-Why do things always have to change?-

-Enjoy-


The quiet tranquility of Waterfall filled me with D*******n.

The sound of running water filled the caves. Stars lit the ceiling, only they weren't stars. They were magic crystals shining above and glimmering down at me. It was beautiful, but it was a scenery that would never change.

Flowers glowing with a gentle blue light, lit up a dark path covered in soft moss. The narrow paths were surrounded on all sides by water that glowed with a cyan radiance. I dipped my fingers in the water, expecting them to come out glowing, but the water was just normal, clear water as it dripped from my fingers.

Papyrus had come with us into waterfall, walking us as far as another sentry station that sat just within the borders. A SAVE point sat nearby, but I tried not to look at it. Papyrus and Sans had a small chat while a friendly monster taught me about Echo Flowers, the glowing flowers I saw everywhere here. I don't know what they talked about, but Papyrus was animated, and Sans was smiling. I could hear Sans chuckle on occasion, followed by an enraged "SANS" from Papyrus, but they didn't seem to be fighting.

When they were done, Papyrus came to see me. He was all smiles, and I could practically see him vibrating in his bones. He scooped me into a huge a hug and then announced he was looking forward to getting the chance to know me at a later date.

And that he would feed me spaghetti. That part seemed really important to him.

I was kind of looking forward to some spaghetti.

Papyrus set me down after nearly crushing me with his excitement and then turned away.

"Wait, you aren't coming with us?" I asked.

I had thought…after what had happened, wouldn't he want to come along?

"I Will Meet Up With You Later, Human," he said, "But First, I Must Speak To Undyne."

Papyrus returned to Snowdin, and I watched him go, feeling a little lonely already. How silly was that? I barely even knew him, but I had a feeling we could be great friends.

When Sans came back, his near-constant smile was turned down at the edges, and I could see concern warping the shape of his eye socket. It was amazing how malleable his skull was, nothing like a human skull at all.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Sans looked away, but I kept watching him. He was disturbed, but it didn't seem like he wanted to say why.

"Are you mad?" I asked. "Is it because I went ahead of you? Because I didn't listen to your plan?" I looked at my feet, watching them turn inwards as I expected Sans to yell at any moment. Well, Sans probably never yelled, but I'm sure he did something that was like the Sans-equivalent to yelling.

I didn't want Sans to be upset. I didn't want him to decide he didn't want to help me anymore. I could fear my eyes beginning to sting as tears welled in the corners.

"I'm sorry, I didn't *sniff* want you to *sniff* have to fight your brother," I said as the water began to run down my cheeks.

I looked down at the ground as the tears continued to fall. They were streaming down my face and my nose was running. Sans probably thought I was some huge crybaby now, but everything was so overwhelming here. Papyrus had tried to kill me, had killed me, and he wasn't the first. Even Toriel had hurt me, but I knew none of them were bad. Everyone I had met were all really nice people, so why did they have to fight me? Why did they want to kill me?

"Is there something wrong with me?" I wailed as I sank down into a crouch. I rubbed at my eyes, trying to stop the tears, "I am I bad person?"

Silence answered me, but I didn't have the courage to look up.

"Ah…" Flowey interjected into the silence. "Sans, what did you do? How could you break Frisk?"

"I didn't break the kid," Sans replied, his voice was a little stiff, "those are just tears. It's good to let them out once in a while."

"I know what tears are, you idiot," Flowey said.

"Oh? Didn't think flowers could cry," Sans said.

"Flowers can't," Flowey replied in a voice that could freeze lava.

I heard him burrow into the ground and then Sans grunted. A moment later, I felt Sans's bony hand resting on the top of my head.

"I'm not mad at ya, kid," Sans. "I'd prefer it if you didn't do reckless stuff like that though, chills me to the bone when I see that sort of thing."

Puns? At a time like this? That was so Sans…? What? I looked up at Sans, but his face was wavy and indistinct. I blinked at him, and I thought I saw a flash of concern on his face through the haze.

"You need to SAVE kid," he said. "Are there any of those SAVE points around here?"

I stood up and pointed to the one behind me. Sans looked where I was pointing and then shook his head.

"I can't see anything, must be a D********n thing," he said. "Go SAVE."

I shook my head. Bad things always happened after I SAVEd. Like I got sick and dizzy, or something scary happened afterwards.

Sans picked me up by the collar and then carried me over to where I had pointed. He dropped me in front of the SAVE point and then put his hands in his pockets.

"I got nothing but thyme," he said. "And I'd petal Flowey'd say the same."

A hissing sound could be heard beneath our feet, but plant in question didn't show his face. I giggled, sniffed, and then giggled again. Sans's puns were bad, so why were they so funny?

I turned to the SAVE point, bit my lip, and stretched my hand out to the light. There was no going forward until I did this, right? Maybe I could just go back to Snowdin, back to Grillby's where it was warm and the food was nothing but greasy-goodness. Maybe I could live there, and maybe one day, I'd get a present from someone named "Sansta." I smiled as I imagined it.

My fingers trembled as I touched SAVE point. I SAVEd.

Heavy footsteps rang in my ear, as if someone in metal boots was approaching me. I was standing at the edge of the bridge. I had been trying to escape, but had just ended up in a dead end. I trembled as the monster in metal appeared before me, face hidden by a steel mask, and a glowing spear in one hand. The monster said nothing, simply launched the spear in my direction. There was nowhere to escape to, and the spear tore open my stomach. I screamed in pain as the blood splattered everywhere. I could feel my life spilling from the hole in my chest, and I collapsed onto the wooden planks of the bridge. There was blood everywhere, soaking into the wood, covering my hands, splattered across Flowey's golden petals. Flowey was saying something, his eyes dark with what couldn't be concern. He waved his blood-stained leaves at me, but it didn't matter how hard he urged me, I couldn't stand.

I saw the monster approach. The footsteps sounded so far away, even though I knew they must be getting closer. Flowey moved from beside me, popping up between myself and the monster. He spread his leaves wide, but I could see him trembling. He was shouting something. I couldn't hear it. The monster kicked Flowey, and the golden flower was torn from the bridge by the force and tumbled off the edge, falling in the deep darkness below.

"Flowey," I tried to say, but I couldn't hear my voice.

The monster was holding another spear, and they raised it over my back. They brought it down, stabbing another hole in my torso. I felt blood spilling from my chest, but the sensation was short. Soon, everything was cold, and then, I didn't feel anything at all.

I was standing in front of the SAVE point. Sans was standing beside me. We were standing together, next to the sentry station. I grasped my chest, it was whole, intact and the pain was gone. Gone but not forgotten. I held my hands out before me, barely able to hold them still. The blood was gone, they were clean. My hands were shaking, almost too much for me to even see them clearly.

Sans reached his hands out and grasped mine. He held them still as he looked into my eyes. I gasped for breath, but the question in his eyes wasn't something I could answer just yet.

I trembled as I remembered, my entire body shaking in shock. A dream? Had that been a dream? Or had that been a death? Had I remembered myself dying? Why that of all things?

I couldn't catch my breath. It wouldn't come no matter how I tried. I tried to take deep breaths, but the amount of air that reached my lungs wasn't comparable to the effort I put into breathing. My surroundings began to swim, and my knees gave out. I fell to the ground, still clinging to Sans's hands.

The world turned dark and hazy, and then there was nothing.