Chapter 21: The Result of Writer's Block

A pig mask… that is literally the only thing Sans got from running like that. Part of being lazy was that running was a big no. The whole experience was one he would love to forget. That Deku Scrub was ridiculously fast. Luckily, he had cheated a little bit with teleporting, but not enough for him to be caught by the Butler.

How was he rewarded? Sans was rewarded by gaining some sort of pig mask. Of course, the Deku Butler had told him something about Link reminding him of his son. Whatever that meant, he had no idea. The only thing he was really worrying about was finding the boy himself. It had been a long time since he set off, and he hadn't come back. It had been nagging at his mind for a while now.

There was no way to pinpoint just exactly where Link was. It was near impossible just to stumble upon anyone particular in this place unless it was pure luck, or simply knowing where they would be. This world was much larger than the Underground, so finding one boy would be extremely difficult. Hopefully, Link had been able to find Asriel before any harm came to him. Sans hoped Link knew how to get around faster so he could find Asriel.

Now, none of them were back. Not to mention, the sun was setting for the second time. The moon was inching ever so closely. How many days until that thing would fall? Shivering, Sans continued looking for any sign of Link. There was nothing out of the ordinary in Termina Field. He couldn't stop stealing a glance at that moon.

Many times while walking, he thought that he felt tremors shaking the ground. After observing, it turned out it was just his imagination. After all, he had nearly passed out from all of that running, and he still wasn't allowed to take a break.

There it was again… He swore the ground shook from under him this time. Paying close attention, he kept walking further. This time, he knew he wasn't just feeling things. The ground shook more than usual, giving him the confirmation he needed. Looking up from the ground, he could see the silhouette of something huge, headed towards the barrier.

Cursing under his breath, he ran behind a tree, finding a shortcut. The world slipped from his grasp only for a moment before reappearing in his vision. Trying to make out just where he was, he took a few steps forward, allowing his eye to activate. The first thing he noticed was the lack of snow under his feet. Snowhead… should have snow… right?

Letting his eyes wander, he caught sight of the giant silhouette looming over the mountain. Now, he was able to make out just what it was. It was just like the giant he saw after fighting Odolwa. But, that wasn't it. It was standing right behind the familiar shape of Link. He seemed crouched over, holding someone.

There was only one person who that could be. Link seemed to not even notice the giant behind him, until colors began flashing from the barrier with brilliance. Sans grinded to a halt, his attention being split between Link and the barrier? What the heck was happening?

The giant began singing, letting its power channel into the barrier. Tatl was telling Link something, but Sans couldn't hear because of the crackling of the barrier's magic. How was this happening? Did they somehow obtain Frisk's soul or something? There would be no way the barrier was breaking unless it was the giant. But, how would something have the power of seven souls?

With a massive crash, the barrier burst. Rainbow shards flew in all directions, dissipating as soon as they came in collision with anything. Link's head snapped in the barrier's direction, seeing entities coming from the rainbow smoke that was left behind. Were the monsters finally free?

Now that the noises had settled down, Sans could distinctly hear voices. It was the deep voice of Asgore. That would only mean one thing. Link had to be in trouble.

Why did the first one to come out have to look so threatening? A king figure Link had seen on his first run was the first monster to step forth. It had all happened so quickly. Asgore set his eyes on the monster Link was holding. His eyes filled with recognition of Link, tempering his anger. One would be pissed when seeing their child beaten and bruised.

Link knew he had heard the voice before. The only time he had heard the same deep tone was when he was with Frisk. He didn't even want to sort out the complications. Asgore put a hand in front of Undyne who was ready to attack Link. After all, a supposed human was holding a monster that was on the other side of the barrier.

Asgore stepped forward, cautiously, but at his full height to show he could be dangerous. Link had to admit, Asgore was intimidating. "Young one…" The boss monster began, kneeling down to eye level. "Please, will you put down my child?"

Wait, he was Asriel's father? Link looked down to Asriel, and then back at Asgore. The resemblance was there. As to not anger the king at all, Link placed Asriel in his arms. He took a step backwards, giving them some room. Tatl hovered next to Link's head, gazing between the two.

Asgore looked like he was about to cry. This was real, and his son was alive. If only Toriel were here to see this. Chara and Frisk emerged from the Underground, seeing Asgore cradling the prince. They were not as surprised, and instead were horrified at the wounds inflicted to him.

Frisk had run forward, eyes widened at the crippled boy. Link swore he saw something similar to their eyes, and it was unsettling. "A-Asriel? Who did this to you?" They asked to his sleeping form.

How would he explain this? He had no clue who exactly could inflict these wounds. And, neither did anyone else. Link heard a yell come from his right. Chara ran forward, grabbing the dagger from Frisk's pocket.

There was only a split second to react.

The clash of metal versus metal filled the air. Link barely had time to draw his sword before Chara's knife collided with him. Luckily, he had been right on time to defend against the blow. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Tatl asked in alarm.

Chara had suddenly lashed out with no explanation. A demonic grin was plastered upon their face as they stared down Link with killing intent. "What did you do to my brother?" They questioned, bringing their knife back for another strike.

"It wasn't him!" Tatl yelled out. Link leapt to the side, blocking with his shield. This was a misunderstanding, and Chara didn't need to die. They were lacking in technique, and more had a sporadic aim to kill movement. Link would be able to knock them down easily if he wanted to. "Maybe if you'd stop attacking for no reason?"

Chara waved their knife to the side, a red line trailing behind it. "And let you have the possibility of hurting anyone else?"

Before they could charge forward, their soul was turned a dark shade of blue. That familiar feeling… While Sans didn't do any damage to Chara, he definitely was assertive. The skeleton appeared right in front of the child, his eye flashing bright blue and yellow. "Chara… don't you think you've done enough fighting for awhile?"

Link breathed a sigh of relief at Sans's interference. He really hoped that wouldn't escalate. However, he didn't forget that others might have the same feeling towards him. Undyne was giving him a mean one eyed glare. Frisk held Chara back as Sans's magic eased from their soul. The skeleton had taken notice that Chara's soul looked extremely strange. Not to mention, the one thing that stood out the most, they were their own person.

Making sure to keep Chara at bay, Frisk spoke calmly. "Chara… it wasn't him. I looked at those wounds and… they're some sort of dark magic." Looking behind them, they could see Asgore trying to heal them, only to fail each time. Whatever had caused it was strong.

"Someone with a massive amount of LOVE had to have done that. There are only three people capable of doing that much damage." Sans spoke loud and clear, so no one would be urged to attack. "It isn't Link. I can deduct that from the list because of the fact he was protecting Asriel from the cold when I arrived shortly before you all."

"Wait a minute," Undyne began, pointing a finger accusingly at Sans. "There are so many questions I want to ask you. First of all, where the hell were you? Papyrus was looking for you everywhere!"

"Eh… I was doing stuff…" Of course, he had left Papyrus alone with no explanation. Hopefully he handled himself well. But… "Wait, where even is Papyru-?"

Sans was unable to react before he was scooped up in a suffocating hug. Immediately, he could sense exactly who this was. "I AM RIGHT HERE BROTHER!" Papyrus exclaimed, holding his smaller brother close. It hadn't been so long since he had seen Sans, but it felt like years to him.

The elder brother could say he felt the same. Never again did he want to leave Papyrus. "S-Sorry for leaving you hanging bro…" He responded, letting himself sink into the hug.

"IT'S ALL RIGHT, BROTHER. IT'S FINE FOR YOU TO GO ON VACATION EVERY ONCE AND AWHILE!" He lied, hiding behind his fake innocence. Behind him, Frisk frowned, knowing that he was still hiding the truth from Sans. That needed to change… But, they knew not to force it. That could cause more damage than help.

Chara had seemed to calm down slightly, but still kept a sharp eye on Link. But, their gaze was quickly shifted to the looming shape behind him. "What… is that?"

Everyone broke their gazes to stare at the mighty being behind Link. It had been watching them all the while in solitude. One would normally think that would be creepy, but the giant had a welcoming feeling to it. Instead of feeling uncomfortable, they all felt safe. The giant was standing quite still, only making the occasional hum. It was as if it was waiting on something.

"ASGORE DREEMURR!"

Now I feel like an idiot. Chara internally screamed, turning around in the direction of the voice. They had completely forgotten about the presence of Toriel, frantically searching the Underground for them. It wasn't just Toriel at the entryway. It seemed that Alphys had led her here. "T-Toriel…? Was t-that your name? U-Um… I don't t-think you s-should…"

A fireball whizzed past Asgore's head, nearly catching him off guard. Yet, the king made sure his grip on Asriel didn't loosen. The one thing that did surprise him was the one who had thrown it. His eyes widened in disbelief, as his wish had been granted. "T-Tori?"

Tatl mentally facepalmed, her light dimming. "How many more of you are there? There are too many characters!"

Sans shot an evil glare in the direction of the fairy. "Hey, watch that wall."

Everyone seemed to ignore him, and instead, were focusing on Toriel. Undyne had a spear at the ready, preparing to protect Asgore at all costs. "Lady, if you even think that I'll let you touch Asgore, you're better off seeing yourself out."

Fire ignited in Toriel's palms, giving an intimidating look. "You dare to defend a child killer? He is a murderer. If you do not step out of my way, you will not be very pleased with what will come to you."

"Would you two just cut it out!?" Tatl interjected, flying in between the two. Both seemed to be in curiosity over the fairy, being that the species had presumably been extinct. "Seriously, not one thing can happen between all of you without a fight! Why not just calm down, and have a civil conversation for once!? I'm so tired of everything taking way too long because people refuse to listen to each other! We only have thirty six hours left!"

Toriel and Undyne glanced between each other, and then back to the enraged fairy. Keeping an eye on each other, they both let their magic fade off into nothingness. "How? How is the barrier broken?" She asked with a hint of malice in her voice. However, her gaze froze on Chara and Frisk, one holding the other back. "M-My children?"

"We're fine, really." Frisk told her, trying desperately not to get swept up in one of those crushing hugs. They were not so lucky, and neither was Chara. What did they expect? Of course the motherly figure would do this upon seeing them. Frisk choked up a few words as the air was slowly squeezed from them. "M-Mom! Please… air!"

"A-Ah… Sorry…" She let go, taking a few steps back. "I am just so grateful that you are all right." The same could not be said for Asgore. Turning on the king, she gave a stern glare as he cowered backwards. "As for you! You murdered six children… What you have done is…" Her eyes had wandered to what he was holding. "Is…"

Something caught Link's attention behind him, as he tore his eyes from the heartwarming scene. Link turned around, hearing the giant begin singing the Oath to Order. A warm feeling washed over everyone, as the giant slowly disappeared. No one knew what the feeling meant, but it would change the events of their quest drastically. Tatl and Link had been the only ones to see it leave.

When the boy glanced back, Toriel had tears in the corners of her eyes. "A-Asriel…?" She stuttered, falling to her knees next to the cradled boy. Even after being bashed, Asgore offered him to Toriel, allowing her to hold her resurrected son. Taking him in her trembling hands, her tears began staining his fur, as she held him closer than ever.

Link stood back, grinning at the moment of joy. In all his time in Termina, he had met some interesting people. Reuniting someone, or giving them peace always brought a smile on his face. This was one of those times.

Glancing up with her lip still trembling, Toriel asked everyone, "W-Who is r-responsible for bringing my c-child back to me?"

Asgore's eyes moved onto Link, giving the boy a warm smile. "That would be Link. He healed Asriel from being doomed, soulless."

Chara's and Sans's eyes or lack of eyes widened at the mention. He had definitely slipped up. The realization dawned on them as the assessed what this could mean. Asgore remembered everything. Link was mainly surprised on how Asgore even knew about it in the first place… This needed a lot of explaining.

However, that was the least of Link's worries. Soon, he would have to turn back the time. There was no way he could finish everything on time. If he wanted to have a chance against Skull Kid, he would need the Fierce Deity's mask… To do that, he had to complete every single event. That required him to start from beginning.

The power of turning back time came with a price. Happy endings were stripped away, and no one would remember. Frisk had, with no doubt, been put in the same position. Link pushed the thoughts into the back of his mind, as Toriel began approaching him.

She knelt down in front of the boy, a look of thankfulness in her eyes. "Link? Is that your name?" In response, the boy nodded. "I-I do not know how to repay you… I don't think anything can r-repay what you've done for us…"

This would be one of the first times Link did not gain anything off of finishing a quest. But, that really didn't matter to him. He had reunited a family, and it was a great reward to see them finally happy. Tatl seemed to be able to read his mind. "I don't think that Link minds. He always does things before even knowing if he'll get anything from it…"

Chara stole a glance at Link, muttering under their breath. "I wouldn't count on it. He's going to turn back the time… You're all going to forget..."

Sans stole them an uneasy glance. He knew this too, and was holding his breath for the inevitable. The moon was getting closer by the second. It didn't hurt any less that Asgore and Toriel would forget according to what he knew.

"Pathetic, really…" A cold voice came from behind them. Link put his hand on the hilt of his sword, facing the direction which led down Snowhead Peak. The figure who had spoken was none other than the Happy Mask Salesman, grinning as he slouched over. "Too weak to tell them just how this will end, aren't you… Link?"

Undyne brought a spear into her hand, sensing the high LOVE of the salesman. "Who are you?"

"Simply a man who wants his side of the deal." He answered, not even flinching at Undyne's tall stature. "This boy who is your so called hero still has something to do, and now that the barrier is broken, he is considering not turning back the time to help…"

A ping of blue washed over his soul. Everyone glanced in the direction of Sans as his eye sprung to life. "Listen, buddy, maybe we can still do this without time resetting."

"And ruin the chance for others to find peace?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "It is not all about you. There are others who need help."

Sans's guard lowered, as the point made its way through its head. The Salesman was correct about that fact. "But… they'll all forget. All of this won't matter!" His magic once more increased. "We can't take that from them."

A dark chuckle escaped from the Happy Mask Salesman's throat. "Selfish… So selfish…" His red eyes snapped open as anger overtook his expression. "You are not even supposed to be here. None of you are!" The already confused monsters began getting even further confused. He took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. "You cannot deny them their happy ending either."

"We won't give up ours either." Sans stated firmly, getting ready to thrash the Salesman. "There has to be a way around this!"

Frisk was the one to see the solution. Opening their eyes, they spied Darmani standing amongst them. The ghost noticed their attention had come back to him. Luckily, Darmani knew how to get around this. "Did no one listen to the giant? He blessed you all…"

"Blessed us?" Frisk asked to open air in everyone else's eyes. Some glanced to them in worry, but Link was able to notice just what they were doing. But, they couldn't do that at the exact moment. Suddenly, Frisk turned back to Sans and the Salesman, who were getting ready for a standoff. "Wait! This is already fixed!"

"What?" Both the Salesman and Sans asked in unison.

Frisk had listened to the giant's singing, and tried to translate it when they heard some sort of language in there. "The giant… it did something strange…" One of their eyes opened fully, showing the lens of truth. "We can now remember."

"Hold on! Timeout!" Undyne exclaimed, stepping in between everyone. "Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on?"

Sans shook his head, still keeping his magic on the Salesman. "No… you don't deserve that…"

Tatl's light grew red. "I think they do. They deserve the truth, and we can't hide things if we want to stop that moon. So, how about you step up for once and explain just what happened to all of us."

Frisk and Chara nodded in agreement. "And while we're at it, I think you need to tell us how you got here. We all need to understand." Chara stated firmly, getting Frisk's support of the idea.

Link nodded in agreement, facing in the direction of Sans. Would the skeleton agree to it? Sans had always been the one who never liked revealing secrets… He seemed to take a deep breath, even with the lack of lungs. "All right… But, shouldn't we worry about that moon as well?" He asked, pointing upwards.

"Next timeline we'll get to it." Tatl responded, her light returning to normal. "Okay, so first of all… what about introductions?"

"Um, pardon me. Before we begin, can this magic be taken off of me?" The Salesman asked, pointing at his blue soul. Sans gave a glare, but released him anyway. There was no doubt that the skeleton would attack him if he tried anything. "Thank you. I guess I should explain my actions…."

AN: I feel like I'm rushing events slightly, so I'm giving the characters a breather to explain themselves.

Yes, I have some Writer's block right now, and it's a pain. Plz send help ;-;

Sorry if the chapter is sub-par, I'm just stressing a lot right now because I'm trying to finish a fic, prepare my schedule for a comic, and I have to help my family out due to recent events. So, please understand if updates aren't fast.

Thanks, but I'm like dead right now XD

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