Chapter 1

"Ebott City University"

She was there.

After so many years of dreaming, of working to get good grades, of trying so hard… She'd finally made it.

Ebott City University.

Frisk licked her lips with nervousness as she looked up at the huge array of buildings. Some were red-brick. Others looked like castles. Still others had glinting brass roofs, shining in the bright summer light almost a mile away from where she sat in her car, waiting for the light to turn green, and as she looked, tapping her fingers impatiently on the steering wheel, her stomach clenched in a sudden terror. She really was here. She was here, thousands of miles away from her family and friends from high-school, where not a single living soul knew her name, going to a place that would change her life forever. She was really truly utterly alone for the first time in her life. Crap, her hands were trembling. Was she excited or scared? She couldn't tell.

She took a shaky breath to try and calm herself. Relax, she said. You're gonna be fine. You're in control of yourself. You got this. You've always had control.

This was a lie. Frisk hadn't always been in charge, but she had usually prided herself in being in relatively good control of her emotions. She had to. How else would she have survived life if she hadn't? Life was a cruel trickster.

The traffic light flashed suddenly a merry green, and Frisk touched the gas pedal. Her old red pickup truck rumbled into the intersection, and she turned left through the checkpoint gate that led to the college she had been waiting to attend for her entire life. Ever since Frisk had been a young child, she had wanted to go to Ebott City University. There was a reason for it too. Not many colleges in America had classes in magic, high-ranked courses, excellent melding of the monster and human races, and were as far away from her hometown as she could possibly get. The East coast. Can't get much farther from rainy old Washington than that, nope.

It was surprising how few people were here just yet. The semester was supposed to start in about a week, and Frisk had been expecting a lot more people to have been coming to move into their dorms. But then again, maybe it was just not quite crowded yet because the sun had only just risen. Frisk was, unfortunately, very used to waking up at dark o'clock in the morning on a daily basis. But hey, that's what happens when you take early-bird classes.

Also unfortunately for the girl was the fact that despite the lack of traffic, the parking lot in front of the school dorms was pretty packed. It felt like a mile walk from her old truck to the doors of the lobby, though it wasn't even close. Perhaps it was something to do with the two heavy suitcases she was holding in both hands, and the huge and overstuffed bag on her back. She had to turn sideways just to get through the wood double-doors.

There was a lobby area after the doors, almost like a hotel, trimmed with wood and decorated with innumerable potted plants and golden flowers. Pale green sofas and armchairs were scattered around, most up against the walls, a few gathered around short tables. Several were occupied by humans and monsters, chatting contentedly in the early morning (though it was almost 10 in the morning), a few holding bagels or fruit. Frisk noticed one particular dog monster munching on what looked like a whole fried fish, picking its teeth once in awhile with long sharp claws. She walked over to the front desk, where sat a bored looking woman chewing and snapping a huge wad of gum. She looked up at Frisk from the tablet she had been perusing with dull brown eyes, glancing once at her bags, then sat up straighter and wiggled the mouse of her computer.

"Registering?" she asked without preamble. Frisk nodded vigorously. "Okay. Last student number?"

Frisk rattled off her numbers, her arms shaking a little bit with the weight of her bags. The woman snapped her gum again and typed them in.

"Frisk Stimson?" asked the woman, looking skeptically at Frisk, who nodded again. The bags suddenly tumbled from her sweaty hands, crashing to the floor. Every occupant of the room looked at her momentarily before turning away, unperturbed. Frisk, bright red with embarrassment and trying to avoid people's eyes, stooped down hastily to retrieve the cases, and ended up making such a ruckus trying to pick them up, there were several snickers from the gathered humans and monsters. She gave up trying to pick up the heavy bags at the moment and instead stood back up straight, sweaty hand flying to her hair to stop it from getting in her eyes.

The woman raised an unamused eyebrow, furthering Frisk's embarrassment, and turned back to her computer monitor. "Hmm," she grunted disinterestedly before perusing her long list of Freshmen once again, popping her gum loudly. Frisk shifted on her feet nervously and turned around. She could have sworn that there had been eyes boring into her back still after her little episode, but when she looked around, she saw no one. There were over a dozen still people in the lobby ranging from a dark haired boy with multiple piercings, a girl wearing the shortest shorts Frisk has ever seen, a couple skeleton monsters, and a tall dog monster, but none of them were looking at her. Oh, scratch that, one of the skeletons was looking at her. Crap, he was nudging his taller companion and gesturing at her.

"Frisk Stimson, room 246," said the woman at the desk suddenly, jerking Frisk back to what she had been doing before. The woman was offering her a clipboard."Your roommate is a Freshman too. I'll need you to sign here and I'll grab you your keys."

Frisk signed her name on the line, glancing back at the skeleton monsters. The shorter one was still staring at her. Something about its smile as funny.

"Here you go." The woman at last offered Frisk her set of keys, which she took gratefully, glad to escape the unblinking gaze of those monsters.

There was a map by the stairs, showing Frisk that she was on the third floor. She looked up the stairs with great apprehension, and, as she saw how many there were just too reach the first floor, groaned. Her backpack and two suitcases suddenly seemed to weigh a ton, and she almost felt like crying as she thought of the other boxes still in her truck.

Slowly, she made her way up the stairs, her suitcases thunking against every step. She would occasionally bump into a passing student with a muttered apology, her heavy load making her much less maneuverable than she would have been.

At last, at long last, she made it to the third floor. Her room was near the end of a little hallway that was to the left of the main hall, a little offshoot where few people wandered. There were a few people there, but not many. As Frisk opened the door, she heard the satisfying click of the lock.

The room was empty. A weak ray of sunlight filtered in through wooden blinds onto the wood floor. It was essentially empty,with only an overstuffed green couch, two beds with single pillows on them, and a few other items, including a television, desk, bookshelves, and a coffee table. The overall air was a promising one once things were settled in.

Frisk dumped her bags in one corner, setting her backpack on top of them with a groan. Carrying the heavy bags up two flights of stairs, plus through a parking lot, had been agony, and she still had several more trips to go. Her arms were already hurting, and she almost felt like crying. But the world was cruel and saw tears as weakness. And so did she. So she rubbed her golden amber eyes vigorously with the heels of her hands and set her jaw, ready to dig the near impossible.

Back down the hallway, down the stairs, past the receptionist and the lobby, out the heavy wood doors, through the parking lot she went. Back to her red and white pickup, looking apprehensively at her present task, Frisk opened the door to her truck, ready to grab another box or two, before she heard a voice and jumped.

"Human… Don't you know how to greet a new pal?"

Frisk spun around, her hands balled suddenly into fists and her stance defensive. The shorter skeleton from earlier in the lobby was leaning against the side of her truck, his hands in the pockets of his jeans. Frisk did not change her position as the skeleton monster offered her a bony hand clad in a fingerless black glove. She stared at it surprisingly for a few moments before the skeleton monster shifted his weight to his other foot, turning his body entirely to face her and raising an… Eyebrow, she supposed, if that was what the thick dark line above his eye socket was. The little lights inside of them gave her a once-over before returning to her face.

"C'mon kid, I'm not gonna bite ya," he said jokingly, quickly shaking his hands in emphasis. Frisk mentally slapped herself and took it firmly.

There was a noise that could only be described as a fart that emanated from their clasped hands. The skeleton monster's face twisted alarmingly before he burst into raucous laughter. Frisk takes back her hand like it had been burned, clutching it close to her chest.

"Holy frick kid, you shoulda seen your face!" gasped the skeleton, doubling over and asking one knee. "Ohh that was beautiful." The skeleton straightened up once again, grinning with mirth and the lights that inhabited the large, dark holes that were its eyes sparkling with laughter.

"Sans!" came a sudden, louder, different voice. A tall skeleton monster appeared from around the back of Frisk's truck, wearing a red scarf despite the warmth if the day. It's tone was bossy and loud, but not unpleasant. "What are you-" he caught sight if Frisk. "Oh! It is the human from the lobby! What are you doing with her Sans?"

"Just talkin' bro," shrugged the first, shorter skeleton, turning back the face Frisk, who had crossed her arms tightly in front of her chest defensively, still not exactly comfortable. "Lemme introduce myself. I'm Sans. Sans Aster. And this is my little brother Papyrus."

"Hello human! What is your name?"

"Frisk," answered Frisk nervously, shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"Frisk, huh?" Sans the skeleton nodded, still grinning. "You a freshie or something?"

"Why?" Frisk avoided answering. The skeleton shrugged again, raising his hands in defeat.

"Hey kid, I'm not tryin' to pry or anything, it just looked like you needed some help moving your stuff." This was true. Frisk's eyebrows knitted for a few moments before she shrugged.

"Well, if you're offering, I'm not gonna say no," she said at last, opening the cab of her truck to grab a box. The two skeletons took the three of four boxes she had left in the bed of the vehicle as she took her more valuable items from the cab. Frisk thought it was a little funny that the taller skeleton, Papyrus, was carrying four and his brother was lifting the smallest box that was in the bed. She set her box labeled "Odds 'n' Ends" down momentarily to lock her car and followed the two brothers.

It was nice having to make only one trip with the help of these funny brothers, she conceded after they reached the doors of the lobby. Sans reached the door first and gave her a silly little bow as she passed through, maybe a little awkward due to his meager albeit bulky load. She gave him a breathy chuckle and tried not to trip over her feet as she crossed the threshold.

Frisk also noticed that while Sans the skeleton was quiet, preferring to listen or slip in a well placed pun, his brother Papyrus was quite the opposite, being loud and boisterous to the point of almost being annoying. But Frisk didn't think he was. Despite the outward appearance of being high minded and narcissistic, Frisk felt like she could see a sweet, sweet spirit underneath all the bravado and the scarlet of his scarf.

"Room 246," said Sans as they reached the door, winking at Frisk and shifting his grip on his box.

"Do you have the key, human Frisk?" asked Papyrus, peeking at her around his stack of boxes.

"Yeah, gimme a sec." Frisk set the boxes she was carrying and rummaged through her pockets. Straightening up, she made to unlock the door, but before she could begin to move her hand, the handle turned and opened itself.

A girl who looked remarkably like Frisk was holding the door open, blocking the way. Frisk marveled for a moment how similar they were. Same height, same body type, same haircut, they were even wearing striped sweaters. But this girl had dark red hair, and strangely iridescent red eyes, like rubies, and there was a large amount of dark eyeliner on her lower eyelids.

"Well howdy. You the one who dumped their stuff in the corner?" she asked, leaning against the doorway and crossing her arms. There was a slightly unpleasant smirk on her lips.

"Yeah, I am," Frisk affirmed, offering the girl a hand. "I'm Frisk."

The girl looked scathingly at Frisk hand, but eventually took it with a shrug. "I'm Chara. Guess we're rooming together then, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess we are."

Chara hummed in agreement, looking around at Frisk's little group and their loads. "This all your stuff? Or is Smiley Trashbag part of the deal."

"Smiley…?" Frisk turned and saw that Sans had a funny look on his face before whipping back to face Chara. "You mean Sans? He was just helping me bring my stuff up from my truck…"

"Well, he's done now." Chara's voice, which had been relatively friendly, was suddenly sarcastic and sharp as flint.

"Yeah, I'd say I am," Sans agreed, and Frisk was surprised to hear the coldness of his tone. "But ya see here, kiddo, I'm being a gentleman, so if you don't mind, I think I'll set these down in her room."

And with that, he snapped his fingers and all of Frisk's possessions suddenly flew into the air, out of Papyrus's arms, off the floor where Frisk had left them, suspended by blue magic. The only one not affected was the one Sans himself was carrying. He elbowed his way past Chara into the room, the boxes floating after him. Frisk and Papyrus bother entered after him, Frisk's jaw hanging open as the shorter skeleton set the boxes on the floor by her bags, then turned and, with one last look of contempt and strange triumph, marched out of the room.

"Sans," said Papyrus with a long suffering sigh as his brother left. "I am sorry humans Frisk and Chara. My brother is not acting like himself at the moment. I shall see if I cannot get him to come to his senses."

Papyrus turned on his heel, and, with one final cheery wave, said "I hope I'll see you soon, new friend Frisk!" and left, following his brother, leaving Frisk alone with Chara.

"Well, uh.. I uh…" Chara turned slowly, and Frisk's words died in her throat. But Chara smiled and shrugged.

"Sorry 'bout that," she said, shoving her hands in her pockets and leaning against the wall, crossing her feet at the ankles. The sunlight filtering through the wood blinds was splashing across her green and yellow striped sweater. "Smiley Trashbag know each other outside school, and we're not very fond of each other at the moment to say the least. Well, I guess that's what I get for going out with such a lazy idiot as him."

Frisk found her tongue. "You were a couple?" she asked mildly, shifting on her feet a little bit. Chara gave a bark of laughter and started to move towards the window.

"Hah! Yeah, I guess we were. Not for long though. I really couldn't care less what happens to him at this point." She lightly flicked Frisk's nose as she passed her, grinning with her eyes shut. "If you want my advice, keep away from him as much as possible. His brother's cool though, I like him."

"Papyrus. Yeah, he seems like a sweetheart I guess," Frisk agreed. "So uh…" she laughed nervously. "I, like, don't know anything about this place. You got any ideas, or like… Yeah?"

Chara laughed again. "Sure, I know plenty about this place. Daddy's one of the administrators who runs it after all. I practically got this place wrapped around my little finger." Another bark of laughter. "Hahah, j k, but seriously I got you covered partner. Now, on a more important note, why are you here?"

"Excuse me?"

"I mean what are you majoring in? Where'd you come from, why here, and what bed do you want?"

Frisk laughed herself and sat on the bed nearest to her, the one to the left of the window. "Well I could ask you the same things, yeah? If my dad ran a school, I'd want to get as far away from him as possible.

"Eh, I dunno, it might be 'cause my brother goes here too, and actually both my parents work here. I might say that I'm one of the few people who actually likes their family, thank you very much."

"Lucky," Frisk smiled benignly. This girl was starting to grow on her. She turned her head to look through the slats of the blinds. The world outside was green and promising, trees in full leaf and various brightly colored flowers dotting the grounds outside their dorm. And off in the distance, though not too far away that Frisk couldn't make out the windows, was one of the copper domed buildings that would be her new classrooms. The tense knot that was Frisk's stomach loosened slightly, but something else, something in her Soul perhaps, grew all the more painful. She was here. It already seemed like she had made -dare she say it?- friends out of the skeleton brothers and this girl Chara, who was chatting happily, not knowing that Frisk wasn't listening.

But Frisk was lost. She was there, yes, she was sitting on a bare bed in front of a red haired girl her age, inside of a university dorm on the eastern part of the United States of America. Yes, she was in a realm, a world where monsters and humans coexisted side by side, where magic was second nature to many. But she was still so lost. Different. Chara's comment about loving her family had caused her to draw upon unhappy memories. Something bad, something painful and scarring.

No.

No no no no no no ohhh no no no.

She can't allow herself to think these things. Better to forget they never happened than to think about them, to open old wounds.

"Hey, are you okay?" Chara's voice jerked Frisk back to reality.

"Huh?"

"You looked kind of funny."

"Nah man, that's just my face," Frisk made a weak stab at a joke. Chara snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Sure, sure, I ain't one to judge." Chara stood up from her bed and began to make her way to the door of their room. "I gotta go grab my stuff anyway. I guess I'll see ya in a few. Why don't ya go see if you can figure this place out while I'm gone, yeah? Later." She waved without looking back and closed the door behind her at last.

Leaving Frisk, once again, alone.

A/N Oh boy oh boy oh boy ANOTHER Undertale fanfiction for me WHOOHOO! I am such trash for this game, it has literally taken over my life. Jeeze. And this one's gonna be a long one too, yaknow, if I ever do it. I got a lot of ideas, but this is just going to be a side project while I work on Soultale and "Dear Angel, Dear Demon", which... Is also gonna be slow. Hahah... Hah... Ehh. Yeah. Yup. *suddenly awkward* OKAY WELP THIS IS GONNA BE FUN! Let's do it! Little notes; Frisk does have PTSD, but for what? I'll tell ya later. There is not really gonna be any "RESET" in this fanfic. Yeah, Chara and Sans were in a little relationship, but it didn't work, which is how I have figured out how to make them NOT like each other! YAY! AND I have never been to college, so cut me some slack okay all I'm going off of is my 9th grade health teacher who was also a college professor and stinkin' Monster's University, OKAY? SHEESH lolz.

I will be working on my Soultale comic, so... no guarantees that this is gonna be finished anytime soon... BUT IT WILL SOMEDAY! So have a good life, have fun, check out some of my other works, and please review my stuff, kk? Okay bye