Awareness hits Chara with all the subtlety of an oncoming train.

They are standing, inexplicably, in front of the entrance to the ancient Ruins, neck craned upwards, staring at the Ruins looming above. This is partially inexplicable because they hadn't been at the ruins in ages, but mostly inexplicable because until this very moment, they had been dead.

They blink. How is this possible?

Dragging their gaze away from the ruins above, they see Toriel, waiting patiently at the top of the steps to the right. Had they been thrust into the past, somehow? But they look around, and there's no sign of Asgore, or Asriel. Chara doesn't remember ever taking a trip to the ruins without Asriel by their side.

So. Probably not time travel, then.

They feel rooted to the ground, to where they stand in front of a scattering of red leaves. With some effort, they step aside and ascend the stairs to where Toriel waits. "Mom?" they ask quietly.

Toriel's eyes widen slightly. "Did you just call me... Mom?" She smiles. "Well, I suppose... Would that make you happy? To call me 'Mother?'"

She doesn't recognize them.

"Feel free to call me whatever you like!" And she walks through the entrance way to the next room.

For the first time, Chara looks down at themself. First on the list of things they should have noticed already: the stick clutched in their right hand. Somehow it had slipped their mind, despite their tight hold on the bark. They consider dropping it; they can't see why it would be useful. But for some reason, a part of them doesn't want to let go.

They're wearing brown boots, blue shorts, and - most unusually - a blue and purple striped sweater. It's not an item of clothing they remember ever being in their closet. And, wrapped awkwardly around their left wrist, a bandage. They frown.

Chara knows how to apply bandages properly. But whoever put this one on clearly didn't. They take a moment to adjust it, carefully putting down the stick before securing the bandage more tightly around their wrist. They wonder if they should peek under the bandage, wonder what they would see there.

They decide not to in favor of reaching up to pat at their face. Toriel didn't recognize them. They poke and prod at their nose and mouth and ears, but they all feel normal enough. Then again, they're not sure if they would be able to tell if their face had changed just through touch. Their hair feels about the right length, but they can't shake the feeling that something is off.

Toriel is no doubt waiting for them. Chara picks up the stick and walks through the doorway, into the next room.

"Welcome to your new home, innocent one."

Chara frowns. Surely that could not be right? The Ruins had never been their home. Sure, there was a house there that the Dreemurr family occasionally used if they wished to make the trek all the way from the capital to the Ruins, but those visits were few and far between. They did not have a bed there, unlike in New Home.

Toriel spoke for a time on the nature of the Ruins and the puzzles within, before stepping into the next room. None of this made sense. There is no reason that the Ruins should be "home," for either them or Toriel. There is no reason that Asgore should not be present. Most pressingly, there is no reason that they should have spent many long years in death only to abruptly come to standing at the entrance to the Ruins.

It wasn't even as if they had woken up there; rather, in one moment they had been dead, and in the next, they had been standing there.

Sighing, Chara trudges into the next room. They won't get any answers by standing still.

They are rewarded with this willingness to move forwards with a room that has several streams running through it. They wait for Toriel to finish speaking about the switches she has helpfully labelled, before walking up to the first stream and kneeling in front of it.

The water is gently flowing down towards a gate in the wall, so Chara's reflection is blurry. But it's enough.

The face looking up at them out of the water isn't theirs at all.

Oh, there are similarities - enough to almost make Chara doubt themself. Almost. The eyes are the same, for one thing. But the shape of their face is different, the pallor of their skin. No wonder Toriel doesn't recognize them.

They get up and complete the elementary puzzle in silence. If Toriel finds their behavior odd, she doesn't say so. She proceeds to show them a dummy to practice conflict resolution. They give it a whack, because that's what they would do if there was ever a real fight.

What they would have done, if Asriel hadn't held them back.

Toriel seems bewildered, but Chara doesn't explain themself.

In the next room, they are startled when a Froggit leaps out in front of them, triggering a fight. They frown. Monsters had never attacked them when they were alive... then again, they had been a guest of and then a member of the royal family.

Chara lightly hits the Froggit with the stick, figuring that it might at least be good for scaring off small monsters. The Froggit shudders, its health decreasing, but before it can retaliate Toriel approaches, glaring. The Froggit slinks away in shame, as it should.

Then Toriel literally holds their hand through the spikes puzzle. Chara had never been a puzzle enthusiast; in fact, they'd always found monsterkind's enthrallment with them to be... puzzling. (Somewhere, a skeleton toots a trombone without precisely knowing why.) But these rudimentary puzzles were, surely, within their capacity to solve. Toriel's over-protection was a little annoying, if not also slightly endearing.

All of this hand-holding makes Toriel's departure even more of a surprise. Waiting isn't particularly in Chara's nature, though, so they continue onward. They roll their eyes at Toriel's worrying.

"Be good, alright?"

Historically speaking, not likely.

The Froggit sitting by the doorway asks Chara to use mercy. Well, none of the monsters in the Ruins are likely to pose any threat. Humans, though... Humans deserve no mercy.

Chara crosses over to the large pile of leaves and stomps through them, feeling the satisfying crunch of leaves underfoot. Playfully crinkling through the leaves fills them with determination...

...and everything fades to nothing.

When awareness comes back to Chara, they're somewhere else. They're standing in a small room with a hunk of cheese stuck to a table. The purple stones making up the walls and floors of the room tell Chara that they're still in the Ruins, and a quick glance downwards confirms that they're still wearing the same blue clothes as earlier. Still holding that stick.

Possibly they're dealing with some form of memory loss - they don't remember getting here, after all, don't even remember which door they came through. But given that this body isn't their own, it seems more likely that whoever it belongs to hasn't fully vacated the premises.

Not knowing where they came from, Chara picks a direction and trudges through the rest of the Ruins waiting for the body's owner to wake up again, but nothing of the sort happens. Instead they encounter a variety of monsters, including one ghost. They deal with this with the tried and true method of "hit them until they don't want to fight anymore". It works pretty well on all of them, except for the ghost, who eventually tells them that they were "just lowering their HP to humor them".

Along the way Chara finds a ribbon (the monsters don't hit as hard if you're cute) and, even better, a toy knife. They cram the stick in their pocket and grip the knife instead. It's only a toy, so it's not even sharp, but it's a comfort anyways.

Soon after, they find both Toriel and the house. Toriel's habit of referring to them as "innocent one," "my child," "small one," is starting to make them suspect that they're not going to learn this body's name from Toriel. Maybe the original occupant told her their name at some point, but it would worry her if they asked what their own name was.

Seeing such a cute, tidy house in the Ruins gives them determination, and they almost expect it when they black out again.

This time, Chara actually does wake up, rather than having awareness shoved at them out of nowhere. They're curled up in bed, in a seemingly familiar room, and it's almost as if they could have dreamed it all - the plan, their death, Asriel's death, their occupancy of the nameless child in the blue and purple sweater.

Of course, when they flick on the lights it's obvious that it was no dream. For one thing, there's only one bed in the room, and it's on Asriel's side. They poke around the room, finding it to be fairly sparse. There's a box of uninteresting toys... as well as one with children's shoes of various sizes. Were these Asriel's? There is a plate of butterscotch pie on the floor. Chara carefully tucks it away in their pockets for safekeeping.

Chara sets out to explore the rest of the house. Toriel's room is as they remember her room in New Home being, with a diary filled with bad puns. Asgore's room, however, is "closed for renovations."

Renovations. A chill runs through them. Where is Asgore?

At the end of the hallway, there's a mirror. Chara peers into it.

"Who are you?" they ask. There's no answer.

At the other end of the house they find Toriel. Asgore is nowhere to be found. They want to ask Toriel where he is, but are not sure how. Instead they listen to Toriel's plans for their education and have some delicious pie for dinner. Toriel chatters on (about snails, predictably), but Chara is quiet, feeling the empty spaces where Asgore and Asriel should be.

More exploring after dinner reveals that the house is devoid of knives, or indeed anything sharp at all. But they do at least find a chocolate bar in the fridge, which they happily help themself to.

When they lie down to sleep again, they wonder if they'll wake back up.

They don't so much wake up as become aware again. This time, their surroundings are vastly different: a snowy forest, most likely near Snowdin. How far had this body's other passenger (or were they the passenger, and the original owner the driver?) walked? How long had they been in the dark, so to speak?

It is, at least, the same body - that much Chara can confirm by looking down at their clothing. They're holding the stick again, for some reason. Clearly their co-pilot prefers it, but Chara can't imagine why. Rummaging around in their pockets produces several items they hadn't noticed before - some candy, a spider donut - as well as the familiar pie and cell phone.

The cell phone. The cell phone! Triumphant, they retrieve the phone and dial the number labelled 'Toriel.' What they would say, they aren't sure, but perhaps they could at least find out why their co-pilot had left. (They decide to refer to their body's other occupant as their "co-pilot," for now. It is as accurate a description as any.) The phone rings...

Nobody picked up.

Of course not.

Frustrated, Chara stuffs their phone back into their pocket and stomps onward through the forest. They soon come across a pair of ridiculous skeletons. The taller of the pair refers to himself as "The Great Papyrus" and announces that he will capture Chara and deliver them to the capital.

Chara can't think of any good reasons why humans would be captured on sight. If other humans have been down here, acting as awful and - for lack of a better term - as monstrous as humans are... that can only mean bad things for the kingdom of monsters.

They're bad too, though. They've only ever done bad things. And for all they know, their co-pilot is awful as well. Probably is. Doesn't explain the stick, though.

The smaller skeleton, who Chara thinks Papyrus had called "Sans," claims he will "keep an eyesocket out for ya." He doesn't introduce himself, though, and Chara suspects that he has already met "them," while their co-pilot was in control.

Once both skeleton monsters have gone, Chara turns to gaze up the path they came from. They could go back, speak to Toriel of their troubles, if not their true identity. They could get some answers, maybe. But with their luck, they would black out along the way and their co-pilot would turn them back around.

With that thought, they continue towards Snowdin, a place which Toriel had once described as "the quaintest town in the Underground!" The journey is mostly characterized by puzzles, which they're not particularly in the mood for but solve anyways, and skeletons, whom they sometimes listen to but often tune out. They black out once along the way, coming to in a field of snowdogs. The less said about those, the better.

The taller skeleton, Papyrus, is clearly not a threat, despite his enthusiasm for capturing Chara. The other one is more of a mystery. He hasn't done anything threatening or aggressive so far, but as they know from experience, that doesn't mean he won't.

Of course, just as they reach Snowdin, the town gives them a familiar feeling of determination, and everything fades away again.

Typical.

When awareness slams once again into Chara, they're not in Snowdin anymore, which is also typical. The blue walls and sound of rushing water point to this being Waterfall. There's a monster kid, who is apparently thrilled to meet someone named Undyne, and Sans, who invites them to dinner. Grudgingly, they accept.

Chara isn't sure exactly how Sans' "shortcuts" work, but they're definitely unnatural. And unnerving.

Also, he's placed a whoopee cushion on the stool Chara sits on, which strikes them as juvenile.

"so, what do you think of my brother?" he asks. Presumably he means Papyrus, as there haven't been any other skeletons around.

Chara stares at him. What does he want them to say? "He's... cool," they venture, deciding not to voice the "I guess" that belongs at the end of that sentence.

"of course he's cool," Sans says, before rambling on about said brother. Then he chugs a bottle of ketchup. What a weirdo. "anyway, cool or not, you have to agree papyrus tries real hard."

That's practically Papyrus' defining feature.

Chara eats their burger, only vaguely listening for anything of import. Finally, Sans says he wanted to ask them something.

"have you ever heard of a talking flower?"

They frown at him. Who hasn't heard of echo flowers? "Yes," they say.

From what Sans says next, one's been talking to Papyrus. Chara can't see why this would be significant.

"i also wanted to ask something else. something a little more personal."

Chara stiffens. "Go ahead."

"this might be an awkward question, but..." He scratches his skull, looking away, before looking back. "do humans' eyes normally change color?"

"Change color?" Chara repeats stupidly, and wants to kick themself for it a moment later, seeing Sans' all-too-interested stare.

"when i met you, your eyes were more of a... chocolate color. but sometimes, like now, they're red. know anything about that, kiddo?"

"It's not any of your business."

"yeah? and the part where you only speak in sign language while you have brown eyes? that's not my business either?"

Chara remains silent.

"well... guess this isn't going anywhere. guess it's just as well - i'd hate to keep papyrus waiting. he's pretty eager for his date with you, you know." He winks.

Date?!

"besides, i gotta get back to work. but just so you know, kid... I've got my eyesocket on you."

Then he says the price of the meal is 10000 G, which Chara flatly refuses to pay. When they exit Grillby's, he's gone.

Well.

At least now they have the opportunity to explore Snowdin.

Snowdin, unfortunately, is a bust. The cinnamon buns are tasty, but Chara avoids the inn, remembering what happened the last time they slept. The librarby doesn't tell them anything they didn't already know. They might have better luck in the royal laboratory in Hotland.

Near the edge of town, Papyrus waits. Sans was probably pranking them about the date thing... right?

"SO YOU CAME BACK TO HAVE A DATE WITH ME!"

Okay, maybe not.

What on earth did their co-pilot get up to?!

Papyrus shows Chara to his house; bewildered, they follow him in. His house is... nice, though they make sure to avoid Sans' door, with its strange flickering lights. Papyrus approves.

The quantum physics book might have been helpful, or at least if it didn't hold an infinite series of joke books and quantum physics books inside.

Papyrus' room features a great many action figures, a racecar bed (which Chara refuses to admit is actually kinda cool), and a bookcase, the latter of which Chara makes a beeline for. Unfortunately, his books are all either about children's stories (ugh) or puzzles (even more ugh).

What Chara really wants is information on either A) the history of the Underground since their death, or B) souls, possession, and whatever weird body-sharing thing they have going on. They're not likely to get information on either category from Papyrus, so practicality dictates that they move on and try and get to the laboratory.

But... Papyrus seems so enthusiastic about this date. It would be cruel to just abandon him. Maybe Chara can gently let him down, and they can be on their way.

"Hey, Papyrus -"

"YOU SPEAK!"

...Right. Sans had said their co-pilot used sign language. "I do sometimes," they say. "That is, I'm sort of a different..." How much was safe to share with him? How much did Sans already suspect, or already know? "It's complicated, but the important part is that I'm not actually the one who..."

Papyrus waits patiently, skull cocked slightly.

"Who..."

...

Chara can't say it.

They can't tell Papyrus that they didn't ask him on a date.

"Never mind."

"THAT'S QUITE ALRIGHT, HUMAN! SO, THEN... DO YOU WANT TO START THE DATE?"

"...Sure."

"HERE WE ARE! ON OUR DATE!"

Truly, Chara thinks, he is the master of understatement.

"I'VE ACTUALLY NEVER DONE THIS BEFORE."

"Me neither," they admit. Of course, their co-pilot may very well have been on a date. Their co-pilot might be a dating master.

Their co-pilot asked Papyrus out on a date and then left Chara to do the dirty work, so... maybe not.

"DON'T WORRY, HUMAN! YOU CAN'T SPELL 'PREPARED' WITHOUT SEVERAL LETTERS FROM MY NAME!"

Against their will, Chara laughs. Then they blink in surprise. It's been a long time since they had any reason to laugh.

Papyrus, of course, has brought a dating rulebook. He's ready to have a great time. Chara's less certain, but there's no turning back now.

"I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS... WILL GO ON A DATE WITH YOU!"

"...Yes."

"WOWIE!"

He's... really kind of adorable? Like a puppy. They wonder if they should say so, to keep up the charade that they are actually interested in dating him.

"STEP THREE... PUT ON NICE CLOTHES TO SHOW YOU CARE! WAIT A SECOND... THAT BANDANNA AROUND YOUR HEAD... YOU'RE WEARING CLOTHING RIGHT NOW!"

Never mind. That clearly won't be necessary.

"EARLIER TODAY, YOU WERE ALSO WEARING CLOTHING. CAN IT BE? YOU'VE WANTED TO DATE ME FROM THE VERY BEGINNING!?"

Only one answer seems suitable.

"Yes."

Papyrus proclaims that Chara is "way better at dating" than he is, which Chara does not think is saying a lot.

They have to draw the line, however, at Papyrus' ridiculous "secret style." If their co-pilot had wanted to excessively compliment him, they should have gone on this date themself.

"I hate it," they solemnly tell Papyrus when he asks their opinion.

"NO! YOUR HONESTY... IT SHOWS HOW MUCH YOU CARE!"

Of course it does.

Chara quickly finds his "secret," a present hidden under his hat. It's... spaghetti. They politely refuse it, curious as to whether this, at last, will offend The Great Papyrus.

"YOU'RE LETTING ME HAVE IT INSTEAD? BECAUSE YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE PASTA?"

Nope.

"IT'S CLEAR NOW. YOU'RE MADLY IN LOVE WITH ME. EVERYTHING YOU DO, EVERYTHING YOU SAY. IT'S ALL BEEN FOR MY SAKE."

Chara hopes this will, at the very least, satisfy their co-pilot.

"IT'S TIME THAT I TOLD YOU. I, PAPYRUS... OH, SHOOT."

What?

"I'M SORRY. I DON'T LIKE YOU THE WAY YOU LIKE ME. ROMANTICALLY, I MEAN."

That makes two of us, Chara thinks.

They exit Papyrus' house down one possible romantic partner but up one platonic phone number. When they reach the sentry station in Waterfall that they had regained consciousness in, Sans is nowhere to be seen. Secretly, they're glad of that.

Chara moves forward, and gets their first sight of the famous Undyne, who looks like a force to be reckoned with. Papyrus falteringly tries to convince her that she doesn't need to kill them, which is nice of him, they guess. The monster kid is so thrilled that he falls on his face.

A feeling of dread hangs over them, but they stay determined.

They're not even surprised when they black out again.

When they become aware once more, they're in another room with a hunk of cheese stuck to a table. "Deja vu much?" they mutter.

"Deja vu much?" the echo flower says.

A mouse in the wall squeaks.

The echo flower squeaks back.

Time to go. They march out of the room, only to come to an abrupt stop when they see Sans standing next to a telescope, leaning against the wall.

"i'm thinking about getting into the telescope business," he says. As if he doesn't see anything out of the ordinary. "it's normally 50000 G to use this premium telescope. but since i know you, you can use it for free. howzabout it?"

If what he said about their eyes is true, then he already knows that they're the one he questioned in Grillby's. Maybe that's what he means by "since i know you."

Not that there's anything to see with a telescope in the Underground. Still, maybe it would be best to humor him. Chara nods and steps forward to peer into the telescope. All they see is... red.

"huh? you aren't satisfied?" he asks when they turn back to stare at him. "don't worry." He winks. "i'll give you a full refund."

Feeling something wet on their face, they reach up and pat around their left eye. Their fingers come away coated in pink paint. Sans doesn't say anything, but his ever-present grin says enough.

At least they're in Waterfall; they'll be able to wash it off soon enough.

Soon after, they acquire both some nice cream bars and a pair of used ballet shoes. The shoes make them feel incredibly dangerous. Papyrus calls them and says something inane about telling Undyne that they were wearing what they said they were wearing earlier, because obviously they would have known not to truthfully answer such a suspicious question. "SHE SURELY WON'T ATTACK YOU, SINCE YOU AREN'T WEARING A DUSTY TUTU, AND I DIDN'T LIE! NO BETRAYAL ANYWHERE!"

They are, in fact, wearing a dusty tutu. It matches the ballet shoes. Unfortunately, the ballet shoes aren't much help later, when Undyne is chasing them across a series of bridges while making spears poke up from the ground.

Strangely, when they fall from the bridge, they feel another presence, even as they fall unconscious. Distantly, they hear Asriel's voice.

They wake up in a bed of familiar yellow flowers... in the middle of a garbage dump. Whatever presence they thought they felt is gone, and Asriel is nowhere to be found. Which... well, of course he's nowhere. He's dead.

Why aren't they still dead?

They wade through the water, surrounded by piles of garbage. In a way, the unending cycle of garbage... fills them with determination? As is becoming familiar, they black out.

They become aware again and it's business as usual, kicking monsters in the face until they run away. There are several houses, only one of which is unlocked; it proves to belong to that shy ghost from the ruins. The ghost seems unsure about their presence, but offers them hospitality anyways.

Lying on the floor feeling like garbage is certainly an activity Chara can appreciate.

It's when they move on past the Blook residence that they stumble across their greatest find. Old Gerson runs a shop now and, miracle of miracles, one of the things he's selling is a torn notebook, complete with a pen. They purchase it immediately and sit down nearby, out of sight.

Finally, a way to communicate with their co-pilot.

*What is your name? they write at the top of the first page, along with *What do you know of our little situation?

Then they pick themself up and move on, clutching the notebook all the while. If they're lucky, the next time they black out and wake up, their co-pilot will have noticed the notebook and provided them with answers.

All in all, a critical find. Their next find is not critical, but rather... irritating.

They're filled with detemmienation.

To their great surprise, when they become aware again, they're still in Temmie Village. They look down at the notebook, which has some additional writing in it.

*im Frisk.
*who are you? is crossed out, and beneath it is written, *wait i think i no. are u Chara? i heard ur name when we fell. are u the one who controls me when i dont remember anything

Frisk. Finally, a name.

*Yes, I am Chara, they write. *We appear to trade control over this body every so often. This is your body, yes? Apparently, when we switch control, our eye color changes. Not sure if that is significant.

Now, did Frisk voluntarily turn control over to Chara? If so, how? They frown, looking over the strange Temmie Village. Perhaps... They concentrate, and fill themself with detemmienation.

They jolt back into awareness, and see a reply.

*yea. this is my body. im glad to talk to u. i thout i was just goin crazy. forgeting wat i was doing. what color are ur eyes? mine are brown.

*Red. I'm told it's rather distinctive. Sans seems to know we're different people, based on the eye color thing.

The two continue writing back and forth for some time:

*i like sans! hes funny. havent seen him in awhile

*I have. He played a prank with a telescope not too long ago.

*haha!
*im not sure what else to say... wat do u do when ur in control?

*I try and figure out what's happening to us.
*By the way, I ended up going on that date with Papyrus. Sorry if you were looking forward to that.

*thats ok. wat happend?

*He somehow came to the conclusion that I was madly in love with him. But he doesn't like me (us?) that way. He just wants to be friends.

*k good. i just want to be friends too.
*will u be my friend, Chara?

Chara hesitates. Frisk is another human, and on principle Chara doesn't trust them. They read back over their conversation. They don't seem to be completely awful.

Besides, Chara thinks, if Frisk is bad, it would be to their benefit if Frisk thinks they don't suspect anything.

*Sure, we can be friends.
*By the way, I've been wondering... What is with your attachment to this stick? It's not even a good weapon.

*weapon?
*its my lucky stick! i found it going up the mountin.
*why would i want a weapon? i dont wanna hurt anyone

Chara frowns. How has Frisk not gotten them killed yet? Then they read Frisk's reply again, and sigh. Frisk had climbed Mt. Ebott, just like they had.

*To defend yourself. Haven't monsters been attacking you? They definitely attack me.

*o well they do attak. but i talk to them and make friends. they dont always understand sign but usualy i can make friends anyway. then i use mercy!
*Chara, do you... do you hurt monsters?

No wonder this kid wanted to date Papyrus. They are two peas in a pod.

*I fight back until the monsters don't want to battle anymore. Then I let them run away. They'll be okay. Monster food heals any injuries.

*o...
*well you shuld tri making friends! none of the monsters r mean. even if they attak you, inside they dont realy want to fight. they just think they haf to! like papyrus.

*Hmm. What about this Undyne?
*I find it hard to believe that she doesn't really want to fight.

*whos undyne agin? shes papyruses friend right

*Yes. Papyrus' friend, and also the figure in armor that has been chasing us. She uses spears. Have you not met her?

*oooo thats who that was. she chased me across some briges, while throwing many spears. they hurt

*Yes, her. I think she's the captain of the Royal Guard. Papyrus called once and said that her opinion of us is "murdery." I don't think she wants to be friends.

*well, if shes papyrus friend then she cant be too bad. we just haf to talk to her!

Chara sighs.

*If we're lucky, we can escape her. If not, be careful. Being dead isn't very pleasant.
*On a different subject... Why did you leave Toriel's house? And why won't she answer the phone?

*i dont no. she never picks up
*i left bcus... i felt like i culdnt stay. had to leav
*she got scary. she said other kids die when they leav. she said asgor kills them
*she didnt want me to go so she fought me. i didnt fight back and eventuly she let me go. she was realy sad. she said not to come back. mayb thats why she dosnt anser the phone

Chara's grip tightens on the notebook when they read that. Dread runs down their spine.

*She said Asgore kills humans?
*King Asgore? That doesn't make any sense.

*wait asgore is the king? papyrus said the king was realy nice

*He is. He's incredibly gentle. That's why it doesn't make any sense.

*o well thats what toriel said. mayb i can make friends with him too

*With Asgore, yes. I normally wouldn't recommend trying to make friends with those trying to kill you. But Asgore is kind. Almost too kind. I'm sure he'd love to be your friend.
*I just don't understand why he'd want to kill humans.

*wait, do u know him?

Chara shuts their eyes tightly.

*I did. He was my adoptive father. And Toriel, my adoptive mother.
*Before I died.

*there ur parents?
*r u a gost?

*Yes, they were my parents. The only real parents I had.
*I'm not sure if I'm a ghost. I'm definitely not the monster kind of ghost, though.

*o. did they get divorsed?

They shake with helpless, near-hysterical laughter.

*I don't know. Maybe. Toriel didn't used to live in that house by herself. She used to live in the castle with Asgore. She was the queen. Maybe they got divorced after I died.

*thats sad

*Yes. It is.
*I'm going to keep going now. I'll write down anything important in this notebook.

They stand and - finally - leave Temmie Village.

The next time a monster leaps out to attack them, Chara raises their foot, ready to kick out with the ballet shoes, before hesitating. Frisk's ideas about befriending everyone are naive, but most monsters don't pose a threat. Undyne aside, monsters like this Woshua might not really want to fight.

They don't know what to say, though. How to make "friends". They scowl. They will do it their way, they decide, kicking out at Woshua. They're careful not to kill him. He'll be fine later.

Frisk, they realize, doesn't know the history of the monsters, and - thanks to their shared control of Frisk's body - hasn't been able to read all of the ancient writings on Waterfall's walls. So Chara takes a few minutes to summarize the history of the Kingdom of Monsters. It's not because they feel guilty.

It's not.

Chara thinks they've run into a dead end when they reach the end of a hallway, soon afterwards. But perhaps the exit is through the seagrass? They decide to investigate it - after they hear what this echo flower has to say.

The echo flower says,

"Behind you."

They turn around.

For the first time, Undyne speaks. (The first time to Chara, at least.) Her voice is the same as the one from the echo flower.

"Seven," she says. "Seven human souls."

Chara knows that requirement all too well.

"With the power of seven human souls, our king, King Asgore Dreemurr, will become a god. With that power, Asgore can finally shatter the barrier."

Their eyes widen. Asgore was collecting human souls? He was finally trying to break monsters free?

"He will finally take the surface back from humanity and give them back the suffering and pain that we have endured."

Chara can't believe it. Everything they had tried - and failed - to teach Asriel, Asgore had learned instead?

They are shocked enough by this revelation that they do not move when Undyne approaches them, spear in hand. It's only the monster kid's intervention that stops Undyne's advance.

Since she didn't seem to be coming back just yet, they pull out the notebook and write.

*Nearly fought Undyne just now. That monster kid got in the way and she dragged him off.
*According to Undyne, Asgore's collecting human souls so he can shatter the barrier that keeps them trapped underground. That's why he's killing humans. To free monsterkind.

They have to be careful not to let the notebook get wet as they wade through the water. After a series of echo flowers, a final plaque on the wall speaks of the prophecy. The prophecy - the one Chara had tried to fulfill long ago, with Asriel. They write that down for Frisk, too, though they're not sure why.

Trying to follow the prophecy had only gotten them dead.

The monster kid - who apparently is literally called Monster Kid - approaches them on a narrow catwalk. He asks them to insult him, but they shake their head. It would upset Frisk if they were mean, no doubt.

Then he trips and falls, and Chara hesitates. What if Undyne attacks them...? But Frisk would be sad if they let Monster Kid die. They're probably best friends or something.

So they rescue Monster Kid and it pays off - Undyne backs away.

Then, of course, they run into Undyne again.

"Six," Undyne says, from the top of that ridiculously high peak. "That's how many souls we have collected thus far."

Bravo, Dad, Chara thinks, only a touch bitterly. You've gotten farther than I ever did, that's for sure.

They're not about to give up their soul, though. They've gotten used to being alive again, even if it's a strange kind of life. Besides...

It's not their soul to give.

When Undyne's finished monologuing, Chara pulls out the notebook again.

They write, *I saved Monster Kid and he saved me again. About to fight Undyne. She says they've collected six of the seven human souls they need to break the barrier. She wants your soul for the seventh.
*I'm not about to let her have it.

The wind is howling. They're filled with determination...

Oh, that's just typical.

Chara becomes aware again and... the wind is still howling. They're still standing where they were when they blacked out.

Did Frisk want to leave this battle to them?

They look at the notebook.

*wouldnt it be better? if they did take my soul, monsters could be free. isnt that what everyone wants?

Oh, for goodness' sake. They sit on the ground.

*I thought the same way, once. I gave my soul to my brother, so that he could leave and set them all free.
*He died too.
*Now our dad is killing humans. If he's killed six so far, then no doubt some other poor sucker will fall down here someday. THEY can be the seventh soul. Don't do anything stupid.
*If you die, I'll go back to being dead.

*ok, Frisk replies.
*what about undyne then? what shuld we do? i dont want you to hurt her. how can we be friends?

*I don't know. She seems very determined to strike us down.
*She's also not very impressed with your "wimpy goody-two-shoes-shtick." Those were the actual words she used. She apparently disdains hugging random strangers.
*Also, she seems to think that humans have giant robots and flowery swordswomen.
*I know I've been dead for a while. Did I really miss giant robots?

*uhhh i dont think so
*anyways i think... i think im gonna face her. theres gotta be a way to be her friend
*or at least a way to spare her.

This time, when Chara becomes aware, they're holding the pen in one hand and the stick in the other.

*She's still up there, so it looks like you didn't face her. Do you want me to fight her instead?

*no! i think this is something i haf to do. i dont think fighting her is the way!
*i just wanted to tell u, in case... she realy does kill me
*pleas dont fight her

Chara could stand up now, could leave the notebook behind and face Undyne against Frisk's wishes. They could protect Frisk, keep them safe from a monster they couldn't possibly befriend. By ensuring Frisk's survival, they would ensure their own as well.

They pick up the pen.

*All right. I won't fight her.
*Be careful.

The howling wind fills them with determination.

It's not their soul to give.

Author's notes:

This is my Undertale Secret Santa gift for bpdtrickster!

The title is from the Dragon Age: Inquisition song of the same title. If there's anything confusing, feel free to let me know, and I will do my best to clear up the confusion! Also, I just wanted to say that this is, in fact, complete. At least for now. I may write another chapter later, but I have nothing planned and I make no promises.