#i personally prefer natural hair colours but deep shades of red are an exception | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

canadian-buckbeaver · 7 years

Text

The Stars in Your Eyes

Finally, after so long, Chara has brought the Underswap Monsters to the Surface. Everyone seems to be adjusting well, getting new carers, new relationships... all except Berry. He seems to be falling behind. But all that changes when he takes cooking lessons with a slightly familiar flame monster, and another Universe is released from the Underground.

Raffle prize for the amazing @sesurescue (TAG PLS TUMBLR) - I hope you enjoy!

When they first reached the Surface, after so long of his brother speaking of it and of him dreaming of it, little Sans had been entranced by the great ball of fire, the sun. How could something be that big and that warm and yet still be many, many miles away from them? He would have to ask Undyne again how it worked again, but later.

His brother, the tall and lanky, Papyrus, ever dressed in his signature orange hoodie, had been staring at the sun too. Not in the entranced way that Sans was, but in the way that one looks as if they fear that they will see something for the last time. Full of desperation and an odd helpless hunger. His depression was getting worse. Sans had been worried about him. Papyrus, although no stranger to night terrors and these odd bouts of depression, looked worse than he had ever seen him before. Chara, the little pink-cheeked human that had released them from the Underground, had walked up to him, noticing his sad expression. “Never again,” she had whispered quietly, seemingly promising something to him. “I'll never Reset again. This was the last time.”

Papyrus had looked at the small human before looking away and looking over the cliff. “I hope so, kid. I don't think I can forgive you for ripping us away from this ever again.”

Chara had looked slightly stricken but had silently nodded, resignation in her face. Sans had watched the strange encounter between them with some confusion. What was a Reset? Why was Papyrus acting like this wasn't his first time seeing the sun or the Surface?

And why did it seem like he and Chara had a bit of a… ugly personal history, for the lack of better words?

* * * * *

Months had come and gone and Sans slowly grew accustomed to this new and wonderful world. Luckily, the humans did not seem to mind the monsters. They actually seemed rather fascinated by them.

The monsters were also slowly settling within their new positons. Although not a monster, Chara was their ambassador between them and the humans and had tried to get the best positions possible for all of them. They had taken into account all their personal likes, dislikes and opinions on everything and brought that towards the humans in charge. Alphys had not been able to keep her position with guards, but she had been hired as a gym teacher at a local school, a perfect fit for the bossy and energetic lizard. Both Undyne and Papyrus had been taken in as research assistants at an offshoot of a hospital lab. Sans… well he hadn't found anything yet. After so many long and tedious years of hunting for humans and yearning to join the guards…

Well… it was only natural that he had a bit of an adjustment period, right? He did nothing but throw his absolute best into everything. However, to be completely honest, it had seemed like a lot of his ‘drive’ had disappeared. He began to slow his quick and restless movements and, though, his smile was still ever present on his face, but it was not nearly as overly big or cheerful. It did not sparkle or scream of the joy or zealous attitude that he had once for life. Papyrus had been slightly worried, even having Undyne check him over. But there was nothing physically wrong with him. Sans HP hadn't fallen, nor were his bones cracking and grey. He was still the picture of health! He just needed to find his new focus Undyne had told him.

Find his focus…. That made sense.

Now… what could he focus on?

Sans started a couple dead end jobs, starting out in a couple fast food restaurants to bring in some extra money but, it wasn’t his style. The food was made without love or care, the patrons loud, rude and demanding. No wonder Papyrus always needed to nap at the end of such a shift. He tried a cashier's position at the local supermarket but Sans just couldn't focus. There was something else, something more for him, or something that he was missing.

But what? What could the Magnificent Sans be missing?

Undyne had brought up the idea of a mate but there was just no one that made him truly happy. Humans that dated him were more interested in his bones than anything, and the monsters he had seen as friends. Nothing more. Things weren't looking good for Sans.

He found himself in school, cooking school, to his delight. It was even being headed by another monster. An orange, crackling fire monster named Grillby. This elemental reminded Sans of Swirllby back in Underswap. Both wore suits and glasses, both were bartenders, and of course both were fire elemental monsters. This orange fire monster seemed more serious, more down to earth than the yellow and robust Swirllby. This Grillby was an amazing teacher though. Sans was learning to make more than just his famous and delicious tacos. In just his first week of cooking classes he had surprised Papyrus with a perfect burger and fries – just greasy enough to satisfy his unhealthy tooth, but still low in fat to be somewhat healthy for the skinny bones. It was a bit like the old days, and Sans found some of his energy returning. His smile widened and the sparkle began to return to his eye sockets.

There was still something though…

One day in school they were learning the finer arts of pasta making he overheard the other students of his class talking.

“You've seen it right? The lights are on in that cave again.” The red-haired male had whispered to his cooking partner.

“Do you think more monsters are coming?” She had whispered to him.

“I'm not sure, but if there are, I hope they are as friendly as the ones that have already crossed.”

Sans was excited and confused. Lights on in the cave? Perhaps more monsters from the other side of the Underground were finally escaping. There had been a few that were hesitant to come, preferring to remain in the safety of known, the deadly and violent tales of humans still echoing through their ears. The Underground had been all they had known and a few had been loath to leave.

Perhaps he could show them around! Teach them the ways of the Surface life.

Over supper he had told Papyrus his plan. Papyrus had looked at him over his small mountain of lasagna, seemingly puzzled. But the stars in Sans' eyes had returned, along with a look of determination. One that he hadn't seen in a long, long time.

So Papyrus decided against telling that there were no more monsters left in the Underground. That all of Swap had eventually joined the others on the Surface…

And that the barrier had resealed behind them, trapping them, for better or for worse, with the humans and the sun above.

Days came and went, and Sans heard no more about lights on in the cave. Perhaps a false alarm or nothing but a rumour. He sighed and continued about his daily routine.

About a month later and Sans found himself home alone. It was Friday, his day off from school and he had spent it cleaning and doing laundry, the little things that had happened to pile up around the house while the rest of them were busy. Chara had only a half day at school and had asked if they could be picked up today so, at eleven o'clock sharp, he tied on his signature blue bandana and stepped outside.

He stepped outside and took a deep breath. The air was so clear and clean here. Sometimes smoggy with exhaust but today was perfect. It had rained the night before so the air was still crisp and fresh. The birds were still chirping and singing and the sky blue without a cloud in the sky. After mentally debating for a bit, Sans decided that a bit of exercise could do them all good. He slowly walked to the school, waving to the neighbours.

Sans noticed that Mr. Jeffery's house had sold. Oh good! New neighbours! It would make a good impression to bring over a plate of freshly baked cookies later. Be neighbourly. Perhaps there would be someone for Papyrus to talk to. Undyne and him had always been good friends, but after working together for so long, they needed a bit of a break from each other. Not to mention his recent break up with Muffet. They had tried to hide the split but nothing stayed hidden for too long from Sans if he put his mind to it… perhaps while he had Chara alone he should ask her about the Resets. Papyrus was being very tight lipped about the whole ordeal…

Well. First Chara, then cookies, and then see what else he could fit into the day.

Sans made it to the school in record time. But, to his surprise, Chara wasn't waiting for him at their meeting place alone. She was talking animatedly to someone, one who looked exactly like her. Heck they could almost be mistaken for twins if Sans didn’t know any better.

Sans stopped and rubbed his sockets. Nope, definitely not a dream. He was seeing double.

As if sensing him, both human children turned at once to him. Sans felt his soul stutter in his chest. The other kid that Chara was talking to, really looked exactly like her, from the shade of brown in her hair, to the slightly unusual colouring of her skin. The only difference was that she had closed eyes, appearing in a squint. A small shiver rain down his spine at the sight of this strange child. He could have sworn that he had seen this child before but how? Chara was the only human that had fallen into the Underground in his lifetime.

Déjà vu perhaps as Undyne said.

“Sans!” Chara's blood red irises sparkled. “Sans I did it! I made a new friend!”

Sans shook off his uncomfortable feelings. Chara had finally made a new friend after months of difficulty. It turns out that human children did not fully appreciate other children who were different. He needed to be happy for her. “Why hello there small human! It is I, the Magnificent Sans! It is a pleasure to meet you.” He grinned at the closed-eyes human, his eyes big, round and the bluest-blue, sparkles shimmering deep in the irises but no stars as pupils.

The human stared at him in awe. Sans couldn't blame them. After all, he was talking skeleton that couldn't be mistaken for anything less fantastic.

“No way. Your name is Sans too?” they asked him.

Sans felt his smile grow. “Wowie! We both have the same name? You must be very magnificent as well.”

Both humans giggled at him. “No! My name isn't Sans, silly. My name is Frisk. But my friend's name is. If he comes today.”

“Well then I, the great Sans, will wait with you until they show your friend arrives!”

Frisk sighed wistfully at Sans before she looked over at Chara. “I'm so jealous. Wait till you meet my asshole friends.”

Sans would have called her out on her language but, after living with the humans for so long, Sans had long since come to terms that humans did not care about the atrocious terms that they used. They would continue using it, even when asked to stop. It appeared to be a second nature to them.

They had only waited for about five minutes when Frisk sighed. “Oh no… why him? And why is he still wearing that stupid costume?”

Looking up Sans saw a tall, thin skeleton marching towards them. Even from a distance he could sense the authoritative air that this other skeleton had around him. He wore a long, red torn scarf that fluttered around their neck, a slick leather jacket, and tall red boots.

They reminded him a bit like…

“FRISK! FINALLY! THERE’S YOUR SORRY ASS.” The skeleton spat as he came close.

Frisk huffed at the tall skeleton. “Took you fucking long enough, Papyrus…” Suddenly Sans was grateful that he hadn't mentioned the language to the human. His little spiel wouldn't have had any effect at all, especially if this was who she was going home to. “We’ll you're late. The Great and Terrible Papyrus running behind schedule?” Frisk taunted.

The tall skeleton actually snarled at the small human. “DON'T TEMPT ME, WORM. YOU MAY REMEMBER THAT IT WAS MY LAZY SHIT OF A BROTHER WHO HAD PROMISED TO PICK YOU UP. YOU'RE LUCKY THAT I CAME INSTEAD WHEN I COULDN'T WAKE HIM OUT OF HIS MUSTARD INDUCED HAZE.”

Frisk huffed at him. “Well, while I was waiting for you I met Chara and Sans. Be polite and introduce yourself properly.” She said, introducing them to this other Papyrus.

Suddenly Sans found his jaw roughly being seized and being thoroughly examined by the other skeleton. Those piercing red slits of eye lights seemed to peer right through him, as if he was looking for something in particular. Sans couldn’t make a move, those eyes froze him to the spot, right where he stood. Blue eyes met red, both skeletons looking deep into each other’s eyes, trying to see through to their souls. Finally, after a long moment, he was released from the rough grip. “HOW PECULIAR. YOU HAVE THE SAME NAME AS MY BROTHER, YET YOU APPEAR TO BE NOTHING LIKE HIM.” He looked closer into Sans’ eyes. “AND STAR PUPILS… HOW ODD…” His pupils must have changed as this Papyrus looked him over.

Sans rubbed at his cheeks. “You look exactly like mine too, yet are definitely nothing like him. Particularly with your loud mouth.” He sputtered back, surprised at the gall that this skeleton had. Who greets a new friend like that? Wasn’t a handshake the norm of greeting one another? He would have to double check with Chara when they got home.

The other skeleton grinned, looking slightly sinister. “SUCH AN ATTITUDE TOWARDS ME WOULD NEVER BE ALLOWED IN UNDERFELL. YOU WOULD BE DUST BEFORE YOU HAD TIME TO FALL TO YOUR KNEES AND BEG FOR MY MERCY.”

UnderFell? What sort of name was that? He and his brother were from Snowdin, UnderSwap at that. Or was this skeleton making up fictionAL names on the spot?

“Well you would have definitely been put into Community Service if you were in UnderSwap. How dare you speak to a trainee of the Royal Guards like that!” Sans stated back.

This sharp Papyrus roared with laughter, causing Sans to flush a bright, brilliant blue. “WHAT SORT OF PUNISHMENT IS THAT, LITTLE SANS? YOU’RE ONLY A TRAINEE AFTER ALL. MEANWHILE I AM THE CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARDS, COMPLETE MASTERMIND OF THE INCREDIBLY DEADLY DOOMSDAY FIELDS…” Frisk sighed loudly and rolled her eyes, obviously having heard this speech before. “He’s captain?” Chara asked. “What happened to Alphys?”

“Alphys? Papyrus won control of the Royal Guards from Undyne, shortly just before I fell.” Frisk said looking thoughtful. “I wonder if the other monsters are also switched.”

“Well he did say that Sans is the lazy monster…” Chara said.

“AS MUCH AS I APPRECIATE MEETING NEW MONSTERS AND SPREADING THE TALES OF MY GREATNESS, WE ARE VERY MUCH BEHIND SCHEDULE.” Papyrus said, grabbing hold of Frisk’s arm and pulling her harshly towards him. “WE MUST BE OFF SMALL CREATURES. HOWEVER, IF YOU EVER WISH TO LAY YOUR EYES ON SUCH GREATNESS AGAIN, YOU CAN MAKE THE PROPER APPOINTMENT AND WE CAN MEET AGAIN.”

“36 Samodiva drive!” Frisk said, trotting to keep up with Papyrus’ long gait.

Sans let out a little groan. “Mr.Jeffery’s old house.” He explained unnecessarily to Chara. Looks like he had met their new neighbours after all. Chara only giggled and ran up to keep pace with her new friend and continue whatever they were talking about before the skeletons showed up. As Sans began to follow them he realized that his soul was doing little somersaults in his chest, feeling lighter than it had in a very long time. He could still feel the slight burn of his blush on his cheeks…

What did that mean?

* * * * *

The days started to come and go at a far more pleasant pace. Gone were the achingly long days, where the sun tip toed across the sky, making the moon goddess wait for her turn to cross the stage. Sans, or Berry now as the monsters had taken to calling him, went along with what was now considered normal life. He would wake up, make sure that Chara and Papy, woke up on time for work and school, he would make breakfast for them, and then he would go to school himself.

More often than not he would see Frisk running out the door for school, the child always giving him a small, friendly wave before running down the street.

Cooking classes started to become more interesting for Berry. Grillby had began to introduce the class to more heartier dishes, more noodles and fulfilling stir fries, not just soups and simmering for half the class. Perhaps this is what caused Berry to begin to feel more determined than ever. He was finally beginning to enjoy cooking class, showing off what he could do. This feeling only intensified when the sharp toothed Papyrus joined his cooking classes. Though they never worked together in the same group, Berry found himself trying vainly to catch his eye. Even as he began to earn top marks in his dishes, that red gaze still stayed away from his blue eyes.

Berry couldn’t understand himself or these odd feelings in his chest. He seemed to be looking forward to catching sight of the tall, dark skeleton monster, his soul always giving a small flutter when he saw him. It had never felt like this, not even when he saw Napstabot in concert that time with his brother. Berry chalked it up to finally meeting another version of his brother. Every so often he would see another version of their villagers. He still had yet to see the other Sans but, if what Edge looked like was any indication… Well, this other Sans had to be pointy and dangerous too, right? The thought rattled around his skull every so often.

It was about a month after the Fells joined everyone on the Surface when Grillby called to Berry during one of the cooking class. “Berry. Will you see me after class?” he had asked, his pure white eyes looking at him.

Grillby’s voice never rose above a whisper, yet each word was strong, carried to their ears by a warm gentle wind, encouraging them to listen. When he laughed, as he rarely did, it sounded like the soft crackle of embers… Berry was quietly staring at him before he realized that he was watching his teacher with a stoic empty gaze. “Oh!” Berry exclaimed. “No… No… Not at all… I mean! Yes! Yes I will see you after class.” Berry blushed brightly as his teammate for the day giggled quietly. Across from the room those red eyes lifted from the boiling water for a second, looking up at the other skeleton, before they returned to their task.

It seemed to take forever for the last student to trickle out of Grillby’s classroom but finally they were alone. “Yes, Grillby?” he asked as Grillby locked the door behind the last student.

“Berry, I feel like you are no longer challenged by my class.” Grillby told him, getting straight to the point.

Berry looked down at his hands and slowly shook his head. “When… when we were under the Surface my brother was pretty set against me joining the Royal Guards. Instead he had me trained in the kitchens and cooking. I have learned a few new dishes, and I enjoy it here, it’s… well, as you said. It’s not a challenge to me.”

Grillby hummed in thought, scratching his hand through his fiery hair, causing little orange sparks to float off of him. Berry had to giggle. Seemed like the fire elemental, for being a top notch chef, had a bad case of dandruff. “How about this instead. I run my own bar just off campus. Tomorrow you start as my assistant chef. Think of it as your practicum.” He said, looking at the little skeleton monster for confirmation.

“What? Are… are you serious?” being Grillby’s practicum student… it was unheard of that Grillby would take students from his own class to work with him. Grillby nodded again, no words this time. “Yes… yes sir!”

There was a larger smile. “Very well Berry… I’ll see you tomorrow then. Three o’clock. Don’t be tardy. I don’t let my own mates be late, so there’s no excuse for you, student or not.”

* * * * *

It was two thirty and Berry was already in front of the bar, eagerly pacing. He had been so excited that he had left home as soon as he could and had ran over. It seems like he had beat the fire monster there though. He looked at his little wrist watch and sighed. His brother always did say that he was eager to make a good impression…

“Here already?” a smooth, crackling voice asked him.

Berry jumped and whirled around. There was Grillby. He was somehow dressed even more formally than in the classroom. It had to be the bowtie. “Er… yes. You did tell me not to be late.” Berry said, smiling wildly.

Grillby smiled. “I suppose I did.” He pulled out a ring of keys from his pocket. “Come on then. You can help me set up. We’ll just keep the doors locked behind us until we are ready for everyone.”

For the next three hours, Berry worked harder than he ever had in Grillby’s class. He wiped down counters, tables and seats, washed countless dishes, making sure everything sparkled in the low lights, before helping Grillby prep the food that he would need right away for the hungry monsters. As five drew closer Berry could see a small gathering of monsters and humans outside of the bar. “My regulars.” Explained Grillby, noticing Berry’s curious gaze.

“How… how long have you been on the Surface?” Berry asked him It seemed as if the regulars were very comfortable with one another, open and laughing, casually joking with each other.

“About five years.”

Berry couldn’t believe it. “So long already?” he asked. No wonder the humans were used to the sight of other monsters. They had plenty of time to adjust to the thoughts and sight of monsters walking amongst them.

“Yes… they’ve flown by… the best five years of my life.” Grill by said softly, dusting off two photographs. The one that Berry could see held two flame elements in the picture, in a place that looked like Snowdin. The other… it was a picture of Grillby and two other silhouettes.

“Ready to open up?” Grillby asked, checking the stove and oil. Hot and ready for everything.

Berry nodded and walked over to the door. He took a deep breath before unlocking the doors and opening them.

* * * * *

It was during that first hour of work that Berry knew that he had made the right choice. He was on his feet, constantly running around. He was grabbing food or drinks for the patrons, making cheerful small talk and feeling comfortable. Yes, he was feeling like his old self again. Even the humans were making sure that he felt warm and welcome. Though that could have always been the ever presence of Grillby making them feel that…

No… Berry had a feeling that it wasn’t.

“Hey Grillz. Ya gotta helper today.” A voice drawled. Berry turned away from the counter he was wiping to look at the other monster. A short, small skeleton in a black furred jacket sat on the stool. He looked rough, like he had been in a few skirmishes, with cracks dotting his skull and his other visible bones. He looked to be the stereotypical trouble type of monster with a collar around his vertebrae, his golden tooth, his fangs and his red eye lights.

Red eye lights…

Berry wondered.

“Good evening Red… was beginning to think that you wouldn’t make it out here today.” Grillby said, approaching him.

Red shrugged. “Ya know how prissy the Boss can be… but I was lucky and the others talked him into it, not that he had a choice.” Grillby seemed to roll his eyes and chuckle softly before sliding him a yellow bottle, but saying nothing in return. “Happy Friday.” Red said, tipping the bottle towards Berry before taking a sip.

“It’s Thursday.”

“Friday somewhere already.” Red said, sighing slightly as he came up for air. “What does it take to get a menu around here?” he asked.

“Aren’t you getting your usual? Burger and fries to stay. And then a spicy steak sandwich with spicy ketchup and bacon with an order of fries, and an order of combination noodles and sweet-and-sour pork, those items to go?” Grillby asked him curiously.

The skeleton chuckled. “I’ve been here less than a month and you already know me as well as my own Grillby…” he said, clinking the tags on his collar with a finger. There were two different tags on it, Berry realized. Both tags were circular but one was red, the other purple coloured. The bartender gave a quick, business smile and began to cook the food, having the burger and fries ready within moments, and turning back to the burners deal with the other food. Red hummed happily and began to eat.

Berry ran around, helping the other customers before returning to the front of the bar. Red ate his food quickly. In the time it took Berry to make a lap around the area, Red had ate his hamburger and was working on the last of his fries.

Almost like he was used to losing food as soon as he got it.

“You’ve been staring at me a lot. If you have a question just ask me. I won’t bite… hard.” Red said, popping the last fry in his mouth.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to be rude!” Berry exclaimed, again a light blue flush coming to his cheeks.

“Well you were so you might as well ask me.” Red grumbled, watching as Grillby finished his last part of the order.

“Just… just where I come from I don’t see many collars. We usually put them around pets so monsters would know who to return them to.” Berry tried to explain, somehow making himself more embarrassed.

Red listened to him, pulling slightly at the sturdy leather wrapped around his vertebrae. “That’s what we do in Underfell too.” He said. “Collars are for pets, or to symbolize what belongs to you. Your property. Though there…” he picked slightly at his fangs, “it was more of a warning of who you were messing with.”

“But you wear it like a choker.” Blue said, astounded at how calm Red was explaining all of this to him.

A curt nod. “That’s because I belong to someone… two special someones actually.” His gaze became softer as he tapped at the dogs tags again. The light caught the tags differently, exposing the engravings on the tags. Single letters were engraved on both tags – the red tag had an N, while the purple had a P on it. This monster seemed to be more full of riddles and half answers, than any real answers.

Grillby handed Red the bag. “I assume this is being put on your tab?” he asked, a raised brow on his face.

“Heh…. I’m going to have to find a new place to eat. You really do know me too well.” Red said, grabbing hold of the bag. In a flash he was gone, teleported away. The only sign that he was ever there was the empty mustard bottle at the spot that he had sat.

These monsters really were odd, Berry determined before going back to serving the other patrons.

* * * * *

The last of the patrons finally cleared out as Berry and Grillby set to returning the bar to some sort of normality. Floors were swept and moped, counters and appliances scrubbed till clean…

“For everything that was eaten tonight, it didn’t take too long to prepare everything.” Berry noted as he was stacking chairs on top of the tables.

Grillby nodded. “I also have a morning crew while I am teaching. They do a lot more prep and through cleaning than we could accomplish in a single night… I owe a lot to my staff.” He grinned and laughed softly, sparks emitting from his fiery hair again.

Berry smiled. It seemed like Grillby was very genuine, as a business man, chef and teacher…

He was fortunate to have met him.

There was a small crack, causing Berry to startle and jump, whirling to meet the disturbance. A tall lanky skeleton, dressed in an outfit similar to the Royal Guards of the Underground, and a small, stout skeleton dressed in a blue jacket stood behind him, settling from the force of their teleport. A red scarf and grey hood swayed softly in the artificial breeze. Berry blinked and rubbed at his eye sockets. These… these were other versions of him and his brother, another Sans and Papyrus. Not Fells but…

“There you guys are.” Grillby said, a small pink flush coming to his cheeks as he leaned over the counter. “I was wondering if you guys forgot about me.”

“FORGET ABOUT YOU? NEVER! IT WAS SIMPLY THAT THE LAZY BONES FELL ASLEEP ON THE COUCH AGAIN AND WAKING HIM UP… WELL YOU KNOW HOW WELL THAT GOES OVER.” The tall, other Papyrus said, looking over at Grillby.

Sans chuckled. “sorry Grillz. i was bone tired.”

Berry and Papyrus groaned as Grillby shook his head. The small noise caused the two skeletons to look over at him. “WOWIE! THIS MOST BE THE STUDENT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT!” the Papyrus said, walking over to Berry and stretching out a hand. “IT’S NICE TO MEET YOU. GRILLBY TALKS ABOUT YOU AND SPEAKS THE WORLD OF YOUR COOKING. I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS, BUT I AM SURE THAT YOU KNEW THAT ALREADY. GRILLBY SAYS YOU ALSO HAVE A BROTHER WITH THE SAME NAME AS I…” Papyrus continued to talk, still pumping Berry’s hand like an excited motor.

“and i’m Sans.” The other skeleton gently pried him out of Papyrus never ending handshake. “nice to meet ya. like Paps says, Grillz speaks very highly of you.”

“Especially after tonight…. I think my restaurant is in trouble.” Grillby snorted at the outrage that the three skeletons made. “Berry, I’m sure you already know their names but this the short one is Sans, and the tall one is Papyrus. They are my mates.” He said to Berry carefully, his cheeks still slightly flushed.

Berry wasn’t fazed by this. In Swap, though it was unusual for a monster to have more than one partner, it was not unheard of. “It’s very nice to meet you.” he said with a wide smile. “You guys are lucky! Grillby must make sure that you guys are fed well every night.”

The three other monsters’ shoulders relaxed slightly and their grins became more genuine. “Paps actually does most of the cooking.” The other Sans admitted. “Grillby is busy with his teaching and the bar, and apparently my cooking goes unappreciated.”

“IT IS NOT THAT YOUR COOKING GOES UNAPPRECIATED, BROTHER, IT IS THAT YOUR COOKING CONSISTS OF EITHER HOT DOGS AND KETCHUP, OR COMING HERE TO PICK UP YOUR ORDER!” Papyrus said, causing the two skeleton brothers to good naturally argue with each other.

“Is your brother picking you up?” Grillby asked over Papyrus and Sans’ commotion, “I’m sure we can shortcut our way to your place before we head home.”

Berry grinned. “He should be home any moment…” he said, “he was probably just sleeping on the couch…”

“tell me, who was sleeping on the couch?” a lazy voice asked. Papy was behind him, a sparkle in his eye lights and an odd red and white toque on his skull. When he had he gotten such a hat? It clashed with his orange pullover…

Seriously, the nerve of this skeleton.

Papyrus, Papy, Sans and Grillby were introduced and shook hands quickly. It seemed like Papyrus and Sans were in a hurry to get Grillby home.

“Alright Berry…” the orange flame monster said, yawning as the other two skeletons pulled him towards them. “I’ll give you the day off of school tomorrow, but I’ll be expecting you here, same time…. and the next day you’ll be at school.”

“Of course Chef!” Berry grinned, feeling his own eye sockets become heavy and his body begin to lean against his brother. “Tomorrow…”

He barely felt his brother’s teleport home or being tucked into bed. The next thing he was aware of was curling into his warm blankets and pillows, a large smile on his face as he began to fall asleep…

* * * * *

Next morning Berry managed to wake everyone up on time and shoo them out the door for school and work, Papy still insisting on wearing the goofy hat. He would have to ask him about that later…

The day passed quickly. Berry crawled back into his bed after the others left, waking about two hours later feeling more refreshed and happy than he had in a while. After giving the house some much needed attention (how does that many dishes accumulate in one day?) Berry began to prepare to leave. He still needed to give himself plenty of time to get to Grillby’s bar.

Excitement growing, he quickly opened the door, almost walking into Edge who was posed to knock on the door.

“Oh… afternoon Edge. How was school today?” Berry asked, smiling at the slightly confused monster.

Edge’s hand retreated back to his side. “BORING AS ALWAYS. IF GRILLBY WANTS US TO FRY THE MEAT, THERE NEEDS TO BE MORE FIRE.” he said, voicing a common compliant in Grillby’s class. It wasn’t “dangerous” enough for him. He needed a better challenge… the list went on.

Berry chuckled politely before stepping out onto their porch. “Perhaps once we become more experienced and take the advanced classes we’ll be able to.” Berry suggested, locking the door.

Edge growled slightly. Berry knew a little about the large monster, but it was very apparent that he was an impatient creature. “YOU WEREN’T AT SCHOOL TODAY.” He stated. “YOU WEREN’T SICK, WERE YOU?” he asked.

Berry shook his head. “No, Grillby gave me the day off because we were working at his bar till late.” Berry said. “I’m headed there now…”

“WILL YOU BE COMING BACK TO THE CLASS?”

“Well of course. I still have to do the written portion of the tests and assignments, I’ll just be doing the cooking with Gril- why do you ask Edge?” Berry looked up at him. Edge had almost sounded concerned, worried that he wouldn’t be at school anymore…

“I WAS JUST CONCERNED THAT YOU WERE COMING DOWN WITH WHAT OUR HUMAN CLASSMATES CALL THE FLU, IS ALL.” Edge stated, growling a little. “HOWEVER, IT SEEMS LIKE MY FEARS WERE UNFOUNDED. VERY WELL, I SHALL AWAIT YOUR RETURN.” Edge said, turning and walking into his own house, leaving a bewildered Berry on the sidewalk.

For the rest of the night Berry wondered about Edge. Was Edge really concerned for him? Or was he more concerned that Berry wouldn’t ever be attending school again?

* * * * *

The thought echoed through Berry’s skull all through his shift. The night flew by in a blur of movement, drinks and food. It seemed to be just as busy as last night and yet… Berry wasn’t retaining any of it. He was on autopilot – doing the odd jobs and the orders that he was requested of, but mentally, he remained up on the porch, looking up at the handsome skeleton…

“you’re not here, are ya champ?” a voice asked him.

Sans, Grillby’s mate. The blue hoodied skeleton tipped a bottle of ketchup to him in a jaunty salute, familiar to Red’s.

Berry grinned at him. “Is this what Papyrus calls you cooking?” he joked, finding a moment to talk to the other version of him.

The skeleton chuckled. “more like Paps is having anime night with my Undyne and Alphys so it’s me home alone until Grillby gets home… but that’s not what i asked. where is your mind tonight? you look many, many miles from here though you still manage to serve everyone…” Sans asked, finishing up the bottle and looking up at him.

Berry looked down at the glass he was rubbing clean. “Isn’t is supposed to be the opposite way? The bartender asking the patron?”

“that’s only in movies,” Sans said, waving it away. “wait… you have your mind on a monster. you have the same expression on your face that Paps did when he and Grillby first started dating.” Berry flushed bright blue. Was he that easy to read? “come on,” Sans smiled, “i’m you, so i know that i’m right. who is it?” he asked.

Berry huffed at him. “You’re awfully nosey…” he complained. Sans shrugged, just leaning forward on the counter, listening intently. Berry sighed. “Fine… I was thinking of one of the other monsters that is in the cooking class with Grillby and I…”

“Is it Boss?” Red asked, sitting next to the other Sans.

Berry yelped. Was there no privacy in this establishment?

“Boss…?” Sans asked the red, fanged skeleton.

“My brother. He was Boss of the Royal Guards…. Let’s call it an old habit.” Red explained, catching the mustard that Berry slid to him, passing the ketchup to Sans.

Sans wiggled his bros. “and here i thought that poor Berry was too innocent to have a crush.” He teased gently, winking at the small blue skeleton.

Red shook his head. “What is the world coming to, am I right?” he eyed Berry. “But, I’m going to give you some advice kid…” he leaned forward across the counter. “You’ve captured Boss’ attention, piqued his interest. If you want to act, now would be the time.” he said.

A bag was placed in front of Red. “Are you two distracting my employee?” Grillby asked them.

Both the ketchup and mustard bottles wiggled at Grillby. “no he has been very attentive to us,” Sans said, grinning as he took another sip.

Red grabbed the bag and stepped down from the stool. “Thanks for the grub, Grillby.” He said, smiling at the flame monster. His red eyes, much like his brother’s, found Berry’s. “My brother has always wondered about going somewhere where he can put his guard down for a moment, let himself relax… and he has always wondered what I see in the stars.” Red again winked at him. “Maybe you can teach him. We haven’t been able to…” he said, playing with his tags before teleporting from the bar. Leaving Berry with all sorts of thoughts echoing around in his head.

* * * * *

“… and there! See those three stars all in a row? That’s Orion the hunter! He was placed in the stars by Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt and moon…” Berry explained, pointing to the belt of the hunter.

The night was clear and warm, not a cloud dared trespass on the skies tonight. The moon was shining bright, as if Artemis herself was giving her blessing to the two monsters on the hill, looking up at the jewelled night sky.

“IF SHE LOVED HIM SO MUCH, WHY DID SHE PUT HIM THERE?” Edge asked him, squinting up at the stars, trying to see the pictures that Berry did.

“Her twin brother, Apollo, tricked her into killing him. He challenged her to hit an island with her arrow and it turned out to be Orion. When he died, Artemis, overtaken by the grief of losing him, placed him in the stars so he could watch over the hunt for eternity…” Berry explained, pointing out the rest of the hunter’s body and spear to Edge. “And when her carriage travels the sky, they can be together again…”

“A SAPPY LOVE STORY.” Edge said, his eyes not leaving the shapes of the stars.

“Just a sappy love story,” Berry said. “Perhaps you would better enjoy the story of Leo and the two bears? How they chased each other into the sky?”

There was a rustling next to Berry and a hand took his. “TELL ME MORE… I… I AM ENJOYING MY TIME WITH YOU.” Edge admitted, still looking up at the stars.

Berry gently squeezed Edge’s hand. “I am too… I’m glad you took me up on my offer of a date.”

Edge chuckled. “AS IF RED AND THE OTHER TWO WOULD LET ME LIVE IT DOWN… I’M SURE YOUR BROTHER IS HAPPY THAT YOU ARE OUTSIDE, LETTING HIM HAVE HIS DATE TOO.”

Berry giggled. “I’m sure he appreciates it… so there is Leo the lion’s tail,” he said, using their intertwined hands to point out the string of stars. “This is a story of why so many animals have short tails…”

41 notes · View notes

janeaustentextposts · 7 years

Note

Question! I noticed - maybe I'm wrong - that in all the adaptations, the casting for the main characters is similar: Darcy is dark haired, and so is Lizzie; Jane is blonde and (for some fascinating reason) Bingley is ginger-y. Is there a reason? something in the books that I missed? Some extra source? It seemed too much a coincidence (although I do love Ginger Bingley) thanks!!!

First off, I’m going to refer back to Mullan’s What Matters in Jane Austen? again, because he’s done a whole chapter on what her characters look like (and starts off with a basic examination of casting choices in adaptations and the admiration or outrage which always follows.) “How people look is often suggested rather than specified in Austen’s novels.” He then goes on to quote Sterne’s Tristram Shandy, “…paint her to your own mind–as like your mistress as you can–as unlike your wife as your conscience will let you.”

All we know of Jane is that she is considered very beautiful–as much is said by Bingley, her mother (who has no difficulty criticizing her children when they displease her,) and even Darcy must admit it as a fact. Looks are important in novels where often penniless girls must rely on other attractions in their manners and person–”…words used so frequently about characters when we first meet them: handsome, pretty, gentlemanlike, elegant…”. And yet she avoids specifics–perhaps as a reaction to other novels of her era, where a heroine’s precise points of beauty are totted up among her other virtues to make her a peerless wonder. Austen’s heroines are often described by other characters, rather than the narration, as it’s important to consider who is looking, and how, when looking at their judgements. Some people use a mention in Jane Austen’s letters about Jane wearing the colour green and Elizabeth preferring yellow to be some kind of marker of what their haircolours must have been in Austen’s mind’s eye, but that’s a tenuous argument at best, and if Austen had wanted the world in general to know imagined particulars about Jane and Elizabeth, she would have set them down in the text.

We know Elizabeth’s eyes are fine, and dark, but beyond that, we are given no details. On a genetic level, dark eyes are far more likely to occur in people with darker hair, but Austen wasn’t working with genetics–and dark eyes paired with lighter hair can sometimes be a rare sign of remarkable beauty, as in the descriptions of Irene in Galsworthy’s Forsyte Saga books. (A description which was entirely ignored in the casting of my future wife Gina McKee, but then Irene’s beauty and her allure is such a pivotal force in the novels that to pin it down as necessarily belonging to certain shades of colouring is to make it more trite than it truly is. Irene’s beauty is something beyond what one sees at first glance–it is transcendent charm.) Dark could mean brown, or also a very dark blue or grey–it’s impossible to tell, exactly. Anne Elliott’s eyes are mild and dark, Fanny Price’s are soft and light, Harriet Smith’s are blue, Jane Fairfax’s a deep grey, (and her lashes and eyebrows called dark, giving us some notion of the likely shade of her hair,) Mary Crawford’s are sparkling and dark…eyes are often the only thing near to a solid description we are given of physical attributes, and even then half of the description is more to do with the expression of the personality or feeling of the character through their glances and gazes, rather than specifically the colour of their irises. (Only Emma Woodhouse’s exact eye-colour is known–they are “hazle” and no adaptation so far has given enough of a shit to make certain of casting.) Marianne Dashwood has very dark eyes, and there is a general comparative description of the figures of the two sisters–but casting directors rarely, if ever, I think, take specifics of figures into account beyond an ‘acceptable’ level of Hollywood slimness.Now, for the casting trends (exceptions to the pattern you laid out being the 1940 P&P’s Greer Garson being a dirty-blonde/light brown Elizabeth, while Maureen O’Sullivan’s Jane had very dark hair; and the 1980 miniseries with Elizabeth Garvie’s Eliza also having light brown hair while Sabina Franklyn’s Jane was several shades darker–but indeed, the two more recent and well-known adaptations of 1995 and 2005 have the colourings you mentioned,) it’s probably just down to Hollywood mechanics where you’re going to have to combine the tropes of a comparative Ugly Duckling sister as well as a Best Friend/Beta Couple plotline. Coding a blonde woman (or man) as ‘good’ and a darker-haired person as ‘less good’ has been a Thing since long before cinema showed up on the scene. There’s a reason Laura Ingalls spends so much time inwardly (and outwardly) bitching about her sister Mary’s luck in being blonde (and also better-behaved, though this is never explicitly tied to the fact that Mary is blonde, but just ties INTO the overall notion that Mary is The Better Daughter.) Dark-haired heroines throughout older literature have bemoaned their lack of golden locks (notably also in LM Montgomery’s works, with Anne Shirley’s famous sensitivity about her hair being red, but also briefly in Emily Starr’s contemplation of her own black hair and atypical looks, which gets a bit of verse thrown at it which I can’t find sourced anywhere else so must have been made up by Montgomery herself: “If the bards of old the truth have told the sirens had raven hair. But over the earth since art had birth, they paint the angels fair.“So culturally, in the west, there’s a pervasive notion (especially when it comes to women,) that dark-haired women are the ‘darker’ side of their humanity…the temptresses, the more-likely-to-be-bad. (Though any reasonable reader would be like “…well, they’re human, you see, not out-and-out evil.”) But of course anyone compared to the fair-haired saintly paragon of womanhood would look bad–and so equally is the angelic blonde woman a trope in literature, often but not always used in comparisons against her brunette foil.

In cinema, quite often it’s just to better differentiate between characters, and to use these assumptions which are deeply entrenched in our cultures to play upon our immediate and almost instinctive reactions to visual cues. Jane is super-good, so she’s blonde. Bingley is likewise a bright and easy-going character, with more elements of comedy about him, so he’s got lighter hair, too, either as a strawberry blonde or redhead–but he is definitely the sidekick. I, personally, would be all for a ginger Darcy. Or a ginger-everybody P&P. (But that’s not going to happen, because redheaded men are culturally de-sexed/made less masculine or attractive, whereas redheaded women are more inclined to be overly-sexualized. Humanity is weird.) Darcy is a brooding brunette, because darker hair in the case of a male character gives them gravitas and mystery. It’s that damn Byronic thing coming into play. Dark hair, dark secrets. It’s a visual construct we’ve trapped ourselves into, at this point. Also, when you’ve got two love-stories running more or less concurrently, an audience needs visual markers to help them quickly identify and individualize (and therefore emotionally-invest in) the characters. More morally-dubious and fascinating hero and heroine Elizabeth and Darcy are brunettes because we see them making mistakes and drawing our attention by being fuck-ups. Lizzie can’t be the Prettier Sister, so she’s more automatically made the Brunette Underdog. Darcy is brooding and mysterious–so it’s very easy to make him dark-haired. Their contrasts are in their secondary characters–Jane and Bingley. Jane is prettier, and good-hearted (moreso than Eliza, anyway,) so she ascends to Blonde. Bingley is the Good Friend, and seemingly with fewer social defects compared to Darcy, so as the Nice Man, he gets lighter hair to also differentiate him from Darcy and make him more matchy-matchy with Jane. Our brains are making these connections based on visuals even before we’ve gotten half a dozen words of dialogue from any of these people.

This happens often in films and TV shows–in Coppola’s Dracula, Sadie Frost (a natural brunette) was made a vibrant redhead as Lucy to contrast to Winona Ryder’s more sedate and mysterious Mina. (Though this also had the fun effect of tying in a possible reference to the historical link between redhaired people and vampires, and the whole mythos of redhaired women in particular and sexual allure/witchcraft/spiritual evil–particularly as THIS version of Lucy is much more heavily sexualized compared to her book counterpart. I don’t know how much of the hair-colour-change was on purpose from Coppola’s perspective, and largely it’s just handwaved as being so people could really tell apart the ONLY TWO MAJOR FEMALE CHARACTERS IN THE FILM, but personally I think it’s an interesting choice–particularly compared to Katie McGrath’s blonde Lucy.) Again, we see the contrasting of virtue coded in hair-colouring, as Lucy is a character known for her sweetness and purity…as well as being a secondary female character to the heroine, and hence her more-virtuous foil…with lighter hair. Mina’s place as an educated, working, and married woman, with a more active part in the narrative, particularly as her brushes with dark forces mark her as ‘unholy’, makes it easier to code her as ‘complicated’, i.e. a brunette. Interestingly, this is set on its head in Penny Dreadful, where Mina becomes the blonde, doomed damsel, and her friend/lover Vanessa is the raven-haired woman at the center of a maelstrom of fucked up shit full of vampires, witches, and devils. Essentially if you want your heroine to go ‘bad’ a little (or a lot), give her a better-by-comparison blonde friend and have at it.Of course, since these tropes are so pervasive, we do see stories where this is purposefully mirrored or mocked, where the icy blonde is the femme fatale or turncoat who uses her appeal to deceive others–but this relies just as heavily on the initial assumption that a fair-haired character is intrinsically ‘better’ on a moral level.To conclude, this is why I think we see that general trend with colouring when it comes to casting/styling these characters in cinematic adaptations, as we have really very little in the text to go on, but from the characters themselves there are long traditions to draw from for visual cues to quickly and adeptly condition audiences to draw certain assumptions about these characters which enable us to rapidly bond with and understand them to some degree. I want to specify “Western” audiences because the blonde/brunette thing is at its roots kind of a colourism thing which is grossly pervasive in a white supremacist society going back for centuries, and Caucasian beauty standards do not and should not apply globally; but as the media most of us are familiar with is dominated by this white heteronormative patriarchal history, these tropes and codings exist for ultimately gross reasons. Frankly we could all do without them from this day forward, but change can be slow and so these stereotypes continue to exist and blonde people on-screen for now often continue to be the tacit code for ‘these people are the purest bestest people’ while the darker-haired people are almost always more morally-grey, complicated–even troubling–and made more ‘fascinating’ by their more flawed natures. It’s a shitty way of doing things, but we’ve been culturally conditioned to respond to things like that, and so it works.Anyway, thanks for asking this one–my answer went to places I wasn’t fully expecting me to go, but I enjoyed blowing the dust off my film studies qualifications and I always love yelling about culture.

#Ask Me Anything Austen-Adjacent #AMAAA #eorlsdotter

165 notes · View notes