Pre-Chapter Notes: At this point, I think we should just consider a 'long' chapter to be 'normal' for us. This one took a while to write, but it turned out rather well. Hopefully it brings you all a little enjoyment. This one marks the conclusion of the Waterfall arc, meaning it won't be too long before we get to Hotland.
Apologies that this took so long to release. With the pandemic, and the fact that Kiki works in pharmacy, she's been working almost constantly up until recently making sure that as many vaccinations are distributed as possible. Things have been winding down, so we've finally found time to upload this chapter. It's hard to say rather chapter releases will become more frequent or not, but we are still working on this and intend to see it through, no matter how long it takes. We understand that six months is a long time to wait for an update, but rest assured that the story is far from 'dead'.
With that out of the way, please enjoy the chapter and let us know what you think!
Chapter 27: Written in Stones
"Well, yeah. I think it can work." Undyne spoke to the floating apparition that was Lily. "Just so long as we do it right."
"WOWIE, THIS IS EXCITING!" Papyrus chimed in, and both ghost and fish cringed at his volume. "I AM SURE FRISK WILL- OOUF."
The voluminous declaration was cut short as Undyne cupped a hand over the skeleton's mouth, silencing him while Lily cast an uncertain glance in the aforementioned boy's direction. She knew full well how strong Frisk's ears were - a compensation for his lack of sight along with his nose. Thankfully, he was currently engaged in a conversation with Sans and didn't seem to notice Papyrus' outburst. That thought caused a sigh of relief to pass through her lips as she turned back to her two co-conspirators. Undyne's silencing grapple had devolved into a good-natured noogie at Papyrus' expense and the girl couldn't help but laugh a little.
She raised a finger to her lips in a shushing motion before making a surreptitious gesture toward the bench where the boy was resting after their training session. For as much as he seemed to have trouble grasping the concept of subtlety, Papyrus made up for it in intuition and picked up on her meaning immediately. Joining his thumb and forefinger together at the tips (at least Lily assumed so. It was difficult to tell through the mitt), he drew them across his teeth, indicating as much.
"AHEM… A-ANYWAY, THIS IS A FINE PLAN INDEED." He said, significantly quieter than normal.
"Yeah, but I'd feel better if we had one more pair of hands, seeing as yours don't count for obvious reasons." Undyne said to Lily who had to admit she was right. "Sans'd work but we can't really ask him with the punk hanging out right there."
"NYEH HEH HEH, LEAVE THAT TO ME!" Papyrus declared, slapping a hand to his breastplate. "I WILL MAKE SURE MY BROTHER KNOWS EVERYTHING BY TONIGHT!"
The girl felt her chest flutter with excitement as the agreement was reached, conveying her gratitude in the form of a wide smile. The expression required no explanation and both monsters returned with their own. Still, she couldn't ignore her doubt. Thinking for a moment, she recalled one of the simpler motions she'd learned from her studies into the skeletons' non-verbal language. Turning to Papyrus, she extended a thumb, tapping her otherwise closed fist twice against the open palm of her other hand.
Recognizing the gesture, Papyrus nodded confidently. "WORRY NOT! MY BROTHER MAY BE LAZY, BUT IN THIS, I DON'T THINK HE WILL BE HARD TO CONVINCE."
That was enough for Lily, who felt her slight misgivings melting away in the wake of Papyrus' reassurance. In her anticipation, the girl couldn't help but cast another glance toward Frisk. She could just imagine the look on his face when he finally learned what they were planning. This was something she'd been considering for a while now, but it was only upon the conclusion of their training session that the final piece fell into place in her mind. The only problem was that she couldn't do it alone, and even if she could, keeping Frisk from discovering her intentions would have been nigh impossible.
That's why she was discussing it with Papyrus and Undyne now. It had been difficult conveying her thoughts without words, but eventually she'd managed to do just that. Now, all that remained was giving them something concrete to go on, while also keeping Frisk distracted long enough that the plan could be put into action.
Fortunately, she had a solution for both of those things.
"So, tomorrow then?" Undyne asked, and Lily nodded emphatically.
Tomorrow.
Frisk awoke the next day, rubbing the sleep from his eyes with an annoyed groan. As much as he enjoyed the actual act of sleeping, he absolutely despised those few minutes of transition that came with awakening, when the eyes were still heavy, the limbs languid, and the senses dull. Those moments when all one wished to do was curl up under a warm blanket and return to that comfortable state, but the body and mind would not allow it, insisting they rise and face the day. Some mornings, the boy was able to win out against that natural inclination and get those 'five more minutes' but today, it seemed, was not one of them.
"Morning, Sleepyhead!" Lily sang as she floated into view.
"Mmm…" Frisk mumbled, still too tired to form a coherent response. Why did she seem so happy, anyway?
"Didn't sleep well?" She asked, her voice softening a little as she realized his state.
"Uh uh…" He replied with a little yawn.
It wasn't that he'd woken up over the course of the night, but it did feel like his sleep was a little more restless than usual. Lately, it seemed that he was having more and more trouble getting a good night's sleep… or at least as good as he wanted. Up until recently, they'd been roughing it in Waterfall, which while pretty, wasn't exactly the most relaxing place to lay one's head, and just the other day, he'd been woken up by a sudden surge of restored memories. Still, this was nothing by comparison and minor fatigue at the worst. He was pretty certain it would fade soon, as his rapidly clarifying mind seemed to suggest.
"How long have you been up?" He asked her, the question as much a matter of idle curiosity as it was a means to speed that process along.
"Only about an hour." the girl replied. "I wanted to let you wake up on your own, since you really wore yourself out yesterday. Especially considering where we're going."
"Going…? Are we gonna train some more today or something?" The boy asked, as he rubbed the last of the rheum from his eyes. Lily shook her head.
"Nope. Undyne wants to give us a break for today."
"Really?" That answer piqued the boy's interest. "That doesn't sound like her."
"No, but I get it anyway." Lily explained. "You need rest. I think she knows that and doesn't want to push too hard. And, uhh… there's also what happened at the end there."
Frisk fell silent. Delicately as she'd put it, it was still obvious what she was talking about. That memory - or 'memories' as he was growing more and more convinced was the case - had been bothering him for a while. Indeed, that was probably one reason for his less than ideal sleep the previous night.
He'd told her about it, as well as listened when she explained the details of the fragment of her own past. Hers was far less vague, and they'd come to the conclusion that Gerson was most likely the one responsible for initially teaching her magic. That didn't answer the plethora of other questions that came as a result though.
By this point, it was pretty clear that she'd had a pretty healthy rapport among monsters when she was alive. It was also becoming less and less likely that she was one of the six SOULs that Undyne claimed king Asgore possessed. With the kingdom's current campaign against humanity, there was simply no way that her memories of happiness and belonging living here could have occurred at the same time. Therefore, the only thing that made sense was that something had happened either shortly before or some time following her death that led it to this point. The very thought was disturbing to her.
As for Frisk, he remained baffled by the cryptic nature of the, as Sans had called it, 'layered memory' that he'd experienced. The moments were so similar that it was almost unnerving. What had happened to make him speak those words? And who was the woman who echoed them? His first thought was that perhaps it was Lily, but it didn't sound like her… nor did it sound like Toriel, or Undyne, or anyone that he'd met before. Yet, for some reason he knew it. Even discussing it with his friend had left him no closer to understanding. It was simply too vague to provide any solid answers.
When he noticed the silence he looked up to see her looking just as thoughtful as he was.
"Well, okay… if she thinks that's best." He said, shifting the conversation in a different direction. "But, where are we going then?"
Frisk's words roused the girl from her own thoughts and she turned to him. The look on his face was clear: thinking about it further wouldn't help them very much right now. Thus she smiled and replied.
"To go see Temmie." She said simply. At his confused look, she continued. "Remember? We said we'd visit her when we were able to. Since we're not training today, I figured it'd be a good day to do it."
"Oh yeah!" Frisk exclaimed, remembering their encounter with the strange little monster in Waterfall. "We… still don't know where the village is though."
"I'm sure we can find it. We have time to look, and she did give us a few clues." The girl answered, remembering the mention of mushrooms or 'tasty moons' as Temmie had put it. "At worst we can ask. Someone's gotta know where to find them."
The look she gave told him that she wanted to get started as quickly as possible. He wasn't sure if that desire stemmed more from her wish to see the cuddly monster again or the hope of watching him endure more of her relentless petting. Either way he pushed himself from the couch and made for the washroom before getting ready to go.
Once they had everything they needed the two children exited the brothers' home and stepped out into another brisk Snowdin morning. Sans and Papyrus were standing just outside, explaining their absence from the home proper. Undyne however, was nowhere to be seen.
"GOOD MORNING, HUMANS!" The younger of the brothers greeted them. "I TAKE IT YOU ARE HEADING OUT FOR THE DAY?"
"Yeah, we'll probably be gone for most of the day." Lily said, a knowing look passing between her and the skeleton. "Especially depending on how long it takes to find the village."
Figuring Lily must have told the two where they were going before he woke up, Frisk asked. "Do you guys know where it is, maybe?"
"UNFORTUNATELY NOT." Papyrus replied. "ALAS, I AM UNFAMILIAR WITH WATERFALL ASIDE FROM THE WAY TO UNDYNE'S HOME."
"can't say I do either, kiddos…" Sans shrugged. "i'm gonna go out on a limb and say it'll probably be close to where you met though."
"You're probably right." Frisk said, as Lily cocked an eyebrow in Sans' direction. "We'll find it… or if we don't, she'll find us."
"can't do that if ya stick around here though." the shorter boneman replied, his perpetual grin widening. "better make like a stone and skip on over there while ya can."
By this point, Sans was treated to a double-glare courtesy of his brother and Lily. Fortunately, Frisk's focus was trained toward the brothers and he'd yet to rouse his SOUL so he wasn't privy to any of this. He did, however, note the strange silence and turned a questioning look to his friend. Lily immediately forced her face to straighten, hiding her irritation by brushing a few brown hairs away from her eyes.
"Oh well. Thanks anyway guys." She said. "See you when we get back."
With that, the girl circled around to take Frisk's hand before guiding him in the direction of Waterfall. The fog had returned but it was lighter today and they had no trouble as they made their way across the border to the region of Waterfall. It was truly amazing just how many different climates could be found in the Underground. With how vast it was, and how many people lived here it was sometimes easy to forget that such a diverse area only existed beneath a single mountain.
The glittering stones twinkled above in their myriad colors as the two made their way through the marshes and flooded tunnels that made up the area. The distant notes of a melancholy song rang through the tunnels, and Lily immediately recognized them as belonging to the music box. Someone must have started it up, and she couldn't help but wonder who. Even the thought of the melody always made her feel so pensive and every time it did so elevated her desire to understand why it was so significant to her. But alas, the sound of the notes evoked no new memories this time.
They soon came upon the chamber where they'd seen the slug and fish monster on their first time through. The two weren't around now but it didn't take long for Lily to realize that someone else was. A familiar face stood nearby, kicking a rock along the ground and into the pool in the center of the chamber. Kidd's reptilian face bore a thoughtful expression as he watched the ripples cresting outward from where the rock had entered with a plunk.
As Lily explained who had caught her attention, Frisk's brow creased in a frown and he had to ask. "Is he okay?"
"I dunno." the girl replied. "Should we go ask?"
Frisk nodded, and drew his SOUL from his body as they approached the armless monster carefully. He didn't notice them as he continued to stare at the fading ripples and his own reflection in the water's surface. Not wanting to startle him, the boy spoke as softly as he could.
"Kidd?"
At the sound of his name, the yellow monster perked up, turning toward the speaker. At the sight of the human boy, his frown was quickly replaced by a friendly smile.
"Yo, Frisk! What's up?" He asked before his eyes gravitated to the transparent form of the girl hovering at his side. "Whoa, is… is that Lily?!"
"Huh?" Frisk asked before realizing what their friend was talking about. "Oh yeah, that's right. We haven't seen you since it happened." At the monster's questioning silence Frisk explained. "We noticed it a few days ago, and we aren't really sure why. But yeah, people can see her now!"
"That's awesome! Being able to turn invisible would be super cool, but I don't think I'd wanna stay like that." Kidd exclaimed and the two humans had to agree.
"She can still only talk to people through me, but it's a good start!" Frisk finished his brief explanation before deciding to open his SOUL to her so she could do just that.
With the crimson glow settling within Frisk's right eye, Lily quickly greeted their friend properly. As they exchanged a few pleasantries however, the girl found her thoughts briefly distracted by the melancholy song echoing in the distance. Had Kidd started it up? Sure, he didn't have arms but that didn't mean It was impossible. Either way, they had some catching up to do, and she decided that was more important for now.
Thus, driven equally by curiosity as well as to distract her wandering mind, the girl spoke up.
"So, umm… where have you been anyway?" She asked. "We know you live around Snowdin, but we haven't seen you since, well…"
She trailed off, not knowing how to delicately voice her thoughts. After all, the last time they'd seen Kidd, the situation had been anything but delicate. Still, it was enough and he caught on quickly.
"Uhh, yeah…" He hesitated, lifting a foot to scratch his neck. "So… when I got home, and Mom and Dad saw how ripped up my shirt was, they… freaked out a little. I had to tell them what happened and, well… I've kinda been grounded since then."
"Oh." Frisk said, giving him an apologetic look.
"Sorry." Lily added. She understood the reason, but still felt a little bad for him. At his questioning look she went on. "It's kind've our fault you got in trouble."
"Yeah." Frisk nodded. "If it hadn't been for us, you probably wouldn't have even been on that bridge in the first place."
"Don't say that! If it wasn't for you guys it might have been even worse! And besides, it was Undyne who-" Kidd shook his head before sighing. "Just… don't worry about it okay? I don't blame you guys, and besides my parents let me out of jail for today so it's all good. Really."
The two humans stared at their friend for a moment, not bothering to hide their concern. That he'd brought up Undyne's name hadn't escaped them but even stranger was the way he'd started to word the statement. They well knew of Kidd's idolization of the Captain of the Royal Guard so to hear him talk like that was downright surreal. They both wanted to ask him about it but before either of them could do so, the young monster spoke up again.
"What are you guys doing out here, though?" He asked. "My parents didn't ask you to come find me, did they?"
"Nope. We are trying to find something though." Lily filled him in as Frisk punctuated the statement with a shake of the head. "See, when we were here a few days ago, we met a monster named Temmie. She asked us to visit her village but… didn't exactly give the best directions. So we're just out here looking for it."
"Temmie? I know where they live!" Kidd's face perked up as he replied. "I've been there a few times. They're weird but a lot of fun!"
"They?" Frisk wondered aloud at Kidd's pronoun usage.
"I can show you the way. Follow me!" The yellow monster spoke up before spinning on his heels and dashing forward
Frisk and Lily weren't at all surprised when he fell on his face after the first few steps, having become desensitized to the armless boy's lack of balance. Even still, they made their way over to help him to his feet before the three made their way onward - at a more moderate pace, of course. Though they were still concerned over his behavior, the two humans had to thank their lucky stars that they found someone who knew the place they were looking for. They weren't willing to let the topic of Kidd's odd behavior go entirely, but the idea of guiding them seemed to improve his mood quite a bit and they didn't want to ruin it by pressuring him right now.
They stopped briefly by the crumbled statue, as the music box's tones began to slow. Catching a hint of Lily's thoughtfulness, Frisk reached in to wind the item back up.
"Yo… that's where it was coming from?" Kidd spoke up, watching curiously as the boy carefully placed it back inside.
"Huh?" Lily spoke up. "You mean you weren't the one who started it?" Kidd shook his head.
"Nah. I didn't even know that was there. It's a pretty song though, huh?"
"Yeah…" The specter sighed. Knowing that Kidd hadn't done it only made her further question who had. "It really is."
Leaving the music box to play it's soft tune in peace, the three proceeded onward through Waterfall. Passing the rainpath, they came upon the shear cliff at its end. Frisk and Lily considered using the foothold they'd discovered the first time, only for their reptilian guide to veer off to the right, taking them away from it completely. Trusting he knew where he was going, they gave a collective shrug, following close behind as he led them to a path cutting through a veritable sea of tall, blue-green grass.
It took some time to push their way through the thick foliage, but eventually it released them. A vast stretch of marshland greeted them beyond the curtain. The familiar sight of clustered pools, pale wood trees, and glowing mushrooms greeted them, and in the distance, darkness pocked with violet crystals.
Of course, Frisk saw none of this, and thus did not notice the shallow ledge he was moving towards. Lily, having removed herself once again from the boy's SOUL to better guide him, immediately saw the wisdom in that decision when she reached out and seized his arm, causing him to halt.
The boy turned a questioning look to his companion for only a moment before the look on her face told him exactly had happened. He sighed, flexing the fingers of his empty left hand, again feeling the sting of the loss of his stick. He was grateful that Lily was there to help him, but he knew that she was having to do so much more than usual without his secondary guide, and couldn't help feeling like a burden because of it. It wasn't that he hadn't tried to replace it either. He'd gone into the forest around Snowdin in hopes of doing just that. Yet, all of his attempts had proven unsuccessful. Either the balance was wrong, making it awkward to use or it was so flimsy that it would break the moment it came into contact with something.
There was nothing for it though, so he tried his best to not let his frustration show on his face, instead allowing Lily to guide him around to a safer path. Kidd's bare feet sloshed through the shallow water of the path as his tail crested its surface. The reptilian monster didn't seem to mind the dampness at all, which the humans found enviable. It was clear he knew the area well, given how expertly he led them around the deeper parts of the marsh. It stood in stark contrast to the difficulty the two humans had navigating it their first time through.
Eventually, their path led them to a slope upward from the dampness of the swamp to a sheer rock face at its edge. A soft blue glow emanated from a large cave hollowed into the stone, and it was this that Kid led them to. Peering into the gaping expanse immediately revealed the source of the light: hundreds, perhaps thousands of the glowing mushrooms found throughout Waterfall filled the cave. They sprouted from the floor, walls and even the ceiling, each one casting a cerulean glow into the tunnel that made the grey stone shimmer like silver.
"It's beautiful…" She muttered, staring wide-eyed at the sight as she explained its appearance to Frisk.
"I think they thought so too." Kidd chimed in. "Their village is down there… or at least it was last time I was here. They might've moved it again…"
Frisk and Lily refrained from asking what he meant by that for the moment, and instead simply nodded, moving toward the cave entrance alongside him. A few of the mushrooms flickered and crew dark as they brushed against them before flaring back to life once they passed, causing undulations of color and light with each step. Eventually the tunnel fanned out, expanding into a proper cavern. The mushrooms here were spaced much farther apart than those within the tunnel, but there was still more than enough light to see what was around.
And strange didn't even begin to describe it.
Immediately, Frisk and Lily could see a number of small creatures scampering around the area. Each and every one looked similar to the one who had 'greeted' Frisk during their first trip through Waterfall. There were subtle differences but most features were the same: small, white fur, two different sets of ears, and expressions that were both hyper-alert, and constantly distracted at the same time.
However, before the two humans were able to take in the enormity of it all their attention was drawn to a voice calling out to them.
"U cAMe!"
They turned to see one of the little creatures had noticed them, and was now bounding forward on its elastic limbs, closing the distance in mere seconds. Realizing who it must have been, Frisk smiled and knelt down as the white furred monster came to a stop before him, vibrating noticeably.
"Temmie, right?" He asked.
"hOI! i'm tEMMIE!" She cried, and that was all the confirmation he needed.
"I guess I see why you said 'they' now." Lily said to Kidd, as the monster extended a paw to pat her friend on the head. "I didn't know there was more than one."
Even as she said that, the other residents seemed to notice the new arrivals and suddenly the three were surrounded by no less than two dozen of the friendly little monsters.
"AawAwa… iz dIS da huMANs?!" One of them asked, to which the first responded.
"YaYa! Hew man com… TEM villag!"
"HUman… CUTE! Asdfasd!" Another cried before rolling over on its back.
Frisk laughed as they gathered around, their fine fur tickling against his hands as they brushed against him, some reaching up with elongated limbs to pat him on the head. Eventually the tide of fluff and hyper-activity became too much, and the boy fell back onto the floor, only to have his lap promptly taken over by no less than five of the little cat-dogs.
"Yo, I guess you really ARE humans if they like you that much!" Kidd laughed.
In spite of his joke, it was immediately obvious that the temmies had plenty of enthusiastic greetings to go around, as some had gathered around him as well. Apparently they had a fondness for anything they considered cute, not just humans and the monster child fit that criterium as surely as Frisk and Lily did.
Speaking of the girl… with her body now visible even in her spectral form, the only thing protecting her from the onslaught of cuteness was her intangibility. Not that that kept the little monsters from trying, as many reached up with their elastic paws in an attempt to pet her as well. The confused looks they gave when their paws passed through her incorporeal form had the girl giggling almost as much as seeing the state of Frisk and Kidd. Those that weren't currently involved in the village-wide petting session (and even some that were) were doing the next best thing: introducing themselves.
"hOI! Im tEMMIY!"
"HOi! i'm TEMi!"
"HOI! I'm TEMtem!"
It quickly became apparent that all of them were named 'Temmie' or some variant thereof. The idea made the children wonder if that ever became confusing for them - after all, there was bound to be some overlap. But one look at the half-distracted faces of the villagers gave them a clear answer - they simply didn't care. So it was when a group of four temmies approached, each of the first three introducing themselves with an identical name that Frisk turned to the fourth and spoke.
"Let me guess. You're name's Temmie, too?"
The little creature shook its head before fixing the boy with a clearer expression than the rest of its ilk.
"I get that a lot, but no." The deeper, and more intelligible voice it responded with somehow seemed even more out of place than the nonsensical diction of the others. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Bob."
Frisk's brow creased at the utterly normal sounding name. "Buh… Bob?"
Hearing this, Lily couldn't take it anymore and doubled over laughing. Hearing such a normal voice coming from the mouth of such an adorable creature was just so random that it caused everything to spill out at once. The sound of his friend's mirth momentarily distracted Frisk from his confusion just in time to notice the temmie known as Bob reaching out an elastic limb to give him a single, dignified pat.
"Humans are interesting creatures… cute as well!" The little monster related. "I do hope you'll stay with us for a while."
With that, Bob gave a small bow before turning from the group and walking off at a steady pace. Frisk was so caught off guard by what he'd experienced, that he didn't even notice when one of the 'normal' temmies managed to crawl its way onto his head. Drifting down to his friend's side, Lily nudged him in the ribs
"Smart and adorable." She related with a grin. "I'm calling it now. That one's you."
"Wha- no, it isn't!" Frisk protested instinctively.
"What isn't?" Kidd asked curiously, his expression turning thoughtful when the boy related what his companion had said. "Yo, now that I think about it, you guys are kind've alike."
Frisk groaned, if only because Kidd's agreement sent Lily into another wave of victorious laughter. He couldn't exactly deny the comparison himself, but that didn't mean he was willing to admit it!
The villagers' hunger for pets seemed almost boundless but eventually enough were satisfied that Frisk was able to pick himself up and move around. He had to be careful, as there were still quite a few temmies crowding around him at any one time. Though his SOULsight helped in showing him where they were, the little monsters simply moved so fast that each movement was an exercise in avoiding stepping on one.
As the children explored the village, one thing became increasingly clear about the temmies' lifestyle: they were keen artists, but were utterly hopeless when it came to anything approaching practicality. The 'homes', really a few flimsy piles of rocks placed together to offer a mere semblance of shelter and privacy were juxtaposed by the many pristine works of art strewn about the area.
What's more, they seemed to specialize primarily in works of art featuring… well, themselves. A statue of one of the creatures garbed in priestly robes stood next to a toppled pile of stones that might have once been a dwelling. Another, depicting one of the four-eared creatures in a suit of resplendent armor was covered in a number of nonsensical doodles. One wall was dominated almost entirely by a mural depicting the silhouette of a black-scaled dragon, the ferocity of which was diluted by the more prominent image of one of the inhabitants standing on its back.
"It's kinda like Artisan Village but… a lot weirder." Lily observed as they passed by a literal hole in the cavern wall, from which a single temmie watched them with curious eyes.
Even the store was little more than a hollowed out segment of the cavern that solely stocked what their labels referred to as 'Temmie Flakes'. Each one was marked by a different price tag but none were any different from the others as far as Lily could tell. Feeling curious, Frisk ended up buying a bag of the cheapest ones, and popped one of the little snacks into his mouth.
"How… is it?" Lily asked as Frisk chewed thoughtfully.
"Umm…" The boy began, having caught a hint of… something beneath the boundless sweetness.
"What's wrong, dude?" Kidd prompted.
"What… what are these?" The boy asked, pulling out another one to examine. It was difficult to tell beneath the grainy texture of the sugar coating it but fortunately Lily had an immediate answer.
"Uhh, Frisk those are… it looks like torn up bits of construction paper." She explained slowly.
"Huh?!" The boy explained, coughing as the outburst resulted in him swallowing the piece that was already in his mouth. "Do they… do they really eat these?"
"Is that all?" Kidd quirked a brow in the boy's direction. "I mean, I know it's paper but… it isn't that bad is it?"
"How… how do I put this…?" The boy began, sputtering a little as he managed to get his coughing under control. "I don't know how… but it tasted like there was more sugar on just one of those than in an entire bag of Miss Lapin's Cinnamon Bunnies."
His two companions let out a collective 'oh' in response to his description of the taste, both deciding it would probably be a bad idea to follow his example. As for Frisk himself, he knew that the sweetened piece of crafting material wouldn't harm him in any meaningful way but he fully accepted that he was bound to have a sugar crash later. Needless to say, he wasn't about to finish the bag so when a passing group of temmies took interest in the, in their words, 'FOOB', he happily gave it over to them.
Eventually, the trio found a place near one of the statues to sit down and rest for a while. The village had calmed down significantly since their arrival (or at least as significantly as the temmies were capable of), so they took the opportunity to recuperate a little after their trek through Waterfall. The moments passed in idle conversation, with Lily having re-entered Frisk's SOUL to better participate. Eventually though, their discussion dwindled and then died off completely.
In the relative silence, the two humans noticed that Kidd's expression had changed again. He once more looked as if there was something on his mind, but whatever it was he wasn't bringing it up on his own. After a few moments of watching him with his brow furrowed and mouth curled into a frown, Lily had had enough.
"Kidd… what's wrong?" She asked.
The monster child snapped to attention at her question and turned to the two with a bright smile that was clearly forced.
"Whadoya mean?" He asked. "I'm okay."
"No you aren't." Frisk countered, just as concerned for their friend as Lily. "Something's bugging you isn't it? It has been since we met up."
"Well, I mean it…" Kidd trailed off before finally relenting. "Okay fine. I've just been thinking about some stuff lately."
"Like what?" Frisk asked.
"Yeah. If something's wrong, tell us." Lily added. "Maybe we can help."
"But that's kind of the thing. It's about you guys." The reptilian boy explained, his eyes growing apologetic.
"Oh…" Frisk said, frowning. "Is it… because we're humans?"
"N-no! Of course not!" Kidd vehemently denied the suggestion before sighing. "It's just… after everything she did… how can you be friends with her?"
Frisk and Lily stared at their reptilian friend for a few seconds. The look on his face was a mixture of confusion and frustration that made it clear that this had been stewing in his mind for a while. What's more, they didn't need clarification to know exactly who he was referring to.
Undyne.
He'd let her name slip earlier as well, and it was clear he was harboring some unresolved feelings after their interactions during their first trip through Waterfall. Exactly what these were was still a mystery, but from the way he was talking it certainly didn't sound good. Therefore, Lily spoke up to ask him to further explain.
"What's wrong with Undyne? I thought you liked her."
"Yeah… I thought so too. Man, was I stupid." He laughed ruefully. "But after everything that happened in Waterfall… she tried to hurt you guys, told me awful things about you to try to make me hate you, and even when I tried to tell her she was wrong she wouldn't listen. Then she… then she just stood there while I was hanging off the side of the bridge, while you guys were the ones to save me. That's why I don't get why you guys are acting like none of that stuff happened."
Frisk and Lily hung onto every word he spoke. The… betrayal in his voice was heartrending to hear. So that was it… he must have been nursing those feelings since he got home after that. He'd always looked up to Undyne, fantasized about seeing her gallantry firsthand. To learn that the 'villains' she'd been pursuing were his friends must have shaken his world view quite a bit and since he'd been grounded, there was no way for the children to speak to him about this sooner. Therefore those feelings had been allowed to fester.
One thing was certain: the pedestal he'd built in his mind for Undyne had been well and truly shattered by the experience.
"Kidd, it's… more complicated than that." Frisk was compelled to speak, if only to assuage the monster child's worries. "Quite a bit has happened since then. I'm sorry you weren't able to see all of it, because I think you'd understand if you were. I know it's probably been hard since you looked up to her so much but… there's a lot more to it."
When Kidd didn't respond, Frisk's lips pursed in response to Lily's feelings as the girl added. "I guess the first thing we should say is that what happened on the bridge… Undyne wasn't 'just standing there'."
"She wasn't…?" A bit of confusion trickled into Kidd's expression as he asked.
Lily shook her head. Undyne had talked to them about that moment shortly after they returned with her to the skeletons' house. It was likely she didn't even know that Kidd was under that impression. Either way, setting that straight was likely the best way to start.
Therefore, the girl shook her head, and offered a little smile. "She was really worried about you when you fell… but it was so sudden that she was… panicking. She didn't want you to get hurt but at that moment she didn't know what to do."
"I was feeling that way too, so I get it." Frisk admitted. "It's just we had a little help and got to you sooner. If it came down to it, I know she wouldn't have let you fall."
"Huh… she really said that…?" Kidd asked. At the children's affirming nod his face seemed to soften a little, though it was clear he was still upset. "That doesn't change everything else though. She tried to hurt you guys, and I know she fought you right after you saved me, so…"
"'The humans, united in their superior strength were too powerful to overcome. Not a single SOUL was taken, and countless monsters were turned to dust.'" Frisk recited a passage from one of the slates they'd seen in Gerson's abode. "That's what the people here are taught right? That humans are powerful and dangerous. That they're enemies of monsterkind."
"But you guys aren't like that!" Kidd protested.
Frisk opened his mouth to respond, but found the words stilled in his mind before he could voice them. Given what he'd learned about himself, he knew he was most certainly capable of such things even if he had no desire to explore them. Fortunately, Lily picked up for his lack of response by providing one of her own.
"Even if you know that, what about Undyne? She's lived with those stories her whole life, and never needed to question them. It doesn't help that what she knows about what humans can do… doesn't come from the best of sources." Lily chuckled a little before clarifying. "She thought humans had mind-control powers and eye lasers."
"Pff… really?" Kidd asked, finally cracking a smile. "Wait… you don't actually have those, right?"
The question was only half serious so Frisk responded, gesturing to his own lidded eyes. "Some of us, but mine's broken. See?"
At that Kidd's growing smile transformed into a laugh at the boy's somewhat self-deprecating joke. Frisk and Lily grinned as one, happy that their friend seemed to be feeling better, at least a little. During their conversation, one of the temmies had wandered over to their borrowed corner of the village and settled itself into Frisk's lap. The boy was only half-consciously aware of the fact, even as he idly scratched the vibrating monster on its fluffy head. As Kidd's laughter tapered off the boy's expression took on a somber tone as he continued.
"It's not like I wouldn't have wanted to settle things a little less… painfully." Remembering the fight, as well as the number of 'deaths' they'd suffered before it, the hand that wasn't petting the temmie drifted to his chest. Frisk's body and mind still vaguely remembered the sensation of being run through, and it was most assuredly an unpleasant one. Still, he decided Kidd didn't need to know that part, continuing. "But we've gotten to know her quite a bit over the last few days. She was just doing what she thought was right to make everyone happy… just like we are."
"And now that we've been able to talk to her, she gets it. Though… I guess it's thanks to Papyrus that we actually got that far." Lily concluded. "She's started teaching us magic!"
"Wait… that's what you guys were doing out there yesterday?" Kidd's reptilian face lit up with awe and… a slight bit of jealousy. "I can't believe Undyne is training you…"
Frisk grinned at his reaction. Even with his supernatural vision, Frisk still wasn't the most adept at gauging expressions, but sounds were another matter. He could hear the awe and slight jealousy beneath his friend's words, a telling sign that he still harbored at least some respect for the Captain. Perhaps the pedestal wasn't quite as shattered as he'd originally thought.
Lily, sensing the same thing, demonstrated by conjuring a single mote of her formless magic for Kidd to see.
"That's so cool!" The monster boy said, staring at the undulating orb.
"I wasn't sure at first either when we first started talking." The girl admitted. "But I'm glad I decided to give her a chance and I think you should too. She really is trying to make things right."
As she said those words her thoughts drifted to her conversation with Undyne and Papyrus just yesterday. They were most likely finishing things up by now and the thought almost had the girl wanting to stand up and rush home right then. Still, it was better to be certain and she didn't want to ruin her own plan by getting too hasty.
'If everything works out, it'll be another big step toward doing just that…'
"Huh... I guess I'll think about it." Kidd said, cocking his head in thought before adding. "If I ask… d'ya think her and the big skeleton guy'll teach me too?"
Both of the humans smiled. Somehow, they both knew he wouldn't take long to reach a decision.
The day drew on as the three friends relaxed in the village of the temmies. Most of it was spent exploring the village, marveling at all of the incredible works of art such seemingly distractible creatures were capable of bringing to life. In a few places they noticed a number of the little monsters hard at work on their latest project and the speed and synchronicity through which they did so was a sight to behold for Lily and Kidd. Even Frisk found himself in awe from their description of it. It made the boy wonder how they could possibly be that creative while living in what ultimately amounted to holes in the ground. Still, they were happy with their lot in life and no one felt any need to question it… not that any answer they received was likely to make sense.
Finally, after being treated to a mysterious dance by a mushroom monster named Ragel, it came time to return to Snowdin. It was easy enough to find their way back with Kidd leading the way and they reached the colorful town without incident. As they were walking down the path that connected the Snowdin region to that of Waterfall, Kidd spoke.
"Yo, listen guys. I just wanted to say… thanks for hanging out with me today. I really needed it." He began. "And… look. I'm sorry for how I was acting earlier."
"What's there to be sorry about?" Lily asked, honestly confused. It's not like he was taking out his frustration on them.
"It's just… seeing you guys hanging out with Undyne really bothered me after what happened." He explained. "I didn't know everything… and it probably didn't feel good hearing me say all that stuff about her now that you guys are friends."
Frisk's brow creased at the reptilian boy's words. He hadn't actually considered that at the time, more bothered by Kidd's own feelings than his own. Now that he mentioned it though, it was true… especially since his ire towards Undyne was borne mainly of a misunderstanding. He couldn't help but realize that it was actually somewhat similar to how Undyne thought of them when they'd first met her. Still, a misunderstanding is exactly what it was and just like with the Captain, Frisk wasn't about to fault him for coming to a conclusion based on the information he had.
"You're right. You didn't know everything. And before today, there was no way for you to." Frisk said. "But even though I didn't like hearing that you were upset at Undyne, I'm not mad at you for it."
"Not… even a little bit?" Kidd asked reluctantly, and this time it was Lily who responded.
"Nope!" She began before adding. "And besides, you were only so upset because you care about us. If we weren't friends, it wouldn't have bothered you so much, right?"
"Huh. Yeah, I guess you're right." Kidd said thoughtfully as he shifted his feet in the snow.
The girl thought for a moment as their conversation grew silent. When they left today, she hadn't expected to run into the monster child on their way to the village, but she was glad that they had. They were able to clear up a number of things, and it had been nice to see the young monster again.
"Oh man…" Kidd groaned, drawing her back to reality. "I really need to get home though. I'm not really grounded anymore but my parents still have me on a pretty tight leash."
"Oh…" Frisk said, a little disappointed. "I understand though. They're probably worried about you."
"Yeah… I just wish they didn't have to be so smothering all the time." The yellow monster said. "Anyways, I'll see you guys later, okay?"
"Bye Kidd!" Lily called out as the boy turned to leave.
Frisk watched as Kidd's monochrome image gave them a wobbly smile before turning to leave. It was in that moment, seeing the whites and blacks of the young monster's image upon his blind sight that he was reminded of the girl they'd met in Waterfall. They'd only seen her a couple of times, and yet the resemblance she bore to their friend was uncanny. That she'd seemed to care about him enough to urge them into action on that bridge was even more telling. Though she'd asked them to 'forget' about her, the boy found himself unable to do so. He knew there had to be some connection between their friend, and the mysterious grey girl and his curiosity caused him to call out.
"Hold on!" He called. "Kidd, wait a minute!"
The yellow scaled boy stopped in his tracks - thankfully without falling on his face this time - and trotted his way back to the humans.
"What's up, Frisk?" He asked.
"Umm, sorry to bring this up out of the blue but there's something I'm wondering about." The boy began. "When we were going through Waterfall, we met someone. She uhh… she looked a lot like you."
"Frisk… are you sure about this?" Realizing what he was getting at, Lily voiced her concerns within his mind. "I mean… we know there was something weird about that girl. Do you really think it's a good idea to ask him about it?"
"We haven't seen her since then." Frisk replied. "And it was because of her that we were able to help him. At the very least, he should know that she was looking out for him, right?"
"Yeah… I guess so." Lily replied, understanding his desire to give credit where it was due. Before she could say anything else on the matter though, Kidd spoke up.
"Oh, really?" A frown spread along his snout as he spoke. "Uhh, do you know what her name was?"
"She didn't say." Frisk replied.
The monster boy sighed and shook his head. "It was probably my sister… she's always following me around to 'keep an eye on me' for mom and dad. It's really annoying sometimes."
Frisk and Lily blinked at the strikingly… normal response. When they'd seen the colorless child, there'd been something decidedly otherworldly about her. That she was seen clearly by Frisk but not to Lily was only the most minor of a number of strange things about her. And yet, Kidd was speaking of her as if there was nothing strange at all about this.
"Guys?" Kidd asked, drawing them from their thoughts to notice him staring at them with an expectant look on his face. "Yo, I said 'what did she say?'"
"Oh, umm… well…" Lily stammered for a response. "We actually saw her a couple of times. The first time she just told us to forget about her."
"Huh… yeah, that sounds about right. I keep telling her she's not gonna make any friends if she keeps avoiding everyone but she never listens to me." Again, his nonchalant response seemed strangely at odds with their own strange encounter. "You said you saw her again though?"
"Uh, yeah… she was…" Frisk hesitated, reluctant to bring up the events of a few days ago. "She was there when you fell… she's the one who pushed us to go and help you."
"If it wasn't for her, we might not have made it in time…" Lily added, causing Kidd to frown thoughtfully.
"Really? I uhh, I guess I owe her an apology then. Haha." The boy chuckled in what almost sounded like guilt. When he noticed his friends' confused expressions he elaborated. "We uhh, we kinda got into an argument this morning. She didn't want me going out to Waterfall again so soon after my accident. I just thought she was worrying too much… I didn't know she was actually there."
"You mean she's… at your house?" Lily asked, having a bit of a hard time grasping that idea despite how simple it seemed. "Like… living there with you and your parents?"
"Yeah…" Kidd drew out the word, staring skeptically at them in response to the strange questions. "Where else would she be?"
"No, you're right… sorry." Not wishing to upset him, Frisk decided to end it there. "I guess with all the weird stuff we've been going through, lately it seems like there's more to everything, you know?"
"Huh…" Kidd thought about that for a second, brows creasing. For a moment it looked like he might have had something else to say but in the end he just shook his head. "Nah, everything's pretty normal for me. I'm kinda jealous that you guys seem to be getting all the excitement!"
"Right…" Frisk said thoughtfully, somehow not convinced despite the young monster's reassurance.
The way Kidd was talking simply didn't line up with what he and Lily had experienced out there in Waterfall. Even in the context of all the strange and wonderful things they'd come to learn about the Underground, there was nothing normal about that girl. Just thinking about her caused a strange sensation within the boy's mind. It wasn't quite a headache, but he realized it was almost… 'difficult' to think about - as if the memory itself was trying desperately not to be remembered. Were they even talking about the same person? Surely there were other monsters like Kidd out there. It was entirely possible that they'd simply run into one of them who happened to be similar enough to their friend's sibling that he mistook them as one in the same. That was the simple answer, and yet the red child still found it difficult to believe.
"Well, I guess I really do need to get home now." Kidd sighed. "Thanks again you guys. Maybe if you come over sometime, I can introduce you to everyone. Maybe sis, and my parents won't worry so much if they know you."
"Oh… okay!" Lily responded, forcing a smile in spite of her own misgivings. "That sounds like it'd be fun. See you later, Kidd!"
The yellow monster shifted from one foot to the other before turning around and dashing off in the direction of Snowdin's residential area. The two humans watched him go, struggling to make sense of what had just happened. In the end however, it came to nothing and and only managed to leave them with more questions than answers. Deciding to put the subject aside for the time being, Lily instead shifted her focus to the other matter occupying her mind.
"I guess we should be getting home too, huh?" She asked Frisk.
"Yeah…" The boy absently replied. "Everyone's probably back by now."
The thoughtfulness in Frisk's voice tempered her mood just a little bit. Without something else to occupy his mind, he was having a bit more trouble keeping himself from dwelling on it than she was. Deciding that this wouldn't do, the spectral girl separated herself from his SOUL and came to manifest at his side in a flash of light. Taking his hands gently in hers, she coaxed him to look up at her and offered a small smile.
"Hey. Let's go okay?" She said. "You'll feel better once we get home. I promise."
"Okay…" The boy nodded, squeezing her hand and allowing her to guide him on into Snowdin Town proper.
The walk was pleasant enough, rather than feeling frigid and uncomfortable, the familiar briskness of the air felt soothing to Frisk, and helped to ease away his worries. A few monsters greeted them with friendly waves as they passed, and the children returned them easily. It seemed that Lily was coming to enjoy her newfound visibility quite a lot. Her face seemed to brighten every time someone on the street acknowledged her presence without having to rely on Frisk to make it known.
The further they walked, the more Frisk could catch the scent of her feelings. There was the familiar scent of contentment - that of the golden flowers she seemed to love. Yet beneath the surface, he could just barely make out something else as well. It was strange. Usually when her emotions translated in this way, each one was defined by a single scent. While they would often mingle depending on her mood, they were easily separated and recognizable. This one was different however. Rather than one scent, there were several and it took some time before he could recognize even a few.
'Butter, flour, salt and sugar, uncooked eggs, cacao… these are ingredients for a chocolate cake.' He realized, but the discovery only made him more thoughtful. 'Just the ingredients though… why not the cake itself?'
That's when it hit him. Alone, each of these things were bland at best and downright inedible at worst… but together they made something delicious. It was the promise of that, that these disparate scents were conveying to him… anticipation. But that conclusion only gave rise to another question.
Why?
Just as the thought crossed his mind, they reached the front door of the skeletons' abode. Frisk reached forward to take the doorknob in hand, only for his friend to place her hand on his to stop him. Confused, the boy looked up only to see her smiling down at him with a mysterious glint in her eyes.
"Wait out here for a minute, okay? I'll be right back." She instructed. Then, without waiting for a response, she phased through the closed door, and disappeared inside.
Frisk simply stood there, his confusion growing by the moment as he stared at the portal. After a few moments of awkward silence, Lily's head poked out once again.
"Okay, you can come in now!" She said, smiling from one rosy cheek to the other before vanishing again.
Frisk remained still for a moment, trying to wrap his head around the girl's strange behavior. In the few seconds she'd been gone, she'd gone from quietly anticipating something to being downright excited, and it was driving him crazy trying to figure out why.
Eventually, he reached forward again, feeling along the door for a bit before finding the knob to pull it open. Stepping inside, the boy saw Lily floating there within the darkness of his sight. The grin she'd briefly shown had not faded from her face, and in fact seemed to only widen when she turned her ruddy brown eyes to him. The sight brought to mind just how happy she'd seemed this morning as well. He hadn't thought much of it at the time, but it was clear now that she had something in mind. Just what was going on that she didn't want him to know about?
"eyyy, kiddo." A deep voice spoke from the side, and Frisk turned to see Sans' monochrome form upon his vision. "'sup?"
He was a ways away, his skeletal frame curled into a sitting position which told Frisk that he was resting on the couch. Compared to Lily, he seemed to be acting normal… but then again 'normal' for Sans was synonymous with 'unreadable' so the boy couldn't be sure.
"AH, WELCOME HOME FRISK!" The vociferous voice of Papyrus drew his attention in the direction of the staircase where the younger brother was currently descending. "I TRUST YOU WERE ABLE TO FIND THIS VILLAGE YOU SPOKE OF WITHOUT DIFFICULTY?"
"Yeah, we found it okay." Frisk replied before his brow creased questioningly.
Like Lily, Papyrus seemed to be acting somewhat different than usual. He was still the same energetic, and ever optimistic superhero he always was. Yet, he seemed a lot more measured in his speech than was typical. It was almost like he was considering each word he spoke rather carefully… which wasn't odd for most people, but for Papyrus it was another matter. The boy's gaze shifted once again to Lily, and he could have sworn that if she was capable of touching the ground, she would be bouncing on her heels right now. Something was definitely going on, and whatever it was, it seemed like the brothers were in on it.
"glad you guys had a nice day." Sans said breezily. "it's been reeeeal tough gettin' my daily naps today. pap and undyne really know how to work a guy to the bone."
"You know, Sans… if you spent half the effort you did today in your actual jobs, you could probably keep the Underground running singlehandedly!" A boisterous voice called out from above.
"hey, not in front of the kiddos…" Sans turned his eyelights upward to where Undyne stood upon the raised hallway. "i got a reputation to maintain here."
Undyne smirked before placing her hand on the railing and vaulting from the side to land in the center of the room next to Lily. The girl let out a brief yelp of surprise as well over a hundred pounds of muscle, scales, and anime tropes came crashing down next to her. Her shocked expression changed however when she noticed what the warrior was carrying. Resting over Undyne's shoulder was a long object, unidentifiable beneath the grey nondescript cloth that was wrapped around it. Moving to the large table that had once again been transferred to the middle of the room, Undyne laid the parcel carefully upon it before turning her attention to the boy standing in the doorway.
"Well, you gonna just stand there, Punk? Come on in!" She said with a wide, toothy grin.
The boy nodded and closed the door behind him before looking to each of them and studying their expressions.
Lily's hadn't changed at all, nor had Sans', though the boy could swear the short skeleton was keeping a closer eye on him than usual. Undyne was smiling, same as Lily, but there seemed to be something different about it. While he'd already identified that his spectral friend was excited about something, Undyne's seemed strangely subdued which again struck the boy as odd. Of all of them, however, Papyrus was the biggest tell that something wasn't exactly 'normal'. The Royal Guard hopeful had his hand raised to his face and seemed to be trying to bite his non-existent nails through the leather of his glove. Try as he might however, he couldn't figure out the reason for it all. The only thing he knew for sure was that it must have had something to do with whatever Undyne had been carrying when she arrived.
So finally he asked. "Umm… guys? What's going on?"
"I… guess I should probably explain, huh?" Lily said, drifting over to the boy. "So… I kinda lied about the reason I wanted us to go out today."
"You… did?" Frisk asked with a bit of uncertainty.
"D-don't get me wrong. I did want to go out and see Temmie, and it was nice to talk to Kidd too, but…" She paused and glanced back toward the three others in the room. "The real reason was that we needed time to get things ready. Or… they did. I was really just the distraction."
"A distraction?" Frisk asked. "Why?"
Lily sighed and shook her head. "With how smart you are, Frisky, I'm surprised you didn't figure it out." She placed a hand on his shoulder while turning on her axis to gesture toward their housemates. "We… haven't exactly been the most subtle. But, come on. You'll get it soon."
The girl led Frisk into the room, guiding him toward the table where the wrapped parcel rested. Papyrus and Undyne moved to the side to give the children some space and though he didn't join them, Sans watched contentedly from his position on the couch. When they came to a stop, Lily took both of his hands and laid them over the material, enjoying his confused look for all it was worth. The boy felt along it, now aware that the fabric was in fact covering something up. At once his expression changed, his confusion fading into recognition as the answer became clear. Wordlessly, he turned to Lily, who answered his stunned silence with a wide smile.
"Open it." She said.
"Wait!" Undyne's voice cut through the relative quiet, surprising both children. "Before you do that, I gotta say something."
Lily's smile only grew brighter at the interruption. Though she was excited to see Frisk finally receive his gift, she had a pretty good idea of what Undyne wanted to say. Her suspicions were proven true when the warrior approached the table, staring at them with an even expression. Coming to a stop she quickly brought her palms together into a clap before lowering her head beneath them.
"I'm sorry!" She said clearly, in spite of her position.
"W-what?" Frisk asked, somewhat disturbed by the proud Captain's suddenly meek position.
"Lily explained things… I didn't realize how important it was to you." She began. "A warrior's weapon is an extension of not only their arm, but their heart and spirit too. It was dishonorable of me to take yours from you, and I feel really bad about it so… I hope that you can… I mean, I'll do my best to… ugh, look. I don't do this very often, okay? I'm not that good at it…"
Frisk stared at her for a moment, momentarily confused by her sudden apology until he remembered how their fight had ended. His stick… the item that represented his connection to the world around him. While he wasn't sure how well the 'warrior' label applied to him, Undyne's words did ring rather true. Ever since he'd lost it, he'd felt somewhat incomplete… like a part of himself had gone with it. He didn't like to think about it, especially since he'd gained so much both before and after it was gone, but it was hard not to. Even still, he reached up and placed a hand on one of Undyne's arms, causing the woman to look at him.
"It's okay." He said honestly. "I mean, yeah, I miss it… but I know you were just doing what you felt was right. I'm not upset at you."
"Heh… somehow that makes me feel like even more of a jerk." Undyne said, standing up straight again. Even still she was smiling. "I know this won't make up for it, but I hope it's at least a start."
Nodding toward Lily, she stepped back again, allowing the two to return their attention to the parcel. The girl reached for Frisk's hands and placed them at the center, where the wrap ended.
"Go ahead." She encouraged him gently. "I'll help you."
The boy stared at her for a few moments before turning back toward the parcel. Layer by layer, the two children carefully peeled back the cloth, revealing at last what lay beneath.
To most anyone, it would be obvious at a glance: a long shaft of purest white that tapered off to a point at one end. The other end fanned out into a spiraling lattice that wrapped back upon itself, housing a crystal of softly glowing starstone that oscillated between deep violet and icy blue. Smaller pieces of starstone adorned the shaft itself, arranged in a clear pattern along its length.
What Frisk saw was the pulse of magic that lay beneath, taking on a vaguely similar shape much like water in a vessel. The monochrome shape pulsed gently, and as the boy placed his hands upon it, he could feel the tell-tale vibration of magic, thrumming beneath his fingertips like a gentle heartbeat. As he explored the solid surface of the staff, eventually he found his way to the smaller crystals lining the side. Tracing the arrangement of stones revealed their pattern to him, a pattern of letters read through touch.
"F...R...I...S...K…" He heard himself speaking the letters aloud as his fingers glided over them.
"So… I got it right?" Lily asked him. "I was afraid I might've messed something up."
Frisk might have responded, but in that moment he seemed to have forgotten how his voice worked. His fingertips passed over each letter of his braille-inscribed name again and again, overwhelmed with so many emotions that he couldn't even begin to identify them. His shoulders lurched slightly, once, twice, thrice. He didn't realize that he'd started crying, even as the tears began leaving warm trails down the dark skin of his cheeks.
Papyrus and Undyne's faces fell and they were about to speak, to ask him what was wrong. Lily halted them with a smile and a shake of her head however… she knew by now that these were not tears of sorrow. Instead, she simply wrapped her arms around his waist, and rested her head on his shoulder, letting him cry for as long as he needed to. Even Sans remained silent during this time. There would be time for jokes later, and instead he simply sat back, and watched with an approving nod.
"You guys…" The boy said softly after a moment, rubbing his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket.
"I know it's not your old stick, but…" Lily said, a smile spreading across her face. "I hope this one's almost as good?"
"It's better." The boy said, still sniffing a little. "You didn't have to do this."
"Yeeeah, we did. I told you I felt bad after learning about the old one. Besides, you've been doing a lot of good around the Underground, Punk." Undyne countered, before averting her gaze somewhat sheepishly. "So… just be grateful and accept it, alright?"
"IT APPEARS THAT YOUR PLAN WAS A ROUSING SUCCESS, LILY!" A certain voice declared. "I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM HONORED TO HAVE PROVIDED MY AID!"
"it's more staff than stick… but i guess it's nice to branch out once in a while." Sans said with a wink. "gotta say, that thing turned out pretty good." Ignoring the awful pun, no one could object to that.
"Go ahead and pick it up!" Lily encouraged the boy. "See how it feels."
Frisk did so, carefully lifting the staff from the table with all the reverence of a holy icon. Despite being a little over half a foot taller than himself, it was surprisingly light in his hands, only slightly heavier than his old stick had been. The thrum of magic pulsing within it was somehow soothing to the boy: powerful, but focused… and somewhat familiar. The entire thing was, when he thought about it. It made it almost hard to believe that he hadn't even known it existed less than an hour ago. At the same time, that familiarity was different to the kind he experienced when recovering a memory, prompting him to ask.
"How did you even do this?"
"IT WAS LILY'S IDEA!" Papyrus declared with a radiant grin. "SHE MANAGED TO GESTICULATE HER INTENTIONS TO MYSELF AND UNDYNE AFTER OUR TRAINING YESTERDAY!"
"they dragged me into it last night." The annoyance in Sans' words didn't quite reach his voice however. "the little princess over there was pretty excited about it. had a sketch and everything."
"But…" Frisk was confused. "How did you draw a sketch. I thought you still couldn't touch anything, Lily."
"I can't… but you can." The girl said cryptically. At the look of realization on her friend's face, her smile brightened. "Remember how I walked around in your body after we fell down into the dump? I figured out I can do that when you're asleep too, so I used it to talk to everyone. I had to be careful though… you almost woke up a couple of times."
"Oh." The boy said, before putting two and two together. "Wait… is that why I felt like I didn't sleep well this morning?"
"Uhh… yeah. Probably." The girl said, chuckling nervously. "Sorry… I couldn't think of any other way to do it. I would have told you about it but I didn't even know I could until I tried and… I didn't want to ruin the surprise."
"It's okay. I just wasn't expecting it." Frisk said. He didn't really mind and honestly it was probably a good thing in the event something like the dump ever happened again. Realizing the others were staring at them, likely trying to piece together the conversation from the half they could hear, he decided to drop the subject. "Anyway… what happened next?"
The rest of the housemates proceeded to fill Frisk in on what happened. Sans had used Lily's sketch to draw up a blueprint, while Undyne and Papyrus had ventured out into waterfall to find the starstones. It had taken them a while to find them all, but the younger brother had been quite pleased to add 'crystal mining' to his list of many talents.
"We got started forging it as soon as you guys left." Undyne took the reins of the conversation. "Papy here made the solid part using his bones, and I used my magic to make the core - that's probably why you can kinda see it. Then we had to hold it together while we put in the starstone to keep it stable. The thing almost fell apart a couple of times before we got it right, but it worked."
"it ain't just a pretty stick either." Sans explained. "that thing's got magic in it, and it can focus magic too. figure it might make drawin' yours up a little easier."
Lily's idea, Sans' design, Papyrus' construction, and Undyne's magic… now it made sense why it seemed so familiar to Frisk while being so new. A bit of each of his friends went into making this gift for him. When he held it in his hand, it was almost like he was carrying them with him as well. The thought brought a smile to his face and he hugged the item close to his chest. His old stick had been a trusty companion, and it had seen him through much in his journey through the Underground, and that had truly meant a lot to him. However, his friends also meant much to the boy, and this staff was a representation of that bond. There was no doubt in his mind that he would cherish it just as much.
And perhaps, even more.
"So what now?" Lily asked.
It had been a couple of hours since Frisk had received the staff. The item was currently resting on the floor, propped up by the arm of the couch. Sans had left a little while ago to go pick up some food from Grilby's while Papyrus had adjourned to his room to post on his Undernet blog about the experience. Right now, only Undyne was present, and she was currently passed out on the other end of the couch after the long day and night spent creating Frisk's gift. Apparently, even her own hot-blooded energy had its limits.
Frisk had been thinking about that very question for a while now. Indeed, what was there to do? Since befriending Undyne, they'd had no more risk of being captured. Though the Captain had said that many of the Royal Guard were still searching, it was the canine unit that held jurisdiction over this part of the Underground, and they had been on the children's side before even Undyne had. This meant that it was relatively safe for them here… it would be easy enough to simply settle down for a while. Not indefinitely by any means - enough people knew about them that it was inevitable that word would get out eventually - but for a while, at least.
And yet, there was still more to do… many of both his and Lily's memories remained hidden from them, and he had a feeling that simply waiting for them to come on their own wouldn't do. What was more, the Barrier remained raised, and while it continued to exist, monsters would continue to suffer. As far as Frisk was concerned, the sooner that oppressive wall came down, the better.
Also, Flowey was still out there somewhere.
They hadn't seen him since his outburst in the Wishing Room, but both children knew that there was something more to the malicious flower. He was connected to Lily in some way, and perhaps to Frisk as well though the boy couldn't be sure. One thing that was certain however was that it was unlikely that he'd leave them alone for long. Rather it be due to boredom, spite, or misplaced retribution, he would come. Frisk knew that, and he'd rather not have any innocent monsters caught in the wake of another magical temper tantrum.
They could try to run, but what would that do? While they might stay a step ahead of Flowey, he'd eventually catch up to them, and it was unlikely that he'd be as easy to reason with as Undyne had. The Captain had been stubborn, and driven by misinformation, but she also had a good heart and was able to look passed her prejudices in the end. Flowey was a different story. He was unhinged in a way that was unnerving but didn't quite reach the point of insanity. In a way, that made him even more dangerous because he was under no delusions. He acts on his whims and his whims alone, and it's hard to talk to someone who is unwilling to listen.
Someone willing to listen…
That's right… there was someone else deeply involved in everything that was going on. If they could meet with that person and get their support, while it may not solve everything, it would certainly make it a lot easier.
"I think… we should go talk to King Asgore." Frisk said finally.
"Um… A- Asgore?" Lily began to fidget next to him, obviously uncomfortable. "But… he's the one who ordered everyone to hunt for humans right…? Are… are you really sure you want to just walk up to him and bring him your SOUL?"
"That's kind of the thing…" Frisk said, leaning back against the couch cushions and sighing thoughtfully. "You're right, but everyone is always saying how nice he is and how he's always helping people. It just seems so weird that someone like that is also the one hunting for us. There's something about this that we don't know, and I want to figure it out. If we talk to him and convince him we want to help, maybe together we can find a way so that no one else has to get hurt."
"That's true…" The girl reluctantly agreed, folding her hands over her chest. "But…"
Frisk gazed at Lily pointedly. She was right to be worried, but the tone in her voice and the way she refused to meet his eye suggested that there was another reason for her reluctance. The boy had a pretty good idea of what that reason was, too. He laid a comforting hand on her shoulder, causing his friend to finally look up at him. There he saw a storm of emotions raging behind her eyes.
"You're not just worried 'cause it's dangerous, huh?" He asked gently. "This is about what happened before we fought Undyne, isn't it?"
When Undyne had mentioned the king's full name, it had had a visible effect on Lily. While it wasn't quite a memory, there was some resonance with that name that had given her pause, however briefly.
The girl nodded, briefly glancing back to make sure Undyne was still asleep before confiding. "I know him, Frisk… I've never met him but I know him. I'm scared of what will happen when I see him… or when he sees me. What if… what if I'm the reason he's doing this?"
Frisk's lips pursed as his friend laid her worries to bare. "Why would it be your fault?"
"Think about it." Lily replied. "I'm not one of the SOULs he already has, but we know I was here before. What if I did something to make him hate humans? I don't even know what kind of person I was before. I could have done something terrible and now-"
Lily's response was replaced by a gasp as Frisk pulled her into a hug. She sat stunned for a moment before eventually her arms moved on their own, wrapping around the blind boy, her fingers digging into his shirt. She clung to him like a piece of driftwood in the ocean as she waited for her roiling emotions to settle down. They remained like that for a few moments before the girl's grip began to slacken and Frisk took that as a sign to lean back. He met her eyes again, a serious, but gentle expression on his face even as he spoke.
"Lily, we talked about this. Maybe it's possible, but I really don't think it's true. I might not be able to see all your memories, but from what I do know, it sounds like you were happy here. And even if it is true, you're here now… so it's not too late to apologize." He smiled warmly before adding, "Besides… if Asgore knew you back then, he might even be able to tell you more about yourself. Maybe even what your name was before. Don't you want that?"
The girl remained silent, considering her best friend's words while her hands rested over his own. The more she thought about it, the more she realized he was right. Even if something had happened while she was alive to fuel the king's hatred of humans, avoiding him wouldn't change that. No… as scary as it was, the best thing she could do was meet with him do what she could to make it right. What's more… she did want to know who she was back then, at least to some degree. Even as terrifying as some of the memories were, others were filled with happiness… wasn't that worth it?
"I do..." Lily sighed, annoyed at herself for letting her insecurities get the better of her again. Frisk's smile was contagious though and the girl found herself returning it. "Why do you always know what to do to make me feel better?"
"You know I could ask you the same thing, right?" The boy said, gesturing toward the staff, leaning against the edge of the couch where he'd once stored his old stick.
Lily giggled lightly which caused Frisk's smile to widen. He was glad she was feeling better. They eventually decided it would be best to wait to make any plans until they could discuss with their housemates. After all, they didn't even know the best way to get to the castle and they would at least need some time to gather supplies to prepare for the journey. There was also the matter of Frisk getting used to his new staff.
There was no rush however, and the children were grateful that they had the luxury of setting things in motion on their own terms for once. With any luck, they would soon be able to secure an audience with the king, and hopefully convince him to cooperate with them. Frisk found himself feeling more confident than he had in awhile, and though she was still nervous, Lily was also eager to speak with the king and perhaps receive some answers of her own.
"When we meet him… do you think he'd be willing to talk about gardening with me?" She asked.
Her question was only half serious, causing Frisk to snicker a little. "I guess you'll have to ask him when we get there."
Authors' Notes: So here we are at the end of another chapter. This one was really fun to write and a little bit different than the usual fare. It was a bit of a balancing act dropping hints for the readers about Lily's plan while making them subtle enough that Frisk wouldn't notice. That's tough to do when you're dealing with an intelligent protagonist, but I think we pulled it off rather well.
What do you all think? Did you pick up on what the 'surprise' was before the reveal? Previous chapters have also included little hints leading up to this point as well. The idea of the staff has been in the works for a while, even before the stick's loss back in Chapter 21. It went through a number of changes, but the basic design is the same.
The idea of going to Temmie village in order to 'get Frisk out of the house' was also planned. What wasn't was the idea of Kidd tagging along with them. It worked though, because we've been wanting to delve deeper into Kidd's backstory as well, and this provided the perfect opportunity to do so, while also pulling the village scene out of 'filler' territory and adding some weight to them.
Speaking of that. It doesn't seem like many fics discuss Monster Kid's flagging trust in Undyne should you save them. They either roll with it, having him shift to idolizing Papyrus (which, let's face it, he does deserve it), or ignore it in favor of leaving him an Undyne fanmonster. It was fun to explore this facet of the character a little more… along with going into his connection with Goner Kid. As for that last part… it'll have to wait until later.
Though she was awkward about it, Undyne was really trying to give a heartfelt apology. Given the kind of character she is, it makes sense that she would regard a weapon so highly. Though the reason for Frisk's attachment to his stick is a bit different, it still works rather well.
In the next chapter, we're probably going to be at least reaching Hotland. It's been a bit since we finished up Waterfall, but everything since the SOULmates got back home has been leading up to this moment. It's probably going to be a bit of a tough journey once they get there, considering Frisk's… condition.
Anyways, hopefully you all enjoyed this chapter. It was a fun one to write and we're always interested in hearing your feedback so please give us a comment/review if you have anything to say!
Also, if you want to talk to us one-to-one, feel free to join the Discord channel for this story: /jfYHvw2