Less than ten minutes after a frantic, nearly incomprehensible phone call to Asgore, Gaster barreled into the Dreemurrs' home, scan prints in hand. As was requested, both Toriel and Asgore were waiting for him in the Throne Room, looking more than a little confused as he entered. He didn't even greet them, instead turning to lock the door behind him.

"Now, Gaster, that seems a bit extreme," Asgore said with a frown. Gaster shook his head and waved his free hand.

"I know your usual policy, Asgore, but I also know you have two eavesdroppers in the house." He turned to look at them, sockets bright. "And, for the moment, I would like to keep this information to just ourselves."

Toriel's brow creased. "Did you...find something with Chara?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yes! And it was something that I could not even imagine!" He walked over to them with a wide smile, holding up the prints. "Look at this!"

The two royals glanced at each other apprehensively, but stepped forward. Despite their obvious hesitance, Gaster's smile didn't dim in the least.

"As you two know, Chara and Asriel were both scanned with the SLS at the university, so that I could see the state of their Souls. Now, truthfully, I only did this for, ah, for the sake of thoroughness. They are both very young, which means I did not anticipate anything outside of the ordinary with their Soul levels. But I was wrong! So outrageously wrong!" He held up one of the prints for them to see. "This is Asriel's Soul. It shows up white in the scan, just like a typical Monster Soul. But when we look at Chara's scan..." He held up the other print, just barely keeping his hand steady as he practically buzzed with excitement. "Chara's Soul is dark!"

Asgore looked over the prints, stroking his beard thoughtfully as he mulled over the find. Toriel frowned curiously at the prints, then pulled out a pair of reading glasses to get a better look. Gaster could see how she was struggling between wanting to know more and continuing to say that Chara and Asriel were exactly alike. After a moment, she let out a breath and looked up at Gaster.

"Well, this is...certainly interesting, I will admit." She took off her glasses. "Do you know why this is?"

"I was hoping you would ask that." He set down the prints let his hands sign wildly as he spoke. "I have a theory. I believe...I believe that Determination is a type of Soul Magic!"

He paused, waiting eagerly for their reactions. But, rather than gasps of astonishment, he merely got a pair of blank looks.

"Um...'determination'?" Asgore asked after a moment, tilting his head curiously. Gaster blinked, then shook his head.

"Of course, of course. My apologies. That, er...that is the term I have been using in the tests." He tried to still his hands in order to speak as clearly as possible. "Determination is that...that human desire to see things to completion, whether they realize it or not. While I am sure it...it, er, influences many aspects in a human's life, it appears to affect Chara most in...er, in competitive settings. You see, in the tests, Chara always had to push themself to do better. It did not matter if they wanted to win against Asriel or merely improve their own performance. They had to do better, they had to complete the task, or they were left unsatisfied."

Toriel crossed her arms. "And you think that this...Determination has to do with their Soul?"

"Yes!" Before he could stop himself, Gaster began pacing around the throne room, hands everywhere as his thoughts poured out. "If Determination is indeed the reason for their colored Soul, then it would make sense why they cannot use magic. This is their form of magic! This is the core of their being! Just imagine the possibilities now that we know what makes humans tick! Obviously we will have to do more tests, as this was just a prelim—"

"More tests?" Asgore grabbed Gaster's arm, turning him to meet his gaze. "Surely this has been enough. I mean, you got your answer..."

Gaster stared at him as he pulled his arm away. "Got my...are you joking? A whole world of information has just opened for us! Think of the progress we could have! If this really is Soul Magic, then Determination can be used in the same way we use magic! And if there was a way to...to channel it out, like we do when we use healing magic, then it may be able to be used by others! We could...we could find a way to give it to Monsters! Imagine, with Determination and magic, we may even be able to trick the Barrier. If we can find a way to-to give our strongest monsters Chara's drive, we could take back the Surface from the humans and—"

"Enough."

Gaster stopped and turned to look at Toriel. Her eyes were ice-cold, her mouth hard; he even thought he could see her shoulders trembling from anger.

"Chara is not a science project," she said through her teeth. "And they are not something for you to weaponize."

Gaster frowned. "I am not weaponizing Chara. But the fact is that they are the key to—"

"They are not, and I forbid you from continuing these experiments!" Toriel snapped.

Gaster stared at her, hands stilled in shock. After a moment or two of stunned silence, he turned to Asgore, who looked equally surprised. "Asgore, surely you see why these studies are essential."

Asgore opened his mouth, but Toriel interrupted. "Asgore has seen what has happened to Chara since your experiment," she spat. "They have barely spoken. They do not sleep. They have been mean." She shook her head sharply, hands closing into fists. "They will not say what happened, but I know it was due to you. And...and with all this talk of...of Determination and starting another war with the humans, I just...you cannot..." She took a breath and steadied herself, then fixed her steely glare on Gaster. "With the way it seems your research is heading, it may be best if you are relieved of your duties as Royal Scientist."

Gaster stared at her with wide sockets, too stunned to even move. Relieved of his duties? He was being fired because of an experiment? A strangled noise left his throat as his hands jerked incomprehensively. His life had been devoted to his work as a scientist. What could he do if that was taken away?

He finally turned his gaze to Asgore, silently pleading for him not to do this.

Asgore looked just as taken aback. He looked between his wife and his friend, then held up his hands. "Let's...let's not have any knee-jerk reactions. What Toriel means is..."

"You know what I mean, Asgore Dreemurr," Toriel hissed. "You have seen it. You have seen the way Chara slinks away, the way they don't look at us. All of our work was undone because he—" She pointed hard at Gaster. "—wanted to weaponize a child!"

With some effort, Gaster found his voice. "I...I a-am a scientist," he said as firmly as he could. "My life is devoted to finding answers, your highness. I found the answer to why Chara was different."

"Only because you wanted to rub it in their face," Toriel snapped back.

"It was necessary!" he argued, hands moving sharply. "I gave them answers. Now, when they feel different, they have a concrete reason to consider! Really, Toriel, if you truly loved Chara, you wou—"

A fireball just barely missed Gaster's cheekbone.

"Oh my god, Toriel!" Asgore grabbed Toriel's arm, jerking it down. "What was that?"

Toriel didn't respond. She stared hard at Gaster, eyes filling with tears.

"I have done...everything because I love them," she said, voice trembling. "I do not understand why you are so set on undoing everything Asgore and I have done. I know you hate humans, but you...you cannot be that cruel." A few tears spilled out, matting the fur on her cheeks. Asgore quickly set his hands on her shoulders as she whispered, "You cannot hate an innocent child enough to ruin their happiness out of spite."

"But I..." He trailed off, hands falling to his sides. Did he want to ruin Chara's life? Was he just seeking answers about humanity?

Or was there something, lodged deep, deep below the layers of mistrust and prejudice, that wanted to help another outsider understand and come to peace with their inherent differences from the people they loved?

It was quite possibly a mix of all three. He'd never really thought about it before now.

Toriel ruffled the fur on her cheeks. "You can tu-turn in your badge and—"

"No."

Toriel turned to look at Asgore in surprise. He squeezed her shoulders, then let out a breath.

"Tori, we can't make knee-jerk decisions, not with the way things are down here," he said quietly. He looked up at Gaster. "Even...even if what Toriel says is true—though I hope to god it isn't—you're the only one who knows the Core well enough to oversee its operation. But...but this talk of fighting is absolutely out of the question. We don't want another war." He sucked in a breath as he stepped between the two. "So, let's compromise."

"I do not..." Toriel began, but Asgore held up a clawed finger.

"Gaster will remain the Royal Scientist." He turned to look at Gaster. "But I'm ordering that all research on Determination is terminated."

Gaster's hands twitched out a few frustrated words, but he nodded silently.

Asgore nodded in return, then took a breath and added, "And...you are not permitted to see Chara if Toriel and I aren't there."

Gaster blinked, unsure if he heard correctly. When he realized he had, his hands were everywhere. "I am not a danger!" he exclaimed. "Do you think I am so...so deranged I would go against my word?"

Asgore grimaced. He seemed to weigh things for a moment, then shook his head. "No, but...we can't take any risks. For whatever reason, Chara is...not themself, and...and this may help."

Gaster huffed. Unbelievable, he signed, but he gave a silent nod. "Well, it would appear I have said all I can. I humbly ask to take my leave," he said dully, looking at the two of them.

Toriel ruffled the fur on her cheeks again. "You may go," she said quietly. Asgore nodded in agreement.

He took his prints with a sigh, then turned and made his way out. As he unlocked the door and opened it, he noticed a small glass cup left on the ground. He furrowed his browbone, then picked it up.

Well. Looked like someone had been eavesdropping.

He frowned slightly, then set the cup on one of the side tables. No doubt Chara was the culprit, and they were, apparently, nothing he should concern himself with. So, let Asgore and Toriel deal with explaining Determination to Chara.

They obviously knew best in this situation.

~

Loneliness, he was finding again and again, suited Gaster.

He supposed that this shouldn't be much of a surprise anymore, considering the way his life had gone thus far. But, in the six months he spent all but barred from dinners, engagements, and other socializing nonsense, he was able to get a tremendous amount of work done. He finished his textbook, and was now writing up a curriculum for a Magic and Physics course at the university—to be taught by someone else, of course. With so much progress, perhaps it was best that his relationship with the Dreemurrs became entirely professional.

Well. That's what he kept telling himself, at any rate.

But the near-dismissal had left a bitter taste in his mouth, so, for the most part, he didn't miss meeting for tea or visiting New Home as much as he'd imagined he would. And, with some time away, Gaster was realizing that Toriel and Asgore weren't the same as they were ten years ago. It was entirely possible that it was time for them to part ways as friends, and only carry on as colleagues.

Even so...he did wish, every now and again, that he had someone besides the Core's puzzle operators to talk to.

It was right on the end of one of these sentimental moods that the lab's phone rang. For the most part, the party calling would have to try two or three more times before he deemed it important enough to answer. Today, though, a lingering loneliness prompted him to pick it up on the first ring.

"Hel—"

"Come at once." Toriel's voice, high and strained, came through the receiver.

"I—what?"

"Asgore is ill. Please, please, Gaster, come quickly." The line went dead.

Gaster stood very still, phone still in his hand. Asgore? Ill? It had to be quite bad for Toriel to be so panicked. Did she think he could help? Or...did she want him to say his goodbyes?

No. It had to be to help. Asgore would not die.

But his specialty wasn't in biology! He only knew the basics...

Oh, for god's sake, he was the Royal Scientist. If he could build the Core from the ground up, he could figure out how to heal Asgore.

Fast as anything, he sprinted up to the second floor of the lab, gathering a book on biology and a few pieces of equipment that might be helpful. He dumped it all into an old rucksack, then tore out of the Lab. There was no time to waste.

~

The door was unlocked, of course, so Gaster went straight into the home. Inside, things were deathly still. He felt something twist inside him, his mind screaming that he was too late. No. He was not. He took a breath and went straight to Asgore and Toriel's bedroom—that had to be where they were. Just as he reached for the doorknob, the door swung open.

"Oh!" Toriel jumped slightly as she saw him, then let out a sigh of relief. "Good, you are here."

"How is he?" Gaster asked quickly. "I brought what I could. If we call some stronger monsters, we may be able to..."

Toriel held up her hands, and Gaster fell silent. "That is our very last option," she said. "For now, I will do what I can with magic."

A pained expression crossed Gaster's face. "I cannot help with that. My healing is..." Toriel held up her hands again.

"Yes, you can help," she said firmly, then pulled from her pocket a paper with a few scrawled notes on them. "Here. Three recipes for tinctures; the ingredients are in the kitchen. It is practically chemistry." A low groan came from inside the room, and she shoved the paper at him. "Hurry, Gaster!"

He gave a quick nod, then turned and practically ran to the kitchen. He looked over the three recipes; it really was like chemistry. He gathered up his ingredients, then turned his focus to the task, just like he did in the Lab.

He was carefully measuring out his chopped Valerian root when he felt a small tug on his sweater. He glanced down just long enough to see which child it was before returning to his work.

"I am quite busy, Asriel."

"I-is Dad gonna die?" The whimpered question earned another glance down from Gaster. Asriel's eyes were wide and wet as he stared up at him.

"No. Your father will be fine."

"But...but he's never been this sick!" Asriel wailed, voice catching. "We shouldn't've made the pie!"

"God, Asriel, don't be such a crybaby."

Gaster looked up sharply at the voice. Chara slumped in the doorway, knitting needles and what looked like a half-finished sweater in hand. They gave a little shrug.

"He's not gonna die," they said flatly. "No one dies from flowers."

"Flowers?" Gaster looked down to Asriel, who sniffled and ruffled his tear-matted fur.

"W-we tried to make Mo-Mom's butterscotch pie. Th-that's Dad's favorite. But...but we thought it said 'buttercups' instead of 'cups of b-butter'." He let out a whimper. "We didn't want to hurt him!"

"I am certain you did not," Gaster said gently, setting a hand on Asriel's head before ushering him out. He turned back to chop and grind some nettles before glancing up at Chara, who scowled before exiting.

Well. It seemed that Toriel hadn't been exaggerating about Chara's change in demeanor. But there was no time to dwell on that. He needed to get these potions made.

~

It took hours, and several rounds of the tinctures—Lobelia to purge the poison, willow bark and valerian to ease Asgore's pain, and several cups of dandelion and nettle tea to keep Toriel's magic up while she continued to heal him—but finally, finally, Asgore was in stable condition. And, after one last round of anesthetics to help Asgore sleep, Toriel emerged from the room, looking exhausted and older than usual.

In the kitchen, Gaster leaned wearily against the sink. He perked up, though, as she entered. "He is all right?"

"Yes. Still not well, but...well. I do not have to plan a funeral just yet." Toriel glanced up at him, catching his still-concerned look. "Yes, he will be fine in time."

Gaster shut his sockets as he let out a sigh of relief. "Thank god." He opened his sockets to look at her, browbone drawn. "Would you like me to make you some tea?"

Toriel shook her head as she opened up a cupboard. "I think this situation calls for something a little stronger." She reached inside the cupboard, fumbling about a bit before she pulled out a bottle of wine. She held it up for him to see. "Would you like a glass?"

Gaster blinked, but nodded. "I did not know you even had that."

"Asgore and I were raised in royal courts, I'd like to remind you. Some of the tastes stay with you." She deftly used a claw to open the bottle. "Though we only bring out the wine on important dates. I think the last time was our...our hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary."

She pressed her lips together as she poured two glasses, then handed one off to Gaster before heading into the living room. She wasted no time in practically collapsing into her chair. Gaster followed and did the same onto the sofa. For several moments, the two sat in stunned silence, exhausted and overwhelmed from all that had just happened. Finally, after a long drink, Toriel spoke.

"Thank you, Gaster. For your help, and for...just being here."

He looked up. "Of course. You are my friends."

Her brow creased. "Even after...our discussion six months ago?"

Gaster tapped his glass awkwardly. "Well...I did come more for Asgore's sake," he admitted. Toriel sighed.

"I do not blame you," she said quietly. After a moment, she added, "I'm sorry. You were right."

"Pardon?"

"About Chara. I..." she sighed. "They are not like a Monster, and I should have listened and talked to them about that. I think I have hurt them by trying to convince them they are something they are not." She took a long drink. "That...that may be part of the reason they are behaving this way."

Gaster swallowed. "Toriel...about the test, the last one. At the end of it, Chara..." He hesitated. Was it worth mentioning how they had lashed out? Should Toriel be notified about the risk Chara posed? Perhaps, with this buttercups incident...

"Yes?" Toriel leaned forward curiously. Gaster lost his nerve.

"Er...well, I-I think the best course of action is for you to...to find a way for them to use their Determination. In a...constructive?" He looked to Toriel, who nodded. "In a constructive way."

Toriel smiled a bit. "You know, Asgore has already thought of that. He has been teaching them to knit, and they seem to quite like it." She laughed lightly. "They...they even made him a sweater." Her smile faltered, and she covered her eyes. "Oh, god, I was so close to losing him," she whispered. "I-I do not know what I would have done without him."

Gaster watched her sympathetically, then leaned forward to pat her arm. "It is a very lucky thing you had those recipes."

She shook her head. "They were Asgore's. His knowledge of plants is...astounding. And of course he's always trying new things for his teas. He made these notes just before he was dangerously ill." She sniffled a bit. "He always tells me how clever I am, but I never think to tell him the same." All at once, she stood up. "I-I should go be with him. Ah, you are welcome to stay, but I will be..."

Gaster waved a hand, setting his glass down on the coffee table. "No, I think I will go back to my own home. We all need a rest after tonight." He got to his feet, starting to stretch. He stopped as Toriel took one of his hand, looking at her curiously.

"Thank you, my friend," she murmured. "For being here, despite everything."

He smiled gently at her, then gave her paws two quick pats. "Of course. Call me first thing in the morning to let me know how he is doing." He carefully drew his hands away, then quietly left the house.

While he wasn't fond of the way things had gone tonight, Gaster had to admit that, for the first time in a very long time, it felt like things were finally mending themselves. Perhaps the friendship between the three of them was about to rekindle.

He could hope, at least.