Of a Better World

Late Night Comforts

There was a pillowfort in the middle of the living room.

It had been only a work in progress when Horror had decided to go to bed, with blankets and pillows strewn about and messy. But as he emerged from his room in the middle of the night to get a glass of water it seemed to have been completed. Shabby, sure, but upright and finished.

In the dark room the only source of light was the soft yellow glow that came from inside, even dimmed by the heavy blankets draped over the fort it still highlighted the three silhouettes within. The sound of soft chatter and shifting blankets from inside drifted throughout the living room. 

For once Horror wasn't entirely sure if the idea was Crooks' or Lust's because building a pillowfort seemed like something they both were equally prone to do. Probably Lust he decided, because for however childish his brother still was, building forts had become a thing of the past since starvation settled in the underground.

 It used to be an activity they did together a lot before the hunger though, before Undyne became a bloodthirsty queen and Alphys disappeared. Lying happily under a questionably built pillowfort while binging on outdated anime and unhealthy snacks had once been a staple of a lazy weekend.

But Horror preferred to not remember such times for his own sake, the despair those memories threw him into was never particularly worthwhile, so why subject himself to the painful nostalgia?

Firm on the idea of not being drawn into another one of Lust's immature plots Horror stepped past the fortress of blankets and pillows, marching on even as Lust popped his head out and attempted to get his attention. He was getting water and going back to sleep- that was his brave mission.

Naturally, the water of the underground came from groundwater reservoirs or the series of interconnecting underground rivers that were mainly prominent in Waterfall- both of which had become contaminated by their toxic environment. It had to be filtered of course… yet another task that was normally completed by a core which had long since given out. In turn the water that came from the tap was often murky and suspicious.

It was a pain to manually purify it, but an endeavor completed weekly by the two Horrortale brothers before storing the clean water in sanitised containers. Even still it tasted stale and bitter- but bearable.

It was a small mercy, Horror supposed, that skeletons didn't need to bathe nearly as much as humans or some other monster species. Without producing dead skin cells, sweat, and other forms of filth to pile up on their bodies, bathing need not be as common of a job for skeletons as it was for more unfortunate monster species. Constantly needing to clean such large amounts of water to bathe in would be tedious.

After chugging two glasses of water, Horror made the long commute back to his room- not entirely surprised when something snagged his leg. He didn't need to look down to envision Lust's pleading eyes as he tugged him closer to the fort.

"c'mon horror. you know you want to."

Horror grimaced as he tried to shake him loose. "i'll pass."

"but you owe me!"

"and i owe you… how?"

"for nearly killing and or injuring me on multiple occasions." He informed. "do i need to go on…?"

It amused Horror how cocky Lust was as he stated the facts. It was true, yes, and Horror guessed that he did owe him in a sense, but he could also get rid of him just as easily. It didn't help that Lust was talking to him while at the perfect height to receive a swift kick to the skull, yet he went on blabbering about how Horror owed him.

But Horror chose the better side of his nature and lowered himself down before crawling in. Inside he was met with delighted Crooks and a fairly startled dog who, after taking a moment to assess the situation, relocated farther from the monster who had nearly killed it as he squeezed his large frame into the pillowfort. Its small black nose went about twitching and its tongue hung out of its mouth in contentment as if to say that, at least for now, no hard feelings were to be had.

It was surprisingly comfy, the den of sorts that they'd made. The floor was padded with a thick layer of old blankets and a few cushions that smelled like dust. It was… warm inside. Free of the Snowdin chill that seemed to even seep into the house. Yet the two heavy blankets that haphazardly covered the entire structure seemed to keep it completely at bay, giving Horror the first taste of true and utter warmth he'd probably felt in… years.

Curling up besides his brother he allowed his eyes to become heavy. It was a sturdy pillowfort even with it's array of questionable design choices, leading him to wonder how experienced Lust was in making these things.

"a pillowfort. you're pretty childish for a whore."

"SANS THAT IS NO WAY TO TALK TO OUR GUEST!" Even in a whisper his voice was harsh and shrill.

Lust, of course, didn't seem too hurt by the comment and hushed Crooks. "and your pretty soft for a murder."

"soft?" He mumbled blearily.

"well i managed to coax you into said pillowfort didn't i?"

Horror guessed he was right. It was only some minutes later and on the very precipice of sleep that he heard the rustling of paper and opened an eye to see that Lust had resumed his own activities. He'd grabbed one of the two weak flashlights that served to illuminate the fort and was fumbling around with a book about astronomy.

It was an old, hardcover book that was basically falling apart at the spine- Horror distantly remembered getting it for Lust out of his old collection in exchange for some peace and solitude. He'd taken a liking to it and it wasn't uncommon to see the small skeleton reading it around the house. Certain pages were dog-eared and worn from being read and reread over and over again. Whether the well loved book had been worn down more in his care or Lust's was just about anyone's guess.

He began to drift off again as Lust started to read about the space between stars, his soft voice crooning over words he knew by heart.

Horror fell into a rare, surprisingly peaceful sleep that night. And he dreamed. Not of charred flesh and the smell of cooking meat nor jaws stained with blood- but of swimming stars in open skies. And freckles.

A/N: i've been doing y'all guys dirty with the late AND short updates. Real dirty. Sorry.