[SFW] His Dragon and Her Treasure: Chapter 4 Part 2

>It was the next day
>A beam of the morning sunlight poured through the slim gap between the curtains, creating a thin streak of light that hit the carpet floor
>Besides the muffled chirps of the birds that can be heard outside, the only other sound that was made was Kris’ very light snoring
>He was sleeping soundly in his bed, the gentle motion of his chest slowly rising and falling shown through the blanket
>Slowly, the door to his room creaked opened to reveal Toriel, who was already dressed up and ready for the day
>She made her way towards the window and opened up the curtains, letting the holy light flood into the room and fill every nook and cranny that was obscured in darkness
>The warmth of light hitting her face gave comfort to Toriel, as it meant that the Angel was casting his holy light onto the world, blessing its people with passion and revealing what lies in the dark
>The holy light of the Angel also revealed a groggy Kris Dreemurr, who let out a tired and frustrated guttural moan as he lied in his bed
>“Moooom…” the first thing the tired human mumbled, “Just five more minutes…”
>Toriel said, “Now Kris, today is a school day. And you should be happy to know that tomorrow is a free day. So time to get up, my child: breakfast is ready.”
>When Toriel said that, Kris’ inner disposition changed from ‘lie in bed like a sack of bricks and never leave it,’ to ‘try to drag his raggedy body up and about’ to make it to the sweet serenity of the three day weekend
>Toriel walked out of the room and made her way downstairs, to which Kris finally mustered his available energy and slowly lifted himself from his bed, letting out a groan similar to a zombie from a horror flick
>His eyes felt like they were glued shut, his body felt like his bones were made of cardboard and his mouth tasted like stale garlic
>He got up to his feet, took a moment to process what to do next and shuffled his way towards his drawers to get some clothes for a shower
>Green sweater with a signature yellow stripe, brown button-up, tank-top, boxers and brown khakis
>He slowly made his way towards the bathroom and started up the shower
>Kris felt too tired and lazy to jump into the shower and then have to brush the stale morning breath out of his mouth, so he decided to multitask
>With his left hand, he lathered himself up with soap until every inch of his slender figure was covered up in suds; his right hand guiding the toothbrush around his saliva and toothpaste-filled mouth
>All while the steaming, hot water rained down from the showerhead and onto his body and hair, which was already scrubbed up with the best apple-scented shampoo, conditioner, and hair care products money can buy
>Gotta keep his brown, wavy locks in good care, you know
>After a spit-take into the drain, he got out and dried himself off, put on his fresh pair of clothes, threw the dirty ones in the hamper and made his way downstairs
>The aroma of pancakes, bacon, and eggs slowly began to make its way up his nose
>Already taken a warm shower and feeling fresh, the smell of breakfast made his groggy mind feel even less clouded
>Though that meant that everything that had transpired from last night hit him like a ton of bricks
>As he made his way towards the table, his mind began to be plagued with varying thoughts of what was to become of his relationship with Susie
>Was there a slim chance that she had a change of heart during the night? Was she still upset at him for how he talked to her? What was she going to say to him; if she wanted to say anything to him?
>He took his seat at the table, which was now laid out with fresh toast, a butter dish, a pitcher of milk and orange juice, a bottle of syrup and a small bowl that held some sugar
>Toriel finally then came out from the kitchen with two plates in each hand and placed them down
>Each plate had a small stack of pancakes, two over-easy eggs, crisp bacon, and sausage links
>Even with anxiety and fear filling his mind, Toriel’s home cooking can never stop Kris’ salivary glands from opening up like floodgates and salivate a spillway down his throat
>Eager to eat, he popped open the syrup and draped the stack of hotcakes with brown, flowing, maple-y goodness
>With knife and fork in hand, he eagerly cut off a portion of pancake and shoved it in his mouth
>And by the Angel himself did it taste like heaven
>It had practically become involuntary for Kris’s eyes to roll into the back of his head whenever he ate something so delicious; pie and chocolate being worthy contenders of that
>The sweetness of the light and fluffy piece of nirvana coated in the blood of Canadians tantalizing his taste buds gave him a short, but satisfying moment of euphoria
>And that was just the pancakes
>As Kris gorged upon his eggs and bacon like he’d never eaten them before, Toriel ate her meal with more care and mercifulness than her son
>The two both ate in silence; similar to how last night’s dinner was before… all that stuff happened
>Even when enjoying his meal, Kris couldn’t shake the unnerving feeling off about whatever it could be that Toriel was thinking
>The pure silence coming from her was becoming more and more unbearable
>He expected a scolding, her prohibiting his relations with Susie, hell even some ground rules if he was lucky enough… but nothing came from her
>It became pure torture for the tensed-up human, as he anxiously waited for his mom to inevitably say something, but it seemed as though she had forgotten about last night
>Kris thought to himself, 'Is she trying to make me lower my guard down so when she says something it hits harder? I mean she can *act* cruel sometimes, but she would never *be* cruel enough to do that… could she?'
>Kris kept darting his eyes at Toriel, who was still enjoying her breakfast, before hastily looking away
>The whole ordeal felt like a bandaid was slowly being peeled off… and it was made of duct tape
>Knowing that there wasn’t another way this could end without someone saying something, Kris decided to break the very thick ice
>“Mom, I-” was all that Kris was able to get out of his mouth before Toriel stopped him, who then spoke in a low, monotone voice
>“Kris. I understand that you’re scared, if not worried about what I will or might say about what had occurred last night, so I opted not to say anything until later. I don’t want you to be distracted from your schoolwork, so I will hold what has to be said for after school, so we can discuss about your… relationship with Susie.”
>And just like that, Kris’ moment to plead with his mom was shot down before he could even begin
>Kris felt like he needed to rebuttal against his mother or at least get some words in, but he sadly had to accept that it wouldn’t be worth it, less he wants to make his mother’s presumably negative disposition to verge even lower
>He slowly sulked his head back down and continued to eat his breakfast, though with significantly less enthusiasm than he did when he first began eating
>The rest of breakfast time went on in silence, save for the sounds of forks and knives scraping against the porcelain plates
>By the time that 7:30 AM rolled around, they had both finished up their, as usual, delicious breakfast
>Toriel then spoke to Kris again, this time in a more positive and reassuring tone as she picked up their plates, “Now make sure that you have all your stuff ready Kris; I called up Noelle’s mother and asked her to tell Noelle to walk with to to school.”
>Kris looked up at her in slight confusion, “Wait, why?”
>His mother said with woe in her voice, “Sorry that I can’t walk with you like we usually do, sweetie, but I’m actually taking the day off. I have a whole list of things to do; catch up on some errands, pay the bills, and I know that it’ll take me the whole day to finish them.”
>Kris shook his face in a sense of understanding his mother’s daunting tasks, but for some reason, it kinda stung him
>He guessed that, deep down, he honestly did enjoy walking alongside his mom on their way to school
>Even if the hand-holding part was embarrassing
>As Kris got up, there was knocking at the front door
>He walked towards the front door and, as if on cue, looked out the small peep-hole to see none other than Noelle Holiday, waiting for the door to open
>Kris unlocked opned the door, greeting the doe with a nonchalant, "Hey Noelle."
>"Hey Kris!" Noelle said cheerfully, "Ready to go?"
>"Sure, let me just get my stuff." Kris left the door open as he went upstairs to get his stuff
>Checking to make sure he had his essentials; sketchbook, pencils, textbooks, and a secret stash of M&Ms that he forgot he had, he hollered out to his mom that he was heading out and that he loves her
>Before he could walk out, however, Toriel stopped him right as he had his hand around the doorknob, “You can’t leave just yet Kris, not without giving your mother a goodbye hug and kiss.”
>Kris let out a playful groan before turning back and made his way to his mom
>He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a tight, loving squeeze, with Toriel returning the embrace
>It was a short but sweet hug; the kind that you’d give your friend after a day of hanging out together
>(Though Kris and Susie had been dating for quite a while now, “fully embraced hugging” wasn’t something they thought that they were ready for yet, so side hugs were okay… freaking prudes)
>Toriel walked Kris out and said to him reassuringly, “Remember Kris: Don’t worry about later and just focus on school, okay?”
>Kris looked at her and, while he knew that he wouldn’t just easily set aside what could be the end of the only relationship that meant something truly special to him for some stupid school work, he also didn’t want to infringe on his mother
>“...Y-yeah, okay.” the human said with some reluctance
>With a quick peck on the cheek, he walked out of the
>“Thank you again, Noelle!” Toriel shouted
>The young doe looked back and waved her arm at Toriel and shouted back, “It’s no problem, Ms. Toriel!”
>And with that, Toriel watched as the two walked down the sidewalk and made their way towards the school
>Once they were out of sight, Toriel walked back in the house and shut the door
>She was certain that Kris was going to have some trouble staying focused and would most likely still talk to Susie about the elephant in the room
>But at least he bought into the ‘paying bills and catching up on errands' ruse that she told him
>Spoiler alert: she lied about it
>Toriel finished cleaning up the table, put the spices and condiments back in their place and put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher
>Now it was time for Toriel’s *real* plan to be set into motion
>Toriel made her way upstairs and entered her son’s room
>Now while some of you may think that Toriel was going to commit the most disgraceful act that any parent could do, that being of snooping around your matured kid’s room to look for something, it thankfully wasn’t the case
>While she may be a helicopter mom, the goat mother wouldn’t stoop so low in her own standards as a parent
>Though one time she had to, but in her defense, it was back when Kris was little and was notorious for smuggling chocolate into his room for him and his brother to eat at night
>She walked over to the computer and sat on the accompanying chair
>Toriel was no tech wiz by any means, so other than her cellphone, she’d rarely use the computer unless it was for job purposes
>It felt a bit out of place when she used it in her son’s room, but the truth is that she thought it looked tacky in any other part of the house, so she decided to keep it in there
>She logged into her teacher account and went into the student records, where she then scrolled down the list to find…
>“Aha!” Toriel audibly blurted out once she finally found what she was looking for
>The student profile of Susie Moraj Gardon
>She clicked it and was met with Susie’s student profile, in which presented her GPA, attendance record, assignment grades, the whole shebang
>She looked at her picture and she had to be honest, she could kind of see why Kris would like her
>Long, messy hair that covered her eyes like his, snaggle-toothed smile
>She did look rather beautiful, in a rough and grimy sort of way
>She then took a closer look and upon closer inspection, Toriel’s face turned into a look of genuine awestruck
>She never would’ve guessed that Susie would actually have a sustainable, average record on her hands
>She looked at her assignments and saw that in the blink of an eye, her assignment history went from most assignments not being turned in, to the most recent ones being all turned in
>They were a day late or so, and some had Cs, Bs, and the occasional A, but otherwise, she was turning them all in
>Her attendance record also skyrocketed from most cases of her being tardy to class or absent to showing up right on time and more frequently to class
>Even her GPA made a significant improvement; from a dwindling 1.8 GPA score to a remarkable 2.5
>And the most surprising about all of this: this was all in the span of a few months
>Looking at the history, she saw that anything prior to a specific date resulted in numerous tardies and a plethora of late, failed work
>Sure, when compared to the profiles of Noelle or Berdly, there was a significant gap in each area but… it was actually pretty astounding given Susie’s disposition
>Not to mention that Kris’s GPA was just 2.9, so Susie wasn’t too far off from him
>It actually made Toriel smile a bit, as she was witnessing a student, who she thought was nothing more than a delinquent who caused nothing but trouble, change her ways in academics
>But how does someone change so sudden-
>Toriel was instantly reminded about the episode that she and Kris had last night during dinner; the remarks her son said were now echoing in her head
>'...but she’s changed! You know why? Because I helped her, just as she helped me… her grades have gotten better because I study with her…'
>Toriel shook herself out of her momentary transition to her thoughts and began to realize that Kris really was telling the truth
>Maybe… maybe she really was wrong about Susie being nothing but a bad kid…
>A hot wash of shame and guilt washed over the gentle goat mother and began having her doubts again
>the same kind of doubts that she had last night
>'I guess Kris was telling the truth. Then everything else he said must be true as well. But if that’s the case… then why is it so hard for me to come to terms with it?'
>Toriel rested her head on her palm as her inner-self waged war on being rational and being protective
>Just what was it that Toriel had with Susie that made her so skeptical about her? Why was she so hesitant on the thought that she could change?
>Was it because she couldn’t trust her? Because Susie would drag her son down to her level? >Was it simply because Susie never showed the same amount of care or ambition towards her life like Kris had?
>But then why was Toriel fearing about this one girl who seemed to have genuinely given Kris a reason to live
>Maybe he was right
>Maybe she really was bias about Susie
>But… could she blame herself?
>She’s worked so hard with the younger students at the school and making sure Kris was doing well that she’d never gotten a full background on Susie
>Then again, she was making assumptions about Susie’s background, and to an extent her family’s parenting skills
>Toriel has had talked a few talks with Susie; mainly brief, stern discussion about disciplining herself to be better in school
>But she could’ve easily done more and asked Susie if she had any personal problems to have a better understanding of her and her struggles
>And being a follower of the Angel, she knew that one is not supposed to judge others based on their past acts that they repent for…
>Toriel let out a frustrated groan and rubbed her temples in a fit of irritation
>She could admit that she had some form of bias for people, as much as it pained her to fully realize, but having a double-standard against someone…
>Dear Angel she felt like such a hypocrite, she may as well be a sadist of the highest degree
>The poor mother’s brain felt like it was going haywire and set aflame
>She stirred in her mind for what seemed like ages, trying to figure out a way to put herself at ease over all of this
>But then… she remembered
>The whole reason why she went onto the computer in the first place: she was going to call her mother
>She looked back towards the computer and quickly moved the mouse to an additional info page, where it then brought up any contact information
>There, she saw the phone number for a Susanne Moraj Gardon
>Toriel, while feeling guilty for doing so, decided to search up this Mrs. Gardon just in case she had any… previous records on her name
>And what came up was pretty surprising, to say the least
>On the first page, it actually directed her to a large business corporation that was located in Ebott City; a good hour or two way from Hometown
>She decided to look in a little deeper and went onto the business’ webpage
> After a few clicks, she found out that Susanne is actually one of the secretaries for one of the higher-ups
>Toriel was honestly impressed that Susie’s mom held up a job of that caliber
>Though she had heard stories about secretaries not being treated so well or not getting enough pay… so most likely it wasn’t a job that she must be thrilled working in
>Toriel looked at her contact info and saw that she had an in-office phone number and an out of work phone number, which was the same phone number on the contact info on Susie’s name
>Finding what she had been initially been looking for, she whipped out her phone and pressed in the numbers

>Susanne herself had taken the same day off as Toriel did, her justification being that she worked with those corporate bozos in suits long enough with no days taken off to deserve a break
>Luckily all those paid day-offs she’d been collecting were easily worth their use
>The relaxing reptile was lazily draped over the living room couch, half-mindedly watching a new episode of ‘When Idiots Become Famous’
>Apparently this dumbass named Anon tried to have sex with an alligator, which ended with his dick being chomped off like it was bait on a stick
>Susanne chuckled, “Oh you dumb bitch.” as she watched the poor, grey bastard get wheeled off in an ambulance with a bloody crotch as she took a sip from her soda
>She’d gotten up earlier than usual and made some breakfast for her daughter before she headed off to school
>Thank god you can’t fuck up french toast as easily as an omelet
>But at least it made herself and her daughter happy to know that she was going to school with a full stomach
>While she could’ve went back upstairs to her bed and pass out there, she thought that it was too much for her and decided to take residence on the comfy couch
>Just as Susanne’s eyes began to flutter shut like dingy lights, and her mind started to head into a sleeping stasis, a loud and abrupt ringing began
>This caused the elder dragon’s eyes to slam open and morph into a look into pure annoyance and irritation
>Her eyes darted directly towards the source of the jingling tune that was fueling her bloodlust: her cellphone
>With all her lazy might, she outstretched her arm towards the coffee table where her phone sat in a feeble attempt to grab it
>But alas, even with her clawed digits being just mere centimeters away from it, she’d placed it too far from her to reach from her position
>On one side of Susanne’s brain, she’d just let it go to voicemail on whoever it was that was calling
>But the other side of her brain quickly made her remember how important it was to take calls, especially if they might come from work
>She learned that the hard way
>The dragoness, whilst letting out an annoyed groan, reluctantly lifted herself from the couch to a sitting position and reached out to grab her phone
>Susanne mumbled in a gruff, tired tone, “I swear to fuckin’ Angel if its one of those dickheads from work callin’ me to come in today I’m gonna staple their fuckin’ balls to the goddamn ceili-”
>...
>“Oh shit.”

>One upside working as a high-level secretary in a large corporation is that you can get some nifty things for free
>Like a phone for example
>Susanne received it during her promotion after working at the company for 5+ years
>She had to work her ass off for the position but boy was it worth it
>The thing about company phones is that they have an added addition of caller ID
>So if anyone from her job needed to call her, she could see who it was and what department they worked in
>It also meant that she could see the names of people who call her that aren’t from her business, like customers looking to ask some questions
>And in this particular case, she was receiving a call from Toriel Dreemurr (Aka “The Mother of the Son Who’s Dating Her Daughter”)
>Who most likely had gotten word about her son dating her daughter, and was calling her to most likely give her some *very* strong words regarding it
>Susanne felt like her heart stopped beating and her blood turned cold, which is ironic considering she’s a reptilian-like monster
>Though the call had gone to voicemail, Susanne held her phone and just stared at it as if it was a bomb glued to her hand
>Her mind was processing if what she saw was either real or just an illusion of her sleep-deprived imagination
>Her question was answered when she got another call from Toriel
>Once her mind finally connected the wires and realized that she wasn’t just hallucinating, the alarms in her head started blaring like a prison going into a lockdown
>Now the dragon was full-blown panicking, both internally and externally, as evident by her clutching her messy hair and screaming, “FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK” both verbally and in her brain
>She knows how hell hath no fury like a woman scorned
>But if there’s anything to be said about an angry evangelist like Toriel, she could put the fear of the Angel into anyone unfortunate enough to cross her
>And Susanne wasn’t ready to meet her maker this soon
>Through her panic-induced state, she realized that Toriel was still calling, and now had gone to voicemail again
>“Shitshitshitshitshiiiiiit, what do I do?!” Susanne was now contemplating whether she should pick it up, or to just wait it out until she hopefully stops calling
>But then her mind quickly made a stagnant turn into the realization that, if she didn’t answer her calls, she could just as well find out where she lived, come to her house and confront her
>Most likely with a bible or gun in her hand
>Not to mention that letting her calls go by could give her the impression that she could be passed out after a night of heavy binge drinking and cocaine-snorting
>I mean, that’s how all religious parents think parents who are considered “bad” do, right?
>Well that was how bad Susanne was fearing about the whole ordeal
>As Susanne essentially cowered under her blanket and draken wings enveloping her, panicking what to do, she took a moment to realize the situation that she was in
>Her; a 6’5, 183-pound dragon monster with immense strength, wings with an 8.5-foot wingspan, teeth that could break bones, a killer MILF body, and a tail that could break anyone’s neck with the snap of her fingers…
>Is cowering like a 6-year-old seeing a grody-ass guy in an Easter-bunny outfit, over a woman, who was known around town as an all-around sweet lady, who’s just calling her over the phone
>(Who may or may not have been planning to rip her head off)
>Realzing this, Susanne’s face changed to a look of self-realization and huffed, “...The fuck am I doin’? I’m sittin’ here behind my wings with my tail b’tween my legs over her?! Why should I be afraid of about Toriel? We’re both civil, right? Surely she’ll want to talk to me in a professional manner. And if it so happens to be about her son with my daughter, then so be it!”
>While the dragon may have found renewed vigor in her confidence, her ability to actually move her wings out of the way and grab her phone was something left to be desired
>Finally, her cell phone rang once more, still being from Toriel, and snapped the dragoness into action
>She grabbed her phone, psyched herself up and told herself to act like it was a normal business call, cleared her throat and clicked the call button
>In a casual, but perky voice, she started off the conversation, “Hello! This is Mrs. Gardon; thank you for calling the Dol Corporation. How may I help you today?”
>There was a brief moment of silence, and in that brief moment Susanne mentally and emotionally prepared herself for a torrent of a cuss-filled rant of biblical proportions
>“Oh! Um, h-hello,” the gentle voice of Toriel responded, “My name is Toriel Dreemurr, and I’m so sorry to have called you repeatedly, Mrs. Gardon. Hopefully, I wasn’t taking you away from your work
>Susanne expected for a vocalized biblical beatdown through her phone, but she was very taken aback that Toriel seemed… calm
>It honestly shocked the dragoness to the point that she forgot time existed, only to come back after hearing, “Um… h-hello?” from the other end
>She finally snapped herself out of her face-slap of realization and caught back onto what Toriel said earlier, “O-oh no, no! It’s not a problem Mrs. Dreemur. You just happened to have called me at a bad time since I was busy uh… um, m-making some other phone calls to my higher-ups. Y-yeah.”
>Susanne hated the fact that she had to lie through her yellow teeth, but she needed to save her scaly ass somehow and hoped that Toriel bought it
>“O-oh, well then I’m sorry to intrude,” the goat mother responded with a tone of apologetic sorrow, “If you want, I can call back when you have the free time…”
>Now Susanne felt like garbage; hearing Toriel on the other end sound so innocent about the whole ordeal (though this could be a trap if her dragon senses could tell her anything)
>She hesitated for a moment before declaring, “Oh, you don’t need to, Mrs. Dreemurr! You actually caught me at a good time, since I’m actually on my day off, but whenever I get a call I’m considered ‘on the clock'. It was just some last-minute calls from work that were distracting me.”
>Toriel vocalized with a hint of joy in her voice, “Oh, well that is wonderful!”
>Susanne couldn’t help but crack a timid smile; from the way that Toriel was speaking it actually seemed like things were going well enough
>With that in mind, Susanne spoke, “So what would you like to talk about Mrs. Dreemurr? Any questions regarding the corporation?”
>“Actually Mrs. Gardon, it’s about your daughter, Susie.”
>That’s when Susanne felt her stomach drop to her feet and the life in her drain itself from her body
>This is it… this is how Toriel must’ve lured in her prey so she can strike her when she was at her most vulnerable
>Trying to stifle her inner-fear from becoming evident, the dragoness spoke, “O-oh… D-does it involve anything school-related? C-Cause I’ve been seein’ her recent grades, Mrs. Dreemurr, and I can assure you that she’s been doing far much better in class.”
>Toriel responded, “Actually Mrs. Gardon, it’s more of a… personal case if you understand what I mean.”
>Susanne understood all too well what she meant
>And at that point, she was just waiting for her door to be kicked in and Toriel appearing with a shovel and a coffin just for her
>“W-w-whatever do you mean…?” Susanne timidly asked, the skittishness in her voice starting to crack out
>“Oh it’s not anything “bad” per se, but… I was wondering if we could just talk about something regarding our children; from one mother to another. Is that okay?”
>Susanne had to swallow the spit that was stuck in her throat, “*gulp* T-that’s alright.”
>“Oh wonderful, wonderful. My name is Toriel by the way, and it’s a pleasure to be talking to you.”
>“The, um, p-pleasure’s all mine. I’m Susanne.”
>“Well… oh my. I’m not sure how else to ask this but… do you happen to know that your daughter and my son are… well… may possibly be dating?”
>Susanne had to let the question process through her head before it actually made sense to her
>At that point, she truly wasn’t sure if this was a trap Toriel was setting up or not
>If she wanted to, she could be the “cool mom” and just cover for her daughter by saying “no” to her and just ending it there
>But thinking over it, Toriel seemed very kind throughout their whole conversation
>Not to mention that she sounded genuinely concerned; as if what she asked were a rumor and she needed an answer
>Susanne knew when to do right for the sake of her daughter, and her draconic senses were telling her to stir the conversation away from her daughter’s love life
>But she knew that lying to her would just make things worse, for both her and the two teens
>And it would be disheartening to lie to the poor woman like that
>After thinking it through, Susanne knew that she couldn’t avoid the inevitable, so it’d just be better to just rip the bandaid off
>Taking in a deep breath, Susanne answered in a serious manner, “I won’t lie to you Toriel: Yes… Yes, I’ve known that Susie has been dating your son.”
>Silence…
>Susanne was just waiting to get an earful of incoherent screaming from Toriel, but nothing came from the other end
>She uttered through the phone, “...H-hello? Toriel, are you there?” fearing if she’d sent Toriel into having a stroke, a heart attack, an aneurysm, whatever it could be
>Just as she was about to scramble for 911, a slightly shaken Toriel spoke up, “I-I-I’m fine Susanne, I-I just got a bit lightheaded is all. I had to sit down, apologies.”
>For some reason, hearing Toriel shaken up and saying that she needed to sit down made Susanne’s heart sink
>“I ask because last night, my son, Kris, was telling me about your daughter and, well… one thing had led to another and… some unpleasant things were said. I think he was trying to soften me up about Susie so he could tell me, but things got hectic quickly and he just... blurted out how they’re both dating. I guess I was still shocked by the whole ordeal and needed some confirmation.”
>“Well, I’m… I’m sorry that you had to learn about it this way Toriel.”
>“It’s alright. I don’t blame my son for raising his voice. If anything, I blame myself for becoming irrational and blowing it out of proportion. Did your daughter happen to tell you as well?”
>“N-not exactly. I was the one to confront her ‘bout it, b-but not harshly. You see I thought somethin’ was up with her a few months ago; she seemed all happier and all positive outta nowhere. Now I know my daughter enough to know that nothin’ can make her go from 40 to 100 like that. Then one day I headed over the flower shop-the one your husband has, and-”
>“Ex-husband,” Toriel spouted, “I don’t mean to sound harsh by correcting you, but… yeah, he’s my ex.”
>Susanne wanted to slap her own forehead, “Gah, I’m sorry! I-I didn’t know that I-”
>“Susanne, do not worry yourself about it. Just continue on with the story.”
>“Well, I was getting some flowers and I started talkin’ to him. Somehow the conversation got to our kids, and we both mentioned how they were actin’ pretty strange. We put the pieces t’gether and realized they were datin’. For some fun, we both decided to tell them ‘bout it after a week or so. Shoulda seen the look on her face; she was drinkin’ a soda and spat it out like a geyser!”
>The dragoness let out an infectious cackle that her daughter had the somewhat misfortune of inheriting
>The mental image of Susie doing a spit-take, along with Susanne’s laughter was enough to get Toriel herself to chuckle alongside
>Having to go through most of the day feeling stressed out and overall having some negative emotions, it felt good to laugh
>After their little laugh session, Toriel said to Susanne, “Oh-ho my! I haven’t had a laugh like that in a while, but I definitely needed it.”
>Susanne just replied back, “Well somthin’ my husband always told me is that everyone needs to laugh once in a while, otherwise if you don’t have a sense of humor, you’re not livin’.”
>Toriel chortled, “Hmhm, that’s certainly true.”
>After winding down and a moment of silence, Susanne then asked, “Hey um, sorry if this is a bit off-topic, but speaking of husbands… Ex? What happened between you and him? I-If ya don’t mind me askin’”
>“Oh. Well, to put it simply; mine and Asgore’s marriage was… how do I put this, “going south” a few years back. Lots of arguing here and disagreements there. We decided that it was best to end things off before it got any worse. Things have been okay now and overall he’s still a great father to both of the boys.”
>“Shoot I almost forgot ya had another kid. Uhhh, Asriel, right?”
>“Mhm. He’s been in college for a while now and it’s so saddening to know that he can barely visit us. Heh, perhaps that’s one of the reasons Kris enjoys being around your daughter so much; a “protector” feeling he gets with his brother.”
>“Huh, never really thought of it that way.” Susanne always thought the dynamic was Susie finding solace in Kris, but she guessed that it works both ways
>Then Toriel asked “And how about your husband, Susanne? Is there anything with Mr. Gardon?”
>“Oh… he, um. He passed away 12 years ago.” Susanne timidly answered, her voice falling almost silent as she said it as if she remembered the events all over again
>Another audible gasp came from Toriel, “O-O-Oh my goodness…! I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to-”
>“N-No Toriel it’s alright. That’s why I was gettin’ flowers at the shop; to give to him at his… his grave. Besides, I think that it’s… that it’s healthy to talk about things like these.”
>Susanne began telling Toriel the events, her voice sounding uncomfortable and uncertain, “Ya see, my husband, Casey, worked for the Ebott City Fire Department; a firefighter chief. One day, I’m playin’ with Susie ‘n cleanin’ up the house… and then I get the phone call. The information was thrown at me quickly, but I came to find that a fire occured in the old mines down by the mountains when it was still operatin'. They told me that when they were putting out the fire and rescuin' the miners, a gas line must've blown and caused a cave-in."
>Susanne continued, "He was one of the few still alive but… not for long. I grabbed Susie and my keys and bolted out the house and drove like a bat outta hell. Once I got there I yelled at all the doctors to let me see him, and told the nurses to watch Susie. W-when I got to his... uh, his r-room…”
>Susanne had to swallow the knot that was stuck in her throat, finding it harder to continue
>Toriel could snese that Susanne was starting to become emotional, and gently spoke into the phone, “Don’t worry, Susanne. Take as much time as you need.”
>After a moment to collect herself, the wyvern cleared her throat and continued, “When I got to his room, he was in bad shape. But like the jokester he was, he asked if I “was his angel” and that I was “looking better than he was” the moment I walked in. I just cried onto his arm, hopin’ to dear Angel that he would be alright, but he just held my face ‘n told me not to worry ‘bout him. Then the doc took me out and told me that his injuries from the cave-in were fatal, and that he’d only have a few hours to live, at best a day. So I just stayed in the room with him, tellin’ him that I loved him and that I wish I was the one to take his place, but he didn’t want me feelin’ guilty so he told me that he’d take a bullet if it meant making sure I was alive…”
>Again, Susanne began choking up in the midst of her sorrowful tale, aggressively clearing her throat out to prevent her emotions from getting the better of her, and Toriel understandably knew to give her some time
>The dragoness continued to push through the finale of this disaster, “I called up my mother and explained the whole situation and to pick up Susie, so she wasn’t there when Casey… y’know. And on our final night together, I slept with him on his hospital bed… He looked at me and told me, ‘If I’m gonna die… I want to at least be alive when the morning sun comes up, and I can see your beautiful face right next to me. Then I can die a happy man.’” And kissed me deeply. My heart felt so heavy, but at the same time, it felt like I was fallin’ in love all over again for him. I fell asleep, and it felt like I blinked my eyes and the mornin’ appeared like lightning. I looked up at him and… a-and...”
>There was a long pause
>“...H-he had a smile on his face, almost like he was at peace. That’s when I noticed that he was cold… and I couldn’t feel his heart beatin’ anymore. T-that’s when the doctors came in and looked at the monitor… turns out he’d only passed an hour before I woke up. He was like that in my arms...”
>At last, the dam broke
>Susanne could not hold onto her emotions any longer, as her eyes began to fill with tears
>The whole ordeal recollecting in her head, it was just as disheartening and soul crushing as it was the initial time it happened
>Some days and nights she’d reminisce about her late husband and cry for hours on end
>When Susie was younger, she didn’t understand why her mom cried, or why her father was never around
>By the time she was old enough, and Susanne told her the truth, it wasn’t uncommon for her to have fits of anger and anguish as well
>Susanne, though feeling a dark pit envelop her heart for the time being, thought of something that gave her a moment of ease, “H-Heh… it’s funny. Sometimes I see him in Susie; the way she speaks, her humor, her strength. Guess the only thing she’s missing from both of us is a long tail.”
>Susanne let out a weak laugh, which was still overshadowed by the evident sorrow in her voice
>Toriel took a moment to process all of what she heard
>No wonder why Susie acted like she used to; she never had a father figure to be there
>To protect her, encourage her, or care for her when she needed him the most
>And now knowing why Susanne was working as a secretary further explained why Susanne was “off the radar,” so to speak, and why Susie usually walked home
>It wasn’t neglect
>It wasn’t abuse
>It was just a mother and daughter trying to live their lives without the most important figure in their lives
>A father and husband
>All this time, Toriel had crafted a fabrication about Susie and her homelife being neglectful or abusive by only hearing how she’d acted at school
>But now… now she felt like a piece of filth
>After reevaluating all that she knew about the Gardon family, Toriel uttered into the phone in a hushed tone, “Susanne I… I am so sorry for what had happened to your husband.”
>Susanne, now feeling a little bit better, replied, “It’s... It's fine Toriel, but I thank you for the sincerity. Just needed to vent once ‘n awhile ‘bout it. I just miss him is all. You honestly woulda’ liked him, Toriel. He was funny, smart, charming, strong, handsome as hell. I kinda think that’s another reason why Susie loves Kris so much, he’s taught her to be a better student and a better person in general. He’s treated her like a lady more than anyone else has, other than me, of course, and probably a whole buncha’ other reasons he thinks of him as her treasure. So I guess… she kinda sees him a bit like a father figure. And considerin’ their histories with uh, emotional issues, from what Susie has told me, they both have reasons they love each other, it looks like.”
>Toriel felt like her mind was spiraling out of control
>How could she have been so blind to see that two people, her son and his down-on-her-luck friend, were finding love right in front of her? How could she have believed that stopping them would do any good?
>If Toriel felt like she was being a hypocrite… now she felt like she was being a damn deceiver of the Angel for not correctly following his teachings
>Toriel couldn’t keep up with the guilt building up inside of her and spoke into the phone, “Susanne, I need to say something.”
>“What is it Toriel?” Susanne said, the genuine tone in her voice was that of a little kid who was going to be told that the tooth fairy isn’t real
>“I… I… I’m sorry!” Toriel’s panicked utterance took Susanne by surprise, confused as to why she needed to say that
>“Whaddya mean, ‘you’re sorry?’ Sorry for what?”
>“I’m sorry for how I thought of your daughter. I-I didn’t know much about her, which is idiotic since I’m *supposed* to be the teacher who cares for her students, but I always assumed that she was nothing but a d-delinquent and a trouble-maker because of how she treats the other students but now I know that she did it because she has all these emotions she has. And I also assumed it was all because of bad parenting but now I know that you’re just a mother trying to live without a husband who sounds amazing. And now I feel like a satanist for trying to break up Susie and Kris because I feared that she was tricking him or would lead him to becoming like her. Then I come to find out that they were both actually *improving* each other because of being together and… and…”
>Toriel let out a long-winded sigh, feeling utterly defeated by her own stubbornness and need for having to uphold a high standard
>“I just hope you can forgive me, Susanne… Dear Angel, I hope that your daughter and Kris can forgive me, but I fear that I pushed them too far away for that to happen…”
>Susanne could hear the guilt in Toriel’s voice, she was really torn up about herself in her own whirlwind of trouble
>In Susanne’s defense, it did hurt from a mother’s perspective that her family was judged off of pure speculation
>But she too could understand that Toriel had her heart in the right place and was just going off of her own instincts
>“Toriel, as much as it does kinda hurt that you’d judge me n’ my family based on some of my daughter's misguided actions, I don’t want to put salt on the wound. Me bein’ a mother too, I can understand that all you were doin’ was makin’ sure your son was safe. I know you didn’t mean any harm, but you know what they say, ‘the road to hell is paved with good intentions.’”
>“So… what do you think I should do?”
>“Well if you’re askin’ me, I think you should accept that your son’s found someone he loves. Shoot I was over the moon when I found out that Susie found a boyfriend, and sometimes we as parents can’t always decide what’s best for our kids, only they can.”
>Toriel had a feeling of déja vu; she remembered questioning herself last night wondering if her driving force in all of this was for the better of her son or herself.
>Susanne continued, “I think we should actually encourage them datin’. Look how well they’ve improved because of it, and if we support them every step of the way then they’ll become better people. Ya see what I’m sayin’?”
>Toriel slowly nodded in agreement, “Yes… I-I do. You’re right, Susanne. I should be happy for them finding love. I… I thank you for having this conversation with me, otherwise, I think I’d still have the mindset I didn’t know was wrong.”
>A toothy smile formed on the dragoness’ face, “It’s my pleasure, Toriel. And hey… maybe this is the Angel’s doin’, y’ know. Having our paths cross so that our kids can get together?”
>She knew Toriel would appreciate a bit of Angelic words of hope, since she’s more into the religion than she is, admittedly
>The motherly goat let out a soft chuckle, “Heheh, perhaps you’re right. Thank you. And Susanne?”
>“Yeah Toriel?”
>“If you or Susie need help in any way, please don’t hesitate to call me.”
>“...Thank you, Toriel.”
>And with that, the call ended
>Both of the mothers leaned back against their respective seats and took a moment to soak it all in
>Toriel felt like she was whole again, now feeling a sense of peace
>Hopefully she can make up for her behavior to Kris and Susie
>And now that she thought about them dating… she would appreciate having some grandkids in the future
>As for Susanne, her grin grew even wider as she chuckled to herself, realizing that, not only did she just save Kris and Susie’s relationship, but she may have just made a new friend as well

>It was now noon, and Toriel had been making some lunch for her and Kris once he got back home
>As she was tending to her food, she heard knocking at the front door
>She hurried her way over, yelling out “Coming!” to who she assumed was Kris
>As she unlocked the door, she thought she heard Kris talking to someone
>Toriel warmly uttered, “Welcome home, my chi-”
>Her suspicions were soon answered once she opened the door to reveal both Kris *and* Susie, side by side
>And holding hands
>She could see that they were standing and fidgeting in an awkward way, most likely nervous about presenting themselves to her
>They didn’t say anything other than a nod
>“O-Oh my… Welcome home, children.” Toriel corrected herself, “Please, come in.”
>The two walked in, hands still attached and made their way into the living room
>Toriel closed the door and followed suit
>Once they all made themselves present, there was a long pause of uncomfortable silence
>Like a standoff, it seemed as though one or the other was waiting to say something
>Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Kris finally spoke up
>“Mom, before you say anything about… this,” Kris motioned his hands towards himself and Susie, who had a stern but nervous expression on her face, “I--no--we want you to know that, no matter what you may say or do to us, i-it isn’t going to stop what we have together. I… I love Susie, and she l-loves me back. So go ahead, scream at us, punish us, kick us out, whatever. A-As long as we got each other, nothing will stop us.”
>Though a bit shaky, Kris’ voice was filled with determination, and his face made his mother know that he meant it
>The motherly goat could only stare at him with awe, taken aback by what he said… but not out of anger, or shock
>But of proudness
>“Kris…” Toriel gently uttered as she walked slowly towards the two
>Kris gripped Susie’s large, scaly hand, to which she squeezed back
>Both were prepared for what came next
>“I… am truly happy that you’ve found someone.”
>Kris and Susie’s jaws dropped open and their eyes went wide
>“Wait what?” the delinquent duo said in near unison
>Toriel placed her hand on Kris shoulder, “Kris, I decided to call Susie’s mom, Susanne, like said I should, and after a lengthy conversation and thinking about it while you were out, I fully support you and Susie’s relationship. I know how much she means to you, and how much you’ve both improved, and I shouldn’t be the one to take that away from you. Just promise me that you’ll treat her with the same amount of respect and love as you do with any other woman, okay? Hopefully, you can forgive me for my behavior.”
>Kris’ face glowed with shock and happiness, a smile forming on his face, and without warning, he lunged towards Toriel and gave her a bear hug with all his might
>“O-Of course I forgive you, mom… thank you, thank you.”
>After a moment of hugging, the two broke their embrace, and Toriel looked at Susie
>“And Susie... All I can say is that you’re a good kid, Susie. I am ever so grateful that you and Kris are together. I am both happy and proud of you.”
>Susie could only look back at Toriel like a lost puppy that was left out on the street and was found by a nice owner
>Susie had no words, but she put her emotions into actions as she too lunged towards Toriel, and gave her a tight, needy hug
>“T-T-Thank y-y-you…” Susie stifled out in almost a hushed whisper, before slowly breaking down
>Toriel slowly wrapped her arms around the sniffling scorch-breather, “It’s alright child… It’s alright…”
>The two stayed like that for a good while, the sounds of Susie sniveling onto Toriel’s shoulders could only be heard
>After some much-needed comfort, Susie brought herself away from Toriel’s now tear-stained shoulder
>“Gah, I’m sorry Mrs. Dreemurr,” Susie sniffled the snot out of her nose, “I didn’t mean to turn into a baby on ya’, not exactly the strong type ‘a thing to do, heh.”
>“It’s alright, my child.” Toriel gave Susie a tender smile
>Toriel looked at Kris and Susie, “Now then, I believe that we had enough emotions for one day. Let’s say we have some lunch, yes?”
>Kris and Susie nodded their heads with enthusiasm
>“Luckily I made just enough for all of us. Hope you like sloppy joes and chips, Susie.”
>“Aw hell yeah!” Susie happily proclaimed, before slamming her mouth shut with her hands, “...Eheh, um s-sorry. I’ll uh, I’ll work up on my swearin’ I promise.”
>Toriel was shocked, but rather than scold her, she merely laughed, “Well that’s certainly the first time someone’s been that excited over my cooking. Looks like she appreciates my food more, don’t you think Kris?”
>Kris just scoffed and playfully rolled his eyes as Susie chucked and gave Toriel a snaggletoothed smile

[END]