Chapter 8: A Family Once Again
Well, our journey back to the Ruins begins. I am really looking forward to sleeping back in my own bed again, especially after all that has happened. I haven't completely recovered from my injuries from the Asgore battle, but I am good enough to move around more. Remind me never to test him again. If Toriel never showed up to stop the fight, I would be dead. I did not have the strength to fight back after taking numerous blows and having all my items scattered around the room. She literally saved my life…again. Thinking about the little things such as Toriel's mother instincts and care towards me makes this decision worth it. Although, there is still a large weight of the freedom of monsters and human souls still on my shoulders. I was happy to finally talk with the souls back in the castle. I'll be honest, I never thought about the souls when I thought about the RESET. As I told myself many times, I have thought only about myself and not others. Now is the chance to change that. I have everyone on my side, which is good of course, but it is also bad. I don't know how I am going to be able to get that last soul to break the barrier. I refuse to kill any monster or human because that is not like myself. Alphy's experiments on the soul have not been working out well, so it'll be hard to create a soul to use for the barrier. Ugh, why does this need to be so complicated? The only reason this is hard is because Flowey is good…or at least I think he is. He hasn't tried to hurt me at all, but I don't know if he is fighting himself or if he really wants to have peace between the two of us. I remember sparing him when he was Photoshop Flowey. No matter how many times he threatened me, I spared him every time. I mean, he did end up coming back and absorbing all the human and monster souls in the Underground, which led to him breaking the barrier. I just don't know. How am I going to get that last soul to set the monsters free?
My thoughts are interrupted when a soothing voice fills my ears.
"Are you alright, my child? You seem very…quiet."
I shake the thoughts out of my head and look at the mother goat.
"Yeah…just…lost in thought," I reply.
"Is it about what happened with Asgore?"
"No, not at all. I'm just…thinking about how to free everyone."
"My child, we talked about this. You don't have to be the one to free us. We are all happy here. It is quiet, peaceful, and we don't have to worry about humans and war. Now, come along, we still have quite a ways to go before we reach the Ruins."
I nod in response and take out my phone. With the quick tapping of my fingers, a message is sent.
GROUP MESSAGE: Undyne, Papyrus, Sans
Me: Hi everyone, I was wondering if you all want to hang out and get some grub.
Papyrus: OF COURSE, HUMAN! I WOULD LOVE TO HANG!
Undyne: Sure human, I would like to hang, too. This time, no fights are required.
Sans: Hey kiddo, we can all meet at Grillby's.
Me: I am also bringing Toriel with me.
Undyne: Toriel! Meaning…Asgore's ex Toriel? The one that now lives in the Ruins?
Me: Yes Undyne, that Toriel.
Me: And is also the one who loves telling jokes.
Sans: So she is the one that sits at the door.
Me: We will be there soon.
I slide my phone back in my pocket and continue the journey.
"They all want to meet at Grillby's," I say.
Toriel responds, "Is that the one restaurant in Snowdin?"
"Yes, they will all be waiting there."
"Well, I suppose we should hurry then. We wouldn't want to keep them waiting."
We make our way through the Core, Hotland, and into Waterfall. After this long journey, I begin to feel my body weaken. My injuries are becoming agitated with how much I have been moving. Some of Asgore's attacks landed on my legs so he could get an advantage. Due to the multiple attacks on my legs and not being completely healed, it is hard to move around as much as I'm used to. Toriel notices my slower pace and more visible limp and stops.
"Here child, let me take you the rest of the way."
She lowers herself down to my height and allows me to climb on her shoulders.
"I'm sorry, my child. We probably should have waited a while longer before making this journey back."
"It's fine," I reply, "It doesn't hurt much. Walking this far is a little too much for me in this condition."
She lifts herself back up while holding my legs in place. I gently wrap my arms around her neck to keep my balance atop her shoulders. I feel like a giant now. I look down at the ground below and think 'am I really that short'. Eventually, we arrive in Snowdin. I still don't understand how it snows here. Anyways, we arrive at Grillby's and head inside to greet everyone else. Not only do I see Undyne, Sans, and Papyrus here, but I also see the members of the Royal Guard as well. Oh great, what are they going to do? Fighting them isn't hard…all I have to do is pet them. Toriel lowers down and lets me climb off her shoulders.
"Hey everyone!" I shout.
Numerous greetings fill the restaurant as Toriel and I take a seat in a booth with the rest of the gang.
"GREETINGS HUMAN! I AM SO GLAD YOU COULD MAKE IT!"
"Me too, Papyrus."
"Hey kiddo. Good to see you alive."
"Sans, you are such a bonehead"
*Buh-dum crash*
"Heh, good one."
"Hey human! I see you made it away from Asgore alive."
"Yeah, but not without the help from Toriel. She literally saved my life."
"Oh come on, you mean Asgore almost beat you?! How did he beat you?"
"You want to know how I lost?"
"Yes, human. Learning from your mistakes allows you to come back better and stronger."
"Well, I believe after his main attacks weren't having any luck, he went for my legs. That way it would be harder for me to dodge his attacks. If Toriel didn't show up at that right moment, I would have been gone."
Toriel tenses up at my statement. I wrap my arm around her and lean into her to comfort her. I have no idea how hard it must be to witness someone try to kill the child she cared and protected. If she would have been there a second later, she would witness the death of me. Something a mother should never witness. The topic quickly changes as we continue to chat and eat throughout the night. Toriel is very excited to meet my friends, which I basically call family. I feel like our family bond will only grow over time. I know some things didn't work out the same as last time, but the result is the same. We are all gathered laughing and talking about things from spaghetti making to ketchup to real cringy puns and jokes.
Eventually we all say our goodbyes as we make our way through the forest and into the Ruins. We arrive in our home and Toriel settles in her large chair by the fireplace.
"Would you like me to read you a book, my child?"
I nod in response as I grab a book off the bookshelf and hop up on her lap. She snuggles me close as she begins reading. After a while she finishes the book and sets it on the table beside her. The fireplace still crackles as she wraps her arms around me and holds me close. One paw gently strokes my head as I drift off into a peaceful sleep.
I awaken and take in my surroundings. I am in my bedroom. She must've carried me to my room and put me in bed. Isn't she the best? I throw off the blankets and hop off my bed. A shot of pain immediately shoots through my legs. Shouldn't have done that. I limp my way out of my room and into the kitchen to greet Toriel.
"Good morning, my child. Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, I did. How about you?"
"Fine, I've been thinking about yesterday. You have made friends with everyone who tried to hurt you before. I've been thinking about keeping the door to the Ruins unlocked so anyone could come and go as they please."
"Really?"
"Yes, you have proven yourself multiple times that you can befriend anyone. I have met your friends myself, and they seem like wonderful monsters. I've also been thinking about leaving the Ruins every once in a while too."
"I thought you said that you need to be here to take care of the Ruins?"
"I do need to take care of the Ruins, but there is not much to take care of. Exploring the Underground with you has made me feel…free. Now, I'm not trapped here or anything, just free from work. I feel like I need to venture out of the Ruins more."
"That's great, mom, but…what happens if another child falls?"
"Then we shall be here to take care of them as well."
A moment of silence fills the room.
"So, how is your leg?" Toriel asks.
"It's definitely sore from the amount of walking yesterday, but I'll be fine."
The day continues as we run our normal tasks like we would any other day in the Ruins. Toriel offered to take some of my tasks because of my injury, but I insisted. Once all my tasks were finished, I make my way to the flower patch where I greet a familiar face.
"Hello Flowey."
"Oh, hey Frisk. Where have you been?"
"Everywhere. Met with Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, and Asgore."
"What happened to your leg, to your arm?"
"Oh, um, Asgore got me."
"He tried to kill you?"
"Well yeah, he didn't know that I was here before. He didn't know that we were on good terms before. He didn't know I RESET, so he did what he did last time, he fought me."
"Did you…kill him?"
"No…but he almost killed me."
"What?! Don't you know what would happen if he killed you?"
"Yes, I had to fight him regardless of what happened before. He didn't know, so he wanted the last human soul to break the barrier. He would then cause a war between humans and monsters once again. He almost beat me…he almost killed me…"
"How did you make it out?"
"Mom saved me. When I thought it was all over, she came in and saved me. I gave up…I didn't have enough strength and I couldn't reach any of my items to heal. I was prepared to die."
"Well, that's mom for ya, she never let's a child go without a fight."
"So yeah, I was pretty banged up from the fight…still am."
"Now what are you going to do?"
"That's the thing, Flowey. I don't know what to do. One more human soul is needed to break the barrier and I don't know how we can get that. I talked with Alphy's and she is working on creating souls, but none of them are working out. I mean, her previous experiment was injecting you with DETERMINATION, but you don't have a complete soul. I offered to go back to the surface and take a human soul, but of course mom is against it."
"You do realize you need a monster soul and a human soul to pass the barrier, right?"
"I know, that's what Jerry is for, but again…"
"Mom is against it?"
"Yeah. I don't know what to do. I thought about sacrificing myself, but who would stop them from starting another war? I want to free everyone, but I don't know how. Right now, I only know how to free one."
"Who is that?"
"You."
"Me?!"
"Yes, I want you to be free. I want you to be your normal self again."
"NO! I told you before that I don't want to be myself again. I don't want mom and dad to see me again…it'll break their hearts."
"Why would it break their hearts?"
"They have moved on from me. Do you think me randomly coming back to life is going to make them all excited and happy? No, it has been years since I was killed. They don't want to see me, I'm long gone."
"No you aren't. You have the chance to feel again. You have the chance to live your life instead of pretending. I know you have a soul in there, but it's not complete. You can feel compassion and emotions, but it needs one more jump to make your soul complete. Be my brother, be my friend, be the Asriel that talked with me after our fight. If I can't save everyone, I at least want to save you. Mom and dad will be shocked at first to see you, but they will realize that it's really you. They will be overjoyed. They will be beyond happy. They have their son back. Please, make this family complete."
We sit in silence as the light from the opening of the cliff shines down on us.
"What do you have to do to change me back?" Flowey asks quietly.
I hesitate…
"Take a part of my soul."
"What?!"
"Take a part of my soul, and you will be complete."
"Do you know how stupid that idea sound?!"
"I don't see what other choice we have."
"Here is another option, leave me be. I don't want your soul."
"But-…"
"Do you know how dangerous that is? You could die! Your soul would be split, and you would be gone. And I'm not going to be the one that tells mom that you died because you gave a part of your soul to me."
"I can communicate with the other human souls. They can save me."
"No, Frisk. You will not try to save me. You will not try to save me by risking your own life. This is me. I don't want to be myself again. All those memories…I don't want to become that awful creature."
"You were never awful, Flowey. You were just confused and angry. You could not feel compassion or love, so you became tired of it and decided to steal a soul. I know for a fact that the Asriel and Flowey before is gone. You can start all over. It's time to move on from your past."
He contemplates the idea.
"No, you aren't risking your life for me. I'm not worth it…just…leave me alone."
I nod in respect of his request and leave without another word. He is fighting himself. More importantly, he is fighting his past self. He hated who he became, and he is afraid that if he becomes himself again, what will happen to his family. I must speak with the other souls about this idea. If it is possible to give a part of my soul, I want to do it. He deserves so much more. He deserves love. I may or may not set all the monsters free, but I will find a way to save one.
Hello fellow readers! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday(s). I am happy to be back with another chapter of this story. I want to thank everyone for the continued support. I have read all comments and made some changes to help improve the overall story quality for everyone. Again, all reviews/comments are welcome. I am open to feedback as well as recommendations for future chapters. Let's finish 2020 out with a bang now shall we?