Youtube song link, Lyrics source

When the moon fell in love with the sun Pretty obvious first association is Spade connected to the moon (darkness, night) and Asgore associated with the Sun (light, warmth)

All was golden in the sky Gold, on the one hand, associates to golden flowers and therefore Asgore, but on the other hand gold is also literal wealth.

All was golden when the day met the night So taking both meanings of the word, everything being golden could mean growth (in Asgore's case) and fortune (in Spade's case). Double meanings are very fun when interpreting songs for these two, but in this case it doesn't have to be exclusive to either of them, it could mean growth for Spade and fortune for Asgore! All was golden after all.

When the sun found the moon In the song, female pronouns are used throughout for the sun. I am ignoring this and changing them to male pronouns for the sake of this analysis.

He was drinking tea in a garden

Under the green umbrella trees There's no way NOT to read these two lines as Asgore imigery. Both tea and gardens are very heavy symbols tied to his Undertale self.

In the middle of summer

When the moon found the sun The moon is obviously associated with the night, but in this song specifically I think it's interesting to consider that the moon reflects the light of the sun, literally giving back the warmth he's going to recieve.

He looked like he was barely hanging on On the one hand, it's common to think of Asgore as pretty pathetic, but I think a lot of people don't pay attention to how Spade is near constantly at the end of his rope. The man is one bad day away from ruining several lives by committing 5 war crimes in one. It's a much less sympathetic kind of suffering, but his anger near universally stems from some kind of deep, gaping hurt he's carrying with him and can't deal with properly. To say he's barely hanging on is kind of an understatement in certain cases.

But his eyes saved his life I, personally, headcanon that Asgore has blue eyes. I see a lot of people give him heterochromic eyes (blue and orange, because of the attack colours) and that's really cute too! I like the emphasis on eyes here because I think it's easy to imagine someone like Spade (who literally has blank darkness as his eyes) would easily get enchanted by Asgore's shiny lightner eyes.

In the middle of summer (summer)

In the middle of summer Summer is a big motif in this song, and there's no direct way to tie it back to Spadesgore I'll be honest, but I kinda like it just on the basis that it's the opposite of winter, the opposite of the cold. Yeah, Asgore has the whole santa thing going on, but it carries a lot of bittersweet associations with friends that are drifting from him or aen't there anymore, and a duty to a community that he masks with santa's giving nature instead of awknoladging he can't make everyone happy. So, to contrast, in the summer it's all flipped on it's head. A big dumb idiot who adores him, sunshine and warmth, so much warmth its almost hard to breathe sometimes. But it's the kind of thing he wouldn't trade for anything. And Spade? Spade just hates the cold, so he preffers summer, that's about it.

All was golden in the sky I also like the emphasis on the sky. On the one hand, immediate associations to Undertale, the underground and the surface, but on the other hand that's the same plight that's plaguing the darkners. Symbolically, a golden sky is literally liberation for both of them.

All was golden when the day met the night

Summer, all was golden in the sky

All was golden when the day met the night

Summer, summer, summer, summer

Golden when the day met the night The chorus repeats multiple times so I won't go through all of it every single time, the symbology stays the same.

So he said, "Would it be all right This is where stuff gets interesting. In these verses, the sun and the moon are talking, and though in the original this is intended to be the moon, by ignoring the pronouns and switching things around, I think it fits Spadesgore better if THIS was the sun.

If we just sat and talked for a little while It's much easier to read this in Asgore's softer tone of voice, especially coupled with the way it's sung. It's careful, almost pleading, and while it might've fit the original vision for that to be the dowtrodden moon, I think it's fascinating if instead the sun, sensing the moon's pain, got down on his level and tried to be quiet and unattacking, letting the moon put his guard down without feeling like he's going to be beaten down worse for it.

If in exchange for your time

I give you this smile?" Again, this sounds like the point of view of someone who has nothing else to offer, and I think the "grand" symbolism of a garden and basking in light with NOTHING to offer but a smile fits Undertale Asgore to a T, and makes the moon's response all the more OOMPH.

So he said, "That's okay Once again, seeing this as words from Spade is just Infinately more fascinating to me than vice versa, because Spade being open enough to agree to trust This Quickly is RARE (possibly ooc but the song is the way it is and you have to have a bit of leeway when interpreting it for diff characters), meaning that Asgore's tactic of getting down on his level WORKED, and Spade TRUSTS him because he sees the grand things he's capable of and how instead he's choosing to mingle with and help someone who's got nothing to offer back but his presence. Not even a smile.

As long as you can make a promise

Not to break my little heart This lyric breaks me. It fits Spade so so so well. He's literally described as having a cracked/shattered heart, and I'm. Oh god I'm unwell.

Or leave me all alone in the summer" The pleading tone of "Please don't break my heart like everyone else did" isn't something he'd say as explicitly as the song does, but dear god would it be loud and clear in nearly every action he takes that he's going to crumble if abandoned again.

Well, he was just hanging around Once again ignoring the pronouns of the song helps us a lot here, because instead of this being a moon-centric verse, it could fit either the moon or the sun interchangably. DOUBLE MEANINGS!!!!!

Then he fell in love Falling in love for these two is kind of a huge ordeal. Like, they're dramatic dorks for one, and feel every single one of their emotions to worrying degrees of intensity, but this? This kind of CELEBRATION of that unrestrained emotional vulnerability? For BOTH of them?? Ohh, chef's kiss. Beautiful.

And he didn't know how I always love the implication of early spadesgore relationship that both of them are SOOOO oblivious as to why they fell for the other. As if both of them don't crave the tender embrace of a burly man. Spade is SHOCKED, SHOCKED he tells you, that the guy who actually CARES about how he feels and isn't a sacastic jackass about his first world problems actually left a positive and lasting impression on him. And Asgore is COMPLETELY taken aback by the idea that someone who's mean and snarky and literally calls himself a bad guy would be someone Asgore would look forward to spending hours idly chatting with. Like both of these idiots just need so much time to accept that they're attracted to their opposite and it's so fucking funny. Especially when you take into account how arguably similar their exes are to them? (Toriel and Asgore is easiest to explain because they're both nice, and caring, and trying their best to help their communities and the people around them and they both have those vacant doofy smiles on at all times) So like, putting them in a relationship where they have to deal with the OPPOSITE of that and the OPPOSITE of themselves just makes them both finally come to terms with the fact that their way of doing things might not be ideal or the best, but in such a way that doesn't ricochet into self-hatred (usually) and instead just makes them love one another all the more for it. Yes, Spade is constantly moody and growls at oddly coloured grass, but isn't that passion so wonderful? And, yeah, Asgore is overly leniant and lets people step all over him, but isn't it inspiring that he manages to be happy and make a difference in the end?

But he couldn't get out The implication that, both of them, in their own ways, tried to get away from the other to prevent falling in love. And oh how miserably they both failed. They couldn't keep away from each other, not because of physical proximity, but just because of the kind of impact they make on one another just by meeting at all.

Just hanging around Again, the fact that this fits BOTH of them has me unwell!! They really ARE both just hanging around in varying degrees of socially functioning. And neither of them even realise in how much stasis they're in until something literally or figuratively knocks them out of that sad, sad balance.

Then he fell in love Specifically putting emphasis on the act of FALLING in love makes me ill for these two. Because they're both in their own worlds, stuck in their own ways, and then literally tripping and falling into this explosion of confusion and flusteredness like they're discovering what being in love is all over again is so!!!! It's so powerful!!! It sends the messege of "hey, things have been kind of repetative and slowly going downhill, and just when you thought that hill was about to get a LOT more steep, you're suddenly in the FUCKING clouds asshole. REJOICE."

In the middle of summer

All was golden in the sky

All was golden when the day met the night

Summer, all was golden in the sky

All was golden when the day met the night

Summer, summer, summer, summer

When the moon fell in love with the sun I actually AM of the opinion that Spade catches feelings first. Mostly because he's constantly keeping track of how vulnerable he is around anyone at any given time, he'd IMMEDIATLY notice himself getting softer around Asgore and staring at him whistfully. Asgore takes a bit of building up to really realise he's down bad, and probably somehow neglects his own needs somewhere along the line. He's such a fucking mess. Oh, and don't think this means Spade makes the first move. He'd rather DIE before being the one to actively persue a lightner. Even if that lightner is so kind and soft and ~not like the other lightners~ (you can't convince me that isn't something Spade would unironically say about Asgore).

All was golden in the sky

All was golden when the day met the night

Summer, summer, summer, summer

The middle of summer, summer, summer, summer

The middle of summer, summer, summer, summer

The middle of summer, summer, summer, summer

The middle of At the end of the song, you can vaguely hear what sounds like kids screaming and playing in the distance. The rest of the "Pretty Odd" album usually has songs blending into one another using these intros and outros, but somehow the outro for "When the Day met the Night" doesn't do that, even if the intro does. What I'm trying to say is, I like imagining this ending as Asgore and Spade being able to settle down together and have a cozy family life where they can raise their kids together, and things stay golden for a long, long time.

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

Oh, but I know you'll cause me grief I will be dissecting nearly every line from this song in a dual-perspective way, AKA as if Asgore and Spade are the singer interchangably. Prepare for many paragraphs.

Close friends of mine are in disbelief Spade has no-one he would willingly call a friend in his life, only allies and enemies, but we can assume people that are "close" to him would still judge him and his choices as if they WERE his friends.

As they can see what's underneath From a social standpoint, going after one another is unthinkable for both of them. For Spade, it means the destruction of his carefully crafted image of a violent man who hates all lightners and knows no mercy, for Asgore it means the slow decay of his existing, safe, but ultimatly unfullfilling and one-sided relationships with his friends, who likely wouldn't take kindly to him kahooting around with an asshole like Spade. The original meaning of these last two lines is that the singer's close friends can see what's under all the surface level prettyness, but I always heard the line as "they CAN'T see", and that's influenced how I understand the song in general (and me mishearing lyrics happens very often). In this case, I think it could easily mean that those close friends can't understand (or don't want to understand) what's so appealing to the singer about the subject, because it isn't as surface level as they assume. Spade isn't interested in Asgore because he's a lightner, and Asgore isn't interested in Spade because he's rich.

Fluttering lashes, red lips, and pearly white teeth Because the song was written with the subject being a woman in mind, this very distinctly "femme fatale" description doesn't fit my reading at all. That being a reading that puts two big hairy men in the positions of both the subject and the singer interchangably. This line is best left ignored for my purposes.

I don't show it, but I quiver whenever you come near

And I cannot decipher between the thrill and the fear Typical Spade, not allowing himself to show fear in order to maintain dominance, while deep inside knowing he's being drawn to the forbidden stranger with a heart of gold. The thrill for him is the prospect of control over a lightner, the fear is the paranoia that its actually HIM being controlled the whole time.

Also very typical of Asgore, not showing fear in hopes he wont burden the people around him, but deep down, something terrifies him, and he can't even properly face it alone. The thrill is a person who loves him, respects him, and will show it to the world if need be, the fear is being abandoned again, deemed useless even in the eyes of someone who only wants to abuse him.

I want to stop, but I like it too much to let it stop here

It's wrong, but I want you tonight He wants control, he wants to be the one calling the shots, able to toy with Asgore however he pleases but stop their courting whenever and why-ever he chooses, but he finds himself drawn further and further in, investing a lot more genuine emotion than he bargained for. The line "it's wrong but I want you tonight" gets repeated a lot, so i'll explain it here and the reading applies to every other instance, too. Spade thinks it morally reprehensible to love a lightner in any way, yet he finds himself yearning for the tender embrace of this soft, burly man. He wants affection, mutual adoration and care, but thinks that asking for such things is wrong, foolish, weak even moreso if it's being saught after from a lightner.

Asgore is afraid of getting his heart broken again, and risking his current relationships for one with SPADE of all people, but he cant stop himself from trying to do right by Spade. Once he figured out Spade was receptive to his kindness (even if Spade pretends he isn't), Asgore got addicted to those reactions from Spade, as no-one else even seems to pay him and his niceties any mind anymore. "It's wrong but I want you tonight" is both in referance to his guilt around the idea that he could hold power over Spade as a lightner, that he could have the upper hand and manipulation that he isn't even intending, but also a dormant kind of guilt where he feels he still needs to be loyal to his past lover (ahem toriel ahem) and doesnt allow himself to move on, even if he desperatly wants to be happy again.

HOWEVER. In certain AUs and contexts, this line could also reffer to internalised homophobia or just the internalised negative perception of BDSM stuff, and that usually applies to Asgore more than Spade because of the implicit religious origin of those kinds of prejudices. Even though the song was written from an undoubtedly straight POV, this line in particular is very easy to queer-code (in a positive sense) because gay relationships are most prone to being thought of as "forbidden" or "wrong" in some way.

It was not my own volition, but I fell in deep Asgore keeps accidentally falling in love with people who (either immediatly or eventually) don't love him back, and he thinks its happened again. While Spade more literally thinks lightners have some kind of control or power over darkners' wills and actions, "poisoned by sentimentality" and all that.

By running the distance I'd been advised to keep This could easily reffer to Spade slowly becoming closer to lightners despite all hes seen and been through, and seeking out one particular lightner for something he's never even asked of another darkner before: undying loyalty. Asgore, though, is literally doing everything in his power to try and make Spade happy, to the point he might've overstepped bounderies or assumed social-lines-that-are-not-to-be-crossed, and people have begun advising him not to interact with Spade anymore because they assume he's being used for his kindness.

I trot to the wolf as a doting sheep This line slaps so fucking hard. They both see the other as some kind of danger, and themselves as naive and stupid for ever thinking what's between them could work out in the long run. In Spade's case specifically, he has a tendancy to interchangably paint himself as the victim, the agressor, or the hero, depending on the narrative he's trying to spin, and this line specifically slots into the "Spade pretending he's an innocent victim" category. For Asgore though it fits more in an aesthetic sense, "doting sheep" would be an oddly cute way to describe his constant overcompansating.

It's wrong, but I want you tonight

Fear and delight The fear of being used then abandoned, delight at the possibility of longerm happiness. This applies to both of them.

All the way through the night Spade is literally themed around darkness, and nighttime is the one time when you dont have to tend to flowers (read: when Asgore has to focus on himself for once).

With a little derring-do,

I'll fall in love with you In this song, this is both a threat and a complement. From Spade, the threat is that he's going to do to Asgore what lightners did to the darkners; the complement is that Asgore, out of all the lightners, made him fall in love at all despite his apprehensions. From Asgore, the threat is that Spade could be tied down to someone he cares about, and therefore would have to stop being reckless and destructive for both their sakes; the compliment is that Asgore is a hopeless romantic with a heart of gold and he saw the good in spade despite it all and thought that spark of goodness was worth risking everything for.

(Also, clock that the threats they make are extensions of their delights and the compliments are extentions of their fears.)

Fear and delight

All the way through the night

With a little derring-do,

I'll fall in love with you

I'm a little boy who's going to be getting his fingers burnt Again, the assertion that the other party is embodies danger, but with the added comparison that their choosing to get involved with one another is sloppy and reckless, like something a child would do, not something adults would allow to happen. (On the other hand I don't like this song's use this kind of infantalising language.)

But I can see the lesson's gotta, gotta, gotta be learnt Spade feeling like he has to numb himself to betrayal so he can be free of the burden of caring about people; maybe if he burns himself enough, he wont be able to love again at all, he won't worry about his heart being broken again if it's already shattered.

Asgore feeling like he'll never have a stable relationship again, but instead of admitting this to himself outright, he keeps running into dead ends hoping his life will end before he has to face that he's been left purpose-less.

They say that boys have been destroyed, but they weren't This one's more of a stretch, but could possibly fit the reoccuring cycle that they both expect everything will go up in flames any second, and then it just... doesn't. They keep telling themselves they'll get hurt and it keeps not happening.

It's wrong, but I want you tonight

In any case, my friends, it's too late

Like a moth to light, Asgore is literally a lightner, a source of light, and Spade being the moth is a perfect description of how he feels - like an idiot who's self-destructively and mindlessly attracted the light.

Like a beast to bait Spade in this case is the bait, or the person who set the bait, while Asgore feels like an animal (figuratively speaking, because he feels like he's less than his peers). Said bait is something to entice him only for the purpose of capturing him or killing him, but he's either not wise enough to see that clearly, or doesn't have enough self-preservation to care.

And I know the black widow eats its mate This is one of those REALLY straight lines in the song, cause black widow is a kind of spider, the females of which eat their mates, but, uhh... maybe it could reffer to their past marrieges that were with women and ended badly?? Though I doubt Asgore would ever call Toriel a black widow. In like any context.

It's wrong but I want you tonight

Fear and delight

All the way through the night

With a little derring-do,

I'll fall in love with you

Fear and delight

All the way through the night

With a little derring-do,

I'll fall in love with you

I'm an innocent being seduced by your charms Spade literally thinks this.

Asgore, though, is playing up the image of a "friendly neighbour" and "everyone's pal" to try and cover up the fact that, sometimes, he envies the fact that Spade can unapoligetically and happily hurt people who've wronged him.

I'm a young boy tickled to death in your arms Lowkey hate this line but uhhh... killed with kindness I guess?

Your kisses taste like bitter almonds Fun fact! Almonds have cyanide in them. This line literally means "your affection tastes like my suicide attempt" and it's so fucking accurate for both of these two assholes oh my GOD.

It's wrong but I want you tonight

You're an addiction pulling me to a grave end They're both addicted to the affection and praise of the other and, while Spade would be a lot more likely to use that term about how he feels, in reality it probably fits Asgore's pain a little better, as Spade's praises are few and far between (early on) and a lot of Asgore's struggles around him focus on trying to reach another slight nicety from Spade.

You're an enemy who I'm keen to defend In Asgore's case this is more metaphorical, mostly about him trying and failing to defend Spade's less forgivable actions to other people, while in Spade's case it's painfully literal. He sees Asgore as a Very Real Enemy because of his worldview, and yet the longer he spends with him the more he feels like he has to physically protect Asgore from the thousand little things that weigh him down, but also mentally defend Asgore from Spade's own hateful thoughts because they near always have a tangible effect on Asgore.

Down the black hole of my lust I descend Clinging to the idea that this is a purely lustful endevour, that the only reason they're drawn to one another is because of physical loneliness, not their emotional needs.

It's wrong but I want you tonight x7

Fear and delight

All the way through the night

With a little derring-do,

I'll fall in love with you

Why is that I'm keen to be devoured by you Ngl I always heard this as "defined by you" instead, but either word can fit.
In the actual lyric, Spade feels like he's getting pulled into someone else's life and it'll literally consume him, afraid he soon won't be able to exist without it. While in Asgore's case the line could be applied to be describing Spade's capitalistic greed, Asgore feeling like he might just be crushed and objectified instead of cared about.

In my misheard lyric, though, Spade's questioning whether he wants Asgore because darkners should "serve" lightners, or because he wants to be served to by a lightner, and hating the fact that, either way, his existance revolves around light again. Meanwhile, Asgore's questioning why he always needs someone else in his life to feel whole or complete, why he can't just exist happily on his own like everyone else can, like he thinks Spade can?

When there's the option of a love affair that's pure and true? Again, reiterating that both of them think of this relationship as forbidden in some way, though with the addition of "love" it's them slowly accepting this is both an actual, emotionally-driven and not phisicality-driven relationship, coupled with the addition of "pure and true" - it's almost like an oxymoron when compared the the word "affair" used prior, but it adds to the idea that they're slowly opening up to a healthier mindset about their relationship, even if their perception is still warped.

I always choose the dungeon over the sea view With Spade it's a very literal reading, man likes dungeons, while with Asgore it represents that he'd rather be chained down to someone than be alone and free. But also the song's intended BDSM meaning for this line fits them, too.

It's wrong, but I want you tonight

When I'm out the other side I say never again Spade needing to keep up appearances, pretending he hates Asgore when on the "other side" (his own world, literally or figuratively) to maintain his image and pride, while Asgore, being easily swayed by other people's opinions, when in different company might start to think poorly of Spade, only for that to never stick once they're in the same room again.

But when I'm out and about I want to find the next vixen (Heavily ignoring the vixen part), both of them search for something they yearn for but can never really pin that desire down, thinking that short term solutions and bandaid fixes can take care of complex problems and years old wounds.

Someone who'll be sure to drive me round the bend Spade's always trying to find the next person to hate, to target, to dispise, while Asgore's trying to find the next person he could help, be useful to if only for a little while.

It's wrong, but I want you tonight In the last iteration of the line, I'd like to recontextualise it. Previously, they thought the other would be, essentially, like everyone else they've known up until that point, they thought they could predict the other. But now, they both found something Wrong with the other, something that's unusual but compliments their own flaws and twisted desires. It's wrong, they're both wrong, but they want that sliver of happiness and intimacy that the other offers so, so badly.

Fear and delight

All the way through the night

With a little derring-do,

I'll fall in love with you

Fear and delight

All the way through the night

With a little derring-do,

I'll fall in love with you If you'll allow me to be a bit less analytical for a moment, I think both Spade and Asgore have reason to distrust and means to mistreat the other, yet they're so fucking gay and stupid for each other that against all odds they fall in love and end up happy even though neither of them expected it.

Spade all like "grrr I'm big and angry and mean, and I hate lightners!! Hey that one seems overly trusting and weak I could step in and- whoops I slipped and fell into the best relationship I've ever had in my pathetic life" and Asgores all like "I am nice and good and kind, and I swear nothing is wrong in my life, I can just keep running away from my problems and pretend they don't exist! Oh hey, someone who could use a bit of kindness, I'll try to help and- whoops I slipped and fell into having to confront my flaws and biggest fears because of a dashing stranger who proceeded to confuse me every step of the way, only to love me in a way I never thought possible".

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

WORK IN PROGRESS

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

WORK IN PROGRESS

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

WORK IN PROGRESS

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

Let me call you sweetheart I imagine the first verse coming from Asgore specifically. Asking for permission, even while saying something so sweet.

I'm in love with you I've probably mentioned it before, but Spade has trouble with things like saying "I love you", or other public displays of affection. Asgore is a huge contrast to that, though, as he's arguably most comfortable when he can put all his love out in the open!

Let me hear you whisper Because of the aformentioned "Spade can't say the word love publically without breaking out into hives", this line to me is emblamatic of Asgore picking up on that, and asking for Spade's kind words no matter how mild or quiet they'd be, because they mean so much to him.

That you love me too After everything that's happened to him over the years, Asgore kind of needs to HEAR that he's important to someone for him to believe it. Asking that so directly could show how Spade influences Asgore to be more open and communicative without him even meaning to.

Keep the love light glowing This verse is from Spade's perspective. I was debating on whether to put emphasis on the word "keep", or "light", as they're equally important here. Spade despises the light world and the lightners, but something about Asgore's light, specifically, he wants to perservere.

In your eyes so blue The way I found out about this song was through Adventure Time, and in their rendition of it they replaced this word with "true", instead, because it still fits and doesn't imply anything about the subject that's being sung to. Thinking the song could fit Spadesgore, I sought out the original, and you can imagine how fucking stoked I was to find out about this reference to blue eyes, since I headcanon Asgore's eyes to be blue, and that Spade likes getting lost in them.

Let me call you sweetheart Out of the two of them, I always imagined Spade would come up with the more creative pet names and nicknames, though the repitition of this line (and the next) from the first verse makes me think about this as more of a "give back what I took" sort of line, where Spade is trying to give back kindness he doesn't really understand by doing exactly what Asgore had done for him previously.

I'm in love with you Admitting he's in love to the person he's in love with, to Spade, is a big show of trust. Recipricating feelings and loving gestures aside, it takes a lot to crack his iron shell, and even more for him to CHOOSE to step out of it himself. I just love this song a lot, and it's so short and sweet that I feel like trying to add any more detail to this discussion could somehow taint it, lmao, as part of the charm comes from how Simple yet Nuanced the emotions conveyed in it are.

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

WORK IN PROGRESS

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

When I was younger, I saw The first verse of the song focuses on the singer's experiances during their childhood, specifically, a very vivid picture of a messy divorce that influenced the child's further perception of love and commitment in adulthood. I associate this song with Spade's p.o.v. specifically and, though I imagine the relationship between his parents was different, the general idea of childhood experiances influencing trust issues later in life stays. To keep it short, I think Spade was likely ostracised in his childhood by people he otherwise thought he could trust, and didn't really have a healthy idea of what love even is, being surrounded either by people who cared about him because of status alone, or people who didn't care at all.

My daddy cry and curse at the wind

He broke his own heart and I watched Though this line concearns the singer's father, I always associate this phrasing with Spade himself. "Broke his own heart" is a pretty good way to describe Most things that influenced the way he is now, especially concearning the shit he chooses to do on a daily basis.

As he tried to reassemble it

And my mama swore that she would

Never let herself forget Another line that can be easily and heavily applied to Spade, despite the circamstances of the line being sung in the song. He's a very bitter son of a bitch and he never forgets when someone or something's hurt him. Forgiveness, to him, is a weakness, and to forget is to forgive.

And that was the day that I promised

I'd never sing of love if it does not exist Taking this line, along with the one before it, paints another very, very vivid picture, and this is where we can start to put Spade in the shoes of the singer completely. He promised, to himself, that he'd never idealise or even imagine love, because the kind he wants and needs simply doesn't exist in his eyes. There's no one that would be as loyal as he needs them to be, as devoted, as unconditionally supportive... right?

But, darling, you are the only exception Asgore comes into Spade's life, often, as an unabashed beacon of hope. He's kind and he's gentle, and though Spade will always suspect foul play at first, there's little that will actually convince him of it in the long-term when it comes to Asgore. Because, as it stands, Asgore IS loyal. He's devoted to the people he cares about to a fault, and he's supportive in a more genuine way than just being a yes-man. He tries to reach further into Why Spade does the things he does, and through that attempt at understanding, he becomes a more solid and supportive figure in Spade's life than anyone else, even if he doesn't agree with what Spade chooses to do.

You are the only exception In return, Spade also tries to understand Asgore. Probably not for the right reasons at first, but he wants information and he wants confirmation, and during the process of trying to define who and what Asgore IS, he often just ends up finding what Asgore ISN'T. He isn't scheming, he isn't power-hungry, he isn't malicious, he isn't even fully aware of the implications of some of his actions. Things Spade sees as forward and overtly romantic, Asgore sees as simple friendly gestures. Things Spade sees as insulting or demeaning, Asgore sees as just being on eye-level with Spade. The more he understands Asgore, the less he understands himself, and I personally think it's kind of hilarious.

You are the only exception The song is LITERALLY called the ONLY exception, and though I'm a multishipper I... kind of agree with the sentiment. I don't think anyone could (in a romantic sense) break down Spade's bounderies and self-sabotaging mindset the way Asgore can. They're both damaged in just the right ways to click in place with each other, and because of that percieved perfection (though it's FAR from perfect lmao), Spade will inevitably see Asgore as special, as unique in an almost ethereal way, though he'd never admit to actually respecting and revearing a lightner like that. Asgore's the ONLY person who can make his heart beat this way, even if it's perfectly feasable for Spade to have been and continue to be in love with other people as well!

You are the only exception I'd also like to focus on that idea of exceptionality for a second. As I said, Spade would never admit to being in love with a lightner this deeply, that one changed him so positively and fundamentally. But, that's also where something kind of troubling can arise. It's not hard to assume Spade could grow to idolise Asgore in some way, even if it isn't expressed, and that's. Y'know not healthy. The funny thing is, that would also be mutual. Asgore already has a nasty track record of putting anyone that's ever nice to him on a pedestal and not letting them down from it at any cost, and that could play off of Spade's feelings in an interesting way, I think. Even though they BOTH want to see each other as almost perfect, they keep bringing the other up, consciously or not, and in that mutual uplifting (practically out of spite in Spade's case though), they'd enevitably have to come face to face with the fact that they're someone WORTHY of that pedestal in their idealised lover's eyes. To Spade, this is just another massive ego boost, no real change in the status quo in how he acts when he realises that, but to Asgore? It's kind of a huge game changer. He starts to understand that Spade only ever accepts that seemingly unreachable status ONLY IF Asgore's up there with him. They need each other to be the best versions of themselves. They're fucking co-dependant is what they are.

Maybe I know somewhere

Deep in my soul that love never lasts As I've probably said many times, Spade is really emo and broody and when not being actively showered with affection, his idea of love being real depreciates over time. Often, it manifests as bousts of angst and doubt where he simply doesn't believe love is something that can exist for long, and sometimes even tries to push Asgore away in a desperate bid to prove himself right. And he fails.

And we've got to find other ways For Spade, the other ways of pretending he's fine aren't just 12 litres of denial a day, it's also the constant re-establishment of his power and dominance over other people. Yes, power means strength, and control, but it also means he can control who gets to stay and who gets to leave. Whos he can pretend, even for a second, sees or even Likes him as a person. It's an extremely low, low bar of utter desperation for validation from other people. Because, honestly? Spade is WORRYINGLY self-assured. Even when he's self-aware, it's simoltaniously self-aggrandising in some way. But the one thing he desperately craves but doesn't have is outside affermation, anyone else but himself seeing him for how great and awesome he is.

To make it alone or keep a straight face Completely up to you to decide how literal the use of "straight" is in this line.

And I've always lived like this Another statement of how normal and monotonous this self-isolation is for Spade. Even when he DOES look for companionship, it's never that deep. It's always somewhat at arms length, even with people he WANTS to trust with his life.

Keeping a comfortable distance And even though it hurts, and even though it's detrimental to him and his psyche, Spade's convinced himself he's Comfortable with it. He's deluded himself into thinking he NEEDS detachment, rather than it being the direct cause of so much of his strife, because admitting he was wrong and hurt himself and the people he loves/d might be the hardest thing of all for him to admit.

And up until now, I had sworn

To myself that I'm content with loneliness That's really the key word here: Loneliness. It's what eats away at Spade, it's what causes a rift between him and his son, it's what breaks his heart over and over again even when nothing new's happened. And, really, he's digging his own grave, because...

Because none of it was ever worth the risk He sees the potential for NEW heartbreak as infinitely worse than what he's doing to himself. The risk is putting his trust in someone else, and having that trust betrayed, because it's happened so many times before, and he's convinced it'll keep happening with everyone and everything. He's going to wind up alone either way, so why bother?

Well, you are the only exception Typing out the lyrics like this really doesn't do this song justice, so if you haven't already, I highly implore you to go listen to the song itself. Because, like, in text format like this, the constant repetition can seem unnecessary, but god. God it jsut hits hard when you hear the actual song, trust me.

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

I've got a tight grip on reality, but I can't To me, this line mostly ties into my headcanonned god-tier title for Spade (Homestuck bullshit incoming). As a rage player, his whole thing is disillusionment and detatchment from the fake, the imagined and the hopeful, the potential. The funny thing is, because he's a page, it ends up going full-circle and he's stuck in completely imaginary problems he's made for himself because he CAN'T let go of what happened, because he refuses to think about the Potentiality that reality is different than what he's convinced himself of.

Let go of what's in front of me here What's in front of him is exactly what he can't understand, the unconditional loyalty and kindness from Asgore.

I know you're leaving in the morning when you wake up Because Asgore COULD, in theory, just up and leave, that idea sticks to the back of Spade's mind and doesn't give him peace, he's paranoid that even Asgore, even someone who's proved time and time again that he's not going anywhere even if Spade wants him gone, would eventually betray and break Spade like every other lover of his has in the past.

Leave me with some kind of proof it's not a dream, oh The most painful part of it all would be the reminders left behind. The undeniable impact, positive or negative, that Asgore's had on his life that he'd have to find a way to either live with or scrub away.

You are the only exception But, of course, that paranoia is proven wrong, again and again and again...

(x8)

And I'm on my way to believing It'll take a painfully long time but, eventually, even Spade will grow to accept and believe in the love he's given. Not seeing it as a burden or a liability, but something that's given him the strength to get his life back on track when it was derailed beyond beleif.

Oh, and I'm on my way to believing

Youtube song link, Lyrics source

WORK IN PROGRESS