All I want for Christmas

Day 15: Ice-skating

Alphys had no idea what she was doing here. Undyne, Papyrus, Mettaton and Frisk had basically dragged her into the big ice-skating hall outside of town. The small scientist was on the ice, clutching the wooden handrail around it like a lifeline. Her feet were shaking from the effort of just standing still. The many people around her weren't helping either.

Frisk had promised for ice-skating to be a fun experience and Papyrus had told her it wouldn't be too hard to do once you got the hang of things. And here she was, desperate not to fall.

Undyne had dragged her on the ice 10 minutes ago, setting her down in a free spot and had, very enthusiastically, started to teach Alphys. That didn't mean the fish monster was particularly good at skating herself, but she tried her best.

Frisk and Papyrus were helping Mettaton. The child and the skeleton were falling quite often, but the robot was strangely able to keep his balance pretty well.

Alphys on the other hand just wanted to go home and watch some anime. But she had promised her girlfriend to try it out at least a bit.

"Come on! You can do this! Even Mettaton can do it!" Undyne screamed beside her, pushing herself forward and drifting a half-circle around the smaller monster.

Alphys sighed, but she tried to push herself forward too, using her tail to stabilize herself. The slide didn't last that long though and she fell, barely able to catch herself.

"Hey there. Careful." Undyne picked her up and put her back on her feet, flailing herself for a second.

"I will get the punk. Maybe they can help." The fish monster mumbled, slithering towards Frisk.

Alphys moved herself back to the handrail clumsily.

Despite all her efforts, she couldn't figure out how to do this. She didn't know why the humans around her could make it look that effortless. Her already low self-esteem was slowly dissolving into nothingness.

"Alphys? Are you ok?" Frisk came to a stop next to her. Their expression was one of honest worry.

Alphys smiled awkwardly.

"I-I'm alright. I-I just c-can't figure out h-how this is s-supposed works." She answered.

"Hm. Undyne, can you come over here please?"

The former captain slid back next to them. Frisk just nodded, turning back to Alphys again.

"That's the problem. You must be more flexible in your legs and bend your knees a bit. Trust me, it will work. Believe in yourself a little bit." They advised and shot both monsters a bright smile, then they slid back to Papyrus and Mettaton, who were driving small circles while holding each other's hands, but more to steady themselves than in a romantic way.

Undyne let out a small huff.

"Be flexible huh? Well, let's try this again!" She bent her knees a bit, falling instinctively into a defensive stance and moved again, already looking steadier in her movements.

Alphys looked down at her feet skeptically. Well, she promised to give it one more try and if she still wasn't able do it she would wait for the others outside. It was too cold anyways.

The scientist collected herself one more time and moved forward. She was slow, but the change in her stature helped her not to fall this time.

"Hey! You got it. Look at you! I knew you could do it!" Undyne exclaimed, picking Alphys up and whirling her around her, which ended in both of them lying on the ground once again.

"T-that was a-actually quite nice." She mumbled, blushing madly and earning herself a cheer from the fish monster.

"Let's go annoy Paps and tin can over there. Maybe we could even capture the human." Undyne exclaimed. Alphys was propped up on her feet again. She smiled. Maybe, just maybe, she would enjoy this. On the other hand, considering what Undyne just implied to do...

The former royal scientist beamed at her. Without a warning she scooped the small lizard-monster up and started following Frisk around.

Seconds later, the child was pressed against Alphys, giggling madly as Undyne slid behind Papyrus and Mettaton, both arms filled with a small body.

"Papyrus!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, "Me and the ex-royal scientist captured the ambassador."

"OH NO!" Came the almost instant response.

"FRISK, HANG ON! THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL RESCUE YOU!" He scrambled to turn and prepare for a chase, Mettaton next to him just smiled amused.

"Go on girlfriend. Escape the skeleton!" Undyne murmured, setting Alphys down forcefully. The lizard monster hesitated just a second, before she pushed herself into the opposite direction, away from Papyrus. She didn't plan to be a part of this game, but it seemed that she had no choice anymore. Frisk soon followed the scientist, gliding away from Papyrus at a surprising speed.

To Alphys surprise, she actually managed to stay out of Papyrus way.

An hour later the exhausted group decided to finally take a break.

Alphys was happy. It had been a fun experience for her after all. But she was glad she could escape the cold at last.