Frisk quickly explains to you exactly what happened with them and Papyrus, clearing up any and all misunderstandings you had gained of the tall skeleton.
You also learn of the properties of the food in the Underground.
When you questioned why Frisk wasn't hurt, because during the child's excited explanation of the fight they mentioned being beat up a little, the kid answers by holding up the bag of cinnabunnies they had bought.
"That's just… really cool," You compliment again, walking to the edge of the fog wall with Frisk at your side. "Food and monsters being made up of so much magic it's just… cool!" The kid laughed at your goofy grin.
Coming out of the fog, you are met with the distant sound of rushing water, and the light dimming just a bit. The new area has a lower ceiling than the snowy forest leading up to Snowdin, but it has more of a… chill feeling. Temperature wise, that is. Wasn't freezing, but wasn't quite warm. You decide the winter coats are now a bit too much.
"Yo!" As you and Frisk walk into a smaller space that has a save star off by a station point with, lookie there, Sans, a yellow, small monster runs up to Frisk. "Dude, you ready?" You look between the two, but decide to ask later as you take Frisk's coat off of them and walk over to where Sans was positioned.
"Work, hmm?" The skeleton straightens a bit when he sees you, nodding with a shrug in your direction.
"Yeah. Is it weird to see a guy have more than one job?"
"Since it's you…" You snort when Sans rolls his eyes. "Here. This place is much warmer than Snowdin. Tell Papyrus thanks for giving them to us." Sans takes the bundles of coats, dropping them somewhere behind the counter.
"Yeah, I will."
"And thank you too." The skeleton looks a bit surprised.
"What? For what?"
"You're the one who told Papyrus after you saw Frisk looking so cold. So, thank you." For a moment, the guy doesn't know what to do. You had sounded so sincere it just… surprised him. He finds himself nodding, and he stumbles over his words.
"Right… Yeah. I… did that." You snort, smiling widely. You're about to turn away, but soft bones wrap around your wrist and stop you. Looking back over you see Sans comically laid over the counter, like you had tried pulling him out but stopped half way.
"Sans?" You asked with a laugh.
"Well, since you caught me lying down on the job," He gestured halfheartedly to his position before wiggling a finger bone to beckon you closer. Without hesitation you leaned down a bit to hear him. "Look out for yourself around them, kid. Frisk can handle themselves fine." You raise a brow in confusion at his serious look. "You're lookin' out for the little one so much you keep forgetting about yourself."
"And how do you know that?" He shrugs at your challenging voice, his bones slipping in their hold.
"Just.. You remind me of someone." He shrugs, pulling himself off the counter so he can sit comfortably back on his stool. The white pinpricks avoid you, and you take it the guy doesn't want you questioning what he said.
"Well, we'll see you and Papyrus later, right? Your brother did promise Frisk and I Spaghetti after all."
"Oh. Right. Do you want his number-?"
"Frisk was already a step ahead of you." You then give the skeleton a mock look. "Also, keep your brother away from my kid. They're cute and all, but I don't find them dating-"
"Woah, woah, dating?" You give a wicked smile, leaning forward.
"Yep. The two of 'em went on a date. Papyrus even gave the kid his number. I might be calling you brother-in-law soon enough." Sans was again speechless, and you were loving it.
A tug at your shirt pulls you away from the gaping Sans. With a smile and wave over your shoulder, you following the impatient Frisk off whenever they were leading you.
Messing with the bag a bones was a little too much fun for you.
"Hey, Frisk," You begin. Hearing about the fight with Papyrus, and after fighting with Toriel, you wanted to know how many more friends of the kids you were supposed to fight. Also, you still needed to find out the exact way you two were supposed to not only get home, but save the monsters. You… didn't even know what you were supposed to be saving them from.
...You really should've talked this over before agreeing to jump into a giant pit.
The kid suddenly bolts, running into a bunch of tall.. Grass? It looked more like seaweed, and the stuff was way above your head. You frown, following them in. "Really, hide and seek?" You snicker, parting blades of the thick plant to try and spot a familiar brunette head. "I don't think it's time for-" An elbow juts into your stomach, cutting off your voice. You're about to snap at Frisk, but an all too familiar voice rings out.
"H…HI, UNDYNE! I'M HERE WITH MY DAILY REPORT… UHHH… REGARDING THOSE HUMANS I CALLED YOU ABOUT EARLIER…-" You hear a muffled voice respond to Papyrus, but because of the loud running water and the way the cavern echoed, you couldn't make it out. "...HUH? DID I FIGHT THEM? Y-YES! OF COURSE I DID! ONE OF THEM, ANYWAY, BUT I FOUGHT THAT ONE VALIANTLY!" Again, the voice says something. "WHAT? CAPTURE THEM? W-W-WELL…NO. I TRIED VERY HARD, UNDYNE,BUT IN THE END… I FAILED."
It was freaky hearing the over confident Papyrus stutter and trip over his words.
"WH-WHAT? YOU'RE GOING TO TAKE ONE OF THE HUMANS SOULS YOURSELF... BUT UNDYNE, YOU DON'T H-HAVE TO DESTROY THEM! YOU SEE… YOU SEE…" His voice fades away. "...I UNDERSTAND. I'LL HELP YOU IN ANY WAY I CAN." Then, you hear the thumping of the skeleton's boots as he leaves. You weren't sure how to process what you just heard.
You take a step to grab Frisk and get the hell out of there, but the clicking of metal stops you. You freeze in place, seeing just through a couple strands of the long seaweed grass a looming figure staring at where you and the kid hid.
You didn't move, or breathe again, until the figure disappeared.
Exiting the grass, your heart is racing a mile a minute. It's already so freaked out, when the yellow monster you had seen briefly before jumps out, it doesn't affect you in the slightest.
"Yo… did you see the way she was staring at you…?" The monster with yellow with spikes on the back of his head, reminds you of a dinosaur. The kid, you assume because of his height and the way he speaks, was jumping excitedly in front of Frisk, who was happily smiling back. "That...was AWESOME! I'm SOOOO jealous! What'd you do to get her attention…? Haha. C'mon! Let's go watch her beat up some bad guys!" The kid sprinted forward and-
He face plants, hard.
"Are you okay?" You ask worriedly, but the little guy had already scrambled back up and run out of site.
You feel queasy now as you two come up too another save star. You decide to tap this one as Frisk begins walking ahead.
A feeling of dread hangs over you, but seeing Frisk so happy with that new monster kid fills you with Kindness.
This was.. Normal for the kid. They knew about this. That should give you some encouragement… but it honestly didn't. While this was new for you, the kid had gone through this way too many times by themself. Of course it wouldn't bother them anymore. It made you feel a bit sad as you walked slowly behind the child, who was working on puzzles with ease, having memorized all of them already.
"Frisk?" The child set the last bridge flower in bridge and took a moment to watch the four in a row bloom before finally looking up to you with a smile. You hesitate. "...Frisk, how is it that you get home in the end?"
The smile dropped.
"...I haven't gotten that far yet."
They….
"But with you i'm sure we will!" They delivered a warm smile and then turned, hoping over the flowers and jogging into the next room.
They just lied to you.
Frisk had never… lied to you before.
"Nn!" They called from the other room, wondering why you weren't following. You, were wondering the same thing. Your legs stuck you to your spot, refusing to move until you fixed the whirlwind in your mind.
Maybe you just…. Read them wrong. Yeah. It wasn't like you were a psychologist. You could've mistaken fear for lying and guilt.
…
No, it was so obvious that just then was their first ever lie to you. You saw the struggle on their features and you immediately saw them frown when they turned away. They felt bad about it, but they still did it.
Why did they have to lie about getting to the end? You assumed that they restarted if they got to the end but didn't save everyone. Was that not the case, or did the kid think you wouldn't understand that? Either way, the fact that the kid lied really freaked you out. You had based opinions before solely on the fact that Frisk would never lie.
But here they were, lying to your face.
Your phone rang.
"Mm?" Frisk padded back into the room, giving you a worried look. You just smiled, sliding the cellphone out and flipping it open, patting the kids head as they moved over and hugged your middle.
"HELLO, THIS IS PAPYRUS!" You pull the phone a bit from your ear. His volume was as loud as if he was on speaker phone. At least the kid could hear the conversation too this way.
"Hey Papyrus." Wait. "How did you get this number?" You were sure Frisk wasn't the one, because you always carried the phone and even you hadn't checked the cell number yet. Another thing you added to your to do list.
"HOW?" He let out a proud laugh. "IT WAS EASY! I JUST DIALED EVERY NUMBER SEQUENTIALLY UNTIL I GOT YOURS!" You snorted. Papyrus was just… too precious.
"SO…." He cleared his non-existent throat. "WHAT ARE YOU AND THE SMALL HUMAN WEARING…?"
"...What?"
"I'M… ASKING FOR A FRIEND. SHE THOUGHT SHE SAW THE SMALL ONE WEARING A FADED RIBBON. IS THAT TRUE? ARE THEY WEARING A FADED RIBBON?" Your eyebrows knitted. Looking down to Frisk, who was still hugging your mind as they listened, met your eyes and pointed to something in their hair. Apparently, at some point they must've tried it in their brown locks because you hadn't noticed it until then.
"Frisk… Is wearing a faded ribbon."
"REALLY? GOT IT! WINK WINK! HAVE A NICE DAY." click.
"Wink wink?" Frisk made a face at Papyrus's verbal winking, which got a laugh from you.
"You agree that Papyrus is a precious bun, right?" Frisk nodded heavily. "Good." You kneeled down, slowly untwisting the faded ribbon from their hair. "Then you know he means the best for us. I'm betting he was trying to warn us." Pocketing the ribbon, you stand again.
"He's...Really sweet like that. Always… believing in me." The pain and sadness that crossed Frisks face sent a chill down your back. You chose not to say anything as you picked up their hand and lead them to the next room.
It was dark, all quiet but the soft lull of the water moving, with large glowing blue flowers the peppered the walkway. They were sparse, and every time Frisk would run up to one, you could hear a voice quietly speak of stars on the ceiling of the cave.
"Are these the echo flowers Sans warned off?" Frisk hesitated, but nodded. Before you could step forward and try one, Frisk was pulling you off.
"These have a story. We should go mess with them in the field."
"There's a whole field?" The smile that lit your face made the kid grin as they nodded.
The water grew louder when they two of you stepped onto a pale blue dock of sorts. What moved under and around you two, sounding like a soft waves of a lake. Cat tails clouded the water, not letting either of you see very far ahead. Even if they weren't there, you were pretty sure you two still wouldn't be able to see much with how dark the cavern had become.
It reminded you of how much you were in the dark about what really happened for the month the kid was in the Underground without you. You had thought you'd stop bringing it up, but you just couldn't help it. It was really starting to get you worried about what they went through.
"Frisk," You say as the two of you step onto a small wooden float. It sails across the span of water that blocked you two from the other side of the dock. "Are we going to talk about it?"
"About what?" They sign innocently, keeping their eyes forward instead of on you.
"Oh, nothing really," You step off of the float when it meets the other side, helping the kid hop over. "Just that for a month you were trapped underground, alone, with strangers, some of them even attacking you." The kid walks forward, trying to tune you out. "Something happened that, you know, made the monsters remember you after a reset…" This kid was a bit too determined to ignore you. "Frisk," You say, but they still won't look.
You, in a last ditch effort, jog up in front of the kid and stop walking. They hit your front and whine in response to your sudden stop.
"We can't keep doing this." You say slowly. "You're going to have to tell me what's going on."
"Mn-"
"No!" You whip around, staring Frisk down. The kid didn't flinch, no, they were too brave for that, too used to growing like you two had. Instead, they held your eyes, trying to stand taller than they really were.
"I can't," They sign.
"Yes. You can. Sign it out or- or write it down. I need something, Frisk!"
Their hands go up again, but you don't stop.
"How come they all remember you and instead of being happy, because they're your friends, you always look so hurt and-and sorry!?"
You shouldn't be yelling.
"How come Sans seems to remember whatever happened in the resets and seems so threatened by it?! Why does he look so scared-"
You need to stop.
"And you lied to me! You have gotten to the end, right? Why would you lie to me about that? Do you not trust me!?"
Stop, _.
"Why are you scared to talk to me? I'm your sister! I've been the one here for you since you were born! You can tell me what happened down here while you were gone. You have to tell me. It's not like-"
STOP.
"Like you killed them!"
The silence that answered let your worries explode. They flowed out like a busted dam and you had to turn your face away to quickly scrub away any of the angry leaked tears.
You had started to… wonder. You'd like to say it was back when Frisk acted weird around Toriel, but it wasn't. Maybe when Sans first acted freaked out by the kid, but it wasn't then either. It wasn't even when Sans warned you to look out for yourself while with the kid. You were so set on protecting them, helicoptering them like they were an infant, that you were blinded. You saw again when they lied so easily to you. You know something had been wrong, you knew Frisk, but...killing? Being so gung-ho on being peaceful, not even being okay with you carrying a weapon for protection- plus, Frisk was a third grader. Murderer never crossed your mind. No sane being would have murderer cross their mind when thinking of a third grader!
The kid was stiff, eyes intently somewhere through your gut (it was where their eyes reached since they were so short). They shook like a leaf and the idea that you made them look like this, so fragile, so scared, you almost cried.
Did you look as mad as mom when after a few drinks she'd start yelling?
You reached for the kid, to bundle them in your arms and try to make everything okay like you'd always do-
But they flinched away.
"Frisk-" You reach again, but this time they turn and sprint. "FRISK!" You take a step to follow, but a whoosh of air stops you.
Your heart stops as a sudden bright blue spear sinks into the wood in front of you, taking a couple stray hairs with it.
" u"
You're running before the guttural voice could say anything more, before anymore spears could be launched in your direction by the large suit of armor, and before you could lose sight of Frisk's disappearing figure.
Daunting music, like the instruments in it were yelling at you to run faster for every note they played, sung in the background. You didn't know where it was coming from, but it was loud and in your ears.
Glowing spears, that were taller than you by a good foot and thicker than your forearm, flew from where the daunting suit of armor ran on a higher level in the cavern, following your every step. Some nicked you, and you felt your soul lurch from in your chest. You shove your hand on it though, hoping to physically keep it in as you skidded around a spear that had stuck itself in your path.
Then, as you jumped over a wood plank that had come undone in your path, a certain spear landed in such away that you tripped over it, you tumbled and rolled right into another field of seaweed like grass. Immediately, you froze.
The music faded, but the clanking of the footsteps only grew louder.
For every step, your heart hiccuped.
For every bump of metal, something pounded in your throat.
You tried to cover you mouth, to stop your heavy breathing, but stifling it was almost impossible.
The footsteps stopped just at your side and for that second you felt your heart stop.
Yet, instead of grabbing you, they turn and walk off after a brief pause. Immediately, as soon as you couldn't hear the metal moving, you're scrambling out on the other side of the grass, heaving in large amounts of air, trying to calm your thumping heart.
What was that!? Who was- why were- Doesn't matter. You need to find Frisk. If that person was going to be looking for a human, especially one they thought they already had seen, you couldn't risk letting the kid off by themselves.
You sucked in as much air has you could get before weakly pulling yourself to your feet and moving into the next room.
"Sans!" You blurt the skeletons name as soon as you see him, hurrying up to him and his telescope. He looks ready to say something funny, the telescope probably in on the joke, but when he sees your face he pauses.
"You're lookin' a bit pale there bud." You nodded, finally feeling some of the earlier fear wash off before Sans's goofy smile.
"As pale as you," You push out. Sans nods. He got the joke, probably thought it was funny too, but worry seeped into his bones.
"You okay?" He looks to your side and the air around him changes. "Where's the kid?"
"They didn't do anything!" You snap too harshly and immediately you deflate. "Sorry. I… They," You pause, trying to catch your thoughts. "We fought, verbally," You added, trying to ease the ansty Sans. "And they ran off. Then I was attacked and- And I lost them and now i don't know where they are, and some crazy armor guy is after humans and Frisk is by themself and-and-" The skeleton holds up his hand when you look about ready to hyperventilate. There's a shooshing sound that escapes his grin and your shoulders fall again, somehow soothed by the noise.
"Hey, hey, hey, it's okay. Look, the kid must've gone by while i was at Grillby's. If that's the case, there's only one road outta here, and it's that way." He pointed his finger bone, they were called phalanges you think you remember now, down a path you saw glow abnormally. "With those short legs of theirs, they couldn't have gotten far." You nod, setting a hand on your heart to try and make it calm again.
It was going to be okay. Frisk, like Sans said, couldn't have gotten far. You weren't going to lose them again, it was going to be okay.
It was going to be okay.
"_?" You jump a bit, looking down to Sans, who had gone onto his tippy-bones to peer at your face with knitted brows. "You going to be okay goin' off alone? I guess I can always lead you out of Waterfall, or at least until you see the kid again..." The idea this lazybones was offering to walk with you made you smile, but you shook your head.
"You have important work, right?" You gesture to the telescope with a smirk. "Plus I... They're my sibling and I was the one who scared them off, I have to be the one there for them." Sans nods and shrugs, finding your words familiar.
"Be safe, and make sure you find the kid." He then pauses. "'Cause Paps would be pretty sad, y'know." He looks away from you and you can't help but snort.
"Right. Just Paps, huh?" The skeleton keeps his eyes away. "Well... thanks, Sans." You lean down to the small guy and give him a brief, but strong, hug. You couldn't really think of a way to convey how much his simple presence meant to you. In just a couple words he had calmed you down and quenched your fears like it was nothing, without even realizing what he had done himself.
When you let go you pat his skull and then swivel on your heel heading towards the way he pointed.
Immediately you are met with neon blue waters and glowing echo flowers scattered around. This probably wasn't the field Frisk mentioned earlier, but it was pretty enough that you kept catching yourself slowing down to take it in.
Your phone rang just when you sped up your walking again.
"Hello?" You hoped that it would be Frisk using some monsters phone.
"HELLO!" You swallow a sigh. "THIS IS PAPYRUS." You didn't get much of a chance to respond. Paps talked a mile a minute over the phone. "REMEMBER WHEN I ASKED ABOUT THE CLOTHES OF THE SMALL HUMAN? WELL, THE FRIEND WHO WANTED TO KNOW… HER OPINION OF YOU BOTH IS VERY… MURDERY. WELL, WORRY NOT DEAR HUMAN! PAPYRUS WOULD NEVER BETRAY YOU OR FRISK! I AM NOT A CRUEL PERSON. I STRIVE TO BE COMFORTING AND PLEASANT. PAPYRUS! HE SMELLS LIKE THE MOON."
Wha- The moon?
"SO, BECAUSE OF MY INHERENT GOODNESS… I TOLD HER FRISK WAS NOT WEARING A FADED RIBBON! EVEN THOUGH YOU TOLD ME THEY WERE. INSTEAD, I MADE SOMETHING UP! I TOLD HER THEY WERE WEARING… A VERY DARK BLUE AND PURPLE ONESIE!" You froze. "IT PAINED ME TO TELL SUCH A BOLDFACED LIE. I KNOW THEY WOULD NEVER EVER WEAR A ONESIE COLORED THAT WAY, BUT THEIR SAFETY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN FASHION. DANG! I JUST WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH EVERYONE…"
"Wait Papy-!" click.
Your hand is shaking so much you almost drop the phone. Papyrus he- how did he not- that idi-! Your hand runs aggressively through your hair, pulling at it harshly, and cutting your mean train of thought off. In the dark of Waterfall, the light blue and magenta striped onesie would be dark blue and purple! He practically told this woman even more of a description than just a faded ribbon!
You shot forward in a run, trying to catch up to wherever Frisk had ventured. You had to find them, soon. If you didn't and something happened...If something happened…
You brain went blank as you skidded around a corner, almost right off the edge and into the duly lit water. It was no longer glowing at this point, but calm and blue grey. For a moment, you swore you saw something yellow peek up out of the water, but you were already passing through the opposite doorway to really register it.
What finally got your attention and made you pause was a lone stature under a spotlight. It must've been a crack that let in light from the surface, because it also let in drops of water. It could've been rain, but you weren't sure. Whatever it was, it made you a bit sad seeing the wet stature look so gloomy in it's forever hunched over form. Another thing that caught your attention was that the base of it was dry, like it was protecting something….
In curiousity, you walked off from the statue and over to a bin of umbrella's. Taking a dusty green one, you move back and prop it up on the art, shielding it from the rain.
Immediately the hall is filled with soft music, emitting from a music box you see in the arms of the hunched form. You smile, staying there to listen to the soft melody before continuing on.
Grabbing your own dusty green umbrella upon noticing that the later part of the hall has water dripping constantly, like rain, with cracks even large enough to come down like water falls.
Walking through was like walking through the streets at night while it rained back home. The only difference was the lack of light from street lamps and the moon, along with the nosiness of an entire city, being replaced with the soft music of a drying statue and the glow of stones in the ceiling.
At the end, you're met with a tallish ledge. Of course, it was actually pretty short compared to you, but you weren't sure you could get over with the umbrella in hand. Closing and placing it into another convenient bin, you heave yourself up and onto the ledge. Could Frisk have gotten over this by themselves..? Maybe you were going the wrong way…
But there wasn't another way, was there. Not to the extent of your knowledge at least. Plus, Sans said there was only one way.
You trudge forward.
This time you're met with another floor of dusty blue wood. With every step you take it creaks underneath you, making you feel like it wasn't completely solid.
It's, terrifyingly, quiet as you make your way across, trying to find the doorway to the next room.
The longer you walk, the more you swear you hear the beginning of that song that had pounded in your ear when you ran from those spears. The louder the tune grows, the more scared you become. Soon, you're running in the direction of the song.
When you skid to the halt, the music has stopped. Luckily, or sadly, you don't need to hear it to find where to go, because you can now see where it spawned from.
The large beast in armor is towering in front of Frisk, who's shaking in their boots at a dead end. As the suit takes a threatening step closer, you're running again.
You've run too much today.
You dive for the kid just as you hear the all too familiar sound of spears crashing through wood. The kid looks stunned, but doesn't hesitate to grab at you when you wrap your arms tightly around them.
The reunion is short lived because you feel your heart drop to your gut as the sensation of falling overcomes you.
Except it's not just a feeling, because you really are falling into darkness with Frisk curled in your arms, you holding onto them and facing your back down so you can take the brunt force of the drop.
You and Frisk… really shouldn't fight.