"This is suicide!"

Those, surprisingly enough, were the first words from Gerson that Gaster understood. The tortoise had pulled himself to his full height—though he was still dwarfed by the other three monsters in the cavern—and narrowed his eyes at Asgore.

"I'm gonna talk niiice and slooow because obviously royalty doesn't account for brains," he said. "Now, you may be a Boss Monster, King Fluffybuns, but I'm a good deal older than you. I've seen what happens when monsters start letting their guards down."

"But the Barrier, Gerson..."

"I don't give a single damn about that Barrier! Humans do two things: fight and die! If you think a dinky little magic wall—even one they built—is gonna keep them from killing us, then you're a damn fool, Asgore Dreemurr."

"We're not settling out there," Asgore argued. "It's reconnaissance."

Gaster, best he could, tried to melt into the cave wall he was leaning against, just in case Gerson was about to blame him for the king's idea. It was a little...impulsive. But, well, the situation was dire.

Really, though, he didn't even know why he was here. He could barely speak, he had no recollection of getting to the cavern, and he wasn't even a monster. But Asgore had insisted, and...it turned out the king was really a hard person to say no to.

So here he was, standing by the wall beside Toriel, watching Asgore and Gerson battle out whether Asgore would go out or not. Gerson had begun using his quick voice again, so Gaster was lost. Toriel shook her head.

"We may be here for a while," she said quietly. Gaster sighed.

"My fault," he said. "I...er, my...the paper..."

Toriel shook her head. "Definitely not, my friend. He's wanted to go for weeks; you just gave him reason to."

Gaster looked at her curiously, then back at Asgore. So he hadn't been the only one itching to explore, though he doubted Asgore's reasons lined up with his. Huh.

"Well, you sure as hell aren't going alone," Gerson said, once again speaking slowly to mock Asgore. "But I'm not going with you. Your wife here's too smart for that, too. So who would be crazy enough to go with you?"

"I will."

All eyes turned to Gaster as he spoke the clearest words he had in weeks. Reactions varied; Toriel was shocked, Gerson distrustful, and Asgore was positively beaming. His hands fluttered awkwardly at all the attention.

"I...I will go with the king," he repeated, though the added words made him falter.

Gerson scoffed and muttered something, but given the way that both Asgore and Toriel said "Gerson!" made him think it wasn't anything flattering. Perhaps it was better he couldn't understand that.

Toriel turned back to Gaster, taking his arm.

"My friend, you do not need to go. We could find other volunteers, I'm sure. There's still the guards and..."

Gaster shook his head as he pulled his arm away. "I will go." He gave her a small smile. "Not as frail as I look, remember?"

Toriel didn't look even the slightest bit relieved, and Gerson threw up his hands.

"Fine! Trust a skeleton with the king's life! That's a great plan, Fluffybuns!"

Gaster frowned. "I am not...not a danger," he retorted.

"The humans said the same thing." Gerson spoke exaggeratedly slow; even Gaster could tell he was being mocked. He set his jaw, and stared silently at Gerson, though his hands signed a multitude of not-quite-polite epithets at him.

Asgore stood between them. "Please. We do not need any more fighting," Asgore pleaded. Gerson and Gaster glared at each other, but both stayed quiet. The king let out a sigh of relief.

"There. It's settled. Gaster and I will go out, and we'll come back with a report of what the rest of the Underground is like." He smiled and clapped Gaster's bony shoulder. "And then come back to get our new home properly up and running."

~

"Read this while you are out there."

"Tori, really..."

"I am serious. Read this. I will not have you dissolving after all we have been through just because you made tea out of something you were not supposed to."

Asgore sighed, but relented. Toriel slipped a large book titled The Guide to Subterranean Plants in Asgore's bag. She let out a breath, then met her husband's eyes.

"Promise me you will be careful," she murmured. Asgore smiled and wrapped his paws around hers.

"I will be amazingly careful, my dear," he assured warmly, kissing her snout. Toriel smiled before nuzzling it against his.

Gaster adjusted his hold on his own bag and fought rolling his eyes—well, as much as he was able to without eyes. Certainly he liked Toriel, and Asgore was growing on him. But good god, were they insufferable together!

They continued nuzzling, and Gaster finally had to unnecessarily clear his throat to get the king's attention.

"Oh!" Asgore smiled sheepishly, then gave Toriel one last kiss. "Like I said, we'll be back in no time, my sugar-sweet." He finally pulled himself away from his queen, then smiled at Gaster. "Ready to go?"

Gaster half-smiled at the king's enthusiasm and nodded. They both began making their way down to the hill back to the other monsters. Toriel waved after them.

"Be safe! Both of you!" she called after them. Gaster glanced back at her with a small smile, which died as he turned around.

Oh.

He'd be alone with Asgore. He'd have to talk to him.

But he hadn't spoken properly to anyone but Toriel!

Gaster stopped dead in his tracks, sockets wide. Asgore did speak rather slowly, but what if he couldn't understand him? Would Asgore lose his patience after too many "Beg pardons"? Would Gaster lose patience? Friendly as he was, Asgore was clearly the stronger of the two, so if there was any sort of confrontation...

"Gaster?"

Gaster blinked as Asgore said his name. The king had stopped and was looking at him curiously, but not unkindly. He put on a smile.

"I am coming. Got...er...too, too many thoughts."

Asgore's expression shifted to one of concern. "If you've changed your mind about coming, you certainly don't have to."

"No! No, not those, er, not like that," Gaster assured, taking a few quick steps to catch up to Asgore. "I want to go."

Asgore grinned at him. "So you've been bitten by the exploring bug, too, then."

Gaster blinked. "I...do not think anything has, er, bite me." He pushed up his sleeve to examine his bony arm. "I would have, er...well, it would have, er, hurt, I think." He jumped at Asgore's loud snort, as did a few of the monsters around them. Asgore covered his mouth and shook his head, still smiling.

"I don't mean a real bite," he explained with another giggle. "It's an expression."

Gaster set his jaw tightly. Was Asgore making fun of him? He hung back a moment as Asgore went to speak to the cave guard, looking at the king warily. He debated backing out, but...well, there was still the chance that the other skeletons were out there. And, really, he was desperate to see what was on the other side of the cave's opening. He sucked in a deep breath as Asgore turned and beckoned him to follow him out of the cave, still grinning.

Even so, this might be a longer trip than he thought.

~

Initially, the area past the opening was just like the cave, which honestly left Gaster disappointed. He'd expected...well, he hadn't known what, but something more exciting. Especially with how much they had been discouraged from even looking outside the opening.

He sighed as they reached the end of the tunnel, staring balefully at the rock wall in front of them. Well. There was their expedition. He looked at it for a moment longer, then turned and started to walk back.

"Gaster!"

He turned as Asgore, looking baffled, called after him. He shrugged.

"This...er, this is...this end."

Asgore grinned. "Not quite. Watch." He wrapped his arms around one of the huge rocks. With a grunt, he pulled it back. Gaster's sockets widened as a blast of chilly air swept into the room. There was...more? He took a few steps forward as Asgore leaned against the rock to catch his breath.

"See? We've still got a ways to go until we reach the end," the king said with a smile. He stood up straight before nodded to the opening. "Come on, Gaster. Time for some real exploring."

Gaster followed after, squinting at the bright white light they were walking into. He blinked a few times, then looked up as he felt something settle on the top of his skull. He looked up, a smile slowly spreading across his skull as he realized what it was. His hands excitedly jerked out a word.

Snow!

It really was snowing on them! But there was no sky; they were still underground. How was this even happening? He laughed as he took a few crunching steps forward.

"A-amazing!" he finally stammered out to Asgore.

"You don't remember this from when we came through?" the king asked with a smile. Gaster shook his head.

"I, er...I was..." He didn't know the word for this. "Er, like sleep but not...not good." He huffed at his terrible explanation, then mimed hitting his head as he shut his sockets.

Asgore watched him curiously, then nodded. "Ah, right! I'm sorry, I didn't know."

Gaster let out a little breath, a little irritation breaking up his excitement. He was hoping Asgore would give him the word, the way Toriel did. But...well, at least he wasn't laughing this time. He shook his head and waved a hand.

"It is, er...unin...unin-port-ant." That didn't seem right, but Asgore wasn't correcting him, so he supposed it was. Unless Asgore was just being polite. Perhaps he'd completely butchered the whole sentence? What if he'd been butchering sentences this whole time, and Asgore was letting him fail so he could laugh more? Gaster's hands fluttered awkwardly before he finally added, "Let us...er, let us go more."

He abruptly turned and started walking, trying, vainly, to outrun his embarrassment. This was awful. He shouldn't have agreed with this, not with how little he could communicate. Asgore probably thought he was some kind of idiot. Maybe he was. After all, it must have been about two month since the battle, and he could still barely get a full sentence out. Certainly he'd always had a hard time with languages, but being immersed like this he shou—

His thoughts were cut off as something cold and soft hit the back of his skull.

He quickly turned, hands raised, only to lower them as he saw Asgore, pack dropped to the side, shaping another snowball. He looked up and grinned at Gaster.

"Obviously we need to see if the snow here is the same as the snow above ground," he said with mock seriousness, then launched another snowball at Gaster. The skeleton narrowly dodged it, but Asgore was already making another. "You know, you should check, too!"

Gaster hesitated. Was Asgore serious? They were on an expedition; he'd already embarrassed himself enough trying to speak. Surely acting like a child would only make things worse. He looked up at Asgore once more. Asgore tossed is ball up and deftly caught it, eyebrows raised at Gaster. Finally, the skeleton let out a breath as he let his pack drop from his shoulder, and he swiftly scooped up some snow with a smile.

After all, snowball fights didn't need any words.

~

Eventually, it was time for them to do their actual reconnaissance. The two called a truce and actually examined the snowy area. While the snow had been the first thing Gaster noticed, the oddest thing were the large, fully-grown trees throughout, creating a thick forest around them. So it looked like wood for the buildings wouldn't be an issue...and, perhaps, for some bridges; while two monsters could get across the ice bridges easily enough, it was clear that they wouldn't last for long if the monsters decided to expand out.

Still, it was growing later, and there was no way they could spend the night in the cold. Well, not Asgore, at least; even through his thick fur, the king was beginning to shiver. Gaster was feeling fairly good, but he expected that was because he had no skin. So they kept moving.

The snow lasted a while yet, and Asgore picked up a few branches, just in case he'd need to warm up. Luckily, though, they finally reached a fairly solid ice bridge that ended in a much-less snowy cave. This one was darker and more damp, and they both stopped at the sound of running water. Asgore frowned, then handed the branches to Gaster; the skeleton nearly toppled over from the weight of them.

A small fire lit itself in Asgore's hand, and he held it up to examine the area around them. "Gaster, look! Waterfalls!"

Gaster peeked around the branches to look. Indeed, small waterfalls poured down into a little river on one side of the path. He smiled and opened his mouth to reply, but he had no way to sign out his words. So he simply nodded, remaining silent. Even after the snowball fight had dissolved much of his tension with Asgore, he didn't want to look foolish.

They continued on; Asgore took the branches back as they went further. What seemed to be crystals in the cave walls illuminated everything, casting a dim blue glow just bright enough for them to see by. Gaster's skull was threatening to swivel off his spine from how much he was looking around. How did the crystals light themselves if there was nothing to reflect? Were they producing their own light? He stopped at one of them and tried to pull it out, but it was firmly lodged in the cave wall. He'd have to look for a fallen one.

As they walked through the cavern, Asgore chattered away. Gaster knew the king was trying to be friendly, but really, it was a little irritating; after all, he could only understand every fifth word or so. Even worse, Asgore would ask questions, and Gaster would have no choice but to stammer out a garbled reply that likely made no sense.

They waded across a little waterway. Then a second. Then a third. After the fourth, there was a mutual agreement that they would stop in the next part of the cavern. Exploring in wet clothes was in no one's best interest, and it was probably time for them to call it a night anyway.

Gaster was the one to lead the way into the next room, and he stopped dead in his tracks. This room was...

It was beautiful.

It was darker than the other rooms, and mercifully dry; overhead, a scattering of crystals sparkled like stars in the night sky. Throughout the room, there were tall blue flowers that seemed to be thrumming, emitting a low, peaceful hum. This was precisely the kind of place Gaster would have loved to have found above ground, where he could have hidden away for some time alone.

Asgore stepped in behind him, and judging from his gasp, he was also struck by the beauty of this little cavern. Gaster's hands moved to share what he thought, but he stopped. Once again, irritation ruined his enthusiasm.

"I...I am sorry...I w-wi-wish...I...not sleep....too long..." He finished his nonsensical statement with a sharp, frustrated noise. "I w-i-sh I see...no, I...." Another grunt as he threw his hands down. It was useless!

Asgore looked over at his companion in surprise, and he set down his branches. "Hey, it's all right. Take your time and try again," he said gently.

Gaster gritted his teeth, furious at himself and ashamed at the obvious pity Asgore was giving him. His fingers flexed before he finally signed out a very big sentence.

I CAN'T!

Asgore looked surprised at the movement, but the floodgates were opened. Gaster was signing incessantly, words spilling out of him so fast that even his family wouldn't have been able to understand him.

I can communicate! I know words! I'm not an idiot! I could go on for hours in conversation, I can talk about complex thoughts and emotions. I'm in awe of this room! I'm devastated to be alone! I can understand all of these concepts easily. I shouldn't have to be a pet project!

He looked up at Asgore, shoulders sagging as he caught the king's blank look. But you couldn't understand a word I just signed. So I have to keep sounding like a child. He let his hands drop, and he shook his head before slinking off to a corner of the cave.

"Gaster, wait!" In a few short bounds, Asgore was at his side. "Look, I-I'm not as good as Tori when it comes to teaching, but...but I can tell you're frustrated..."

Understatement of the year, Gaster's hands said as he huffed.

"And I know it's hard. I know I couldn't learn this language; it's not very organized...but you can do this, Gaster!"

Gaster didn't reply. His hands tightened into hard fists as he grit his teeth again.

"If you just...if you stay focused, then I know you can..."

"I canNOT!"

The words exploded out of Gaster. Then, to his surprise, they exploded back at him, over and over. He and Asgore both looked around in surprise. Finally, Asgore walked over to one of the blue flowers. From the center of its petals, Gaster's strained voice shouted over and over. Quite frankly, it was eerie.

Gaster took a few deep breaths as his voice echoed in the cave, each repetition adding to his doubts. He couldn't do this. He couldn't learn this awful language, he couldn't listen to his hideous voice shouting in a multitude. He couldn't help anyone. He quickly shook his head and ran out to the other opening, ignoring Asgore calling him back.

He stopped as he reached the end of the land. The water was too deep for him to rush out into in his state. So he dropped down into the dirt and shut his sockets, bringing his hands up over his head in an attempt to get the sound of the flowers out of his head.

Maybe he should have just been left behind. It'd be preferable to this hell; he wouldn't have to talk.

He didn't move as he heard the quiet footsteps behind him, nor as he felt Asgore sit down beside him. Remarkably, the king stayed silent. The flowers from the room behind them slowly muted themselves, leaving only the little lapping of the water against the dirt.

Finally, he heard Asgore let out a small breath.

"I'm sorry," he finally said.

Gaster grimaced, hands moving away from his skull to sign, I hate this. I want to go home. It was petulant and childish, but Asgore couldn't understand him, so what did it matter?

Another silence stretched between them. Asgore sucked in a breath. "I...have some trouble, too. With words. Not in the same way, obviously, but..."

Gaster glanced up as Asgore trailed off. The king put on a wry smile and shook his head.

"I didn't want to be king. I'm not very good at...speeches or making everything okay. I can barely even take care of the monsters that made it down here. I can't even keep them happy." He rubbed his muzzle. "So if I'm having a hard time, I can't imagine what you're going through." He looked up at Gaster. "But even with everything that's happened to us, and being somewhere new and strange, you've come up with a way for us to make our situation work! You're actually thinking and learning and that's really something!"

Gaster looked up at him, head raising ever so slightly. "What...something?"

"I mean that it's great," Asgore clarified with a smile. A kind one, without a trace of a laugh. Gaster swallowed.

"You...do not th-think I am..." He slowly signed out the word, grimacing as he did. "...st-stup-stupid?"

Asgore blinked, then laughed. A surprised one.

"Stupid? My god, Gaster, you've come up with a blueprint for our whole society! You're definitely not stupid." He smiled and shook his head before looking up at the skeleton. "Well...I think the next room's quieted down. We can head back and make camp there. Would you like me to make you a cup of tea?"

Gaster hesitated, fingers twitching.

"We don't have to talk," Asgore added gently.

Gaster looked up at him, then let out a breath as he shook his head. "No. We can. I-I need to learn." A small smile finally broke through. "Thank you, Asgore. For...for talking."

Asgore chuckled. "You're the first person to thank me for that." He got to his feet. "Now, Tori will kill me, but I found some interesting plants in the snow area that I think might make excellent tea..."