Chapter Text
“-We still don’t know where the different clans came from. It’s been over two years since the clans emerged, and the government has yet to provide any answers as to how they got here. The most shocking event has been the discovery of Surface Monsters. According to the monster clan that came from the Underground three years ago, Surface Monsters were killed during the war before mages sealed them in. It’s incredible to think that creatures once thought to be fantasy actually exist now!” the podcast host, Gerard, stated.
Elden’s amber eyes flicked to the radio as she sipped her hot cup of chai tea before methodically shuffling her tarot deck; conspiracy stations always amused her, and she sometimes got to pick up some interesting news about monsters. Like today, for example. “Regardless, we have a special guest with us today. Avora, we appreciate you being here this morning,” Gerard continued.
“Thank you for having me,” a feminine voice chirped back.
“Avora is classified as a ‘Surface Monster.’ Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself?”
“Well, I am a harpy, and I belong to the Birds of Paradise family,” she explained.
“How many families are there?”
“There are quite a few, actually. There is the Finch, Tropical, Vulture, and the Canopy, just to name a few. They were named as such because of their likeness to the birds.”
“So instead of clans, harpies have families?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“That’s fascinating. So, since the emergence of Surface Monsters, there has been a lot of older information that has recently been deemed false to some species that came out. Does the misinformation irk some individuals?”
“I can confirm that it doesn’t offend some, but it does offend my kind. Most mythology portrays us as ‘horribly foul and loathsome’ or as abductors for Hades or Zeus, but that is far from accurate. Sure, we got aggressive against anyone if they wandered too close to our nests, but we didn’t actively try to torment others. Well, unless it was a predator.”
“There were people that hunted harpies?”
“If we were in the wrong place at the wrong time, anything larger than us, usually smaller dragons and griffins, would snatch us for a quick meal.”
“Griffins are extinct, though, correct?”
“Now they are classified as such, but during the hunts, after the war, the Surface Monsters’ numbers quickly declined, and some species wound up extinct, such as the griffin and unicorn.”
“You did mention dragons; what can you tell me about them?”
Elden paused her shuffling as her eyes became focused on the speaker system in her store. “Unfortunately, there isn’t much known about them, even among surface monsters. The only known fact is that there are approximately fifty left alive, but they are still actively hunted because of their magic reserves. Everything else is just a rumor,” Avora replied.
The redhead hummed as she turned off the podcast and turned on her usual chosen mix before going to the front to unlock the doors. After flipping the sign to open, she made her way back to the café counter and knocking on her Antique Anatomy Tarot deck before flipping over the top card. She was greeted with the Wheel of Fortune card. Eight skeleton hands formed a circle; the hands were facing outward, and each mirrored the other hand in the respective direction. In the top left corner was the ace of blades resting on a bed of yellow, red, and white flowers. The top right corner was represented by the ace of coins which rested on purple, yellow, and white flowers. The ace of rods sat in the bottom left and was on pink, white, and purple flora. Lastly, the ace of elixirs sat in the bottom right; black, red, orange, blue, and pink flowers peeked from behind the suit. Elden tapped her pointer on the card as she thought about the meaning. Karma, cycle, fate, change, opportunity, luck… Change was the word that was sticking to her. Something was going to happen in her life; that was the only definite. Her attention was drawn to the front door as the bell rang; she stepped out from behind the counter with a smile as the familiar scent of pine and snow wandered into her store. “Hello, Dombuth; how are you this morning?” Elden asked as a white-haired male came into view.
“I’m doing alright; I’m irritated since I’ve been stuck in this form for a few months now,” he grumbled as he moved to clock in. His young features were a huge contrast to his snow-white hair.
“The hunters still hanging around your territory?” Elden asked as she followed him to the main registers.
Dombuth grunted in confirmation, “I got too excited with trying to attract a mate when I pushed my magic out.”
Elden sighed as she leaned her seven-foot-three-inch frame against the counter. “You know you need to be careful. Having a mate is good and all, but you also need to keep in mind that your magic is being actively tracked. Have you been staying in your human lodging?”
“Yes, though on my next two days off, I may fly north for a chance to be out of this form for a day; it’s starting to feel cramped.”
“On a side note, in honor of the anniversary of the monsters’ emergence from the underground, we are running buy one get one half off on all books written by monsters or books giving factual information about monsters. Ideally, we can spread awareness so people can be more accepting of monsters. We are also running ten percent off on children’s books since school will be starting in a few months,” Elden said. “Other than that, I almost have the program set up for our member rewards program; unlike our competitors, I’m not going to charge for a membership and do a point base system for free books.”
“Look at you, so productive,” Dombuth mused with a grin. “Are we getting a shipment in today?”
“We got it in yesterday, so today, we will focus on restocking our shelves between customers because we managed to get the majority unboxed before closing last night.”
“What time are you closing the café side today?”
Elden hummed in thought. “I think I’ll close up around four-thirty; it shouldn’t be too busy since it’s a weekday,” she finally answered.
Dombuth only nodded as he set to work on the restock. The redhead straightened up and grabbed a stack of books to help. Elden was quite proud of her little store. After coming to this area, it took her two years to open her shop called The Melting Plot finally. She spent grueling hours getting everything laid out to her tastes. The rich purple carpet stood out against the dark wood shelving and cream-colored walls. The name of her store was written in a flourishing cursive on the front doors, along with the plaque that proudly showed that the establishment was monster-owned. She sometimes wished that it wasn’t required to display that the shop was monster owned because of protesters but seeing their confusion at the sight of a human running the store never ceased to amuse her. Elden personally was indifferent about humanity in this universe, but that didn’t mean that she went out of her way to socialize with them. She had too many bad memories of humankind which in turn made her cautious with them.
The morning was quiet as the two employees focused on the restock. Elden paused as she picked up yet another book on dragons. If past books were anything to go by, this book was filled with false information. Setting it aside, she continued to focus on the stack. She’d read the book in her free time later to confirm her suspicions. The redhead looked up as the front doorbell chimed once again as a familiar white rabbit walked in. The soft scent of clove hung delicately in the air as the monster waved at the two workers. “Hey, Elden! How are ya?” she chirped with a wave.
“I’m doing well, Ros. How about yourself?” the shop owner replied with a soft smile.
“Not doing bad. Came by for my usual cup of coffee before heading to work,” the rabbit smiled as she walked up to the counter.
Elden hummed as she walked to the counter. “Any changes, or do you still want it black with a little sugar?” the redhead asked as she rang up the order.
“Yes, please!”
“How are your younglings doing? Last I heard, they were getting ready to start school.”
“They are enjoying school so far; Toriel has been patient with them, which is a blessing. She was a good choice for a teacher, if I do say so myself. She has the kindness and patience of a saint. What about your children?”
“Mine are a menace,” Elden deadpanned. “One managed to crawl into a bag of holding while I was at work. Angelica called freaking out, so I had to leave work early to find the little stinker. Thankfully, his magic signature led me to him; I now have to keep my bags of holding well hidden.”
“Sounds like a troublemaker,” Ros snickered as she paid for her coffee. “Will your kids be attending school soon?”
“Not yet. They are still too young. They still need to get more control of their magic before they are ready. They can form some words now, so that’s good,” the redhead said as she handed the coffee to her regular.
“Maybe we can set up a play date some time. I know socialization is important for young ones,” Ros hummed in thought.
“It would need to be somewhere discreet for obvious reasons,” the redhead hummed. “You have my number so that we can talk about it later today.”
“Sounds great!” Ros before looking around her. “Does your soul still have that dull ache?” she asked more quietly.
“Unfortunately so, but you know I can’t just get it looked at for obvious reasons. I need to be as discreet as possible.”
The rabbit only nodded in agreement before saying goodbye and heading to work. Elden watched with a smile as her friend left. If she could say anything about the monsters from this world, they were much kinder than the ones she knew before coming here. The redhead shook her head from the intruding thoughts before continuing to stock the shelves. It wouldn’t do her any good to dwell on the past that would no longer affect her. It was good to be cautious because of the hunters, but this world wasn’t as cruel as the one she grew up in. The rest of the day went by relatively quickly, much to the delight of the workers. At four-thirty, Elden counted down her register and set up the deposit slips for her register before placing the money in the safe to be combined with the main register for the nightly deposit before clocking out and heading home. Her seven-foot frame allowed her to look over most of the crowd as she weaved through the bodies; she grumbled as the different scents of monsters and humans mingled around her. The combination of scents caused a ghost of a headache to cling to her. She welcomed the sight of her run-down apartment as she strolled down the road.
The complex wasn’t in the best condition, but it was one of the few that offered affordable prices for both surface and underground monsters. The walls were thin, but they did have a nice view of the mountain. Elden sighed as she walked up the stairs to the third floor before going to her room: 310. With a hum, she unlocked the door, ignoring the sound of one of her neighbors leaving their rooms, and closed the door behind her with a sigh. She strode into her bedroom to change out of her work clothes. She caught a glance of herself in the mirror, and she couldn’t help but smile. Her forties-style blue dress made her stand out a little more, but she didn’t mind. Her fire-red hair was pinned up to perfection, which allowed her sharp amber eyes to stand out on her pale features. Removing her work dress, she pulled out a pair of wide-leg jeans and a black crop top before grabbing her keys and a black pouch before once again heading to the hallway and locking her front door. “HELLO NEIGHBOR!” a loud voice boomed.
Elden blinked as she glanced to her right to see a six-foot-tall skeleton waving at her. He wore what looked to be a white chest piece, blue shorts, and a red scarf with matching gloves and boots. “Good afternoon,” she responded.
“WE HAVEN’T MET, AND MY EDGY FRIEND MENTIONED SEEING YOU COME HOME!” he said. “I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”
“It’s a pleasure. My name is Elden,” she smiled with a short bow. “As much as I’d like to stay and chat, I do have a few things to take care of.”
“OF COURSE, HUMAN! MAYBE WE CAN MAKE PLANS FOR A NEIGHBORLY GET-TOGETHER!” Papyrus suggested.
Elden paused while biting back the irritation of being called human; most of the monsters from this world were more oblivious to magic signatures, so she was trying not to take offense. “While I appreciate it, I do not have much free time, unfortunately,” Elden answered. “If I have an opening in my schedule, however, I will inform you. What is your room number, Mister Papyrus?”
“OH, I’M IN ROOM 314! AND JUST PAPYRUS IS FINE!” he replied with an excited smile.
“Until then,” the redhead smiled before heading back down the stairs.
Elden made her way to the mountain; she was now heading home. She continued her trek until she was out of human sight, and then she allowed her magic to unfold. A twenty-four-foot dragon stood where the human was. Deep crimson scales shined in the fading sunlight that broke the tree canopy. Her feathered wings stretched briefly before folding neatly along her back. The dragon proceeded to shake her body, so the fur along her neck and spine unstuck from her body. A pleased rumble escaped the dragoness as she continued through her territory until she entered a tunnel that directly led to her hoard. “Angelica, I’ve returned,” she said; her voice carried through the tunnel.
The dragon soon emerged into a gigantic chamber filled with gold, gems, and her personal favorite: books. Two small younglings chirped in glee at seeing their mother before they pranced towards her. A chuckle came from the larger dragon as she let out a pleased chuff. “Welcome home,” Angelica said as she approached the three; her hair was a soft blonde that made her piercing green eyes pop. Her skin was a porcelain white that seemed to glow yellow from the surrounding gold.
“I hope my young weren’t too much trouble for you today,” Elden hummed as she nuzzled her children.
“Furnax tried to go outside again, but other than that, they were perfect,” the blonde said with a grin.
The dragon nodded before summoning the black pouch and nudging it towards her monster babysitter. “That is next month’s payment and a little extra from putting up with my hooligans,” she said. “I also added a few trinkets to add to your personal hoard.”
Angelica beamed as she scooped up the pouch, “As always, you are kind. I will return your bag of holding tomorrow.”
Elden nodded as the babysitter waved and left the warmed cave. The dragoness hummed as she laid on the pile of gold; her younglings wasted no time in crawling all over their mother. “Did you have fun today?” Elden asked; her voice sounded heavier as she spoke draconic.
“We did!” Talos replied. “Angelica promised to take us to the lake once the water warms!”
Talos’ scales were black, and she lacked the feathered wings that Elden had. The tufts of fur that her daughter did have were a deep crimson much like her mother’s scales. Furnax, her son, had bright red scales other than his webbed wings, which were a soft orange. “How is your speech coming in common?” the mother asked as she watched her children in amusement.
“Do we have to learn common?” Furnax grumbled; he scowled at his sister for biting his tail. The result was him shoving her off their mother’s back.
“Yes, it is important for you to learn,” Elden chuckled. “The world doesn’t know draconic. If it encourages you, I will be setting up a playdate with other younglings soon.”
“Really?!” Talos asked in excitement.
“Only if you continue to make progress,” the dragoness mused.
Furnax huffed before spotting a small mouse in the corner; his hazel eyes dilated as he focused on his pray. Crouching, the little dragon slowly stalked closer, trying to keep as silent as possible. He was spotted, though, and the rodent quickly darted out of sight. Elden grinned as she stood up, “I will return with dinner, so until then, be on your best behavior.”
The two younglings nodded as their mother ran out of the cave. Once she broke the tunnel’s entrance, the dragon spread her wings before taking flight; she was sure to hide her presence by letting her magic coat her scales. It didn’t make her invisible, but it did camouflage her body. A stray cow caught her attention, and she wasted no time snatching the terrified animal up and snapping its neck. The farmer would be upset, but it was their fault for leaving their animals unaccounted for. It wasn’t long before the dragon dragged the carcass back into her lair, and the three enjoyed their feast. Half of the animal was leftover, which would mean that tomorrow, she wouldn’t need to hunt. Elden yawned as her eyes grew heavy in the heat of her territory; she was acclimated to high temperatures due to her ability to breathe fire, so she kept the temperature around one hundred degrees. The dragon thought back to her tarot cards. What was going to change? An uncomfortable feeling settled in her gut as she watched her young curl into her side and promptly fall asleep. She felt herself being pulled into the dream world, but then the scent of murky water and mud gently prod her territory. Elden recognized the magic scent, and it caused her to frown and carefully stand up to avoid waking her children. Quietly, the dragoness once again headed outside and was greeted by the night and the sound of beating wings. She didn’t move as a familiar dragon landed in front of her. His black scales made him hard to spot, but her vision picked him up easily. His beady yellow eyes shown dully in his sunken sockets; it didn’t go unnoticed that the dragon’s head was low. His light brown under scales made it easier to notice his sullen form. “Auntyr, what happened?” Elden asked as she cautiously approached him; he had been a part of her father’s clan before the dragons dispersed.
“Hunters…” he spoke slowly; his deep voice seemed to draw his words out longer. “They attacked my territory… my mate and hatchlings were slain…”
Elden tensed up before a deep growl emitted from her. “Did they attack while you were away?” she asked.
The black dragon nodded as he laid on the earth. “I need to find a new territory,” he drawled. “I knew we were on good standing, and so I wanted to stop here before continuing my flight.”
The dragoness hummed in understanding as she joined him on the ground. “You can stay as long as needed; you helped raise me when I was a juvenile, so I am happy to return the favor,” she said with a sigh.
“Where is your mate?” Auntyr asked after a moment.
“He was killed by mages years ago before my younglings hatched. I was able to flee with the eggs while he tried to fight,” Elden sighed. “Well, all of this was before we emerged in this world… it’s been a long while since we’ve visited.”
“That it has, but our secrecy is important…” he grumbled as his eyes fell shut.
“I’ll keep watch to be sure you weren’t tracked in some way. The hunters are having a knack for finding us easily nowadays… It’s unsettling, to say the least.”
“Thank you,” Auntyr grumbled before sleep claimed him.
Elden listened to her friend’s heavy breathing with a frown. The hunters were becoming more organized. Despite the attacks on surface monsters, the humans weren’t really prioritizing their cases. It was frustrating to all species. The dragoness listened to the sounds of the forest while looking at the stars. Her kind was critically endangered, and this now left their numbers below fifty. Last she heard, there were less than fifteen females alive in the world, and if hunters are continuing to hunt for trophies… she didn’t like the odds that put her in. Without a mate, she would become the target of all dragons. Males would seek her attention while females would compete for her territory to catch a mate’s interest. Add that to the hunters, and she had three too many targets on her back. Her thoughts wandered to Talos. Her daughter was going to grow up with too many suitors. Elden sighed. Even though this world didn’t live by the kill or be killed rules she had lived with, the actions still haunted all surface monsters. There was a market for mythical creatures, and dragons had the most valuable since they did hold healing properties.
The dragoness fought hard to get where she was, but she worried she’d have to close her shop if the hunters began poking their noses in her territory. That thought was immediately rejected. Hunters couldn’t locate dragons if they remained in their human forms. Their magic was more constricted, which allowed them to hide in plain sight for so long. It would make her feel cramped, much like wearing a shoe that is too small, but she could survive. It was another reason her children needed to learn their magic control and speak common. Elden willed her mind to be quiet. When the scent of seawater and sand approached, she knew it was time to head back to her human lodging to prepare for her shift at the shop. Auntyr tensed at the sound of footfall as he growled and stood at his full height. “It’s my sitter,” Elden said quietly as she also stood.
This calmed the black dragon as he yawned and returned to his spot on the ground. Angelica was soon seen approaching them with a confused look at the swamp-dwelling dragon. “You don’t usually have company,” the sitter mused.
“He will not harm you. He is here due to an emergency. I do not know how long he’ll be staying,” Elden answered before walking into the forest. “There is meat left over for you and the younglings.”
“I’ll see you later this evening!” Angelica called after her with a wave.
Elden found herself back in her human form sooner than she would have liked wearing yesterday’s clothing, and she made her way back to her apartment for a much-needed shower. She ignored the usual looks she got from her height, and she eagerly entered the familiar building before climbing three flights of stairs. She noticed the skeleton from yesterday leaving, and he gave her a curious glance as she entered her home. He would undoubtedly have questions about why she was just now returning, but she didn’t care about his opinion on the matter. After taking a quick shower, she dressed in a navy floral dress that went past her knees. She pulled on some stockings before slipping on a pair of black flats before proceeding to pin her hair up once more. It was time for a new day.