Disclaimer:
I do not claim to own the original game nor its many AUs; as such Flowerfell and Echotale, or other AUs are mentioned, but this plot and possible original characters/AU belong to me. Any famous songs, TV show/movies/books and manga names, and brands that are mentioned in this work belong to their rightful owners. This is purely for fun and my inner fangirl.
© Willa Field
-.-.-.-.-
13:
True Hero
Sans, Undyne, and Frisk
(Third POV)
-.-.-.-.-
They walked along the path, the grass becoming taller with every step. Frisk squeezed Sans' hand for comfort before running forward into the grass, flicking her eyes over the shadowed surroundings unsure, but excited about what was next.
The group has been traveling for hours, edging to the borderline of Waterfall and Hotland; only meeting a few rebellious monsters along the way. Frisk handled the confrontations with her usual flare, causing the males to laugh and be amazed how beautiful she moved. And of course, the Angel only showed mercy, earning her more friends.
But right now, she just was the excitable, childish girl Sans loved as she awed at the nightly beauty of Waterfall and giggled while she ran her hand through the water as she walked. Sans grinned at the sight, not wanting to ruin her cute fun, but a stern look from her brother nudged him as he whispered harshly:
"Sans, I know she's cute, but we need to—"
"Yeah, yeah. I know, be more careful. But, damn, she's fucking adorable; I don't want to stop her." The skeleton mumbled gravelly the last part to himself before he walked to her and tenderly grabbing her arm, guiding her to overgrown grass.
"Frisk, baby doll, you need to be careful. There are more monsters out here." Sans whispered amusedly to her, chuckling when she pouted and nodded slowly before she ducked her head down to hide in the grass.
She was so cute, he purred through his mind as he watched her weaving in and out the grass. He just wanted to watch her all day, to find all the hidden gems about her. He wanted to know everything, every little detail, about her.
Sans always prided himself on discovering her secrets and knowing her like the back of his holed hand, but now, she was a whole new breed; without the skeleton knowing it, the little girl he helped raise faded into this shy but strong woman. Bolder and strong, despite all she went through:
And Sans needed to unravel all that she was, needed to love her like he wasn't a faded memory in her head. He just needed her.
"You got it bad, Thrash Bag." Asriel chuckled quietly as dirt crunched under his hoofs, coming to his side and crossed his arms with a smug expression. Sans growled at him playfully, sorta:
"Shut it, weed. Can you blame me after last night? Let me just be giddy, won't yah? I haven't felt like this in a while…"
That shut him up.
It was true. For the first time in a long while, Sans was—well—Sans. Not the shadow that was G. He slowly was returning to the Pun master, and it was all thanks to Frisk, as usual. The girl could change anything gloom about him back into the monster he remembered. She just didn't know what she started.
Asriel laughed as he remembered this morning, despite being woken up so rudely. Sans almost looked boyish as he explained excitedly, getting that dreamy look in his sockets when he told him what he had heard. That look was something he oddly missed.
But…
The goat monster was a little worried about 'G'. That side of the skeletal male was coming out more and more as Frisk earned not only friends, but admirers as well. He was becoming much more possessive over her while the journey went on. And that might cause them problems later, even though the other male knew how he felt:
Asriel had been there before, staring into blood red eyes instead of cool blue. Those that made his younger self's heart go wild. They made him go crazy, even at that young age:
But, that feeling is dangerous when a soul gets stronger and when their soulmate is as strong. Sans wasn't too jealous of her teasingly flirtatious nature before, knowing that was just her way of calming the monsters or making a connection to them, but the heat of feeling grew slowly after he became 'G'. One wrong move on a poor unexpecting monster's part was his worst nightmare right now.
If Sans attacked someone to protect Frisk, Asriel knew there might be no coming back. He would lose her and that will kill him, Sans would no longer exist, but instead, a shell.
The goat was going to voice a warning, but a shriek interrupted his words, and the males whipped their heads to the sound when gasps escaped their mouths:
"UNDYNE! PLEASE, LOOK! SHE'S HELPING HIM!" Papyrus's voice rung out as the other males spotted Frisk on her stomach, struggling to keep the now teenaged Monster Kid from falling by his sweater, as Papyrus tried to keep Undyne from attacking.
Just like many times before.
"Paps! The human has the seventh soul, with it, the King will become a God and we can be free! Why are you helping it? Its kind locked us down here to rot, it deserves to die!" Undyne growled, her spears pointing right at Frisk. Her red eyes held nothing but hate for the small Angel.
The female fish monster played her part well, too well for both the skeleton and goat males and it made them nervous. She was way too into this, dangerously into this. Did she forget that she should be careful, that this was Frisk, not just another soul to capture anymore?
Sans was about to rush in, but as much as he wanted to himself, Asriel stopped the fuming monster with a grab of his arm and a shake of his head.
"Sans, we can't step in, you know that. She has to fight on her own."
"But, As—"
"I want to, too, Sans. But I'm sure Undyne won't do anything with Alphy watching. You know how much that lizard loves Frisk, if she hurts her, Alphs would not talk to Undyne for months." He tried to soothe his friend, fighting to hold him back, but as the time went on, it got harder.
Sans growled, struggling against Asriel's hold, ready to jump the stupid fish. But then, he saw Frisk wiggled the armless monster back on the bridge before she mouthed something to Kid; sending him running to a safe spot, and she turned to signal to Papyrus to move as well.
The younger skeleton shook his head feverishly, saying something in her ear, but the girl wasn't budging. She feverishly gestured to Sans, ordering the innocent soul to go to his brother, not giving him room to argue. Papyrus gave a small growl before stomping to the other males.
Then, as the three males held their breath and one fighting to help, she turned to the scowling warrior with firm but gentle eyes and a small smile:
"You think you can fool me with a sweet smile like them?" She huffed angrily, sending a glare over the younger female's shoulder, but Frisk didn't seem fazed as she shrugged, shaking her head:
'I'm not trying to fool anyone, madam. I just want to free the monsters.'
That made the blue female laugh like a madwoman, fueling Sans' anger as the scene went on, and bent down to stare into her blues coldly while she hissed through clenched fangs.
"You want to free everyone, human? Okay, wanna know how? IF YOU WERE DEAD! That's right, human! Your continued existence is a crime! Your life is all that stands between us and our freedom! Right now, I can feel everyone's hearts pounding together! Everyone's been waiting their whole lives for this moment! But we're not nervous at all. When everyone puts their hearts together, they can't lose! Now, human! Let's end this, right here, right now. I'll show you how determined monsters can be! Step forward when you're ready! Fuhuhuhu!"
Frisk smiled again, taking a step back, before high-tailing it pass the surprised fish, running like a madwoman and laughed as she skillfully dodged the falling spears. Undyne screamed, shrieked, and yelled each time the young heroine jumped and danced out of the way:
"Stop running and fight me! Be like the humans in anime and face me head on!"
The males were fighting laughter while they followed behind, their pride for Frisk growing as they watched her tire the stubborn Royal Captain.
She knew she couldn't fight Undyne without getting hurt, so she fought her in her own style. Like the first time, that long time ago, she decided to spare the creatures she had a link to:
"Stop being a wimp!" The fish growled, multiplying the number of her glowing blue spears, but Frisk only grinned over her shoulder at her and picked up her speed, making the other female screech in frustration.
Sans laughed then, unable to hold it back anymore, and he didn't care. Frisk was becoming more and more confident, fiercer, and Sans loved this new flower. Her past no longer held her back:
She wasn't the lost girl who fell to escape four months ago, the one that clung to her brother for comfort and assurance. This Frisk knew who she was, and she wasn't going to back down again, no matter what the monsters throw at her.
"That's our girl. See, Sans? I told you there was nothing to worry about. She can handle anything." As nudged him, winking when Sans turned his skull to him, earning the goat a heart-filled chuckle while he shifted his sockets back on her running form.
"I should've known better, that girl is as strong as any monster here. Damn, I love her."
The goat monster chuckled, nodding as his sister finally skidded to a stop when Undyne passed out on the path, the heat of the beginning of Hotland.
The flower sighed, shaking her head before she searched for water. Sans smiled small as he watched when she finally found a water dispenser and brought the full glass to in front of her, loving the familiar sight before he saw Frisk sat down.
He made a move towards her, but his brother placed a hand on his arm with a gentle shake of the head.
"Not yet, brother. It's not over."
The older Skeleton Brother scowled, but he hesitantly obeyed, not wanting to be the reason Error had to follow through with his futile threats of following the rules.
As Frisk waited for Undyne to wake, the white skeleton let his mind turn to the glitchy monster.
He hadn't seen him since he revealed their true past. Although Sans didn't fully trust Error just yet, he was slightly worried about his broken twin. He acted like he was living a lie all along. And in a way, he has.
Someone put him, them, through this hell. All for a sick, twisted reason. This was their punishment for just falling in love. He didn't have the chance to both remember who he really was and to break the curse, twisting his soul to the point it was irreversible.
But, Sans had the chance now and he had a feeling that fact makes him angry and hurt, maybe jealous of him. The other skeleton couldn't really blame him, if the roles were reversed, he would hate him as well.
It was better if he stayed away for now, but Sans couldn't help but worry about him. However, the skeleton knew he was staying away for Frisk's safety. Error was trying to calm his anger before he returns.
He loved her, in a way, and he would do anything for her. Just like any other Sanes, he wanted to give her the true happy ending she deserved. So, he would stay away to make sure his anger wouldn't hurt her:
"Why are you helping me, human? I wanted to kill you." Undyne's gravelly growl mumbled, waking the male from his mind, and he shifted his sole pupil on the two females as one gulped the water down and the other smiled softly.
'I told you, madam, I want to help the monsters. I want to show you guys the pretty stars, Undyne.'
Her rubies widened at that, no sounds were heard, just shocked silence as the flower just smiled while she waited for the fish to speak.
Was she just repeating what she heard or did she remember her on her own?
"How do you know my name?" She whispered barely audible, her eyes staring into hers, and the boys could tell there was hope hiding in within it, her tough attitude melting into a much calmer one.
The younger woman smiled small again, her blues shifting to Sans' sockets for a brief moment before she moved them back to her aunt's as she bit her lip nervously. She seemed unsure how to process before her hands began to dance in the air.
'I heard Paps say it.'
Everyone could tell she was lying, but chose not to call her out on it. It'd bring up things that she clearly wasn't ready to face now. No matter how much a certain skeleton wanted to.
Undyne pursed her lips, a habit she formed when she was a young fish, and nodded.
"I see."
As much as she was thankful no one pointed out her obvious lie, Frisk almost hoped they would have. This was getting tiresome, but she wasn't quite ready to confess all. She needed more time.
I don't know how much time you have, sis. Your comedian is smarter than I gave him credit for. Chara chimed in, making her eyes instinctively fell on a confused Sans with a bright blush as her older sister continued to speak:
He will find out sooner or later, you know that, right?
Upon hearing that, the flower sighed deeply, looking down to her lap, and Sans wanted to comfort her; but he couldn't move a muscle. He was too shocked to even notice when she began to sign once more. One question played on repeat in his skull:
How much did she remember really?
'Anyway, I want to get to know you more tomorrow, if you don't mind?'
The fish woman smiled sweetly, hugging the smaller woman with one arm, before she moved away; her armor clicked as she walked away, one hand in the air:
"Of course, punk. You are a wimp, but with a big heart. We're going to be besties, I'll make sure of it!" Was the last thing from her before she faded from view, earning a smile from the new-found princess before she turned to her friends with a blush.
I think you are busted, Frisk. The reddish brunette teased light, Frisk felt her nudge against her skull, causing her blush across her entire face:
She couldn't help but wonder if Chara was right as she watched Sans come to her. Did he know the power he had over her?
-.-.-.-.-
Sans furrowed his non-existent brows, but he smiled at his sweetheart as he walked to her and picking her up. Later, he decided, he would deal with this later.
They would talk about this later. They would open their souls, laying bare all their secrets. But for now, he just had to be patient until the right time came.
But damn, the waiting was slowly killing the poor skeleton. He sighed slightly, pushing that thought into a dark corner for later, and cuddled his princess closer.
"Come on, sweetheart, let's get to the hotel and feed you. You have a long day tomorrow. And I'm bone-tired, heh." He soothed, kissing her temple, but his eye sockets didn't move from her brother's, his held the same feelings.
Hope and love, strong as the first time when the feelings started.
The group checked in the Mettaon Hotel, two rooms; one for each gender. In the males' room, as their princess slept, they talked about their suspicions, but the boys were only more confused as their discussion went on:
"Perhaps you should just talk to her now, brother?" Papyrus suggested, cocking his head slightly, but only earned a sigh from his older brother.
"It's not simple, Pappy."
"But talking about feelings worked with Mettaton and I." The younger skeleton countered, not helping Sans' already sour mood.
He didn't mind Paps dating, heck, he was happy he found someone that makes him happy. But did it had to be the much experienced, self-absorbed robot?
Sans didn't dislike the male, but if he had to choose a partner for his precious brother, he would be the last he would choose. He has no doubt that he loves him, but Sans wanted his brother to stay innocent for a bit longer before he grew up completely. He might be a hundred in human years, but he's still a teenager in monster's years, and a young one at that, still naive to the blackness of the world….
Sans saw enough at the mere age of twenty and hundred and nineteen to know that he never wanted his brother to see any bit of it.
And the robot, as nice as he was sometimes, was no Frisk. Someone as sweet as the tall cinnamon roll. Someone almost as innocent as he was, that is who Sans would have chosen for his brother.
The only problem was there was only one Frisk and she was already spoken for.
He knew she would be more fitting for Papyrus than this depressed skeleton if he was honest with himself. She would be good for him. But Sans would be damned if he let that happen, he was a selfish monster. And he already claimed her as his.
He breathed deeply before he turned to the matter at hand, rubbing his skull to fight a raging headache back.
"Bro, this is different. You guys already bonded. I was waiting until Error was dealt with and Frisk was ready. The bonding progress will be hard on her." His growl was low, almost defeated as he stood from the bed and moved to the wide window:
"Brother….."
"Sorry, bro, I'm just feeling bonely, heh."
Papyrus sucked on the bottom row of his teeth annoyed at his small pun, but he let it go.
He hated to see him like this and searched for something, anything, to say but failed. He darted his small pupils to the goat for help, but he wasn't very helpful. He wanted to help his brother, but he didn't know how to, and it seemed to him, that the prince didn't either.
There was only one person that could now and she was far in dreamland, no idea what was going on.
He could only hope that she comes around soon as his sockets followed his movements to the balcony, telling them he needed a cigarette and to go bed before closing the glass door behind him. The tall skeleton sighed as he turned to the prince:
"Will he be okay, Prince?" He whispered, earning a shaky breath before a reply came, another barely audible whisper.
"I don't know, Pappy, I don't know."
-'.-.-.-.-
The fourteen-year-old girl sighed softly, watching as the sun started to melt into the moon, her mind twirling with confusing thoughts:
Frisk Dreemurr had a few confusing years, the last three years brought up whole new experiences and feeling as she entered puberty. Like her feelings toward her best friend, Sans The Skeleton.
They were both changing and she didn't know how to feel about the changes. On the one hand, Frisk had to admit that she started to like them, but on the other hand, she didn't want to ruin their awesome friendship. She didn't want to lose him if he didn't feel the same. He meant everything to her, if she loses him, it would feel like she was missing a piece of herself. But, keeping this secret was gradually getting harder. The flower didn't know how long she could hide this from anybody, including her punny friend.
She sighed, then a booming voice made her jump out of her skin before she spun to the side to see her loud-spoken aunt grinning at her:
"Hey, punk! Whatcha doing out here alone?" The blue fish questioned, swinging her legs over the edge next to the smaller female.
Frisk bit her lip nervously, not sure how-to response. Should she tell her the truth or lie? She mused, chewing away, before she chose the first; knowing her aunt was a monster lie detector, making her great at her new job as a detective. Something she did while the King was away and she needed extra cash.
'I was thinking about something.' Her hands were shaking while she signed that simple statement, causing Undyne lean back on her elbows and pursing her lips as she narrowed her eyes playfully.
This girl was very easy to read, the fish thought amused as her grin widened:
"Thinking about something, or someone, Frisk?"
The flower snorted loudly, smiling slightly, and shook her head before her hands started to dance again.
They knew her way too well, she probably knew who the someone was. She needed to learn to school her expression more, she scolded herself.
'You know me too well, auntie.' Undyne laughed throatily, running her fingers through her bright red mane before she held her hand lovingly:
"I knew you both, hun. I have seen the way he looks at you, I stare the same way at Alphy."
'What do you mean?' The shaking was back full-force, making it difficult to form that question.
Undyne hummed thoughtfully, rolling her eyes to the semi-cloudy evening as she tried to ponder what to say.
Humans didn't understand their way, and even if she was raised around them for years, Frisk was still too young to understand this.
Humans might have their own soulmates, but the Monsters have something much, much stronger. Something that could make any love story seem tame by comparison:
It was dubbed Soul Bonding a thousand years ago when Gods and Goddesses of the stories roamed the Earth beside the humans and lower monsters, protecting them.
It is said that when a soulmate meets their bond, they instantly feel a strong pull to them. But when the bond is still young, the soulmate would become whatever they need them to be until they reach maturity. When they reach that point, however, their protective nature towards their bond would grow to a fever pitch as their feelings slowly turn from a tame family love to a much stronger love. One that could not be erased.
And the change was starting between Sans and Frisk. She and the others noticed the beginning signs of the bonding when Frisk hit thirteen, when she was bit by bit approaching her maturity. Now, a year later, things were quickly picking up heat between the two.
They both were oblivious to each other's feelings, clueless to how much they meant to each other. They were simply blind to the change that was coming for them.
At first, Sans tired to keep the growing feelings buried deep, trying to keep viewing the teen as the little girl he loved and helped raise; but slowly they are getting stronger to fight. He had to talk to someone about this and Undyne was the only choice the male had, unknown to the young teen next to her.
He was loving her from afar, unsure as to what to do, just like her right now:
If he went to her parents about the bond, he would've been burned to dust, and his brother would've tried to help, laying them both in trouble, but Undyne knew and could help.
And she did, and she will. These wimps had to wake up and realize they were deep already. She inhaled deeply, sitting up as she settled her arms on her knees while she watched night set in, dotting the sky with the beautiful stars.
"You know, kid, I'm gonna tell you something I learned a long time ago. You can't hide something when your heart wants the world to know it. Sooner or later, everything comes to the light."
With that, the female winked a bit, ignoring the confused look she was giving her, and stood. Leaving the young teen to wonder with a bright flush upon her cheeks:
Does she know?
-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Frisk shot up, her blues wide and staring at the dimmed tv screen, as her heart drummed her ribs. Undyne…
Her hand came around her necklace, swinging her legs off the bed, and shifted her eyes down to the red heart. She knew how Frisk felt about Sans even then and somewhat helped, maybe she can help her now. Maybe she can push her to the right direction to take.
She pursed her lips thoughtfully, trying to sort the rushing thoughts to a more reasonable pace, before the young woman growled in frustration and moved to the shower.
When her eyes touched the digital clock on the table, it read seven 'o'clock, and she knew she wasn't going back to sleep; she figured the shower would calm her nerves before she left for Undyne's home and had the most nerve-wracking conversation she would have. Next to confessing everything to Sans, of course:
Little Frisk knew, everything will change after that talk. Her world will seem a little bit brighter. Her dream monster was about to get a face, a face that she should've sure of all along.
-.-.-.-.-.-
"Are you sure you want to go alone, sweetheart?" Sans required, brushing his knuckles down her cheek, sending fire in the touch's wake.
The flower hid a deep shiver behind a smile, nodding slowly before she stepped back, holding onto his hand for a lingering moment, their eyes held and smiled small. That moment lasted for a few minutes more before she signed the 'okay' sign and pointed to the fish-shaped house behind her:
"Okay, okay, sweetheart. We'll be out here." Sans stated with a small laugh, slowly releasing her hand, letting her fade into the house while the blue fish grinned and waved the girl in.
Asriel giggled as he rested an arm on his shoulder, but Sans didn't notice, his pupils formed hearts after her. That moment was just too intense.
Man, the goat snickered amusedly, it's getting stronger already. He wondered who would falter first, but Asriel had a suspicion that the skeleton will be the first to break. He didn't hide his feelings very well. But there again, neither did his sister.
Her face showed everything she was trying to hide, even if Sans was blind to every emotion she was giving him. As he thought before, they were the two most oblivious beings in both worlds. He snickered quietly before the goat cleared his throat:
"You know, G, if you stare any harder there, you will burn a hole in the wall and Undyne will dust your ass for destroying her house."
Sans finally woke from the spell and growled deeply, shoving his friend playfully while he scowled at him. As much as he loved the annoying goat, he sometimes hated his smug guts.
"Shut your trap, you dirty weed eater. I'm not staring."
"Oh really? And, pray tell, why are your pupils showing and are hearts, hmm, brother?" Paps chimed in, his tone colored with a teasing quality.
"Not you too, bro." The older skeleton groaned deeply into his hands, causing the two other males to laugh.
While the banter continued, Sans had to admit that it was getting harder to hide how deep he was as the days went on. He was getting easier and easier to read, and if he wasn't careful, the skeleton would have given all away before he was ready.
No, he was ready, but it was Frisk he was worried about. He had a feeling that the beautiful flower knew more than she led on, but the skeleton knew she wasn't ready and didn't want to push Frisk into something she wasn't ready for. He needed to control both his emotions and his expressions, for now. At least, until she comes to him.
-.-.-.-.-.-
Frisk smiled sweetly in thanks as the fish handed a warm mug of tea, but inside, she was a ball of nerves. What should she say?
She didn't know to botch the subject of the memory without almost admitting that she was remembering, or worse, sounding crazy. But she needed to know, she needed help.
But, how to ask?
"You look like you have something on your mind, kid." The ginger-haired female mumbled into her own mug, startling her into raising her eyes up to the red ones.
The fish monster was staring at the young woman with knowing eyes, as if she knew why she was there. And it wasn't for an intense cooking lesson, like earlier meetings between the two. The young princess needed help, not a silly lesson.
And Undyne knew what was rushing through her mind, wanting to reach out for help, but didn't know how to. The loud warrior felt bad for the girl, but the silence needed to be ended:
They both knew that they had to talk about this, otherwise the flower will have to go at it on her own and the aquatic creature didn't think the teen would be able to handle that. She wasn't in the past, now wasn't so different.
Undyne just hoped she didn't have to pry it out of her, she wasn't so fond of pushing the princess into anything, but this was getting ridiculous. Something had to give and that something had to happen now, otherwise, the young pair would end up hurt and broken. And the warrior would rather die than let that happen:
Frisk breathed slowly, looking into the dark liquid for a long moment before slowly and steady, her hands formed a statement as her tongue ran over her lips nervously.
'A friend of mine once told me that you can't hide something when your heart wants the world to know about it. Do you know what they meant by that?'
Undyne tried to hide a grin as she moved to the sink to dump the rest of tea, speaking softly over her shoulder. She didn't turn around until the grin was under control:
"Well, I can't speak for your friend, Frisk, but what I got from it was…." She took in a steadying breath before she turned back to the shivering girl as she leaned back on the counter and stared right into her clear blue eyes.
"…When you feel something that strongly, it will get harder to hide it. I've been there, punk. I fought against my heart and it almost killed me. I'd say it's better to lay everything out with a brave face."
'What if you're not ready to do that?'
The tall fish monster smiled at that simple, innocent question as she closed her eyes.
"Oh, honey, you will never be ready, but your heart will be. And it's coming soon. Your pull is starting."
The girl cocked her head confused and the fish grinned innerly, walking to her seat.
She might be pushing the limit here, but the teen needed the facts now, not later. Maybe if she had all the facts, thought about it over-night, she might be more open to open herself to Sans. Before it was too late for her to choose later. She didn't want to lose both of them, they were too important to her:
"Do you know about soulmates, kid?" She asked, putting a hand over hers, earning a slow nod before she lifted her hands in the air.
'Yes, the most powerful level of love a human can have.'
"Not for a monster, kid. We have something called Soul Bonding. It is stronger than any soulmate story you have. Unlike soulmates, monsters only have one soul bond for all their lives, not even death can end it. The Soul Bond lasts a thousand years and even more."
The flower didn't know what to feel as the words sank in, a hand placed over her chest where her soul sat wiggling excitedly at the mention of Soul Bond.
Soul Bonding, where has she heard….?
Then, with a sharp pain running from her chest, she gasped loudly and crashed to the floor; memories flooded her mind as her vision darkened around Undyne's screaming face.
While the brunette faded into the colorful memories, Frisk faintly heard Sans' panicked voice filled the room and the familiar boot fall lulled her deeper into her mind.