1st Bloom; [video/action for New Bark Town]

[journalname]

[The video begins with a nice shot of some grass. And then a few trees. There's a bit of quiet shuffling, then a voice.]

...ah. Here we are.

[The camera swings around to a very, very large man. He's pale, with blonde hair and beard and reddish eyes, wearing what looks like golden armor and a long purple cape. So basically he looks like some kind of stereotypical Viking king. Also there is a Sunkern chilling out in his beard. They're obviously still in New Bark Town, though he's wandered a little ways away from Mom's house. That encounter was extremely odd.]

Howdy! I am King Asgore Dreemurr. This...is the Internet, is it not? I confess I am not sure what is going on here, but if there are any other monsters about, please call me or send a text message. Whatever this is, I'm certain it will be all right.

Also, has anyone seen this young one's parents? [He indicates the Sunkern, who chirps.] I believe they are lost.

Comments

[journalname]

[Asgore considers this for a moment, then laughs.]

How nice! I have not had a vacation for centuries.

[islandshore]

Centuries?

[Uh, what? Do pardon his staring while he tries to grasp this.]

You're exaggerating, right?

[journalname]

Boss monsters, such as myself, can be very long-lived.

[So no, he's really not.]

[islandshore]

Boss monst--

[Waaait a second.]

You know, I think I heard about you before. You, uh. Some human kid's dad?

[Because if so, that might explain a few things, all while opening even more questions.]

[journalname]

Frisk? Yes, I am their father.

[what other human kid could he possibly mean]

[islandshore]

Heh. Kinda funny to imagine a human living with a monster.

[There's a small chuckle, though he's not judging.]

Then again, the only monsters I've dealt with are Pokémon, and they're not exactly the hide under your bed and steal your kids types.

[journalname]

[wow that is a racist stereotype u anti-monster fiend]

It - has happened in the past, but it is certainly not common. We have only recently begun living as neighbors to humans once more.

[islandshore]

So I take it it wasn't always clear cut.

[That they weren't living together for a while is pretty telling... and maybe a bit troubling.]

So, uh. How's that been going so far? Humans can be pretty judgmental, but it's not like that's the rule.

[journalname]

No. They have only come to live with us recently.

[And, well, it's more complicated than that - to say Frisk lives with Asgore isn't untrue, but it is a bit of a stretch. They belong with Toriel more than him. But that is less to do with humans and monsters, and seems rather more common.]

To be honest, it has gone better than I expected! Frisk has been very helpful as an ambassador. [He chuckles.] They understand current human society far better than any of us.

[islandshore]

Geez. An ambassador at that age? That's pretty intense. How've they handled the pressure so far?

[Because he can't imagine it's been easy, especially with how young they are. And to represent a group that's likely feared by unaware masses... eep.]

[journalname]

Remarkably well. I am always there with them, of course, but their presence makes things...ah, less tense.

[It helps humans, he supposes, to see that a small child is not afraid of him. For whatever reason.]

[islandshore]

Well, they're a cute kid. That probably helps... well, unless you bump into someone who hates children.

But I'd like to think they're are in the minority.

[Heh. If not, boy, that would make for some awkward politics.]

Still... can't say I envy you guys. Bet there's a lot of long meetings and paperwork to put up with.

[journalname]

It is getting better. Much of the settlement process has already been completed, and it turns out that humans consider monster gold quite valuable!

[islandshore]

....Now, wait a second. Are you telling me you guys use gold for your currency?

But isn't that supposed to be super rare?

[journalname]

It was not so rare in the Underground.

[bet the humans regretted that LOL]

[islandshore]

Dang. Well, I'd say it's only fair, if you guys had to put up with being separated for so long. Bet it's refreshing to have them eating out of the palms of your hands for a change.

[journalname]

[oh god let's find a diplomatic way to put THIS]

...well, I am certainly glad it helps our relationship with them. We would have largely had to rely on their charity otherwise - it was long enough that none of our former dwellings still existed.

[islandshore]

...Geez. But you guys've managed to find decent places to stay, right? I'd sure hope so. There's probably a lot of adjusting to do in the first place.

[And he's not gonna act like these things are simple. Property taxes, living expenses... There's a lot of hoops to jump through.]

Guess it's easy to forget, with how simple things are in this world.

[journalname]

This is a much simpler world to enter. We found land on which to build near the city Frisk hailed from, but we have only recently secured legal ownership of it. [There was no one there initially, so they sort of just set up shop. Not as though there were accommodations readily available in the city.] There is talk of reparations for the war, but that was so long ago...

[He's honestly not interested in them, as long as his people have what they need now. It seems as though it can only bring up old wounds.]

[islandshore]

Yeah, that's the thing about this place. As long as you have the funds, you can buy houses. Start businesses... They're really lax.

[It's there that he laughs.]

But I guess when you live in a world where ten year olds can set off on their own, the standards are gonna be different.

[journalname]

...human children can certainly be very capable, but regularly? That is quite young.