Chapter 36: Loose Ends
"Okay, we are going to need an actual game plan for this one." James said, tugging on his ear. While they weren't stretchy at all, they were fun as hell to play with.
The human looked downward in thought. "Well… how did you get the jacket from Asriel? I mean, that couldn't have been easy…"
"I wanted the pie…" James muttered. "He wasn't exactly in possession of it at the time… I swooped in and extracted it while it wasn't with him."
"But remember…" They sighed, "Sans will know if either of us stop time. Getting the shard directly from his eye will be huge trouble. Then we have to get one from Papyrus…"
James casually leaned against the wall. Although, his expression was distraught. "That… isn't going to work. There is no way around that unless we do it by force."
"And…" The human lowered their hood. "I literally can't get anywhere near them. They'll recognize me in a second and I… I can't imagine what Sans would do if he saw me again."
"So this falls on me?" James asked, annoyed. The human in front of him nodded. "Alright, I'll try not to die then…"
"And while you're doing that… I guess I'll go off to find other shards… Apparently, there are some that don't even exist in this world…"
"Aw c'mon," A smirk formed on James's face. "You're not gonna hang around for Christmas?"
"Psh, we don't have time for that." Standing up, the human began walking towards the exit to the Underground. "Oh, by the way, I'll be looking around for how to get to the other shards. And please… try not to die?"
"You got it. See you on the other side…" Snapping his fingers, James disappeared on the spot.
The human sighed, "Gaster… why did you make this so difficult?"
"I can't believe them!" Toriel huffed, slamming the car door shut. Frisk and Asriel were both currently terrified of Toriel's mood. "They said that there is nothing they can do about the bully problem. Of course there is!"
"Mom, please come d-" Frisk tried to say but was interrupted.
"How can I calm down when my own children are being beaten?" She was livid. Taking a deep breath, she attempted to calm herself down. It didn't work. "We will bring this up at the PTA tomorrow night. I am sick of people mistreating you two."
At the mention of a PTA meeting, everyone's faces paled. The bane of everyone's existence were these meetings. Sans was coming to this one after hearing what happened last time. This wouldn't be a fun night for anyone. "Um mom?" Frisk asked. "Can we just skip that meeting please?"
"As much as I'd love to take up that offer my child…" Her face formed into a scowl. "My people need me…"
The human let out a snicker at Toriel's antics. However, Asriel was drifting off as usual. The events that had just occurred sent his mind into a downward spiral. He was still questioning whether James had been real or not… Although, he supposed that had to have happened because if it didn't, he'd have been hit square in the face, and Toriel wouldn't remember. Maybe he had a bad concussion?
No, it was pretty obvious that had happened. The thing that really confused him was how it did. It was almost as if that monster could be in one place then exist in another… It was so confusing. What really scared him was how Asriel had initially thought, without question, that James was his dead brother. How could he have made such a stupid mistake without even knowing who the monster was?
He shook the thought out of his head. That was impossible. When a soul shatters, it's gone. It's gone forever unless you load a save or reset. Neither of those had occurred according to Sans. That only left one option, quit. And… Asriel was certain that was the option Bennett chose. Everytime he thought of this, his soul twisted with sadness. He just wanted things to be like they were before Gaster…
Which was EXACTLY why he needed Frisk to load a save. It still plagued his mind on why they wouldn't in the first place. He was finding out today, whether they liked it or not. "F-Frisk… can I talk to you w-when we get home?" He asked, averting his gaze from the human.
Frisk was mainly taken aback that he had talked. "S-Sure Azzy." The monster visibly flinched at the nickname. "Asriel." They corrected themself. Asriel had been touchy on that nickname ever since his brother died.
When they finally got home, Asriel told Frisk to meet him in the backyard. The human was becoming unsure about all of this, but agreed anyways. As soon as they both were out there, Asriel got to the point. "Frisk… why haven't you reset yet?"
They saw this coming. Asriel hadn't brought it up in a few weeks, but it was inevitable for this question to pop up. "Asriel I-"
"Don't answer unless you mean it Frisk." His voice was rough and full of hurt. "Just please… tell me why you aren't resetting yet."
The human was reduced to silence. How would they tell him that they simply couldn't? They didn't want to break his heart. "Asriel… please… I don't want to hurt y-"
"HOW MORE CAN I BE HURT FRISK?" He lashed out. His right eye bursting into gold flame. Rain began trickling from the sky. "DON'T YOU SEE HOW HURT I ALREADY AM? WHY DON'T YOU JUST TELL ME?"
"BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU ASRIEL!" For the first time since Asriel had met Frisk, the human yelled at him. He had never heard Frisk's voice raise like that.
Although, that didn't change his goal. "Frisk… please… is this just because you are curious? You just want to watch us suffer for your amusement? Is this what this is?"
"Asriel," Frisk took a deep breath. "I can't reset."
"Yes you CAN. What harm would there be in resetting again? You've already done it five hundred times. What would one more time change?"
"I mean I can't Asriel. Something out there won't let me reset." Tears began forming in Frisk's eyes. "Asriel, I didn't want to get your hopes up about him still being out there. He isn't."
"So… this whole time…" Tears flowed freely from his eyes. "Thanks Frisk… I'll be going now…"
"Wait Asriel!" They yelled to the monster, realizing that gold light was enveloping him. They were too late. He had disappeared from thin air. Rushing inside, they looked around for any sign of Asriel.
Toriel noticed their panicked expression. "My child, is everything alright?"
"Mom, it's Asriel." They yelled from the top of the stairs, now checking the bedrooms. With no luck, they began hyperventilating on where he went. "Oh my god he's gone. Mom, Asriel's gone we have to-"
"On it!" Toriel was already dialing numbers on her phone. Asriel wouldn't have just run off like that unless he was going to Sans's place. She dialed his number, waiting for a response.
"Sup…" Sans said through the phone.
"Sans, is Asriel over there?" She asked, trying to remain calm.
"Eh…" Sans looked around in his house to see if the boss monster was anywhere to be seen. "Nope, not that I know o-"
"Sans! We HAVE to find him!" Toriel yelled through the phone in panic.
"Woah Toriel, calm down." He had been demoted to calling her by her full name. "Tell me what happened…"
"Frisk is more suited to do that." She stated, handing the cell to the quivering human. "Frisk, tell us everything."
The tears and rain around him blotted out his vision. He didn't care anymore. The pain in his soul couldn't be ignored any longer. It was all too much now. Pulling the hood of his brother's jacket over his head, he kept walking towards the familiar place. The barrier…
It was ironic really. Asriel had heard of why Bennett came here when the barrier shattered in the first place. Now, he was going down the same path. The sun had begun its descent down the afternoon sky. Just what he needed. One last sunset… It wasn't exactly a proper sunset when the rain clouds blotted out the light.
In vain, he had hoped one day this pain would all just be reset. That was what he was clinging onto. Now, he knew exactly why it hadn't happened. The world would never reset. The events that had occurred were permanent. Nothing could bring him back. Both Chara and Bennett were just… gone.
The pain had finally taken him. He couldn't handle this anymore. If he stayed any longer, he would go insane. Not only was he a danger to everyone, but he was a danger to himself. Why him? Why did he have to suffer through all of this? The rain began pouring down harder as the ground began inclining.
Mt. Ebott loomed over him. The barrier was just up this hill if he remembered correctly. What was near the barrier? A cliff. He had had enough. This was it… He couldn't take the guilt anymore. Hopefully this time, no one would bring him back to suffer further. There it was… the sunset was glistening with its beautiful array of colors.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you…" A voice behind him spoke. The panic in his voice was there, but trying to be concealed. "I've been down that path once, it won't get you anywhere."
Asriel whirled around, being brought to disappointment once again. From the description he gave, Asriel thought it would be his brother talking behind him. Of course, just like last time, James was there. "What are you doing here." Asriel snarled in annoyance. This had been the second time this monster had shown up with little to no explanation.
"Well… you won't believe this but… I smelled pie…" He shrugged. "But in all seriousness, I saw you running by, crying." Concern became written on his face.
"Go away… I want to be alone…" He mumbled, facing towards the cliffside.
James paused for a moment, his normal smug grin disappearing. "I'm afraid I can't let you do that Asriel." He cautiously began moving towards the younger boss monster. "Please… that won't help you." He said, motioning towards the cliffside.
"You wouldn't understand!" He spat back.
"Then help me understand Asriel." He had gotten too close for Asriel's liking. "Just talk to me… I can help you through whatever is bugging you."
"I'm sorry…" He apologized, spinning around and sprinting.
James noticed exactly what he was going. "ASRIEL NO!"
He was too late to act. Asriel's feet left the ground as the cliff dipped to the ground below. This was it… wasn't it? Just like that, his life would be gone. Secretly, he hoped it would be painful. Asriel thought he deserved it for how much he failed. That was when he noticed he wasn't the only one falling.
He looked up to where he had jumped, eyes widening in shock. James was coming right after him. Was this monster insane? Asriel noticed that he was beginning to fall slower to the ground below. What was happening? It was then when Asriel saw a glint of something in James's paw. There was a stopwatch that was ticking slower and slower. "You're not going anywhere on my watch."
Asriel struggled to stay out of his reach, but the other monster was able to grab on. It was then when the stopwatch stopped ticking. It was then when Asriel realized that this monster who was trying to save him was a force to be reckoned with. Both James and Asriel had completely come to a stop in midair, the world unmoving. "W-What…?" Asriel was so confused.
James was straining himself too much to talk. The stopwatch began moving backwards. They were moving upwards to the edge of the cliff. The expression on James's face told Asriel not to even try getting away. Before Asriel knew it, he was back on the edge of the cliff, being held by James. The cloaked monster stumbled to the ground, releasing Asriel in the process.
The only sound that passed between the two was the sound of James panting in exhaustion. That feat had apparently taken so much out of him. Asriel was trembling in fear, wondering how he had just done that. More importantly, a feeling washed over Asriel that he hadn't felt in a long time. Relief… He began regretting his decision. "H-Hey, are y-"
James put a hand up, signalling for Asriel to stop talking. "I… I'm fine… J-Just don't… do that again… okay?" He was visibly sweating after that. But the most important thing Asriel saw was how scared James looked. "Just… why did you do that?"
"I…" Why did he think that would solve anything? Regret began filling his soul. If he succeeded in that, he would have left everyone in worse of a state than they were now. "I-I'm sorry…" He fell to his knees, tears brimming in his eyes. "I'm so so sorry…"
"Asriel…" James tried to call his attention. "Do you need someone to talk to?"
Hesitating only for a moment, he slowly nodded. "Y-Yes…"
"Listen, whatever is bothering you… you can tell me. I'll keep it a secret if you want me to." The concern on James's face shook Asriel to the core. He had assumed James was a laid back type guy. That had proven very wrong.
Asriel began bawling, his cries echoing through the area. "I… I let him die… After all he did… I let him die…"
James was more attentive now, taking a seat next to the crying child. "Who is he exactly?"
That had seemed to touch a sensitive spot quite easily. "W-Well… He… I used to not be able to feel anything… He came along and changed that…" Asriel felt the fabric of the jacket around him, trying to remember what the last time his brother wore that was like.
"That was his… wasn't it?" Asriel looked up to James who had asked the question. For a moment, Asriel thought he saw something completely different than the monster sitting there. It was just his imagination.
Asriel nodded. "H-He wore this wherever he went…" The memory of Bennett dying in the entrance to his home played through his head over and over. "O-One day… he and a friend were in the Underground… He… he came back and…"
The hybrid monster knew exactly how that ended. "He died…" James shut his eyes, knowing too well of the events that most monsters had heard of. A monster by the name of W.D. Gaster absorbed the soul of the Ex-Queen's adopted son. "Asriel… I'm sorry for your loss."
James's eyes widened in surprise when Asriel wrapped his arms around him. "I don't want to do this anymore! I just want him back… He… he didn't deserve to die like that…"
"Asriel…" James tucked the crying monster under his cloak, giving him shelter from the rain that was pelting them both. "Have you ever thought if maybe he would want you to move on? What would he think of you giving up so easily?"
"H-How would you know?" His eyes were becoming red from how much he was crying. "I-It's not just like that…"
Silence passed between the two for a moment. "I've had to deal with someone close dying too…" He finally spoke. "And you know what? I'm sure they are more happy where they are now… The last thing he'd want from you is for you to be happy."
"But…" There was no further argument. Asriel knew that what James had said was true. Bennett wouldn't have wanted what he was trying to do before. "T-Thank you…" His eyes began drooping. "I-I haven't felt like this in a long time…"
"Heh…" James noticed how Asriel was beginning to put more weight on him. He was probably exhausted. "Asriel, if you're tired you can sleep right here…"
There was no response. That signalled that the monster had finally given up on fighting the pain, and finally went to sleep. A subconscious smile spread across James's face. "Funny… I haven't felt like this in a long time either Asriel…" He reached a paw to his own neck, feeling something resting on his chest.
Sorry, this chapter was meant to be longer but my sister is going to be on the computer for now... I wanted to get it out before that happened.
Also, I find it funny how no one has figured what I'm planning out yet...
Poor Asriel though... he's suffering through so much...
Reviews are encouraged
BadDRUMMERboy15 flies into a wall for no reason!
Also, a new series is coming out soon! It's basically Sans starting a youtube channel. Spin off of this fanfic!