Today's the day.

School!

I could hardly sleep last night, due to my endless thoughts of what school would be like, what new friends I would make, and all the cool stuff I would learn!

As soon as I heard the faint beeping of Papa's alarm clock, I jumped out of bed and raced to my closet.

What should I wear?

I scanned through each bit of clothing, before I stumbled upon my usual, oversized purple sweater.

It was my favorite shirt, and I wanted the new kids to see who I really was, so I grabbed it.

I quickly got dressed, pulled on my boots, and ran out into the upstairs hall.

I zoomed over to Papyrus' door and prepared to burst into his room, but the door opened before I could.

"Sissy! You're up, too!" he shouted.

Sissy had become one of his new favorite things to call me.

"Yeah! Of course I am. It's the first day of school!"

"Uh huh! Did you sleep well, dear sister?" he grinned.

I shuffled my feet around a bit.

"Seriously? How could I sleep?! School is gonna be the best thing ever!" I laughed.

"I couldn't either! I was wondering if there was any hope for you. Now, Sans, on the other hand..."

We looked down the hallway, towards his room. Papyrus was silent for a moment, before pointing out a faint noise passing under the door. Snores.

"That boy will never sieze to amaze me. How can he sleep through literally everything?" I sighed, placing my hands on my hips.

"I dunno. Anywho, shall we go wake him up, dearest sister?" he smiled.

"Most certainly, beloved brother."

We padded down the hallway until we reached Sans' door, and prepared to burst in and shout.

"Ready? On the count of three!" Papy said.

"One." We whispered in unison.

"Two."

"Three!"

Papyrus snatched at the door handle, and swung the door open. He trampled into the room with me following close behind.

"Sans! It's time to get up for school!" I said loudly, dancing like a goober.

The smaller skeleton didn't stir. In fact, he didn't do anything. I slid across the cluttered floor and leaned on the side of his bed.

"Saaaaaans?" I said, a little bit louder while shaking his shoulders.

Papyrus started jumping up and down, causing Sans' bedside table to shake slightly.

Sans didn't budge, showing not even the smallest sign of alertness.

Time to get aggressive.

I pulled off his blankets and leaped onto the mattress.

"SANS, ARE YOU DEAD?! ITS TIME FOR SCHOOL, YOU NOODLE!" I shouted as I jumped around his feet.

His eyes opened slowly, as he rose to a sitting position.

"What?! What's going on?" he grumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

I plopped down beside him and laughed. This guy sleeps all the time, but never has any energy.

"It's the first day of school, you scoundrel! If you sleep in any longer, you'll miss it." Papyrus huffed from the floor.

He was still jumping.

"Uhh, okay. You can stop jumping now, Pap." Sans sighed.

"Nope! This is kinda fun." he laughed, bouncing around.

"Ooookay then. Well, uh, let me get dressed. I'll meet you guys downstairs." Sans smiled.

I scooted off the bed and pulled Papyrus' arm, trying to get him to stop hopping for a few seconds.

I tugged him out the door, down the stairs, and into the kitchen without looking back.

"Good gravy, Verdi! You're gonna pull my arm off!" he stammered, a little stunned by my quick and reckless burst through the house.

I laughed, letting go of his arm and patting his shoulder.

"Meh, you've got another arm!" I smiled, pulling my chair away from the table and grabbing a seat.

"I don't think that's the real reason why I was born with two, Verdana." he chuckled, pulling out his chair on the right side of me.

My stomach grumbled, meaning I was starving for Papa's blueberry pancakes. I was trying to listen for his footsteps, but Papyrus was humming. Pretty loudly.

"Pap, can you stop humming for a second?! I'm trying to see if Papa's almost ready!" I asked, kicking his foot hard enough to get his attention without hurting him.

"Sissy, you're quite the party pooper."

"Thank you, I try." I smiled sarcastically.

I leaned a little off my chair to hear what Papa was doing. I heard the shower turn on. Papyrus must have heard it too, because he groaned and slid down in his chair, almost laying completely flat. He was obviously unhappy, but I don't think he was as hungry as I was.

"How much longer do I have to live?! If I don't eat soon, I'm sure I'll pass out and die." I groaned.

"Come now, Verdi! You just ate dinner less than 10 hours ago. You couldn't possibly starve to death!" he explained, sitting up straight and placing his hand on his chest.

He does this to make himself appear more intelligent. However, this only works when Papa does it.

Papa was finally done with his shower, and Sans had eventually made his way into the kitchen. That boy takes longer to get ready than a sloth in a pool of tar.

He took the seat to my left and gave me a goofy smile paired with finger guns. I tried to return the gesture, but Papyrus grabbed my hands and pulled them into my lap.

"Please don't mimic him! Be more like Papyrus, the incredibly cool and intelligent one, instead!" he announced, standing up on his chair and crossing his arms.

My, what a guy.

"Good morning, everyone! You all look quite chipper this morning. Are you excited for your first day of kindergarten?" Papa said, gleefully, as he entered the kitchen.

"Yep!" I said.

"Yes, Father!"

"Yeah, sure."

"Outstanding! Well, your mother will be out shortly. She and I will be escorting you to your classroom today." Papa said, grabbing the pancake mix from one of the cabinets.

"Escorting us? I thought you were just going to walk us to the school! We know where to go. There's only one kindergarten classroom, remember?" I said, confused.

Papa opened the fridge and bent down to find the eggs.

"I'm fully aware that you all know your way, but Lucida and I need to speak with your teacher before class today. That's why I set my alarm a bit earlier than usual." He explained.

"Well, what are we gonna do while you talk to our teacher?" Sans asked.

"I suppose you all can go out to the school playground while we chat."

"Oooh! I love the playground there! It has the best slides! And since we aren't going in the winter, we won't have to bundle up, and we won't potentially freeze! Freezing isn't good. That's what happens to popsicles. We won't turn into popsicles in the summer! Or... will we? We won't, right?!" Papyrus asked, becoming more concerned by the second.

"Of course not, Papyrus. You'll be just as much of a skeleton as you we're yesterday." Papa laughed.

"What's this talk I hear of popsicles?" Lucida asked, strolling into the kitchen.

"It's a long story, Mama." I giggled.

TIME SKIP

After breakfast, the three of us grabbed our backpacks and lunchboxes and made our way outside.

Our cabin still had the festive lights on the front, but it wasn't covered in snow and ice anymore. The town name doesn't really fit in August, but it fits perfectly during the winter. The people don't seem to mind, though.

After a short walk past the town library, we we're right in front of a long water way that seemed to stretch endlessly right and left.

"Father! I cannot tell how deep the water is, or if there is a current! Therefore, I shall not be jumping in!" Papyrus shouted, peeking into the water.

"Nonsense, Papyrus! We will not have to swim." Mama laughed, patting his head.

"But, don't we normally cross when the water is frozen? It's way too far to jump! It's impossible to make it across without calling the riverman." I added, perplexed.

"Not for science, it's not!" Papa said, reaching into his pocket.

He pulled out a peculiar, metal device, about the size of my arm, and placed it on the riverbank. He grinned and grabbed a small remote from his other pocket.

"Kids, this is only a prototype, but I'm almost 99% confident this will work! Stand back, just in case." Papa explained.

All of us nodded and took a few steps back. Suddenly, Papa pressed one of the buttons on his remote. It was silent for a few moments, but then the device sprung to life. It began creating a chain of thin, sturdy rectangles. The metallic chain stretched all the way to the opposite end of the river, before planting itself into the ground.

"Hoorah! It worked! Now, we should be able to cross with ease. Just be careful. I designed the bridge to be sturdy, but I'm not sure how it will hold up, just yet. All of us should cross one at a time. Who's going first?"

I was still a little shaken up from the incident in Waterfall, so I didn't volunteer to go first.

Papyrus bravely leapt forward onto the tech-bridge and ran across. The bridge held up perfectly underneath him.

"THE AMAZING PAPYRUS HAS CONCURRED THE CHALLENGE!" he yelled, proceeding to dance and jump in victory.

Mama laughed, applauding him from across the way.

"Bravo, Papyrus! Now, who's next? Verdana, would you like to go?" Mama asked, kneeling down next to me.

I looked at Sans, hoping he would understand my predicament. He immediately understood, and nodded at me reassuringly.

He stepped out onto the bridge and gradually made his way across, until he stepped out onto the opposite side of the river.

"Congratulations, brother! You have overcome the obstacle. Now, come along, Sissy! We cannot venture forward without you!" Papyrus announced.

I guess it's now or never. I slowly stepped up onto the bridge, holding my breath.

"That's it, Dani. We're right over here. Don't worry!" Sans soothed, smiling at me.

I slowly placed one foot in front of the other, each step gaining more encouragement from my brothers.

When I reached the end of the bridge, I leapt off with a sigh of relief. Well, at least I did, until I was engulfed in a hug from Sans.

"See? You did it! I knew you were brave enough to do it on your own. Next time, I'll try to go across with you, okay? Dad will probably want to know if the bridge can hold two kids, anyway." He said, pulling away and smiling at me.

Once everyone had crossed, I got two high-fives from my parents. Then, Papa reached down, deactivated the bridge, picked up the metal box, and placed it back in his pocket. After that, we were on our way there!

The school was a little yellow building with a wood roof and big windows. There was one small classroom for each grade, since there weren't many students or teachers.

There was another slightly smaller building across from it, with two halves connected by an enclosed passageway. One side had a sign that said, "Snowdin Junior High School" and the other had a sign that said "Snowdin High School." Mama works as a nurse there.

"Alright, children, go play on the playground! We need to speak with your teacher, Mrs. Kidley for a little bit." Mama smiled.

The three of us bolted towards the playground, laughing all the way.

Gaster's P.O.V.

Lucida and I entered the school arm in arm. Lucida was obviously nervous, but she knew this had to be done. I gave her a small smile, hoping to reassure her.

We walked down the hall, until we found Mrs. Kidley's kindergarten classroom.

Lucida placed her hand on the doorknob and sighed.

"Here goes nothing..." she said.

She slowly turned the knob, and opened the door. She took a few careful steps into the room, with me following behind her with my hand on her shoulder.

The room was colorful and bright, with a multitude of finger paintings and child artworks covering the walls. There were a few word games stacked on counters, and a large shelf of books with titles like "The Furry Monster and His Hat" and "My Loose Fang" and many other simple children's books. The room was rather small, but the child-sized furniture allowed for more free space.

Aside from the many unique objects, there was no sign of the teacher in the room.

"Hello? Is Mrs. Kidley here?" I asked, hoping to find her.

There was a sudden clatter from behind a partially open door in the back of the room.

"Oh... Uh, yes! Just a moment!" a voice shouted from what appeared to be a storage closet.

There was a few more moments of clattering and clanging, and muffled shouts, but then a yellow creature emerged from the closet.

She was rather lanky, with a somewhat tall stature. Her skin was shiny and yellow, similar to that of my lab assistant, Alphero. She had kind, wide eyes and a toothy smile. There was something odd about her, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

"Hello, yes! My name is Mona Kidley. I apologize for the ruckus! I've always been incredibly clumsy. Things are always more difficult when you're born without arms!" She exclaimed, with an energetic smile.

Ah, that's what it was! She didn't have arms. How peculiar!

"My, that's fascinating! You've been without them your whole life?" Lucida asked, placing a hand on her chin.

"Why, yes! It runs in my family. Anywho, are you here to ask questions about my class? I assume you have children enrolled."

"Yes, we have three children in your class. That's actually the reason we came to speak with you." I started.

"Ah, yes. You must be the Fontiere family! You have two sons and a daughter, correct?" she questioned, tending to some of the toys on the counter near the window.

"Indeed. We were hoping to talk to you about our daughter, Ver-"

"Oh, is that them, out there? How cute! I can see your two little boys." she interrupted.

"Yes, but we-"

"How strange! I don't see any skeleton girls out there." she exclaimed, obviously unaware of my wife's attempt to speak.

"That's the point, Mrs. Kidley! Verdana is... different. She is not like her brothers." I said loudly, hoping to get her attention.

She turned away from the window and looked at us.

"I see. So, you've adopted her. Is she a reptile, like me? Or perhaps a ghost? I've had a few ghosts in my classes before. Very soft-spoken creatures." she smiled, turning back to the window.

"No, she's not. You see, she-"

She stumbled back suddenly.

"OH, NO!" she screamed, her face contorted with fear.

Lucida and I rushed to the window, alarmed that our children were in danger.

"There's a HUMAN on the playground with your children! We have to go out there and stop it!" She scrambled away from the window and towards the door.

I placed an arm in front of her, making her wobble backwards. I looked towards Lucida with pain in my eyes and, like an angel, she understood what I was thinking.

She ran to the classroom door and pulled it closed hastily. She stood in front of it with her arms outstretched.

"Honey, please explain our situation to her!" She cried.

"What situation? Has this happened before?! I do not understand why you don't wish to save your children! Perhaps that thing has already harmed your daughter!" she shouted, trying to get around me.

"No, Mrs. Kidley. That 'thing' just so happens to be our daughter!"

She stopped scrambling and looked at me with a cold, unusual feeling eminating through her eyes.

"You must be joking, sir. That doesn't make much sense at all!" She said, searching my face for any sort of doubt.

She wouldn't find any, however. Verdana has been, and will always be my child. There is no doubt to that.

"It's true, Mona. We found her almost two years ago. My husband and I did not consider any other option except taking her in as our own immediately." Lucida said sternly.

"But, but, she's dangerous! She's a threat to each and every one of us!" the teacher exclaimed.

"Honestly, Mrs. Kidley. You don't even know her! She's got so much potential. There's not one bad bone in her body! She and her brothers have one the closest bonds I've ever seen." I said, raising my voice at her.

She turned away from me and walked towards the window.

"But, look at them! There's so way that they could-" She stopped suddenly.

"W-Where have they gone? They've disappeared!" she asked, stuttering over her words in fear.

I looked towards the playground through the window. There was no sign of them. I looked towards Lucida, confused, but she had as little a clue as I did.

"This is hopeless! I told you! She's killed them and taken them away. We were too late!" She cried, tears forming in her eyes.

"That's nonsense!" Lucida called from behind me.

"Of course it isn't! This is a disaster." She slumped down in a chair and sighed.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the classroom door.

Mrs. Kidley's eyes shot towards the door, and she jumped up from the chair.

"Oh, no no no. She's come here searching for us! She's going to kill us next!" she began to panic.

"Mama?! Papa?! Open the door, quick! Papyrus got hurt!" cried a voice from the other side of the door.

It was Verdana.

Lucida quickly turned around and opened the door. Sans and Verdana stumbled in, Papyrus in their arms. He looked pained, and was trying to keep the weight off his left foot.

Mrs. Kidley raced behind a table covered in crayon scribbles and dried glue, ducking down slightly to shield herself from the oh-so menacing child entering the room.

"Goodness, what happened?" Lucida said, pulling a chair forward for Papyrus to sit on.

"He was climbing a tree and trying to hang by his feet on a branch. He wanted to prove to us that he could read the school sign upside-down, but he ended up slipping and falling down. He landed on his foot, and now he's hurt!"

"Hmm, I should be able to use my healing magic on it. But, it's best to wrap it and put a splint on it, just in case. Children's bones are unpredictable with magic." Lucida said, beginning to work on his foot.

She closed her eyes and summoned a green, swirling orb of flame. She placed her hands upon Papyrus' foot, and Papyrus flinched. Not long after, he began to laugh loudly.

Oh, how her magic tickles.

Suddenly, her magic faded away, and Papyrus' ankle looked as good as ever.

"Mrs. Kidley? Do you have a first-aid kit in your classroom? We need it for Papyrus' ankle, please!" Verdana said, walking towards the tall, yellow teacher.

Mona walked backwards as she approached, her eyes not leaving my daughter.

"Please, Mrs. Kidley! I want my brother to be okay!" Verdana said with pleading eyes.

The teachers face softened slightly, and she looked back up at me. I gave her a nod, and mouthed "It's okay, she won't bite."

"Well... Verdana, is it? I believe I do. Let me find it for you." she said slowly, jittering as she walked towards one of the counter drawers.

She pulled out a medium-sized white box full of medical supplies. With the box's handle in her teeth, she carefully approached Verdana. With a shakey breath, she bent down and welcomed the kit to her.

"Here you go." she said, a small smile on her sweaty face.

Her words were muffled since she couldn't really move her teeth, but we were able to tell what she was saying.

Verdana eyes gleamed and her mouth opened in a wide, toothy smile. She grabbed the box, muttering thank you's as she raced towards her mother.

"Here, Mama! Make Pap's ankle better!" she smiled, before running to stand by Sans, who wasn't too far from Papyrus's chair.

Lucida gave her a nod and began digging through bandages and pain-killers to find some gauze. She pulled out the roll of pale linen and closed the box.

"Thank you, Mona. I'll be able to start wrapping his foot, but I'll need to take him over to my office at the high school to grab a splint." she said, picking up Papyrus.

"I'm sure you two will want to come as well?" she looked down at Sans and Verdana, who nodded almost immediately.

"Hooray! Time to fix my footsie!" Papyrus shouted.

We all laughed. Lucida carried Papyrus out the door and Sans and Verdana followed closely behind.

"Thanks again for the first-aid kit!" she said, before turning to leave.

"You're very welcome." Mrs. Kidley responded kindly.

Verdana looked back at her and smiled. She giggled as she made her way out the door. Mrs. Kidley's face fell, and she rushed after her.

"Oh, and Verdana?" she called, peeking through the doorframe.

"Mhmm?" I heard Verdana respond.

She took a breath and sighed, before smiling and responding in a gentle, warm voice.

"I look forward to having you in my class this year."