Just Finished Undertale myself, and boy, was it worth it! It even got me back to writing fanfics! Now if only it could get me to finish some actual chapters…

On to the introduction, HELLO people of the undertale fandom! I'm sure all of us here just loved the game, through I'm a tad bit disappointed on how little fanfiction there is of the game, guess it can't be helped, huh? I hope that it would at least reach a thousand one day, till then, KEEP UP THE WRITING!

DISCLAIMER: Toby Fox is the creator of Undertale and all of its characters, not me, you understand?

EDIT: Did a revamp to suit the actual overall plot line.

ENJOY!

The One Behind the Looking Glass

Prologue:

The Final Human

Painful

It's so…painful

Why…?

Why are you doing this?

No

NO

NONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONO!

STOP!

STOP DOING THIS!

Please…

If you don't…

If you don't…

"Then what?"

"You were bound to do this," You said with a smile.

The child stared back at you in a dazed expression, looking down to the mess still staining the silent room. The floors had once been brown, you remembered, a dirty brown that always looked like it wasn't clean enough due to the spots of white that seemed to stain on its wooden surface. Despite this speck of imperfection, you had once admitted to the child that it was a fine little house to start with and that it looked rather homely in the inside. With its yellow walls and its tiny vase of fresh flowers at the side, certainly a place that spoke volumes of what kind of person had lived in it.

Oh how tragic it is to see it covered in in such filth, how tragically beautiful.

"It was only a matter of time," You said again, and the child did not look back at you this time, still staring at the floor in a daze even as the tool they use to refurbish their home was still horribly stained with the child's 'paint' "Until you destroyed everything. It is your nature after all,"

"…No,"

You smiled again; the child was still looking at the room. They had loved this room in particular, had they not? They would always tend to the flowers in the vase and replace them when they began to wilt. It was almost tragic to see the same vase of flowers spilled on the floor, its flowers stepped on, and its water mixing with the specks of red that littered the room.

You did not know that you could love a color so much. It was the color of advancement after all.

"I see, So you wish to defy me? Are you going to point that knife at me and force me to RESET then?" You spread your arms in front of the child, complete vulnerable to any attack they would give "Try it, stab me. Stab me knowing that it would only sink you deeper into your own madness,"

The child flinched, and you smiled again, you could not stop smiling. How could you not? This child had been a wonderful toy after all.

"Such an idiot you are. You truly do have nothing in your mind aside from your own determination. No wonder things had turn out like this. You are more twisted than I thought." You jest; laughing at the look the child had given you "I'm joking, my child! I'm joking! But the look on your face was priceless! Even morose than the faces they had made in their dying breaths!"

You laughed alone, full and hearty at the child's expression.

"…I hate you," The child said, and you paused, giving a hearty laugh a second later. Why and how you began to laugh like that, you never knew. And you never will.

"Now that's something new, since when have you been able to hate?" You say as you took some steps towards the child, who took a step back in shock. Your gin turned feral as you let your hand rest on the child's cheek, who shivered at the touch, while the other was used to gently take the knife away from them and then pointing the gut slicing tip on the child's chest, right where their physical heart was said to be. You laughed at the shiver of fear the child had given you, for it was a genuinely human emotion and it was such a waste to see it of their face now of all times.

After all, they do not need human emotions, not anymore, that is.

"That won't do, don't start faking that you still have emotions now of all times," You say as you watched the child's face begging to sweat when you dug the knife deeper so that it pierced no further than the child's clothing "Or is it THEIR doing? Such a nuisance, they are. Even after THEY abandoned you when they were satisfied,"

You dug deeper and watched as the child began to cry, calling out names of those who have long since been taken way by the hands of death.

"Don't you agree, ***** ?"

But nobody came.

I opened my eyes to a blinding light.

I blinked, not once, but twice, letting my eyes adjust to the natural glow above me in a slow and steady pace. I took a deep breath, feeling my chest rise and fall in a familiar symbol of life. Unsteadily, I lifted my left arm and began to repeatedly clench and unclench it, feeling the rusted joints moving in a steady pace. I then lowered my hand towards my heart. There, a familiar rhythm was beating softly beneath the layers of flesh and cloth. The heart should have stilled along with my soul was right here with me.

Alive. I was alive.

I clenched the green cloth over my heart in confusion. The light above me continued to shine down on me with its heavenly glow, flickering not as it touched the yellow petals of the flowers beneath me. Slowly, I took my hand from my chest and reached for the sunlight in wonder. For it was such a long time since I have seen sunlight in this dark and hollow underground. But the action only made the breath in my thought to pause as the light passes through my arm seamlessly as if there was no such obstruction there.

There is nothing physical to obstruct it.

My statement has been proven false, I was not as alive as I thought I was.

And yet, what am I doing here?

Beneath me, the yellow flowers rustled, their pollen floating indolently in the air. I lowered my arm again and sat up slowly, feeling joints cracking despite no longer having a physical form. Perhaps it was due to my own memories of how the body works and how it should react that caused this odd phenomenon. I lifted my head towards the light above me. It was called 'sunlight' I recall, the natural light of the world above. It was something everyone knew. Yet for the beings in this fissure, it was something they had very little hope seeing in the span of their lives. All because the humans above were frightened of the idea that these beings could take their souls and kill them all.

The fact that even now, this light shines upon the underground, proves that humanity has not learned that it was not above consequences.

I should feel hatred for them, disgust for them, anger and vengeance for the race that felt that they were superior enough to imprison another and make it so that their only way to escape is by tainting their own hands with blood.

Yet I felt none of that.

I frowned. This is a predicament, I idly remember my vast hatred for the ones above, and yet it vanished? Trying a different approach, I delved into my own memories in hopes that one of them may bring up a reaction. I tried to remember the fun I had while playing under the rainy ceilings of the waterfall with the one who was my brother. The satisfaction when the one who was my father gave both of us each a cup of golden flower tea after drying us off with a towel. And the gluttonous joy I felt when the one who was my mother came up to us and gleefully announced that the pie was done.

But nothing came

How…can this be…? This has…this has never happened before….

I paused, and tried a different approach once more. I cupped my hand over my heart and repeatedly thought of this worrisome predicament until it became nothing more than an estranged chant. Soon enough, my heart began to beat in a faster pace of panic, mimicking my own forced feelings on the situation. Relief soon filled me at this revelation.

I am still able to feel emotions. It is just that the ones that came before I died have disappeared.

It is because I no longer have a soul.

Yes. That seems to be correct. Through our plan had failed, Asriel had still devoured my soul and died with it. The being that I am today seems to be neither human nor monster anymore either. I am most likely just the essence of my former being at the moment, not a real person.

But I have never taken a visible form like this before

Why was I awakened this time? And in this form, of all things?

"…,"

…?

I felt a prickle at the back of my neck, it felt like someone was watching me. Such a feeling felt uncommon to me, who spent most of their time watching others. I turned my head away from the golden light above and looked behind me.

It was a human

I raised an eyebrow

A human that looked like…me?

…?

You tilted your head to the side as you looked at me from your side of the golden flowers, confusion eerily similar to my own marring your face. You were kneeling on the garden in a similar fashion as I was and, judging from the tiny scrapes barely noticeable due to being obscured by the tiny flowers, you had just recently fallen down. Looking at you longer, I realized that, aside from the hair, skin, and perhaps age, we were still slightly different. Instead of wearing a green shirt with one yellow stripe, you were also wearing a purple shirt with two stripes. You wore child like shorts while I wore brown pants. You also wore a Band-Aid on your ankle, something I definitely did not have since monster food magically healed those kinds of injuries.

How interesting, to find a human that looks so much like me is rare.

In the end, they were all children

"…Hello,"

I turned my attention back to you, who was looking at we curiously with a sense of weary innocence. You did not seem to understand whether to be frightened by me or not. It was understandable, I suppose. Although I was visible, I was still a transparent mass that looks similar to a human, only lacking a soul. The normal behavior of a human would always be to destroy whatever makes them weary, by running either from it, or by fighting it. You on the other hand, being a child, had no such chance of defeating soothing you are unsure of, thus, you cower, frightened. I was not insulted by this, however, I understand that there are much worse reactions to meeting an unknown entity than greeting it.

Such as, say, threatening to kill them if they don't reveal themselves, only to threaten them again to leave when they find out that the entity was in their head this whole time. I knew a few who did that, albeit one was out of fear while the other was out of annoyance.

However, no matter the greeting, I would always answer. As such, being visible was no reason for me not to speak to this one.

"…Greetings," I said quietly in a robotic fashion, feeling the vibration of my throat felt almost alien to me now. You tilted your head to the side for a moment before smiling back at me. The gesture was not returned however, as I saw no reason to smile back at you. Such a gesture was useless to a dead child.

Toriel will surely fail to protect this one from the monsters beyond the Ruins. Just like she had failed to protect the ones she had so hauntingly called her 'children'. It was as if every child she tries to care for dies in her arms. She was never good with taking care of things more delicate than plants.

If this child dies, the monsters will be free…and our plan would not have been in vain…

"Name?" You asked, a flash of happiness appearing in your smile. I pondered on this odd behaviour for a moment before mentally shaking my head and opening my mouth to reply. There is a time for everything, and now was the time of introductions. Tedious as it was, it was mandatory so that the child would at least have some trust in me. For if, they truly did wish to leave the underground, then I am their best bet in leading the way.

In whichever path they wish to take

"I am…?"

…?

I blinked…my…name…is…what…?

Panic overfilled me

What…was…my…name…again…?

This…This should not be possible! Why…Why is it that I can't remember my name?! There is very little missing in my memories, and losing a soul does not equate to losing a name! Why?! WHY?!

"…?" You looked at me with a confused expression, but I could not care at the moment.

My name…My name!

What is my name?!

"I-I," My lips parted, and spilled without my consent

"I-I am-,"

["Chara,"]

"Chara,"

[The True Name]

You beamed at me, not noticing my own confused expression. Chara…yes. That is my name. My… name… is… Chara…Why had I forgotten that? That had never happened before What else had I forgotten? This is rather worrisome.

You pointed to yourself with your tiny thumb. For a moment, you reminded me of someone else who used to do that, but that image was lifted when you spoke your name.

"Frisk," you say, and I blinked…Frisk?…ah.

"Your name is…," I paused for a moment before continuing "…Frisk," You nodded gleefully, a smile etched on your face in an almost perpetual manner, before getting up from your spot on the tiny patch of flowers with your own wobbly feet. I watched for a moment in confusion. Very few of the ones who had fallen here were as calm and collected about the situation. Knowing this, I spoke out.

"Where are you going, child?" I asked you, before blinking slightly at the pronoun used. You turned back to me and shook your head, not hearing or ignoring the pronoun usage.

"Out," You answered in a simple manner. It would seem, as you were no one for long conversations. That is understandable. What caused a momentary halt however, were how those childlike words were spoken. I could not tell how old you were, but if I were to guess, it would be that you were the same age as I when I first fell down.

Perhaps this was one of the better times to laugh at the irony of the situation. To think that the last child needed to fall into the Underground was the same age and appearance as the first child to have fallen so many years ago? Someone up there must have a sick sense of humor to allow this to happen.

THEY have such a sick sense of humor for making this happen

"Where do you want to go then?" I asked again, preparing myself to get up when you answered…

"Home,"

…ah, Home…

"I really need to get home soon before they get worried,"

"I will return home,"

"Oh, well. I'm searching for a home, you see,"

"When are they picking me up? I wanna go home!"

"They won't stop me from going home,"

"I…I have to return home…I have to…,"

They all wanted the same thing…and yet they never got it…such a twisted irony.

"You wish to go…home?" I asked one more time, and you nodded, already walking towards the only exit visible that could be reached by children such as us. I frowned again.

"And what if I said that you had no hope of getting home?"

It's hopeless for you, there is no way you can escape this place alive. Because for all the positive aspects the monsters were born with, many certainly has little qualm of killing a child like you. It's a Kill or Be Killed world after all.

You stopped…before continuing onwards. A swell of determination began to glitter and shine before receding to the body buried underground the flowers, I felt the familiar essence of a 'SAVE POINT' being formed beneath the soul of the flower garden. This time, I could not help the laughter that escaped my lips.

"I see, foolish of me to ask," I let out, Feeling the familiar wave of DETERMINATION filling me steadily despite knowing that this swell did not come from me, but from you.

Human souls are different from monster souls.

Every human soul has what is called by the monsters of the underground an essence called DETERMINATION. It is the rejection of death, the will to live. It is the very skin of a human soul that differentiates it from the formless soul of a monster.

It is made out of regrets.

It is the fear of death raging like a cornered mouse. It is the reluctance to move on and allow the world to rotate without you. It is the arrogance to continue forwards despite not even needing to. It is humanity's darkest traits, yet their most powerful weapon.

Humans cannot use magic.

Magic is pure. Magic is untainted, Magic cannot be wielded by those with evil in their hearts. As such, only Monsters can wield them. A monster's soul is void of DETERMINATION. A monster's soul is pure, untainted, and fragile to the touch. Magic is the embodiment of a monster's soul after all. It embodies hopes, dreams, compassion, love, everything that is positive in this world.

So when a human child who possesses DETERMINATION came in close contact to raw magic…when the human's desperation to live that exceeds all other instincts comes in contact with the intangible essence of hopes and dreams…

Then a "Miracle" will occur…and the child will be SAVED.

My SOUL, my essence, gave birth to this "Miracle,"

The miracle that allows one's DETERMINATION to affect the world outside your SOUL and SAVE you from a death you refuse to have.

And now, this power, just like the others before you, has become yours.

The power to SAVE and LOAD

And so long as the child stays determined, this miracle is within their grasp.

It was almost a guarantee that you would get what you wanted, and that Asgore's plan would ultimately fail along with his life.

"Allow me to accompany you then," I said. Despite the blank expression secured on your face, the shock was clearly visible. And for a moment, I was confused as to why you looked so shocked, but shrugged it off.

"You don't really know anything about what's beyond here, correct? I on the other hand know much about the underground – the place where you had just fallen into, if you're still confused – as such, it would be best that I at least accompany you on your journey so that you do not do something idiotic." I spoke briefly, all the while wondering if I should tell them that six other humans aside from me had already fallen down from this very hole, but chose against it. Telling a human that previous humans had already fallen down here and never coming out was not a good way to start a conversation. They were already traumatized with having a dead child in their head.

The fact was fortified by what happened to the yellow and dark blue souls.

For a moment, you face was devoid of any emotion, before a small a sheepish smile began to grow oh so steadily in your face, and a childish giggle escaped your lips despite already blocking it with your hand. Before I could react, you took me by the hand despite my apparent transparency and paced towards the exit with renewed vigor. I smiled

How interesting, to think that the final soul required for everyone's freedom would be the one soul that could destroy them all by just being determined. Perhaps this one would last longer than the others and achieve their goal. Even if it meant killing Toriel or Asgore?

Either way, there was no hope for Asgore's plan to succeed anymore, for this child does not seem to be someone who would falter easily. As long as I am here, you will gain the path you crave for.

That is my purpose after all. To guide you…as you pave the path THEY wish for you to take.

Interesting, how very interesting. To think THEY would go as far as reviving my spirit and giving it a visible form all so that THEY could play a little game with this little child in this little… little…world.

Don't think that is a bit too cruel for THEM?

I laughed, but found no humor in them. I could no longer find myself to ponder at your odd behaviour, or why your were not at all fazed by a clearly transparent being. Not now at least.

Hahaha, how dark. And how very, very interesting.

What do you think?

…Gaster?

AAAAAND DONE!

Haha, sorry it's so short, it's only meant to be a prologue after all, hopefully I don't abandon it and leave it at that.

…yeah, hopefully.

Anyways, how did you like it? Or did you hate it? Or are you confused by the odd perspective? I wanted to portray Chara as they are when their narrating, as such, Chara use 'I' and Frisk is given 'You', everyone else will be third person perspective.

You may have noticed that Chara is speaking rather oddly for a child. But since this was how they spoke during the genocide run, I suppose it will do. Given that Chara is pretty soulless at the moment, they don't really have much of a character. They will probably get more character after the RUINS, as this part is where you start a pacifist – neutral - or genocide path, this will also be that place where Chara will probable adjust to their own predicament of sharing determination and emotions with Frisk.

Basically, if Frisk goes on a rampage, then Chara goes with the flow.

I'm sure some of you have guessed, but this story will probably be more than just a simple retelling of Undertale, it may even curve from the plot a few time, not so much as it will cause a big change maybe, but brace yourself if that actually happens. Chara and Frisk are just such interesting characters that I couldn't resist.

Well…that's all I want to say…sooo

Read and Review!