With a gasp of dismay, she tripped, tumbling into the caverns below. She attempted to shriek for help, but her cry was compressed into a mere squeak. She landed with a thud onto something soft and closed her eyes, succumbing to the darkness.
Muffled voices. Followed by a splash.
More voices.
More splashes.
She groaned and sat up, rubbing the back of her throbbing head. Around her, it was pitch dark except for a light coming from where she had fallen. The stench of garbage filled her nostrils and bombarded her senses; disorienting her.
"I think it came from over here!" called a shrill voice.
She had begun to accustom herself to the dark. She saw a beam of yellow light flash its way through the piles of garbage, attached to the arm of a great beast with fangs and horns and grotesque...
No.
That was just a shadow.
The horrible being shrank and was replaced by a small white and green figure, knee deep in thick, sludge-ridden waters as it rounded a corner. It was being followed by a pale, translucent figure... a ghost, maybe?
"Look!" the voice from before cried. The light landed on her, blinding her. She lifted an arm to shield her eyes. "Over there!"
"Couldn't we just leave it and go home...?" a deeper, sadder voice responded, probably belonging to the ghost-thing.
"Ah, come on," the higher voice replied defiantly. "Let's just check it out."
"Don't say I didn't warn you..."
The two figures neared her, closing in. Suffocating. The walls were encircling her. The cave ceiling was coming down. She couldn't breathe. Couldn't move. She felt dizzy as the cave spun. Everything was shrinking... everything was-
"Oh wow, you look kinda hurt," the shrill voice cooed as it sat down near her. She flinched away as the voice's owner laid a paw down on her shoulder reassuringly.
She could see it was some sort of goat-boy, with paw-like hands and feet instead of hooves and small horns indicating his young age. He wore a light green shirt with yellow stripes and plain black pants, no shoes. He held a flashlight and set it down, engulfing them in darkness once more. She rubbed her eyes.
"What's your name?" He asked. It took her a second to realize he was talking to her.
"M... me?" she replied shakily.
"That's a weird name," the goat-boy said, cocking his head.
"No, that's not what I meant," she growled. "My name..." Name? Name?! I can't... I can't remember it now! My head hurts and I don't know where I am and it's dark and I want to go home and I'm having a conversation with an actual talking goat and it smells like garbage and-
Something clicked.
She remembered something.
"My name's... Chara..." she choked out.
"Chara?" the goat-boy gasped. "That's a nice name."
Chara blushed. The weird, translucent, white thing crept closer.
"Your mom's gonna get worried," it muttered.
"Shut up, Blook," Goat-Boy grumbled.
"Your dad too..." the Blook came closer and closer still.
"I said shut up, Blook!" the goat boy craned his neck around and shot a glare at this Blook creature.
"What's a Blook?" Chara asked. If Goat-Boy heard her, he hadn't shown it.
"Anyway," Goat-Boy muttered. He looked up, eyes brightening. "My name is-"
A crash followed by the hoots and howls of proud soldiers echoed through the cave. These were followed by the crackle of laughter.
"Stupid skeletons..." Goat-Boy muttered.
"S... skeletons?" Chara stammered.
"Huh? Oh!" Goat-Boy exclaimed. "Don't worry, they're harmless. The tall one wouldn't hurt a fly and the short one... well... he's too lazy to hurt one." This failed to comfort Chara. "Anyway, my name's Asriel."
"Huh," Chara grinned a bit. This was all just some stupid dream and she'd wake up in her bed any moment, go downstairs, have some breakfast... It was a dream. Why not have fun with it? "Up till now, I thought your name was just Goat-Boy."
Goat-Boy- or, rather, Asriel- chuckled. "I've been called worse. Come on," he beckoned her as he stood. "Let's take you to Mom and Dad."
"Who are they?"
"Queen and King of the Underground, Toriel and Asgore Dreemurr." Asriel must have seen the hesitation and fear in Chara's eyes, because he added, "oh, don't worry. Also harmless. Mom's really nice, and Dad's super tough. They'll take care of you like they have me."
A few hours, or maybe days, Chara couldn't tell if her life depended on it, passed. They had reached the palace; a grand stature filled with golden walls and windows. Before it, a city and a small, quaint home. Toriel and Asgore weren't there, as Asriel had pointed out, so they continued to the castle. Inside, she heard yet more muffled voices; one feminine and warm, the other masculine and deep. Her heart thudding in her chest, she ducked behind Asriel as he opened the door to the castle.
"Hey Mom, hey Dad," Asriel said as he entered.
"Welcome home, dear," the feminine voice said. Chara decided it belonged to Toriel.
"Son, what's that smell?" the deeper one asked. Asgore.
"A human."
A stillness filled the air around them. Chara wanted nothing more than to go home. I'm going to get eaten alive in here... she thought frantically.
The tug on her sleeve.
Her own dull footsteps echoing in the corridor.
Her feet numb.
Her eyes filled with tears.
Her senses overwhelmed.
Her hand clinging desperately to Asriel's, as if he offered protection.
A white figure in a purple gown appearing.
The pale floor rushing to meet her forehead as the dizziness overtook her.
Chara awoke with a start in a bedroom.
A dream.
It was all a dream, after all. She could go out her door and go downstairs. Everything would be normal. As it should be... Even if she didn't want to be in humanity anymore. She missed the warmth of her house in the cold of the dream. Her parents would greet her like always and she could tell them of the wild dream she'd had. Her father would grin and chuckle, while her mother would tell her "It's just a dream," as if everything she had were a nightmare.
Chara glanced around and, realizing it wasn't her own room, let out a shriek. Cries of distress started to flow through her, escaping her throat despite her vain efforts to try and stop them. She hugged her knees to her chest and curled beneath the covers, struggling, failing to make sense of it all. What is going on?! Her thoughts whirled. Her chest was shaken by sobs, and she shut her eyes tight against the hot tears. The door creaked open.
"Chara?" a frantic voice came from the doorway. "Mom!"
Asriel.
Quick, pounding footsteps made their way to the bedroom.
"Dear, are you alrigh-" the warm, motherly voice stopped as she saw the trembling figure beneath the covers. "Oh my..."
Step.
Step
Step.
The goat creature- Toriel- was sitting on her bed now. She reached down for Chara and lifted her by her shoulders, pressing the young girl into her chest, and Chara offered little resistance. The steady beat of her heart against Chara's ragged, panicked breaths soothed her only slightly.
"There, there," Toriel soothed. "You're okay, my child. It was all just a bad dream... you're okay..."
Chara cried and cried and cried into Toriel's shoulder, her sobs muffled by the fabric and fur. She could sense Asriel lingering by the doorway, unsure of what to do.
"I don't... I don't even know where I am..." Chara wheezed in between sobs. "I just... want to go home... I want to see my mom and my dad and..." her voice dissolved into pathetic tears once more.
"I know, I know," Toriel whispered. "Hush, my child. You'll be okay."
The cooing continued until Chara pulled herself free from the warm embrace. She sniffled and glanced embarrassedly at the dark, wet splotch she had left on Toriel's apron. A soft, paw-like hand nudged the hair out from Chara's face. She reached and laid her own hands on it. It felt silky and fuzzy beneath her cold fingers.
"See?" Toriel said. "You're okay, innocent one."
"I wanna go home," Chara said pathetically.
"You're going to be alright," Toriel said again. "What do you say we go bake?"
Chara looked up. Bake?
As if reading her thoughts, Toriel said, "Yes, bake! I have a wonderful recipe I've been developing. It's called Butterscotch-Cinnamon Pie." After a brief moment's hesitation, she added, "no, it's not the best name in the world, but then again, Gorey came up with it. Considering he named the Underground Home, he's not very good with naming things."
"We're making pie?!" Asriel exclaimed. "Oh boy!" his footsteps thudded quickly down the hall and the unmistakable sound of pots and pans crashing to the floor echoed through the walls. Toriel chuckled.
"Unless you want snail pie?"
"N-no... Butterscotch-Cinnamon sounded okay..." the thought of ingesting snails made Chara's stomach churn.
"Good," Toriel beamed. "It's Gorey and Asriel's favorite, too."
Eight months had passed and Chara still hadn't left.
She was with Asriel, exploring the Hotland. She had taken to a kind cientest named Dr. Gaster, another skeleton, and his apprentice Alphys. The young yellow lizard was timid; and when she had first met Chara hid behind Gaster's long, billowing coat. She absolutely loved the shyness of the little yellow creature. They'd become great friends; Chara had taught her of an anime she much enjoyed back on the surface. Alphys had squealed with joy, and insisted that Gaster find out more about these animes. She'd also been acquainted with the two skeletons, Papyrus and Sans. They were the supposed sons of Dr. Gaster, as Sans had hinted, but Chara didn't ask the scientist to clarify. Papyrus was a tall, energetic young skeleton. Sans was shorter, but also older and lazier than Papyrus. They were brothers, and lived in Snowdin.
Sans had shown Chara around Snowdin, taken her and Asriel to a place called Grillby's; a fun little pub that served burgers, fries, and fizzy drinks that made Chara's nose tingle. Sans mostly drank ketchup, though.
"Asriel," Chara said, snapping back to the reality of the intense heat of the Hotland.
"What?"
"What's that?"
She gestured to a small pear-shaped volcano-like monster with a grin and contentedly closed eyes. She'd never seen one before.
"Vulkin," Asriel replied, continuing forward.
"Hug me!" the Vulkin said proudly.
"Come on, Chara, let's go," Asriel muttered as he tugged on her sleeve.
"He wants a hug."
"It's dangerous."
"I don't care." It's just a dream anyway, Chara added in her head. She still hadn't quite accepted the fact that this was her new reality. As Asgore had said, there's no going beyond the barrier once trapped inside.
"No, Chara. Let's go."
"Fine."
With that, they went back to their home and told Toriel of their adventures over Butterscotch-Cinnamon pie.
"Sounds like you two kids had some fun, hmm?" Toriel said from the entrance to the kitchen, two more slices of pie in her hands.
"Yeah," Asriel nodded, his mouth full. "We saw a Vulkin."
"A Vulkin? How exciting!"
Chara picked at her food. She was still bored, having read the same books over and over. She couldn't bear to turn another page of the History of the Underground, or that god-awful snail picture book Asriel had found in the garbage dump. An idea clicked.
"Asriel, you know the Ruins?" Chara asked mischeviously. "That skeleton showed us once, remember?"
"Oh yeah!" he exclaimed, pie crumbs shooting from his mouth. Toriel shot him a look and he sank back in his seat.
"Wanna go there tomorrow?"
"Sure! Can we, Mom?"
Toriel looked uneasy. She knew of the monsters there, even if they were practically harmless, they hadn't had much food save for some plants growing in the cracks. They'd be hungry for anything, including Asriel and Chara's flesh. Asgore was by the fire in Toriel's chair, reading about the history of snails. Toriel glanced at him, asking approval.
"Oh come on, Tori," Asgore rumbled. "Let the kids have some fun, it gets pretty tight in here. They can bring Dr. Gaster or little Alphys if they need help."
"Well... if Gorey thinks it's okay..."
"Then we can go?!" Asriel squeaked.
"Sure. But bring a cell phone."
"Awesome!" Asriel howled. He stood up quickly, almost knocking his chair to the floor. He reached over and grabbed Chara's hand, pulling her from the table. "Come on, let's go to sleep right away so the next thing we know, we can head out! I've never been to the Ruins before..."
Asriel was an adventurous little sprout, and he loved seeing places he'd never been to. He'd grown bored of helping Gaster install pipes into the Core he was working on, or Alphys and her robot. With nowhere else to explore, he had resigned himself to helping out in the Laboratory. Occasionally, Alphys would give them tours of the Laboratory below the Laboratory. It was where she and Gaster would work on the most secretive projects. Alphys would sneak them in and show them blueprints for things like time machines, robots, and the main power cell for the whole Lab. Her robot, Mettaton, as she'd called it, had been her only friend until the two youngsters had arrived. When it worked, at least. Occasionally it would spring to life and start waving its gloved hands, shouting intelligible remarks, then it would shut right back down again. There was also a pecular skull-like large... thing. It had wires protruding from it and a few cracks here and there, but they had known better than to question it.
Asriel threw himself onto his bed once inside their shared room and hardly had time to get comfortable. Chara came up and tucked him in, as she'd always do to her adoptive brother if Toriel or Asgore didn't come inside in time. He grinned and shook with excitement.
"If you're like that all night you'll never get any sleep," Chara murmured affectionately.
Reaching into a toy chest, she wrapped her fingers around a small music box. She also grabbed Asriel's favorite stuffed toy; a monster called Froggit that Toriel had made. Chara's adoptive goat mother would make lots of toys like these, all modeled after monsters from the Ruins and Snowdin. Her personal favorite was one that looked like one called Whimsun. She set the Froggit on Asriel's bed and he curled into it.
"Do you suppose we'll see a real Froggit?" He whispered excitedly.
Chara nodded and started winding up the music box. She kept twirling the handle until she heard a click, and she set it down on Asriel's nightstand. The familiar tune chimed up from the small contraption; a simple seven-note melody. There was another, more intricate one that played its song only once before it had to be re-wound. It was around two minutes long. This one playing currently in particular had been Asriel's favorite for a long time, since they'd dug it up from the dump awhile ago. She often found him humming it as they were on little adventures. He'd even made up his own continuation to connect to the usual seven note rhythm. It sounded lovely.
She sat down on Asriel's bed and rubbed her hand along his back. It always soothed him. The soft checkered quilt was warm to the touch, probably a source of Toriel's magic. Chara lifted a hand and laid it on Asriel's long, silky ear. She moved it between her fingers and her adoptive brother soon had a steady rise and fall of his chest, indicating that he was asleep. Chara smiled and went to tuck herself in just as the music box ticked its last note; the sixth of the seven notes. It felt incomplete as she rolled to her side and fell asleep.
Chara dreamed she was falling endlessly through a black pit.
She tried frantically to reach for vines or something, anything to stop her descent, but everything snaked just out of reach. She heard Asriel's tortured cry. She let out a gasp of dismay as she saw her dear friend... no... brother. Asriel was her brother. Not adoptive anymore. Their relationship is beyond that, now. He was plummeting beside her and trying to swim through the air towards her. With every movement he made, she got farther and farther away. She glimpsed something at the bottom of the pit.
"Chara!" Asriel shrieked. Chara hardly heard him; she was staring at the being below her.
A strange figure in a yellow and green striped shirt, like Asriel's. It beamed up at Chara, its eyes bright red. A wicked grin was spread across its face and it held a knife, twirling the tip of the blade against her finger. Another human.
She looked just like Chara, only without her telltale overalls and pink shirt and instead with Asriel's attire.
"I'll catch you," it whispered. Chara didn't see its lips move, though. The whisper echoed and thundered in her ears. The figure got closer and closer, and Asriel farther and farther away. It let out a chuckle.
"Don't you understand?"
Chara tried to scream, but all that came out was a choked whisper.
"In this world..."
Asriel yowled beside her; a yowl of agony and grief.
Her brother's screech thundered in her ears and she tried to stop it. Tried to not listen. Tried to... do something... anything but be subjected to this torture of hearing her brother yelps and howls.
"It's KILL or BE killed," the figure snarled. Its smile grew ever wider. Its eyes ever angrier. A wild cackle filled the cavern. "It's you or him," it taunted.
Chara woke with a start, drenched in a cold sweat. Asriel's chilling scream echoed in her thoughts, along with the disconcerting words...
"It's you or him."
No. It wasn't those words that had set her off.
"Don't you understand? In this world, it's KILL or BE killed."
Chara shuddered and tried to erase her memory of that horrible, horrible nightmare.
"Mom," Asriel called, not a hint of agony in his voice. "Chara's awake! Can we go now?!" he sounded impatient from the doorway.
"Yes, yes, go ahead. Don't forget to bring Alphys or someone with you! I don't want you getting hurt."
"We can bring Pap," Asriel said to Chara.
"Why not Sans?" she asked.
"He poured ketchup all over my fries," he pouted. "Plus, we'll get subjected to more of his stupid puns and jokes."
"True. Let's bring Papyrus, and if Sans wants to come, we'll let him." Asriel scowled, but didn't argue.
They set out, Chara wearing Asriel's clothes. Her old ones had gotten dirty in a mud pit. She had concealed a knife she snatched from the kitchen in case they ran into any monsters. She grabbed it from her belt loop and held it high, the handle glinting in the light coming from the house.
"It is I, the Great Chara!" she boomed. Asriel dissolved into a fit of laughter.
"You should tell that one to Papyrus," he said between giggles. "He might like it."
"Oh, he'll like it. Have you seen that costume he's been wearing lately?" Chara snickered. She'd been referring of course to the armor-like costume Sans and Papyrus made for a simple costume party. "What did he call it again...?"
"His battle-body, if memory serves."
"Right," Chara chuckled.
The door to the Ruins.
Papyrus pried it open, using such tremendous strength that Chara was surprised his bones didn't crack. The door had a lock, but it wasn't needed to ward out anyone. A swarm of two-headed bats screeched and flooded from the entrance, beating their wings, happy to be free.
"I, the Great Papyrus, do declare we enter this dungeon of sorts." Papyrus announced.
He had started using the line after Chara demonstrated with her knife. Sans had decided not to come, but wished the trio luck as they set out for the Ruins. Asriel was giddy with excitement as he bounded inside, not bothering to check if his companions would follow. Chara did, running after him and shouting his name.
"The Great Papyrus will keep watch!" a distant voice shouted.
A door slammed.
"The Great Papyrus is in a predicament!" the voice was muffled.
Chara ignored him. She followed the sound of howling laughter and splashing.
"Asriel!" she barked. He was going to get lost. Her breath caught in her throat as the cheering was cut off abruptly, followed by a yelp of surprise. Tears pressed at the edge of her vision, but she kept herself under control. She didn't know if he was actually hurt or not... did she?
Her footsteps pounded in her head, deafening in the mauve chambers of the Ruins. She ran through rooms with puzzles, careful to avoid traps and spikes. She crashed into a figure without warning and they both stumbled to the ground. It was Asriel.
"Asriel, you idiot!" Chara snarled. "I was so worried about you! And now I have mud all over my clothes and your knees are scuffed and..." Asriel stared at her guiltily. She sighed and stood. "Nevermind. Here, I'll help you up-"
She didn't finish. A snapping of jaws sounded from behind her. She stood up and shoved Asriel to her back, staring down the creature.
A Froggit.
It was so silly looking that Chara laughed, but it growled and leapt forward, knocking Chara to the ground. Asriel gasped and backed away, shivering. The Froggit had claws on the ends of its webbed feet, and it raked them down Chara's back, ripping through the fabric. Chara screamed and scuffed her knees on the hard ground. She tried to rear up and get this thing off her before her wound could get infected. She knew from Asgore that their claws were poisonous, but rarely used.
Chara grasped desperately for her knife and raised it. She sliced it through the Froggit's face. the monster cried out, but didn't budge.
"Don't you get it?" The words from her dream echoed in her head. "In this world, it's KILL or BE killed."
Chara let out a battle cry and launched herself from the ground, sending the Froggit sailing through the air. She started towards it, lifting a large rock from the ground. She heaved it over her head, and grinned wickedly. She threw it into the Froggit, its blood now spattering the ground. She felt herself grow distant, and her injuries hurt less. Gold coins lay on the floor, most likely eaten by the now crushed Froggit. She laughed, quietly at first, but they gradually got louder and louder. The kill had felt so good. So natural. She wanted more. She wanted to hear the shrieks of pain. The snarls of defiance. The-
"... Chara...?" Asriel's terrified voice was behind her now. He was trembling when she turned to face her. "Are you... okay...?" Her laughs ceased.
She shook her head free of the gruesome thoughts and opened her eyes. "Yeah."
Asriel let out a gasp of dismay. "Your eyes!" Chara cocked her head. "They're... they were..."
"What is it?"
Asriel looked down and muttered something to himself. "Nevermind. Let's get back home and have Gaster look at your back."
Chara had almost forgotten. Her shirt felt wet with blood and her back stung now with intensity she had never known. She cried out in pain, clutching her the skin. It felt puffy, and when she pulled her hand back, there were red bumps.
She was poisoned. She didn't mind. She loved the feel of the kill... the shriek of agony from the Froggit made her tingle with euphoria.
"This is who you really are." The same voice from her dream growled. "There's no escape."
Chara shook her head frantically. "No!" she gasped. "No, no! I'm not a killer!"
"Oh?" The voice purred. "Remember how good killing that pathetic little Froggit felt? How the crunch of bones and the squelch of organs and the splatter of blood filled your ears... how it pleases you so."
"You're wrong!" Chara screeched. "You're a liar!"
"Am I? I'm just acquainting you with your true self, Chara. This is you. This is you now. It's always been you. A ruthless killer."
Chara clenched her hands around her ears in a desperate attempt to silence the cheerful and venomous voice.
"Chara..." A different voice now, deeper. "Chara, you've got to stay determined!"
"Hee hee hee..." the voice from her dream chuckled. "See you later..."
"Chara!" The deep voice said again. "CHARA!" The voice dragged on and got higher. Shriller. She recognized that voice.
"Chara, you're scaring me!" Asriel was shaking Chara by her shoulders. "Chara!"
Chara laughed maniacally and fell to her knees, slumping into Asriel. Her laughs turned to tears as she clutched her brother close. She thought to embrace him, but instead she felt her hands gliding up to wrap around his neck, almost against her will. She ignored it. She forced her fingers to clench her brother's neck. Further... further...
"Atta girl," the voice rumbled. "Yes, tighter now. Don't let him breathe. Don't let him live. It's kill or be killed, remember?"
White spots engulfed her vision. Asriel's cries turned muffled and gasping. She barely heard two sets of footsteps echoing down the hall. She repeated the words from her dream.
"You idiot..." she snarled, her eyes boring into her brother's. "In this world, it's kill or BE killed."
"What's wrong? What's going on?" Papyrus...
"Kiddo?" Sans...?
Their voices faded out and the last thing she remembered was being thrown to the ground by two bony sets of hands.
Sans and Papyrus lept forward as Asriel's consciousness began to slip. Papyrus grabbed Chara by her collar, Sans grabbed her feet, and they ripped her from Asriel's throat. She threw them both off of her in no time. The young boy gasped and choked for air, raising a hand to his neck as he scrambled away.
Chara's eyes were bright red, and a wicked grin was spread on her face. She laughed eerily as she dove into Sans, knocking him to the floor. She grabbed his collar bone and rammed his skull into the stone again and again and again, until Asriel heard a sickening crack and he saw a hairline split in his head. Tears sprung into Asriel's eyes. Sans, now unconscious, lay on the floor hopelessly. Papyrus roared with a mighty rage, and flung himself at Chara. She dodged easily, and Papyrus was sent to the ground. Chara leapt on top of him and began to beat in his ribs with her arms and hands. The skeleton kicked her off and she flew into a wall. Asriel didn't know who to root for anymore. He edged over to Sans and pulled him away, trying to tend to his cracked skull.
Sans shook his head out and sat up, pulling out a cell phone. He sent something, and they heard a crash echoing through the Ruins after a few minutes. The door must have been forced open. Pounding footsteps thundered and shook the halls and corridors, occasionally stopping to leap.
"Undyne, slow down!" came a meek voice. "We came all the way from Waterfall in a matter of minutes, you'll strain yourself!"
"I REFUSE!" boomed a louder, more forceful voice. "PAPYRUS IS IN DANGER!"
"But, Undy-"
One tall, bluish figure zoomed past a corner carrying Alphys on her back. The figure in question was tall and lithe, striding over fallen boulders and monsters. Her hair was scarlet red, and her skin- no, scales? They glistened as if wet. She had two yellowed, sharp teeth that protruded from her upper lip, and her left eye was fused shut by a deep scar, and more white marks and dark bruises scattered around on her flesh from countless wars and battles. Asriel had heard stories of this lady. He hadn't learned her name, but being with Alphys and discussing her only made the small lizard blush and swoon. It must have been Undyne, judging by the earlier exchange. The rage on her face only increased as her eyes landed on Chara.
The young human had given up on trying to break Papyrus's ribs, and had moved on to smashing his skull into the ground. Undyne skidded to a halt, let down Alphys gently, and charged straight into Chara; barreling head-first into her small form. Chara effortlessly threw Undyne into the brick wall to her left. Undyne choked for air and grabbed her stomach. The wind must have been knocked out of her, Asriel realized, as Undyne coughed and spluttered. Alphys rushed to her side, tears rolling down her cheeks.
Chara looked around, her gaze landing on the two figures in a corner; Undyne and Alphys. She was oblivious to Sans, still with his finger wavering over the cell phone. Asriel recognized the number. He was going to call Asgore next. Chara's grin only widened as she strode over to the trembling duo. She reached for her bloodied knife and held it loosely at her side. Alphys ducked in front of Undyne, sheer terror on her face. Suddenly, Sans's left eye turned dark blue and his cellphone crashed to the floor. A small flame-like light billowed up from the socket, surrounding his iris. His face was twisted in concentration, but his gaze never left Chara. A blue flame engulfed his sister. Asriel let out a shocked gasp, ready to save her from the flames. She showed no sign of pain though. He saw Sans's hand; it was also engulfed in the blue fire. He splayed out the fingers and Chara stopped dead in her tracks. Sweat dripped down Sans's skull, and Asriel wondered how skeletons could perspire. A tiny smile broke on the skeleton's face, and he raised Chara; still encased in blue fire.
Chara groaned. Her back throbbed with a dull pain. Her hands felt clammy, her face warm. She was completely drenched in sweat. She wasn't in her nomal bedroom in the Underground. No... wait. Asriel's bed had just been moved out, possibly to prevent him from getting sick, too. She coughed into her arm and saw dark red blotches. She was still wearing one of Asriel's shirts. Blood...?
Toriel was seated at the foot of her bed, a sad smile on her face. The music box was chiming. She could see Asriel and Asgore in the doorway, Asriel clutching the Froggit stuffed animal to his chest. Tears were in his eyes and wet streaks covered his face.
"A... Asriel...?"
"Yeah... Chara, what happened back there?"
"The flowers..." Chara murmured, ignoring him. She shut her eyes and grinned against the dull throb in her chest. "I need the flowers from... from my village. The gold ones... please..." She could feel her life ebbing away. "They're so b... so beautiful... I need them..."
"We... we can't get them..." Asgore murmured. "They're beyond the barrier. We have... echo flowers but..." he stopped as Chara was wracked with another bout of coughing.
"Dear, sit up," Toriel said as she helped Chara lean her back against the headboard of her bed. She slipped right back down again as she was forced into sleep.
Asriel gazed worriedly at Chara. He glanced up at Asgore, then to Toriel, then to Asgore again, hoping for a reassuring remark. Neither of them had any. He was filled with questions, why had his dear sister tried to kill him in the Ruins? Why had she been screaming at nothing? Why had she wrestled with the two brothers until she put a crack in Sans's skull and nearly broken Papyrus's ribs? Why had she fought against Alphys and her friend Undyne she'd brought to help? Why was she acting like this? Why had she passed out in Undyne's arms halfway to their home? Why was she coughing up blood? What's happening...?
The answers would never come. Asgore and Toriel left the room, Toriel amid a sea of tears and wavering pleas. Asriel couldn't comfort her. He'd never seen her like this. What happened to her? Asriel still saw the ragged rise and fall of Chara's chest. She coughed again, and dark blood spurted from her mouth, landing and soaking into her Whimsun doll. They'd seen one on the way out of the Ruins, but Chara had stabbed it multiple times.
"The flowers..." Chara whispered. Her eyes opened, glinting in the light. Dark red like they'd been in the Ruins. He flinched. "Please Asriel... I need the flowers." She convulsed and her breath was forced from her body.
She didn't take in another.
"Ch... Chara...?" Asriel whispered.
No response. Asriel shuddered.
"This isn't funny," his voice dissolved. "Please wake up, Chara..."
His best friend for years had died. Begging for something that she would never see again. Begging for something that she had cherished and her whole life. Begging for something Asriel should have had. No, not his best friend.
No, his sister.
Gone.
He couldn't quite grasp it as he ran for her, struggling to shake her awake. She was joking. Playing a prank on him. They still had to go out and help Gaster finish the Core. They still had to help Sans decorate for Papyrus's birthday. They still had to finish Mom's pie. They still had to get to the end of the Ruins. Asriel needed to get the flowers. The golden ones. The ones Chara told him about time and time again, and now, just a second ago...
"Chara!" he sobbed. "Chara, wake up! Please Chara, you can't die. Not now! Not like this... don't let it beat you, Chara. You have to fight it! You've gotta! Chara, please..." his voice broke. He heard his mother's footsteps, but he ignored them.
He saw it.
A red heart-shaped flame rose from Chara's corpse. It glowed and spun, trembling slightly. Chara's soul. Without warning, it drifted towards him and into his chest. He grew into something strange and grotesque. He was taller now, his head nearly bumping the ceiling. Vines with thorns protruded from his back. He held a sad smile on his face and lifted Chara's limp body from the bed. He walked out and ignored his mother's panicked cries. He passed through the barrier with the power of Chara's soul combined with his own. Instinct told him where her village was.
He walked carefully and cradeled his sister's body against his chest, looking down into her closed eyes. Tears pressed at his own, but he refused to cry. Not in front of Chara. She'd probably had enough of him and his being a crybaby. He always told her not to go too far, despite his adventerous disposition. He thought he saw a smile in Chara's face, but she was dead. How could she smile? His heart was broken. He could feel the little peices scatter, and when he tried to pick them up, he'd only step on more; making the shards smaller. The town was up ahead, field of golden flowers in the center.
He moved silently past the houses and laid Chara down gently in the blooming flowers. Right were she wanted to be. Right in her village. In the blossoms that she'd pleaded for minutes before her death. He wiped a tear from his eye and managed a weak smile. A shriek filled his ears, followed by others.
Another human.
They must have thought he'd killed her.
He offered no resistance as they threw spears and shot arrows and fired guns; he just lifted Chara's body back up, picking a flower and putting it in her hair. He walked back home. Blood dripped down his torso, making him slip. He reentered the castle and stumbled. He saw Toriel and Asgore and managed a weak smile. He fell into the throne room, and the moment he hit the ground his body turned to dust.