Chapter Text
Berdly was the first to arrive at school, if you excluded the teacher. Why wouldn't he be? The early bird gets the worm, after all. Not to mention, it gave him plenty of time to go over the previous day's homework or to do some studying and rereading notes. There was also the way how school was much more peaceful and quiet without too many people inside and the morning sun warming him gently without being too harsh and strong.
He was always greeted with a wave or a nervous little good morning. Sometimes even things like a "Berdly! G-good morning, nice to see you. Always working hard, huh?" Every time he couldn't help but to preen, rising up higher, chest puffing out and a smirk rising to his face as he'd give a simple reply.
"Of course! Only an idiot would waste this before-school time!" He could already picture most of his other classmates, sleeping in or wandering about town like the fools they were. Alphys chuckled, saying something about being nice to others, but he paid it no mind, instead relaxing a little as he asked a question of his own. "What will we be covering in class today?" It was always best to be prepared, know what to study so that he could try and grasp the new concepts quickly.
"Oh, um, w-well I was just going to have everybody start the group projects, is all. I'll tell everybody more about it in class." She dismissed easily and he couldn't help but to frown, eyebrows furrowing.
It seemed his attempt to learn just what exactly their project was to be on was a fail. He could guess it was science- that was Alphys' main subject and specialty, not to mention that maths wasn't really something you could create a group project out of.
A quiet sigh escaped him as he flipped open his science book, flipping through the most recent pages. Elements and reactions, chemistry. Would they be performing an experiment? Writing a report? Would they have to design an experiment? Or perhaps this was one of those simple things meant to be more for fun than anything else, like the model volcanoes and solar systems? They might create a model of the atom, then. But could that really be it?
What if it wasn't even science at all? Gerson hadn't been doing too well recently, so maybe she would give them a history project on his behalf? Or Toriel wanted them to do a literature project and was too busy teaching the younger students to tell them herself?
He couldn't figure it out, much to his annoyance.
That annoyance quickly evaporated when the door opened to reveal Noelle. Instantly he brightened up, glad to see his friend. "Good morning Noelle!" He greeted her with a wave and watched as she made her way to sit next to him, smiling softly.
"Hi, Berdly." Just like him she was beginning to empty her bag of it's contents to prepare for the day.
There was silence in the room for a moment as all three just did their own things, the students studying and rereading quietly while the teacher gazed down at her phone with a smile, thumb moving as she scrolled through fanart.
More students began to trickle in and Alphys seemed to shut off her phone at that, almost jumping to her feet as she looked around the room once the bell had gone. "I-is this um, everybody?"
Everybody turned to stare, looking around silently. All but two seats were filled.
Silence.
After what might've been a minute or two, the teacher checked her phone with a frown. Whether the two would show or not were a complete mystery but, well, she couldn't waste class time just waiting on the off chance they appeared. She turned to the class with her usual uneasy smile.
"Well, today we'll be beginning with our group projects! You're um, going to need to pick a partner to work with, first."
At that instant chatter burst forth from amongst the class as the students all looked around at each other and began their quest to find a partner for the project.
Berdly looked to Noelle, of course, smirking. "Noelle! Let's be partners, alright? With our smarts combined, we'll be sure to get top of class with this assignment!" He laughed, confident and proud.
"Um..." The deer chuckled nervously, nodding a little. "Sure, Berdly, I'd love to."
It was a comfortable routine. He'd always ask her and she'd always agree. Homework, assignments, projects, studying... they'd been working together for years and gained some solid teamwork skills.
Satisfied, he sat back with a laugh, wings crossed atop his chest. "Wonderful!"
There was only a little more chatter amongst the fellow students before soon they'd all found their partners and Alphys would soon be ready to introduce what their project would be about.
"So, does everybody have a-?"
Until the door creaked open to reveal Kris, standing there awkwardly for a moment. Berdly's eyebrows furrowed in annoyance, mood dropping a little upon seeing them. Couldn't they have turned up earlier? Alphys had just been about to start!
"Oh... K-Kris...! We thought you weren't coming today!" Her eyes were a little wide as she stared at the human in surprise. They didn't respond, staring blankly at the wall across the room. "We're doing group projects this month..." That was something everybody had known for some time, yet it wouldn't be a surprise to the idiot if the blank-faced human had forgotten if they'd even been paying any attention to class in the first place. "Uhhhh... So, walk around and find a partner, okay?"
They gave the slightest of nods before beginning to walk around the room, footsteps soft as though they were a ghost. It was futile, Berdly knew, as everybody had already gotten themselves a partner. The early bird gets the worm. Kris had nobody to blame but themself if they were to end up doing the project alone.
Rejection, after rejection, after rejection.
The human paused, glancing at the blue bird for a moment before shaking their head and instead moving on to Noelle.
She smiled up at him, offering a pencil before they asked about being her partner for the project. He ignored the two, confident that she'd just dismiss him as well.
Instead he heard her raise her voice. "Hey Miss Alphys! Is it okay if we make a group of 3?"
Instantly he stiffed, feathers ruffling. Let Kris join their team?! No way! They didn't need any dead weight! Not to mention it would ruin the calm atmosphere the two held... How was he supposed to ask Noelle for help when Kris was watching? He couldn't let anybody know how much of a fake he was! He voiced his displeasure as soon as he'd heard his friend speak. "Hey! What? No! I do NOT approve of this! ABORT!!" He squawked.
"What?" She grew confused, unsure why he was so against it. "B-but Kris doesn't have a..."
Alphys interrupted, then, calling for the deer monster's attention. "Noelle, what were you saying?"
Grinning, Berdly took the opportunity to answer for her. "She was just saying we're fine being alone!"
"A-actually, I just wanted to know if..." Her words were soft and somewhat blurred together as she mumbled uncertainly.
"Noelle, can you PLEASE speak up?" The teacher sweat nervously, eyebrows furrowed at her attempt to make out what the young monster had been trying to say.
But then the door slammed open.
Berdly most definitely didn't flinch, not at all. He also didn't duck a little upon noticing the purple reptilian that stood in the doorway. Her presence had drained the room of it's noise, filling it with an uncomfortably thick silence instead.
Unlike the others who shivered or scowled in the presence of the mean girl, Noelle instead blushed, heart beating fast for an entirely different reason than everybody else.
"H... hi Susie..." The teacher's voice had taken on a quieter tone.
The reptilian monster turned her head towards the teacher, remaining silent for a few minutes before speaking up, tone apathetic as she asked "am I late?"
Alphys gave a nervous chuckle and quick shake of the head. "Ohh n-no! You're fine! W-we were just uh... Ch-choosing partners for the next group project and... Ummm, Susie, you're with Kris!"
Silence, people's heads turning towards the human. For just a brief moment Noelle silently questioned whether it would be possible to switch with them... No, it'd be rude to just abandon Berdly.
"... Great." Not to mention, Susie and Kris didn't seem to mind being partnered together, much. Then again, they were always hard to read... Especially with their eyes being obscured by their bangs.
Still, the human turned to Berdly, looking down upon him. The bird snickered, a wing lightly touching upon his wing as he whispered. "Kris, didn't I say being late was a bad idea?"
Frowning briefly at the implication that being partnered with Susie was a bad thing, Noelle decided to step in. "Don't worry, Kris. I've always thought Susie can't be so bad, you know? I'm sure everything will turn out fine!" She said with a smile and a thumbs up, ignoring the way Berdly gawked at her words.
Nothing else could be said though, as Alphys then cleared her throat, walking towards the chalk board. Kris and Susie sat down in their seats at the cue. "N-now that everyone's here I'll write the assignment! ..." She paused, looking back and forth, turning towards her desk and then back to the board again. "H-has anyone seen the chalk?" Silence. "This is the third time it's gone missing and... Y-you all know I can't start class without some!"
Going quiet, she waited another minute or two before continuing on with furrowed eyebrows in her best attempt to appear intimidating. It failed, of course, she knew that even without her anxious disposition it was unlikely that a class of teenagers would ever actually listen. The number of failed attempts to get Catty off her phone and Susie to work not just from her but other teachers too had told her that much.
She sighed. "H-how about this? If no one speaks up... E-everyone gets in trouble!" She scanned the face of the students. Annoyance, amusement, but nothing even slightly indicative of guilt. "A... anyone? P... please?"
Quiet reigned on for another beat before Noelle raised her hand just slightly as she began to speak. "Hey, there might be a box in the supply closet... Miss Alphys, why don't Susie and I..."
The teacher grinned. "G-good idea Noelle! Since you suggested it and I, umm, trust you... How about you go get it for me?"
Feeling a little defeated that she would have to go alone, the deer gave a nod. "Alright..." With that said, she left the classroom.
Even thought the atmosphere wasn't as tense, she found that it was just as quiet outside as it had been inside. Just the sound of her own hoof-steps, echoing as she headed towards the supply closet. If she listened hard enough, though, she could swear that she heard the sounds of boisterous chatter coming from the younger kids' class.
Ah, but that wasn't the point. She needed to get that chalk for Miss Alphys. It'd be bad to keep the class waiting...
The more she approached the closet, though, the darker it got. The area seen in her peripheral vision surrounding her decreasing in visibility and the door straight ahead seeming more like a void than the simple wooden door she knew it to be.
It was unnerving for sure. Just like all the horror movies she watched... Maybe there was a serial killer waiting behind it. Or- or maybe she'd be transported to another dimension! She couldn't help but to laugh out loud a little at the thought.
Who was she kidding? It was just a closet, nothing more. She needed to lay off the late-night scary movies on school nights.
So she pressed forward, doing her best to ignore the fear and anxiety bubbling within her chest like a heavy and knotted ball of yarn. Opening the door revealed...
"It's pitch black!" She nearly gasped, surprised at how dark it was, the light of the hallway doing almost nothing to penetrate it. She could see the old papers on the floor clearly, but nothing else... She frowned, only to shake her head. It was nothing, she was sure. "I guess I better find a light switch..." She mumbled, walking forward and feeling along the walls beside her for anything that could be it.
...
...
Nothing was there.
Huh. That was strange. Where was the switch? Why was the closet so long? Even the dusty smell of old supplies and rotten wood was unusually absent, the air cold despite her fur and sweater.
It had to be here somewhere, right?
She walked forward, felt along the walls.
Nothing.
"Is... Is this some sort of prank?" She looked back towards the entrance. It seemed so far away, now. "Um, you can go ahead and cut it out already!" There was no response... She frowned, eyebrows furrowing slightly. Something was very wrong. "It's not funny anymore, please."
...
She reached out again and-
"What the-?!" She couldn't help but to gasp upon realising the walls where no longer there.
A step, then another, then another and another, and still she couldn't find any walls on either side of her.
"Is this some sort of... dream?" Uncertainty and anxiety laced her voice.
"Maybe I should just... go."
Then, she turned and faced the entrance once more. "I'll just have to apologise to Miss Alphys and say I couldn't find it..."
Before she could get even five feet within the door, however, it shut.
The sound of the slam caused her to wince, a short and shocked yelp escaping her.
Suddenly the sound of rustling papers disrupted the silence and when she looked down she found them shaking. The entire floor was shaking.
Was she going to die? The very thought filled her with dread, legs locking up in place as she froze, simply staring at the papers.
Then they began to fall and before she knew it the ground had disappeared from beneath her and she was falling and falling and falling into the dark of the abyss.
...
...
...
"Noelle's b-been g-gone for a while now." Alphys shifted uncomfortably, looking around the room. Where could she be? The supply closet wasn't that far and although it may be cluttered it shouldn't take- she checked her phone- 15 minutes to find some chalk! The deer monster wasn't the sort to just skip out on school, either... Had something happened? Her heartbeat rose at the thought. What if something had happened and because she was the teacher in charge she was punished for it?! What if Noelle had died or something and she was accused to be the murderer?!
No, no, she was panicking, she was panicking, she needed to calm down.
She took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself. Everything was okay, she was at school and so were her students and everybody was safe. Noelle was just having some difficulty finding the chalk, was all. She just-
"Do you want me to look for her, Miss Alphys?" It was Berdly. Sounding less certain and confident than usual, a look of concern on his feathered face.
"O-oh, umm, uh, y-yes, um, of course, Berdly. Please be careful."
In response he merely scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Of course, Miss Alphys! You needn't worry, I'll be sure to find Noelle and bring her back safely!" He spoke with a grin, ignoring the other classmates rolling their eyes at him and whispering or muttering their disbelief.
"G-good."
Then the bird left the class behind, leaving the stares and smell of pencil shavings behind as well. The tiled floor was cold in contrast to the wood of the classroom, the claws of his talons scratching and tapping against it.
He frowned, eyebrows furrowing. Noelle. Was she alright? Had she even made it to the supply closet? She was smart and... quicker at learning and catching onto things than he was, so surely she wasn't having so much trouble looking for the chalk, right? She'd have known to give up rather than try to search endlessly if it wasn't there...
No, something wasn't right. He had to go help her, save her. She was his only friend and the only reason for his good grades, without her he was nothing.
"Don't worry Noelle, I'm coming!" He muttered, feathers clenched into a fist as he walked towards the supply closet.
Had the lights gone out? The door seemed so dark and- no, no, doors were not intimidating! Not unless it was like that monster door from the horror section during Dragon Blazers 1... but that was creepy, not intimidating! He was not intimidated by any door!
So with a determined look, he headed towards the darkness.
He opened the door and found just how much darker it was inside. Jeez. Was Noelle even in here? He couldn't see her anywhere. "Noelle? Are you alright?" It felt like his concerned words were merely consumed by the void. After a moment of hesitation, he decided to enter and-
His foot had no solid ground to step on, causing a lack of balance that allowed for him to plummet forward.
A scream tore from his throat as he flapped his wings desperately to return to some solid ground. It was futile, though, only succeeding to whittle away at his stamina as he descended further and further into the void.
It felt like he wasn't even moving, simply suspended in air as he spun and moved, only the feeling of wind, air ruffling his feathers and resisting against him as gravity forced him downward.
He hadn't even noticed when the dark consumed him completely and he fell unconscious.