And like that, Asriel was alone again.
It was another timeline, one where he was Flowey, where he tried to kill Frisk, his parents, Frisk's friends, and was saved in the end. Fresk saved everyone, even Astriel to some degree. But the young goat knew that Frisk couldn't stay, that he had to take care of Toriel, Asgore, his own friends.
He had to let him go, he had to leave. It took a lot to persuade Frisk to leave the ruins, but he did. And now, Asriel sat there, among those yellow flowers, where the children fell into the underground, and he was alone.
He looked at his hand and sighed. He could feel the power of the human souls fading, it wouldn't be long before he would lose it all and end up turning back into a flower. Would he remember what happened with Frisk and his friends? Would he lose his compassion again?
Asriel sat on the ground and curled up. He didn't want this, to lose himself again. It was worse than death, then hell, then when the humans killed him, when Chara tricked him. He wanted to be free, he wanted to go up with Frisk, to see the sun. But he couldn't, not after all that he did.
"S-Someone has to take care of the flowers."
It was a weak lie, just something to try and push Frisk away, but he knew you DETERMINED Frisk was. He knew he would rick anything to save his friend, his brother. A possible idea of Frisk rewinding the timeline and taking everyone's happiness away, all to try and save Asriel, a pang of fear gripped the young goat's heart and he curled up even tighter.
And in this moment, a single tear dripped from his face, as he hoped for a way out of this hell.
He hoped for a miracle.
"My, what lovely flowers."
Asriel looked up in confusion at the sound of what seemed to be a girl's voice.
There, standing in the middle of the golden flowers, was a girl. She was a peculiar girl, with long azure hair and a blue and white frilly dress with a large blue ribbon on her chest. She bent down to pick one of the flowers, and Asriel could see that she had a long, black cat's tail, which twitch occasionally as she rose the flower up and smelled it. She turned to Asriel, and he saw her stoic expression, which reminded him of Frisk.
"However, I myself prefer flowers as red as strawberry jam, with lots of THORNS..."
But then she looked at him with her violent, violet, eyes, and all he could think was...
"C-Chara...?" He asked, almost in a whisper.
The girl looked away for a second and smiled, as if she was recalling a memory.
"No." She replied. "I am not 'them'..." She walked up to Asriel and looked down at him, her blank expression returning, but her stare was cold enough to freeze the blood in Asriel's veins and lock him in place.
"My name is Bernkastel."
Asriel shivered as he slowly rose up to his feet, Bernkastel watching as he did so. "Bern...kastel...?" He repeated.
She smiled again, twirling the flower between her fingers. "What's your name, child?"
"Asriel... Asriel Dremurr..." Asriel gulped and glanced at Bern's tail, which twitched in a way similar to how a cat's tail moves before it catches and kills a mouse. "A-Are you a monster... or a human?" He inquired.
She turned and walked back to the flower patch, and glanced at a nearby dead flower, she rose her hand and pushed her middle finger and thumb together.
"Nether." She replied, snapping her fingers. "I'm a witch."
Asriel watched in amazement as the flower suddenly was revitalized, it's wilted petals turned fresh and golden again, standing erect among the other flowers.
"We've been watching you for a while now, Asriel." Bernkastel spoke, once again walking up to Asriel and conjuring up a floating crystal in her hand. "You've shown to me that you possess great potential." Asriel peered into the crystal, and saw the battle between him and Frisk, as if it was recorded.
Asriel winced as he watched his hyperdeath form try to obliterate Frisk, but he refused. "Yeah, well you're too late..." He muttered, looking away. "I lost that power when I gave up the human souls, and I don't want it back anytime soon... Sorry."
Bernkastel paused for a moment before she giggled, causing a chill to run down Asriel's spine. "No, you didn't lose that power... You know that, right?"
Azriel furrowed his brow. "Wha-?" Before he could even begin to ask her to elaborate, she put the flower in front of his face.
"You understood the truth of your world." She explained. "And as such you were able to understand the truth about magic."
Azriel stared at the flower, taking her words in. As Flowey, he did horrible things to the people of the underground, rewound the timeline over and over again. Was that the power Bernkastel meant?
He pushed the flower away. "But... I did such horrible things when I..." He paused for a moment, tears of regret and shame forming in his eyes, as he looked down at the ground. "I don't want that kind of power if I end up like that again... I don't want to become flowey anymore... I want to see Frisk, mom, dad, I want to see everybody..."
Bernkastel watched as the goat boy sobbed, twirling the flower between her fingers again. "What if I gave you the chance to leave?" She asked.
Asriel looked up at Bernkastel, his face matted with tears. "H-huh?"
Bern turned towards one of the brick walls on the other side of the room and flicked her fingers. The wall contorted and shifted until it formed into a mighty grey door. "I am not from his world." She spoke to Asriel as she approached the door. "I am a Voyager, traveling from one world to the next to provide miracles." She placed her hand on the door and pushed it open. "And I think I can provide one for you too, if you-"
"BEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRNNNNNN~!" Asriel was surprised as another girl, one with blonde hair and a pink dress decorated with ribbons and pumpkins, complete with a pink beret, tackled Bernkastel to the ground. "Kihihi, I told you I'd find you~!" Bern responded by brutally kicking the girl off her and standing up as quickly as possible.
"Idiot." Bernkastel snapped "Do you want me to tear you apart?" The girl sat up from where she fell and shuddered with pleasure, a creepy smile plastered on her face.
"Only if you let me break you heart like a cookie, Bern~!" The girl giggled, and enveloped Bernkastel in a hug. Asriel was surprised and nervous over how this girl, who he assumed was a witch as well, talked so brutally to her "friend".
The girl got up and looked around the ruins, stopping once she saw at the flower bed. "Wow, Bern, you continue to surprise me." She seemed to look surprised as well. "I didn't even know you for the nostalgic type. I mean, I didn't expect to find you in THIS place aga-"
Bernkastel pushed the flower into the girl's face, silencing her. "Quiet you, I have a guest." She snapped, pointing at Asriel.
The girl looked at Asriel and after a few seconds lit up her face. Asriel watched in fear as she jumped from one side of the room to the other. He flinched as she landed before him, their faces inches apart. His blue eyes locked with her intense, red ones. The girl backed off a few paces and put her face to her hands, blushing. "OH BERN, HE'S SOOOO CUTE~! LIKE A STUFFED DOLL YOU WIN AT THE FAIRRRR~!" She shouted, causing Asriel to flinch again. "Is he a witch?"
Bern closed her eyes and signed. "A potential one, his name is Asriel..." The girl squealed loudly and twirled around for a moment before noticing Asriel's terrified expression.
The girl gave a cheeky grin and saluted lazily at Asriel. "Nice to meet you, I'm Lambadadelta." Asriel merely nodded in reponse, overwhelmed by Lambadadelta's flamboyance.
"Lambda. Move. Your face is scaring him." Bernkastel pushed Lambdadelta aside as she stood before Asriel. The blonde witch pouted and placed her hand on her hips. "As I was trying to say before, I am a Witch of Miracles, and I can help free you from your hell."
Asriel glanced at the open door, which apparently led to a pitch black abyss. "Wh-where does that door go...?" He asked, the words barely escaping his mouth.
Bernkastel smiled slightly as she looked at the door. "That door will take you out of this world, and will lead you to 'The Golden Land', a place where you can find refuge and learn how to use your magic."
Asriel gulped and looked into the abyss, which was so dark, he felt like he was being pulled into it. "Could I return..." He asked, the words seeming impossible to pull out of his mouth. "..if I wanted to?"
Bernkastel walked towards the door, Lambdadelta trailing behind. "If you manage to become as powerful as a Voyager, you can travel to any world you wanted, including this one." She placed a hand on one of the stone pillars of the door and smiled. "It would probably take time, but there will be witches in the Golden Land who could help you." She removed her hand from the pillar and extended the flower towards Asriel.
"However, you can refuse if you wish. You'll never see Lambada or me ever again, and you'll continue your fate as if this never happened, with all of it's consequences..."
Asriel stood there, taking this all in. On one hand, could he really have the potential to be a witch? Could his time as Flowey, as a 'monster', really have given him power? Of course, as Flowey he could rewind time, manipulate others. He did literally 'everything' he could in the underground. However, he ended up a monster with no soul, and it took Frisk and his friends to bring him back, to restore his consciousness. It was possible that exposing himself to this power could make him become something like Flowey again , if not worse.
However, on the other hand, what would happen if he refused? He would most likely be a flower again, with no power this time. If anything happened to him or the underground, he's be powerless, with with his DETERMINATION. There was also the fact that Frisk might rewind time, to cause him, Asriel, and everyone else to suffer so he could save his brother. Asriel didn't want that to happen, but if nothing changed soon, that possibility could happen at any moment.
Perhaps, he could learn to control the power he used against Frisk, whilst keeping his sanity. He could save himself, and Frisk wouldn't have to suffer anymore in his struggle to protect and save Asriel. Perhaps this was the answer that he and Frisk were looking for.
Maybe this wasn't just Asriel's miracle, but Frisk's as well.
Maybe he... with his power... could give Frisk the dream he wanted...
Asriel walked up to Bernkastel, who extended both her open palm, and in the other hand, she extended the flower. "Do you choose?" She asked.
Asriel looked at his choices and took a deep sigh, before he shook Bernkastel's empty hand.
The blue witch smiled widely, as if she just discovered the winning move in a chess game. "Good." As Asriel pulled his hand away, he noticed that in his hand was a golden butterfly pin. "With that, you are given permission to enter the Golden Land." Lambdadelta smirked as she and Bernkastel exchanged glances. The two witches pointed upwards, as Asriel stepped backwards in fear of what they were about to do.
"I, Bernkastel, Witch of Miracles..." Bernkastel pointed as Asriel with her finger.
"And I, Lambdadelta, Witch of Certainty..." Lambdadelta chimed in, pointing at Asriel as well.
Asreil looked down as golden fower petals surrounded and enveloped him, forming into a giant golden flowerbud.
"...hearby recognize the being Asriel Dremurr as... ASRIEL, SORCERER OF DREAMS!"
The flower bloomed, and inside was Asriel, who looked much like he did when he first enveloped the human souls, tall, and wearing a darker variant of his mother's robes. He opened his eyes, which had no black scleras as they did before.
Asriel looked at the witches, Lambdadelta beamed, chortling over how Asriel was still cute. Bernkastel said nothing, but used her magic to conjure a glowing cat.
"Follow this cat..." The blue witch explained, "...and you will be guided to the Golden Land."
As Asriel slowly walked towards the door, standing before the darkness, he knew that he was going to be gone for a long time, and he wanted to say goodbye to Frisk. But he had already said his goodbyes before Bernkastel showed up, and now it was time for Asriel to leave. However, he did take one final glance at the door to the ruins.
"I'll be back, Frisk, everyone. I'll see you again."
And with that, he follow the cat into the darkness, and the doors closed behind him.
Bernkastel looked at the flower as Lambdadelta simply stood there, pondering.
"Well, that was rather... generous..." She murmured after a few seconds.
Bernkastel smiled. "Yeah, it was..."
Lambdadelta glanced at the blue witch, raising an eyebrow. "If I didn't know better, I'd say that you what you did was an act of pure empathy..."
Bernkastel said nothing, but her smile curled.
Lambadadelta leaned her head back and smirked at Bernkastel. "But I do know better..." She giggled. "Don't I...?"
Bernkastel's smile twisted into a wide grin, much like a cat about to bite the head of a mouse. "I wonder..." She snarled, forming two small crystals.
"...is the cat alive..." One of the crystals showed Frisk among his friends, enjoying a meal Papayrus and Undyne unforunately made, and laughing."
"...or is it dead...?" The other crystal showed Chara, smiling, as the bodies of Asgore, Toriel, and Sans lied before his feet. He was covered in blood and clutched the bloody knife in his hands.
She looked back at the flower in her hands, watching as the golden petals suddenly turned red. "Chara..." She muttered to her self, ripping off a petal with her teeth and tossing the red flower into the bed of yellow ones.
Lambdadelta watched as the yellow flowers suddenly began turning red, as if Bern dropped a drop of red color in a pool of white, until the bed of flowers were red as blood.
"...how long has it been since THAT piece has been used...?"
Bern could only laugh as she strutted over the flowers, and headed towards the door to the ruins.