It was only a few weeks after Frisk had freed the monsters from the Underground, and she had been spending her time building a life for her friends in the midst of the human world. For now everyone was living in a small, open community where not many people were opposed to the monsters living there. As for the rest of the world? Most of them realized that this was just another group who deserved recognition and respect, but there was always a few who thought the monsters should go back under Mount Ebott.

Frisk hadn't thought twice when Toriel had asked her to be the face of monster lifestyle. They were her new family- not that she had much of one before. Besides, Frisk was almost 20 now; she could make her own decisions. One of these decisions was to live in her own house, without any of her Underground friends. They all lived in the same area, connected by path of flowers.

It was a happy, but relatively ordinary life they created. Everyone was mostly accepting of the monster varieties. Many opened businesses, such as Grilby who opened a restaurant right next to the monster community. Toriel got a job teaching at the local school, which was glad to have such a qualified teacher. Frisk, however, spent her time on more important matters.

She talked to various government organizations, trying to figure out the guidelines for the monster activity. Most of them wanted to stay within their town, but some adventurous souls (such as Mettaton) wanted to travel or expand their careers. The unanimous decision was to let them travel, as long as they behaved themselves.

Whenever Frisk wasn't working, she normally hung out with 'the gang' from her adventures. Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys and Sans adjusted to life surprisingly quickly. Sans made a point to tell Frisk what he did, which mostly was hanging around the house or at Grilby's. Frisk found that she and Sans spent an increasing amount of time together. Often they would hang around at her house, because if they were at Sans's there would be the overhanging fear of Papyrus's cooking.

So one day they we're hanging out, and a particularly interesting conversation. They were both sitting on Frisk's couch, snacking on some fries from Grilby's. It was late afternoon, crickets just beginning to chirp from outside the door. They were laughing from one of Sans's bad puns.

"Okay Sans, I think your puns are getting out of control," Frisk said, dipping a fry in ketchup and eating it.

"tibia honest, i don't think that they're that bad," Sans said with a subtle wink. Frisk threw one of the pillows at him. It stopped a few inches in front of his face, it and his eye glowing cyan. It dropped into his lap, and he folded his skeletal hands on top of it. "well i guess it's called a throw pillow for a reason." Another wink.

"Okay, enough puns for now. Let's play a game. Whoever loses has to tell a secret," Frisk smiled in anticipation. She knew Sans couldn't resist a challenge, but she also knew that she didn't have anything to hide. Sans was always so secretive, and this was her chance to find something out about him.

Sans eyes narrowed. He knew that he was risking having to share something personal, but didn't want to back down. "fine, but i choose the game." He had become obsessed with the videogame culture of humans, and considered himself an expert at the newer releases. "okay i choose… Mario Kart." He was pretty good at this one, but so was Frisk. It would be a fierce competition.

A few races later, Frisk crossed the finish line seconds before Sans. This was it! She was ahead by just a few points! The victory animation played for her, and the triumphant music matched her exuberant expression. "Take that Sansy!" Frisk exclaimed, clapping her hands together in excitement. "That means I win, and you have to open up that secretive mind of yours."

Sans looked down. Most of his secrets weren't the things she would want to hear. His mistakes and depression, his visions of what her falling could've meant for the monsters. How Frisk, the loving and sincere human, could've been a complete savage. The only secret he had worth sharing, was the one he kept to himself the most. "look Frisk, this was fun when i thought i was going to win, but now i kinda want to back out."

Frisk frowned and flicked his knee. "Come on! You know that if I said that you would never let me chicken out. What's one secret? You know I won't judge you."

Sans would've bit his lip in nervousness if he had one. This wasn't something he would say normally, but it was the truth. He never let someone know how much he valued him or her, even if they were so important that he would help them at any costs. "Frisk, you're my best friend, and i would spend every second of the day with you if i could. i wouldn't give you up for anyone in the world. frisk, i love you."

That last part was unexpected, even for Sans. He didn't know he felt that way until he said it. Frisk looked just as shocked as he did. Her expression was actually kind of funny, and Sans resisted the urge to laugh. Frisk neutralized her expression. "I think… that's… I'm so…" she said, trailing off.

"okay, i have no idea what i just said. just ignore me completely." Sans looked at her pleadingly. "seriously, don't take me seriously."

Frisk shook her head, and stood up, with the intention of walking off. Sans grabbed her hand, not wanting her to go. "Sans…" Frisk said, turning away. She pulled her hand away with dread. She didn't know her feelings. Or maybe she did, and was too scared to admit it. "Just let me go." Sans let go of her fingers, and she walked out the door, and kept walking until she reached the edge of the path.

She didn't what her relationship with Sans to be like that. She wanted a redo, a way to reset their relationship. Suddenly a glowing doorway appeared in front of her. Over it hung the word "reset" in a glowing orange font. Frisk had seen this one other time. She knew it would reset not only she and Sans's friendship, but her entire time in the Underground. Was it worth it? In the moment, Frisk thought it was, and didn't hesitate to walk through the door.

Her eyes opened. It was like everything was a dream. She was in a bed or golden flowers, the seeds sticking to her sweater. The ceiling of the cave was decorated with glowing stones, as if they were stars.

Frisk stood up, determined to relive her time here peacefully. She walked forward a bit, but was stopped by an invisible force. "Where do you think you're going?" said a creaky voice from behind. Frisk turned around, wary of any attack. A slightly faded outline of a human stood in front of her. "I've been waiting for you to reset. Only now can I make my offer." The voice was deadly quiet and had a vicious undertone.

"Offer?" Frisk questioned, her peppy voice an opposite to the other one. "All I want to do is get through the Underground quickly so I can get back to my life."

The ghostly human smiled slightly, the eyes flashing underneath the thick bangs. "Oh I assure you, if you do things my way there won't be any time wasted. I'll get you through the Underground quicker than you could alone. I know this place like the back of my hand." When Frisk began to look interested, the spirit continued. "My name is Chara. If you accept my help, I will get back to the human world in no time."

Frisk widened her eyes. This almost seemed to good to be true. She could get back up and go back to her friendship with Sans, get to experience the bonding experience with the gang all over again. The spirit held out a pale hand. "Do we have a deal?" Frisk thought about it. This seemed exactly what she was looking for. She reached out her arm and shook her hand.

Chara smiled evilly as their hands touched. Frisk felt herself losing control of her body. "Oh silly girl," Frisk felt herself saying. "Didn't your dear mother teach you not to accept things from strangers? Don't worry, I'll still get you to the end, not that any of your precious pals will be around to see it."

Frisk inwardly crumbled. She had absolutely no control, but instead felt her soul be invaded by an unspeakable evil. Slowly, so slowly, she lost all consciousness of her body.

Frisk woke up. It was as though everything was a bad dream. But instead of being back in the comforting flowers, she was lying on the tiled floor of the church. She felt herself stand up, and it was then when she realized that Chara still had control of her body.

"what was that? 64? 65? i'm losing track of my victories. don't worry, maybe this will be your lucky run." Frisk felt her soul stutter at the voice. It was Sans. Except he wasn't warm, like the skeleton she knew. It was dark and taunting. It was full of pain, but fierce.

"I thought I'd bring along a little ol' friend for this run," Chara said with a smirk. "I know she'd just love to say hello."

Sans looked shocked and unnerved. "she's… she's here? she can hear me?" he paused, not waiting for a response before continuing. "it doesn't matter. it doesn't erase all the terrible things you've done. Papyrus… Undyne… Toriel… i will fight for them. i will fight for every monster you've destroyed."

Frisk felt herself begin to fall apart. She killed her friends? Who else had she hurt? She tried to break free. She fought against the bonds Chara had put on her soul. The holds slowly chipped away at Frisk's will. She heard Sans talking, but was too focused on her soul. Suddenly she had control. Everything controlling her was let go, and for the first time in a while she felt free.

She fell on the ground, gasping heavily. It felt so good to breath in the air. Sans stopped speaking, and let down his guard for a moment. "kid?" he asked, stepping forward, as if to grab her hand. "are you really here?"

Frisk looked back at Sans, a pained expression on her face. "I'm… I'm so sorry. For everything I may have done while Chara was in control." She shakily put her hands in her pockets. There she found a knife, even without looking, she knew it would be covered in monster dust. Her fingers grasped the handle. It was fitted to her hand. She pulled it out of her pocket and looked at it.

"whoa kid, put that down. seriously, i'm not going to hurt you."

Frisk threw the knife aside. She never thought he would. She trusted him with her life. She was afraid, but looking at him, arms open for embrace, she felt calmed. Her eyes teared up. She stepped forward, wrapping her arms around him. Despite being a skeleton, he was warm, and the hoodie softened his angular bones.

She enjoyed the hug for a moment longer. Suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. Her breath hitched, and she moved one hand to her stomach, to find that blood was gushing from a deep wound. Her eyes went from Sans's eye sockets to his hands, where he was clenching a bloody bone in his skeletal hands. Frisk fell. Sans hugged her, gently cupping her head in his lap. "Papyrus will be avenged."

Frisk began to slowly lose consciousness. As she slipped into blackness, she heard a dark voice in the background. "if you're really my friend, you'll stay away. the Underground doesn't need you… i don't need you to be happy. i will not hesitate to kill you if it means to keep my family safe."

Everything was dark. She could feel the presence of others in the darkness. The others who had game overs, with lives left uncompleted. She ran towards the door. It was once again lit brightly with the word "reset" stamped over it.

Frisk's heart still stung from Sans's harsh words. She wanted to take everything back. Absolutely everything. She wanted to go back to the moment when Sans told her that he loved her. It wasn't until she threw everything away that Frisk realized that she loved him back. Maybe even more than he loved her.

She looked at the doorway. Should she go through? Was Sans's hate worth it? Frisk closed her eyes and jumped through the door.

Eventually Frisk got to the point in her adventure where she was walking through the forest. She felt his presence, but heard no suspicious footsteps behind her. Suddenly a heavy weight pressed her against the tree. Sans's forearm was against her throat, and his other hand was pressing her shoulder down.

"what are you doing here?" he hissed between his teeth. His eyes had no glow, but instead looked endless. Sans pressed her harder against the tree, despite her grasping at his arm, trying to pull it away in vain. She couldn't breath, but Sans didn't seem to care.

"Please, Sans," she gasped, tears falling from her eyes. "I… I am so… sor-" she couldn't finish her thought, as he dropped her from the tree, and Frisk was busy catching her breath. "Sans," Frisk began once she caught her breath. "I had no control over myself. I would never do any of the things I did. I would never hurt anyone."

"you had control of yourself when you reset," Sans whispered in a deadly rage, "you gave yourself over to Chara with your own will, and then, after everything, you have the nerve to come back here. you come back to the Underground to torture everyone again? were you just bored? is destroying innocent lives just that interesting?"

Frisk let the tears fall from her eyes, but wiped them off as they made her colder than she needed to be. Suddenly she realized she was standing in the snow, barefoot, covered in tears. It was freezing where she stood, but knew that the only way to get to Snowden was to interact with Papyrus next.

She ran away from Sans, only looking back once to see a forlorn expression on his face. His skeletal fingers were grasping the bark on the tree trunk. He looked torn between the forgiveness and revenge. Frisk kept going forward before once again to see Papyrus. She ran directly into him without meaning to.

"HELLO," said the excitable skeleton, his cape flowing out behind him. "I am the GREAT PAPYRUS! I am on a QUEST to capture a HUMAN. Then I will be a member of the ROYAL GUARD." Papyrus never lost his wide grin.

"Hi Papyrus, I'm Frisk. I really like pasta and puzzles," she knew exactly what to say to him. This would make them immediate great friends, therefore making Papyrus feel the need to protect her. Frisk didn't have time for pleasantries. She knew Papyrus inside and out, so he could get to know her more later.

"WOWIE FRISK! I love those exact activities as well! How would you like to be the BEST OF FRIENDS?" Papyrus brought his hands to his chin, and his eyes were so wide and excited they looked like they held the entire underground in them.

"Of course Papyrus, who wouldn't want to be friends with a super cool skeleton like you?" Frisk said, smiling at her friend. "Actually, I kinda don't have a place to stay, and I don't have any other friends other than you…"

"The GREAT PAPYRUS has the most intricate and wonderful idea! You can stay in MY HOUSE! My brother is a bit of a slob, but I will make sure he watches his mess and terrible puns," he informed her, grabbing Frisk's hand and dragging her across the snowy landscape, all the way to Snowden.