A/N: I debated for way too long on how I would post this, mainly because I don't think I'm completely done exploring Halis' character. I wanted to be, but dammit she's fun to play with.

So, here's what I've kind of decided. Suggestions are highly welcome!

I'm going to post these sections here in one incredibly long segment because I just want to get them posted. Then if I do end up writing anything else for her, I'll post them in a separate story. I may even end up removing this chapter and posting each section as a chapter in a 'sorta-story' about Halis. I dunno. It's confusing, okay? And I might be slightly tipsy, so my judgement could be questionable at the moment.

Anyhow, please enjoy these short little snippets of Halis' life with Boss in hell. A few warnings about some of these segments include: eating really gross shit, some gore (of course!), mentions of child rape (not Halis), murder, and a bit of cuteness.

Please let me know if you have any suggestions for future scenes or things you'd like to see me explore with her character. You can either leave them in a review or send them to me in an ask via Tumblr. My Tumblr is sheewolf85 dot tumblr dot com. Come frolic with me, as it's very likely that I'll put chapter-unworthy snippets of this story, and others, there.

You guys have to check out this amazing art by Malenchka on Tumblr. Put this shit in your address bar - sheewolf85 dot tumblr dot com slash post slash 173084195826 - and witness the inspiration for the first section, "Human Intolerance". Yeah. It's Malenchka's fault, y'all. Throw praises their way, please! Malenchka dot tumblr dot com

I've also been given a sneak peak into some art soon coming by taytay2656, so stalk their tumblr, too. taytay2656 dot tumblr dot com.

HUMAN INTOLERANCE

Ugh.

Not this again. He knew how she felt about this. A part of her wondered if he did this as a form of punishment. Really, she wouldn't put it past him. His punishments ranged in severity from writing an apology letter to whoever she'd wronged to making her stay in her room for several hours. Granted, he'd never used food as a punishment before, but she was nine whole years old now! In only a few months, she'd reach double-digits. That had to mean his punishments would get harsher.

As Halis stared down at the eyeball spaghetti in front of her, she tried to think of what she could have done to deserve this meal again. If he was using it as a punishment, then it had to have been something within the last twenty-four hours. As she recounted her steps, it became clear that this was not a punishment. Not only had he been his normal self—not grumpy or angry like he was when she made punishable mistakes—she simply hadn't done anything wrong.

Dang it.

She speared an eyeball and held it up, looking at it. She had always been fascinated by all things human. She was, after all, half human. The day she discovered she had been eating human parts in her meals was a day she would rather forget. It almost felt like she'd been eating parts of herself, even if she had no flesh on her skeletal body. She preferred to examine human parts and wonder at how they all fit together and worked so harmoniously together. Her mother had been human, after all, and she wanted to know as much about her as she could.

Eyeballs, for example. Halis held the thing up closer to her face and grimaced at it. Her mother had two of them. She remembered a time, not long ago, when she'd stolen two eyeballs and took a picture of herself with them in her sockets just so she could try to see what she might look like with them. It wasn't pretty. She needed other stuff, like eyelids to keep them in place.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING? EAT YOUR DINNER."

She sighed, and her grimace deepened with the thought of putting the thing in her mouth.

"Do I have to eat it, Uncle?" she asked, her voice soft.

The sound he made was nearly a growl. "YES, HALIS! I DON'T KEEP YOU SAFE JUST SO YOU CAN STARVE TO DEATH."

She nearly snorted. She couldn't starve to death if she tried. Her Uncle Papyrus—or 'Boss', as he was known to the rest of the underground—was nearly constantly shoving food at her. His excuse was that she was half-human, and so needed to eat more regularly than most monsters.

She knew better than to challenge his words, however. She had only ever joked about dying a small handful of times, and each time had been met with more anger than the previous. As cold and collected as he pretended to be on the outside, she knew inside he was terrified of losing her.

And, as unlikely as it was for him to lose her to starvation, she truly was more susceptible to that fate than any other monster. So, instead of arguing any further, she sucked in a resolved breath.

"Yes, Uncle."

And ate the eyeball.

She felt herself shudder involuntarily as aqueous liquid flowed over her conjured tongue. The taste reminded her of the time she attempted to drink cooking oil straight from the bottle, but it was thicker and stuck to the inside of her mouth. She held back a gag, telling herself to just swallow without chewing. Her magic could easily digest the chunks. As she tried, however, she felt an uneasy sensation at the back of her throat. She couldn't swallow it. Her magic refused to accept it. She gagged then, leaning over her plate and spitting the eyeball out before she was forced to vomit properly.

"Uncle Papyrus?" She peeked up at him apologetically.

Boss watched his niece with a strange sort of pity. He could practically see Frisk in Halis' reaction. He'd never thought about it before, but suddenly it was clear. He had been so stupid! Halis was half-human! Of course she'd have trouble eating human parts!

He sighed and stood up. He ignored her shocked and worried expression as he picked up her plate and took it to the kitchen. He left the squirming noodles on the plate but swiftly returned the eyeballs to the pan. Once completed, he set a few more things on her plate—all human-free—and went back to the table.

"YOU WILL NO LONGER BE REQUIRED TO EAT THE HUMAN PARTS."

Her answering smile was worth it. Her teeth were sharp and reminded him so sorely of Sans, but the curve of her mouth was undoubtedly Frisk.

"Thank you, Uncle."

Silently, they finished dinner together.

After dinner, Halis went to get ready for bed. As much as she wanted to stay up late and help her uncle plan the next day's activities, she knew better than to ask for that. He'd argue that she was still a child and required more sleep than adult monsters. She'd say she was already nine years old and certainly old enough to be out of stripes, and he'd just laugh at her. Monsters stayed in stripes until the tail end of their teenage years. She'd whine that she wasn't tired, and he'd either stare her down until she gave in or drag her sorry skeletal butt to bed himself.

She slipped into her striped pajamas before gently folding her scarf and setting it in the top drawer of her dresser. She'd had that red scarf since she could remember. Uncle Papyrus had told her that it used to be a part of his, and he'd wrapped her up in it when she was born. Alongside the scarf in the drawer were a few other things that held sentimental significance. A strange-looking teddy bear that her mother made—it was supposed to be scary, Uncle Papyrus had said, but it was so worn that it was more pathetic than anything else—a tiny pair of shoes—her first pair!—a picture, and a golden, triangular tooth.

She gently traced two distal phalanges over the tooth. It had been her dad's, something he'd gotten early in his life after he lost the real tooth in a fight.

Then she picked up the picture. According to Uncle Papyrus, it was the only picture of her dad in existence. Her mother had been the one to convince him to get it taken. In the picture, her dad held her mom close. He scowled dangerously at the camera while she smiled up at him. She wondered if the picture had been taken in their world or in her mother's. Uncle Papyrus wasn't sure, so she would probably never know. The background didn't give any clues, either; it looked like they stood in front of a wall that could really be anywhere.

She took the picture with her to her bed and sat against the wall. She curled her legs up, wrapped her arms around her knees, and settled in for a long moment of dissection.

Halis would almost say she was the spitting image of her dad. Almost. Their differences extended beyond her youth. His eye lights were bright red, where hers were white. His nasal ridge was sharp and flat, where hers curved upward and ended in a smooth process. His brow bones were lower on his face than hers were. The curve of her forehead was more similar to that of her mother's than of her dad's.

She had tried to make that face before, too. She'd stare in the mirror and scrunch her features, bare her teeth, and even growl in an attempt to look half as menacing as he did. It never worked. She just wasn't scary like he was. Maybe that was because of her age, and maybe she'd get scarier as she got older. She hoped so, because appearing cute and cuddly instead of dangerous was a quick way to get killed.

Next, she examined her mother in the image. Halis had wondered on more than one occasion what it would be like to be human—to have flesh and hair and fingernails instead of claws. She always thought her mother was so pretty. Her eyes were brown, nearly an exact match to the color of her hair, and her skin looked like it would be smooth and soft. The way she looked up at Halis' dad in the image made it clear that she loved him. Halis had no doubt that he loved her back. He had to have; otherwise Halis wouldn't even be here.

That was something she'd learned in school—monsters had to be in love for their souls to bond and their magic to create a new soul. When she'd asked her uncle why her parents died when she was born when most monsters lived, she'd learned the hard truth about human mothers having monster babies.

She sucked in a deep breath and reached up to wipe white tears from her face before she put the picture away. She shut the drawer reverently and went to tell her uncle goodnight.

CORNELIUS

She didn't allow herself to stop when she heard what could have been footsteps behind her. She'd danced this dance a few too many times. She swallowed tightly and gripped the strap of her backpack at her shoulder a little tighter.

She was on her way home from a friend's house, and still in stripes. That really should have been enough to deter any monster from trying to hurt her, but she knew better. Not only was she the daughter of Sans—one of the most powerful monsters who had ever lived, apparently—she was also Boss' niece. That meant she had several targets on her back. Monsters wanted to dust her before she could potentially become as strong as her dad had once been. Joke's on them—she'd never even be a fraction as strong as he had been. She wasn't even scary! But also, she was Boss' weakness. Hurt her, and they hurt Boss.

Halis was now thirteen years old and had been all but forced into learning how to fight because of things like monster trailing her home. Her Uncle Papyrus had wanted to hire her a body guard, but then decided against it. It would draw too much attention to her, and he wasn't sure he could even trust anyone with the job. He couldn't do it himself, so that left the only option being to teach her how to fight.

She and her uncle had started training nearly two years ago, after she'd gotten into her first fight. It hadn't really even been a fight, and she had been lucky she'd survived it. Mysteriously, the monsters who had hurt her all seemed to disappear within a week of the incident. It had taken almost a full year before Halis realized what had happened to them, and she felt a sense of security knowing that her uncle would avenge her should anything happen to her.

Her hand on the strap at her shoulder squeezed a little tighter while her other went to the scarf around her neck. Even as prepared as she wanted to pretend she was, she wished her uncle was with her. She didn't like to fight monsters. The only ones who actively tried to fight her were adults, and they were all stronger than she was and hurt her.

She sucked in a deep breath and kept up her brisk pace. She was only a few streets away from home. If she could just—

No luck. The footsteps behind her picked up their pace, and soon there was a shadow looming over her. She barely managed to keep in a squeak of terror as she looked up.

A tall bear monster grinned down at her, its savage teeth already drooling with some strange form of desire.

"Hey, girlie," he said with fake camaraderie in his voice, "where ya headed?"

She cleared her throat and gripped her scarf a little tighter. "Home."

"Yeah? And where's home?" His paw landed on her shoulder, and she shuddered.

"You know damn well where my home is." She was one of the only two skeleton monsters in the entire underground. Anyone who didn't know who she was had to have been living in a different dimension their whole lives.

"Feisty. I like that." His paw tightened on her shoulder in three quick squeezes.

She pulled back sharply. "Can't you see I'm in stripes, you sicko?"

He laughed, a deep chuckle that almost seemed to echo in his chest. "I ain't comin' onto ya, kid."

"Then what are you doing?" She felt supremely uncomfortable. She picked up her pace a little more and wished, not for the first time, that she had the teleporting ability she'd been told her dad had. Maybe if she concentrated really hard, she could do it. She thought about her home, her living room, that spot on the carpet from when she'd accidentally spilled her dinner. That stain had never come out, despite her uncle's attempts.

No luck. She still walked beside the strange bear.

"Talkin' to ya, duh." He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his furry side. He dipped his head to press his muzzle against the side of her head. She tried again to pull away, but his grip was relentless. He spoke so softly that she doubted anyone but her could hear him. "'Sides, there's a group of lizards not far behind you talkin' about a reward for your dust."

She blinked, and a sudden fear rose up in her chest. She struggled against him harder, preparing to scream, but his other paw clapped on her mouth.

"No! No, I ain't gonna hurtcha. You misunderstood me. They want the reward, and I wanna make sure they ain't gonna get your dust. I just wanna make sure you get home, okay?"

She panted against his paw on her mouth, considering biting him or kicking him somewhere painful. She'd never been so scared in her life, and she couldn't actually make a decision about what to do. White tears gathered in her sockets as she looked up at the bear's face. He tugged her gently and continued walking.

"My name's Cornelius. I used to work with your dad. Can't say I liked the guy, but I sure as fuck respected him."

Halis felt herself relaxing marginally at the mention of her dad. Usually, when monsters talked about him, they could only talk about how much they'd wanted to kill him and gain a little bit of his magic. Even a small fraction of his magic would have boosted their own exponentially. To hear someone say that they respected him was a pleasant shock.

"You didn't want to kill him?" she asked hesitantly.

He huffed. "'Sometimes yes, sometimes no. He killed two of my cousins in a really horrific way. Not saying they didn't deserve it; I'm sure they did. That was something respectable about your dad; he didn't go out killin' shit for the thrill. He always had a reason."

"He worked for my uncle. He was like an enforcer, right?" She could get her uncle to tell her almost anything about the underground's past, his job, humans, etcetera; but when it came to her dad and his work, he'd usually clam up after a few sentences. She knew it wasn't because he didn't want her to know—it was just too painful for him to talk about.

"Yeah, kinda." His eyes shifted a little, looking around them and then back at her. "How much has Boss told you about humans and stuff?"

"You mean how monsters interrogate and torture them?" She smiled brightly. That was something she was going to be good at. She couldn't eat the fuckers, but man, she loved to feel around their insides and see how they worked. She'd learned a lot about some of her human tendencies by examining the corpses her uncle gave her.

"Yeah, that. Your dad was the best."

"I'm gunning for that title. Well, when I get out of stripes, anyway. Uncle Papyrus won't let me actually touch a live human until then."

Cornelius nodded. "Probably for the best. You're still building your magic reserves, and should one get a hit on you, it could be really dangerous."

She sighed. "Yeah, but I can only discover so much looking at dead humans. I want to see how their heart is strong enough to pump all that blood and how their muscles work and how their bones stay together and…" she blushed, a white glow brightening her cheeks. "I'm just curious."

Cornelius chuckled. "You're gonna do great, kid." He shifted and looked behind him. His demeanor slumped, and he cursed. "They're still there, dammit." One more glance. "I think…yep, there's more of 'em. Fuck."

"Can't we fight them? Uncle Papyrus has been teaching me."

The bear seemed hesitant. "Look, it ain't that I think you can't handle yourself, because I'm sure you can. I've heard…things about you. But one of the things you gotta know is when to say you ain't strong enough to win a fight, and I ain't strong enough to do this against a group that big. That means you probably ain't either. Let's just get you home and Boss can deal with 'em if they decide to follow."

Halis narrowed her eye sockets. "What things have you heard about me?"

"You can touch souls. It ain't surprising—you're a skeleton. Boss can do that, too, but not like Sans could. I've heard you can manipulate them the way Sans could. Like crush 'em and stuff."

She let out a giggle. "I can't do that! My dad could do that? That's so fucking cool!" Maybe she could do that? The last few training sessions with her uncle had been a bit surprising, and he'd cut them off with a strange sort of awe on his face without explaining what she'd done. Had she manipulated souls? She didn't think so.

Cornelius looked shaken. "Uh…Can you not mention that to Boss? And by that, I mean forget I ever said anything?"

"I can't forget I heard anything because that's too awesome, but I won't say anything Uncle Papyrus about where I heard it." She grinned up at him.

The bear looked mildly relieved.

"Aww, is the wittle pwincess making fwends?" an unfamiliar voice called out.

Halis tried not to turn around, but she failed. She found herself craning her neck to see over Cornelius' arm. Six lizard monsters, all varying shades of brown and yellow, walked behind them leisurely. They each held a weapon of some sort in their hands, a few of them tapping their weapon against the palm of their opposite hand.

Cornelius stopped and turned, deliberately pushing Halis back behind him. "We don't want any trouble," he said loudly.

The first lizard straightened his spine. "Oh, but we do." His mouth curved into a deadly smile.

Halis swallowed and looked down at her hands. Please, she thought, please let her magic work. She was too scared to try to grasp any of their souls, but maybe she could knock them all back and give her and Cornelius a chance to escape. She sucked in a deep breath and stepped up to the bear's side.

"Just leave us alone!" she hollered.

All six lizards laughed. "You got any clue how much your dust is worth, Princess?"

She shuddered. She knew exactly why some monsters had given her that nickname—she was Boss' niece, and so some derisively called her the Princess of Hell—but it didn't make it any less creepy.

"Worth enough to die over?" Cornelius asked, hunching down into a fighting pose.

Halis looked him over. He was scared, he'd told her as much, but he certainly didn't look it. His eyes burned with murderous intent and his lips raised to show his teeth. He was willing to try to protect her, even though he didn't think he'd survive.

The thought made her sad. No one should have to die protecting her. She should be able to protect herself, dammit! She turned and set her sights on the lead lizard. She felt a spike in her magic and her eye sockets warm just slightly as her eye lights grew bigger. She lifted her right hand, palm outward, and sent a pulse of magic to his soul.

He stumbled back a step, and everyone was quiet for a moment.

His smile grew larger, and then every lizard was laughing sardonically.

"That's it?!" he cried out in delight. "The daughter of the infamous Sans, and that's all you can do?"

She huffed and held out her hand again. She could do better. In her last training, she'd sent a full-grown rabbit crashing against the wall. She just needed to focus.

None of the lizards were too keen on giving her that chance. As they rushed forward, a wave of panic seized her soul and she all but jumped in front of her new friend to try to protect him from their onslaught. She probably should have realized it wouldn't be any use. Huge, furry paws gripped her arms and shoved her back behind him as he fought to keep her safe. She managed to summon a few bones to attack with, and nearly shouted in joy when she landed a deadly hit on one of the lizards in the back. His dust fell, but her victory was short-lived. She still had to fight.

All too soon, Cornelius had run out of magic. He slumped down onto his knees and gave her a pathetic excuse of a smile.

"Sorry, kid," he mumbled. "I tried."

She shook her head and tried again to shove the lizards back, but none of them even wavered as they stalked forward. One of them—the leader—stepped up behind her and held her up by her backpack.

"You get to watch your friend die for you. Ain't that sweet?"

She struggled hard, kicking and smacking at anything within her reach, but nothing helped. She was stuck. She closed her eyes and put her hands over them as the lizards finished off the bear. His dust hitting the pavement would be a sound she'd never forget.

Rage like she'd never known before pulsed through her soul and over her bones. White tears fell down her face and she began to struggle anew. Her backpack was strapped to her, the buckles done up around her ribcage by habit. It was something she did so her bag couldn't be easily stolen, but now she realized she couldn't get out of it. She'd be damned if she ever did that shit again.

She screamed as she struggled, as loudly as she could. She sent bones flying in every direction, too scared and angry to focus on where the lizards actually were. She bit down hard when a scaly hand slapped over her mouth to shut her up. The lizard's magic seeped into her mouth, and she clenched her jaw shut tight as she ripped her head away, tearing off a piece of the monster's hand. She spat it out, growling and snarling before she screamed again.

She was dropped then, and she landed in a heap next to a pile of dust. She attempted to scramble away, but she was surrounded by lizards.

She realized as she screamed again, that she was going to die. She was going to leave her uncle all alone. She could just imagine him, sitting in his chair in the living room waiting for her to get home. Did he wonder where she was yet? She didn't know how long she'd been out, but some part of her was certain she should have been home by now. Her friend Caterina's house wasn't that far away.

The first weapon that came down on her hit her backpack. It didn't even hurt. She took advantage of that to turn and huddle herself under it. All too soon, she was dragged back up and the buckles at her chest were undone. She fought to keep it, but it was yanked away, nearly breaking her arm in the process. Once it was gone, she was shoved back to the ground.

"Alright, boys; let's get this over with," the lead lizard said through smiling teeth. "And remember, I get the final blow."

They acknowledged his rule and began their attack in earnest.

Halis huddled, hiding her head between her arms to try to protect her skull from the worst of their blows. She thought of her uncle and how he'd react to finding out she was dead. She cried, knowing it would probably kill him. He'd protected her for so long—thirteen years! He'd tended her wounds, kept her fed, and told her stories about her parents. She knew he'd never say it out loud, but he loved her. She loved him, too, and she'd only ever said it once. When he didn't say it back, she'd been hurt and thought that he didn't love her. But he did. He was her caretaker, and he would be ruined if she died.

She thought about her bedroom and wished so hard she could be there.

It took her a long moment to realize that she was no longer being hit. The loud shouts and hollers of her attackers were gone. She was on something soft rather than the cold, hard surface of the streets. Had she died? Was this…did monsters even go to hell? She had already been there, hadn't she? Was there a different hell? A metaphorical one where monster consciousnesses went after their bodies turned to dust?

Her eyes opened slowly, and she was met with the sight of her pillow. Confused, she sat up slowly—groaning at the pain along her spine—and looked around. Wherever she was, it was an exact replica of her bedroom.

She tried to get up and hissed violently as a shock of pain hit her arm. She looked down and swallowed thickly. The sleeve of her left sweater looked weird. There was a bump in it that sat at an unnatural angle. Carefully, oh so slowly, she picked at the sleeve until she could pull it up over her arm. Cursing softly the whole time—goddamn this hurt!—she finally revealed a very broken ulna.

She'd had broken bones before. She'd caused some of them herself after playing too roughly or even falling off fences she wasn't supposed to climb. And yet, she'd never seen her bone in two pieces. The sight made her lean over the side of her bed and vomit.

Well, heave. Nothing came up.

She heaved a few more times before she felt like she could handle her own magic. She sat on the edge of her bed and contemplated a few things. If she was dead, would she be in this much pain? She sure as hell hoped not. That would probably mean she'd be in that pain forever. Dead things didn't heal. She knew that much from the human corpses she'd played with.

Okay, so if she wasn't dead, then what had happened? How did she get home? Did she black out and somehow the lizards decided to bring her home instead of finishing her off? She almost laughed at that prospect. There was no way the lizards would give up. They were bent on getting her dust and whatever gold they would earn from it.

Had someone saved her? Maybe her uncle had come looking for her and found her in the nick of time?

Any scenario she dreamt up still didn't explain how one second, she was one the ground and the next, she was in her bed. It felt as if no time at all had passed.

She stood up on shaky legs and winced at the pain in her back as she took a few steps. If her uncle had found her, he would have healed her before letting her lay down. Especially with an ulna in two pieces. The thought nearly made her throw up again, but she held it in.

With a breath that hurt her ribcage, she tried to use her magic to open her door. Strange. Nothing happened. Her soul felt weak, as if it didn't have enough magic to do what she wanted it to do. She furrowed her brow bones and tried to ignore the tight pain in her face as she did. Cradling her broken arm against her chest, she reached out with her right hand and opened the door. She sighed again. It wasn't locked, and it should have opened with her magic.

"Uncle Papyrus?" she called out, stepping out into the hall. She felt like shit warmed over.

"HALIS? HOW DID YOU GET UP THERE?" Boss called from the bottom of the stairs. "I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU TO GET HOME. WHY DID YOU SNEAK PAST ME?"

She put her right hand on the banister at the top of the stairs and thought about trying to take the first step down. Just the idea of hit hurt her back. "I don't know."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON—WHAT HAPPENED?" He stopped mid-step, and his face went from slightly-annoyed-uncle to concerned-uncle to thoroughly-pissed-off-ruler-of-hell. "WHO HURT YOU?" he growled.

The pain of just standing was getting to be too much. She wanted to lay down. She regretted getting out of her bed. "Lizards. It hurts so bad." She looked at him, her vision barely able to focus. Her right hand left the banister and went to her left wrist. She made an attempt at pulling up her sleeve, but it caught the broken ulna. She nearly screamed. "It's broken," she sobbed.

Boss was at the top of the steps almost immediately. After realizing that she had not tried to sneak past him, but that something far more sinister had happened, he went into Uncle mode. He scooped her up, careful to mind her wounds, and carried her back to her bed. He laid her down gently and began to heal her.

"I'm so sorry, Uncle Papyrus," she cried. "I was so stupid! I…I shouldn't have…" Her thoughts went to Cornelius, and she broke out into a full sob.

"HUSH NOW. LET ME FIX YOU, AND THEN YOU'LL TELL ME EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED. YOU WILL SPARE NO DETAILS. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?"

She nodded. "Yes, Uncle."

He nodded curtly and turned his attention back to her wounds. Instead of trying to pull the sleeve of her shirt back, he cut it off at the elbow. She tried to protest, but he needed only send her a scowl and she stopped. He sighed as he saw what had happened to her ulna.

"I'M AFRAID THIS IS GOING TO HURT," he warned. "I NEED TO SET THE BONE BEFORE I CAN MEND IT." He looked around briefly before he shook his head. "I HAVE NOTHING FOR YOU TO BITE ON. I'M TRULY SORRY FOR THIS, HALIS."

She swallowed thickly, new tears of anticipated pain falling from the corners of her eye sockets, and nodded. "It's okay, Uncle. I can handle it."

He smirked, but it was sad. He placed his hand over the bone and hesitated only a moment before snapping it back into place. Her answering scream brought tears to his eyes. Still holding the bone in place, he pulsed healing magic into her. He could feel her magic responding, rebuilding the bone and bridging the gap of the break. It took longer than a normal monster break would take to heal, but soon enough it was healed.

"ARE YOU INJURED ANYWHERE ELSE?"

She performed a mental assessment of her body, starting at her feet and working her way up her legs, pelvis, spine, ribs, arms, neck, and skull. The sharp pain was gone, but somehow, she felt a faint echo lingering there.

"No, but…should I still feel some of the ones you've already healed?" She still cradled her arm, a little afraid to move it properly.

Boss nodded. "YES, THAT'S NORMAL. IT'S A SORT OF MENTAL PAIN—AN ECHO, IF YOU WILL. IT'LL GO AWAY SOON ENOUGH."

He stood up and held out his hand. Halis took it and used the support to ease herself off the bed. She followed him down the stairs to the living room. She sat in her chair while he made tea and thought about how she was going to explain what had happened.

Boss came back with two mugs and handed one of them to her. She relished the warmth and lifted the cup to inhale the tea's scent. It was the same flowery tea that he always made when she was hurt. It reminded her of comfort and safety. She took a small sip before looking at her uncle. He was eyeing her carefully.

"NOW TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED."

She nodded and began.

Boss was quiet as he listened to his niece recount the incident. He made a mental note to reach out to Cornelius' family. The bears had always been in his good graces, and they deserved to know that their relative died an honorable death. He made a separate note to identify and locate each remaining lizard. He knew who they were as well as the monster who wanted Halis' dust. He'd have to go after them as well to make sure shit like this didn't happen again.

"I don't know how I got home," she said, her voice tiny. "I was so scared, Uncle. I thought of you and how hurt you would be if I died, and I just wanted to be here. Then, suddenly, I was here."

Boss smiled. "YOU TELEPORTED."

She looked up, confused. "But I've been trying to do that, and I can't."

"MAGIC IS STRANGE SOMETIMES, HALIS. YOUR DAD WAS ALREADY ABLE TO TELEPORT BY THE TIME I WAS BORN. IT WAS AN ABILITY PASSED DOWN FROM OUR FATHER, ALTHOUGH I HAVE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO. YOU ARE SHOWING SIGNS OF HAVING INHERITED A LOT OF YOUR DAD'S MAGIC, BUT I WILL ASSUME THAT HAVING YOUR MOTHER'S HUMANNESS, IT WILL BE HARDER TO CONTROL IT."

"So it happened because I was panicked?"

"ESSENTIALLY, YES. WE'LL WORK ON IT, AND YOU WILL GET BETTER AT IT."

She nodded. "Thank you. For everything, Uncle. I know I owe my life to you." In so many ways, she thought.

Boss wasn't sure how to respond to that. He was quiet for a moment before he set his cup down on the table next to his chair. "COME HERE." He held out his arms.

Halis smiled brightly and got up. She set her cup next to his and climbed into his lap. His arms wrapped around her in a tight hug.

"YOUR MOTHER WAS A SUCKER FOR HUGS," he said softly. "THEY MADE HER FEEL BETTER, I GUESS. I CAN ONLY ASSUME THAT YOU INHERITED THAT FROM HER."

She heard herself giggle as she snuggled a little closer. Her uncle gave the best hugs, and despite his assurances that he hated them and they were a waste of time, she felt like he got something out of them as well.

Boss allowed himself to relax and accept the comfort Halis' small form gave him. She was safe, and she was showing signs of having strong magic like him and her dad. She'd be okay. They were certainly going to increase her training as soon as possible. She needed to learn how to use that magic under pressure.

LOSE THE STRIPES, GAIN A JACKET

Halis stood in front of the full-length mirror that hung on her closet door and grinned widely. Today was the day. The most important day of her life. Excitement buzzed in her soul and over every bone in her body as she carefully grazed her eyes over her reflection.

The outfit had been sitting on her chair when she woke up. She could hardly believe she was finally able to wear this!

The skirt was modest and ended at her knees. It was black and made of a thick, soft material that almost reminded her of velvet. She wore no leggings or stockings under it; her legs would be bare from the knee down for the first time in her life. Well, in public anyway. Her shoes were simple black flats.

She was most excited about the top. It was a simple green t-shirt with a scoop neckline, but it was solid. No stripes!

She nearly squealed in delight. Again.

She sported a new scarf, this one made out of the same material her old one had been, only it was a golden yellow. Her old scarf was tucked safely in her drawer of special memories and would be until the fabric itself disintegrated.

She twirled and marveled at how the skirt felt against her femurs. With another pulse of exhilaration in her soul, she nearly tore open her bedroom door and skipped down the stairs.

"Good morning, Uncle!" she sang, her voice loud and cheerful. She stopped at the doorway to the kitchen and beamed brightly at him as he flipped a pancake.

He glanced at her, giving her a small smile. "GOOD MORNING, HALIS. I'M GLAD YOU FOUND THE CLOTHES I LEFT FOR YOU."

Sneaking into her room to leave her birthday clothes on her chair had been awkward, but he knew she'd much rather wear that than suffer through even an hour of stripes until she could open a present. And, seeing the smile on her face had been worth it.

She squealed and rushed forward to hug him tightly. "Yes, of course I did. I can't believe it! I'm…I'm an adult!"

"YES, NOW YOU CAN GET A JOB AND PAY RENT."

She snorted. "I have a job." Then she pulled back and looked up at him. "Don't I? You said I could start working with you when I was out of stripes."

Boss nudged her out of the way to put the finished pancake on a small stack of already-made ones. He gestured toward them as if to tell her to get a plate and eat.

"I SUPPOSE I DID SAY THAT. WITH YOU KNACK FOR DISSECTION AND UNDERSTANDING OF HUMAN PAIN TOLERANCES, YOU WILL BE A VALUABLE ADDITION TO MY TEAM. HOWEVER, THAT DOES NOT MEAN YOU WILL JUST JUMP IN AND BEGIN WORK TODAY. YOU WILL NEED TRAINING."

Halis nodded as she pulled a few pancakes on to her plate. "I understand, Uncle. I'm ready to start whenever you want me to."

"THEN FOR TODAY YOU WILL ENJOY YOUR BIRTHDAY, AND YOU CAN COME IN TO THE FACILITY WITH ME TOMORROW."

She let out a small squeal and took her plate to the table. Boss followed her with his own plate.

"THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE I NEED TO DISCUSS WITH YOU," he said, his face a little too serious for Halis' liking.

"Okay?"

"LIVING ARRANGEMENTS. IT'S CUSTOMARY FOR A MONSTER TO MOVE OUT WHEN THEY GROW OUT OF STRIPES. HOWEVER, GIVEN YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES, I AM WILLING TO ALLOW YOU TO STAY HERE UNTIL YOU FIND AN APPROPRIATE PLACE OF YOUR OWN."

She nodded again. "I think I'll take you up on that offer. Catherina was talking to me about maybe pooling our income to get a place together. She's gonna be out of stripes in another month, and her family can't afford to keep her in the house…"

As Halis spoke, Boss half listened as his mind began to wander. A part of him was surprised that Halis had actually made it to adulthood. And yet, he reminded himself, this was only her first day as an adult. He worried that monsters would take her lack of stripes as an open invitation to attack her. And, as much as he really didn't want to think about it, there were now new ways in which she could be attacked. He really wanted to keep her in his home to add whatever layers of protection he could, but that was unrealistic. He needed to let her live her own life.

But what if her life was cut short? What if she moved out and her roommate or neighbor or even someone just tracking her down hurt her?

He shook himself out of those thoughts and returned his attention to what she was saying. He'd missed something, but it didn't appear to be important. She continued to rattle on about her friends and their plans for the upcoming year.

After breakfast, Halis wanted to go see her friends. Birthday parties weren't a thing in her world, but she'd read about them as she learned all she could about humans. She'd wanted to hold one, but Boss wouldn't let her. It was too big of a target, he said. There were too many opportunities for someone to either sneak in or plan a large attack. So, instead, Halis was going to go visit her friends.

"NOT YET," Boss called out. "I HAVE SOMETHING FOR YOU."

She stopped by the front door and gave him a quizzical look. "I thought the outfit was my present."

Boss nodded. "Yes, it was, but this one is…different. Consider it a present from your dad."

Ooh. She turned immediately, thoughts of visiting her friends abandoned. "He left something for me?" She knew how her dad felt about her. Her uncle didn't try to keep it a secret. She knew all about her violent birth and how neither her dad nor her mom had ever held her. While a part of her was sad about that, another part of her was just grateful that her uncle had agreed to raise her. After all, she hadn't asked to be born, but she was happy to be alive.

"NOT EXACTLY. IT'S SOMETHING THAT MEANT A LOT TO HIM. I'VE STRUGGLED WITH THIS FOR A FEW YEARS. I KNOW HOW HE WOULD FEEL IF HE KNEW I WAS GIVING THIS TO YOU, BUT AT THE SAME TIME I FEEL LIKE HE WOULD APPROVE IF HE KNEW THE KIND OF WOMAN YOU'VE GROWN TO BE."

Boss almost chuckled. Sans would be livid, but the bastard wasn't here, was he? No. Boss wouldn't consider it revenge or a spite gift. In fact, he really didn't care about Sans' hypothetical feelings on the matter. This was about Halis, and she deserved this.

She nodded. "Okay."

She watched as her uncle produced a box and handed it to her. It was wrapped haphazardly in some kind of thin paper with a puppy design on it. It was cute. She tore the paper away to reveal a plain white box. She looked at her uncle for a moment before taking it to the coffee table. She set it down and carefully lifted the lid.

Inside was a mass of black fabric. She touched it gently. It was rough yet soft at the same time. She lifted it to discover it was a jacket. The same jacket he'd been wearing in the picture she had safely tucked away in her drawer.

She stood, holding the jacket out at arm's length, and felt tears gathering in her eye sockets. She had bits and pieces of things that had belonged to her parents, but until now the only thing that would have had any kind of meaning was her dad's gold tooth. But this…he had worn this. Her mother had touched it, probably even worn it herself a few times. From how her uncle had spoken of them, it was a huge part of who her dad was.

She hugged the jacket close to her chest and nearly sobbed. Without a word, she slipped it on. It nearly drowned her! She knew her dad was a big skeleton, but this really put things in perspective. The sleeves hung off the ends of her phalanges a good six inches and the bottom hung down to her knees. She wasn't fully done growing yet, so maybe it wouldn't look so huge in a few years. She sniffled and pulled at the sleeves until her fingertips came through. Then she zipped up the jacket and snuggled into it.

She still said nothing as she walked up to her uncle and threw her arms around his chest. He hugged her tightly.

It was an odd thing, seeing Halis in his brother's beloved jacket. That piece of fabric had meant so much to his brother, although he never could quite figure out why. He supposed it didn't matter. Seeing Halis' reaction to receiving it was worth every single moment of indecision he'd had over the years as he had contemplated getting rid of it. He was happy now that he'd kept it. She truly deserved to keep it.

"HE WORE THIS THING EVERYWHERE," Boss said, trying his hardest to keep his voice steady. "HE KILLED IN IT. HE PROBABLY SLEPT IN IT. HAD HE EVER GONE SWIMMING, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN IN THIS JACKET."

Halis felt her mouth turn up at the corners. "I love you, Uncle Papyrus. Thank you for this gift."

"YOU'RE MOST WELCOME. TREAT IT WELL." The words came out as more of a threat than he'd intended them to be. He cleared his throat and decided to let her think the jacket meant more to him than it did. Yes, it had belonged to his brother, but being sentimental over it hadn't brought his brother back and it wasn't ever going to do so. Still, it was nice to see his niece this happy.

"Of course I will."

She spent some time debating over whether or not she would go see her friends in the jacket, but ultimately decided not to. It was too big! That, and a passing remark her uncle made sealed the deal. He'd mentioned that other monsters would know immediately who the jacket had belonged to. She'd had enough run-ins with monsters who wanted to hurt her, and she knew she'd be hurt if anything happened to her now-favorite piece of clothing.

So instead, she reverently hung it in her closet for another day and went out to see her friends.

FIRST INTERROGATION

She grinned, attempting to still her shaking fingers, and her bones rattled with how excited she was.

The human on the table in front of her? Not so excited.

She bounced on the balls of her feet, glancing at Boss every few seconds, just waiting to be given the signal that she could start.

"ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME, HALIS?" he asked, exasperated.

She nodded. "Of course I am, Uncle! Don't cut anything vital, ask questions that he can answer with only a few words, and don't let him bleed out." She nodded succinctly; she had memorized those rules almost a week ago. "Oh, and heal him if needed, but don't heal all the way because…because why?" She scrunched her nasal ridge and glanced at her uncle.

Boss sighed. "IMAGINE IF YOU WERE BEING TORTURED, AND SOME IDIOT HEALED YOUR WOUNDS ENTIRELY. WHAT MIGHT THAT DO?"

She thought about it for a second. She really didn't want to put herself in that scenario—she'd been tortured before and it wasn't pleasant. However, if she were in that situation and suddenly healed, she'd fight back.

"Oh, okay. Even though humans are relatively weak, he could think he's strong enough to fight me if I heal him all the way."

Boss nodded proudly. "GOOD GIRL."

She grinned brightly.

"YOU MAY BEGIN."

Her squeal of delight overshadowed the human's whimper. She cleared her throat and put on her best business face before stepping up beside the human's head.

"First things' first, human," she said, her voice far too cheery for the scene, "I'm going to ask you questions, and you're going to answer me. If I think you're lying to me, you will be punished. Do you understand?"

The man nodded. He attempted to speak, but the gag in his mouth muffled the words.

Halis glanced up at Boss, and he nodded. She removed the gag from the human's mouth so he could be understood.

"What the fuck is going on? Who are you and what do you want?"

She sighed. "You indicated that you understood, but you clearly don't. I'm the one that asks the questions, not you. Clear?"

With another whimper, the man nodded.

"Good! My name is Halis, and this is my boss. He's actually called Boss, too. Cool, huh? We're monsters, and you're in hell. Now, can you think of any reason you might be here? Any reason at all?" She raised a brow bone and stared into his watery eyes.

The man squirmed uncomfortably as Halis' white eye lights stayed trained on his eyes. It was so fucking creepy! Living fucking skeletons with sharp teeth and fucking claws!

"I have no fucking clue!"

Halis quirked her mouth. "You're lying." She glanced up at Boss, and again he nodded. The man whimpered.

Halis took a second to calm her overexcited nerves before gently pushing a claw into his shoulder. He screamed, and she nearly jumped back. Instead, she pushed forward until she felt bone. She watched as blood poured from the wound onto the table. She wasn't used to bodies squirming under her exploration, and the sounds he made was distracting.

Still, nothing could take away from the pure curiosity of feeling his joint move under her touch. The way the cartilage kept bone from scraping against bone fascinated her. And he was so warm! She could feel his blood pumping through his veins, harder and faster as he panicked.

"You're here because you and two others raped a child. How old was he? Four? Maybe five? His monster reported his injuries, and we were able to track you down because you kept a pair of his fucking underwear."

Boss cleared his throat, and Halis looked up at him. "THE CHILD WAS A GIRL."

"Oh." She grimaced and looked back down at the human's paling face. "I mean, it doesn't really matter to me, but what the fuck? Was she wearing something provocative? Maybe showing too much shoulder?" She dug her finger deeper, thrusting her claw into the cartilage of his shoulder. She heard a satisfying 'pop' as the humeral head broke free of its socket.

The human's answering scream was beautiful.

"I want names. Tell me who else was with you that night."

The man shook his head, panting and crying. "I don't know!"

Boss and Halis both snorted. She pulled her finger free of his shoulder and healed it just enough that he wouldn't bleed too much.

"You're lying again," she all but sang. "You know what I've really been interested in seeing, Uncle?" She brought her hands together and tapped her distal phalanges against each other in anticipation. She didn't wait for a response; her uncle was usually far more professional than that. "I want to see how living muscle reacts when it's pulled away from bone."

"Okay! I'm lying! I'm sorry, I'll tell you everything you want to know."

She looked up at Boss and pouted when he shook his head. She sighed.

"Fine. I need names and locations; where can I find these bastards?"

A half an hour later, and the human was put in a cell to wait for the people he'd named to be brought in. He'd have to identify them before he could be killed.

"YOU DID WELL, HALIS," Boss praised. "NOT BAD FOR YOUR FIRST TIME."

Halis beamed. "Thank you, Uncle!" She looked at her hands and frowned a little at the blood still on her fingers. "Can I go clean up now?"

He nodded, and she turned to leave. The downside to working on a living human, she discovered, was their propensity for bleeding everywhere. She'd have to figure out a way to keep her clothes clean while she worked.

A/N: Thank you so much for reading. Remember to come visit my Tumblr and let me know if you want to see Halis in other situations/scenarios.