Disclaimer: Compared to the final chapter, I haven't actually started this one very quickly and unfortunately, that pushed out the posting date. I hope the wait was okay.
I don't own Undertale.
TimeBlade: That's good. The other chapters never got that long, so I was wondering.
"Speaking"
Thinking
Chara speaking
"come on, you two." Sans knelt between the two humans, keeping watch over their breathing. Frisk's was slow, but it was a far cry from what her guardian's was. Andi's was shallow, with each intake a soft wheeze. what's goin' on in there?
"... nothing?" He lifted his skull, seeing Toriel had settled along the other side of the older human. Taking her wrist, the woman checked Andi's pulse. The former queen shook her head, her concerned look only growing. "Sans, do you know what is going on?"
"no," he answered, responding to both questions. He had no idea. It was one of the things Frisk never explained to him what happened once Asriel took theirs and the humans' souls. What was taking so long, longer than it usually took? Where were they, and what was happening to Andi? "... what about the weed?"
"F-Flowey vanished before we all came to." Alphys, along with the others, stood a few steps away from Frisk, watching the situation with their own concerned expressions. The scientist pushed up her glasses, throwing a quick look down the hall, and the lone door at the very end. "Whatever they did, it worked. The b-barrier is broken."
"Yeah, well, that's great and all, but Frisk and Andi are still asleep!" Undyne tugged at her ponytail, throwing an exasperated hand in their direction. "We shouldn't have listened to that creep in the first place!"
He had to hold back a reply, not wanting to fall into the panic and high emotions any further, when a groan broke through the air. "U-urgh..." eyes flickered open, and Frisk stared up at the ceiling in a daze. "I-I'm back...?" It took not even a second until registration rushed through her face, and the girl shot upwards into a seated position, the speed earning a startled yelp from Alphys. "Andi!" Her head twisted around, honing onto her friend and nearly shoving him over as she moved to the elder's side. "Hey, wake up!"
"My child, are you alright?" Frisk didn't answer Toriel, perhaps not even hearing her question. Gripping the lighter blue sweater under her fingers, she shook her arm, tears rushing to the surface.
"Why? Why did you do it?" The words were wrecked with sobs, Frisk's face turning flushed. "I-I can't do this again. I c-can't."
"frisk, hey. hey." Sans put a hand on her shoulder, seeing how much the child was shaking. "what happened?" Frisk sniffled, but didn't bother to turn in his direction.
"I-" she stopped herself short, the sound of footsteps echoing outside of the room catching them by surprise. Frisk lifted her head a little, still hanging over Andi, and a ghost of a smile appeared. The footsteps came to a stop at the archway, their owner standing just on the other side, and bright amber eyes stared back at them. Eyes, that he had only ever seen on two other monsters.
"... howdy, mom, dad." Prince Asriel. The kid-the girls did it. They... brought him back. well, what do you know? "Heh..." Asriel shuffled his feet, and Sans glanced to Toriel on the other side of the unconscious girl. He'd seen a lot of emotions in the past couple of days, but what he saw on the old lady's face was-if he had to come up with a comparison, it might have been what he was feeling when he bid the kid and Andi good luck in the hall. The pent-up feelings of what had happened over all those timelines, behind a wall forged with age.
"Asriel...?" Toriel didn't stand up. Heck, he didn't think she could. She sat there, mouth slightly agape as he walked closer to them. It wasn't until he was a foot away from his mother, did she finally move. A trembling hand rose, and she cupped the side of his head, earning a small laugh. "You're... please, don't let this be another dream."
"I'm really here, mom." That did the trick. A shudder of a gasp, Toriel swept the child up in her arms, the boy giving a small shout at the action. Head just peaking over her shoulder, Asriel gave him and Frisk a sheepish smile. Though, it still wasn't enough to lighten his mood. He saw Andi's still body, and let his head fall against his mother's shoulder.
Asgore nearly plowed the others other, making his way around to sit near his ex wife. A hand rested on Asriel's head, and the old king gave a watery laugh, ruffling the kid's short fur. It was... a sight, Sans admitted, that he never thought he would see. If-whatever Frisk had done was tried earlier-he'd be smiling. Feeling that everything was at long last right. But... "what happened?"
The emotional reunion paused, and Asriel wiggled out of Toriel, dropping beside her as he took in the woman's pale appearance. "... she did what... what Frisk tried to do." frisk. His head turned to the younger human, seeing her still hanging over her friend. A shudder tore through her, the only sign she was actually hearing them. "... this."
If the room wasn't filled with confused emotions before, it certainly was now. A monster soul was supposed to be white and inverted, unlike that of a human's. What the young prince's soul was now, however, was far from what was considered normal. Determination lined an inverted heart, the crimson hue brightening further inward until it reached a rainbow of different colors. Multiple shades of blue, orange, yellow, green, and purple; not swirling together, but sliding around within the red outline. Pushing one another to the top, before sliding back down to the bottom like a lava lamp. Speckles of various sizes, all the same white as his own soul, drifted from color to color, not bothered by the constantly altering traits.
Red. Why... was the shade changing, when...? oh, no. He blocked Alphys' murmur, baffled at the state of the prince's new soul, and hurried to pull Andi's out into the open. He had to check. He had to know what he meant when said Frisk-what the hell was the kid planning to do? "ands, you..." one hand gripped his shorts, fingers digging into his bones underneath. "what were you thinkin'?"
It was... torn in half. The severed patience trait hovered just before his other hand, blue wisps drifting around, searching for its missing part. The rest of what made Andi... Andi. Sans closed his sockets, grimacing. Frisk... planned to give her soul to Asriel. That meant she never-she didn't plan on making it out of the Underground with them. all she wanted was for them to join us, didn't she? "Asriel, does that mean...?" she really thought that was the best option.
"It's all of them, mom." Asriel let his soul drift closer to the blue one, and they watched as the tufts of essence floated towards his, feeling. Searching. "They're all there." All of them. It wasn't just Andi then. all of them. the others are behind this too? "... Chara's here too."
"Chara?" Asriel didn't bat an eye at his father's inquiry at his sister's mention, only joining the skeleton in watching the two souls interact.
"That would explain the red." Everyone had gathered in, Alphys taking a seat on the other side of him, since Frisk wouldn't be moving anytime soon. "Hers and C-Chara's determination, together, they a-acted as a sort of-"
"Vessel." Attention turned to Frisk, and her weakened voice and still-bowed head. "They w-wanted to help. I-I was going to-b-but the others stopped me. We broke the barrier, b-but then the so-souls stood in a-"
"frisk." She was losing them, stuttering even worse than Alphys did. "kid, it's..." okay? Could he even say that? She admitted to planning on handing her soul over to the kid, without a second thought. She didn't even plan on saying goodbye to them.
"You believed in her." Asriel smiled at him, though it was hurting. "You believed in both of them." So that was it. Back then, Frisk was saying goodbye. In the hall, she planned to go into it with the idea he never forgave her. To sacrifice herself for Asriel believing that he hated her. What... would she have thought, if he never said anything? If he never got involved as much as had this timeline? "She..." Asriel searched for the words, looking from the souls to Andi herself. Her chest was moving up and down, albeit slowly. Faintly. "She wanted what Frisk wanted."
"... for everyone to have their happy ending." The kid sniffed next to him, an ugly sound, and he looked past Asriel to the silent queen. "can you heal her?" He had to ask. Papyrus knew healing magic, but his ability was far from what they needed. He wasn't even certain that they could fix a soul that far gone. But Toriel, a boss monster, was the only option they had left; if they wanted her to have a fighting chance. "tori?"
"I do not know if my ability will go that far, but I shall try." She moved closer to Andi, taking a moment to brush a strand of hair falling over her face. "... I cannot lose another one." Bringing her hands together, Toriel bowed her head in a silent prayer, before putting her hands over the woman's torso, palms down. A warm reddish glow wrapped around her hands, and what remained of Andi's soul lit up to match the color. The other soul, Asriel hurried to bring back to him, and watched with the rest as the elder human's chest continued its steady but slow movements.
Andi was a mystery. Always was, and-unless Chara or Frisk spoke up about why she was down there with them-always will be. From the sidelines, and from speaking to her, he saw she was curious. Amazed at how the Underground worked, from how souls operated to the weather. Magic too, was something she saw wonder in, given how she acted when she saw his brief display at their house. She was extremely patient, handling the secrets far better than he'd initially thought. How loads and resets functioned, what Frisk had done before bringing her down there. How... he had acted, before she joined them under the earth.
He managed to figure out her out bit by bit; what her history with Frisk was, and how she behaved throughout her journey. The one thing that still stuck out in his skull was that moment early in the morning, when she got hold of him in a scared state. It was a nightmare from Chara, he had to assume. If she did it to her to show the fight in the hall from the last timeline, then she must have done it at least one other time. There was more there, from how she grew up. How she met Frisk, and why she stuck around the following years. Andi... she was a mystery, and... she was a good person. A good person that did not deserve all of this. She did not deserve the horror that the Underground could bring.
"... SANS, COULD YOU MOVE A LITTLE?" Hearing his name, he looked over his shoulder at his brother, seeing him beginning to kneel and squeeze himself between him and Alphys. Without a word, he complied, brushing up against Frisk as the younger skeleton took his place. "HMM..." with a raised glove, Sans blinked in surprise as the same glow covered his hand. Hurrying to the damaged soul, sure enough, the glow's brightness increased, and the searching wisps faded into the hue. good. it's mending.
It fell silent for almost a minute, with the only sound being Frisk's occasional sniffles. "... s..." Frisk lifted her head, face red from crying. "S-Stop... i-it's enough."
"But, my child-?" She shook her head, stopping Toriel.
"I-I don't want d-drain you guys. J-just stop, p-please." Toriel's hand remained in place, but after studying her face, moved back. "Papy-yrus." Papyrus appeared to deflate, but copied Toriel's actions. The red glow sank into the light blue, and the soul returned to its singular color. "... what do I do now?" Was that directed at them, or was she speaking to herself?
"Sooner or later, humans are going to find out about the barrier," Undyne said quietly. "We can't just stay in here." She was still breathing. That was... good. "What do we do?"
"... I will bring her somewhere to lay," Asgore spoke, the first since Asriel entered the room. "From there, if everyone is ready, we will make our way to the Surface." If everyone was ready. No one; nobody was ready. But they didn't have a choice, did they?
"come on, kid." He stood, as did Papyrus and Alphys, and he put a hand on her shoulder. "let's go." She wiped at her face with her sleeve, and brought herself to her feet. She was slouching, and struggled to give him a smile. aw, frisk.
The limp body was lifted up, and he took note of how the prince seemed to pale behind his fur, seeing Andi's head slump against Asgore's armor. "I'm so sorry, Andrea." Frisk's whisper only added to the nail in the coffin, and she gripped at his sleeve with enough strength she could have torn it. Asgore bent his own head, and turned to make his way out of the grey hall, to retreat back through the throne room of golden flowe-
"... merm..." the king stopped immediately, and Frisk nearly broke out from under his hand at the nearly mute murmur.
"Andi/ands?"
She hurt. Her insides felt as though they were lit ablaze, only for them to be thrown into a pot of warm water immediately afterwards. Not a drastic change, but enough to damper the feeling. To let it linger, and slowly drain away. On the other side of her eyelids, there was light. Lots of it, threatening to break through the thin seal. Voices. I hear voices... Frisk?
She tried to open her eyes, but grimaced, giving a small groan instead. Her throat also hurt, perfect. Come on, Andrea. Open your eyes. "My child." Toriel. "If you can hear us, please, wake up!" They were-was everyone there? Were they on the Surface? She had to know. Wake up! Come on, you can do it! Wake up!
"Yeah! You got this, punk! If you could beat me, you can beat this!"
"I-it might seem impossible, b-but somehow, I-I know you'll be fine!" Undyne. Alphys. What about the others? Were they there too?
"WE BELIEVE IN YOU, HUMAN!"
"You can't give up, Andi..." more warmth, not the same as what hugged her internally. Someone was holding her, and the voice sounded... close. Very close, just above her head. Asgore? Was he holding her? But where's-?
"hey, ands?" Sans. "you gotta wake up now, okay? kid's worried, and... i don't think we can handle one more human leavin' us." He didn't think... he could handle it. "i know you're hurtin'. that you still don't have all the answers you wanted, and..." his voice dipped out, and she tried to tilt towards its direction. Sans? "... take your time. when you're ready, we'll be right here waitin' for you."
Take her time? They were at the brink of getting everyone to the barrier. Forget being patient, she wanted out now. If she could break free of Chara's forced memory, she could get out of this. Speak, Andi! Speak! "... Sss..." the name came out as a hiss between her teeth, and she felt her head make contact with something fuzzy and warm, possibly Asgore's hand. "... Sssaaa... Ffffrisss..." open your eyes. Speak with actual words. It stung, but she saw blurry shapes. Blotches of red, yellow, purple, green, and blue, shifting back and forth. "... Frisk?" The purple and blue blob rushed forward, and she had to blink to register the incoming sight.
"Frisk, careful now. I do not want to drop her." Yeah, she'd rather not get dropped after just returning to the land of the living. Thank you, Asgore.
"Sorry for scaring you." It was... speaking was better, although her throat was still sore. Her brain was finally catching up to her surroundings. Frisk shook her head, and threw her arms around her neck, burying her face into the crook of her shoulder. A hard blink, holding her eyes closed for several seconds, and when she reopened, she took in the crystal clear image of a distraught child.
"You tore your-h-how are you not-?" Frisk silenced herself, not wanting to finish the question.
"Did... someone try and heal me?" She nodded, and the two looked back at the others. It was a worthwhile question. She knew that two of the six-seven, monsters had the ability to heal. It did not surprise her that they had attempted anything to improve her condition. "Th... thanks, guys."
"Please, my dear, never scare us like that again." Toriel stepped towards them, putting a still trembling hand on her forehead. "Warm, but you should feel better once you start moving around."
"Yeah..." she fell silent for a second, and bit her lip. "Does-Alphys, you know about souls more than the rest of us do. How does... this, affect my lifespan?" Alphys snapped to attention, not expecting to be drawn into the conversation.
"I-I'm not sure, Andi. We could never e-experiment with humans souls to the extent we could have, because they were still n-needed for the barrier." She sighed in defeat, and Undyne put a hand on her head, resting comfortably between her spikes. "The worst case is that, with half of your soul gone to Asriel, you might not live as long as you could have."
"... so I more-or-less cut my lifespan in half..." giving her own heavy sigh, she nodded in understanding. She expected something like that. She felt physically weaker, drained, upon waking up. If Toriel hadn't healed her, she might not have been speaking to them right now. Trapped in a coma, stuck within her own mind. I... can't feel my determination anymore. She was determined still, but that part of her soul-that bright red-was no longer there. When she split the heart apart, she could control each section. Inside her body, she could faintly make out the soul, but could feel something was... off. Missing. "Heh. Honestly, after the hell we went through to get this far, I think I can handle it... can I stand up now?"
"Are you able to stand?" She shrugged, and felt herself get lowered to the ground. Asgore's hands stayed on her shoulders, in case she fell should he let go. Legs shook, and she struggled to secure her footing.
"Just, um, sort of. I might need a hand." Two of them, on either side to avoid falling flat on her face.
"FRET NOT, ANDI. I SHALL ASSIST YOU." A red glove was held out, and she smiled up at Papyrus. Taking hold, she nearly collapsed into the taller skeleton. "OOPS."
"I'm okay!" A blur of blue appeared to her side, and she watched the two brothers steady her again.
"sure you are. paps, get her right." He did, and her arms were awkwardly thrown over their shoulders, one lower and one higher. Still, she was stable, albeit shaky. "good?"
"Somewhat." She exhaled, giving a slight wince. Her lungs ached, but she supposed all of that healing couldn't correct everything so quickly. "What's next?"
If you leave here, your adventure will really be over. Your friends will follow you out of the Underground. So... are you two ready?
She didn't see Chara, but she could hear her. And judging from their reactions, Frisk and Asriel did too, turning towards the awaiting exit. Leave the Underground, and finish their journey for good... better late than never. "After you, kids. Lead the way."
Frisk nodded, took Asriel's hand, and guided him along to the end of the hall. Double-checking her position on the brothers' shoulders, the group followed behind the children, and entered the massive cavern through the archway. As for the cavern itself, it had... seen far better days. Though she'd never seen them, she could only assume that it was abnormal that there was still burnt plant matter scattered about and massive trenches and rock strewn about. At least the metal's gone... however that happened. Perhaps when Asriel took them into the strange void, everything experienced some form of mild reset? "AM I MOVING TOO FAST, ANDI?" She smiled, giving a quick glance up at Papyrus, and shook her head.
"No, it's fine. You might want to slow your pace a little though," she added, giving quick look to the shorter skeleton. " I think Sans is struggling to keep up."
"ha ha." He jostled his shoulders, making her stumble a little into the younger brother before being pulled upright again. "serious, though. are you sure you're alright?"
She didn't respond. The sunlight had hit her face, the smell of wet earth met her nose, and she shook her head after registering the new sights and senses. "Sans, I've... I've never been better."
"Oh, my..." Toriel's loss of words matched every single feeling that welled up within her chest. The ruins of a castle stood far off in the distance, surrounded by the rest of the mountain range that Mount Ebott was part of. At its base far, far below, she could make out the lights of the town; the streetlights coming on one-by-one with the disappearing sun.
"Isn't it beautiful, everyone?" She nodded, though, she didn't bother turning in Asgore's direction. It felt like centuries, since she had seen light. True, pure light. The kind that did not fall between the holes in the ground and leaked into the Underground. For Frisk, it was far longer, despite having gone through several true endings. For everyone else...
"Wow... it's e-even better than on TV," Alphys said, stunned. "WAY Better! Better than I ever imagined!"
"Frisk, you LIVE with this!?" Undyne, with an arm wrapped around the scientist's shoulders, gestured out to the scenery. "The sunlight is so nice... and the air is so fresh! I really feel alive!" She took in a deep breath, and Andi smiled at her reaction. To think, at one point, she didn't want anything to do with Undyne of the Royal Guard. That she was scared of her, and wanted to avoid her altogether.
"It's even better when the seasons change," she added, seeing the yellow eye brighten at her words. "You'd love it even more when it's spring. All of the changing flowers, and the temperature is just perfect."
"unlike the slight cold it is now," Sans added, free hand adjusting his hoodie. Well, it is still fall. "heh... never thought i'd actually be excited to see this again." The other sentence was a quiet mumble, and she had to check Papyrus' face to see if he had heard or not.
"SANS... WHAT'S THAT GIANT BALL?" He smiled at him, the previous comment dismissed as quickly as it came; Andi wasn't sure if the brother could see it past her head.
"we call that 'the sun', my friend." The glow of the sun bounced off his skull, and the eye lights seemed to shine brighter than when they were underground. With a gasp, Papyrus' sockets widened with nonexistent sparkles.
"THAT'S THE SUN!?" He cried, almost bouncing on his toes. "WOWIE! I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M FINALLY MEETING THE SUN!"
"I could stand here and watch this for hours..." Asgore gave the last word before a silence fell between them, and Andi let her head slump against Papyrus' shoulder with a pleased smile. The chirping of birds, which was faint within the castle's walls, was finally clear. Far below, over the tops of the trees, she could make out the quick movements of yellow and brown and even blue dart from one branch to the next. The soil under her boots was soft, squishing with the shifting of her feet. It was exactly like what she saw before, before she fell down into the Underground. How she saw the world before being swallowed up by the mountain she now stood on. But it's better. Much better.
"Yes, it is beautiful, is it not?" Toriel smiled down at the two children, unaware of her attention. Asriel's mouth was slightly open, his eyes sparkling just as much as Papyrus' at the landscape as Frisk watched him with a pleased smile. From what Chara had told them, he really did love what brief moment he saw on other side of the barrier. His reaction, taking it all in after not seeing it in decades, was no doubt making Frisk's entire journey. "But we should really think about what comes next."
That did the trick, in bringing the two back to reality. "Oh, right. Everyone..." the group of eight turned to the king. "This is the beginning of a bright new future. An era of peace between humans and monsters." His amber eyes flickered to her, Frisk, and Asriel, and the corners of his mouth went up a little. He was not smiling was brilliantly as the others were, but Asgore shared the same emotion. The same relief, the same happiness. "Andi... I have something to ask of you."
"Yes, your M-Asgore?" His smile went further at the small slip in addressing him, recalling how she first greeted him earlier.
"Will you act as our ambassador to the humans?" Be the ambassador? She wasn't sure what stunned her more. The fact Chara decided to repeat the question, seeing it as something she had to do, or being asked to be the ambassador of all monsters in the first place. But her? Be the ambassador? Sh-she couldn't do that. Frisk, she-she knew so much more about the Underground. About the monsters, about their friends.
"With all due respect, Asgore, wouldn't Frisk be better suited for it?" She threw a look at said girl, confused. "Right, Frisk?"
Frisk was equally confused, and she shrugged helplessly. You didn't think this would happen? "ands." She turned back to Sans, hearing the nickname he had christened her with during their journey. "as much as the kid's done a lot for us, i think she deserves a break, don't you think?" He... had a point. Frisk did deserve a break. For so long, she had been working towards this very moment. She needed time to just... be a kid again. Go to school, and not have to worry about things. Still. Could she actually do it? "what do you say?"
What did she say? "I... two conditions." Sliding her arm off of Papyrus, she held up two fingers. "I can't take over right away. I still have my job at the school. Give me time to put in my notice, let them get someone to take over." Handle a dozen or so children that will be prying for answers as to what happened to me and Frisk.
"Of course." Asgore nodded in understanding, pleased she was agreeing. "And the second?"
"I know absolutely nothing on how your society works, and I'm just as baffled as how my own operates. If I become your ambassador, I want yours and Toriel's assistance." Toriel giggled behind her hand, amused at her choice in wording. "Is that okay with you?"
"I would be happy to help you, Andi." Papyrus threw a fist in the air, giving a loud laugh.
"NYEH HEH HEH! YEAH! ANDI WILL BE THE BEST AMBASSADOR! AND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS..." trailing off, he placed a hand to his chest, the wind blowing his scarf out behind him. "WILL BE THE BEST MASCOT!"
"Without a doubt," Frisk added, giving her own giggle. Turning back to the town below, Frisk knelt down, sitting on the rocky floor and letting her legs dangle freely over the edge. "Andi, you know we're on the opposite side of the mountain, right?"
"Figured as much." The entire journey had twists and turns, to the point she knew that wherever they ended up would not be on the same side they entered. Chara's story was evident of that. "So... what do we do now? If we're going to integrate, we need to do this slowly. Everyone leaving at once would be a disaster."
"I-I can get Metatton to broadcast the news," Alphys suggested, raising her hand. "Perhaps we can be the first ones t-to go down, and from th-there we'll take a dozen or so a-at a time." Good, but there was still something-wait. Eyes flying open, she shoved her hand into her pocket. Please, don't be broke-aha! The phone was in one piece. Though, the screen was heavily cracked. But who cares about that?
"Andi?" Beaming at Frisk, she nearly shoved the device in her face. "Ahh."
"Frisk, we have been in the Underground for over a week. A week," she stressed. "Don't you think we should let them know we're-oh, I don't know-not dead?"
"O-oh!" The girl hurried to nod, and Andi slid her other arm off of Sans to begin dialing. The moment she did, her body began to fall sideways, and felt Sans grab her to keep her steady. "What are you going to tell them?" Haven't you ever contacted them once you got out, Frisk? Or did she wait until after the mass commotion that was soon to follow?
"How are you going to t-tell them?" How, indeed. Knowing Lois, she'd be close to screeching. Charles would definitely take it easier. Terrence, well... he'd probably be enamored with their new friends. He and Frisk shared similar personality traits, so he'd warm up to them pretty quickly.
"I, uh... I don't know. Worst case is there will be a lot of screaming and tears." The drone of a ring echoed from the speaker, and she lifted it to her ear. Who's it going to be? A click. Someone picked up. Here we go. "Um... he-"
"ANDI!?"
"Oh, god!" The phone nearly fell from her hands at the volume, and she scrambled to catch it before it made its way over the cliff's face. If she didn't have everyone's attention before, she most certainly did now. "Terrence, what the hell!?" She could hear the boy continue on as she held the phone away from her ringing ear, speaker shrieking out his frantic rushed words. "Frisk, you take over."
"What?" She tossed the phone at the younger girl, and Frisk caught it before quickly rolling it over in her hands and pressing the speaker button. "Um... Terrence?"
"Frisk!? You're alive too!?" Andi wasn't sure if she should laugh or be upset at how loud he was, but seeing Frisk's confusion on how to handle the situation did make it a little better. "Where are you guys!? Did you get kidnapped? Are you stuck on an islan-no. No, I got it. You guys found a secret underground society of mole people!"
Asriel muffled a laugh, and Sans rose a brow at the boy's rampant questions. "well... he's half right."
"Who was that? Frisk?" The child threw a look at the skeleton, frowning at his input. As far as the other child knew, they were alone. She didn't need anyone speaking up right now. "Frisk? Give one syllable if you're being held against your will, two if you're not."
"T-Terrence, I'm fine." She struggled not to laugh, putting a hand over her mouth as Frisk grinned in amusement at the device. "Just-is Charles and Lois there?"
"They should be home soon from shopping." Shopping. A chore that Andi had taken up to lighten the load for them. I... feel a little weird hearing that.
"Terrence, listen to me." Frisk held the phone over in Andi's direction, but kept it within her hand. "When they get home, tell them to drive to the town directly on the other side of Mount Ebott, okay? It should take... maybe forty or so minutes for us to walk down." There was a road that cut through the mountain. It would take them perhaps half an hour compared to their time limit, which meant they should meet up around the same time.
"Walk?" He repeated, making sure he had heard them correctly. "You two climbed-but I thought-"
"Yes, well, the kid's persuasive. You know that. Just get here, drive around the base of the mountain, and see if there's a trail. We'll be down waiting for you." Terrence didn't speak, and she wondered if he had hung up or not. "Um... Terrence?"
"They're here. Got to go." A click, and Frisk shook her head as she stood back up and shoved the phone away.
"You think it'll take forty minutes to get down there?" Undyne asked, giving the forest a quick look. Her question did make sense. It was a very quick drop, but did appear to flatten out further down the trail. Wherever that is. It appeared to be more overgrown than the one on Ebott's side, which could be due to the massive hole that lead into the mountain, and the populace wanting to avoid it at all cost.
"We don't really have a choice. Either we go down that way, or we hike around the mountain." At that, the group looked behind them. Mount Ebott loomed overhead, the peak covered in layers of clouds. How long would it take to get to the top? "It's quicker the other way."
"Then it is best we do not wait." Toriel took Asriel and Frisk's hands, and smiled at her. "Shall we?"
Descending was, like she had predicted, long. Frisk took the lead, guiding Asriel and Toriel down the trail with a pep in her step. Asgore was right behind them, listening in to Frisk's explanation to what was new on the Surface. Short explanations, but enough to get her points across. Alphys and Undyne walked together, with Papyrus giving his input on the captain's other side.
Then there was Sans, still giving her a hand walking, with her other hand gripping her trusty hiking pole that Frisk went back to fetch for her. A severely scratched pole, due to piercing the glass of Flowey's face, and her beloved hiking bag that was discarded during said battle.
"Was it like this before? When you guys left the mountai-whoa!" Her foot slipped, and she shoved the metal end of the pole into the ground to stop herself from falling. The monster tightened his hold on her arm, pulling her back up.
"gotcha. and yeah, sort of. never had anyone waitin' for us at the other end, so that's new. but the weather's the same." The mud managed to stick to the pink fuzz of his slippers that was closer to the earth, but more-or-less kept their bright color. "would be nice if it didn't rain when you were underground."
"Sans, Frisk may be smart, but she's a kid. She's not constantly checking the weather." He did have a point though. The area was definitely waterlogged. Puddles, and small streams running down the sides of the path in naturally created ruts. A few trees were uprooted, overturned from whatever storm had passed through without their knowledge. "Though I have to admit, I'm glad I missed this."
"hmm." The ground began to flatten out, the decline making it easier to hike down. "you know," he began, waiting several seconds to respond. "we indirectly referenced the timelines back there."
"... we did, didn't we?" She adjusted his hold, and carefully stepped around a large rock jutting out from the mud. "Does this mean we'll have to explain it to them?" Sans hummed, looking off to the side for a moment in thought.
"... maybe some of it, but just enough to get the basics across. we don't need them to know all of what they're missing." Only the basics, huh? Just like what I had learned, at the beginning. "should be enough."
"Andi!" They looked ahead, seeing the short brown blob up ahead. "I can see the road from here!"
"Wait a safe distance from the road until you see their van!" She waved, turning her attention back to Asriel with the same eagerness. "It's going to be an interesting timeline, isn't it?"
"yep. but, y'know... i think after all this time, i might actually get to enjoy this one." She hadn't seen it often, but for the first time in a while, Sans' smile was genuine. Tired, just as she was, but happy. "what 'bout you?"
"Honestly, Sans." A dark red van slowed to a stop far below them, and she watched the doors open. Frisk broke free from Toriel's hand, and dragged Asriel the rest of the way to meet them with a laugh. "I think this is the best timeline we could ever get."
Until next time!
Angel