Learning the Ropes (Part 1)

Learning the Ropes (Part 1)

Fishing around in the crayon box for the green nub he knew he still had, the young fuzzy child applied it vigorously to the piece of paper. That's better, now this shooting star has a proper rainbow behind it! Now he wondered if he should draw a moon...

"Asriel," came a deep voice ", could your mother and I speak to you in...in the dining room?"

"Sure thing, Dad!"

A minute later Asriel walked into the dining room and sat at the table. His parents were already seated. They both had relaxed postures, though his Mother was looking more resolute than his Father about something.

"You wanted to talk to me, Mom and Dad?"

"Yes, my child." Said Toriel. "Do you recall last week when I told you I would only be teaching you arithmetic and literature twice a week instead of four times a week?"

"Yeah." He beamed with pride. "You said it was because I had gone through the text book so quickly you were running out of them!"

A gentle laugh. "That is true, and I am pleased at your progress. However, that was not to give you more time to play."

"Aww..."

"What your mother is trying to say, son," Asgore piped up for the first time "Is that it is time we broadened your education?"

"What do you mean?"

"You see Asriel, the Dreemurr family has a duty to everyone in the Underground. From the day we were sealed in here every monster has looked to your mother and I for guidance. I think that, all things considered, we have done well. We have at least kept everyone safe."

"Yeah dad, you're the best king ever!"

"Yes he is." Chuckled Toriel. "But there will come a time where you will face this responsibility."

"Wait, do you mean...?"

"Yes, son. One day, you will be King, and you will have to lead the Underground. It is time we began to teach you what we know of ruling a kingdom, so that when everything is ready, you can keep everyone safe."

"Really?! Oh wow!" Asriel's green eyes twinkled with excitement. "I'm really gonna be king!"

His parents smiled at his wonder.

"So from this point on, I will be making time to teach you other subjects such as history and accounting and how our Kingdom works, as well as begin to teach you more advanced magic. And when you are a little older you may begin to accompany your father to learn first hand how a King deals with the people. Do you have any questions?"

"Yeah. Tell me everything right now!"

A raised eyebrow. "Everything? My child, Perhaps you do not realise how much-"

"If I'm gonna be King, I gotta know everything, don't I? Why not get started right now?"

Asgore and Toriel looked at each other. Identical mischievous grins appeared on their snouts.

"Alright, son..."

****

"...and when Gerson talks to you about echo flowers overgrowing you can offer him tea so he'll calm down and let you get a word in..."

"...and the council can submit a petition that the King has a week to respond to, or they can issue an order on the problem, it is better to..."

"...but the Snowdin dogs aren't really mad, they're all bark and no bite. Just make sure they feel appreciated, maybe pet one or two..."

"...remember that Waterfall has a veto over changing the flow of ice through to Hotlands because of how it affects aquatic monsters..."

"...always keep spare biscuits around in case they come with Froggits, they're surprisingly fond of them..."

"...never let the taxes just end up in the royal vault, the Royal Financier has to verify every coin..."

"...as for Gerald? Well nobody really likes him, so in a pinch you can ditch him..."

"...certain facts may be kept as official secrets, but do not abuse this power..."

"...and whatever you do-"

"-it is important that you ensure-"

"-all your decisions are made with-"

"-WISDOM."

This last word was uttered simultaneously. Asgore and Toriel smiled at each other in mild surprise. Asriel felt dizzy.

"So, my child, do you believe you are now ready to be king?"

"Uhhhh..." His cheeks felt warm. "Maybe I should take it a little slower."

The family laughed.

"Very well. I shall start again from the very beginning tomorrow."

"Okay! Can I go out and play?"

"Of course, Asriel. Don't forget to be back before dark."

"I won't! See you later!" He dashed towards the front door.

"Tori dear, are you sure about this?"

"You know I am, Gorey. Our clocks started ticking the moment he was born. If the worst happens, I want him to be ready."

"He's just so young, I-"

"Asgore." She squeezed his hand "I know. That is why I am giving you time to prepare. But he has to know in the end."

"Yes. Of course, you're right..."

****

The impending arrival of a new stage of his life filled Asriel with boundless energy. He had decided the very first thing to do was survey the kingdom. Not that he didn't do this a lot anyway, but if he was gonna be King one day, he better take it in. It didn't take long for him to decide he didn't need to take Hotlands in for very long, it was close to his home anyway. Start somewhere colder.

One ride on the river later, the townsfolk of Snowdin were waving at him as he ran towards the forest. His fur and his high spirits kept the cold at bay. Before long he was at an old doorway. He had heard of the ruins, where everyone had settled when they first came down here. He had never been before, but as King it would be his duty to understand it! Despite being a little nervous, he walked in.

Nothing to be afraid of. The ruins actually felt cozy. There weren't many folk around, but they were just as friendly as the people of Snowdin. He opened his mouth in wonder at the old city, imagining how crowded it must have been back then. There were a lot of puzzles too, but they had been switched off for ages as the fear of human attack had dwindled. All the better, it made these winding corridors more fun to run through! And then, a dead end.

Actually, a very live one.

This must be the deepest part of the ruins, and beyond some pillars was a patch of golden flowers. They were beautiful. There were flowers in Dad's throne room too, but something about these really shone. He looked up. There was a shimmering field of energy. He knew that must be the barrier, it looked like the one beyond Dad's throne room. But beyond the barrier was a hole in the ceiling, and the room above was brightly lit, almost as bright as Hotlands.

Sunlight.

He looked up in wonder. He was gonna be King, and he found a beautiful patch of flowers actually bathing in sunlight. This was amazing!

For some reason, he thought of the picture he had finishes earlier, and wanted to draw under the sun. But his paper and pencils and crayons were back at New Home. By the time he went and fetched them the sun would probably have set. A nearby stick gave him an idea. The cavern was rocky, but there was some topsoil in a patch near the flowerbed. He could draw with that!

It was harder than he thought. The soil didn't want to give, and the effort meant it was harder to draw precisely. But he persevered, and before long the soil patch had a pretty brown rainbow and lots of stars, some with long trails. There was one empty part left. Well, he signed his pictures at home. Shortly, the words "BY ASRIEL" provided a floor for the stars.

Admiring his handiwork and fiddling with his stick, he looked around the cavern again. He didn't know whether to stare at the flowers or the ceiling. Settling on the former, he sat next to them and sniffed. They were the same as the throne room. It was so peaceful here. After all the excitement the peace was really soothing...almost tiring...

A thud, more felt than heard, jerked him awake. The shade around the edge of the flower bed shifted somewhat. Jerking his head up so fast his ears flopped, he looked at the hole. He couldn't see anyone.

"Hello?"

A few rocks fell from the edge of the hole, swiftly ensnared by the barrier. A larger rock must have fallen in the cave above and knocked some aside. Leaping back, the rocks landed on the edge of the flower bed. He listened for a while, but didn't hear any more disturbances.

Feeling sad for the flowers the rocks had crushed, he picked them up and moved them to the cavern wall. Surprisingly the flowers looked in good shape. He straightened a few of them. Satisfied, he decided to pick up a smaller stone and see if he could break the barrier. He threw it straight up...and it bounced silently against the shimmering field and fell back down again. Oh well, worth a try.

It was then he noticed the light from above was darker than when he first arrive. It would be dark soon, he better cut this royal inspection short.

"I'll come back another time!" He didn't know why he said it out loud, but it made it feel like this was his special place. With a last glance, he began to run through the ruins once more.

****

"So the Underground is divided into, um, the Ruins, Snowdin, Waterfall, uh, Hotlands, and New Home?"

"Yes."

"And each of these places pick two councilors-"

"Three, Asriel."

"Sorry Mom. Three councilors. And these councilors meet with Dad, I mean the King, to discuss problems in the Underground and what to do?"

"Correct."

"And to make laws, either the council or the King can propose it, but both have to agree?"

"That is right."

Asriel beamed. "I have a question."

"Of course, Child."

"If the King and council need to agree to do anything, why have a King?"

"You misunderstand, Asriel. There is a difference between changing the law and the King issuing orders. Now the King cannot issue any order he likes. There are areas the council allows him to act on his own unless he needs to explain himself. It is based on trust."

"So I have to work with fifteen other people when I'm King?"

"It will be more than that, Asriel. We may have rules for how to be King, but the real thing you need to understand is-"

Knock knock. A door opened, and a Bunny Courier appeared.

"Sorry to disturb you, your Majesty, but the King is in Waterfall and the Council have sent a petition."

"Thank you, Leonard." She accepted the document in his hand, he gave a short bow and left. Scanning the document, she smiled a little.

"This is opportune, Asriel. An example of the kingdom in action for you to see."

Asriel read the document. "...concern that insufficient levies to fund Site-C accommodation will hamper construction rate, recommend a budget review...?"

"And what do you think that means?"

"It...means..." He sniffed as he thought hard. "They want money...to build a house?"

"Something like that." She smiled. "It refers to the Core."

"That place in Hotland that makes electricity?"

"Yes. Site-C is to build more houses for people to live there. It was proposed a few months ago. With the energy of the core, we can make it easier for those who find Hotlands intolerable to live there, and free up space in the other parts of the Underground. In fact if enough people move there, we could create a new district that would get another three councilors."

"That sounds like a good idea! So what's the problem?"

"They believe your father hasn't raised enough taxes to cover the cost of building Site-C, so they would like to discuss changing what we spend our taxes on to pay for it. In fact, I agree with them. I believe by reducing the puzzle budget we could cover the cost."

"So you write a letter saying you think we should-"

"That is the height of bad manners, Asriel. When your father returns, I shall discuss it with him, we shall agree on what we believe is necessary, and he shall attend the council in person to make the proposal."

"Why?"

"As I said before Leonard came, there are rules for the King, but the most important one is not written down: All obedience is voluntary."

"You mean they don't have to do whatever Dad says?"

"In the strictest sense, yes."

"Then why do they?"

"Because he has worked with them to gain their trust. More than their trust: Their respect. A King who barks orders or sends written commands without the wisdom to understand the people he leads will have trouble getting them to follow him."

"Could...could you give orders to people if Dad was busy?"

"Oh yes. We are partners in all things. I prefer not to however."

"Why wouldn't you?"

"Because your father, despite when he misses details like tax rates, is so much better than I at bringing people onside. I could go the Council myself and make my arguments - I have done so on occasion - and they would be persuasive, but his strength is at getting people behind our policies."

"Sounds like a pretty good partnership."

"It has served us well. The best rulers need two things: An understanding of the Kingdom, and a connection to its people. By having it between us, I daresay it is our crowning achievement."

"Wow..." Full of admiration. Then a frown. "Wait, 'crowning'...?"

A snigger. Then Toriel was laughing. Asriel joined in, in spite of his urge to groan.

****

The week had flown by. On top of his new civics education, Toriel had him reading much more complicated books for literature than he was used to. They had to discuss a lot of words he hadn't encountered before. Kings were expected to use fancy complicated words. Not that Asgore bothered with it, but at least knowing them if the council used them would be useful.

And with all that to process, he now also had a full day of magic practice. Toriel had explained that Asgore was an expert in fire magic, but had never taken the time to build anything else up. Much like their political teamwork, she provided the finesse, and hoped to bequeath that to Asriel. That first day was mostly fine control of the fire magic natural to the Dreemurrs. Attempting to light a candle from twenty feet away for example. The first few attempts resulted in a puddle of wax. She also showed him how to produce light without heat. Useful in the Underground.

A lot of what he had learned was still swimming in his head. As interesting as it was, he was glad to get a break and let it all settle. And what better for than another Royal Inspection? Hmm, he didn't feel like he had inspected the ruins properly last time, better double check them.

As he passed through Snowdin and the Ruins, there was a lot more "hello, Prince Asriel"s than before. He had a funny feeling they were actively looking for him this time. Maybe some of them had talked to his parents about his last trip and now they were ordered to keep an eye on them. He hoped there weren't any at the cavern...

"Ribbit."

"Oh. Howdy, Froggit!"

"Ribbit."

"Yeah, thought I'd see the flowers there."

"Ribbit."

"What do you mean trembling?"

"Ribbit."

"Yesterday?"

"Croak."

"Oh..."

His heart sinking, Asriel continued regardless. He had to see for himself.

It really was a dead end this time. It looked like the cave above had suffered some sort of collapse. The rocks had completely covered his picture and nearly all of the flowerbed, and were stacked up to the ceiling. Even in the parts of the hole uncovered, much less light came through. The entrance to the cave from outside must have been covered up too. Only a faint beam shone down on the few unscathed flowers. He doubted the others survived being crushed so long this time.

Feeling dejected and unsure what to do, Asriel decided to try and pick up one of the larger rocks. It wouldn't budge. Dad could probably have moved it, or maybe blasted it with magic. But he wanted this place to be his. He had to take responsibility as King sometimes, it's what Mom would say. So he started moving smaller rocks not covered by larger ones. A few times larger rocks suddenly fell over and he had to leap clear. This was harder than he thought.

Eventually, all the loose rocks had been shifted over to the darkest part of the cavern. He'd have to figure out how to get these rocks away from here entirely. But that would be for another day. For now, he had to tend to the survivors.

Running to a nearby Whimsum's house, Asriel successfully issued a royal requisition ("Sure, you can borrow it.") for a flower pot. Returning to the Cavern, he carefully dug the few remaining flowers out of the ground with his hands and put them in the pot. Some day he'd figure out how to clear up this cavern and replant them. For now, he felt better that he had tried to help.

Disaster site successfully surveyed, he decided it was time to head back home. Dad would probably have advice for caring for the flowers. Also even doing something not about councils or magic or maths had cleared his head a little, and made him hungry for more. If he worked hard enough, he'd get to go out with Dad and see how the King helped the people directly.

****

Six months later, Asriel was getting a good grasp on how to help the kingdom.

"Tag! You're it!"

The dog had tugged on his tail to do it, making him bleat in annoyance. He wanted to turn round and get a revenge tug, but tagbacks were against the rules, and following the rules was important. So instead he turned his sights on the slower bear and began to sprint.

Nearby, Asgore was having a conversation with his playmates' parents. It wasn't all fun, days with his Dad, but Asgore had resolved to break the semi-isolated approach to his upbringing that Toriel had subconsciously insisted on. And the best way to learn about the people was to actually be friends with them, so impromptu playdates were surprisingly common. If it were up to Asgore he may have even enrolled Asriel in one of the schools, but Toriel had put her foot down because of what he needed to learn, and Asgore knew a lost battle when he saw it.

"Thanks, Asgore. Dohj, it's time to go home!"

"Aww..."

The tail-tugger ran towards his mother, denying Asriel his eventual revenge. It also brought the game in general to a halt, as tag with two players got boring pretty quickly. The question of what to play next was quickly mooted by Asgore, who also announced it was time to head on. Slightly reluctantly, Asriel ran up to him, and they set out for Snowdin Town on their way to Waterfall.

"So Dad, what did Dohj's mom want?"

"Oh, she and Bearnard's father were concerned about the backlog of ice cubes building up, there may be some sort of obstruction in the river. I said I would look into it."

"So who are you going to order, I mean ask to-"

"Nobody. I said I'd do it, therefore I will do it."

On their first outing together, Asgore had talked about leading by example, that how can anyone know you're king if they never see you taking action? From his mother's description Asriel thought it was about being nice to people so they would do it for you, but that had been a partial picture at best. Still, watching his father do these things, and helping a little with his improving magic, made him feel better about his project in the cavern. He hadn't made much progress, but he would keep at it.

Before long they had entered Waterfall. A little way in the problem was apparent. A small fleet of ice cubes was backed up in the middle of the river. Occasionally one at the front would break free and continue on its journey to Hotlands and the Core.

"Hmm, I see what they were talking about." Asgore unclipped his cloak and set it on the ground. "Fortunately the river is quite shallow here. Or rather, I am quite tall."

"Dad, what are you...?"

Asgore had carefully climbed into the river. Shuddering briefly, as the nearby flotilla had seriously chilled the water, he waded over to the cubes and seemed to know what he was looking for. One mighty hand plunged into the water. Before long he gave a great pull, and a large tangle of green slimy plants emerged. Several cubes gently bumped into him as they were freed from their entanglement.

"Just as I thought: Mageweed. Someone's been using a lot of magic around here, and this stuff feeds on it. I'll need to talk to the schools about reinforcing responsible magic use. Maybe have a word with Gerson about organising a crew to keep the river here clean."

"Couldn't you ask the Council to pass a law?"

"Oh of course, but this should get it done quicker. Some things have to be enshrined in law. Others can get done if you just ask. It is important to have the wisdom to know when to use either path."

"But won't the blockage still be there until you organise that?"

"Yes it will. Which is why we're going to clear it now." Asgore waded back to the river bank.

"How?"

"I know magic practice is normally your mother's domain, but it appears you get some extra practice with me today." He clambered back out and shook himself vigorously to clear most of the water off. Then he glowed briefly red and steam rose from his fur and his clothes. Within a moment, he was dry.

"Wow, that's cool!"

"Ha ha, it's very useful indeed. If we have time I'll teach it to you. For now, let us focus on the matter at hand. Your mother has spoken to you about controlling where you send heat, correct?"

"Yeah."

"Well this is what we're going to do. Mageweed shrivels up when you heat it up too much, regardless of whether you use magic. Apply the heat correctly and it should shrivel up and flow away along with the ice cubes."

"Okay. So, uh, how do I do that?"

"You need to visualise the riverbed. It's dark and muddy, but there are lots of plants reaching up, ticking the cubes. Focus on the bed itself, where the roots are. Are you doing it?"

"I, I think so."

"Remember how you can light candles? Try projecting your magic in the same way among the river bed. I shall help you."

Father and Son raised their hands. Asriel was concentrating with all his might. Asgore was much more relaxed about it. Before long the murky blue river appeared to have a purple-red glow deep within. Asriel kept concentrating, feeding enough magic to heat the riverbed, but trying to avoid another wax puddle incident.

It took a few minutes, but Asgore began to notice ice cubes began to drift free. Finally, the entire flotilla was on the move. Brown-green shriveled plants were surfacing among them.

"Look, Asriel."

"At what-"

As he turned to see the cubes moving, he thoughtlessly waved his hand. A small bolt of flame shot from it and into the middle of the cubes, shattering four or five of them to pieces. He was crestfallen.

"Oh- oh no, I didn't-"

"It's alright, son." Asgore squeezed his shoulder. "I should not have broken your concentration like that. There is still enough ice to do the job. And I must say before I tripped you up, you were doing a great job. It would have taken me a fair bit longer without your help."

"Y-you mean it?"

"Absolutely! I'm very proud of you, and your mother will be too. Your control is improving. Now, we shall stop with Gerson to suggest a river maintenance group, and then I think it will be time for dinner."

They set off.

"Dad?"

"Mmm?"

"Earlier you were talking about wisdom and knowing what to do. Mom talks about it sometimes to. The thing is, how do I get wisdom? Is there a book or something?"

"Hmm." Asgore was deep in thought. "The thing about wisdom is it comprises different things, and different people can have different kinds of wisdom. Your mother's wisdom is in checking the fine details and pushing for what she believes is necessary. Mine is in knowing how and when to broach difficult subjects with people. There are others we have, but I cherish these as they define our differences."

"But how do you-"

"Experience is the only real teacher. Live, learn, make mistakes. Pay close attention to your feelings, and eventually you can come to trust them. Don't be afraid to act, but remember this: Sometimes you will need to know when NOT to act."

Toriel had mentioned this to him a few times as well. Some situations could be resolved without the King, and stepping in where it wasn't necessary could make things more difficult. He knew his parents were right on a surface level, but at that moment he couldn't imagine standing by if someone needed pulled out of a river or something. He didn't quite get it yet.

As they approached Gerson's shop, Asriel squeezed his father's hand affectionately.