Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Falling!

Frisk tried to grab onto something, anything, as they fell into some sort of large hole.

Is that… flowers?

Frisk hit the patch of flowers, and everything went dark.

And there seemed to be… something sounding like voices.

Frisk woke up, covered in bruises, looking at the area around them.

“Where… am I?”

They were in some sort of ancient ruin, with tall marble columns stretching up to the sky. They appeared to have landed on some golden flowers.

“That was lucky. I probably would have died if those flowers weren’t there.”

“Well, time to-”

“TURN BACK! DO NOT DIE HER-”
Frisk momentarily fell on their back by the loud voice, and lay dazed on the ground for a while.

“Hello? Anyone there?”

“AND NOW I AM IN THE HEAD OF SOME IDIOT!”

Frisk looked around everywhere, trying to see a person, but there was no one around.

“Howdy! No, you’re not insane, we’re just incorporeal.”

“You probably are insane.”

“Greetings! It’s been so long since I’ve seen another human! How’s your day been? Well, you did fall down a large hole which shouldn’t be nice to anyone…”

“I love being insane! Yippee!”

“AND I AM STUCK WITH FOUR OTHER IDIOTS!” The first voice made an exasperated shout, and then huffed and became silent.

“Hey! Loud person! Uhh…” What do you say to an incredibly mad ghost in your head?

“How’s the weather today?”

There was another exasperated noise, this time from all of the voices.

“You really had to do that, didn't you?”

“I refuse to speak to you.” The loud voice, now less loud, spoke with a serious and angry tone. “Human.” They uttered that line like it was some sort of curse word, filled with some deep-rooted malice.

“But you’re human too.”

“And look where that got me.” The loud voice went silent again.

Frisk wanted to know more about their voice. Yes, they did appear to hate them, but that was the whole point. What happened? What happened in the past to make them this way?

Frisk wanted to help.

“Man, what a party pooper. Well, you look like a good guy. Again, greetings. My situation is… kinda strange. I.. haven’t been alive in quite a while.”

“Same. Last time I remembered I was slowly dying on an apartment top, and then… I was here.”

“Same with you guys? I was… Let’s not talk about it.”

“So we’re all ghosts! I, myself, got killed by this rather large and scary monster.”

“I…” Another voice, softer than the rest spoke nervously.

“Lillie? Is… that you?”

“... Maroon? Is that…” The first voice started crying. “I was so scared… of those monsters…”

“There, There. You’re safe now. I thought I‘ll never see you again. Funny how fate works sometimes.”

“Alright, cut it with this sappy business, I am getting annoyed.” The first voice came back, now sounding much more annoyed than before.

“Man, you really are a jerk, aren’t you?” Maroon snapped back with a tranquil fury.

“So? Does it look like I care? Your death was a great service to monsterkind.” The loud voice retorted angrily.

“Listen here, you little-” Maroon started talking, before being interrupted by one of the earlier voices.

“Guys, stop that! Look at the human!”

Frisk’s face was a pale white, shivering in fear.

“Monsters?”

All(well almost all) of the voices immediately knew that they messed up.

“Well, monster’s may seem scary, partner, but there’s no worry! There’s only… a fox that wants to grab my soul, a sheriff who almost killed me once… But hey! There was this very kind blue bird!”

“Yeah, like he said!” Maroon exclaimed enthusiastically. “There were only a few monsters that wanted to kill me!”

“You guys are not helping.” One of the voices pointed out that obvious fact, as Frisk seemed to be getting even more pale.

“Move, Frisk!” Frisk tried to force their legs to move somewhere, anywhere, but they just couldn’t move.

“Please!” Frisk though desperately. “Why am I like this? It’s not a big deal! I know.. All of these voices.. They want to move forward… They are all so determined. But why? Why am I always this scared? Why am I always this usel-”

“Human.” The loud voice interrupted Frisk’s thoughts. “Just to be clear, I am only saying this because I need you to help me with something, but… Don’t worry. I know a lot of things. Heck, we probably know a lot of things about this place. If you encounter any problems, I will help guide you.”

“Yeah, guess we’re partners now, pal. I’ll help you every step of the way.”

“It would be rude of me to not help.”

“I was unfortunate enough to barely know anything about this place. I won’t let that happen to you.”

“I’ll… see what I can do to help!”

“We’re going to have a lot of fun together! So there’s no need to worry!”

“You… really mean that?” Frisk said shakily.

“Human.” Frisk lifted their head up at that voice. Despite there not being anyone in sight, it almost felt like… someone was resting a hand on their shoulder.

“Stay determined, alright?”

“Will do.” Frisk took a step forward, accompanied by their new companions.

Chapter Text

Frisk walked forward into a large open room, with a gateway made of some purple-colored metal. There was, for some reason, a single small patch of grass inside, with a single flower.

“Curious. Why is this flower separated from the others?” One of the voices in Frisk’s head spoke up.

“That kind of flower brings… bad memories to me. Let us keep moving.” And that was the first voice that spoke. It’s a little frustrating for Frisk to not know any of them by name, but at least they can roughly differentiate the different voices.

“Man, I once had a partner who looked just like this flower.”

“You’re kidding.” said Frisk incredulously with a deadpan impression.

“No, trust me! He was my friend! He helped me a lot on my journey!”

“Well, I’ve seen many strange monsters! Some of them were even literal rocks!” That was Maroon. They always sounded energetic, and luckily was one of the people that Frisk knew the name of. They really had to eventually find someplace to rest and have a nice chat with all of the… Voices? Ghosts? Frisk doesn’t even know. “Remember those rocks from the Ruins, Lilie?”

“Yeah… those rocks were very funny. It was so much fun talking to them.”

Honestly, this place sounds so fantastic. Well, Frisk hasn’t even seen a single monster yet.

“Wonder what monster I’ll see first.”

“Impossible.” said the first voice. “There are no flower monsters. They simply do not exist.”

“Trust me, there was! Here, let me tell you about the time when I met that guy.”

________

Just Flowey’s luck. The first human ever to have more determination than them, and they’re a lunatic, talking to thin air.

Hopefully they can at least kill them before they realize that they have the power to SAVE.

They were about to show themselves, but something the human said stopped them in their tracks.

“Your name is… Clover was it? Hello, Clover.”

Clover. That human from so long ago. The human that Flowey journeyed the Underground with. The human that sacrificed themselves, hoping that one day the monsters would go free.

Flowey should have moved. He should have continued his plan like normal. But something about that idiot made Flowey decide to observe for a bit longer.

“Flowey. They were called Flowey? Man, that’s creative.”

What was this human talking about? That was too specific, almost specific enough… Did this human know Clover on the surface? But then how did he know about me?

The human paused for a while, and then a confused expression appeared on their face.

“You thought running straight into their bullets was a good idea?”

Flowey paused. Yes, that was definitely Clover. No other person would go that far to troll someone.

Flowey was lost in thought. Really? How is this possible? How is Clover still here? Maybe… Just maybe… Was it just like when I was fused with them?

Flowey turned around to hide the evil grin that he was making that stretched across his face.

No. This is perfect. With that idiot Clover around, they’ll convince the human to think that I have the power to SAVE and not them. I’ll get this kid to go to ASGORE. They seem easier to push around.

“Hmm… That’s a wonderful idea!”

But Flowey can’t just go yet. They have absolutely no knowledge of this human.

“I’ll wait until they die.” Flowey’s internal smile contorted into a jagged, sinister grin. “Clover ALWAYS died.”

And when they come back, they play the role of the savior. Flowey themselves took many deaths to even realize that they were in control, so that was no problem.

And then… Just a little bit more of this “nice act”.

_______

There was something… slightly worrying to talk about.

“Why… would you do that?” The loud voice asked in disbelief.

“I knew the first hit wouldn’t kill me, and after that, I knew I could tank a few more hits!” Clover replied eagerly.

“How did you know?” asked Lillie.

“Intuition!” Clover shouted.

Everyone fell silent.

“What, was that not the right answer?”

Maroon laughed.

“I like this guy.”

“No, I meant… WHY?” said the loud voice, both confused and frustrated.

“Because… it was funny?”

Another very long and awkward silence as the humans tried to comprehend whatever reasoning Clover had, if they even had any in the first place.

“Anyways…” started another voice. “Let's change this atmosphere up a bit. How about we’ll all share our names! Get to know each other better!” Finally, thought Frisk.

“So, like a meet and greet?” The loud voice said sarcastically.

“Exactly! Thanks for that!” said the voice cheerfully.

“Wait, I didn’t-” The loud voice started before being interrupted.

“I’m Jade! It’s a pleasure to meet you all!”

“The name’s Clover. You probably already knew my name, but this is a formal hello, partners.”

“Lillie… nice to meet you all.”

“I’m Maroon! We’re going to have a great time together!”

“My name’s Hope. Yep, it's kinda a sappy name.”

“You have a great name, Hope.” said Jade.

“Umm… thanks.”

“I’m Frisk!” Frisk said cheerfully. “You guys are all such nice people!”

“Hey, you haven’t said your name yet, loud voice.” said Hope.

“And why should I?”

“Alright then, Captain Cryptic.” said Frisk, slightly mischievous. Hopefully they can have a little bit of fun and the voice won’t get too angry.

“Do NOT call me Captain Cryptic.”

“You really sure?” asked Frisk playfully. “Well, maybe if you shared your name, I’ll call you by that. Or I could always call you ‘Loud Voice’...” Frisk trailed off, smiling. It probably wasn’t a good idea to antagonize an angry ghost, but hey, there’s a time for everything.

“I like this guy.” Hope and Clover said almost simultaneously.

“Why are you like this? (Loud groan) Fine. My name is Chara. Do not expect me to comply as easily in the future.”

“That’s a nice name, Chara.”

Before Chara could say anything else sarcastic, a figure appeared in the entrance to the doorway.

“Hello, my child. I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins.”

Frisk was slightly taken aback. Not a human, but a … goat monster.

“Oh, do not worry. I mean no harm.” Toriel must have said that due to Frisk’s reaction, but there was… another reason why they reacted a bit strongly.

“Mother?” Chara said, almost in disbelief.

“Mom!” Jade said joyfully, sounding overwhelmed by shock and happiness.

“Mom?” Hope seemed to be at a loss for words.

“It’s Toriel, Maroon!” Lillie said excitedly.

“Yep. Great to see her again.”

“Oh, that person.” said Clover, with an obvious lack of enthusiasm.

“Wait, but that is impossible!” started Chara, “Why would she be here? She should be at New Home with the king!”

“Man, your memory must be busted.” Jade said in a tone that Frisk couldn’t decide whether it was mocking or genuine concern.

“She’s the kindest person ever! Why would she ever be with that king?”

“Do not talk about Asgore like that.” Chara was clearly insulted. “He is a great king, and is much kinder than you.”

“But-” Jade tried to argue, before Chara interrupted them. “And Toriel is my mother. Not yours.”

“I was adopted!” Jade was starting to get slightly frustrated. “And I’m pretty sure you were too.”

“Well, I was adopted for longer.” Chara said smugly.

“How does that change anything?”

While Chara and Jade were arguing, Hope and Clover were… also arguing. Great.

“Toriel is a great person! They cared for me, and you can see how good she is if you just bother to give her time to prove herself!” Hope shouted.

“Well, after she caused me to fall into a large pit and didn’t come after almost an hour… I’m done waiting.” Clover said bluntly.

Frisk was … suffering, to put it lightly.

“Is this going to be a recurring thing?”

Toriel looked mildly concerned. “Are you alright, my child?”

“You are not her child!” Chara shouted.

“She says that to practically every human child! Do you really know Toriel?” Yep, Jade was starting to get really annoyed.
“Seriously, calling someone you just met your child is slightly worrying. Like, I understand calling that to someone you’ve known for a while but…” If this was a normal conversation, Clover would be barely heard, but unfortunately for Frisk, this was not a normal conversation.

“It’s just a habit, I seriously don’t get why you’re so opposed to it.” Hope argued.

“Yep.” Frisk sighed internally.

“This is going to be a recurring thing.”

Chapter Text

“Frisk. Please. I know you probably really want to do this, but please, do not flick that lever.” Clover desperately pleaded with Frisk.

Frisk was about to flick the wrong lever in one of the Ruins Puzzles. Most of the puzzles that Toriel showed thus far were honestly quite simple, but how could Frisk not resist seeing what the wrong lever would do?

“Nice job! It is incredible how you are super good at being wrong!” Chara was in a much better mood now. Frisk thought that Chara’s sarcasm can actually seem quite cute sometimes.

“How strange, Clover. If it was you, you would have definitely at least tried to flick that switch once.” Hope brought up a very good point.

“Trust me. It is very painful. Frisk, you remember when you fell into the Underground?”

“Don’t remind me.” After a few tries and a few looks of concern from Toriel, Frisk found out how to only talk with the ghosts, by projecting their thoughts, and thank goodness for that.

“It’s like that, but more painful.”

“Hey, Frisk.” And… apparently ghosts can whisper. That’s something new. “I have a great idea.” Chara was barely able to hide their mischievous tone. Oh boy, this was going to be fun.

“If you really want to flick it… I can’t stop you.” Clover was still talking to himself while the two humans plotted. “Just stay far away from that lever before flicking it.”

Frisk went a distance away and stretched, barely able to grab the lever.

They carefully started pulling down the lever…

And then rushed towards it and slammed it down.

…

…

Okay, Clover. You can stop screaming now.

Chara laughed like a cute little gremlin.

Clover was shaking too much to retort.

And all of the other humans were laughing in their own volumes and voices.

Yep. The underground was going good so far.

To be fair, the lever wasn’t even working, it was glued to the wall.

Bummer.

Apparently, Clover wanted to teach Frisk about how the Underground works, but Toriel beat Clover to that.

“As a human in the Underground, monsters might attack you.”

Toriel brought Frisk to a small room with a training dummy inside it.

“You will need to be prepared for this situation. However, worry not! The process is simple. When you encounter a monster, you will enter a Fight.”

“Aww… I wanted to say that.” Clover remarked disappointedly, now seemingly recovered from their previous scare, and trying not to pay attention to Chara teasing them in the background.

“Stall for time. I will arrive to resolve the conflict.” Toriel’s tone sounded calming, like it washed away all of the fears that Frisk had. “Practice talking to this Dummy.”

Frisk took another look at the Dummy. It didn’t resemble anything in particular, and was made out of simple fabric.

“There’s a button in one eye and the other is sewed. Interesting design choice.” Chara remarked.

“So… what do I do when some monsters approach me?” Frisk asked the crowd of ghosts.

“Well, it’s quite simple, pal. Strike up a friendly conversation, chat with them, do whatever seems nice.” Clover said.

“Just be kind! It solves almost everything with them!” Jade said cheerfully.

“You just have to be a good person…” Lillie started.

“And have fun with them!” Maroon finished off Lillie’s sentence.

“So, basically, you already have all of that. Monsters are made out of love and hope. Can’t say the same about humans…” Chara grumbled, before clearing their throat and continuing.

“Just be yourself, Frisk. Maybe be more enthusiastic.”

Frisk walked up to the dummy and started talking.

“Hey! You look really pretty today! You want to go to anywhere with me, little cutie~”

The ghosts were probably too stunned to even speak. Even the dummy somehow seemed to be silently judging Frisk, and considering the place, that was quite likely.

Toriel gave a concerned look before walking to the next room, as if nothing had happened.

Frisk followed suit.

“Frisk.” Chara was the first ghost to speak back up.

“Yes?”

“I was wrong. Don’t ‘just be yourself’.”

Anyways…

The next room looked similar to the previous.
“Look, a Froggit!” Lillie pointed out excitedly.

The “Froggit”, or whatever it was, hopped closer to Frisk.

“Frisk, I swear, if you try pulling that crap again-”

Thankfully for Chara and probably everyone else, Toriel looked at the Froggit with a stern expression, intimidating it into running away.

“Shame.” Lillie sighed. “Those Froggits are so friendly.”

Up ahead there was a spiked floor, with nowhere else to go.

“This is a puzzle!” Hope stated. “ I… may have forgotten the solution though…”

“Here, take my hand for a moment.” Toriel said kindly.

Frisk blinked, slightly taken off-guard. They grabbed Toriel’s hand and got swept off their feet for a moment, surprised at Toriel’s strength.

As Toriel walked through the spikes, some spikes retracted in front of her, giving them safe passage.

Toriel’s hand felt… warm… and…

…

…

…

…

Frisk expected Chara to act jealous again, which would be Frisk’s cue to tease them more, but the cue never came.

They seemed… sad…

…

Frisk didn’t even notice when they got to the end of the puzzle.

“You have done excellently so far, my child.” Toriel’s calm voice brought Frisk out of their thoughts.

“However, I have a difficult request to ask of you… I would like you to walk to the end of the room by yourself. Forgive me for this.”

Toriel promptly took off at speeds that should honestly not be possible for someone her size.

“Okay…” Maroon was about to say something, before being interrupted by Clover.

“It’s just a hallway, for gosh darn sake. How is that difficult?” Judging by his tone, no, he did not listen to Hope.

Chara laughed.

“Oh, you would not get it.”

“Any context?” Clover asked.

Chara’s tone turned somber.

“No… you would not get it…” Chara spoke slowly and softly.

“Chara…” Frisk didn’t know what Chara went through in the past, but wanted to help.

“You don’t need to hide anything from us. You can tell us if anything’s bothering you.”

“Heh.” Chara sounded serious, condescending. “I do not need your support.” But there was something… else hidden behind that tone.

“You can tell us whenever you like.”

“Alright. I will… keep that in mind.” Chara fell silent.

Frisk thought that now was not a suitable time for Chara to discuss anything, and decided to change the topic.

“So… any nice entertainment in the Underground?”

“MEW MEW KISSY CUTIE.” Both Jade and Chara somehow agreed on the same thing for once in their lives.

“The hell is that?” Hope asked.

“It’s beautiful.”

“A work of art.”

“The culmination of the creativity of monsterkind.”

“It took ten years and every second was worth it.”

Chara and Jade were somehow blending together perfectly while still disliking each other.

“What the actual hell is that?” Hope sounded really confused and slightly worried.

“ANIME!” Both of them shouted enthusiastically.

“And the movies, those were so good!” Jade sounded… really passionate about this. It sounded cool. Frisk hasn’t seen enough anime to judge.
“There’s Mew Mew Kissy Cutie 1 and Mew mew Kissy Cutie 2!”

“Wow, interesting name choices.” Clover remarked with a large amount of sarcasm and sass, as they did the ghostly equivalent of rolling one’s eyes.

“Is a threequel announced?” Well, they really are making it hard for Frisk to not join the conversation.

“No, but there’s no need for a threequel. The second installment ended nicely and wrapped the plot up.” So that’s how you get Chara to talk. Anime.

“No, but the second installment messed it up so badly that I don’t even bear to think what the third might be.” Jade spoke simultaneously with Chara.

“...”

“...”

“Did. You. Just. Shit on mew mew Kissy Cutie 2?”

“You okay? Unless you’ve been looking at some random fan theories online, no one sane would even think the second one is even decent.”

“The second one was much better! The plot was better, and it had a very deep meaning behind it!”

“I’m sorry, but the sequel is just straight-up not the Mew Mew Kissy Cutie I liked. They changed EVERYTHING.”

Chara sounded livid, and Jade was trying to not sound angry.

In both cases, that was possibly the worst-case scenario.

They got louder and louder.

…

…

Everything is fine.

“Honestly, I don’t see the point in arguing. It’s just an anime. Nothing that important.” And… Hope just signed their death warrant. Great. “Chara? Jade? You both suddenly went awfully quiet-”

“YOU TAKE THAT BACK-”

____________

Finally, Frisk caught up to Toriel.

“Greetings, my child. Do not worry, I did not leave you. There was an important reason for this exercise, to test your independence. I must attend to some business, and you must stay alone for a while. Please remain here, it is too dangerous to stay by yourself. I will give you a Cell Phone. If you need anything, please call. Be good, alright?”

Toriel wasn’t out of sight yet, and Clover wanted to completely disregard what she said and move off.

“She’s going to take ages anyway. Might as well get a move on.”

Clover was not taking this another time. The last time Toriel said that she would be back soon, Clover was waiting at the bottom of a very deep pit for an hour.

“But… Toriel would get worried if she comes back here and Frisk’s gone.” An actually good point from Lillie.

“Don’t worry, Lillie! We’ll get to Toriel’s home in no time! We’ll meet up with her, so Toriel doesn’t have to worry.” Maroon. He seemed kind enough. There was… something with him and Lillie. Some sort of history. Clover couldn’t pin it down.

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

“Alright, pals. If there’s no objections, let's move on.”

_____

The phone rang, and Frisk picked it up.

The thing was ancient. Frisk was pretty sure no one alive used this kind of technology anymore, except for… some people.

“For absolutely no reason…” Even the sound quality was horrible, but Frisk was in no position to say that about a free gift. “Which do you like best? Butterscotch or cinnamon?” Well… Frisk never really ate that much sweet stuff on the surface. They didn’t have much money, and no one really threw out sweet things…

They just went with Butterscotch. Toriel asked Frisk if they were okay with cinnamon, which really invalidated the need to ask the previous question.

“It’s always the same pie.” Hope chuckled. “The good old Butterscotch-Cinnamon pie.”

“How long have you been living with Toriel?” Jade and Chara both asked. Man, for two ghosts that argue so much, they really think the same.

“...A month?”

Frisk could feel them grinning. Somehow. Frisk didn’t know how.

“That’s not nearly enough. If you’ve stayed longer, you would have seen there’s… another pie.”

“SNAIL PIE!” Maroon shouted enthusiastically.

“You really seemed like the kind to like it.” Frisk remarked.

“Oh, no. Lillie just liked it so much they begged Toriel to keep serving them, and I got used to it.”

“They were so tasty…” Lillie was almost drooling at the thought.

A bit of silence as they kept on walking, followed by Chara saying the most off-handed comment ever.

“Are you sure Lillie isn’t a goat?”

There’s one big issue with multiple ghosts haunting you.

Multiple people speaking at the same time.

“It’s left, Chara. I remember it clearly.” said Jade.

“And I lived in the Underground for a year, and I remember that the right way to Toriel’s house is the right.”

“And how long ago was that exactly?” Jade retorted.

“How…” Chara was confused for a while, before snapping back, frustrated. “How does that matter? We were both dead for years!”

And of course, the other humans were talking about something completely unrelated.

“Say, in what order did we fall?” asked Hope. “I’m pretty sure I was the fifth and Jade was before me, I knew them from my village before they fell.”

“I remember Ceroba saying something like the monsters had five SOULs already, so… might that make me the sixth?”

“The first human didn’t leave behind their SOUL. There was a book about that.”

Chara pretended to not hear that.

Frisk was being… slightly annoyed to say the least. Yes, they wanted to interact with their new friends, but would they please stop being so loud when Frisk wanted to admire the scenery.

Frisk sighed. “Well, it can’t be helped.” They thought. It wasn’t kind of them to interrupt.

“Ooh, look! That’s a new one.” Frisk saw a ghost-like creature with wings flying ahead of it.

“That’s a Whimsun. Don’t intimidate it. It’s very sensitive.” So Chara and Jade finally stopped arguing. About time.

“Try moving there slowly and comforting it! It looks sad, so cheer it up!” Jade said cheerfully.

“...Your knowledge is so shallow. Do you not know that these things will be scared if you try to do that?”

“Well, of course a person like you would neve bother to try.” Jade commented snarkily.

And… They’re arguing again. Great.

I’ll just approach that Whimsum steadily and slowly.

_____

“So… there’s something wrong with this, partner.”

Clover wasn’t the best at math, but he was good enough to know that the numbers did not add up.

“Yep.” commented Hope, “If what Maroon said was true and they and Lillie were the second and third to fall, that still gives us seven humans out of eight.”

“So where is the sixth human to fall?” wondered Clover out loud.

____

Slowly, and steady.

Kill it.
Pure, uncontrolled rage.

Visions of dust.

It was exhilarating.

Frisk swung their arm, primed to hit the monster.

But at the last moment, something in them forced their body to stop.

The Whimsun shrieked and ran away, making Frisk regain focus.

“W… What did I do?” Frisk looked at their hands, shaking, worried that their hands would move again.

Rage. Coming from… Chara.

“I’m sorry!” Frisk pleaded, sobbing. “I didn’t know what happened! Please!”

“What…” But Chara’s anger wasn’t directed at Frisk. It was directed towards something… else.

“What the hell WAS THAT LV?” Chara shouted. Their tone wasn’t the usual malice or spite, it was… Hatred.

Frisk felt a new presence enter their head, a dark one, weighed down by its sins in a previous night. Frisk shivered.

“Well, did not expect that a sudden influx of LV could result in violence… though I should have expected that.” A voice, speaking with a tone that was calm, but still had murderous intent.

The dust, the weight, what Frisk almost did… It was too much at once for Frisk to bear. They collapsed on the ground, hyperventilating.

“Frisk!” said Hope. “Pull yourself together!”

“It’s alright, Frisk.” Jade tried to sound calm and reassuring, but could not hide the panic in their voice. “We’re here.”

“Who… Who are you?” Clover said, trembling.

“Oh, don’t you already know who I am?” The voice laughed.

“I’m your ‘sixth human to fall’.”

Chapter Text

There were only a few things that Clover was afraid of.

Loud noises were one. Gosh, why does a kazoo have to be so loud when you just randomly blow into it?

Also large objects being thrown at you. Especially pianos. That was terrifying.

Alright, to be fair, they weren’t so much “fears” as they were things that Clover wanted to avoid at all costs.

But if you were to talk about more “deeper” fears…

It’s the fear of dealing justice to those who deserve it.

The fear of harming innocents.

At that point, are others more deserving of justice than you?

Okay, maybe that’s a bit too deep.

There was one thing.

A person who Clover could have been afraid of, if they were still alive.

Through their adventures, they’ve heard of the one that came before them.

The one that injured Dalv and tried to hurt Kanako. The one who set down what was probably the most devastating massacre amongst all of the other humans.

The one who was killed by Axis.

When Clover was alive, they sometimes thought about them. And they always had the same thought.

“What even goes through their mind?”

Killing a few in self-defense was fine. Not completely fine, but still justifiable.

But so many monsters, almost including a small child?

…

Why?

Why are they back?

_____

The sixth human seemed to have gone silent, perhaps taking in the situation.

Maybe they just got off on the wrong foot. Perhaps they were just scared.

“Hello!” No other better time for a first impression.

“So, you're another one of these humans that fell! What's your name?”

The sixth human stopped and made a small laugh that Frisk hoped meant something good.

“My name… Truthfully, I don't really like to share my name.”

“That's alright! It's okay if you don't want to share your name.” Off to a great start. “So… if you want to, what do you want me to call you?”

“Integrity. That's my SOUL trait, and it should be true.”

…

“Umm… I’m sorry, but what is a SOUL trait?”

Hope let out a large sigh. “Do you not know what SOUL traits are?”

There were multiple “Yep”s heard around the group.

_____

Well, it shouldn't be too hard to explain.

“See, the SOUL is the culmination of one's being. It’s present inside a body, but at the same time they don't physically exist. Magic harms SOULs, which in turn harms the human body.” Hope paused and took a deep breath. They moved a hand up to shift their glasses, but realized they had no glasses.

And hands, for that matter.

“SOULS represent the human mind. And so, they have colors corresponding to the strongest inherent trait in a person.”

“Honestly, I have no clue why you all dont know this. You should have known this if you had basic education.” Hope commented nonchalantly.

…

Wait. Something’s wrong.

The atmosphere suddenly became more tense, and… quiet.

Frisk had an expression that Hope didn't know how to read.

And Jade… seemed mildly angry.

What did I do wrong?

Oh.

Oh no.

…

Why do I always act like this?

No matter how hard I try to interact with people, I always mess up.

… Unlike that person.

…

…

Alright, Hope. Calm down. Do the thing I always do when things go wrong.

…

What would Jade do?

_____

Hope was sitting on the stairs in front of their house, just looking into the distance.

“Hope!”

Jade was running towards them, anxiously.

“Are you-”

“I’m fine, Jade.” Hope interrupted. “It was just a stupid argument.”

“But Hope, you don’t seem fine. You seemed very angry…” Jade sat down near Hope, and grabbed his hand.

“Get away!” Hope lashed out without thinking, hitting the injury on Jade’s knee, causing them to recoil in pain.

Seeing the pain on Jade’s face, Hope started to panic.

“Jade! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to do that! I’m so so sorry!” Hope burst into tears.

Jade placed an arm on Hope’s back as Hope cried, to comfort them.

“It’s alright, Hope. I’m here.”

They sat like that for a while, until Hope calmed down.

“Hope. What do you want to do now?”

“... I want to apologize to him. I want to be friends again.”

“Don’t worry.” Jade’s smile was warm and radiant.

“Let’s go together, shall we?”

____

Firstly, don’t make this worse.

“But honestly, that’s not really a bad thing. A journey is the most important education, after all. The Underground teaches you a lot of things.”

“That’s true! Like the fact that gunpowder heals you!” Clover shouted.

“It does?” Chara asked in disbelief.

Maroon laughed. “How did you even discover that?”

Clover sighed. “Trust me, I think this story is better for another time.”

Clover seems smarter than Hope can give them credit for. They’re perceptive. It’s not too far of a stretch to think that they noticed the tense atmosphere. But regardless, Clover did help to loosen the atmosphere a bit, and Hope thanks them for that.

Second, talk about something else.

Let’s see…

“There are also many SOUL colors. Orange, Yellow, Cyan, Teal, Violet, Pink, and each of them corresponds to a different main trait.”

“That sounds interesting.” Lillie perked up.

And finally, at least start to make amends.

“You know, Frisk. Your SOUL color is probably green.”

“Why do you think so?” Frisk asked.

“You’re kind! That’s the SOUL color corresponding to kindness!”

Frisk went silent for a while.

“Thank you… that means a lot.” Frisk smiled.

And Jade was also smiling.

Hope didn’t lose any more friends… for now.

____

Integrity started to clap.

“Bravo, bravo. I couldn’t have put it any better yourself.” Integrity’s voice sounded enthusiastic, but seemed a little fake. Frisk wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps they just sounded like that.

“By the way… What is your purpose?” Integrity asked.

“My… what?” Frisk was slightly taken aback.

“Why do you act kind towards monsters? What drives you to do so? What is your motive? Your purpose?”

“I… don’t have one.” Frisk admitted. “But why does it matter?”

Integrity sighed.

“A person is nothing without a purpose. But I have a preposition for you.”

“Which is?” Frisk asked.

“Kill them. Get stronger.” The murderous intent came back, sending chills up Frisk’s spine.

“What is wrong with you?” Chara shouted, disgusted.

“What’s wrong with that?” Integrity laughed dryly. “It’s just how things work down here.”

“Integrity, I don’t know why you think that. These monsters are kind. They don’t mean any harm.” Frisk tried to appeal.

“You are hopeless, Frisk.” Integrity spoke with a cold, cruel voice. “You can’t survive a second out-”

“Guys, stop! There’s a giant carrot!” Hope shouted.

The sheer absurdity of that statement made everyone go quiet, and focus on the road ahead.

Wow. Hope was not kidding.

There straight-up was the biggest carrot that Frisk had ever seen, just planted in the middle of the road.

Everyone went silent and looked at the carrot.

And then it growled.

“Did it… just talk?” Frisk backed away anxiously.

“Frisk! Behind you!” Frisk whipped around and saw another monster behind them, a one-eyed monster that seemed familiar to something on the surface, but that was probably a coincidence.

“Thanks, Maroon.” This was not looking good for them right now. They needed to escape.

When they tried to escape, they were met by yet another monster.

“Oh come on!”

Frisk was surrounded.

Okay, Frisk. Stay calm.

Frisk closed their eyes and took a deep breath.

That was a mistake.

“Frisk!” Clover yelled frantically.

Bullets.

Frisk tried to dodge, but wasn’t fast enough.

A bullet cut through Frisk’s leg.

Pain.

Frisk screamed and fell down.

It was so painful.

There’s blood.

“Frisk! Don’t let your guard down again! Be cautious!” Chara sounded a little shaky. But they were right, they could not get hit by these bullets forever.

Luckily, Frisk dodged some sort of creepy-looking worm-like bullets. Frisk wasn’t exactly the biggest fan of bugs.

“Whatever happened to monsters being made of love and hope or something?” Frisk didn’t even know themself if that was sarcastic.

“It was not like this before. I honestly have no idea how the monsters came to be like this.” Chara conceded.

“To be fair, I’m not very sure why myself… But some of them don’t know that you’re hurt, because they don’t recognise blood. It might be a bit much to ask, but can you try not to harm them too much?”

“Of course, Jade.” Frisk yelped as they managed to barely duck in time as a cockroach flew above them.

Frisk thought that they'd seen a lot of strange stuff.

But a giant talking carrot shooting assorted vegetables has to take the cake.

“Do these even do damage?” Frisk was frantically dodging vegetables at speeds equivalent to a small car while screaming confusedly.

The moment when Frisk let their guard down even a bit, a fly-shaped bullet grazed Frisk’s hand, drawing blood.

Frisk clutched their shaking hand. They can’t do this for much longer.

“Well, well.” Integrity chuckled dryly.

“What’s there for you to celebrate?” Clover snapped. “Don’t you also feel the pain that Frisk gets?”

“Yes, but that has nothing to do with that.”

“Frisk. You could save yourself so much trouble if you would just start killing them. Really, it’s not that hard.”

“Why are you like this? You’ve been saying this ever since we met.” Frisk paused to dodge another attack, before continuing. “Why do you want to kill so badly?”

Integrity sighed. “You don’t know, Frisk. This is to ensure our safety. Truthfully, killing is brutal. But it allows you to get strong. So that you’ll survive. So that you won’t die.”

“Trust me, Frisk. You can barely hold your own against this group. Up ahead, there are horrors beyond your comprehension. What will you do then?”

“I’m not going to listen to you.”

“What?”

“I mean it.” Frisk spoke firmly.

“I’m doing this my own way.”

“I’m not going to hurt anyone ever again.”

Clover laughed. “That’s the spirit, Frisk.”

“You can’t do this, Frisk. You are too weak.”

“Of course I’m weak.” More memories. Ones that Frisk tried to suppress.

“But I’m not alone. Everyone, will you help me?”

“I’ll help you. These monsters are kind. I don’t want to hurt them.” Lillie spoke up softly.

“Of course, mate, if you want it!” Maroon, jovial is usual.

“Definitely! We’re friends, aren’t we? And that’s what friends do for each other!” Jade encourages Frisk.

“I’ll try my best.” Hope promised.

“Here I was worried that we wouldn’t be friends, but you’re a real pal!” Clover said enthusiastically.

Frisk turned their attention to Chara and started to signal them.

“What? What do you want me to do?”

Frisk started to prompt Chara faster and faster, almost crossing the border into teasing.

Chara sighed loudly and painfully.

“Fine. I will help you. But only because I don’t want any monster to die. Understand?”

Man, what a tsundere. Frisk giggled.

It’s only been a while, but Frisk has already found so many amazing friends.

And they really think they don’t deserve it.

But since their friends are already here, the least Frisk can do is to repay their kindness.

“So, here’s the plan. We’ll compile everything we know about them, and then find a solution to help calm them down.”

“That really isn’t much of a plan, you know.” Integrity commented dryly.

Frisk tried to ignore Integrity for now and move on. “So, we’ll do this one person at a time. I’ll call out a name and you’ll say what you know.”

“Alright! Let’s see some action!” Clover shouted enthusiastically.

“Clover!”

“Absolutely NOTHING!” Clover shouted with full confidence.

Six ghosts and a human all turned their attention to Clover.

“What? I didn’t even explore this part of the RUINS! I fell down a pretty large hole!”

Well…

Moving on…

“Chara!”

“One of them looks… familiar.” Chara was lost in contemplation for a moment, probably shuffling through their memory. “The bug looks similar to a clown I saw when I was alive. Perhaps evolution?”

“Jade!”

“Oh, those clown bugs. I remember them. There was one that acted like a clown, but stopped when there was no one around. They really did not want anyone to see that side of them… But I helped them to appreciate who they were.”

…

Wow.

Of course, it’s not really a stretch to expect that, given Jade’s personality…

But the tale was still heartwarming, to say the least.

Frisk shaked their head. Back to the main task at hand…

“Hope!”

“Well, the truth is…” Hope stuttered.

“I… don’t really know much about any of these monsters.” Hope admitted sheepishly.

“But since you want to spare these monsters, the knowledge of green attacks should be beneficial.”

“What are green attacks?” Frisk asked.

“They’re attacks… but green.” That was kinda obvious.

“That was not a good explanation.” Clover commented, also kinda obviously.

“Okay, that wasn’t really the best way to start, but it is quite useful. Attacks that are weirdly tinted green will heal you, which could allow you to pacify certain monsters.”

“That!” Jade exclaimed. “So that’s what those things were. Anyways, that’s really useful, thanks for helping!”

“Umm… thanks.” Hope chuckled nervously.

“Maroon!”

“That carrot thing… I know it a bit too well.” Marron grimaced.

Lillie giggled. “Maroon doesn’t like vegetables, and that Vegetoid is super insistent on people eating vegetables, so I had to bail them out many times.”

“And thank you for that, good lady.” Maroon faked a posh voice, which made Lillie laugh even more.

It might be a stretch but…

“Integrity? Do you have something to provide?”

“Seriously?” Integrity replied indignantly. “You’re still doing this?”

“No, Integrity in fact has nothing to provide.” Chara replied snarkily, which caused Frisk to giggle. Chara could be mean sometimes, but they were still a good person inside.

“Basically, we have to leave Whimsun for the last. Perhaps those other monsters are influencing it.” Hope remarked.

“That’s true.” Frisk replied. “Let’s begin with Vegetoid.”

Frisk started to approach Vegetoid. Seeing Frisk moving towards Vegetoid, the other monsters seemed to get more alarmed and attacked faster.

Hidden away from any human, Frisk’s SOUL turned the briefest hint of cyan.

“Not too fast, Frisk.” Lillie said softly. “You’ll scare them.”

“Thanks!” After noticing, Frisk made sure to slow down their advancing, while ensuring to not make any excessive movements.

Be patient, Frisk. The worst thing that could happen is to exacerbate this problem.

The Vegetoid was in fact shooting some green carrots. Frisk watched it, and took their chance when the Vegetoid fired a green carrot close to them, threading and dodging all of the other carrots. Stretching out their hands, they felt the ends of their fingers barely touch the carrot, causing it to burst into a green mist.

The warm green mist washed over Frisk’s body, healing some of their injuries. It felt amazing. They felt more energetic.

“Don’t let your guard down!” Chara shouted, snapping Frisk back into reality. The Vegetoid was still attacking.

“What did I do wrong?”

“You didn’t eat the carrot.” Lillie pointed out. “The Vegetoid just wants other monsters to eat healthy.” Hearing closer, the Vegetoid did seem to be talking about the importance of nutrients in a diet.

But it’s magic! Frisk thought, while jumping backwards. It’ll harm me if I hit any of the other carrots!

… There was only one thing that Frisk could think of that could work, and Frisk did not like it at all.

Frisk had to catch one of those carrots with their mouth.

“I have a dumb idea.”

“Not surprising.” Chara replied.

Another green carrot came. And Frisk ran towards it.

But looking at that carrot, and remembering it piercing Frisk’s skin, and the blood…

Frisk’s legs froze, unable to move.

And the carrot missed.

What was that? I…

“Don’t worry, Frisk. It won’t harm you.” Maroon spoke, slowly and calmly, for once. “Be brave. Sometimes things seem scary if you don’t know what will happen, but trust me. It’ll be alright.”

Frisk’s SOUL glowed orange.

Alright. Time to not mess this up again.

Frisk jumped at another carrot.

Don’t freeze. Do it before you get scared.

Frisk closed their eyes.

It was delicious.

The Vegetoid seemed satisfied, with a grin over its face, and went back into the ground.

One done.

Now, for the one-eyed monster…

Frisk had no knowledge about them. They had to be observant.

“Get closer to it.” Chara instructed.

When Frisk walked towards the monster, it jerked its eye upwards, and snarled, stepping backwards, releasing a wave of worm bullets.

Dodge them! Frisk sidestepped to avoid a worm bullet, but the worm suddenly curved around, striking Frisk’s leg.

Frisk shouted in pain, and fell onto the ground.

“Well, well.” Integrity smiled. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Because of your weakness, we’re all going to die. I hope you're satisfied.”

…

So I’m really going to die here?

I failed everyone…

I’m sorry. I blundered all of your second chances at life.

“Shut up, Integrity!” Hope shouted. “As long as you’re still alive, you can still stand up, to fight for your cause! Frisk, you still have things you want to do, things you want to see! So persevere, and don’t give up.”

… Right.

I can’t die here.

Frisk’s SOUL glowed a deep shade of purple.

Painfully, slowly, Frisk stood up, legs shaking.

…Wait.

The monster didn’t attack me at all.

Why?

The moment Frisk stood up, the monster snarled and resumed attacking.

The monster’s expression, actions, and the fact that it didn’t attack Frisk when it was down…

The monster was defensive about something.

“Don’t pick on me.” The monster growled.

Frisk looked around. Did they offend this monster in any way?

Then they saw traces of a house, hidden away.

They were intruding on the monster’s territory.

Frisk bended down, going to the monster’s eye level.

“Fool! You’ll get yourself killed!” Integrity shouted.

“Frisk, you know what to do.” Jade encouraged Frisk.

“Don’t listen to them.” Clover said firmly.

Frisk tried to make eye contact, but didn’t stare.

I don’t want them to feel intimidated.

“I’m sorry for intruding. It was wrong of me, and I’ll leave after this. If you like, we can speak to each other eye to eye.”

“Or in your case, single eye to eye.” Clover added, which made Frisk very grateful that ghosts couldn’t be heard by the outside world.

Frisk waited, as the monster slowly started to calm down.

“Finally, someone gets it.” It made a satisfied grin.

Two down.

Sorry, make that three down. The Migosp, after seeing the others had no interest in fighting, calmed down, and seemed happier.

“It’s better to not follow the crowd. It’s better to be yourself.” Frisk told the Migosp, and the Migosp nodded in agreement.

“Nothing like alone time.” The Migosp spoke with a soft, raspy voice.

“Next time, don’t get into fights, okay?”

“Maybe.” The Migosp then left.

Frisk sighed. That was… stressful, to say the least.

Integrity let out a loud fake yawn.

“That took such a long time. But if you weren’t so insistent on not killing, we could have gone out of here before you depleted your stamina and became vulnerable.”

…

Why is Integrity like this?

Are they not convinced?

I tried so hard to help people, and they still act so stubborn?

Frisk was getting tired of this. Angry, even.

“You know about that thing you said earlier about purpose? Well, I’ve found mine. I’m going to help the Underground. I’m going to know more about this world, and help all of us, so we can all have a peaceful life.”

Frisk was… angry. At this monster of a person who thinks of no other way than murder.

But… Frisk didn’t stay angry at Integrity.

No one’s born a killer. There must be a reason. Something that happened that caused this.

What happened in the past to make Integrity like this?

“So then, what’s your purpose? Why do you want monsters dead so much?”

Integrity went silent for a while.

“My… purpose?” Integrity said, with just a hint of questioning, before snapping back at Frisk.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Oh, really?” Chara asked with a mocking tone. “Whatever happened to all of your yapping about a “purpose”? Whatever happened to it being important? Tell me, idiot.” It was slightly expected that Chara would be furious towards Integrity, but it might have been slightly overkill.

“You know what? I don’t care about that!” Integrity’s calm demeanor completely shattered. “So what if I’m a hypocrite? I’ve seen many things before, and I’ve learned one constant in this world. One constant.”

“Which is?” Hope asked.

“In this world… It’s kill or be killed.”

The sentence wasn’t the only thing that scared Frisk.

It was the fact that Integrity spoke it with complete confidence.

“And you’ll see it one day. I know that. But for now, I’ll just watch. And don’t come crying when you see that you could have prevented all of it.” And with that, Integrity went silent.

…

Well, that was tense.

Integrity seemed to be done with talking for now. No matter what Chara said, they didn’t respond.

And Chara didn’t say the nicest things. Jade had to tell them off multiple times.

But this was probably for the best. Integrity probably needs some time to think. They’ll come around eventually.

After resting for a while, and applying the first aid they packed, which somehow healed them instantly, it was time to get going.

Frisk turned back, and looked at the one-eyed monster.

“Maybe you should try making friends. Not everyone wants to pick on you. If you want to, I can visit from time to time.”

While the monster was contemplating those words, Frisk packed up and set off.

_____

This place is a maze.

Multiple different rooms, routing to the same places, and some with dead ends. Some with water, some with multiple plants growing on the walls. There were some “puzzle” rooms, if you could call them that. There was a rock puzzle a few rooms ago that Maroon and Lillie seemed to get excited about, but became disappointed after Frisk moved the rock. Huh. Wonder what that’s about.

Thankfully, this room doesn’t seem like one Frisk had previously seen before.

Tired, Frisk decided to rest on a patch of leaves.

It was fun to roll around in the patch for a while, fiddling around with the leaves.

“Playfully crinkling through the leaves fills you with determination.” Chara said, out of the blue.

“What?”

“What?” Chara retorted.

“What does that mean?”

“... It felt like the right thing to say. You find determination in the smallest things in life.”

Frisk played there for a while, pondering Chara’s question. No one really complained.

They were all kids, after all.

“We need to get a move on, Frisk. We can’t stay here forever.” Chara said impatiently.

Okay, maybe not.

___

“Whoa!”

While walking in one of the rooms, Frisk suddenly fell through the ground, and started falling.

Luckily, the ground below was not too far.

“What was that?”

“A puzzle, probably.” Clover replied. “Though I haven’t seen any of this kind, or at least I think I haven’t.”

“There’s a path on the ground.” Lillie pointed out. There was an area marked with a lighter color, under the place where Frisk fell.

“So what am I supposed to do to solve this puzzle?”

“Nice job, Frisk. You don’t know how to follow a line.” Chara replied sarcastically.

“Chara! That’s not being helpful!” Jade shouted back. Oh boy, Frisk already knew where this was going. Frisk saw what appeared to be an exit, and started walking

“Well, aren’t you just a little ray of sunshine?” Chara smirked.

“Whoa!” Frisk stumbled and took a step back.”

They almost missed the large gap in front of them. The entire stairway up was cracked, and looked like it was falling into pieces.

And there was another area below, filled with broken walls, stones, and vegetation. Frisk turned away. Whatever was down there didn’t seem good.

But fate is never kind.

The ground that Frisk was on wasn't so stable after all.

“What the…” Frisk heard a crack below them, ringing through the small room.

“Frisk!” Maroon’s warning allowed Frisk to grab onto a single small piece of rock before the entire ground below them collapsed, but their strength was fading fast.

“Frisk! Stay strong!” Hope shouted, as Frisk’s SOUL glowed purple, allowing Frisk to continue holding on.

Clover seemed to be having a panic attack.

“No! Not again!” Clover shouted, frantically panicking. Frisk wanted to help them, but the moment they tried to concentrate on anything but pulling themselves up, their strength failed, causing them to almost slip, which panicked Clover even more.

Alright, Frisk. Climb up first, help Clover with whatever trauma they have later.

“Frisk. Hang in there.” Immediately after saying that, Chara burst into laughter.

“Seriously? Chara, is this a good time for jokes?” Jade shouted, also clearly panicked.

“Well, you’re not doing so well now, are you?” Integrity’s presence appeared back in Frisk’s head.

“Did you just come back to insult me?” Frisk asked incredulously.

“...Truthfully, no. I came back because it’ll be very hard to stay silent after what comes next.”

“What do yo-” Before Frisk could finish their sentence, the rock they were desperately holding on to finally gave way and broke free. Frisk reached out another hand, trying to grasp something, but it was fruitless.

“We are all going to die.” Integrity deadpanned.

Seven ghosts and a human screamed as they fell into the abyss.
____

…

So, they fell down into the Dark Ruins.

Flowey looked over at the gigantic hole, while struggling to maintain a grip on the broken terrain.

This human isn’t bad. If only they had less Determination, they would have been much better than Clover. With their proficiency, even the regular Ruins would have been no problem!

They probably won’t die here, which is kind of a shame.

If that smiley trashbag shows up and tries to kill them…

It’s not going to be easy for them to survive. Especially because this human refuses to kill anyone. How foolish of them.

Just like Clover.

Flowey cleared his head. No, Smiley Trashbag wouldn’t do that. They’ve known a lot about him. Killing innocents isn’t his style.

But more importantly…

“How have I never been to this room before?”

…

Ten hours.

“I took ten hours to dig that trap, and there was an easy entrance to the Dark Ruins HERE?” Flowey shouted, enraged.

Flowey groaned, as they started to descend into the Dark Ruins.

“God, I hate my life.”

____

Falling. Add that to the list of things that Clover wanted to avoid at all costs.

Because of some insane ghost logic, every injury Frisk gets is felt by them.

Clover groaned weakly.

“Every single one of ma’ bones hurts…”

If it was just a simple fall onto some flowers, that would be fine. But no, the Ruins just had to be so broken down that falling down here means hitting practically every bone on the debris.

…

Well, Frisk seems to be out cold for now.

Can't blame them.

Even though Frisk’s eyes were closed, Clover could still see the surroundings, even without a body.

It was quite a weird feeling.

If Clover were to describe it…

Oh! It's like in those cowboy movies where the camera is close to the sheriff, enough to see their face and the surroundings.

It's like Clover gained a whole new perspective and was able to see things that regular people shouldn't have been able to see before.

Anyways, this did look like the Dark Ruins. Not any specific part that Clover recognised, but the cracked purple bricks on the wall made it obvious.

There were incredibly convenient leaves that broke Frisk’s fall. This seemed to be… a garden of some sort. Some pink-colored flowers with orange highlights, and some yellow plants that looked like corn.

Oh wait. That was corn.

But they weren’t alone.

In front of them, was a person wearing a hood, tending to something in front of them.

Frisk. This would be a very good time to wake up.

…

…

The hooded figure seemed to have finished what they were doing, and started to turn around to leave.

…

…

This would be a very good time to wake up.

When the figure turned around, Clover saw the face of a vampire, with purple skin and a nervous look.

Clover’s spent only a few hours with them. By all means and purposes, that was a very short time.

But even dying won't make them forget.

“Dalv?”

Chapter Text

… How long has it been?

Long ago, Dalv was wasting his life away in here, staying in his house everyday.

Until Clover showed up.

Clover gave Dalv hope that others would be like them. That they would also be friendly.

And… they were right.

Snowdin was a beautiful place, with many monsters roaming around and talking to one another.

And true, there were some rowdy kids, but the adults all approached him with kindness after he settled in his new home.

In only a day, Dalv felt… welcomed. Almost like he had lived in Snowdin his entire life.

But Dalv still wanted to meet his old friend.

So, with the information that Clover could be in the Dunes, Dalv set off, trekking through caves and deserts, until they arrived at a place called the Wild East. That name was quite a clever pun on that human place on the surface.

And then they heard the news.

It was like last time all over again. Dalv stayed in his house for many days, refusing to come out, even for the concerned villagers.

The only thing that stopped Dalv from giving up was the memory of Clover. Clover wouldn’t want Dalv rotting away in here. He heard Clover in his head, telling Dalv to make new friends and move on from him.

But how could he?

Eventually, people stopped knocking on the door. And Dalv was thankful for that.

But one month later, there was another knock on the door.

Normally. Dalv would have ignored it. But something… someone made them go up to the door.

“... Hello.” A voice that Dalv has never heard before.

“... Can we talk? It’s about… Clover.”
Dalv sat there for a long time. Talking with a person they’ve never met, but it felt familiar nonetheless.

They laughed while talking about Clover’s antics.

They got angry together when they talked about the policy against humans.

They stayed in silence together while they mourned Clover.

And they reminisced about different memories.

The other person seemed to be a much better friend of Clover. Dalv’s only been with them for a few hours, before Clover left, promising to visit him in his new house.

They never did.

But there were enough memories to talk about.

At the end of the day, the other person stood up to leave.

…

Clover made the first move that time. It’s Dalv’s turn this time.

“...If you don’t mind…” Dalv stuttered nervously. “Mind visiting me tomorrow?”

There was a bit of silence.

“... I’ll love to.” The voice responded warmly.

And that happened for a few days after that. It was… exciting. Knowing more about not only Clover, but this new person.

And one day, Dalv decided to step out of his house.

And that was one of the best decisions of his life.

The person was a fox monster. They looked strangely familiar to a little girl that they met one time, until..

Don’t think about that event, Dalv. It’s better that way.

And they were coincidentally from the Wild East.

Before, Dalv just ran home, but now, they managed to interact with the locals more.

The Feisty Five was the main thing. Dalv didn’t even know how he didn’t meet them last time.

Except there were four of them.

One of them, Ace, said their leader wasn’t here. While that happened, Dalv’s wallet mysteriously disappeared, and he still hasn’t found it. Moray, another one of the Five, brought Dalv to see the residents of the town.

The residents included Dina, who’s the bartender. She was nice to chat to when having a bad day.

And then there was Blackjack, who didn’t really like to talk. Unless money was on the table, but Dalv had a budget to keep. After all, he just lost his wallet.

Eventually, the fox monster, who’s name is Ceroba, requested Dalv to join Clover’s funeral.

There, Dalv met up with Ceroba and two others, both Clover’s friends.

And Clover’s hat was sitting on a raft.

Dalv started to tear up.

As he watched the other two get ready to send off the raft, Dalv had many things that he wanted to say.

Many things stuck in the past. But Dalv didn’t want that. Clover wouldn’t want Dalv to stay this way.

“... Goodbye, friend.”

And Clover seemed to be waving back, glad that they were able to move on.

“Take care of yourself, partner.” Dalv heard Clover’s voice in his head.

And then Dalv started to cry.

It’s gone better since then.

Around five years have passed since Clover fell.

And they’ve made more friends.

Especially those two who were at Clover’s funeral.

The first one, Martlet, was an incredibly talkative bird monster, so much so that Dalv nearly got overwhelmed the first time.

They’re a great neighbor. Helping out with the Christmas decorations, partying at their house, and helping her with some “projects”.

Recently, they were working with Marlet, Starlo and Ceroba to find Ceroba's daughter.

Even though her daughter’s fallen down for years at this point, there have been rumors that the lab that Ceroba sent her to has had success in bringing some monsters back to life.

Dalv doesn’t even know how that’s possible, but anything’s good if it gets Ceroba her daughter back.

Oh yeah, Starlo.

Not Ceroba’s husband. Their first meeting was very awkward because Dalv said that. Is being a bit awkward with others good for making friends? After all, it helps with knowing the other a bit better.

He’s the leader of the Feisty Five, and acts like a true-blue cowboy.

He’s very fun to be around. Except when he ropes Dalv into dangerous stuff. Thankfully, most of his “adventures” with the Five are mostly harmless fun.

They even held a cowboy performance in the Wild East. It went well until Starlo pulled out an actual gun and fired at a tree. Dalv didn’t know what was more concerning, the fact that Starlo did that, or the fact that the children wanted to try it out.

Dalv was later punished by Blackjack for “trying to promote the use of guns to children”.

And today, Dalv was in the Dark Ruins.

Not to move back here, of course. They’ll never do that again.

But Dalv always comes here, at least once every month.

Because he’s made friends here as well.

All of those monsters… they wanted to be his friends all along. Clover allowed him to see that.

So he visits them. Chatting with Flier about life, helping Rorrim repair their frame, and working with Penilla to make an educational book.

Dalv tries to communicate with Crispy Scroll, but he doesn’t get what they say. Something about “anime”. Luckily, Sweet Corn was there to help. It doesn’t help much, but it’s the thought that counts.

And of course, he went to his old house and gave Pops a new buddy! He found the other Pops stuck up a tree in Snowdin, which he luckily saved. Hopefully Pops can also get new friends, like he did.

And now he’s here in the corn fields. While the corn initially grew very well in the Dark Ruins, it was struggling a bit. So with the help of his friends, he’s learned how to take care of the area.

Not that he needs corn. For some reason, the corn on his doorstep started appearing again. But it’s mostly for aesthetic purposes. It’s a common sight for the locals.

Five years, huh. It’s been that long ago?

Dalv’s only regret is not meeting Clover again. He’s made many friends, and Dalv wants to show Clover how much they’ve helped.

Dalv sighed and started to turn around. Well, not like Clover could come back from the dead. They know they’ll be happy. That’s who they are.

Well, time to get back to Snowdin.

And then he saw Clover on the ground, in front of him.

____

It hurts.

Frisk could now see why Clover was so afraid of falling here.

To be fair, they themselves were starting to think that.

No new voices appeared in their head, which was good.

The others weren’t awake yet.

Frisk opened their eyes slightly.

A vampire was standing in front of them.

…

Frisk didn’t really feel scared.

WIth everything that’s happened to them in the underground, they aren’t weirded out by this monster.

It even feels more comforting. Something that’s more familiar.

Oh wait. Vampires drink human blood.

Maybe it’s a good time to get up.

… I don’t feel like getting up.

The vampire turned towards Frisk.

Maybe I should get up.

Frisk tried to move their leg, but was met by a jab of pain.

… I can’t get up.

That’s a problem.

The monster seemed to be… shaking?

Frisk opened their eyes, and saw the vampire looking at them with disbelief.

“...Clover?” They spoke up, with a gentle and soft voice.

Clover.

“Clover, do you know this guy?” Frisk asked.

No response.

When Clover started to speak, they lacked their energetic personality.

“... Yes. It was one of my friends from when I was alive.”

Friends! Frisk hadn’t even considered that!

“So that’s good! Want me to tell him that you’re-”

“Don’t.” Clover’s voice came shaky and abrupt, which startled Frisk. “...Please. I don’t want to.”

____

The first thing Clover felt when seeing Dalv was happiness.

He’s safe and alive! And it’s great to finally see a friend again!

Then, Clover felt excitement.

“Dalv! I’m back!” Clover shouted.

…

They can’t hear me.

Then, a small tinge of sadness.

… I can’t be with them.

I died.

And then…

Wait, why is Dalv back in the Dark Ruins?

He should be in Snowdin!

He… should…

…

It was because of me, wasn’t it?

Heh. It’s funny, in a twisted way.

For all the things I do for justice, I can be really selfish sometimes.

What kind of friend leaves without saying goodbye?

They didn’t say goodbye to Dalv when exiting the Ruins.

They thought they could have met him in Snowdin.

…

And…

…

“Frisk… Dalv won’t believe you. After all, it’s not like a story of ghosts inhabiting you is believable.” That’s not the problem. I’m just making excuses.

“But Clover, if Dalv’s your friend, they would know you better than even I could! If you say things that only you would know, then maybe…” That. That was the thing Clover didn’t want to hear.

To Clover, Dalv wasn’t really that much of a friend.

Three hours was too little.

But Dalv didn’t see it that way. Clover was their best friend.

Clover really wanted to return the sentiment.

If only…

And…

“... Frisk, even if Dalv believes you… How would you feel if your friend was right next to you, but you couldn’t actually interact with them?”

Frisk went silent for a moment.

… It’s not going to work. Frisk doesn’t seem like the type to lie.

“Alright. I’ll do as you say.”

…?

Are they… really okay with this?

Frisk smiled and looked at Dalv.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know who that is.”

To anyone else, Frisk just looks to be happy.

But it’s different when you share SOULs.

…

What did Axis once say?

Robot’s can’t cry?

… Clover wished ghosts could.

Thank you, Frisk.

I’m so sorry.

____

Oh.

To be fair, after a bit of inspection, the human didn’t look like Clover.

They had some similarities.

But they had different eyes, skin color, hair…

Humans are tough to differentiate. That happened last time, with Clover. They aren’t as different as monsters are, they all look quite similar to each other.

Well, I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up in the first place.

Despite being awake, the human wasn’t getting up.

That didn’t seem like a good position to rest in.

Perhaps they were injured?

Dalv looked around, and found a stick on the ground.

“Can you stand up?” Dalv asked.

“... Yes, but not for long.” The human replied.

As the human stood up, Dalv supported them before they fell down.

“Here.” Dalv gave them the stick to support themselves. This was something that humans did when they were injured, if Dalv’s memory was correct.

The human smiled. “Thanks!” They seemed to be quite kind. Unlike the first human Dalv met. Dalv knew that he attacked first, but what they did to him back, and to so many other monsters…

Wait. Now that Dalv was revisiting that memory, something was… off.

Why didn’t the human kill me?

They were close to doing it, but suddenly stopped.

And when Dalv woke up in the hospital, they said that the human was missing.

It wasn’t because of that robot. Dalv heard it half a minute after the human would have done the killing blow.

Why?

…

Well, it’s not nice to look a gift horse in the mouth. They got lucky. And Dalv really does not want to relive that experience.

Anyway, the human seemed to be stable now.

They don’t seem in good condition.

“Hey, would you like to come over to my house? You could rest there.”

The human perked up. “Really? Thanks! I’ll appreciate that! By the way, what’s your name? Mine’s Frisk!”

“Dalv.”

They don’t seem bad. They don’t act like Clover, but they seem to be a good person.

…Should I make the first move?

Dalv smiled.

Why not? That’s what Clover would do.

“So… would you like to be friends?” Dalv extended their hand.

Frisk looked shocked for a bit, and then went back to smiling.

“Yes!”

Frisk let go of the crutch to shake Dalv’s hand…

And then fell flat on the ground.

“Ow.” Frisk said, muffled.

“Frisk!”

____

They had another companion! Dalv was a very interesting person. They had a prominent artistic flair, and liked to talk about his friends.

The others have also woken up, and it was back like the old times again.

“This monster is really impressive. As a lover of the arts myself, I can relate to him.” Hope commented.

“A visit to a friend’s house! How kind of him to invite us!” Jade started to talk about the different activities they could do, which Frisk half-listened to as they took in the scenery. The dark purple looked nicer than the Ruin’s light purple, but both were good.

Along the way to Dalv’s house, they met a lot of monsters.

Penilla drew a beautiful painting of them and Dalv, which Frisk insisted on carrying themselves, even when a nearby Sweet Corn wanted to help.

There was a monster just sleeping in a corner. They seemed tired, so Frisk didn’t approach them.

Jade and Chara also had some words for Crispy Scroll.

“What, but that is- not-” Chara groaned. “Stick to the right genre!”

“I… don’t really want to judge, but some of the tropes you use are kinda lame.” Jade admitted.

Per their request, Frisk relayed these remarks to Crispy Scroll, which prompted a heated discussion, leaving Dalv more and more confused as time passed on.

Frisk was sorry for him.

And of course, looks are important.

“Frisk.” Chara groaned. “You’ve been staring at this mirror for three minutes. Let's move on.”

“Just one more minute.” Frisk slowly rearranged their hair, from the Rorrim’s suggestions.

“You said that one minute ago!” Chara retorted.

“... I can’t see myself.” Maroon remarked.

“We’re ghosts, Maroon.” Lillie giggled, as the realization hit Maroon, with him just replying with an “oh”.

Clover seemed silent. Frisk hoped that they weren’t feeling guilty.

It’s fine!

If Clover would be helped by Frisk lying, then that was fine!

It’s alright!

…

Also, Frisk’s head felt… lighter.

Integrity’s presence wasn’t here, somehow.

Frisk tried to probe in their mind. Where were they? Are they her-

WHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYARETHEYHEREWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYTHEYSHOULDHAVEDIEDWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHY

Integrity noticed Frisk, and lost it.

“Get out of my head.” They snapped at Frisk.

Frisk hurriedly pulled out.

Perhaps it’s better to not intrude for now.

As Frisk and Dalv walked on a bridge over a river, they saw Dalv’s house.

It was a little worn down, but the impressive architecture was still apparent. Really fits the vampire theme. If Frisk was in a movie, this was likely where the climax would happen.

“Well… this is my house, I guess.” Dalv opened the door. “Welcome.”

“Thank you!” Upon entering the house, Frisk noticed many different crafts on the shelves.

There was a few picture books, a failed attempt at a painting, and neat stacks of poems.

“Oh, those!” Dalv gestured to the poems. “I got into writing these recently. This one’s about snow. It’s a nice, cooling sensation.”

Huh. The Ruins doesn’t seem like the type of place for snow.

“Do you like anywhere else?” Frisk asked.

“As a matter of fact, this is just my temporary home. My real house is in Snowdin.” Dalv responded.

Frisk heard a sigh of relief from Clover. Hopefully they’re-

Dust on the floor.

A forest, covered in snow.

A raised fist, primed to strike, with the screams of a young monster in the background.

“Whoa!” Just before Frisk’s hand extended for an attack, they caught it in time.

“Integrity, what the-”

Their hand retracted, before going in for a punch again.

“Integrity! Stop this!” Frisk rarely got angry, but this was unprecedented from them.
____

…Huh.

Is that something a human does?

Dalv hasn’t seen anything like that.

Is that something that Dalv should do back? Or is it a one-sided gesture?

Humans are so interesting.

They’re no Clover, but they’re still a good friend, regardless.

Maybe nobody can replace Clover.

And nobody should. They’re their own person. The best thing to do is to find others, while still remembering Clover for the things they’ve done.

And that’s good enough.

Frisk stopped wrestling(? Dalv still doesn’t understand) with themselves, awkwardly laughed, and sat back down.

“Dalv.” For some reason, Frisk seemed nervous. “You didn’t really panic when you noticed me. Did you meet another human in the past?”

Ah. Well, for that, that’s a very large story to tell.

“I did. Their name was Clover, and he’s one of the best people I’ve ever met.”

And they talked and talked about Clover, just like last time with Ceroba.

Except this time, Dalv’s the person who’s sharing the stories.

It felt good to pass Clover’s memory on.

“Oh!” Frisk exclaimed. “Look at the time.”

It was already three hours.

Three hours, huh.

“Well… I really need to get back up to the regular Ruins. Is there a way back up?”

There was, in fact.

They did tell Clover about a way back up, but they didn’t bother to hear the details.

“I know a place.”

A while away, there was a set of stairs, meticulously carved, made many decades ago, to connect the Ruins together.

Dalv waved goodbye, as Frisk ascended up the stairs, back to the Ruins.

Three hours…

At least this time, this hopefully wouldn't be the last time they met.

… So, Clover.

There’s a new human here.

If you were here, you would have really liked them.
____

Ever since they’ve left Dalv, Clover’s been quite silent.

The other ghosts weren’t. Most of them were talking about Dalv, the Ruins, and the Underground in general. Even Integrity popped in to make a snarky comment, though their voice seemed shakier than usual.

Clover? You… okay?

“Zzzzzzzz” Turning around a corner, Frisk suddenly heard someone who was repeatedly saying z.

Frisk traced the noise, and found… a ghost.

Unlike the other humans, this one was fully visible. They were laying on the ground, sleeping.

Or at least they were pretending to.

They were just lying on the ground, repeatedly saying “z”.

They weren’t even closing their eyes.

“Um… sorry to disturb you… but hello.” It probably isn’t kind to walk through a ghost, so maybe they could get them up. And if they wanted to, talk with them.

…

It’s still saying “z”.

“Is this an attempt to be funny? They really don’t have a sense of humor, if so.” Chara criticized.

The ghost suddenly stood up. Not looking towards Frisk, but looking somewhere to their left.

“oh, i’m REAL funny.” The ghost spoke, looking annoyed.

“I bet you are.” Chara replied sarcastically.

…

“Wait.”

What followed was many rounds of confused screaming.

“You can see us?” Hope asked, in disbelief.

“yeah… you’re one haunted person.” The ghost replied.

“...i’ll go to sleep now.” The ghost fell back on the ground, and started to say “z”s again.

Frisk sighed.

“Thank goodness. So this is in fact, not a hallucination.”

“Did you hear that, Lillie? We’re real!” Maroon cheered.

“Indeed!” Lillie replied jokingly.

“... If that ghost could see us, why can’t we see ourselves?” Hope wondered.

“Maybe we could if our SOULS were more connected, with the power of friendship!” Jade replied.

“There’s no way that was not a joke.” Chara cringed.

Jade frowned. “Why would it be? That was a perfectly good idea!”

Despite having no physical bodies, Frisk could somehow feel their expressions. It’s weird. It wasn’t the case before.

Maybe Jade was right and the power of friendship really was the solution. Who knows?

…

Despite the ghost not seeming to want attention, they look very lonely.

“Hey! What shoes do ghosts wear?” Frisk asked the ghost.

Hope sighed. “I see where this is going, and I don’t like it.”

“What?” The ghost opened their eyes, and looked at Frisk, trying to hide their interest, but failing.

“Sneak-ers!” Frisk laughed a little while saying that.

Cue the long, painful groan/facepalm.

“Seriously, Frisk?” Hope shouted.

The ghost actually seemed to enjoy it, smiling a bit.

“Heh. That’s a bit funny.”

“Tagging along with you was a grave mistake.” Chara grumbled.

…

“Wait.” Chara paused for a while, before realizing that they, in fact, had made another grave mistake.

“Good one, Chara.” Frisk winked.

They laughed as Chara’s rambling slowly started to turn into increasingly rude swear words.

The ghost looked happier, but still seems lonely.

Being all alone, in the middle of the Ruins…

Maybe they just needed a friend. Someone to talk to when they have problems.

“What’s your name?” Frisk asked.

“napstablook…” The ghost responded nervously.

“Hello, Napstablook! My name’s Frisk! I’m here to help if you have any problems!” Frisk replied, with a smile on their face.

“If you don’t have anyone to be with, we can keep you company. Most of us will.” Jade’s grin turned sour at the end, probably directed towards Integrity.

“you will?” Napstablook lifted their head up.

“Definitely!” Maroon nodded. “And I always keep promises.

“well… there’s a cool trick that i can do… would you like to see it?” Napstablook sounded hopeful, maybe even excited.

“Ooh, a cool trick? I’ll love to see it!” Lillie exclaimed excitedly.

Napstablook gulped. “well, here goes…”

Napstablook started to cry. Not really crying, because the teardrops were floating upwards, forming a stylish hat on Napstablook’s head.

“how is it?”

“You look handsome, Napstablook.” Frisk winked.

“oh gee…” Napstablook blushed and turned away. “i’m happy you like it…”

“Seriously, Frisk?” Chara complained. “I thought you were over flirting with anyone within a five foot radius of you.”

Frisk giggled. “Don’t worry, Chara. You’ll always have a place in my heart.”

“That-That-” Chara sputtered. “You are going at it again!”

Chara tsundere personality was quite charming sometimes.
____

… That kid was nice.

Same with most of the other ghosts with them.

Napstablook looked at one of them, who was silent for most of the conversation.

They looked… sad. Like they regretted something.

“hey.” Napstablook called out to that ghost.

“don’t focus too much on the past. appreciate the present.”

The ghost chuckled. “What are you, a psychic?”

“not really… but i know that expression.”

“Anyways, can you see my body? I can’t see it, but maybe you can.”

“yes…”

“Oh, that’s great!” The ghost grinned. “You see a brave, strong, valiant cowboy, right?”

“not really…”

The ghost slumped down, defeated. “Ow. That hurts.”

“i’m sorry.”

“Nah, it’s fine.” The ghost laughed.

Napstablook watched the kid leave with his friends, waving back at him.

All of them followed… except one.

They seemed like…

“hey. do you feel like garbage?”

The ghost seemed startled, and then frowned, changing their face to a look of annoyance.

“Self-projecting, huh?”

“...do you want to lie down and feel like garbage together?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” The ghost snapped, and went off to catch up with the others.

…Maybe they could talk to them sometime. Maybe if the human comes over to their house.

They probably won’t.

But Napstablook hopes so.

____

It was starting to get tiring.

Clover has been asking “are we there yet” for the seventh time.

And Lillie was asleep.

And Frisk’s legs started to hurt.

Monster food healed injuries, but didn’t recover stamina.

Oh, one of those rock moving puzzles again.

“Hey, Lillie, wake up.” Maroon whispered. “This could be the one.”

“Uhh… really?” Lillie responded, half-awake.

Again, no idea what that’s about.

Anyways, push the first rock…

The second rock…

And then the third-

“Hey! Who allowed YOU to push me around?” The rock spoke in a deep, grumpy voice.

… Well, that’s new.

“It’s Mr. Rock!” Lillie exclaimed excitedly.

“The monster, the myth, the legend!” Maroon dramatically announced.

…

What?

“Frisk, please greet him politely. Mr. Rock doesn’t like rude behavior.” Lillie requested.

“Oh, and don’t remember to narrate every action that you do!” Maroon added.

“What?” Frisk was slightly confused at this point.

“Mr. Rock doesn’t have eyes, so we need to add narration after we speak, so they don’t feel left out!” Lillie insisted.

“... I’m not dealing with this. I can’t bother to tolerate this madness any further.” Chara groaned.

“Welcome to the club.” Integrity deadpanned.

“Shut up.”

“It’s kinda cute, don’t you think, Hope?” Jade asked.

“...I think I’m on Chara’s side with this one.” Hope responded, uneasy.

“Don’t be like that.” Jade chided.

Okay, soo….

Is this how it goes?

“Hello, Mr. Rock! How are you doing today? I wave at you.” This immediately made “Mr. Rock” exclaim in outrage.

“OF COURSE it’s you two again. I SWEAR, the moment you two knew that I didn’t have eyes, you decided to annoy me more by narrating out every single action to force me into whatever you two were doing.”

Maroon laughed. “At least they were good adventures! Like the time when we did an entire play, and you kept complaining the whole time.”

“I helped with narrating the actions!” Lillie added helpfully.

“...You know, you two haven’t been here for a long while. I don’t have a calendar, but I felt that it’s been a long time since you’ve visited. Looks like there was nothing to worry about.” The rock huffed.

So those two fell together? They stayed in the Ruins for quite a long time. And they seemed to have lots of fun together and with the other residents.

…Until they died.

“... Fine. Just this once, I’ll move without asking. It’s also to spare me from your shenanigans.” The rock started moving, until it pressed the button, causing the spikes in front to recede.

“Oh, thank you, Mr. Rock! You’re so kind!” Lillie exclaimed.

“Remember to bow, Frisk.” Maroon reminded.

“Thank you, Mr. Rock! I bow to you!” Honestly, this was weird, but has its own charm to it. It would have been fun for the two of them.

“You’re welcome.” The rock’s gruff voice almost seemed lighter, happier. “Now get out of here.”
____

They were finally here.

Toriel was waiting for them!

Oh.

Wait.

“I told you to stay there and wait for me, my child.” Toriel didn’t seem mad, only disappointed.

Frisk hung down their head in shame.

“Sorry.” They apologized, not only to Toriel, but also Lillie.

“It wasn’t that bad, Frisk. We still had a bit of fun along the way.” Lillie consoled Frisk.

“Luckily, you are safe. Did anything bad happen to you, my child?” Toriel asked, concerned.

“Nope!” That is, if you don’t count the times where they almost died, and fell all the way down into the Dark Ruins…

“I will not keep you waiting any longer. Welcome to your new home.” Toriel went into their house, and held open the door for them.

They probably would stay here for a while. A place to rest while they explored the Ruins, and learned more about this place.

This was just the start of a new part of their life. It filled Frisk with an emotion that they couldn’t really describe.

Until Chara said it.

“Seeing such a cute, tidy house in the Ruins gives you determination.”

Chapter Text

Frisk opened the door and stepped inside.

“Welcome to your new home, my child.”

The place was filled with a bright yellow, with carpets and decorations inside, organized in a chaotic fashion that still manages to create an order.

An irresistible smell comes from somewhere inside, which Frisk inched closer to smell, and the noise of a fireplace could be heard even from the door.

It felt like… home. Something rare for Frisk.

“Oh, I think that I need to tend to that…” Toriel turned towards the source of the smell, which was starting to smell a little bad.

“Go explore your new home.”

“Back here again, after so long…” Hope mused.

“Feels like I never left.”

“Lead the way.” Frisk gestured to the other humans.

They went over to the kitchen first. Chara insisted that it was important.

“It should be here… I do not know this place, but knowing Toriel…”

“So what was that thing that you said was necessary before we explored the rest of the house?” Frisk opened the fridge. Nothing too special, just some mystery meat that looked a bit suspicious, a bar of chocolate, and some vegetables.

“Ah.” Chara seemed satisfied. “Just what I need. Come to me, my precious chocolate.”

…

Frisk hasn’t seen Chara that enthusiastic about anything, really.

I think that was my clue to grab the chocolate.

…

I just got a really good idea.

That’s probably what Chara would do, all things considered, so it shouldn’t be too mean.

Frisk extended their hand towards the bar, with Chara eagerly telling Frisk to hurry up.

And they pulled their hand back at the last moment.

Chara groaned loudly. “You little liar.”

Frisk chuckled. “Sorry, Chara. I couldn’t help it.”

At the same time, Clover was howling with laughter.

“That’s payback for what you did with the levers!”

“Did you… eat a lot of chocolate when you were alive, Chara? That’s not very healthy.” Jade commented.

“Oh, just shut up.”

Frisk felt bad for Chara, so they did take some chocolate muffins from the back of the fridge, which managed to make Chara a little happier.

Toriel was fussing about something, but Frisk didn’t really pay attention to it. They’re not really that good at cooking, so it’s better for them to not accidentally burn something down.

After that, Frisk decided to explore the bedroom.

It was nothing special, but something Frisk didn’t see every day, so it’s nothing to complain about.

There were some toys, but Frisk never liked playing with toys anyway.

“Hey, Frisk. Can you check inside that box of toys? I want to check something.” Maroon requested.

There’s different toys inside. Remarkably, they seemed to have withstood the test of time.

But as they went deeper, the toys seemed to get older and older.

And the others were starting to pay more and more attention.

“Ah, I remember that puzzle. Took me a long time to solve it, but after a while, I made a strategy for it.” Frisk stared at a small cube, with faded-out colors on each side. It barely turned, and with much effort.

“Ooh, the dolls I created are still here!” Jade exclaimed, as Frisk pulled out two dolls, crudely created from string. “They’ve seen better days.”

“Frisk.” Integrity interrupted. “Don’t throw the toys out so rashly.”

Everyone went silent, and focused on Integrity.

“What’s your problem?” Integrity growled.

“Well… you don’t really seem like the person to care about that…” Frisk chuckled nervously.

“Any person in their right mind would care about the comfort a shark plush gives.” Knowing the importance of plushies, Frisk decided to not comment any further.

“Oh! That’s it!” Lillie exclaimed as Frisk pulled out a set of… costumes. “It’s still here, after so long…”

Maroon sighed. “This takes me back.”

____

“Knight Maroon! You’re here! The dragon is overtaking the capital!” Lillie exclaimed, rushing to Maroon?

“Princess Lillie, I am sorry, but I cannot defeat this dragon alone. I am not strong enough.” Maroon bowed down, sheathing their sword back into its holder.

“So what do we do?”

“You are powerful, Princess Lillie. You are one of the greatest archers in the realm, but you don’t realize your true power.”

“But I can’t defeat the dragon! I can’t do it!” Lillie started panicking, nearly dropping their crown.

“I’ll be your guard. Together, we will take this dragon down, and save this place! Charge!” Maroon stood back up, and stretched out their hand.

“Knight Maroon, thank you for everything. Charge!” Lillie turned around, and took Maroon’s hand.

Lillie and Maroon both shouted and charged at the cutout of a dragon, while Toriel was happily watching over them, amused by their antics.
____

Jade playfully bounced along with Frisk, as they went down the stairs.

They could feel their body. It’s weak, but it’s still there. They just need to grab on to that feeling.

Being able to see each other… that would be amazing. Being able to communicate, play, and feel like they were still alive… and Hope’s probably grown up now.

For now, another thing was finally being with Toriel again.

For a long time, they only helped and took care of others. It was a completely new experience to learn and be helped by others.

Some of their skills… weren’t the best. But Toriel did help.

____

Jade was starting to get annoyed. The batter didn’t seem to get any more consistent, and was filled with those annoying lumps.

Toriel put down their book, and went over to Jade.

“You stir well, my child, but you need to use the right technique. Let me show you.”

Toriel grabbed the bowl, and began to “fold” the batter over on itself. It looked.. Complicated.

“I… don’t understand.” Jade admitted.

“Let me guide you.” Grabbing Jade’s hand, they started folding the batter together. Eventually, Toriel took their hands off, allowing Jade to mix themselves.

____

“Look, Toriel! I did it!” Jade pointed excitedly to their finished creation.

Toriel smiled, and patted Jade on the head with a warm and fuzzy hand. “Good job, my child.”

Jade served a slice of the cake to Toriel, allowing them to taste it.

“Chocolate? I knew a person who loved chocolate.”

Jade grinned. “Then I’ll make this cake for them when they visit us!”

Toriel seemed taken aback for a while.

“...Yes.” They started smiling again, but Jade felt that they weren’t as happy as before. “They would have liked that.”

____

This place hasn’t changed much.

Hope was looking around the living room, taking note of everything.

From the wear and tear on some areas, it's been… 50 years? 60 years?

Knowing Toriel’s schedule, they should be reading a book to Frisk after they eat.

Ah… those books.

____

“We braved harsh cold, damp swampland, and searing heat… Until we reached what we now call our capital.”

Wow.

This place was… different than they imagined.

They only thought about rescuing Jade from here, but now…

I need more information. About this vast land underneath society.

I need to know more.

____

Hope frowned. That book wasn’t here anymore. It probably got lost to time, but the other books were still here.

Maybe Integrity took it? Although Hope probably won’t get an answer.

Hope was grateful to that book. Information was the most important thing down here.

And it changed them for the better.

____

The others weren’t speaking anymore.

They were probably all caught up in memories of their past lives here.

And Frisk was too. Except with memories that haven’t arrived yet.

When was the last time that they could settle down? Where they could live happily without anything to worry about?

Frisk saw Toriel going over to the couch beside the fireplace, picking up a book, and gesturing to Frisk to come.

Frisk sat down in one of the smaller chairs, waiting for Toriel to begin.

“So, I think that this is something that you would like, my child. ‘Types of Animals in the Underground.’” Animals? So there are creatures here that don’t talk. That’s so interesting.

Frisk wants to know more.

Up on the surface, reality has some of its enjoyable moments, but can be harsh sometimes.

But this entire place… seems so magical.

This was a fresh start for them. Where they can start a new phase of their lives. Frisk could feel it.

A place to stay.
____

Frisk opened the fridge.

“Maybe this is the day.” Chara waited in anticipation.

They reached into the fridge…

And took out some milk to drink, barely missing the bar of chocolate.

Chara grumbled. “I don’t know why I thought today was the day. One month and Frisk’s still too stubborn to give me chocolate.”

This might have been going on for a bit too long, but Clover respects Frisk’s dedication.

It’s been one month. So Dalv is coming back.

Frisk would probably like to talk to them about their current situation. It’s not bad at all. Every day, Toriel cooks for them, and manages to find different activities to keep them entertained. Heck, snail hunting, despite said snails going extremely slowly, is actually super fun. Who knew?

Frisk and the others spent literal hours catching as many snails as they could find, and spotting the differences. And they manage to find the most differences! …If you don’t count Hope, but that’s a given with their knowledge in Underground snails. Before, Clover thought that a subject dedicated to snails would be ridiculous, but here they are.

Perhaps Frisk could help Clover “talk” to Dalv. It would be good to talk with them again, even if they were physically separated.

Clover’s had a lot of time to think about what Napstablook said a month ago.

And they really appreciated it. Bit of a wake-up call to them.

Yes, Dalv probably was hurt when they heard the news. But they’re strong. Clover trusts them to move on.

And if they do, Clover needs to follow suit. After all, a sheriff needs to be a good example!

Clover followed Frisk as they slowly descended into the Dark Ruins, with a torchlight in hand.

…

I have a lot of things to say to them.

____

Being friends with Frisk was different from the others.

The main difference? Not them being human, definitely.

Rather, it’s how often they meet.

Dalv only visits the Ruins once in a month, while they visit the others almost every day.

…

Maybe they should tell their other friends about the new human.

Dalv didn’t even know why they were putting it off for this long.

Martlet and Starlo would certainly be overjoyed at another human, and take care of them as much as possible.

Ceroba, on the other hand… They trust Ceroba, but given that we’re only one SOUL away…

Nothing bad should happen, hopefully.

Anyways, Frisk doesn’t want to leave the RUINS. So maybe that’s for another time.

“Hey Dalv… Do you have any other friends outside here? … I’m sorry if that’s a touchy subject for you.” Frisk asked, with their face looking as if they were listening to something, or trying to remember a memory.

Dalv was very familiar with monsters constantly trying to remember something.

“Oh, not at all.” Speak of the devil. “I have a few people that you would really like to meet. There’s this blue bird that might be a bit careless, but she can be a trusted companion. And there’s this sheriff that’s confident, brave, and fun to be around.”

Ah, the times where Starlo nearly got them both injured in one of his crazy adventures. Those were good times.

“And there’s this fox lady that’s fierce, but she’s kind if you get to know her better.”

Turning back to Frisk, they saw their face was full of surprise and happiness.

Which was a bit strange, all things considered. Was this a human thing, or did Frisk just think that they were lonely?

Well, in the latter case, Dalv is thankful for Frisk’s support.

“So, what’s it like living with Toriel?” While they respected Toriel’s privacy, the fact that the Queen who left the capital before Dalv was even born is living here is quite surprising, to say the least.

Also, what kind of a leader were they? Asgore is a kind, warm-hearted king, but he can be strict sometimes.

How different is the queen?

“Oh!” Frisk perked up. “She's so kind and caring! I'm grateful to her for taking care of me, teaching me new things, playing with me…” Frisk's expression turned into a slightly awkward smile. “She can be a little scary sometimes…”

Oh.

So, there's no difference?

“By the way, want to see the snails that I collected yesterday? There are so many types of snails!” Frisk talked enthusiastically, while grabbing something from their backpack.

“That’s interesting.” That wasn’t what they expected at all, but they know that they’ll have fun talking about snails for hours.

Seems like that’s how friends work. Talking with each other about pointless stuff, wasting time but having fun regardless.

To answer their earlier point, having a friend that you rarely see is quite different.

While Dalv wishes that they could visit Frisk more, between the new job that they found outside, and time with the others, they really can’t spend more than a month in the Ruins.

Not that it matters too much.

Time with friends is even more precious when it’s limited.

____

“That was so fun! I really wish that I had more time to spend with Dalv. I didn’t even get a chance to play some games with them.”

Frisk was walking back to Toriel’s house. Most of the others were too tired to talk, so they were mostly talking to themselves.

“And-” Frisk was cut off by the bullet narrowly missing their head.

“Left!” Maroon shouted. Frisk quickly whipped their head, and backed off from the source of that bullet.

It was… that one-eyed creature from earlier?

I’m not intruding, so why are they attacking me? What did I do wrong?

…

No. Calm down, Frisk. This isn’t the same one as before. This monster’s eye is purple instead of green.

Frisk braced themselves, ready to find a way to calm down this monster.

They nimbly jumped around the vegetation, but was hit by a surprise attack from above.

“Come on, you should have seen that coming.” Integrity criticized.

Frisk scowled, and turned around to see the monster snarling at them, before shooting more waves of bullets. They tried to dodge, but they weren’t fast enough, and their leg got scraped.

“Slow.” Integrity continued with their insults.

Frisk tried to accurately dodge the bullets this time, but moved too fast, causing them to run face-first into a wall.

“Oh, that wasn’t even smart.” Integrity chuckled.

“Could you stop doing that?” Frisk shouted back.

Suddenly, the monster looked scared, and started to run away. They could barely run fast enough to dodge the wave of fireballs heading towards them.

Wait, fireballs? Is that…

“Ah, Toriel’s here.” Integrity commented smugly. “Finally, I can be spared from you failing to dodge.”

Frisk tried to retort, but was stopped by Toriel quickly hugging Frisk, catching them off guard.

She was… crying.

“Please, my child. Keep yourself safe. Don’t endanger yourself. Please don’t get yourself hurt.” Toriel pleaded, voice breaking as they sobbed.

… They seem so sad.

The others. They all died.

And Toriel took care of most of them.

…

Frisk wants to see Toriel happy.

It hurts them to see her sad like this.

Frisk nodded. “Alright. I promise.”

____

“Today was so much fun!” Maroon exclaimed excitedly, as Frisk lay down on their bed, getting ready to go to sleep.

“Yeah… today was great.” Clover’s voice sounded more joyful than usual. That’s great for them. They were probably worried that Dalv would be lonely, but thankfully Frisk managed to make them feel better.

“Can I have the left bed?” Lillie asked, half sleepy.

“... We ‘sleep’ on the same bed as Frisk. We’re ghosts.” Hope pointed out.

“Then take the left bed, Frisk.” Lillie replied groggily, letting out a small yawn. “It’s much more comfortable.”

“Maybe you should try a new bed, Frisk.” Jade contemplated this totally important decision. “After all, trying new things always helps!”

“Now that you say it like that…” Chara cringed awkwardly. “I am not a fan of sharing beds.”

“Don’t worry, Chara. I’ll keep you warm.” Frisk teased, winking at the supposed ghost around them.

“I - why are you like this?” Chara radiated feelings of embarrassment and irritance. “You huma-”

“Ah, such a beautiful conversation.” Integrity interrupted Chara, which was kinda rude of them. Just as they were about to get to the good part.

“Just get to the point, Integrity.” Chara snarled, frustrated. “What do you want?”

“What do you want to do now?”

“Pardon?” Frisk was slightly taken aback.

“What I meant is, you kept on talking about how you want to help monsters, the Underground, and blah blah blah-” Did Integrity just roll their eyes? “- but truthfully, I haven’t seen anything yet. You claim to have a purpose, but you’re doing absolutely nothing to back it up.”

“I…” Frisk tried to find a retort, but found… nothing.

They really haven’t done anything yet. But who can blame them for trying to enjoy their life?

“Well then, let’s leave soon! Let’s explore the world!” Clover shouted. “There’s so many things that I want to show you!”

“I don’t mind staying with Mother for longer, but I need to see what the outside is like, and I need to finish what I started.” Looks like Chara is agreeing with Clover, for once.

I want to agree with them, but…

“Why leave? We can live happy lives here, and help the residents of the Ruins!” Thanks, Maroon. That was the thing that I wanted to say.

“But we won’t achieve anything. If we need to make a change, we need to move forward.” Chara objected.

“Did you even consider what Frisk thinks about this?” Jade shouted, angrier than Frisk had ever seen them. “They don’t want to leave this place!”

Thanks, Jade… but… Frisk didn’t want to get roped into this argument.

They didn’t want them to fight. They wanted to stay happy with all of them.

Too late for that now.

“Frisk, taking the coward’s way? Breaking your promise so soon?” Chara’s words were like poison, making Frisk actually wince in pain.

“Don’t you insult Frisk!” Hope shouted, joining the argument.

It’s all going wrong.

The voices… The shouting…

It was all too much for Frisk.

They didn’t want to see this happen.

They wanted to get away from this.

Frisk lay down and closed their eyes.
____

Frisk slowly opened their eyes.

Around them was snow, falling under a starless sky.

Despite the snowstorm, there was no noise.

Just silence.

Where… am I?

Is this a dream?

It felt too real to be a dream, but too incorporeal to be reality.

They stood up, and started walking. Anywhere. It doesn’t really matter.

Trees from different lands and places, all together.

… The storm’s getting stronger.

Eventually, the storm became strong enough, so that Frisk could barely move.

But for some reason, they continued on.

And they saw people.

It took all of their energy to continue walking forward, but Frisk still shouted to them, anyways.

… No sound came out.

But Frisk could still hear them. Two teenagers arguing with each other, one with some sort of dance outfit, and the other wearing a green sweater with brown pants.

“I don’t know what exactly happened, but this is… curious.” That was Integrity. Why am I seeing them? What’s happening?

“Perhaps my determination caused this.” Integrity mused, moving their arms experimentally, as if they were using them for the first time.

“Same for me.” That was Chara.

Chara!

Frisk shouted out to them, but their cry was muted by the storm.

Integrity scoffed. “It was something else. I felt it.”

Chara growled and got into a fighting position.

“What do you want, monster?”

Integrity spread their arms open.

“I’ve come to a realization. My purpose is something that you people will not understand or know.”

Integrity laughed, almost manically.

“But my purpose now… Is to gain control of this body. And then everything will be perfect.”

As the storm intensified, Integrity started to rise. Frisk could barely stand up, and felt that the foundations of this place were starting to tear apart.

What’s happening?

“SO I’LL TEAR APART THIS WORLD!” Frisk feels the world suddenly ripping away from them, but they grab on, unwilling to let it go.

“SO JUST TRY TO STOP ME!”

Chara, please help me!

But Chara wasn’t listening. Despite everything, they seemed… relieved.

“That would only make it easier for me. If Frisk does not want to move forward, I would have to take control. I would thank you, if we were friends, so that’s not happening.”

… Chara… Why?

I thought… I…

Integrity frowned, and floated back down. “I thought you cared about them?”

Chara scoffed. “Never have, never will. They are human, and that disgusts me.”

“Oh come on, you can drop the tsundere act, it’s not working, and they’re not even here-”

Chara laughed.

“Are you kidding me? Is Frisk that pathetic, to delude themselves that I “cared” about them at all? The only reason I ever cooperated is to prevent that idiot from dying, or so that they could help me.”

…

Oh.

So that’s how it is.

Chapter Text

My head really hurts.

No, like seriously.

Why do I feel even more tired than before I fell asleep?

Hope grunted, shaking their head, trying to take in their surroundings.

Right. We had some sort of argument.

…Did that cause this?

On the contrary, Frisk was looking lively.

They immediately stood up and started to walk to the living room, bobbing up and down.

“What do you guys want to do today?” Frisk asked suddenly.

Strange. Frisk normally never asks us for anything.

They just go with the flow, and we go along.

Well, I don’t think anyone’s really active, so maybe-

“We need to get stronger.” Chara spoke up. “As of now, you are horrible at defending yourself from monsters, and will likely get all of us killed.”

“Oh…” Frisk lowered down their head, and meekly nodded. “Will do.”

As usual, Chara really needs to work on being kinder.

Frisk’s smile perked up again, as they walked over to the fridge.

Huh. That time of the day again?

“I am feeling a bit hungry, but… I am definitely getting nothing from this.” Chara commented.

Frisk reached out and grabbed the chocolate.

“Oh?” Chara seemed mildly surprised. “Well, thanks, I guess.”

Frisk smile seemed to get even brighter.

“Well, hope you like how this tastes!”

Frisk took a big bite of the chocolate bar.

“Is it good?” Frisk asked.

“Ohh, that is so good.” Chara purred, almost like a cat, clearly satisfied.

“Eat it faster or slower?”

“Slower.” Frisk did as Chara asked.

…

Frisk seems… a bit different than usual.

Has anyone else noticed?

“Frisk. There’s something about you that seems different.” Ah, Clover. I can always count on you to read the room.

“Clover, what do you mean by that?” Frisk laughed nervously.

“Are you especially hungry today?” Clover asked.

Frisk blinked, confused. “Not really?”

… Okay. At least Clover got the basics.

“Anyways, so what is your decision? What do we do from now on?” Looks like even Integrity is awake now.

“I’m fine with leaving! Let’s move forward towards a better underground!” Frisk announced, smiling.

…

What.

“Glad you agree, pal! Oh, we’re going to have so much fun exploring the underground!” Clover shouted, sounding overjoyed and excited.

That’s not right.

“Well, you changed your mind quickly.” Chara also seemed satisfied.

Stop.

“Well, it’s all for you guys!” Frisk grinned, with a large, wide smile.

Okay, that’s it.

There is no more doubt that something is wrong with Frisk.

What to do, what to do…

They have two options.

Either they observe, but risk Frisk’s mental state becoming worse…

Or reach out to them, but Frisk might not want us to know and hide their problems from us.

…What to do?

What would Jade do?

…

You’re not doing anything?

…

It can’t be…

You want me to make the first move?

…

Heh.

Why is this even a decision?

Stop thinking so much. The thing that matters most is to remind Frisk that we’ll always support them.

“Frisk?” Hope reached out to Frisk.

Frisk whipped their head around, jittery and alarmed.

“Yes, Hope? Is there anything you want?” Frisk stuttered.

Oh, Frisk…

Hope really wished that they could just magically solve their issues, so that they can be happy.

But real life doesn’t work like that.

So they’ll stick to the second best option.

“Are you alright?”

Frisk’s smile faltered.

“No- Yes! I’m fine!” Frisk hastily corrected themselves.

“Just know, Frisk. If you have any problems, we are here to help.”

“Uhh… thanks.” Frisk smiled sheepishly, before turning away.

They might need to follow up in the future, but this was good for now.

“You noticed it too?” Jade whispered to Hope, making sure that only they could hear them.

“I did.”

Jade growled, frustrated. “Chara did something. Whatever they did affected Frisk somehow.”

Chara… Yes, Frisk did seem fixated in trying to please them.

“So… what do you want to do?” Hope asked nervously.

“Well, how about I follow your lead for once?” Jade chuckled, before returning to what seemed like a grim expression. “Let’s get to the bottom of it.”

“Chara.” Jade spoke softly, but with an unmistakable hidden fury.

“What did you do?”

“Huh?” Chara drawled, clearly annoyed.

“What do you even mean, human? I did absolutely nothing wrong.”

With all of the taunts towards them, Jade remained silent.

Should I…

No. This is Jade’s thing. I’ll trust them to do what’s right.

Chara laughed.

“I thought so. Just the same baseless accusations that all of you pathetic humans do.”

“Did you get anything from that?” Hope whispered to Jade.

But they had an idea of what happened. It would be horrible, but it’s the most likely idea.

“Oh, I’ve got a good guess about what happened.” Jade spoke softly, their expression grim.

“And I don’t like it at all.”

____

If I had more time in the Underground, what would I have done?

That was one of the questions that Clover was thinking about before they died.

Well, there’s no more need for thinking! Now, they can actually have a lot of fun with their friends!

Of course, the others weren’t just talking about fun.

About saving monsters, getting information…

And most importantly, deciding the details of their journey.

Clover was hesitant to go this route at first, because they didn’t want to force Frisk into something that they didn’t want to do.

But now that Frisk had a change of heart, everything’s fine now!

“Anyways, we should be able to leave today.” Chara had calmed down from eating chocolate, and now was back to their usual self.

“Tomorrow?” Frisk’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Tomorrow?” Maroon asked in unison.

“What, do you want to do nothing for even longer?” Chara snapped.

Frisk stayed silent for a while, before nodding.

“That’s fair.”

“Well, you did say that you would visit some of the other monsters in the Ruins, so might as well do that first.” Maroon pointed out.

“Alright! Let’s go!” Frisk rushed out of the house and started running.

“...Frisk, I’m sure there’s no need to go so fast. Just appreciate the scenery, and-”

“Human. I know that you are trying to stall for time. What is your problem?” Chara interrupted Maroon, with a cold, furious voice.

“Hey, I’m not stalling for time! I’m just… uhh…” Maroon stuttered.

Ahh, they must be nervous.

“Don’t worry, Maroon! We’re all here now! There’s nothing to be nervous about!”

“You have no idea, Clover!” Maroon suddenly snapped. “You have no idea what you’re talking about! And have you not seen Frisk?”

Frisk? What was wrong with Frisk?

They seemed a bit off, but that was no big problem.

… Right?

“I’m fine, guys. You can stop worrying.” Frisk laughed, and shrugged it off.

Frisk didn’t even see that they weren’t even walking in a straight line anymore.

“What I’m saying is, you changed your decision overnight! That’s not normal!” Maroon continued, growing louder.

…

Maroon’s right.

That isn’t normal.

“I just wanted to help everyone, how ‘unnormal’ is th-”

Frisk suddenly stopped.

“What’s the big-”

In front of Frisk, there was a small toy knife lying neatly on the ground.

“Why is that here?” Lillie spoke up in disbelief.

“That’s my toy.” Lillie’s voice was shaking. “So I was…”

Wait, if Lillie loved that toy so much, why wouldn’t it be kept somewhere else?

The only way that a belonging can be all the way out here is…

…

Clover started to feel sick.

“Trust me, Frisk.” Maroon spoke slowly and quietly. “Stay in the RUINS. It’s safe here. There is no need to leave. You will never be ready for what’s outside.”

Frisk pressed a finger to their head, deep in thought, while breathing deeply, in and out, louder and louder, trying to grab nothing, until they almost collapsed on the ground.

____

Okay.

They were conflicted before, but they're fine now.

Everything’s fine.

…

Maroon wanted us to be safe.

…So if it came to a last resort…

Why am I regretting my decisions? I promised to act in self-defense.

If it makes everyone happy, it’ll be fine.

It’ll be perfectly fine.

Frisk grabbed onto the wall of Toriel’s house.

Alright, I’m still here…

Toriel was sitting on her armchair, reading a book about snails.

“What is it, my child?” Toriel asked. “You seem to be troubled. Can I help you with anything?”

What is with everyone asking if I’m fine.

I’m fine.

I’m totally fine.

As long as I make others happy, I’m fine.

As long as…

Back to the point, Frisk.

“I want to leave.” Frisk admitted bluntly.

Toriel put down their book, and stared with an alarmed expression.

“Surely there is no need to, my child. You are happy here, are you not?”

Yes, but the others aren’t.

“How do I leave?” Straight to the point, Frisk. Keep moving forwards.

“I’m sure there’s things here that you will enjoy.” Toriel started grabbing different objects, trying to find something. “Perhaps you will like this book? It contains many interesting facts about snails.”

“I wish to leave.”

But do I?

… That doesn’t matter.

Moving forward is the thing to do.

Toriel threw her book on the ground, and clenched her head.

When she stood up, her face was nothing but serious.

“You cannot leave.”

With that, she turned around, and walked away.

____

“What do I do, Dalv? I’m stuck here, and I don’t know how to leave.” Frisk was pacing around Dalv’s house, fidgeting with their hands.

Okay, Dalv.

Frisk came to me for help. I need to be a good friend. Good friends help one another.

“Well, I can…” Dalv trailed off.

What can I even do?

I can’t go against Toriel. A queen won’t budge.

…And there is nothing else that I can do.

“I’m… useless, Frisk. I’m not the monster who can solve your problems.” Dalv admitted.

“But there must be something!” Frisk cried, grabbing their head. “Maybe there’s another exit, or maybe there’s something that would allow Toriel to let me through, or-”

“I’m sorry, Frisk.” Dalv bowed their head down, feeling nothing but regret.

“I can’t do anything.”

____

Stay calm, Toriel.

Stay calm.

Toriel was quietly drinking a cup of tea by themselves, trying hard to not tremble and cause the tea to spill over.

I need to stay calm.

Toriel’s grip tightened on the handle.

I cannot stay calm.

It’s the same. It is always the same. They want to leave, but when they do so, they never come back.

Never.

Those poor children…

____

“We’ll be off, Toriel!” Maroon waved, with their belongings in their backpack.

“See you soon, Mom!” Lillie smiled, before walking off with Maroon, hand in hand.

Those two are so cute together. It is a shame that Toriel couldn’t take care of them for longer.

But they need to be independent. They need to see the world outside the Ruins.

Toriel really hoped that they would listen to her lessons. Remembering to brush their teeth, sleeping eight hours a day…

Toriel chuckled. They will probably be fine together.

And they will come back after a month, so Toriel needs to get ready for that!

____

It’s been a month already…

But they haven’t come back.

It’s probably fine.

They have probably forgotten the time with how much fun they get into.

Just got to pack up all of these decorations…

____

It has been two months.

They still have not returned.

Toriel gets more and more anxious everyday.

What happened to them? Are they alright?

… Are they still alive?

Toriel gave up waiting for them after a year.

____

No more. If Toriel could only save one child, that is enough.

They will not let another child out of the Ruins.

No matter what they say.

____

Jade was shaking slightly as they prepared to leave the Ruins.

Toriel was equally as nervous. The other two children left the Ruins, and met a horrible fate.

But inside, Jade is definitely determined.

They want to help monsters, and make peace between them and humans.

Toriel could not say no to a goal as virtuous as that.

To their surprise and happiness, Jade actually came back a year later. They looked completely different, looking more rugged and tired than before, but they were the same as before.

As they embraced, Toriel thought that everything would be fine. This time, Jade would survive.

“Hey, did you hear the news from the capital? There was a human down here! ASGORE executed them himself!”

…

That was the last time that Toriel had such false hope.

____

“I need to do this, Toriel.”

Hope stood at the exit to the RUINS, with resolute confidence in their cold eyes. It almost scared Toriel.

“I need to find Jade.”

Toriel knows that Jade is dead. And that fact would make Hope stop.

But does Toriel want to crush Hope’s heart like that?

No.

There is no way.

Toriel watched, helplessly, as another child walked away to their death.

____

Why are all of these memories coming back?

Reminding me of how terrible I am at being a mother?

I couldn’t protect them.

I couldn’t protect any of them.

____

It’s been going well with this new child.

They had long, aqua-blue hair, and piercing purple-coloured eyes.

They did not share their name with Toriel, but they liked her regardless.

And they had no intention of leaving.

“Come here, my child, I will-”

…

They are not here.

Toriel sprinted throughout her house, frantically trying to find the child that she swore not to lose.

As they runned down into the basement, they immediately knew what happened.

That exit door was open. That accursed door, taking away another child yet again.

____

This child will be the one. No more escaping. No more-

They disappeared before Toriel could even spend one day with them.

____

Every time, I tell myself that this would be the first child to ever survive.

Every time, I was wrong.

I will not be wrong this time.

Toriel put down their cup, and began to walk to the basement.

The exit to the RUINS cannot be open any longer.

There is another exit, but that requires magic to leave.

And there were others, but Toriel made sure to destroy all of them.

But Toriel could not shake the feeling that something will go wrong.

Wait…

Frisk seemed off today.

Toriel quickly rushed over to the basement. The one area she told Frisk to never enter.

And Frisk was there.

I am a failure.

Every time.

…

No.

Not this time.

I refuse.

When Frisk’s eyes met Toriel, they got flustered, and started to panic, saying various apologies.

Toriel was not listening. Her days of allowing her children to escape were over.

“I will seal off the entrance of the RUINS. You will stay safe here. The outside world is too harsh for you. Now, go back to your room.”

Toriel didn’t hear what Frisk had to say. For now, all they had to do was to destroy that accursed door.

And push away the nagging fear that this was going to go horribly.

No. Why would that be?

This time, everything will be alright.

____

No.

I can’t let this be.

Frisk was trying, with all of their might, to run towards the end of the corridor.

If Toriel closes the exit, they can never go outside.

And the others can’t see the outside world again.

… And Chara will never be happy.

Frisk tripped, and landed on the floor.

They punched the ground, cursing it for making them stop.

Toriel was already at the door.

“Well, if you want to get through, you need to be able to survive!” Toriel shouted, moving their hands in an ornate pattern, getting into a fighting stance.

No.

“I don’t want this, Toriel!” Frisk shouted loudly.

Stop the tears, Frisk. Chara doesn’t want you to show weakness.

“Trust me, my child.” Toriel took a deep breath, with eyes full of sadness and regret.

“It is for your own good.”

Magical greenish-purple flames appeared on Toriel’s hands, illuminating the dark corridor with an eerie light.

Frisk stumbled back, and pulled out a sharp stick from their backpack, the only thing that they had to defend themselves.

“What do I do?” Frisk shouted.

“Do not, under any circumstances, hurt Toriel!” Chara shouted.

With a swipe of her hand, Toriel raised a wall of fire, which burnt Frisk’s arm.

“Defend yourself!” Maroon shouted.

“Are you crazy?” Chara shouted at Maroon, which caused Jade to retort angrily.

“If it wasn’t for you, this wouldn’t have happened in the first place!”

“What are you doing? Attack or run away!” Toriel, seeing Frisk’s inactivity, started to increase the intensity of her attacks.

What should I do?

None of those are options!

NONE OF THEM!

Frisk grabbed onto the stick as hard as they could, to try and stop themselves from panicking.

Didn’t stop the others from panicking.

“What do we do?” Hope shouted. “There must be a third option!”

“Toriel, we can-” Frisk got hit by a large fire pillar while trying to negotiate.

There is no third option.

“Don’t hurt Toriel, Frisk!” Lillie cried. “I don’t want this fight to happen!”

Well, that’s no use.

Frisk slapped themselves.

What is wrong with me, thinking that?

“If you will not fight, try… this!” Toriel shouted, charging at Frisk.

No.

I don’t want to die.

Not like this.

Everyone will be disappointed in me.

I’ll have failed everyone.

I…

No.

Not like this.

No.

I’m going to die.

NO!

A flash of red, of panic and anger.

A loud crack, and a piercing of wood into flesh.

Frisk stumbled back, with Toriel rushing forward to catch them.

Both of them landed heavily on the ground.

Frisk stared, horrified, at the stick, which had been stabbed into Toriel’s body.

“No. No. There must be a way to save you, or-” Frisk was interrupted with Toriel’s coughs.

“Well, you are much stronger than I expected.” Toriel still managed to smile despite coughing heavily.

Frisk started to sob.

“I don’t want you to leave, Toriel.” Frisk cried, prompting Toriel to pull Frisk in for a hug.

“I can rest easy now, my child. You… are… strong enough.”

Toriel lifted a soft and gentle hand, and brushed Frisk’s tear away.

“Be good, alright?”

Toriel smiled, as she slowly disintegrated into dust in Frisk’s hands.

The room was silent for a while.

Everyone was quiet, hoping that it was a dream, and that they would be waking up in bed, with Toriel calming them down from this nightmare.

“Mom?” Maroon whispered, absolutely horrified.

“Mom!” Jade and Lillie both started sobbing, crying out for Toriel to come back.

Frisk fell onto the ground, grabbing Toriel’s ashes, with tears streaming down their face.

Hope was sobbing quietly, trying not to disturb the others.

“So, Frisk… looks like… you do have the will…” Integrity didn’t maintain a triumphant expression for even one second before breaking down.

I’m a horrible person.

I’m such a horrible person.

“You.” Chara breathed, full of uncontrolled rage and grief.

“Are such a horrible person.”

“I despise you, with every fiber of my being.”

I don’t even deserve to live.

“I will never forgive you.”

I won’t forgive myself.

“You are disgusting.”

I hate myself.

“And I hate this feeling. This feeling of violence that I suddenly got. This sick pleasure that disgusts me to my core.” Chara spat.

“You should just die.”

…I should just die.

____

Everything’s ablaze.

And everything has gone wrong.

What has Clover done to help? Nothing.

No, Frisk, please…

Frisk was taking slow, painful steps, towards the fire that surrounded the room.

In Toriel’s death, the flames had grown wild, strong.

And unstoppable.

Clover’s scared. But not for themselves.

Frisk deserved so much better than this.

If only they could start over.

And the others… they deserved a good second chance.

And now, because of me, they don’t get one.

“Please, Frisk! Don’t die!” Clover was crying for the first time in a month, trying to salvage something, anything, but everything had already all gone wrong. “You have so much to live for! We can work this out! At least stop for a while! It doesn’t have to be this way!”

Clover tried to reach out, with whatever form they had, to pull Frisk back.

…

…

…

But nobody came.

____

“Well, you just had to be dramatic, didn’t you?”

Flowey looked at the steadily blackening corpse of the human, bathed in the flames that were slowly engulfing the entire house, and sighed.

No easy way out of the plan, I guess.

The only time where they could probably have absorbed their SOUL…

Just for the SOUL to be destroyed before the body even started burning.

Despite what happened, Flowey knew that the human still didn’t want to die. He felt a familiar feeling in the air, the feeling of the world going to reset itself, the feeling of time turning back.

Alright, Flowey. The human last SAVED in front of Toriel’s home, twenty minutes ago. At that time, they were roughly twenty meters behind them, and three meters underground.

When they come back, I’ll be ready.

Chapter Text

Falling.

Everything is calm. Everything is peaceful.

There is nothing to worry about anymore.

But still, things are changing.

Space and time, both rapidly shifting around them, flowing like a current, pushing and pulling at them.

And it’s going backwards.

Faster… Faster.

And then everything disappears.

And then everything reappears.

Frisk collapses on the ground, panting with long, labored breaths.

Their face meets the cold, hard ground.

Their burns had all disappeared, and there were no more voices in their head.

They were back in the Ruins.

How? Why?

Tears start to flow down again, mysteriously replenished.

Is this world not finished with me yet?

They pulled at their hair, mindlessly hitting the ground, sobbing in frustration.

This is my punishment. This is my hell.

Slowly, Frisk started to laugh.

It got louder, and louder, until they stopped crying.

They scratched at their face, wanting to rip it off.

“Hey there, buddy.” A voice came from behind Frisk, with a friendly yet condescending tone.

“You just came back, pal. That’s not really the best thing to do.”

Frisk whipped around, instinctively pulling out a sharp stick from their backpack.

The thing that killed Toriel.

Screaming, Frisk broke the stick into half, and threw it far away.

Get that thing away from me. Get that thing away from me.

Frisk grabbed their head, sobbing and screaming at the same time, to forget about the pain, the blood, and Toriel’s expression when she…

“Buddy!” The flower’s voice grounded Frisk back to reality. “You need to calm down. Nothing’s gonna hurt you now.”

Frisk stood up, and backed away, cautiously staring at the flower, waiting for any attacks.

“Who are you? What is this?” Frisk shouted, with a desperate expression.

“I’m Flowey. Flowey the flower. I’m harmless.” Flowey winked, and burrowed through the ground to get closer to Frisk.

Frisk instinctively recoiled away from Flowey, turning away.

“Nothing’s happened yet.” The flower burrowed through the ground, making sure that Frisk was looking at them.

…

“What do you mean by that?” Frisk asked.

Flowey sighed. “Well, I think you deserve an explanation.” Flowey straightened their stem, and opened their petals fully.

“Determination gives people powers. Not only is determination a trait, but it is a physical quantity.”

“The being with the greatest determination has the power to SAVE. To turn back time. And those with slightly less determination can remember the process.”

Flowey grinned, with a large, large smile. “So you get it, right? Everything that happened… never did.”

…

“What do you want from me?” Frisk lowered their head.

Flowey seems confused. Strange.

Flowey laughed, awkwardly.

“It’s just a bit of charity, pal.”

…

Frisk smiled.

“Impossible.”

Because who would want to save someone as disgusting as me without reason?

“Okay, well…” Flowey started to stutter. “The king won’t let anyone into his castle, except humans, so I was thinking…”

Frisk smiled, in genuine gratitude.

This is the best that they deserve. They don’t even deserve this. A task that was trivial to do.

And it matches the goals of the others.

And maybe, they…

Frisk slapped themselves.

I’m such an imbecile.

I don’t deserve forgiveness from any of them.

“Understood.” Frisk nodded.

They turned towards the entrance of the Ruins, with a resolute, determined expression.

They breathed out, and reached for the door’s handle.

This time, everything will be right.

____

Clover knows the feeling of the fallen humans arguing.

It’s like a rush of information, like strong currents threatening to rip them apart, with noise and feelings that overwhelm.

But this feeling was different.

No one was here.

Nobody was talking.

It was horrifying.

Being alone, in a world where they’re only experienced being together.

And it was all their fault.

Hope. Hope’s a smart person.

They’ll know what to do. They always seem to have the right answer to any problem.

Concentrate.

They’re further than usual.

Clover growled.

Everyone was further than usual.

Just a little more…

A realm, filled with spikes, coming from everywhere.

And Hope was in the middle, muttering angrily.

Most of their words were incoherent.

But Clover could understand a few sentences.

“What’s the solution?”

“Why the hell is this happening to us?”

“I need…”

“So that wasn’t enough, this world just had to torment me more.”

Clover took a step closer to Hope.

They opened their mouth, having many things to say.

What can I do? What’s the best course of action? How do I get everyone to be friends again?

…

Clover closed their mouth before they spoke a single word.

No.

That’s what Hope’s muttering about.

They don’t know the answers either.

____

Who else is there?

...

Jade.

Jade isn't as mentally sharp as Hope, but they easily make up for it with their kindness and care for everyone.

If Hope can't find a solution with logic, then maybe Jade could find a solution with empathy.

Wait.

I'm sure this is where Jade is.

Clover stopped, in the middle of a large void, oppression radiating from the darkness, chilling Clover to their bones.

"Jade!" Clover shouted, sounding more desperate than they would have liked.

Jade was undoubtedly here.

But there was nothing here.

Just the feeling of dread and emptiness.

____

Who else is left?

Clover frantically dashed throughout the combined head-space of the fallen humans.

Normally, they weren't far apart. Going to another human to privately talk took a few seconds, a leisurely journey.

Now, this place was filled with massive caves and tunnels, winding and snaking to no end.

And everyone was so far apart.

Clover thought that Jade and Hope were far away.

But the others were-

Clover felt a rush of extreme, uncontrolled rage.

The intensity of the anger tossed Clover to the side, slamming into the walls of the tunnel.

What is this?

…

Chara.

Clover themselves were starting to feel some feelings of rage.

Chara.

When Frisk was feeling down, they kicked them down further.

They didn’t even try to help at all.

Clover was filled with an overwhelming sense of justice.

Maybe if I can’t find the solution, then I could…

…

But what’s the point?

What does that solve?

Just a cycle of more anger and resentment?

Justice isn’t the solution here.

…

Is punishment even justified for them?

…

Clover turned away, and continued on.

No.

They didn’t notice Frisk’s feelings. They couldn’t help them, because they were too wrapped up to notice.

Just like me.

So I have no say in this.

_____

Maroon and Lillie.

Those two are the only ones left.

If they can’t do anything, then…

…

Don’t think about that.

Clover walked into a massive cavern, filled with vines and other plants, linking together, wrapping around each other.

And at its center were two kids.

One girl slumped down, crying, with the other comforting her, not taking his eyes off her for a second.

Until they raised their head, and looked at Clover.

Their eyes burned with immense sadness and fury.

Clover instinctively took a step back.

But they can’t back away from this. If they do, then…

“Clover.” Maroon spoke, no longer the cheerful voice that they once were, replaced by a drier tone.

And without their normal happiness, the fierceness that normally was barely present was fully apparent.

“Leave us alone, Clover. Don't interfere. She's not ready for that.”

With that line, Maroon looked back at Clover for one more time, before turning back to Lillie.

…

So, that’s it, huh?

There really is no one left?

…

Clover felt a strange presence nearby.

It felt… familiar. But awkward at the same time. It was like a heater that was shut off, no longer showing its biggest characteristic.

So, there still is someone left.

Clover didn't recognize the person who was at the side of the cavern, leaning on the wall.

They only figured it out through the process of elimination.

They looked bored, looking up at the air, thinking about something.

As Clover leaned on the wall, next to them, they gave Clover a small nod in acknowledgement.

“The power to save…” Integrity mused, with a tone of light curiosity.

Integrity was thinking about that?

Well, given what they did…

It shouldn’t come as a big surprise.

“With that power, you would have killed them all. You would have killed thousands.” Clover shuddered at the mere thought of that happening.

Thank goodness the person with that immense power was a helper, not a destroyer.

Integrity stared at Clover with those piercing blue eyes that seemed to bore through their skin.

And then they chuckled.

But not one of those sarcastic, cruel laughs that they normally did.

Their expression was one of genuine amusement.

“It’s funny, isn’t it?”

No. It’s not.

Why would they…

Integrity stood up, and started to walk away.

“What are you going to do?” Clover asked.

“I’ll be watching.” Integrity turned to face Clover, with an expression that Clover couldn’t read.

…

Clover can’t believe that they’re saying this, but Integrity actually gave Clover the solution that they needed.

Frisk isn’t in their right mind now. Far from it.

Perhaps talking will make it even worse for them.

While it pains Clover to do so, watching Frisk and waiting for another, better solution seems like their best bet.

Frisk…

I’m sorry.

Again.

But I’ll keep trying until you’re happy.

____

No more time.

Please, legs. I need to be quick.

Toriel’s already going toward the door. If I was just a bit faster last time…

No. I need to. I need to.

Or else, everyone will never be the same again.

What if they just… gave up? Ceased to exist?

No… that cannot happen.

If that ever happens, then I’ll…

Frisk pulled on the door handle.

It refused to budge.

“No. No.”

Frisk pushed against the door, trying to open it with whatever strength they had left.

But it refused.

“Open! Open, please!” Frisk sobbed, pounding on the door, desperate for even the smallest chance that the door would break, that they would all be free from their fate.

“My… child…” Toriel was here.

They looked nervous. They… didn’t want to move forward.

For a brief moment, they locked eyes.

And Toriel faltered.

“Why are you looking at me like that? You look like… you have just seen a ghost

…

But slowly, their shocked expression changed to one of sheer determination.

“If- If- you want to leave, show me that you are strong enough.”

It was starting again.

Their nightmare was starting again.

Frisk collapsed on the floor.

The flames slowly got closer and closer to them.

Death… isn’t so bad.

Perhaps the others will fade away for a while, and come back to another, better human.

I deserve to die.

So please-

Just before the flames made contact, they went away.

Why? Why did they…

…

I’m such a coward.

Faced with death, and I don’t even care about the others.

I’m so useless.

Why can’t they live when I die?

“Frisk…” Toriel was looking at them.

Not attacking.

“Please… I don’t want to fight…” Frisk sobbed, crying on the floor.

…

The room temperature went back to normal.

And they felt themselves being carried.

By a pair of large, furry hands.

A hand goes up to Frisk’s eyes, wiping away their tears.

…

“Frisk.” Toriel whispered, with such unrelenting tenderness that Frisk just wanted to sleep in her hands and never wake up.

“Am I that really that bad of a parent?”

Frisk sobbed, and frantically shaked their head.

“No! You were… the best parent that I ever had.”

____

So, Frisk.

You have something back on the surface.

Or something that you want to do.

“I don’t want to stay here… I just…”

“I don’t want to stay here! I want to explore the underground with Lillie!”

“I don’t want to stay here! I want to make a difference!”

“I don’t want to stay here! I need to find someone who is very dear to me.”

Time and time again, they say the same things.

And time and time again.

“Pathetic, is it not? I cannot save even a single child.”

But their stories are not hers to write.

They can’t control their decisions.

They shouldn’t have the right to control any of their decisions.

But for her, the eighth time was just too much.

“When you leave, please do not come back-”

Toriel was interrupted by Frisk embracing her, sobbing uncontrollably.

“Please don’t! I want to see you again! I… I…”

…

What happened to them?

…

That is not my business to pry.

If they need my help, then I will try to the best of my abilities.

And if they do not, I will not interfere.

“I understand, my child.”

Toriel took Frisk’s hand, and opened the gates to the Ruins.

…

Please.

Let this be the child that survives.

____

“Great job, partner.”

Flowey was next to the gates of the RUINS, waiting for them.

“Looks like everything turned out fine, right?”

…

Well, time to follow this flower’s plan.

Because at least that way, I’ll have one friend.

…

“Cheer up, pal!” Flowey winked. “After all, nothing ever happened!”

That’s… right.

Nothing ever happened.

Toriel gets to live on.

So why…

Why am I not happy?

…

No.

Something happened.

All of them.

They remembered.

Remembered the pain, the anger.

…

Figures.

Even with this power, I still hurt people.

…

Maybe…

After all, she’s saved. She can live out her life.

So just maybe…

Frisk looked back.

And what spoke back was cruel, harsh words, that came from a person filled with rage and anger.

“You disgust me. You killed an innocent, and you are so selfish that you would even EXPECT a compliment? And you couldn’t respect Toriel’s wishes, because you didn’t even think about their opinions. You disgust me, murderer.”

Of course.

I’m an idiot.

I don’t deserve forgiveness.

Why did I even think otherwise?

____

Seriously, the NERVE of this kid.

They killed Toriel, a monster better and kinder than any human could ever be, and they… want forgiveness?

That’s pathetic. That’s absurd. That’s unbelievable.

What is wrong with them?

“So stop talking, and continue walking forward, so that you stop bringing harm to everything you touch” Chara shouted, as that murderer lowered their head, and continued walking without a sound.

“Know your place, murderer! If I had a body again, I will hunt you down forever, and make you pay for all that you have done!”

“... But is that justice?” That idiotic “cowboy” human spoke up, in a soft yet annoyingly defiant tone.

Chara scoffed. What was that question even about?

“Of course it is, idiot. They killed Toriel. Humans like you probably don’t know much about kindness and being compassionate, and Toriel certainly did not lack any of that.”

“No, that’s not what I’m talking about.” That human was… visible? It felt like the rest of the world was fading away, with the silhouette of a human appearing before them, not quite solid, but not just an illusion.

“Have you ever thought about what caused them to go down that route? Have you tried to think about them instead of accusing them for their crimes?”

They stared at Chara with judgemental eyes that hurt to look at.

That stupid look really ticked off Chara.

Always used by those “adults” who think that they’re so high and mighty, making “decisions” that benefit no one but themselves.

“What is done is done. There is no way that murderer can be redeemed in any way.” Chara scowled.

“But have you-”

“Enough with all of your excuses!” Chara interrupted, lashing out at that foolish human.

“You talk so high and mighty, and what do you have to say for it? Do you really think that you are the right person to pass judgement?”

…

The human said nothing.

As expected, really.

“That’s right. Just shut up.”

“No.”

Another human appeared, walking out from the darkness surrounding them.

They stepped in front of Clover, staring at Chara.

That stupidly sweet voice that irked Chara to no end.

…Well, not that sweet anymore, are you?

“You shut up.” They stared at Chara, with clear fury in their eyes and voice, a far cry from their normal “ray of sunshine” personality.

Chara smiled.

“Not so kind now, are you? Are you satisfied with dropping your fake personality?”

Jade scoffed.

“Under any normal circumstances, I would never do anything like this.”

“But these are…” Jade turned to look around at the darkness around them, the world around them, everything around them. “…special circumstances.”

“Go on, tell me. What “special circumstances” are you talking about? Are you sure that they even exist, or is that an excuse?” Chara jeered.

Jade snarled. “Why are you like this, Chara? Why do you hate humans so much?”

…

Seriously?

SERIOUSLY?

“It is obvious!” Chara shouted. “If you were not stuck in your little friendship and happiness bubble, you’ll see that humans are BEYOND redemption!”

“But why?” They were starting to shout too, and the darkness around them somehow started to become more blurred and hazy. “Why, Chara, would you think that? Frisk always tried to-”

“I do not care about that.” Chara interrupted.

There is no reason to.

“Wha- What? Maybe if you would just listen for a few-”

Shut up.

Someone like you, who has been raised to be “obedient” and “a respectful member of society” would be blind to the true side of humanity.

Too brainwashed to even see the truth even when it is shown directly to them.

“I know what humans are really like. Family is no more than an obligation, and all of those talking about “family bonds” are nothing but lies to keep you obedient! Everyone turns their back on those who are suffering, because they all only care about themselves! And unlike YOU, I know about all of this! I have seen it before, and that is a DISGUSTING reminder of what humanity is like!”

“AND THAT’S WHY!” Jade yelled, in pure, condensed rage. “WHY YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT HOW IT IS TO FEEL BETRAYED BY THE PEOPLE THAT YOU’RE CLOSE TO!”

“WHY YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW THE FEELING OF TRYING TO GET SOMEONE TO LIKE YOU, WHEN THEY DON’T EVEN GIVE EVEN THE TINIEST BIT OF LOVE BACK!”

What? This is…

This… is complete nonsense.

Always, Frisk was…

…

What were they always trying to do?

The sudden outburst from Jade gave Chara time to calm their mind.

But even now, they still didn’t know anything about Frisk.

…

Stop referring to that murderer by name.

Another human, wearing glasses, appeared by Jade’s side.

Jade was panting, not speaking a word, clearly out of breath.

Serves them right.

The other human helped to support Jade, who was clearly exhausted.

…Where was that other guy?

…Not important.

Jade looked up, with a tired and sad expression.

“I’m hurt, Chara. I knew you didn’t like humans… but… I thought things could be different with Frisk. After all… they always seemed to like you the most.”

What?

What does that even mean?

That is unbelievable. There was no point where they ever…

…

The two humans were whispering something.

“What now, Hope?”

“...It’s your turn to decide, Jade. Do what you think is right.”

Jade turned around, and looked at Frisk.

…When did the world around them suddenly reappear?

“I’m sorry, Frisk.” They apparently reverted back to that same old annoying sweet voice.

…Somehow, it seems more unsettling than before.

Get a grip, Chara.

“I couldn’t help you when you needed it most, and the outcome was… I really should have been there for you.”

They turned around, and began frantically shaking their head.

“No, Jade. It wasn’t your fault at all. You had every right to be sad, and it was… justified to not help me. I was the one who harmed you.”

“That’s not justice, partner.” The earlier human reappeared, looking at Frisk with a sad expression. “Justice is helping the innocent. You were innocent, and yet… we couldn’t see the signs. We were the ones who harmed you.”

“But Chara-” Frisk cried.

…Why mention me specifically?

They always seemed to like me the most.

Shut up, me. Keep a clear and calm mind.

“Stop. Frisk. Listen to me.” The glasses-wearing guy was talking now… Hope, was it? That is a dumb name.

“Some people that you encounter are just not worth it. You can try and try, but some people will never be friends with you. And that’s okay. Stay with the people that are your actual friends. We’re all here with you.”

Chara didn’t really hear what their response was.

They were too busy thinking.

…Why?

…I should not even be referring to that murderer by name.

And yet…

Something about them seems… so familiar.

Standing under the sky, looking at the world all around… that’s my wish.

I’m going to help the Underground. I’m going to know more about this world, and help all of us, so we can all have a peaceful life.

No. Don’t even think about comparing those two.

Monsters have shown nothing but kindness ever since I fell.

Oh, you’ve fallen down, haven’t you?

Are you okay?

While humans… that human…

How’s the weather today?

That’s a nice name, Chara.

Okay, fine.

Chara sighed.

They did save Toriel from themselves… so… that probably deserves at least an apology.

“Frisk, thank you for… for…” Chara stammered.

What should I say?

“Don’t.”

Chara blinked. “What?”

“You don’t need to pretend, Chara.” Frisk gave a small smile, and started walking towards the exit of the RUINS.

“I know you hate me anyways.”

“Wait!” Chara shouted.

“I don’t really hate-”

Chara shouted into the darkness.

…

…

But nobody came.

Chapter Text

Jade was dreaming.

Walking in one direction, endlessly.

There were people everywhere.

People without faces. When Jade looked at them, their faces were like a mass of clouds, constantly changing, never forming something concrete.

This is probably a dream.

But what is this dream about?

The people started talking, muttering insults under their breath.

Complaining, cursing, gossiping about others.

Some were even directed at Jade.

“Annoying.”

“Busybody.”

“Aren’t you just a little ray of sunshine?”

Jade didn’t pay attention to them.

Jade’s dreams were predictable, in a sense. Their dreams were always misty recollections of past memories.

Not sure why, though… perhaps it was because they were…

“Shallow.”

That’s the word. Thanks, voice.

But which memory was this?

Where am I?

…There was another person next to Jade.

When did they get here?

They glowed purple, standing out against the sea of monochrome people.

They were warm.

But yet, so cold, like a candle, exposed to rain, blowing out at any moment.

Jade wanted to protect them.

It doesn’t matter who they were.

They needed help.

So the two of them walked forward through the sea of people, together.

And over time, the other people stopped talking.

Insults were thrown here and there, but many were muffled, behind closed doors.

But they were still here.

That warm purple glow, that was glowing even brighter by the second.

It made Jade… proud.

And the two of them continued to walk together.

Jade was standing near the edge of a mountain.

Where did they go? They were right beside me just now…

…But there’s something else here. Something that was even more important.

Stories. Ones that were considered fairytales. A child went into the mountain, and brought a monster back with them.

That was considered a myth, a legend. Happened thirty years ago and yet many denied its existence.

Until two children disappeared into the same mountain.

Why was Jade here?

…Whatever the purpose, they needed shelter.

It’s starting to rain.

Jade walked into the cave, torchlight in hand.

They pointed their torchlight at the walls of the cave, admiring the natural scenery.

As they pointed the torchlight upwards, the ground below them gave way, causing them to fall, screaming, into the abyss.

____

Lillie was dreaming.

A giant, mystical forest.

But it was cold. So cold.

And there was nobody around.

She shouted into the darkness.

“Anybody there?”

But nobody came.

…

Lights.

Orange lights, like a mix of fireflies and jellyfish.

Floating around the forest.

“Pretty…”

Lillie jumped towards the nearest light.

It dodged, swerving playfully.

Lillie kept on trying to catch it.

And trying.

And finally, she cornered it with a nearby tree, allowing her to catch the light with her outstretched arms.

Lillie chuckled.

“Got you!”

…

The light was warm.

It felt… fuzzy.

Lillie wanted to be near this light forever.

The forest didn’t seem so dark and lonely anymore.

“Let’s go, light! Let’s-”

The light burnt out, collapsing into small, orange fragments.

And after a while, even the fragments no longer remained orange, fading to a dull black.

And Lillie felt empty inside.

…

There’s still more of those lights.

They won’t break… right?

But the lights all broke after a while.

Some lasted hours, but some only lasted minutes.

But there was enough to keep her company.

… For a while.

The lights grew lesser and lesser as time passed on.

And one day, there were no lights in sight.

Lillie ran and ran, but there were no lights to be found.

Just a dark, lonely forest.

Lillie shouted into the darkness, asking for the lights to come back.

But there were no lights.

Except for one.

Lillie embraced the light, sobbing.

Its glow was so warm and friendly.

But it’s going to die soon.

She doesn’t want to let go.

She shields the light from the darkness, and the light shields her from the darkness.

And they stayed like that together, for a while.

But eventually, the light faded away, leaving Lillie in the dark, alone.

____

Jade was eating dinner with their mother.

Okay, it wasn’t really their mother - Jade was an orphan.

But Jade had no hesitation with calling them that.

…I still can’t seem to get their face.

Or name, even.

Even with the rumors, Jade held out hope that the monsters were just misunderstood. That they had kindness inside of them, instead of hatred.

And they were right.

Jade’s mother cared for them like no other person had ever done before.

So why do I feel sad?

There was a backpack, next to Jade’s seat. It was stuffed full, filled to the brim with cooking supplies, clothing, and tools.

Oh.

Jade was leaving.

Why?

…There’s something that I need to do.

But why don’t I feel that sad?

…Because this isn’t goodbye forever.

I’ll return, one day.

Jade waved goodbye to their mother, and picked up their backpack.

Jade was hiding in a small, wooden house.

Where…

Jade didn’t want to go outside.

This is just a dream. There’s nothing out there that can hurt me.

I still don’t know what this dream is about.

…

Jade was terrified.

There were monsters outside.

They tried to kill them.

Many times.

Jade survived, but…

How many more could they face?

…

Why?

There has to be some sort of reason.

Sure, there are evil people anywhere you go, but an entire race?

There must be another way. There has to.

Why would monsters hate humans so fiercely, with an anguish that was incomparable?

Hate wasn’t even a good word for it.

They despised humans.

There has to be a reason why.

…Monsters come in all forms.

If I disguise myself, then maybe…

Jade winced as the growl of monsters came closer and closer.

Please, don’t let them find me.

____

Hope was dreaming.

And they were annoyed.

They had a metal box with something valuable inside.

And they needed to open it quickly.

“Smith?” Hope asked the local blacksmith. “Could you help me open this box?”

“Well, I’ll have to break it with some of my hammers…”

“It’s important to me. Could you find another way?”

“...Sorry, kid. That lock’s too complex for me to break. Perhaps you could find the solution elsewhere.”

So Hope went. But first, they needed a place.

The box itself came from a nearby mountain. That’s the best place to start.

There was a village at the top of the mountain. A small community, with many wooden houses covering the mountain’s peak.

Perhaps the box was made here.

When Hope entered the town, they arrived at the local inn to warm up, and to restock.

There was an innkeeper that was really kind to Hope. She welcomed them with smiles, helping them to find a room.

She was pretty popular with the locals. She never failed to serve delicious food and drinks to everyone who entered.

Why not ask her?

“Would you know anyone who could have made a box like this?” Hope brought out the box and settled it on a table.

She scrutinised the box, and returned a frown.

“I know this craftsmanship.”

“So would you help me-”

“No.” Her voice was bitter. “Those fools live higher up, and refuse to come down here.”

“Do not go up there. The cold winds are dangerous.”

With that, she went back to cooking.

…

“Well, I don’t really have a choice, do I?” Hope muttered.

After all, if it’s to get it back…

The innkeeper tried to convince Hope again, but she couldn’t stop Hope, in the end.

The mountains were hell.

Hope tried to stay warm, but it was incredibly difficult, with the constant sub-zero temperatures.

And the locals weren’t the kindest. They all acted rude or distant. So reliable shelter was out of the question.

And forget about trying to make basic conversation with them.

“I swear, if one more gust of wind blows, I’m-”

Metal boxes.

In a similar pattern to theirs, sitting outside a house.

Hope bolted inside, leaving the cold wind behind them.

Only to jump when they heard the cackling of an old man.

“Woah there! Who breaks into an old man’s house like that?”

“I’m sorry, sir-”

But there was just laughter from the old man.

“Wah ha ha! I don’t mind, really. Haven’t met anyone new for a long time. What's a young'n like you doing out here anyway?”

Hope took out the box. “You see, there’s this metal box, and I was wondering if there was any way to open it without damaging the inside.”

“Wah ha ha! Say no more, kid.”

The old man pulled out a key from a drawer, and gave it to Hope.

Hope put the key in the box, and turned.

But when the box opened, there was nothing inside.

____

Jade was walking through the town of Snowdin.

It’s not that hard to pretend that you’re a monster. Wrap yourself up with fabric, roll in mud for a while, and no one will…

…

I jumped again.

Different collections of memories, all bundled tightly into one. All brief, but important.

But why is this happening? What is this?

…And what’s up with me?

I’m… reacting stronger than usual.

These are just memories. Attachment is normal, yes, but not to this degree.

…

What was I doing?

Right. Collecting information. I need to know.

…Perhaps this library is a good place to start.

Nothing.

Well, that would be a little rude.

To their credit, it was an amazing collection of books, culture, history…

But nothing recent. The war happened thousands of years ago.

So why…

Jade’s experienced negative sentiment many times.

People whose families have been fighting over an accident that happened five generations prior.

An orphanage who was left to rot after a murder that took place two centuries ago.

But for all of that, their hatred was detached, in a way.

This hatred was personal.

…

Jade needs to find out the answer.

But to do that…

Jade was sitting in Snowdin Inn, talking with a member of the Royal Guard.

They talked about the worsening climate, shared some gossip about the other guards, and laughed as they told a joke.

Jade laughed along with them.

Monsters really were kind.

When Jade fell into the underground, they held onto that belief.

And again, it turned out to be true.

…Wasn’t I supposed to find information?

Eh, who cares.

That’s not on Jade’s mind right now.

The more important thing was having fun with their new friend.

How long has it been?

Jade was finally back at her mother’s house.

To visit, and to restock.

There’s some things that Jade left behind.

Things that Jade wanted to show to their new friends.

Jade brought so much cool stuff from the human world.

Books, toys, some electronic devices…

Oh, she’s really going to like that one.

Jade couldn’t wait to see their friend’s reaction.

Jade opened the door to their mother’s house.

“I’m home-”

Jade was interrupted by their mother, suddenly rushing at Jade, wrapping them up in an embrace.

…It feels warm. It feels good.

Jade returned the embrace.

Toriel started to fret, about whether Jade was fine, whether they ate enough, whether they brushed their teeth, and that they were gone for so long.

Wait. How long have I been away for?

…This is a dream. Why does it matter?

One year.

I’ve been away for a year?

…That person from before…

I said that I would return, one day.

Are they alright?

Are they lonely?

Are they worried, wondering where I am?

Will they be fine without me?

…

There has to be a way out of here, somehow.

The myths said it. Monsters can exit.

…

I need to leave quickly.
Jade felt tears on their shoulder.

Tears from their mother, crying in relief.

…

She’s important too.

To all of you, I’m sorry, but please wait for me.

There’s something that I need to do.

…

____

Clover was dreaming.

A narrow, dimly lit corridor, filled with vines and yellow flowers that hurt to look at.

They were running.

Towards Martlet.

“Clover! I finally found you!”

But she wasn’t right.

Clover backed away, pointing their gun at the fake-Martlet.

“What did you do to her?”

“It’s me, Clover. I found you.” Martlet started to walk towards Clover, melting to form puddles of black sludge.

Clover yelped, dropping their gun.

A nightmarish monster appeared in front of them.

Wilted, melting, gruesome.

Clover could do nothing but watch, petrified.

“I FOUND YOU.”

The black sludge engulfs Clover.

Drowning in an empty void.

There’s someone here.

A person with a green and cream-striped sweater.

They held a knife, staring at it intensely.

“Chara-”

Blood-red eyes.

Filled with overpowering murderous intent.

Chara… why…

No.

This isn’t Chara.

They’re not the best person, that’s for sure. They’re rude and mean sometimes, yes.

But this isn’t them.

“What happened to you, Chara?” Clover shouted into the darkness.

They looked up, and stared at Clover, with a small, sinister smile appearing on their face.

“Partner. Let us erase this pointless world, and move on to the next-”

Something snapped, and Chara fell to the ground.

Clover rushed over.

And from the other side, someone else approached.

It’s…

Me?

Clover stared at themselves, a perfect copy, but with eyes hidden beneath a hat.

They raised their gun towards Chara, and said one word.

“Justice.”

Clover rushed forward, shielding Chara.

“They don’t deserve this.”

“Why don’t they?” Clover’s copy bent their head backwards, revealing soulless, brown eyes.

“They harmed everyone. They essentially killed Frisk.”

“It wasn’t intentional.”

“We hardly know the full story. There could be reasons. There could be others at fault. And there could be chances at redemption.”

“And besides…” Clover stared straight into their copy’s eyes, unwilling to back down.

“That’s not justice. That’s vengeance.”

They stood still for a second, perhaps thinking about Clover’s words.

They shrugged.

“Vengeance it is.”

Two bullet shots. One for Chara, one for Clover.

____

So, that’s why.

It doesn’t answer everything, but it answers enough.

Two down, five left. Jade was the third.

…

How do I tell my friends now?

I didn’t want to hide forever.

I wanted to tell them eventually…

Eventually…

I can tell her, right?

If she doesn’t accept it, then who will?

…

I trust her.

____

Dreaming.

Toriel’s house, neat and proper.

Eating dinner with Toriel.

Snails. Delicious… after a while. They weren’t the best at first, but they’re actually pretty good.

Talking with Toriel. There’s many monsters in the RUINS. Only know some of them.

Laughing. Toriel told a story about the antics that she got into. What was that dog even doing?

It’s charming, talking with her.

Looking in the mirror. Need to look good, even when sleeping.

Long, aqua-blue hair and purple eyes.

Correcting Toriel. It’s fine, she’s probably not used to it. She’s been accepting ever since they met, just slips sometimes.

Reminiscing, about times on the surface.

Father. Is he doing okay? Is he worried?

I know he trusts me to be independent… but I might not come home for a while.

There’s no way out of here. Except for one, but that’s completely out of the question.

Yawning. Tired. They’ve played all day. Playing catch with Toriel is exhausting, she’s surprisingly strong.

Getting into bed. Ready to sleep. Hugging a plushie or two, snuggling under the blanket.

Toriel comes into the room. Sits on a small, wooden stool next to the bed.

A bedtime story. Probably considered immature for their age, but that’s not important.

Slowly drifting off into sleep, with Toriel by their side, singing a soft tune.

It’s everything they could ever want.

____

Dead.

He’s dead.

Jade fell onto the ground, staring at the pile of dust in front of them.

He must have heard me.

It wasn’t her fault. I know it.

She never even thought of attacking.

For her entire life, she was taught to kill humans.

And when she finally met one, she just ran away.

But for him…

He was a bit rude, overly serious, and strict…

But he was dedicated to his job.

His presence encouraged others to persevere.

…

So that’s why he never listened to any of Jade’s pleas.

He probably didn’t recognise that they were Jade.

They only recognised a human.

And his eyes…

They were frightening. They burned with a fury, a hatred for humanity that was so immense and overpowering.

…

It was self-defense. There was no other way.

But still…

He was admired. He was a friend. Perhaps he was even loved.

Jade started to cry.

Why couldn’t there have been another way?

Jade walked into the royal capital.

They already settled their goodbyes with her.

She didn’t like the plan. She wanted to run away with Jade, and to protect them from all harm.

But Jade knows that this is the right decision.

Not just for themselves, or for monsterkind, but for the next humans that fall down here.

She knew that it was the right thing for Jade to do.

She embraced Jade, and said their goodbyes, sobbing.

…

Jade cried too, and returned the embrace.

Jade was walking through the streets of a vast city, heading for the castle at its center, with no regrets.

…

That’s not the right term.

Jade has so many regrets. So many people that they wanted to meet again.

That purple soul from before. Her mother. All of her friends in the underground.

But this has to be done.

Jade knows that they can’t negotiate with the King, or many other monsters.

But amongst the monsters that knew Jade as a friend, if even one of them welcomes future humans as friends…

It will be worth it.

Jade took off their disguise, and slowly started to walk towards the castle.

Everyone was probably looking at them. But Jade didn’t care.

…

But there’s one thing.

This is all a dream, right?

So why am I invested in these memories?

Like I’m reminiscing, treasuring them with all my heart?

Where am I?

…

A giant, cloaked figure raises an axe above Jade’s head, surrounded in blue fire.

The figure’s eyes glow with a burning fury, filled with determination, and a barely noticeable amount of hesitation.

Oh.

Right.

This is where I died.

The figure swung down the axe.

_____

Maroon wasn’t dreaming.

They didn’t really have dreams.

And honestly…

Thank goodness for that.

Because with what he’s experienced…

He’s better off without dreams.

They did dream once.

It was like an endless dream. Probably after they died.

And Maroon never remembered anything from that dream, but he doesn’t want to, anyway.

If those feelings he gets from it is any indication…

So no dreams.

Maroon slept peacefully that night.

A calm, dreamless sleep.

____

Chara was dreaming, eyes closed.

“Selfish brat.”

Not this again.

Always this dream, isn’t it?

“Your behaviour is disgusting.”

Same here.

Humans love to force their behaviour onto others.

It’s disgusting.

“You are a horrible person for this.”

It’s always this dream. This dream where humans get to talk down to them, trying to bend them to their wills.

So Chara won’t give them the satisfaction of that. They kept their eyes firmly closed, gritting their teeth in anger.

“There is an inherent wrongness to you. There is something in you that is flawed, and that’s what I hate.”

Chara already pictured the unpleasant scene.

Them keeling down to some high-and-mighty human who looked down at them with repulsion.

And of course, they could never stand up. Stupid dream.

“You hurt so many. To your friends, to the people you cared even a tiny bit about…”

That… That was an accident, idiots. How could they have known that… that…

“And you think you deserve forgiveness?”

Perhaps they don’t. They wouldn’t want forgiveness from humans anyway.

“I thought that you were better. I expected more from the-”

Not going to listen to that.

Inane, is it not? Judging me just because I’m the “privileged” child of my… my…

“You don’t deserve to live.”

…

Could it hurt them, just a little, to be a bit kinder?

“You purple-striped brat.”

…

Purple?

Chara opened their eyes.

“You bring harm to everything you touch.”

They were the ones who were speaking.

“I will never forgive you.”

And Frisk was in front of them.

“You should just die.”

____

Frisk was dreaming!

Strolling into a snowy forest, with cold winds blowing around them.

Giant pine trees that stretched into the sky.

They were talking to someone. The voice is a bit muffled, and they’re too distracted to really hear.

This dream’s been alright for a while…

It just seemed so wild.

Seven new friends, all who were a joy to be with?

It felt a bit too good to be true.

Their names…

Lillie. Joyful and innocent. They were so cute.

Maroon. Energetic. Always. And a great supporter.

Jade. Kind to everyone. Great to talk to.

…Was that voice them?

Hope. Smart and calm, always reliable.

Integrity. They might not be as bad as they seem.

Clover. A joy to be with.

Chara

…

But in the end, this dream wasn’t so good, after all.

…

I don’t really like it.

Everything that I’ve caused…

Well, luckily it’s just a dream, right?

Frisk started to skip, hopping through the forest.

The voices started to get softer and softer, fading into the surroundings.

If it’s a dream, I don’t need to worry!

Frisk playfully toyed with their hair, lost in thought.

If I die, will I wake up?