carve {my} heart out

Not that Susie knew everything about what Kris went through before their parents split, but.. watching Asgore do the things he did, the way he treated them, the way he obsessed over the Dark World; even how he started ignoring the flowers, despite how much they wanted to spend time with him.

She wondered.. if he'd ever made Kris feel that way, too. So focused on proving himself, he never saw what was right there in front of him; a kid who just wanted their dad.

...

She wasn't really sure when she reached for their hand, as if it was done on instinct; but her fingers were curled around Kris's eventually, giving them a gentle squeeze.

"You don't have to talk about it, if you don't want to. But.."

".. I'm here. For whenever you might."

They said they were fine, but Susie had a hard time believing them; even when Kris started to tease her about her date with Noelle. Her face warmed up again, nearly spluttering out of her calmer demeanor; all the while, still holding onto their hand. Maybe a little tighter now, though.

"Wh.. who the hell said I wouldn't, huh?!? I mean-- we've hung out alone before!! H-here! And in Cyber City! O-obviously I can do it, dumbass!!"

She was happy to see them smile a little, at least; grinning a little herself as she pulled up her knees and hid her face in them.

".. I dunno. I.. wanna ask her, if she'd wanna do something like that again.. whenever we get the chance. It's just.. the next time I see her.."

Turning her head, no longer letting her words be muffled by her pajama pants, Susie looked at Kris then; her bangs haphazardly falling across her face.

".. I'm gonna tell her everything about the Dark World. Even if it happens before we ever go back home-- if Noelle shows up here again.. I'm not gonna wait. She.. needs to know. We really need all the help we can get, y'know? And maybe.. maybe while we're all here, we can figure out what we're gonna do to get your dad and Undyne back."

.. she didn't really know how Kris felt about that part. Her last memory with them was thanking them for walking her home, and then.. telling them that the secret of the Dark World couldn't just be between them anymore. It was getting way too big for that, wasn't it? Didn't it make sense to bring Noelle into it, too..?

Idly, Susie tapped her thumb against Kris's while she held onto their hand; as if she was worried about what they might say. As if she wondered if, maybe, she was crossing a line she herself had once drawn in the sand.

But that wouldn't change them. Telling Noelle, inviting her to their world, the place that once just belong to the two of them-- it wouldn't change anything between Kris and Susie.

.. right?

".. I hope you had fun, too," she eventually said, her voice quieter than it usually was; yet sincere all the same. "I was.. really happy I got to be with Noelle like that, but.."

They don't want to even think. Not about Dess. Not about their family. Not about Noelle. Not about what they feel.

They don't want to talk about any of it.

So they don't.

They let Susie say what she needs to and just listen, quiet and somber. Their hand slackens in Susie's though, when they're reminded of Susie's intent on bringing Noelle into this.

Kris had hoped that, maybe, being here in Spirale, Susie would change her mind. That she would like being here too much to want to even think about telling Noelle anything about it. That maybe, they could have enjoyed the daydream that maybe, just maybe, they could have... something. The delusion of someone caring about them the same way they care about her.

Susie is all they have left. And maybe if they say it enough, they'll believe that that's the only reason they feel so deeply for her.

Daydreams all have to end someday.

The jealous burn sputters out, and all they feel is hollowed out and exhausted.

"... It was fun." Kris forces out, fighting back the ache in their chest and the burn in their eyes. Their hair offers them some small amount of privacy, but it doesn't mask the faintly queasy note in the words. Though that's less due to the misery of a one-sided love and more about how bad that day was no matter how it played out.

"I had fun."

They swallow around the growing knot in their throat. "And, Susie, it's okay if things change between us." Kris adds, not lifting their gaze from the edge of the bed, hand twitching to squeeze her's weakly even though it feels like all of their strength has left their body. "Loving someone changes people. And it's okay if you want to spend more time with Noelle, or we don't spend as much time together as we do now. I just want you to be happy, and we're friends."

Kris feels like they've put some sort of wall up around themselves with the familiar soft flatness that returns to their voice and expression. Just saying cookie-cutter responses that sound like the right script to read from.

"Alright, my favourite contestants! My Hall Of Famers! I finally got my claws on one of those Fancy Keys! So we can get a house... anywhere! So now we've got to pick a place to move to. Cotes is nice, but I want a change of scenery, don't you think?"

He's even got a map and everything!

"I think... we should probably stay around the city until I eventually buy that helicopter I want, since none of us drive. What are we thinking? What's a home to--"

...

"Oh sweet. So we're getting a new house?" At least that's what Kris sounds like they're saying around the mouthful of Just Salsa they have attempted to chug. It mostly just comes out as garbled and muffled noises. They finally do manage to swallow. They wipe at their mouth with the back of their hand, looking far too smug for someone who just drank half a jar of salsa. Kris doesn't bother repeating their question.

They do, at least, stop to think about what Tenna's asking; even though he didn't finish his sentence, Kris can glean what he was asking.

What's a home to us?

And that... is a really hard question to answer.

Spirale is more home than anything they've experienced, as sad as that is, so they really have to sit and thnk about that. They'll get back to Tenna on that one later.

"Or maybe I'll just throw it at Gangle. If it's wet, I bet it'll just explode like a bomb. Totally crack her mask and get it all glittery," he laughs, kicking his legs up as he leans back then sighing, taking another bite from his pizza.

This was life, really. Just sitting with a friend (?), eating an unhealthy snack, talking shit. He used to do stuff like this, right?

"What, you can get video games here? Man, I haven't played one of those in forever."

He takes another quiet bite, mulling it over.

"Yeah, it's kind of neat. They're like... sort of like the ones I have back home, but... different? Maybe it's not that neat. Just kind of... creepy?" Kris chews on their own slice of pizza, humming a bit in thoughts and shrugging, not really keen on expanding on that train of thought.

"I think it wouldn't explode like that - but they DO have baking soda in them and, in a pressurized bottle, they might at least make a Big Noise and mess. So do what you will with that knowledge." Kris chuckles, draping their arm over the railing of the playground castle railing and staring off into the distance, slowly mulling over how to respond to that... last bit.

Jax isn't really the open type, and Kris isn't sure if they're reading his tone right, but... he definitely doesn't sound thrilled about that knowledge.

"Ah... so it's like that here too?" Kris mutters, rubbing the back of their neck before leaning back on their palms. "Damn. I guess it's not any different than back home for me but... it's got to be pretty jarring if it's not something someone's used to." They purposefully don't tag Jax as the hypothetical "someone" in their words.

Kris grins, doing their best to be nonchalant and cool about it (they gotta look cool for their cool buddy after all).

...Was this anything he could fix?

"You and Susie. You're from different... spots in time, I guess. She and I went in one direction, but you... @#$%, you're being pulled in all of them. Of course it's awful. You don't deserve that..."

A memory plays, muted, on his screen. Watching the teen wake up from the sofa, reaching into their chest to pull out that...

[Heart-Shaped Object.], he called it.

Pale, struggling, sluggish. Not unlike now. ... He might hurt them if he holds them any tighter. Instead, he remains firm when they begin to loosen their grip and rub their eyes. ... He wished Toriel were here instead of him. He's only the TV. She was their parent, a real guardian. Not an appliance.

It's unfair.

They wish they were just from one point. But, like Tenna said, they're being pulled in every direction. Every path, every choice no matter how small or insignificant was ripe for the picking to the Soul.

Kris stares at a fuzzy bit of their sweater that has clung to Tenna's shirt, sagging against their guardian and just trying to stay as warm as they can before they have to retreat to their room to get the Soul. Though... thinking about it, Tenna has seen it already. Once before...

"The... no... thankfully, no. Not as bad anyway." Just minor instances. Like when they burnt the pie for Christmas and the Soul reset to just before the pie went into the oven. Minor things like that, and never very often. "It doesn't have the power to do that anymore. Not to the same extent. It mostly just... lets me fix small problems - like cooking mistakes and catching shows I wanted to watch but missed, and it's more like... a groundhog day thing? So it's not.. that bad anymore, and it's linear."

Kris pulls away fully, head down and hands gripping the edges of the blanket around their shoulders.

They're not a bad kid. Just a regular kid. Kids are good and bad, because they're just kids. They've gotta grow and see what blooms. And sometimes, they don't want to make the hard choices. Sometimes choices are made for them. Sometimes they make the wrong choices.

You already know how Flowery feels about Kris.

"Hey, that's great, I was almost worried. With everything that happened in the Flower Kingdom, and then you end up stuck here..." he shakes his head, still smiling. "Couldn't blame you if you were a littles upset. But as long as you're living your dream."

He almost thought this place was some kind of in-between, but if Kris and the others are here, that can't be right. Still plenty to learn, but a reunion like this isn't the place to grill them about it.

"You're worried about me? Talk about flattered! Heh, I'm... here, aren't I? No, you're... talking about Hometown." He sighs, like the topic's a bother. "Flowers can be hardier than you'd think, but... well, you know a flower king, right? Maybe if you can find him in time..."

Maybe Asgore can nurture him back to health. Maybe he can't.

(Or maybe Kris is simply projecting.)

"Yeah... living my dream... Could say that I guess." Kris really wishes they weren't. Whatever. It isn't like they have any right to burden Flowery with their issues. Though, the flower is far more observant than Kris would like, so they aren't looking forward to being called out about how... miserable they look and sound.

Especially when they think about how that day ended.

Flowery... probably isn't going to make it in Hometown. So here... it's probably for the best that he's here rather than there. Kinder. The question distracts them almost immediately, thoughts quickly shifting to what could be considered "the boys."

Well... that'd probably be Susie and Jax they guess.

"... Well," Kris rubs the back of their neck. "... usually I'd hit up Jax and see if he wants to go set off fireworks or eat a cold pizza at the playground." Or setup makeshift rage rooms to break shit in. "And Susie and I like to just... do whatever sounds fun." Kris averts their eyes. "There's a diner I like to go to sometimes, when I just want to be alone... I went to it a lot when I first got here. They have good hot chocolate."

They pause.

. . . . .

. . . okay.”

There’s no use in denying Kris’ feelings. Chara would be a hypocrite if they did. Instead, they continue to hold Kris’ hands with their own bandaged, scarred ones —

Scars that will never go away.

“In that case. We can be bad here together. I will not leave you. You may think you do not deserve Susie and Noelle, but I think we deserve each other. You are.”

. . . hesitation. Chara’s throat flutters, before they swallow.

“You are like a sibling to me. You do not have to force yourself to he happy with me. You do not have to force a smile.

So... they were forced to compromise.

And... be happy that, even if it feels like the life they'd built here is falling apart, there's at least one person who understands their problems and fears.

A small smile crosses Kris's face.

Noelle not remembering the Dark World.. yeah, that had always made sense; even if here, Susie wished she could've told her about all of it. At the very least, she was on track to do that at home.. but she wondered just how much time they'd have to get into it all. In Spirale, the days went by so slowly; it was nice, to be able to live, and just enjoy her time with everyone. With Kris. Before they had to think about anything serious again.

.. they didn't have that kind of time at home right now.

When Kris mentioned the festival, Susie suddenly felt her face grow hot; purple scales tinted with scarlet in the shadows of their room, turning her face the opposite direction as she scratched her cheek. Through all the deeper stuff, those memories are what kept her grounded; that incredible day that felt like a dream, the best she'd ever had.. it was still hard to believe that it was actually real. But if Kris remembered it too, then..

"H-heh.. yeah. I remember that, too. It was.. pretty awesome," she managed to get out, her claws tapping the edge of the mattress almost in embarrassment. "Going on the ferris wheel with her, getting ice cream and talking to QC again.. heh! Not to mention getting to hit you in the head with the big hammer. Oh, yeah-- and the haunted house, the King and Queen ballot.."

"You fell asleep at the lake, but.. that was.. really.. nice, too. I, uh. I kinda remember rambling about that to you in my memories too, though.." she shifted a bit, her hair shielding the side of her face, as Susie's smile slowly disappeared. ".. just wish we could've caught up with her after I got more ice cream. That's when.. the Dark World was opened at your dad's shop, right..?"

At that, Susie went quiet; as if searching her memories, still trying to make sense of.. how that happened. Though the timing was right, as she saw how Kris quickly scrambled for their phone; fumbling to put the flashlight on before scooting to the back of their bed, almost like something had scared them.

She blinked, not sure what to make of it-- but eventually followed suit. Scooting over the blankets until her back met the wall, her shoulder bumping into theirs; pressing against Kris to remind them that she was there.

".. then we met all the flowers. Flowery, and the rest of them. All the things they did to try and make your dad happy, and then.. the Knight.." she trailed off a bit, raising one of her knees up to rest her arm over; leaning her head against the wall shortly after. ".. there was a lot of good stuff that happened, yeah.. but it's.. kind of a lot, isn't it?"

They really don't want to think about any version of that day though. Or... well, maybe they would rather think about anything other than how cold the lake was. It was better than that grinning face that haunts them and the worst version of the sunset.

But being so miserably sad and lonely because of something so agonizingly mundane and pathetic like that, after drowning twice, just makes them feel stupid. Like they should be worrying about bigger things than their stupid hurt feelings.

Kris shrugs a little, looking away from her.

"Yeah... it was a lot."

They make a small noise of uncertainty at her question.

No, not really. They don't say that.

"I'm okay," they say, though it rings hollow even to their own ears. "just... it was a lot. It... brought up a lot of bad memories of... before. When I was a kid. The dark world I mean, not the festival." Kris picks at their sheets, forcing themselves to relax. Susie i there, her warmth and closeness calming their nerves.

They chew on their inner cheek, trying to think of something to say that isn't just placating remarks about a day they wished they'd slept through. Hell, they almost wish Susie had let them get dragged off by Berdly. At least then Kris could have at least distracted themselves by tuning Berdly out entirely.

In hindsight, a lot of things made sense now. With the new memories the two had gained, he guessed it only got worse from there. What begins to break his heart, though, is watching Kris curl up on themselves. To start to shake. And the more the child spoke, the more horrified the Darkner became.

He thinks back to Spamton, and how there were so many of these 'realities' he kept talking about. About how that Soul had the power to change fate.

"Kris...?"

If he had a stomach, it would have dropped to the floor. The finality of their last encounter with the girl... He's trying to keep calm and rational, especially for their sake. But to see the kid he loved so much so sick with worry...

Normally, he gives them their space. They tolerated affection, but wasn't one to seek it out, if he remembered right. But at the moment...

With his strength, it's easy for him to reach and pull them close. To completely wrap his arms around them and hold the trembling form close. Something he'd never been able to do before.

"It's okay--it's okay. You're not there, neither is she. There's no lake. It's okay..."

When they were children, all the kids had were each other when things got bad. Them, and the TV that tried everything he could to distract them from the family: a father who couldn't let the girl's disappearance go, and a mother who watched one horrible event crumble the life they'd made together. But on this island, in the right-now, where could they turn? Neither parent was here. Nor was Asriel. And their best friend...

His hand moves to the back of their head, shielding them from the ambient light in the room.

Susie, whom they helplessly watched as she fell in love with their childhood friend.

"Breathe... it's okay." He repeats, voice hushed to a whisper.

And their childhood friend, who wanted to not be herself so badly that she would...

It was a horrible feeling, that sinking, icy feeling of phantom cold and pain. Their chest is tight, their breathing shallow and shuddering past dry lips and clattering teeth. They want to disappear, they feel sick, they hate the Soul. They hate it, they hate how little it cares for the people they love, how pitying it is when they get hurt, as if the Soul wasn't the one that let it happen.

It let that all happen because it was curious about what would happen if it did something different this time.

Tenna's reassurances drift through one ear and out the other, barely able to hear the gentle "Breathe" past the static buzzing in their skull.

"It's so messed up... My thoughts just keep jumping between that, the version where Noelle gives up and we move on like nothing happened... and then the version where they're happy and nothing bad has happened," Kris grimaces, grip slackening. "but all of them feel awful in completely different ways..."

Although no one at the studio was glad to hear he'd been leaving early because of the two of them 'not feeling well', no one gave him a hard time. If there's one thing he'd actually drag himself out of work for, it was those two teens he'd been taking care of, and they all knew that. Aventurine ran the place pretty well when he was away anyway!

So when Kris did approach him to talk, he stopped putting the dishes away, and... ...took out a mug instead to make them some instant hot chocolate. They look pale. Sick, almost. Even with the weather as it was, a warm drink might help.

"...Yeah. She caught me up on what she wanted me to know." ... "You look like you're gonna keel over Kris, why don't you go sit down. I'll be right behind ya."

. . . . . . .

The mug is handed out to them when he returns; looks like he put whipped cream and some chocolate sauce on top of it, too. It doesn't fit the mood in the slightest. (But it would probably keep them from picking at their hands...)

The question catches him off-guard, though. He expected this conversation to be about Asgore, not Noelle!

"Well, first off. I don't think you're a bad person any way you slice it. I'm, sure you've got your reasons for what you're doing."

Especially after Susie left here... Tenna understood a bit better. Thankfully, it was something the monster never thought to question.

"But I don't know what Noelle's got to do with it all, that, um... I didn't hear anything about Noelle." ... "Why'd you be scared of her coming back? Did... something happen?"

Why didn't Susie share that?

How good the day was, how much fun she had?

Kris finally takes a sip. It tastes good - warm, comforting. It gives them just a little bit of courage that they didn't realize they needed.

"... I... I don't know if it's the same for Susie, or you..." Kris mumbles, supporting their mug with both palms so they can move their index fingers to gesture in some small, nervous way. "But, I... there's so many different ways that day went for me. Susie and Noelle having a wonderful day, me just there, third wheeling, having to watch Noelle have the kind of day I... wanted..." They swallow quietly.

"Then there's memories of me taking Noelle's place, some where I take Susie's place. Dad getting kidnapped is the same no matter what I do - but it's my fault in the first place because I... just wanted to take Susie on an adventure so she would look at me." Kris carefully sets the mug aside on the side table, then lowers their head and runs their fingers through their hair. "I just... wanted her to remember I was there..."

Trying to brush the strands to hide their face from Tenna's gaze but their hands are trembling.

"The water's colder than I thought it would be."

Quietly, Kris cuts right to the chase, not giving Tenna the chance to comment on their stupid, juvenile reaction to their best friend going on a date.

They can't... keep beating around the bush like this.

They don't have the time to.

"... There's... only one 'timeline' where dad doesn't get kidnapped, and it's the one where... I couldn't protect her..."

Kris hasn’t told them many details. Not about their life, not about the things that they have to go home to.

But. if it’s anything like their own. . .

“You are right. I did not see them. However.

If you are a bad person for not wanting to go home. . . if you are a bad person for wishing that Miss Noelle never returns here. . .

Then I am just as bad. i do not wish for Frisk to return here. I never want Asriel to end up here.

I want them to stay in their happily ever after on the surface. I do not want them to come here and see me. I do not want to face the bad things I did to Asriel. The things that Frisk and I felt we had to do.”

. . . Chara quietly squeezes Kris’ hand. They pet against the teens knuckles with their calloused fingertips; trying to comfort them, in their own way.

A good person.

A good person they potentially broke because they couldn't keep the Soul in check.

And if it's not cold sweats, it's a thick, sickly despair that they feel. Because, like the sight of the world growing wet and dark, the sunset fading to monochrome, Susie standing in the water with Noelle in her arms, haloed by the sunset like she were radiating sunlight herself... that image will never leave their head.

“It is okay to be jealous,” they say, quiet and soft. A gentle place for Kris to lay their head, metaphorically speaking. “You are not unforgivable for having normal emotions, Kris. The important part is that you do not lash out at those who do not deserve it. I know you would never do that of your own free will.”

The smile they wear is the same as always. Chara rubs their thumb against the back of Kris’ palm, like Toriel used to do for them. They know it’s not the same. But it’s enough.

Even before the Soul was there, they were ruining lives.

Susie is the only good thing in that miserable existence.

"... You didn't see them." Kris mumbles, staring down at the small hands holding their's. "... they didn't even see me anymore even when we were all sitting together. I ended up, in one version I remember anyway, just dozing through the entire last few hours. Half listening, half wishing I was somewhere else, trying to be happy for them. Because they both deserve to be happy... Susie deserves a nice and honest partner. And Noelle..." They tense slightly, hand twitching and entire body looking as if they were ready to leap to their feet and run away.

"But Kris... you changed... You found out how to stop being Kris! And no one else has noticed... Because they don't want to! They don't want to see how INTERESTING you are now!"

Kris hangs their head low. They leave their thought hanging there, uncertain of how to complete it. So it remains a verbal loose thread they have no ability to tie up.

She waited, of course. Maybe a couple seconds longer than they had asked her too-- but eventually she let herself in, her heart thrumming against her chest when she spotted the outline of Kris sitting at the edge of their bed.

".. yeah, don't worry about it. Mine does, too."

She shut the door behind her, her eyes already adjusted to the dark as she made her way over to Kris; sitting down next to them, her hands holding onto the side of the mattress. She sat there in silence for a moment, unsure of how to even start-- what parts she should have brought up first, if she should just.. word vomit all of it.

But as she peered at Kris through her bangs.. the most important question slipped out, first.

".. you alright? Your voice sounds a little funny," it wasn't said in a teasing tone-- it was explicitly concern, though she did smile at them a little in the dark. "You weren't asleep or something, were you?"

See every raw nerve and prickling, conflicted feelings from the... memories, they suppose.

Yeah.

They're memories.

Kris feels nauseous.

"... I wasn't able to sleep." They finish their thought finally, after chewing on it for what feels like forever to them. It was only a couple seconds, but still enough to be awkward. They shift their hands, hugging their elbows and crossing their ankles, moving their toes idly to try and get feeling back into them.

Susie's question makes them visibly flinch.

They want to tell her no, I didn't so she wouldn't say anything. They just got her back it feels like, had such a close moment... and now, surely, Susie is going to want to go back home... for Noelle. And they should be okay with that, but they... can't say that they are.

Kris swallows around the knot in their throat.

"... Yeah. I did. Everything. I think. Or at least a lot of it. I... it's all jumbled and hard to pick specific things out." That's true at least. So many alternate routes, different things the Soul did just for the sake of experimentation. They can still taste the lake water, feel it on their skin. It makes them have to suppress a shiver. "... I remember us going to the festival." Did she spend the whole day with Noelle? In some of these memories she's with me, in some Noelle is with me, others they're together... In one... did she... see the aftermath of the lake? Which does she remember?

It's so hard to sort it all out. Their head hurts so much.

It makes them twitchy and jumpy, bouncing a leg now in nervousness.

"... You and Noelle had a good time. You both... were really happy." They add quietly, and, unfortunately, not as happy as they would like to sound. "And, dad's dark world." They rub the back of their hand, skin itching as pricks of phantom pain crawl through the limb, like an unhealed injury.

A cat bite. Stinging, painful, the first time it's lashed out at them despite stalking them for so long.

Suddenly, the dark feels oppressive. Frightening and heavy. Like something is under the bed waiting and waiting and smiling. They can almost see the grinning face and they swear it looks like the shadows are stretching from under the bed. Reaching—

Kris pulls their feet up onto the bed, scooting back until their back is against the wall, and they grab for their phone, tangled in the blankets. The flashlight is lit, and Kris, hand shaking, sets it on the nightstand, but that's the closest they get to the edge of the bed. Their arms around around their knees, and they stare at the edge of the mattress, throat tight.

Nothing is there. Nothing was ever there.

Kris licks their dry lips.

The only home she'd ever really known.

The family that was given to her-- that she helped form.

A place with Kris, where they could just be.. together.

Home was still waiting. The Prophecy, and all that bullshit-- she knew they'd have to face it all again some day.. but for now..

For now, as she held them, listening to them quietly cry; feeling their hands hold onto her for dear life.. she could just bask in how real this was. How lucky she was, how she never wanted to be without them again.

As Kris began to pull away, Susie only slightly followed; mostly letting them tell her what to do, keeping her hands on them until they moved out of her grasp. She watched them, carefully; noticing the redness around their eyes and nose, how tired their voice sounded now.. it, was quite the thing to open her eyes to finally, but she didn't dare look away. As they struggled to clean themselves up, she just smiled a little; then laughed.

"Yeah.. our home. Man, where'd all these people be without us, huh..? Sure are lucky to have a couple of heroes save them in a minute here."

".. don't worry about my shirt. I'll cherish your snot forever," the smile then turned into a grin as Susie gently cupped Kris's face into her hands, wiping their eyes gently with her sleeves this time. "The hell're you trying to clean me up for anyway?? You're the one who needs it, dummy. Besides, I'm totally not gonna wash it EVER and then make you wear it later."

That was definitely a joke. Maybe.

Once she was satisfied with wiping their tears away, Susie went for Kris's hand again; and in a flash, she was in her Dark World clothes. There was a stage just ahead of them that she spotted, gently giving their hand a tug before she started rushing towards it.

".. c'mon, Kris! Let's show these assholes what we're made of!"

Because, when you're with me..

They'll probably wash it for her later.

Unless she's actually serious about never washing it, then they suppose they'll just have to deal with the reminder of their breakdown.

Kris isn't sure they mind that actually.

They smile a bit bigger as Susie's clothes change, and they're quick to do the same. It's the first time they've actually used their dark world attire, but... it feels like slipping on an old glove.

The Soul beats in their chest in excitement, eager to puppet their limbs in combat again after so long. Kris isn't going to fight it this time. Not until it's time to sing, anyway.

"Heh... yeah. I hope they appreciate all our hard work. Just be careful. I don't think they're going to let us do our thing without a fight." They rest their hand over their wooden sword. It's not going to be very useful, but they're just going to have to rely on defense and music. Together, we can do anything. Wooden weapon or not.

Kris exhales slowly.