The Garden, Epilogue

	Asgore sat in the soft bed; Toriel’s bed. It felt strangely odd to sleep in the not-quite-queen-yet-very-close bed, identical to the one they used to share many, many years ago. Though it wasn’t perfectly the same, just a bit smaller, and Toriel added a bit of flair, the sheets now having a cute little snail pattern added to the fabric. It was very cozy and warm, the mattress and pillows divine.

	He felt awfully big, easily filling his corner of the bed, and his pyjamas felt a bit too hot for the night. In all honesty, he felt uneasy. It had been the night his queen had come back to him, and they did some things neither of them regret, but he still felt an unnecessary tension between them. He might’ve just been imagining it, or something in the back of his mind telling him that he didn’t deserve it, but he just didn’t know. Toriel was still in the bathroom, getting ready to snuggle up for bed.

	As soon as he began to think, the door opened, Toriel in her usual robe entering the room. She flashed him a loving smile, which he returned uneasily. The room was the exact same as it was underground in her old ‘Home,’ the soft blue walls making the room seem darker, but still comfortable. She walked over to her dresser, where it had been for ages. Asgore couldn’t help but look over, though soon wish’d he hadn’t. She seemed to be in a state of mind completely opposite of Asgore’s, undressing in the same room as him. Her robe slipped from her shoulders, falling to the ground, her lacy matching underwear the only blemishes on her perfectly white fur.

	She stretched and sighed, a few bones cracking and popping into place. She stood on her tiptoes, once again trying to the cricks and knots out of her body. Asgore wanted to tear his eyes away, but was entranced. He felt hot guilt spreading from his chest, a blush furious on his muzzle.

	It felt like she was taunting him, slowly moving her body to stretch her pesky muscles. Asgore was lost, her body like a perfect sculpture. Her lovely arms, her modest bust that just peeked from behind her back, her plump hips and pillowy thighs, not to mention her shapely legs, which Asgore absolutely adored. Her small, poofy tail wagged slightly, dragging him into hypnosis.

	She unhooked her bra, letting the garment fall atop her robe. Looping two fingers under the band of her panties, she pulled them down, stepping out of them as they reached her ankles. Asgore nearly fainted, Toriel entirely nude in front of him as if he weren’t there. He dared not even to breathe, lying board stiff among the covers.

	Opening a drawer, she fished through, looking for her nightwear. She pulled out the loose garment, slipping it on easily. It was light blue, a delta rune on the front and ended just at her hips. It did very little to cover her womanly body, her slight belly nearly accentuated by the garment. Asgore forced himself to stop his gawking, staring at a suddenly interesting pattern in the plain blue wall.

	Toriel turned and walked toward the bed, a tired smile on her lips and tired look in her eyes. Pulling the covers up, she slid into the warm sheets, cuddling up against her King. She let out a quiet whine at his over-the-top amount of nightwear.

	“Asgore, dear, why are you wearing a full pair of pyjamas?”

	“Well, i-it gets a bit cold at night,” he said, trying to keep away from eye contact.

	“But you have an actual fur coat to keep you warm.”

	“That’s why they call it a ‘Winter’ coat, it’s cold.”

	“It’s nearly summer.”

	“It can snow in the summer.”

	She looked at him, trying to stare into his eyes. “...Asgore, is there a problem?”

	Asgore wanted to say no, that this was perfect, that he couldn’t be happier. But he opened his mouth and only a small, choked sound came out. “Y-Yes.

	“I-I’m afraid of losing you… again,” he said, his voice shaky. “I don’t want to overstep my boundaries and make matters worse. I loved every moment we spent together, every word we spoke. I just love you so much, you’re the only person that knows what I’ve been through, and you’re the only person that matters more to me than my own life.

	“I just don’t want to lose you. Ever again.”

	She hugged him a bit tighter, “Oh, Gorey. That’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard. Please, I just want you to know... everything I said tonight, everything we did, I meant it one hundred percent. I love you, and I want to stay exactly where I am. In your arms.”

	Asgore finally met her eyes, which had the truth written in them. She truly loved him, she truly cared. His eyes filled with tears, though not the bitter tears of loss and regret he was used to. They were sweet, happy.

	“Aw... Gorey,” Toriel said, “you’re going to make me cry.”

	Something in his chest seemed to click back into place. The words she just said, the timbre, the tone, the emotion. It was the exact same way she had said it all those years ago, which he heard every time, which he heard countless times, when he watched his old videotape. He clutched at her, wrapping his arms around her back and pulling her in close, as if she was about to disappear, tears now streaming down his cheeks.

	She didn’t mind the hots tears staining on her shoulder, or his aggressive grip on her back. Wrapping her arms around him, she gave him a reassuring hug, tenderly trying to soothe him.

	“I never wanted any of that to happen,” he wept, rambling in his bittersweet tears. “I’m just an old fool who was begging for the past… and now that I have it, I don’t know what to do anymore.” A drawn out silence fell between the two, his labored breathing the only thing breaking the calm.

	“I will never leave you again,” she said suddenly, letting his body still for a bit, waiting for his sobs to subside before adding, “you sappy old goof.”

	He let out a shaky chuckle, loosening his grip and pulling her in closer. “I had always been the sappy one, hadn’t I.”

	Toriel smiled. “Some things never change.” She released her hug, giving his a short kiss before scooting over to turn off the light. “Now please, take off those silly PJs. I need a fluffy body to snuggle up to as well, you know.”

	“Anything for you, dear,” he said with a smile and a laugh, quickly pulling off the unnecessary garments, leaving his chest bare. With the lights now off, moonlight being the only source to see by, and the snail printed blanket pulled over both of them, it felt like nothing could separate them.

	He gently wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his fluffy chest. Her soft body fit perfectly against his. She sighed, “I missed this.”

	He hummed in agreement. “I missed it, too.”

	She smiled in the dark. Snuggling in closer, their noses merely inches apart.

	He smirked, his eyes still slightly open. “Did you miss when I kissed you ever so lightly on the nose.”

	She giggled. “Oh… you bet.”

	He chuckled “Did you miss when I would wrap my arms just at the small of your back and pull those sweet, few centimeters closer?”

	“You big tease,” she joked, “Telling me all of my favorite things without even doing them.”

	“You know me too well, Tori,” he said nuzzling against her, giving her nose a light kiss, “What about when I used to hug you from behind and bury my nose right in that one spot that you to love. It used to drive you mad.”

	“I missed that as well.”

	He smiled goofily. “Which part did you miss the most?”

She giggled, a devilish smirk on her lips. “The part that’s hardest to miss.”

	“Oh, hoho,” he laughed, “and you call ME the tease.”

	“Were you enjoying the little show earlier, hm, Gorey?” she said, moving her muzzle closer to his. “I think you might have had a bit too much fun.”

	His blush returned in near full force, “To think when I first met you I thought you were a prude,” he joked. “Plus, it’s hard not to appreciate beauty, dear.”

	She laughed. “Good answer.”

	“I try my best,” he said. “Sometimes it works.”

	He yawned a loud yawn, his arms flexing behind Toriel. He shuffled just a little bit closer, pulling her just a little bit tighter. “Goodnight, honey.”

	“Goodnight, King Fluffybuns.”