Squeeeak! Tisssss… Flora turned the knob in Frisk's shower, preparing to finally clean herself after a week of going without. Steam rose from the warm spray. Flora closed the curtain and stripped. Loose dust fell from her clothes, and they were damp and crusty from dried blood. Her bare feet were cooled on the white tile floor, but the heat from the shower suffused the rest of the room. Flora caught a glance of herself in the mirror as she made her way back to the shower. She stopped and stared. She couldn't even recognize herself. She was a stranger, a revenant, a skeleton. In that mirror stood a distorted image of what was before. Flora wasn't sure where she would go after what happened, what it all meant. She felt relief when it came to her freedom, but all she could think about was the sensation of every strike, the splatter of blood that followed. The voices of her friends echoed in her head, from the screams of Iris to the sly, smooth tone of Quinn. The one that stuck out the most, though, was Willow's mournful cry.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

What have I done? Flora couldn't help but contemplate all of her experiences. It wasn't me doing it…or was it? I mean, I brought them to me in the first place. Maybe I wanted this? But…I didn't. It doesn't matter if I wanted it, does it? Either way, I have to deal with the consequences. Is this some sort of punishment? Was this what Chara wanted? Is that why they left me so easily? They didn't want to kill, but to make me feel…

Flora stepped into the shower, the hot water burning her at first. She reached and adjusted the temperature. She was able to immerse herself in the water. It seemed to calm her body, but not her mind. Quinn is driving me to the hospital to see Iris today. Frisk and Willow haven't left her side since last night. What kind of friend am I? How could I have let this happen? Flora deeply cleansed herself of all the blood and dust, from both her own wounds and spilled from her friends. The water going down the drain was a drab blend of red and grey. Her wounds still hurt. They burned near the epicenter and ached in the areas surrounding. The soap was excruciating. It seemed Flora's vision was blurred, her mind stuffed with cotton. Even among this contemplation, she couldn't think clearly. Every movement was slow and felt surreal. She reached for the shampoo and applied it. She lathered it in slowly. Chara, of all the things you did, why did you have to cut my hair?

After Flora finished her shower, she felt only a featherweight off of her shoulders. She made her way to the Dreemurr guest room. Toriel had stripped the bed of all the blankets, sheets, and pillows for washing, and Quinn had left an outfit on the barren mattress. It was a pair of black leggings and a green and yellow sweater dress. Of course. Flora thought, scoffing to herself. She put on the outfit anyway, since she had no choice in the matter, and went upstairs. Quinn was waiting for them in grey sweatpants and a navy blue hoodie. They smiled a grin Flora had grown sick of. "Ready to go?" Quinn asked.

"Yes," Flora mumbled.

"You look good," Quinn said awkwardly, turning to exit the house.

"Why did you do it?" Flora asked.

Quinn glanced back. "Hmm? Do what?"

"You gave me, no, Chara, that knife. You provoked them. You set them loose, even though you knew the consequences. You claimed to know the answer and yet you did nothing. You put everyone in danger and then tried to protect them! You let Chara almost kill Iris! I'm not going to let that go. I'm not going to forget about it. What were you planning? If you care so much about these things, about souls and timelines and preserving them, why did you do all of those things?" Flora approached Quinn and stared them in the eyes as she spoke, her words sharp and aggressive. "You said it was some sort of test, to prove the whole timeline thing wrong. Well, were your results satisfactory? Huh? Are you happy because of what you did?"

Quinn was quiet for a moment. They avoided Flora's eyes. "…Not really."

"Then why did you do it?"

"I…don't know."

"Wow, what a great answer. You might've killed someone last night, Quinn! Your impulsive actions could've let loose a genocide on our town, on our world! What if we hadn't been able to stop it? What then?"

"I wanted to test the stability of this!" Quinn shouted.

Flora took a step back. "What?"

"I wanted to see if this peace we're all enjoying would last. I wanted to see if destiny existed, if it was true that some were the heroes meant to be happy and if others were meant to be cast aside, to live their lives a nightmare, like Asriel and Chara." Quinn said.

"You put our lives in danger…for that? Are we just your test subjects? Your lab rats? Have you been manipulating us to trust you when really you don't care at all?" Words were spilling out of Flora's mouth. Ever since Chara entered her mind she wanted to ask these questions, to finally get some answers.

"I do care about all of you," Quinn began.

"You have a funny way of showing it," Flora muttered.

"Yeah, I guess I do! No, you're not just test subjects to me. This isn't just raw fascination. I need to know what our fates are, what mine is. We're at the mercy at rigid numbers and code, don't you see that? We're all puppets in some sadistic puppet show! I just wanted to throw the master a curve ball. But, the events of the past week have made me think that I should give it up. I'm glad you asked me all of those questions. You deserve to know, but I realize that I'm only letting whoever is behind this win if I make myself miserable searching for answers. I wish we could go back to when we were all blissfully ignorant, but my actions tainted that life we had." Quinn explained.

Flora was speechless once again. She found that happened often with Quinn. "But we can't go back."

"We can only work with what we have. There will be bumps. There will be questions left unsolved, but I don't care. We can only hope that the others will forgive and forget." Quinn said.

"Forgive? Like that's gonna happen." Flora scoffed.

"I forgive you. Frisk forgives you. Do you forgive yourself?" Quinn asked.

"Um…y-yeah, I guess," Flora said. It was really just for show, but Quinn's words made her think. "And I forgive you, too."

"Alright. Then Iris and Willow will too. Let's go." Quinn smiled a toothless smile. Flora wasn't so sick of it this time. It was as though she was seeing Quinn smile for the first time. Not all of Flora's questions were answered, and Flora couldn't trust Quinn just yet, but in those moments, she didn't care.

Flora's thoughts left the matter during the drive to the hospital. She kept flashing back to Iris' body, thrown against the wall, blood gushing from where her eye used to be. She also thought of her mother, who was also in the hospital because of her. She decided then, that she wouldn't visit her mother, not yet. She wasn't sure what she would even say to her.

"You're being awfully quiet over there," Quinn said quietly, their eyes not leaving the road.

"Just thinking," Flora replied.

"That's dangerous," Quinn said jokingly.

"Why did Chara leave so easily?" Flora asked.

"They left easily?" Quinn answered with a question, bewildered.

"I pinned them to the ground and told them they weren't wanted. They said that they knew that. I told them to leave, to accept that they lost, and they just…left. They said, 'Okay', and left. Why did they put up so much of a fight before only to leave that quickly? It makes no sense. Do you think they're planning something?"

"Maybe they're just tired." Quinn shrugged.

"Be serious, Quinn," Flora said.

"I am being serious! What if they just decided, maybe I should stop forcing myself on these people? What if they're tired of losing every single time? What if they just…gave up, finally?" Quinn raised their voice a higher volume with each sentence.

"I hope that's what happened. Maybe they'll leave Frisk alone too." Flora grew quiet again.

"Mm," Quinn grunted contemplatively. They glanced up. "We're here."

Quinn and Flora's shoes clicked against the tiled floors of the hospital corridors. Neither of them were wearing heels. Flora occasionally slid due to the flat soles of her Ugg boots. The hospital staff workers, doctors, nurses, others, bustling around with determined purpose were but a blur to Flora. Quinn and Flora knew Iris' room number and made a beeline there. It was similar to the room Iris stayed in when she fought the Amalgamate. Quinn and Flora lingered in the doorway once they reached the room. Iris was still unconscious, with Willow knelt beside the bed, her face buried in her hands. Frisk was standing over the both of them. Frisk had changed clothes and showered as well, but they still wore a pink and blue sweater and jeans. They acknowledged Flora and Quinn's presence. "She's in stable condition, but she lost a lot of blood…she should wake up at any time, really. We're lucky. The amount of dust on you last night was enough to make me think she wasn't gonna make it, Flora." Frisk said.

Flora sighed in relief. "Me too."

Willow lifted her head from the covers, her eyes swollen from crying. She sniffled and wiped her eyes. "Yeah…as long as she's okay…we're okay." A grin tugged at Willow's lips.

"She took some hard hits. She'll likely be in here for a while. " Quinn added.

"You should've seen what it took to keep her from falling apart. With the blood and how deep the cuts were, the flesh around the wounds started…turning to dust. It was like working with wet sand, but the doctors here fixed her up." Willow said.

Click! Clack! Click Clack! Click! Clack! The sounds of high heels on the floor grew louder and louder behind Flora. Two firm hands shoved Flora and Quinn, and Narcissus burst into the hospital room. "Out of my way, you two! Where is she? I heard what happened, is she okay?" Narcissus asked loudly. Her hair was straightened and pulled into two long pigtails. Flora thought she looked like Hatsune Miku.

"Nice to see you care a little bit," Quinn muttered.

"I don't just care a little bit! Who did this to her?" Narcissus asked demandingly, stomping her foot on the floor.

"It was an accident, nobody did anything. Besides, she's fine now." Frisk said hastily. Flora shot Frisk a subtle expression of gratitude from across the room.

"How is this fine?" Narcissus shouted. Frisk and Willow looked at each other, their mouths opening to reply before they were interrupted by stirring in the hospital bed. Everyone turned and faced Iris, who was finally waking.

Iris grunted and groaned as she sat up. Her left eye opened slowly, what existed in the absence of her right underneath a bandage. Flora had a hard time moving her body with her wounds, pain shooting with every movement, but she could only imagine how amplified the experience was for Iris. Iris' eye scanned the room. "I wasn't expecting an audience." She said, quiet and humorless.

"Iris! You're alright!" Willow dove in to hug her friend, only to be slapped away.

"Please...don't. It hurts." Iris turned her face from Willow, who was visibly upset. More footsteps approached and yet another visitor appeared in the doorway. It was Tripp, still in pajamas with some of the wildest bedhead Flora had ever seen.

"What happened?" Tripp was frantic, and he seemed out of breath.

"It's fine," Iris replied before anyone else could speak. "Just a fight."

"You said it was an accident!" Narcissus growled at Frisk.

"It doesn't matter. It's over. It's done." Iris closed her eye in resignation. "It touches me that you've all come, that you all care enough to stay with me... but, I want, no, I need for you all to leave. I'll be out of here soon, but for now, I just, need to rest."

"What? What about us? We spent all this time worrying about you and wasting our time here and-" Narcissus began, only to be silenced by a weakly raised hand.

"Papsta. Please." Iris spoke sternly, but earnestly.

Narcissus facial expression morphed from frustration to tender understanding. Flora was surprised at how Iris could tame her. Narcissus nodded solemnly, twirled on her heels, her twin tails swinging, and walked somberly out of the hospital room. Tripp followed, his tail swaying back and forth to a mournful tempo. Quinn tapped Flora on the shoulder. They whispered. "We should go."

"Why? Can't you see she's pushing us all away when she needs us the-" Flora protested.

"It doesn't matter. Let's just go." Quinn grabbed Flora by the wrist and pulled her out of the hospital room and out of the building itself. Flora couldn't help but surrender to Quinn's direction. She could only assume that Frisk and Willow left Iris to her solitude as well. She wanted time alone with her friend, to apologize, to beg forgiveness for her actions... but she also felt that deep down Iris had already forgiven her.

Winter had arrived at Mt. Ebott. It was early December, so her visit was on schedule. Her lonely tears descended as dancing snowflakes. Her shadow left the world dark and grey and cloudy. Her fingertips traced rosemaled designs on every window. Her sighing breaths brought the occasional wind, but other than that, all was still and dormant. Flora had not noticed before when she left the Dreemurr's house that morning. The air was crisp and bitter and slicingly cold. Quinn and Flora's breath manifested in short wisps of vapor. The snow fell and landed on their clothes and hair. Autumn had ended, and all was dead. Flora could only hope for a new, better beginning in spring.

Frisk was thankful for Flora. It seemed that Chara was completely gone for good thanks to her. When they returned home from the hospital, Frisk was conflicted whether or not to indulge in their freedom or spend time worrying about their friends. When they turned into bed that night, they swallowed their sleep aids and prepared for the first true dream they would have in a long time. It didn't even matter if it was a nightmare, it would still confirm Frisk's freedom from Chara's torture.

Frisk closed their eyes, and instead of the peaceful blackness or vivid dream they were expecting, there was Chara, but they weren't like themselves. They weren't smiling or pumping their chest as they whipped Frisk into another flashback. Their head was resting dismally on their knees, which were pulled up to their chest in a fetal position. Chara's trademark red eyes were closed, and there was nothing but Chara and Frisk's breathing and the usual directionless wind to fill the void.

"Chara? What are you doing here?" Frisk asked. If this were any other case, that question would sound redundant, but this time, Frisk really wasn't sure what Chara was doing.

"What are you doing here, Frisk?" Chara asked bitterly. "Shouldn't you be, I don't know, reveling in your sweet victory? Sure, leave 'ol Chara behind, they won't mind."

Frisk sighed and scooted up beside Chara. "Chara...I'm not just going to forget everything you've done. I don't understand why you're all of a sudden acting this way. Heck, I don't know why you've ever acted the way you have, and it's not because I haven't made an effort to, or I haven't experienced the same things you have. I don't know, I'm just wired differently."

"I'm not expecting you to be nice to me. And I'm not going to act sorry for my actions, simply because you don't understand them. You want me to apologize for being a monster, but no one ever apologized for turning me into one." Chara said.

"Chara-"

"I don't understand...we both had the same beginning, I know we have." Chara rolled up their sleeves and reached over to roll up Frisk's. "See? We match." They gestured to the scars on their wrists and up their arms. "But why did we have different endings? Why did fate choose for you to be happy, and meanwhile I'm here, in the void, dead, forever."

"Well, you did-" Frisk tried to speak but Chara interrupted.

"I know I did some bad things in the past, but...I always thought this was the punishment everyone promised me just for being me. I walked through most of my life, both underground and on the surface, with people telling me I deserved to die and go to hell...and then I did. I always knew I was meant to be...just created as one, big, super wrong, screw up-" Chara explained, their voice becoming more and more broken as they spoke.

"Chara, I-"

"But then I met you and everything got moved around. You're one, big, super wrong, screw up too, and yet you got to be happy. Maybe half of the stuff I did was just me projecting my anger a little bit, my jealousy, and my hatred for the world, humanity, and fate itself. Desperate, traumatized, I've never felt whole, and I just don't know how to cope with that. Sorry, I'm rambling...you can talk now if you want."

"No, no, I get it. I can think of a lot of people like that, actually. Although most of them haven't killed people, and I can't really let that slide just yet, I've given all of them a chance. Even someone who doesn't have a soul and can't understand how much my friendship means. Sometimes the first step to getting better is just someone pushing you along." Frisk smiled.

"Oh boy, I get your sappy talk now-" Chara scoffed.

"I want to be that someone, Chara. You don't want me to leave, so I'll stay. You said you don't feel whole, so I'll make you a part of me. All you have to do is stop doing this, stop playing this game. Then, we can be happy together." Frisk wrapped their hand in Chara's and looked into their red eyes.

"Are you sure you want to do this? I've done nothing to deserve this, and I mean literally nothing. Don't you want to sleep peacefully without me around?" Chara looked away from Frisk's kind face. They couldn't look at them, not now.

"I'd rather spend every night helping a friend, than living a nightmare, or just a boring black void. Quit making excuses, Chara. Don't you want to be happy?" Frisk said, turning Chara's face back towards them with a gentle hand. A scintillating rainbow button appeared in front of them.

*SAVE

"Frisk, why are you doing this? Really? Do you just have to save everyone to be satisfied? No one can be this saintly. I've spent years trying to prove that you can be as disgusting as me, but you just can't, can you?" Chara asked.

"I'm doing this, because I see myself in you, just like you see yourself in me." Frisk put their hand on the glowing button. "It's you or me, Chara. Let's be happy again, for good."

Chara closed their eyes, feelings of uncertainty swirling in their brain, more than usual at least. They slowly lifted their hand and placed it on the button. "Happy, now?" Chara asked, trying to hide their mixed emotions of excitement, gratitude, and nervousness.

"Yes, and I think you'll be too." Frisk smiled before for the first time in years, the black void faded to white.

"Let's just live! Day by day and not be conquered by our sorrows. The past can't hold us down, we must break free! Inside we're torn apart, but time will mend our hearts, move onward, not there yet so let's just live!"

-Let's Just Live; Jeff and Casey Williams

A lot of Undertale, to me, is about forgiveness and mercy and moving forward. In the end, I knew that Chara wouldn't have been able to keep fighting. I feel like I know them too well, and it just doesn't seem like them, you know? I've grown to move past certain hurts inflicted on me by other people because of the simple fact that a lot of time (not always, but a lot of the time) people hurt others just because they don't feel whole, and don't know how to cope with that. That sometimes, the only way to cry for help is to make others understand your pain through passing it on. Frisk knows this philosophy all too well and is ready to guide Chara towards happiness. Frisk and Chara are really meant for each other in that sense. Chara will be a voice in the back of Frisk's head, and Frisk is the only person who can meet Chara's needs since they want a lot of the same things. I had this last scene in the deep depths of my files for a long time, written during an emotional moment and stored away for later. I could tell the state I was in at the moment I first composed this scene, since I used a line I say a lot "Sorry I'm rambling, you can talk now." in Chara's dialogue.

Things will be a bit slow as everyone recovers, and it would be dishonest for me to say that everything will go back to "normal" for these guys. Iris will have to get used to only having one eye and forgiving Flora and Chara (She'll be joining Yang and Dr. House in the depressed cripple club for a bit). Quinn will start opening up and living life to the fullest. Things are just kind of tense, hehe.

I never know what to say in these anymore, heh. I'll just leave this to your own conclusions. Let me know what you think of all this in the comments! REVIEWS ARE ENCOURAGED!