows. His voice is soft, but steady.

"i am... exhausted. magically and emotionally. this has been...

"a very, very long day."

[gantzgun74]

Heh, the child indeed thought so. It looked like Captor had done quite a bit up to this point. "Then you go ahead, head back, get some sleep, just sit back and relax. You leave looking after Roman to me and Alphys." Frisk noted the expression. "You should use some peace and quiet. Don't worry, Roman will be okay until you get back."

[Monolilith]

"... no... I'd like to talk to Roman before I go. But I do appreciate it, Frisk. I do.

"Come. It's frickin' freezing out here." And, without another word, he goes inside, coat dusted with snow, eyes seeking Roman.

[gantzgun74]

Frisk shivered, realizing the surrounding area was indeed cold and walked back in with Captor.

-----

Once they were inside, the child sat down in front of Alphys' heater, deciding to sit back and relax. They just needed the time to rid themself of their chills and return more prominent feeling to any skin that had been left out in the cold. Alphys had finished cooking up the instant noodles and had been quick to give Frisk the first bowl so that the child could eat it and work their way to feeling better if they were trying to contract a cold.

It would be an appreciated gesture, one that Frisk had more then expected, and truly thanked Alphys for.

[ParamountKeymaster]

"Now you relax, okay?" Alphys kindly offered, patting Frisk on the head and placing the bowl of noodles on a TV tray. "Conserve your energy and... hopefully this will pass in due time."

Roman bounded after them and hopped up on a chair, smiling with blissful excitement. "So as I was saying, Dr. Alphys, though I have endured rigorous training with my brothers..." (most of which involved them beating him up, but that's another story) "...if there's one thing I've learned today, it's that I still have a long way to go. That said, I didn't know if... perhaps you would be so kind..."

"Oh..." Alphys rubbed her neck, awkwardly looking between Frisk, Captor and a random spot on the floor. "I-I don't know. It's... hard to tell how Undyne would react to..."

[Monolilith]

Captor perks up. Just a bit. Just enough to see hope in his eyes. "Roman.

"I know my way around the entirety of the water element, as well as combat - and my wife knows it better still. I'd be honored to train you."

[gantzgun74]

Frisk smiled at the sight of Captor just talking to Roman, eating their noodles calmly and sitting back in their chair as they watched.

It had been easy to see that Captor really truly cared about the little guy and watching him interact with the wolf cub was a cute sight to see. The child was now almost hoping they'd get to be around to see them interact more if it meant seeing this gentle side to the man that, only just before, had been arguing with them. The offer of training the cub in the water element came up however, which did perk Frisk's interest...

Now they were really curious... What kind of intense power did this guy have-?