[OPEN] Give me that thing I love (I'll turn the lights out)

[mettatonvevo]

Who: Mettaton and YOU!
Where: The Performing Arts Theater
When: Slightly backdated to the evening of May 31st but through early June 1st
Rating: PG-13!
Summary: It’s Mettaton’s One Year Anniversary Concert! Come on in and celebrate with him!
The Story:

It’s been a strange year for Wonderland’s favorite celebrity. He’s made friends and enemies, he’s seen things both strange and hauntingly beautiful and he’s had many laughs to fill his time. He never imagined he’d be here for an entire year but it seems his contract with this place isn’t expiring anytime soon.

So what better way to celebrate an anniversary than with a performance?

During the day on May 31st posters pop up all over the mansion, on pillars and walls and light fixtures and also some rose bushes in the gardens because of course. They all have one thing in common: beautiful gold typography advertising-

MTT’S GRAND ONE YEAR WONDERLAND ANNIVERSARY! COME ONE, COME ALL, TO ANOTHER SPECTACULAR MTT-BRAND CONCERT!

CELEBRATE A FANTASTIC YEAR WITH YOURS TRULY! DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY WITH QUALITY ENTERTAINMENT! TAKE A BREAK FROM THE MUNDANE TO SPEND A NIGHT SURROUNDED BY GLAMOUR! PARTY WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND GET AWAY FROM IT ALL!

FOOD AND DRINK WILL BE PROVIDED, AS ALWAYS! PEOPLE OF ALL AGES AND SPECIES ARE WELCOME!

8PM TO 1AM! SEE YOU THERE! <3

The theater is ready and waiting for your entrance! Won’t you come in~?

((ooc: as always with these concerts of his, this is an open post but also a mingle! Feel free to make your own top levels under the prompts provided or create your own! Thanks for having me, Wonderland! Also, in the playlist which is linked in one of the comments below some of the tracks are greyed out; alas I couldn't fix that but there are links to the videos in the playlist itself so you can still listen to those individually!))

Comments

[mettatonvevo]

They do, yes. It's been a huge adjustment for many of us, but overall it has gone well. Humans were more accepting of us than any of us expected.

[He sees the distant smile on Asriel's face and he can't help but feel a small pang of sympathy. Alphys told him back during the True Lab event about the origins of a mysterious flower and his connection with one of the royal children, but there was still a lot to it that he didn't fully comprehend.

All the same, he frames his words in a way he hopes will be gentle.]

It's not perfect, of course. We could never expect perfection in returning to the world at large after isolation for so long, but... it's not the disaster we all might have feared it would be.

[pleasereset]

[It can't be perfect, of course. Monsters had been gone and buried alive for so long that it had to be weird for them to suddenly exist on the Surface again.

Still, they did it and it's been three months. That's... so great. Honestly Asriel would've considered it a victory if they had managed to make it to the Surface and the first human they saw didn't try attacking them.

Did Frisk help with that? ... Did Chara?]

That's... that's really great to hear. Monsters deserve it after being stuck Underground for so long, don't they?

[mettatonvevo]

Oh absolutely! Personally, I think humanity should compensate us for how long we've been trapped but that would bankrupt their entire race and put us all back into pre-war tensions and that's not good.

[Besides, so long as humanity laps up his presence on the Surface, that's more than enough payback right? Riiiight.]

I hope you have been relaxing a bit while here. I know you can't... I know things aren't as positive for you back home as they are for me. But at least there's the chance of some happiness here.

[Mettaton has become quite understandable of different timelines and the different desires therein in terms of the surface and what this place can offer. He doesn't 100% understand how much control Asriel specifically had over timelines for awhile but... consequences are still consequences.]

How did meeting your family go? Did you see Frisk too?

[pleasereset]

... I think they wouldn't let us stay on the Surface very long.

[Asriel kind of agrees though. His face falls at the mention of "home"... he's not sure how much Mettaton really knows, but he probably means if he goes back home, he'll be dead.

Some chance of happiness here, huh? It certainly does seem like he's been given a second chance. Or... at least some extra time to make amends, before he has to return to being a flower.

He's already wasting it by being a coward though. He won't even admit to what he's done out of fear of everyone hating him for it.]

A chance of happiness... would be nice.

[It comes out a little awkwardly. He hopes what Mettaton says is true though.

Though when he mentions his family, he tenses up a little - oh yeah, he did promise to do that, right? Aha...]

I-it went okay.

[It was a complete mess. Chara and Frisk seem upset and conflicted by just him being there, and apparently Chara had heard every awful thing Asriel said about them to Frisk. He broke down in front of his dad and almost ran away. And he hasn't met his mom yet, but that might be the hardest one yet.]

I met Frisk too. I um... think it might take some time, for them to get used to me being here. All of them, I mean.

[mettatonvevo]

[Asriel sounds so somber when he says that and Mettaton feels... bad. The prince of Monsters will never get to enjoy the surface like he does and it really is a painful thought.]

It would, wouldn't it? After spending some time here, I've come to think that everyone deserves that chance, no matter what they've done.

[He shouldn't mention that he knows about Flowey. That might overwhelm the poor boy. But he coats his words in a gentle warmth, trying to get something across-

You deserve a second chance too.]

That makes sense. They've had a long time without you, after all. But things will get better eventually, Asriel. It just needs some time.

[pleasereset]

[Asriel looks up a little quickly, before glancing right back down again. It seems like the message got across, enough to get a reaction out of him.]

Y-yeah, I guess so.

[He doesn't sound very convinced, and his response sounds a little nervous. Some people out there have done some pretty awful things he wants to say, but he doesn't really want to give himself away or have to explain himself.]

...

Dad's a lot taller than I remember him.

[mettatonvevo]

[He seems a little shy now. Mettaton isn't surprised. Asriel has done a lot of things that he may not be proud of or happy about now and it's a feeling Mettaton understands. Trying to be a better person after spending a good portion of your life as a jerk is always a hard task. But you never know. With time and understanding, you might become better.]

Is he now?

[Mettaton chuckles a little, settling more into the conversation.]

Would you say he's larger than life?

[Mettaton, please, is this really the time to be making jokes???]

[pleasereset]

[The joke startles him out of his moment of self-reflection, but it does lighten the mood as Asriel bites his lower lip and lets out a small snort of laughter.]

Haha, yeah! He really is!

[So tall that trees barely cover him it seems. Despite how long it's been, he can easily fit on his shoulders.]

You know, I'm supposed to be that tall someday.

[Or... was. If he weren't like, forever 10 now.]

[mettatonvevo]

[Ok that snort was adorable. Mettaton grins.]

Really now? You're not going to get bigger than him, are you?

[Forever 10. It's like Forever 21, only all the items for sale are things that 10-year-olds would love, like cars and knives.]

Maybe one day you'll be able to wield the kind of weapons he has and make sandwiches with them.

[That sounds like a non-sequitur but there is a reason I swear.]

[pleasereset]

[That store sounds amazing please make it immediately. Actually it exists it's just called Hot Topic.]

Yeah, maybe I could if-!

[Asriel pauses midway though his sentence as he registers what Mettaton says.

Also oh my god, Asgore and Mettaton. That's clearly the best LP anyone could ever make.]

... Dad makes sandwiches with his weapons?

[He's... never seen that happen before.]

[mettatonvevo]

He did for my special Wonderland cooking show! Well. Our cooking show but we all know who the real star is here, and it's me. The trained celebrity.

[Mettaton, you became a celebrity by throwing shit at the wall, don't even play.]

Well, he didn't exactly use his trident but he did use a fun sword-knife that I found in one of the closets and added to the tools for a little pizzazz! You can probably find the video in the Wonderland archives on the Network.

[pleasereset]

[Pfft whatever Mettaton, Asriel's dad is king. Or was? Probably not on the Surface anymore.

His eyes light up at the mention of a "sword-knife". Briefly.]

Dad's on a show now? That's so cool! Oh um, I don't think I've used the Network yet?

[More like avoids it because who does he really talk to anyway.]

[mettatonvevo]

We don't have it consistently, unfortunately. Life has been a bit hectic. But perhaps we'll host a reprisal, just for you!

[He's sure Asgore would love it.]

The Network is a fun place to instantly connect to other people in Wonderland! It's good for announcements and updates and warnings when needed.

[pleasereset]

Oh, gosh... that'd be really cool! But you and dad don't have to on my account...

[Still, seeing dad making sandwiches with weapons does sound pretty neat. He won't protest a comeback show if he can see that.]

Aha, really? Maybe I'll consider using it sometime.

[Which would be never, if he can help it.]

[mettatonvevo]

I'm sure your father would love to if it would make you happy.

[As for Mettaton, sure, why not! It'd get more people to know of his existence.]

Even if you never use it, it's good to at least pay attention to it, at least. As I said, when events get disastrous, sometimes the Network is the only warning we have of imminent danger.

[pleasereset]

... What dangers? This place is dangerous?

[It probably makes sense that a mansion that kidnaps people with magic could be dangerous, but this place has been nothing but pleasant.

... Maybe that was the problem.]

[mettatonvevo]

[...That's right. He hasn't been here long enough to see the dangers inherent in Wonderland, has he?]

Oh yes. As sweet as this place may seem, it is still very perilous. There's the environmental factors around us that are dangerous, and then there are the events, and then there are the mirrors.... Wonderland is very good at hiding its ugly side.

[pleasereset]

[He looks... slightly disappointed.]

Ah that's... good to know, I guess.

What's supposed to be scary about mirrors?

[mettatonvevo]

[Disappointed is an understandable reaction when all you've known of this place is the niceties inherent to it.]

Well... mirrors are beings created by the Queen of Hearts who controls them on the mirrorside. They're whole purpose is to spy on us and many times they are twisted versions of ourselves with a lot of malice built into them. My mirror isn't one of them, of course, but more often than not nice mirrors are an exception to the rule, so avoiding them altogether is usually your best bet.

[Mirrorton is not at all better but Asriel doesn't need to know that. Delta Rune knows that Mirrorton has "unwittingly" made too many enemies as of late.]