Welp. I meant to get this out sooner...but I didn't. And...it might not be that good.

Wow, I'm terrible.

Like...seriously.

Frisk: Still not too confident, it seems.

So Sorry: I-It's not too bad! Honest!

Me: Possibly. Only time will tell, and time isn't always kind...as most characters already know by experience.


(Accessing Memory: Frisk)

"Alright! Um...what do you think of this one?' So Sorry showed a poorly drawn picture of himself on a piece of paper, as he sat next to Frisk in the Art Club room. "It's pretty good, right? Ehehehehe! Hehehe! Hehe...heh..." He thinks it's terrible, doesn't he? What was I even trying to prove to him?!

"I think it looks nice." Frisk smiled calmly as he gently takes the paper and gets a closer look at it. "It's definitely a good start. You can only get better and better from here on. And it'll be amazing to see how far you'll be able to take it."

So Sorry blinked in astonishment, shocked that someone actually thought his art looked nice. And to think that he believes he'll only get better with time, effort, and determination. His fellow Art Cub club members weren't as supportive as Frisk was being right now. He looked away frm the small child for a bit and twiddled his thumbs sheepishly. He wasn't used to hearing much praise from anyone, especially when it came to his art. He had to admit, it left a really nice feeling in his soul. It's strange how a human can give of his feeling much more than his Art Club Members. Strange.

"So Sorry?" Frisk gently asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. It was awfully hard to tell what the child is thinking, because his expression was always calm and peaceful, if not incredibly curious about everything around him. How are his eyes always closed yet he still makes his way around fine? Must have really good navigation skills or something, Though it would seem that he was calling So Sorry for a couple minutes and he didn't evven hear him. A faint blush graced his snout as he shook his head rapidly.

"S-Sorry! I was just staring off into space thinking about you complimenting me like that, and I guess I accidentallly blocked you out! It's just that you complimenting me like that made me feel a bit giddy and...and..." He blushed a bit brighter as he lowered his head in shame. He was now rambling on, Frisk probably doesn't want to hear that. "Oh...I'm so sorry..."

Frisk smiles at him. 'Hello, So Sorry. I'm Frisk~"

The artist was briefly confused by this until he finished comprehending what Frisk just said. He allowed himself to chuckle light, calming himslef down from his hysteric reaction. "Geez. You tuned my name into a pun. You really know how to catch someone off-guard. You aren't very predictable."

"I've heard that one before. Too bad it wasn't exactly under positive circumstances."

'Oh, it wasn't? That doesn't sound very good. What was that first time about?" He saw the smile on Frisk's face lessen slightly in response to the question. There was a strong implication that whatever that first time was and what it involved wasn't a very good experience. From what he could currently tell, it's a rather bad exerience. He felt a little bad for prying, and turned away a little. "Sorry. It sounds pretty personal and not something you'd like to talk about. So I'm not gonna ask anyore. Please, keep smiling. I like your smile." So Sorry sheepishly requested of him, once again twiddling his thumbs and swishing his tail. He didn;'t know why, his soul demanded that he keep the child happy. He was filled with relief when the child indeed smiled again.

"There's no need for you to feel bad. You were just worried about me. I don't want to fault you for something lilke that." Frisk gently shook his head. "So, i there any other art that you want to show me?'

"Oh yeah! I have art from te other members, too! Lemme show you a couple." So Sorry turned around and reched into his bag, unaware of accidtally hitting frisk in the cheek. He turned around again, thugh he gasped as he saw Frisk rubbing his cheek. "Oh man! That was totally my bad! I swear I didn't mean it! I should have been more careful than that!"

Frisk lightly shook his head, smiling softly as he subtly nibbles on some Hot Cats that Sans gave to him a while ago. "It's no trouble, I'm alright. Stockd up on plenty of magic food before I got here. So anyway, can I see the art? I'm very interested in seeing what the others drew."

"Oh, right! Okay! Let's see here...here's one of Madjick, doing a couple magic tricks during his off-time." So Sorry showed him the first image, showing Madjick flowing his magic orbs around and they spakled with a brilliant light. Frisk was impressed with the amount of detail put into the drawing, his mouth slightly gaping with awe. So Sorry chuckled at how silly he looked, and moved onot the next picture. "And this one is a picture of a group of Froggits trying to outdo each ther in a game of leap-frog. Needless to say everyone got bored after a couple hours, and just went home." Frisk was baffled by the blank faces of the Froggits in a nearly endless loop that is leapfrog, illustrated by multiple Froggits constantly circling around each other in a circle. Silly Froggits. Sometimes they're wise enough to give advice. Other times they can't understand him, and yet they're flustered by flirting. It's rather confusing. So Sorry pulls out another picture, taking a good look at it. "Huh. This one is just a quick doodle of the Annoying Dog barking with the River Person. Do you think he drew it? If he did, he's definitely one talented dog."

"I can imagine that. Sometimes i find myself thinking that there's more to that dog than meets the eye. The same goes for River Person. I'm quite unsure what they could really be..."

So Sorry nodded in agreement. They both gaze out to the exit of the Art Club Room with a bit of hesitation, then back towards each other. "Well...we've been here for quite a while. An hour, maybe? Sorry, I must have really been holding you up..."

"It's not any trouble. I like leisure time like this. Especially when it comes to spending time with a new friend." Frisk nodded, the both of then slowly standing up and gathering up their supplies. "I still have a long way to go...and a lot of work to do. I just have to keep trying...and I have to stay determined. It's the only way I'm gonna be able to..." He socflt shook his head while smiling towards So Sorry. "Anyway, I'm go ns stay determined. You should be determined too, So Sorry. There's nothing wrong with starting from the very bottom when it comes to do I g something you love. It means that the only other way you can go is up. Rise and improve, So Sorry. You'll be one of the best artists in the world, without a doubt!"

So Sorry was absolutely astonished by the amount of faith that Frisk had in him, even though the two of them have just met. It was true, though. Becoming a great artist was his dream, and something he tends to lose hope over. But Frisk...he might have just sparked that hope within him just yet. It was...a rather nice feeling.

"Well, I've still got a ways ahead of me, so I have to go now. Bye!" Frisk quickly embraced So Sorry in a friendly hug. The monster was srprised by the sudden display of affection. Though he recivered enough to wrap his arms around the child and return the hug in earnest. Soon Frisk released him and waved goodbye as he left the room first, bracing himself for the heat of Hotland.

"Oh! Um, yeah! Bye..." So Sorry sheepishly waved at him with a small smile. He soon felt something cold at his feet. He was surprised when he saw it was a bar of Nice Cream. Curious, he picked it up and opened it, gazing at the wrapper:

"Your art is very special, so keep putting your soul into it!"

So Sorry felt his soul warm delightfully at the kind words on the wrapper. That's a major part of their name, but the thought that someone out there had so much faith in him, and from a human no less...he couldn't help but feel very light, and more determined than he's ever been before.

It's a very pleasant feeling to have, and he'll make sure that it's well-deserved.

(Present)

So Sorry...

Frisk repeated the name in his head, though it was still mind-boggling to see him all the way out here. It wasn't that he wasn't happy to see him, it was far from that. So Sorry was not supposed to remember him. Because he was certain that was their one and only meeting-which made him feel a bit guilty, because he was VERY preoccupied- was many resets ago. And yet despite all of those resets, So Sorry still managed to remember that meeting down to the latest detail. How he was capable of that was beyond him, though he couldn't say that he was displeased by this revelation. Just very, very surprised.

So Sorry must have really treasured that meeting close to his heart.

"So Sorry..." Frisk said quietly. Quickly after that, he walked up and eagerly embraced So Sorry in a hug, in which he gracefully returned, with a happy wag of his tail. Frisk found himself snuggled into So Sorry's slightly squishy belly a little bit. It seemed he was still a bit on the stout side, but Frisk didn't mind at all. Toriel and Asgore were a bit alike in that regard, but that just made them extra fun to cuddle when paired with their fluffy fur. Frisk found himself looking up at So Sorry's happy/shy face. "But...I don't understand. How do you remember me...?"

So Sorry smiles sheepishly at Frisk, petting the top of his head affectionately. "There was no way I was going to forget someone like you, Frisk. Resets or no resets. Course it helps that I tend to accidentally stumble into the wrong time and space..." He rubbed his neck sheepishly. "You believed in me as if no one else ever has, which isn't too far from the truth. I wasn't about to let myself forget such a precious meeting, no matter how short it was or how simple it seemed. Just knowing that you took the time to actually sit down and talk to me about my art, despite how lame and terrible it was..."

"I didn't think any of it was terrible. I just thought of it as a starting point. We don't all start being super good at something from the first try."

"I know. You helped me realize that it's not a bad thing. No one was as supportive as you were." With great reluctance, So Sorry pulled away from Frisk and gazed at the fallen bodies of the attackers. "Oh man...they were looking for me after all. Guess they didn't want me running loose..."

That missing piece of imformation has been a cause of slight concern for Chara ever since So Sorry showed up, and these things have attacked them seemingly out of nowhgere. Those false souls powered them with magic, yet they couldn't be sensed in the traditional way. They were only detected by Muffet and Red. That made them extremely dangerous. Not only that, but someone sent these things after So Sorry because he apparently knew something that they didn't want to get out. Strane how someone like So Sorry, whom he perceives as clumsy and shy, could hold information that critical. Though to be fair, the presence of the significantly less hesitant Flowey that could be a critical part of how he wasn't already dead.

Nonetheless, they had their contact. Whatever he knew or whatever he has that was critically connected to the magicians, it would require keeping him safe. So Sorry didn't really seem like a very competent person. But then again, he didn't know the guy very well as much as Frisk did. Maybe there was more to the guy than he apeared, he wouldn't know for sure.

Red blinked. "So Sorry...you smell like shyness and intense amounts of uncertainty..."

His eyes widened as he shook his head. "Oh man, you can smell how nervous I am?! I was sure I bathed thoroughly before I got here! Sorry!"

Asriel blinked in astonishment, reaching out to him. "Uh...it's okay? You didn't-"

"Is this really how I'm going to present myself in front of the Prince, King and Queen?! The latter two aren't even here yet and I might have already messed something up!" So Sorry bowed profusely to Asriel, his eyes tightly closed. "Here I am standing in front of royalty and I was so preoccupied with Frisk that I didn't properly introduce myself! Forgive me, Prince Asriel! It's just so surprising to see that I'm actually talking to someone so important who came back from the de-Gah! I'm rambling! I told myself I wouldn't do that! Sorry about that! I'll slow down! I'll let you catch up so you can...I'm still rambling, aren't I? You didn't understand any of that." So Sorry lowered his ears with a small pout. "Sorry..."

"...Dude. It's cool. Relax." Red shook her head. "Geez. I smell intense diffidencd leaking off of his body. Sheesh..."

"I think he's adorable~" Muffet softly cooed.

Soon the others were no longer able to wait anymore, and they caught up to the younger ones in a matter of minutes. Seeing that all of them were grrazed with a couple scratches and bruises, Toriel was swift to apply a green glow of healing magic; the process was hastened with Frisk assisting with his own healing magic. Alphys and Sans were not ignorant of the situation, seeing that there were two bodies lying on the ground with completely blank souls, while one Chara dealt with didn't have a soul at all. This required a bit more closeup examination. Alphys adjusted her glasses as she carefully gazed at the souls of the downed bodies.

"...What...? Their souls are completely blank..." Alphys muttered in confusion.

She narrowed her eyes as she remembered something of a related case. There was a related case for when Chara temporaily gained void-magic and summoned duplicates of her friends, and their souls were completely blank and transparent, save for a white outline. She recalled a similar situation back in the Underground when Chara gained temporary Void Magic to create copies of her friends to attack them. they all had souls, but it offered them no personality, emotions, or consciousness. Only power. And they glitched out of existence when they were killed, instead of turning to dust. These human bodies are corpses, and these blank souls are making them move and attack. Nothing else. This was bound to be troubling.

"...I'll need to put one in a Dimensional Box. Both Geno Me and Gaster have one each, so one of them can do a deeper examination in my place. I'll check in after a certain amount of time passes." Alphys said, pulling out her phone to place the 'Transparent Soul' in the Dimensional Boxes. "Anyway...this must be the contact that Flowey mentioned to us."

"I'm going to assume that he is. So, what's your name?" Undyne said as she gazed a calculating eye towards the kangeroo-like monster.

"I'm So Sorry."

"That so? How come?"

So Sorry shook his head rapidly. "G-Gah! I did it again! Totally forgot my manners like a doofus! King Asgore! Queen Toriel! Prince Asriel!" He blinked. "Wait a minute, I did Prince Asriel already, didn't I? Darn it, I allowed myself to ramble again!" He bowed multiple times, though his fedora fell off his head on the last bow. "I'm so sorry! My bad! That's completely my fault!"

"Nevermind. I see and hear it now." Undyne shook her head.

"Least we know how he got his name..." Red said with a soft laugh.

"Guy is a total wuss." Chara deadpanned. So Sorry was about to say something, though Chara swiftly covered his mouth. "Take a break on the apologizing, will ya? Pretty sure you need to breathe."

So Sorry nodded softly as Chara released his muzzle, and he allwed himself a couple moments to breathe before he would try speaking again. Though Asgore was quick to start the next subject of conversation before he did. "So Sorry. You are the contact that Flowey has been speaking of. He says you know where the magicians are hiding?"

"O-Oh! Yes! Yes I do, Your Majesty!" So Sorry rapidly bowed.

Asgore lightly patted his head, picking his fedora off of the ground and handing it to him. "There's no need for that, new friend. Simply Asgore will do."

So Sorry was a bit surprised, though he sheepishly nodded. Brushing the dirt of his fedora and setting it back onto his head, he gazed at everyone with a more calm nod. "O-Okay. I do know where the magicians are hiding. The important thing to know is that it's completely cut off from the outside world. Only the magicians have been able to enter and exit the space on their will." He shyly twiddled his thumbs and buckled his knees. "Though I kinda...managed to get in anyway...completely by accident...and they didn't like that I managed to do that...so now they really wanna kill me because it was supposed to be top-secret..."

"The dude discovered a top-secret land on accident. Does that spell 'idiot' with a capital 'I' anyone? Or a serious case of dumb luck?" Flowey rolled his eyes. "Anyway, it's not the matter that he got to the place with be beside him. It's how he got there that's caught their attention, and they seriously want him dusted for it. Besides, none of us can do it."

so that lightning chick was bluffin' about wantin' a challenge because she didn't think we'd have a way to find her? either that or she just doesn't know about this. Sans thought curiously, and also with a hint of concern. They know that they're coming, but they didn't actually expect to be found? If this was the case, So Sorry and Flowey were highly unexpected breaches in their security. "how did you even stumble upon where they were hidin' anyway? is it somewhere nearby?"

"Close. It's not on a different land entirely, but it definitely isn't anywhere near Ebott. Like I said before, I stumbled upon it by accident. But now that I've been there once, I can be there again, this time it'll actually be intentional. Just gimme a second..." So Sorry reached into the pack strapped around his shoulder, narrowing his eyes bit. "I know I have it in here somewhere...where...ahah! Here it is!" So Sorry pulled something out with a bit of excitement. It was...a pencil. Though it wasn't just any pencil. A magic encil with was a sparkling rainbow, constantly flashing multiple colors every few seconds. "This is my Magic pencil! Anything I draw with it can be enhanced with my art magic, and brought into reality!" He lowered a bit while rubbing his neck. "Well, anything within my ability and imagination to create. If I don't have enough magic to maintain it, it won't last very long. And my magic stamina...isn't the best."

"that makes two of us, bud."

"Sorry...'

"nothin' to be ashamed of. just tell us how this is gonna help us out."

"Okay! Stand back!" So Sorry declared as he turned his back on everyone and held out his pencil. He then jabs it forward, surprising everyone when he poked a hole into thin air. He then begins to draw a wide circle as neatly as he possibly could, making sure it was large enough to fit Asgore's size. Then it begins sparkling wih bright colors, until it opens up fully and gives view to a portal. A portal giving view to a hidden land. It seemed recognizable to Asgore and Toriel, and very recgnizable to Chara.

It was recognizable enough for him to clench his fist in anger. There...of course they'd still be acting from there...so this is how it is, then. He was also a bit astonished that So Sorry's pencil could do such a thing from a seemingly simple tool. Perhaps the Angel's Blessing did reach him, and it's given him a wide variety of Art Magic. It was a strange concept, though it meant that anything that So Sorry creates with his magic tools becomes real. His only possible limitations is that he can't use his magic to it's fullest without those tools, and his stamina is poor, just like Sans.

No wonder the magicians wanted him dusted. Despite his personality, his magic has enough versatility to to be a very huge nuisance to them. Such as literally drawing a door to their hiding place.

"CHARA? YOU SEEM TENSE ALL OF A SUDDEN." Papyrus claimed, lightly placing a hand on his shoulder.

Chara briefly turned the the tall skeleton, then roughly shook him off. "I'm...I'm alright."

"ARE YOU SURE?"

"Positive."

Asgore turned towards everyone with a strong nod. "Me and Tori know exactly what this place is. And we're quite surprised that it managed to stay hidden for so long, as well as mostly remain virtually unchanged from the view of this portal. But alas, we have to actually go through the portal so we can confirm our suspicions. We are heading for old territory, while it may seem very new to the rest of you. We don't know if it's truly changed or not, so it's best we be on our guard once we enter."

Undyne folded her arms. "Pre-war territory? And it remained completely unhidden? That does sound like it's gonna get a bit convoluted. We really should be on our guard, as most of us haven't a clue as to what we should expect. Especially if they said they're waiting for us and So Sorry is an accidental surprise spoiler. They wanna kill him for doing such a thing. But with us around, that's definitely not gonna happen. We won't let them hurt him on any magnitude." Undyne nodded."Alright, let's not prolong this! We should just jump right through it!"

So Sorry twiddled his fingers a little. "Uhhh...here's the thing. I haven't done this kind of thing beforee. So I don't actually know exactly where we'll end up in that specific location when we go through. it might be completely random where we land there in that land. We might even end up separated."

"That would actually be rather helpful. Even if we become separated, we'll cover more ground that way. We'll eventually be able to find each other at some point." Shamir nodded.

"See? Shamir agrees with me!" Undyne pounded her fist ito her palm. "Though since we might be separated anyway, it might as well be in some sort of grouping. I'm calling Alphys and Shamir!" She swiftly hoists Alphys over her shoulder and grabbed Shamir by the scruff of his neck.

"E-Eh?!"

"Undyne, wait! Let's think this through first!"

"No time for thinking! Now's the time for acting! NGAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" With her signature cry, Undyne jumps through the drawn portal, vanishing through it in a sparkle of rainbows particles.

"Well, now we know that it works. Kinda. Maybe." Red shrugged. "If she says stay together in groups, we might as well stay together in groups. I guess I'll go with Asriel~" Red took after Undyne's example, grabbing Asriel by the back of his scarf and jumping through the portal. Asriel let out a shocked bleat as they both disappeared in a flash of rainbow.

"Oh dear. That might lead to problems. Nonetheless, I'm confident that those two can take care of each other. Though I'll be more comfortable if we find each other quickly as soon as we land." Toriel said nervously as she took Frisk by the hand and slowly walked through the portal. Asgore nodded softly as he entered right after they did.

So Sorry began breathing a bit heavily, wiping a bit of sweat off his brow. "Can...can we get a move-on, guys? Can't really maintain portals for long..."

Papyrus brushed off his shoulder and huffed triumphantly. "ONWARD INTO A NEW UNKNOWN LAND. COME BROTHER, NEW TERRITORY AWAITS US, AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE MAKE TRUE HASTE!"

"comin'." Sans shrugged as he followed after his taller bother, disappearing through the portal, which was getting slightly unstable, signifying So Sorry losing control of the portal.

Flowey had discarded his pot for the time being, wrapping around Chara's shoulder. "There's not a moment to lose. Let's go, Chara." Chara didn't verbally respond, but he nodded strongly in agreement as he began stepping through the portal. Muffet gingerly held his hand as she walked with him, slightly making him feel better. The three of them passed through the portal, and So Sorryt jumped through it before the portal completely destabilized and closed up behind them. They were on their way to this unknown land, a land that Asgore and Toriel were familiar with. Though they were all unaware that Chara is the most familiar with the area. He didn't think that this setting was still standing and existent. And he also hated the fact that he had to go back.

Though since he hated the magicians even more, it was easy for him to make the decision to return there.

(?)

The female on the throne slowly opens her eyes, and she smiles softly. "Well...it looks like they're here. Guess they managed to make their way here after all, especially Chara. I'm rather interested to see how he reacts to returning to his TRUE old home..."

"Nonsense, M'lady! There's no reason for you to be troubled by that bothersome pest!" One of the magicians declared with an outraged huff. He seemed to be the largest of the bunch. "Allow me to deal with him. I should me more than enough to handle that spawn of damnation!"

"I can feel his power from here...as well as his rage towards us. It's both of these things are intense and immense. I suppose his prior defeat was only successful at making him angry...how amusing~"

"Your idea of humor is...questionable sometimes, M'Lady. Nonetheless, you shouldn't sully your hands with that miniscule stain in history. I shall erase him for you with extreme prejudice!"

"You seem rather confident...very well. Do whatever you want." She nonchantly sends him on his way, and he quietly sinks into the earth, the dirt moving beneath him. She rubbed her chin curiously as she closed her eyes. There were plenty of reasons why Chara hated to come here, and she was the most significant one. Though she was actually excited at the prospect of seeing him again, she was also a bit disappointed that So Sorry managed to escape alive. He would be spoiling a lot of surprises. it was also ludicrous, because he stumbled here completely by accident. He seemed incompentent, but that incompetent nature only made him more unpredictable.

...Oh well. There was no use complaining about it. She turned to the side, where she could see more humans with a soul that granted them magic, but completely void of personality. Those first three were just a test run. Now she'll see how they fare against the finished products. Her magician subjects worked really hard on them, so they're hoping that they are up for the job. Then again, she didn't care much if they were a success or not. All she was interested in, was the chaos that they would bring.

...Maybe she could start by having her subordinates and their respective minons attack her unsuspecting citizens. That'll be a 'test' to see if the monsters truly care about humanity, or if it's just a sham to keep humans from turning on them. Either way, it would give her something entertainment to watch, trials of humans and monsters.

Trials, like one of her subordinates suggested.

"Let's see if the rumors are true. Will the monsters leave the humans to die? Will they try to defend them? Do they REALLY care? And Chara...what's your true, genuine stance when it comes to humans and monsters?"

She smiled sadistically, lightly kicking her feet up while staring at the ceiling.

"I'm very curious to see how they all answer~"


Okay, I've spent enough time for buildup. The next part is when things really, truly get rolling, and I do some actual world-building with this mysterious location.

So Sorry...he's such an adorable, clumsy, apologetic dork. I couldn't help but make him so. Though he still a character of significance, as you saw here. He's eveyone's in and out to sueriously dangerous territory, even though his magic is clumsy. His protection is critical.

One of the magicians has grown impatient, and is immediately going after Chara. Though he may be surprised as to how their encounter might end...

Chara: *eyes glow red wtih quiet rage*