Though your morbid fate hung over you, you smiled and laughed with them. Frisk was too innocent to know the truth, and Sans knew too well the pain of knowing your death was approaching, except his wouldn't be permanent.

You pet Hades absent-mindedly as you thought.

Keep smiling.

Be strong for Frisk.

Don't let him see me weak.

Don't let him worry.

Keep laughing.

Make him happy while I still can.

He has to remember me happy.

"(Y/N) get off the moon and come back to Earth! You've been petting Hades way too long for it to be normal." Frisk teased.

You laughed quietly, shaking off your 'pep talk.' "Since when was I ever normal. Ew. I'm limited edition."

Frisk rolled his eyes while you sent him a cheesy smile. Hades seemed as done with your cocky comebacks as he was, but in a less annoyed way. You stretched out and rested back into your chair, looking at your two friends. "So I want to progress as quickly as possible. I'm hoping to finish within the week." You said matter-of-factly.

Frisk snorted. "It usually takes us at least double to finish a pacifist run. You wanna finish it in a week?"

"Well," you countered. "I feel bad for messing up everyone's happy ending because I didn't have the will to control some demonic ghost child. I wanna make this quick so they can live happily ever after."

"Well then you'll have to pick up the pace kid. Battle Paps today, Undyne the next, keep in a rythm. That is if you want to make your deadline." Sans said.

Frisk whipped toward Sans. "You're supporting this?!"

He shrugged. "Why not? I wouldn't mind hitting the beach and scaring some people sooner rather than later."

Groaning, Frisk rolled his eyes. "You're both crazy."

"Thank you!" You chirped.

You giggled when Hades seemed to roll his eyes too. He was more of a person than a pet. It was like having a Polly Pocket pet. Hades continued to nibble you're fries while you talked. "What time is it?" You asked.

Sans checked his empty wrist and said, "It's time I got a watch."

You raised an unamused brow. Laughing, he pointed a boney finger at the mounted clock over the bar. It read 5:48, meaning you'd probably need to go soon if you planned to 'battle' Papyrus today. Standing, you shuffled out of the booth and looked at the two.

"We'd better be going by now. You said I should fight Papyrus today so I better do it now."

Hades cawed at you angrily and you rolled your eyes. "Hush you! I need to keep going."

Hopping around, he continued to caw and caw until you started to receive annoyed looks. Red-faced, you grabbed the bird and walked outside, releasing him into the frosty air. "Go fly around or something! Calm your bird tits, then come back. You're being annoying." You nagged.

He immediately flew off into the sky and you rolled your eyes, not worried. For some reason, he always found you. When you tried to turn around, Frisk and Sans were already behind you.

"Okay kid. If you wanna fight Paps, nows the time. Just remember, blue means don't move. Think of a blue stop sign. Just keep following the path till you see him."

You nodded. "When will I see you again?" You asked.

"Probably your date." He said.

"Date?!" He was already gone.

Growling, you let Frisk lead you down the path to his battle. As you walked, the snow began to thicken into a curtain almost impossible to see through. You could barely make out his sillouhette when you heard him. "NYEH HEH HEH! HUMANS!"

Here we go...

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

P.o.V. Hades

I flew as fast as I could away from the restaurant when she released me. At this point she almost hated me, but I could tell in her gentle (E/C) eyes she'd grown fond of me.

My small body was consumed in a dark cloud and I found myself once again on two legs, walking barefoot through a cemetery. Death sat cradled in the long, naked limbs of a tree, eyes scanning a blank sky.

"Hello Hades, what's the pretty bird?" He teased.

I grunted and rolled my eyes before bowing my head. "I fear that the Lost Soul is putting too much stress of her body. It is already as fragile as it is, and she is trying to push it even further by cutting needed rest time out of the timeline. Her plan is too finish the run in a week or less. If you wish to save her the suffering, we must tell her."

He sat up slightly and faced me. "She's putting too much stress on her body. Got it. Anything else?"

"I fear for her passing." I said briefly.

Death froze, eyes holding mine in a killing stare. "Do you not trust in me to care for her soul?" He said coldly.

Shaking my head, I continued. "No. I'm just implying that she will not pass peacefully. She is already attaching herself to this world once again, and she's opposed to the idea of passing her soul's care to you, even breifly. This could cause difficulty in her death."

Death was silent as he pondered my observations. "I'll have to talk to her. Looks like I'll be visiting more than just once... is that all?" He asked.

I nodded.

"Then go back to her. Do anything to keep her from obtaining too much damage. She's too unstable to even use a save point without risking her body. If it comes to it, reveal your body. That, however, will only be in extreme situations. Understood?"

I nodded again. He waved his hand and I dissolved in a mess of black feather, returning to my crow state. Turning away, I took flight and a rift suddering, offering me passage back to the realm of UnderTale. My wings caught wind with few flaps and my small body glided on chilled winds. Darting on the currents, my green eyes surveyed the sleepy town.

It wasn't until I caught glimpses of blue bones that I finally located (Y/N) and her friends. I glided to the edge of the battle, evaluating the situation. She and Frisk seemed to be holding up quite well, seeing as to the fact that Papyrus was too much of a 'cinnamon bun' to do any serious damage to his friends. (Y/N) and Frisk had used to term to describe him before, but I wasn't too sure what it really meant.

I settled at the edge of the battle and waited, watching in case I was needed.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

As you came out of the battle, your breath heaved but you held a smile on your face. Going into the battle, you were terrified. Memories of what you'd seen in your dream made you fear for your safety, but Frisk had assured you it was very different in the pacifist run. He was right too.

The battle was actually quite easy. You swerved around the attacks easily and ended with your only damage being your breathless lungs. You brushed the hair from your face and smiled at Frisk. Papyrus sighed. "WELL HUMANS! IT SEEMS I'LL HAVE TO TAKE YOU ON A DATE! YOUR CAPTURE SHALL BE FIGURATIVE!"

"I guess so." You heaved.

Papyrus looked at you with concern. "Are you okay big human?" He asked. "You seem a bit troubled!"

You waved a hand. "I'm fine. I'm just really tired. I just need a nap is all."

"OH! IF THAT'S THE CASE HUMAN, LET ME BRING YOU TO MY HOME! YOU MAY REST THERE!"

You nodded gratefully and straightened your posture. "Lead the way."

He trotted up to you and scooped you up, making you yelp. "Papyrus! Put me down!" You cried.

"NONSENSE HUMAN! WHILE YOU ARE WEAK, I SHALL HELP YOU!"

On his other arm, he scooped up Frisk and began to jog in the direction of a nice two-story home. You heard a sharp caw and watched as Hades fluttered up on to Papyrus' shoulder. You raised a brow. "You're back already? Your tantrums are getting shorter." You teased.

He seemed annoyed by your comment but you snickered. As your breath began to even, you eyelids grew heavy. Your head bobbed back and forth before finally falling to the side. Black consumed your vision, fading into a comforting scene.

Your body was covered in a flowing white dress, moving gently with the wind that brushed your hair from your pale cheeks. Your feet and arms were bare, gently kissed by the cool breeze. You sat with your legs crossed, eyes open to the fields before you as you sat in the shade of an oak. Golden blooms waved like the see, the gentle swaying putting your troubled thoughts on mute as you watched.

Your fingers moved to the flowers, breaking their long stems and collecting some in your hands. You wove them together, crafting a crown from them and placing it on your head. Your eyes trailed to the blue skies, white clouds moving slowly. Your thoughts drifted, peace filling your senses. Rustling nipped the air but you didn't move.

You could feel weight settle against your back, supported by you. It felt cold, dread seeming to taint the air, but you felt fine.

"Hello Reaper." You cooed softly. "Come to visit me again?"

"Heh, didn't want you getting bonely Lost." He responded.

"Don't call me that. I'm not Lost, I'm just determined. You should know that by now."

Reaper shrugged. "I know, it's just easier to call you Lost, considering that's what your soul is classified as."

You huffed, pushing yourself into a standing position so Reaper would bend to gravity's will. You twisted and looked at him. "If you're looking for something easy, use my actual name. Just call me (Y/N)."

Reaper was silent for a few moments, then spoke. "Isn't that a bit friendly for our situation?" He asked quietly.

You didn't respond immediately. It was an honest question. You still didn't know how you felt about him. He didn't completely hold your trust, but he had been helpful since you fled the dimension you'd eventually call home.

"It is a sign of respect. I respect your job, and I understand why you do it. I don't like it, but I have no power to change it."

He chuckled, avoiding eye contact. "Is that really all? Respect?"

Silence took the air. You watched the field. "Be honest (Y/N), how do you feel about me?" He asked.

Your body went rigid. You didn't know. You hated him, wished he would disappear so you could live peacefully with your friends. You accepted his role in your fate, feeling you couldn't change it no matter how you tried. Really that's what it was... you couldn't change anything. You had no power against him. You didn't feel threatened, it was something else...

"How do other people view you?" You asked. "I mean, you are the grim Reaper after all. The views have to be mixed."

His eyes fell on you. "Well, you're right there. Being me sure does involve a variety of people. But I'm not interested in them. They're all the same. They look at me with the same desperate eyes. Their souls move the same ways. They all give up instantly when they see me. But you... you're different."

You met his gaze, sitting next to him. "Is different good or bad?"

He laughed. "Different is different. For me, it's nice to see something new. To see something that isn't so defeated. But really it should be a bad thing. It's dangerous, what you're doing. But hey, what can I do?"

"You can wait for my body to die. Then drag me into wherever it is I belong after all my fuck-ups. Hell if I know..." You shuddered, your hands rubbing over your arms.

Your gaze fell and you watched the grass. "Is that it (Y/N)?" Reaper asked.

"Is what it?"

"Is that how you feel about me? Are you afraid of me?"

You lifted your head, looking at him curiously. Thoughts milled in your head. As you looked at him, you didn't feel chills or uncontrollable terror. He didn't look dangerous or scary. No, that wasn't it.

You shook your head. "I'm not afraid of you. I'm scared of... of what I don't know. The only thing that scares me is not knowing where I'm going. Going from being able to reset to not knowing... it's terrifying. I'm not sure I can let go, and if I don't there's no telling what will happen to me."

You could feel a sob building in your throat, tears burning the corners of your eyes. "I'm afraid of what it'll be like to never see them again. I'm afraid they'll forget me. I'm afraid that I'll forget."

A tear blazed a trail down your cheek, your throat still choking down a cry. "I'm afraid of uncertainty."

A cold digit brushed your cheek. You flinched, eyes snapping forward. Reaper chuckled, pulling back his hand. "Don't worry Lost Soul, that's my job isn't it. I lead the fallen back home. Don't worry, I'm watching over you."

You lowered your gaze, sighing. "But I need to watch over them."

You removed the crown of golden daisies from your head and looked at it. Your heart felt heavy as you brushed the soft petals gently. Two skeletal hands folded around yours, wilting the flowers. You looked at him. "Trust me." He cooed.

You smiled and laughed weakly. "You wilted my crown."