Chapter 2: Brothers

It has been two years since Asriel Dreemurr got his true body back. It has been three years since the monsters were freed from the Underground, and the town next to the mountain would be inviting for most people. Ebott is a modest town filled with small shops and aesthetically pleasing neighborhoods, with Mount Ebott towering over the rest of the landscape. One might say that it's the friendliest place on earth, but that title is already taken. Despite somewhat vicious turmoil across the first year, the monsters have settled into society. Both branches of person, monster and human, live in harmony, and things have been improving within this new era of society, especially on the west side of the country where most of the monsters still live. However, life isn't perfect, and as long as that remains true, there is still work to be done.

The town hall sits at the center of the town, with large pillars and a strong-looking front. A large clock completes the face of the building and is positioned in the "three o'clock" placement at the moment. The tower's bells in the town hall are ringing but soon die out. The sun shines brightly over the clock face, and anyone who observes such a clock would be filled with DETERMINATION, even if it's just an ordinary clock.

Within a small office at the top of the building sits a young lad aged 12 and 11 months. He is sporting a blue and purple striped shirt with a black bow tie around his neck. On his desk sits a bronze nametag that spells out "Ambassador Frisk Pax Dreemurr." While chatting over the phone, pleasant tones pass through the line.

"Sounds good, Mrs. Rabbit," Frisk says. "And yes, I'll be attending the dinner a week from now…yes, all of the officials from Ebott should be there…you should come. I think you'd enjoy it…alright, wonderful. Thank you; take care."

The lad hangs up the phone and softly smiles. His face is usually seated in a neutral position, but he was wearing a warm complexion today. He stares at the city through the large open window, getting up from the chair. The fans in his office blow on his hair and cause his chocolate brown locks to sway gently. He chuckles, with his chestnut hair glowing.

(I'm honestly pretty lucky with how things have turned out, especially with how touch and go it was at first,) Frisk thinks to himself. (Still, though… today's beaten me up a bit. Sometimes I wonder.)

A knock can be heard at the door, and the nearly teenaged kid spins around to see a slim, small human female secretary, only barely taller than him, smiling at him while holding a clipboard.

"Ambassador Dreemurr? Do you have any paperwork for me to finish?"

Frisk shakes his head and gently walks towards the secretary, smiling gently at her. "No need to worry, Miss Smith. I just finished it. That's the perks of summer vacay: you don't have school work bogging you down."

Miss Smith nods politely and sadly smiles. "I hope you're not burning yourself out, Mr. Dreemurr. You are still just a kid, you know."

Frisk chuckles and holds Miss Smith's clipboard gently. "Eh, I have my days. But, I'm staying DETERMINED. There shouldn't be anything to worry about."

Frisk politely leaves the room and heads down the stairs with his hands in his pockets. "I wonder how Azzy is doing." Frisk stretches his limbs and yawns deeply. "Ah, man. I've had a long week and could use a break. Maybe he and I could hang out and play some Super Smashing Fighters. Heh, that'd be fun."

Frisk reaches the bottom of the stairs and begins to walk through the lobby on the first floor. He waves to the few monsters and humans passing by as he walks through the lobby. They wave back, and smiles cover all of their faces. As Frisk waltzes out the door, he holds up his right thumb, and a taxi pulls up immediately. He hops in the back and looks up at the driver, a monster with a bit of a hyena persona to him.

"Ambassador," the driver quips. "Glad to be of service today! Where are we headed?"

Frisk nods and smiles at the driver politely. "Home, of course!"

The taxi driver nods quickly and steps on it. Frisk is at his home within a few minutes, despite the town being quite large due to the rapid expansion. Even with this fact, however, Ebott is still not something that you would exactly call a "metropolis." But, more than one would say that at least two schoolhouses would be necessary by now.

"You don't have to give me a tip or a fee," the driver says. "For the ambassador, it's always free of charge."

Frisk smiles and pats the taxi driver on the shoulder. "Thanks, Heida. You're doing a great job. Keep at it."

As Frisk gets out of the car and faces his home, the taxi driver's cheeks blush, and he beams. "He remembered my name! Woohoo!"

The taxi driver drives away with excitement etched onto his face, and Frisk moves towards the front door. He gently opens it and slowly walks into the house, taking off his bow tie and throwing it into the open closet. Toriel, his mother, wears a royal purple apron and periwinkle glasses as she cooks in the kitchen. She turns towards Frisk and looks down at him with her soft, slightly bright ruby-colored eyes. She walks up to Frisk and leans down, gently hugging him. "Frisk, my child. Welcome home! How did your ambassador duties go today?"

Frisk hugs his mother back and speaks softly. "Good. I'm tired, though, heh."

Toriel releases Frisk and pats him on the head. "I understand, my child. It is inspiring how you are mature enough to take on such a task at a young age."

Frisk nods and walks over to the living room, in which the fireplace is running despite the summer weather. After staring at the fireplace, he asks, "Hey, mom. Where's Azzy? Is he home?"

Toriel shakes her head. "I'm afraid not, my child. Your brother is spending time with Papyrus and Sans right now."

Frisk bobs his head gently. "Oh…ok. That's alright. I'll say 'hi' to him when he gets home." His face then beams brightly, and his neutral mouth turns slightly upward into a grin. "And then play Super Smashing Fighters with him for the rest of the day."

Toriel smiles gently and holds her hands together. "Of course, you will. You two have been practically inseparable since he received his real body again."

Frisk chuckles and collapses on the floor, resting his tired head on his arms. "Yeah, I know, mom. And, I wouldn't have it any other way."

Frisk then stares at the fireplace. His eyes flutter, droop, then shut, and he drifts into a sound sleep.

…

The bright August sun burns in the atmosphere, and two brothers hang up decorations in a home. Across town from the Dreemurr household sits a somewhat messy home but still standing. Within the four walls, streamers and confetti lay around the entire house, with a sign that includes the name of their favorite ambassador. He is the one to not only free this pair of brothers but also happens to have his 13th birthday right around the corner. As the brothers continue to prepare for this special occasion, an odd conversation ensues.

"SANS! WE NEED TO CAPTURE THE HUMAN!"

The taller brother, named Papyrus, is a skinny skeleton sporting a goofy smile and a red cape. He is popular and charismatic, yet also known for being arguably a little dim-witted and somewhat boisterous.

"And why's that, Papy?"

The second skeleton is named Sans, who is older despite being much shorter and stockier. He tends to be as cool as ice, at least most of the time. He's also the far more intelligent brother, which their peers joke about occasionally.

"BECAUSE I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE PREPARED SPAGHETTI FOR THE HUMAN!"

Sans chuckles and sits at the counter, leaning his thick skull onto his hand. "Neat. So, explain to me how that will stop the human?"

Sans smirks as Papyrus stares at Sans for a few moments. "I WAS JUST JOKING, SANS! WE ARE OUT OF THE UNDERGROUND, REMEMBER?"

Sans' smirk widens. "Oh yeah, right."

Sans drops the act of picking on his brother and allows Papyrus to continue speaking. "ANYWAY, THE HUMAN IS HAVING THEIR BIRTHDAY, AND ASGORE AND BEARDLESS ASGORE ARE PREPARING FOR THE HUMAN A HUMAN-STYLE PARTY!"

Sans nods gently. "Oh yeah? Is everyone in town going to be here?"

Papyrus' smile widens, and he beats his chest with pride. "YES, SANS! A LITTLE FLOWER HELPED ME WITH THE INVITATIONS!"

Sans' smirk gets even more expansive, and he chuckles again. This is the kind of setup he was looking for. "Oh yeah, Papyrus...about that flower…"

Before Sans can finish speaking, a goat kid wanders into the house's kitchen. It's Asriel, the Prince of the Underground. "Frisk and I turned him into a goat-flower hybrid!" Sans winks and continues smirking. "This guy lives with Frisk now since it made sense. Just one of those crazy pranks gone wrong, you could say."

Papyrus stares at Asriel, who's still in costume, while Sans takes a moment to think. (I'm glad the kid is here. He's having a good life on the surface. I hope nothing tragic happens to him again. If he loses his real body again or dies again…).

A bright bleat comes from the flower costume's head. "Howdy!" Asriel takes off the head of the costume and reveals his face. Since turning 13 in the previous winter, his horns have begun to grow semi-long in length on his head, and now they're slightly longer than his mother's horns. He sports a thin frame and eyes that shine like turquoise jewels. Sans smirks and turns toward Asriel. "Hey, what happened to your head?"

Asriel chuckles. "Well, I had to take it off to get a break from wearing the heaviest part! You know… it was hard to PLANT my face into this costume!"

Papyrus' skull steams as Asriel and Sans laugh at the pun. "THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS ANNOYED," Papyrus says.

Sans speaks through laughter. "Ooo, good one. I bet Frisk will laugh when he realizes that you're POLLEN his leg with that costume!"

Asriel lowers his head and nods, quietly thinking to himself. (Well, I'd be lying if I thought that this costume wouldn't bring back any bad memories of my alternate body and all of what I did in the Underground. But, this is for Frisk. For him, I'll suck it up).

"THE GREAT PAPYRUS CONTINUES TO BE ANNOYED," he yells as Sans and Asriel continue laughing.

Asriel's next to speak. "Even in this costume, I was still able to ride my bike and PEDAL down here!"

Papyrus stomps his foot and begins to run around in circles. "THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS FUMING! WHEN ARE THE PUNS GOING TO END?!"

Asriel and Sans catch their breath and give Papyrus a welcomed reprieve, and it's back to business for all three of them. "Oh, Papyrus?"

"YES, ASGORE JR?!"

"I wanted to update you about the invitations," Asriel continues.

"YES, WHAT ABOUT THEM," Papyrus asks.

"Well, I delivered them all!"

Papyrus jumps up and down with joy. "EXCELLENT!" He places his right fist on his chest and gazes toward the ceiling. "I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM EXTREMELY PLEASED WITH YOUR COURIER SERVICE! EVERY MONSTER WILL BE ATTENDING THE HUMAN'S PARTY WHEN THEY SEE IN THEIR MAIL THIS PURPLE AND BLUE ENVELOPE!"

Papyrus widens his smile for Asriel. A sense of dread comes over Asriel's face when he realizes the significant error. There was still one invitation left to send. He slowly speaks, with disappointment in his voice. "Wait, who's invitation is that?"

Papyrus replies, "WHICH INVITATION?"

Asriel points towards Papyrus' left hand. "The one in your hand!"

Sans looks up slowly at Papyrus and snickers, with his eyes slowly closing. "Classic Papy…"

After muttering to himself, Sans drifts off to sleep, with his eyes shutting completely. Papyrus sniffs loudly, then bellows out his voice. "I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE NO MORE INVITATIONS IN HIS HANDS!" Papyrus then slowly looks at his right hand and sees the unsent invite. "NYEEEEH! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE FAILED!"

Sans, hearing Papyrus' great jubilant voice, wakes up and slowly pushes his head up from his resting position. "Brother, your voice awakened me from my snooze. What's up," Sans says to Papyrus.

"THIS INVITATION! I FORGOT TO GIVE IT TO ASGORE JR! THIS ONE MUST BE GIVEN TO JERRY!"

Asriel nods. "He should be our only guest left on the list!"

Sans' right eye socket increases as if he's raising an eyebrow. "An invite for Jerry? Dude, nobody likes that guy!"

Papyrus shakes his head. "BUT IS MY DUTY FOR EVERY MONSTER TO…"

Before Papyrus can continue, Sans snatches the invite and obliterates it with his trademark Gaster Blaster several times. What was once a blue and purple-colored party invite envelope has now been reduced to a little pile of ash.

"Done, now everyone's invited." Sans then drifts back to sleep after putting away his favorite weapon.

Asriel tightens the head of his costume in his right arm. The pedals of the outfit droop, and he rubs his toe against the kitchen tiles. "Well… I get that Jerry isn't the most popular monster around... but just think: what if he's lonely? Shouldn't we give him a chance? It feels wrong to leave out one monster when everyone else in town is coming for Frisk's big one-three."

Papyrus jerks his skull upward. He then leans towards Asriel's ear and begins to yell, as he usually does. "THEN I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL MAKE ANOTHER INVITE IMMEDIATELY!"

Asriel tries to rub his ear in response but gets over it quickly. "In that case, maybe you can hop onto my GOATMOBILE!" Papyrus stares at Asriel with his eye sockets glazing over. Asriel shakes his head and chuckles. "Oh, sorry! That's what I call my bike. You'll be able to get the invitation to Jerry in no time!"

Papyrus' eye sockets glitter, and he runs out the door. "NYEHHHH! OFF I GO; TO COMPLETE MY MISSION!"

After Papyrus runs through the door and bikes as fast as he can down the street, Asriel closes the front door behind Papyrus and wipes his forehead. He sets the head of the costume on the chair nearby and zips off the fabric to his outfit. He reveals a yellow and green striped shirt, which carries a little bit of wear but lacks large holes. A wooden cross necklace also dangles around Asriel's neck, reaching down to the upper part of his chest. To finish his clothing attire, he's wearing a pair of semi-bright blue jeans. After opening and closing his shirt rapidly to improve air circulation, he takes a seat at the counter, and Sans wakes up again.

"Hey, Azzy, I have a question for you," Sans asks.

Asriel leans in. "Yeah, what is it?"

Sans sits up slightly and places his hands into his pockets. "Has Frisk been alright? Lately, the kiddo's seemed…off. Being an ambassador might be getting to 'em after these past few years, huh?"

Asriel clutches onto his chest, remembering the half-soul placed into his body. He thinks to himself, (maybe it's related). Speaking up again, the goat kid answers, "I think I've noticed? He's been falling asleep in front of the fireplace lately and on the floor, too. Frisk's never done that before." Asriel taps his chin. "This past week or more has been kinda weird for him."

Sans scratches his chin bone and continues. "Yeah, working can be tough, being the ambassador and all. That's why I never work: too much of a hassle." Sans winks at Asriel and continues. "But really, Asriel, take care of Frisk, ok?"

"I will!"

Asriel chuckles at Sans' pun but then facepalms himself quickly and realizes a mistake he made. "Aw no, I'm stuck here. Somebody call my mama!"

Asriel rapidly grabs the flower costume, harshly throwing it over his arm, and Sans stares at him with his head slightly tilted. "Why's that?"

Asriel explains, "I wanna go home and check on Frisk, but I don't have my GOATMOBILE…and my house is on the other side of town! It will take at least 20 walk cycles and 10 random encounters if we walk!" Asriel gives a quick laugh, then keeps giving his explanation. "I'm kidding with that last part, but you get the picture."

Sans' eyes light up slightly. "Here, lemme take you home through a shortcut!"

Before Asriel can object, Sans's figure flashes quickly. With a blink of an eye, he swiftly and firmly grabs onto Asriel's wrist, and before Asriel can blink again, they teleport to the Dreemurr household. It's the same as it was 2 years ago. Same window panes, same siding, same coat of paint. "Alright, here ya go; there were no encounters at all. That wasn't so bad, huh?"

Sans winks as Toriel, Asriel's mother comes to the door. "Oh, welcome home, my child!" Toriel warmly envelopes Asriel in a motherly embrace and brings him into the kitchen of the Dreemurr household. "Come inside; taste this special pie I made for the party!"

As Asriel walks into the house, he feels some fabric hitting him gently from the back. He rubs his head and turns around. Sans winks at him, and Asriel looks at the ground. It's his flower costume. "Hey, you almost forgot this, kid. Later."

With another wink, Sans teleports away. Asriel then smiles, shrugs, and places the fabric of the flower costume at the bottom of the coat closet while sitting the flower head portion of the costume on top. As Asriel walks into his mother's kitchen, his goat snout sniffs profusely, and his pupils dilate slightly.

"Let me guess... butterscotch cinnamon pie...again!" As he approaches the pie Toriel sets onto the table, he stares into the living room. It's Frisk, who's sitting in front of the fireplace, with a fire slowly going within it. Asriel raises an eyebrow and thinks, "wait, it's the middle of summer. Why is Frisk even sitting in front of a fire? And why is the fireplace even on in the first place? Standing in the sun should be enough!" Asriel glances closer and notices that Frisk's eyes are shut tight. "Oh, he's sleeping."

Toriel boldly places a slice of butterscotch cinnamon pie in front of Asriel. Toriel replies, "Don't be silly, my child! It's not butterscotch cinnamon pie… it's a cinnamon BUTTERSCOTCH pie!"

Asriel shakes his head and groans while muttering, "mom, why are you so particular with the label?" After finishing his thoughts, he digs into the slice. He likes the taste of the pie at first but soon comes to a rude awakening. Asriel's face contorts and turns a slight shade of green. Asriel spits out the morsel of pie in his mouth, and it lands on the floor. There are pieces of snail within the wad of food on the floor, along with the cinnamon and butterscotch.

"Ugh! C'mon, mom," Asriel complains. "Frisk doesn't like snails! And neither do I. Please don't let your obsession with snails ruin the pie, ok? Anywho, I'm gonna chat with Frisk now."

Toriel scratches her head. She sighs, picks up the pie, and places it on the back counter with a disgruntled slam. (Doesn't he know that it's rude to spit out pieces of food? I taught him better manners than that). She nods slightly. (Well, to be fair to my child, snails are an acquired taste).

Frisk wakes up when he hears the noise and stares up at Asriel, who sits next to him. Asriel begins to sweat due to the running fireplace. He wipes his furry forehead once and smiles, glancing over at Frisk. "Howdy, Frisk. You seem tired. Are you doing ok, bud?"

Frisk sighs and shrugs. "Eh, I just feel tired right now. My ambassador takes are going alright, and humans are more accepting now than 3 years ago, but...I feel kinda old today, even though I'm a kid." Asriel lowers his head, and Frisk rubs the back of his head slightly. "Don't worry; I'll be alright. I'm glad things have changed for the better; I just hope they stay that way." He shrugs. "Sometimes I get weird, bad feelings like this."

Frisk sadly laughs, and Asriel rubs his fingers together. "Are you still filled with DETERMINATION?"

Asriel smiles more widely at Frisk while the ambassador leans his head to the left side of his body, resting his cheekbone on his shoulder. His eyes gloss over as he stares forward at the fire. "Maybe, I think so. Sometimes it's hard. Heck, despite you and Undyne being monsters, it wouldn't surprise me if you had more DETERMINATION than me right now."

Asriel's mouth trembles slightly. Frisk snickers and forces a smile onto his face. "There are a few that still look at me funny despite monster-human relations sky-rocketing in the past year. It seems like many people respect me now! That's good. But, it took forever to get some respect as ambassador." Frisk bows his head and continues to think deeply. "Am I actually DETERMINED?" He thinks for another moment, then nods quickly. "Yes, of course, I am DETERMINED! Sorry to make you worry; it's just that I've felt kinda weird lately. I just hope nothing bad happens."

Asriel gently pats Frisk on the shoulder, then whispers, "I think I have an idea."

"Oh yeah? What is it, Azzy?" Frisk asks.

Saliva slides down the back of Asriel's throat, and he coughs twice. "Sorry for asking this, but is there any way I could give my soul or part of it back to you?" Frisk blinks twice and stares at the fire, with his eyes shaking slightly. Asriel continues. "It should work if you need to lift your spirits with being ambassador and all, right?"

Frisk abruptly turns his head towards Asriel, eyes emblazoned with an inferno. He straightens his posture. Asriel also straightens his posture. He removes his hand from Frisk's shoulder and scootches back a few inches across the floor. "What are you saying, Asriel?"

Asriel holds up his hands and waves them while his face twisting slightly. "Oh, I'm sorry, Frisk. Let me explain. You've done a lot for us monsters. It's the least we, or I, could do."

Frisk shakes his head and points at his brother. "Are you crazy? That's a reckless thing to say."

Asriel snorts and raises an eyebrow, his face hardening. "Hold it, Frisk. I'm trying to help, and you're not listening."

Frisk lowers his chin and bites his lip. "That's suicide."

Asriel's face hardens further, and his aura shifts red. "Seriously? Why are you talking down to me like that when I'm trying to help you?"

"If you were to do that, you'd lose your real body and turn back into Flowey. Whether you have a little dust from your previous body or all the dust, the soul is what keeps you in one piece." Frisk lowers his finger and trembles slightly. "Do you really want to go back to your Flowey form?"

Asriel growls. "All I want to do is help you. I care about you!"

Frisk looks away, glancing back at the fireplace. "If you want to take care of me, don't do it rashly." He clicks his tongue. "If you were to go through with it, it would be like throwing away your second chance."

Asriel's tongue sputters, and his pupils sharpen, daggers shooting into the floor. "Who said I was throwing away my second chance, Frisk?! Please listen to me! It's like you're not even hearing me!" He stops suddenly. Then, he chuckles unsettlingly to himself. "Losing my soul again…Flowey…'kill or be killed,' heh… that mantra is the spice of my life. It's such a great mantra, isn't it?!"

Frisk pauses and slinks slightly back towards the fireplace. He bows his head and sighs slightly. "Azzy, you need to listen to yourself right now. You really don't feel that way, do you?"

Asriel holds his hand over his mouth, and a few tears escape from his eyes. His brow relaxes and shifts into a dark, quiet position. "Frisk…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be mad at you or go crazy on you. I screwed up again." Asriel sighs and clenches his fists together. "Guess there's still a little Flowey left in me after all."

Frisk charges up on the floor over to Asriel and hugs him tightly. He can feel his ribs crushing together as Frisk comforts him. "Don't beat yourself up, Azzy. You already got your real body back. We are NOT going to fall apart...not again." Frisk continues to feel a strong sense of emotion. "Look, I appreciate the offer. I really do. But, you need to keep your true body. Even if you went back to being the Flowey that was kind to me during my returning visit, that's not you anymore. You're here, in your real flesh. And, I'll be ok, ok? I will survive."

Asriel's smile returns, and his head bows. "Thank you for forgiving me, Frisk. It's just been on my mind a lot lately."

Frisk smiles slightly and nods slightly, and Asriel recoils from his humble position. He forces a smile onto his face and points towards the kitchen. "Well, do you wanna try mom's pie now? I find that cheers me up when I'm not feeling well."

Frisk lets out a small chuckle. "As long as it doesn't have snails!"

Asriel laughs and rubs his neck, with his cheeks blushing slightly. "Well, maybe you shouldn't look in the kitchen then!"

Frisk nods. He stands up, and then Asriel stands up. "I'll wait until another pie is ready, I guess. Oh, and Asriel, one more thing." Asriel chuckles and thinks of a pun for Frisk.

"Yes, bud?"

Frisk's eyes look dark and sharp. Marching up to Asriel, he stares at his brother's face and pokes a finger right into Asriel's upper chest, close to goat kid's collarbone. "Keep your soul, Asriel. If you lose it again, I'll never forgive you. Understood?"

Asriel nods slightly, and Frisk smiles slightly. "I promise. I don't want to lose you either, Frisk."

Asriel lowers his hands, placing them on his knees. "Frisk, when you used that SAVE, you gave me back what I needed for so long, something that I have been yearning for since I became that flower. I feel much happier and less prone to shoot bullets…I mean, friendliness pellets?" Asriel's smile fades, and Frisk leans on his knees now. "That wasn't enough for you, though, was it? You teamed up with Dr. Alphys to get my original body back. And for that, I am forever indebted to you. Thank you." He smiles warmly. "I could say thank you all day long if I could!" Asriel then rubs his elbow. "And, I think I know what you mean now by how my plan would mean being reckless with my soul. I'm sorry. I'll try to take care of myself."

Frisk gently pats Asriel on the shoulder while his face emits golden hues. "When I learned that you could withstand elements of the human soul, I had to do it. Makes sense since you have escaped death through your Flowey form way back. And there's the whole hyperdeath thing, too. But either way, everyone has a second chance. You gripped onto it, and now you're reunited with your family. With us. Please remember to treasure it, ok?" Asriel nods.

"Yes, Frisk, I will…and I care about you. You're my best bud," Asriel says.

Frisk hugs Asriel once more. "Love ya, bro."

Asriel beams. "Yeah, same to you, Frisk."

As they slowly make their way toward the kitchen, Asriel's eyes flash, and he asks a serious question. "Wait… what would the monsters do if you happened to, um… no longer be with us?"

Asriel gently rubs the back of his neck, and Frisk calmly speaks. "I plan on being the ambassador for a long time. But if anything WERE to happen to me, would you be my successor if that scenario happens? If it happens?"

Asriel blankly stares at Frisk at first but suddenly falls on one knee to the ground with emotion.

"I promise to my father, King Asgore, that I will! Even unto death."

Frisk chuckles and shakes his head. "Your dad isn't a 'king' on the surface, but alright. Thank you, Azzy; I'm very grateful." He then bites his lip then waves his right hand gently. "Just…remember to not kill, and don't be killed, alright? I don't want you dying on my watch."

The siblings nod at each other, and Frisk first turns his head away from Asriel. He then lowers his head, and his brain moves quickly. (Wait, what if I did die? What if I were attacked? Is such a thing possible in this little town? And if I did survive against an attacker, would I be able to fight? No, never. I'm not a fighter! I always act. I'm not sure, though… maybe I will have to fight, but how would I do it in that case? Hold on, though, why am I worrying about nothing? Relax, Frisk. Just calm down. Everything will be fine, I hope).

As his head is turned downward, Asriel's chest beats roughly. He gently holds his chest and feels his body trembling. His teeth grit for a few seconds, but the pain fades away. Asriel's mind sprints. (What was that?! Why does my chest hurt? Will I turn back into Flowey? What about the stability of my soul? Or…what about Frisk?! Our souls are connected, but he doesn't seem to be in pain unless I'm not reading him. I don't understand. This is weird. I need to ask him when I can, or maybe ask Dr. Alphys…if she does have an answer. No matter what, though, I have to protect Frisk! I owe him everything).

They are unaware of how their mother is listening in. Toriel's ears are twitching from the kitchen. As her back is turned to them, she sheds a single light tear. There's a light beam coming from her face. As the footsteps grow closer, she dries her eyes and turns toward her children.

"So, Mom," Asriel speaks, "with what I was saying earlier, does this mean you'll make another pie? One without snails this time?"

Asriel cheekily smiles at Toriel. Toriel nods and smiles. "Alright, my child, that sounds all well and good. Let me fix up that pie for you." As she gets ready to finish the new and improved pie, Asriel smiles. "Thanks, mom. And, I'm sorry about being rude earlier. The snail ingredient just surprised me."

"You're forgiven, my child."

A calm presence resides within the Dreemurr household. A shadowy figure peers over the hill across the road as they rest. They wear a familiar stripe-patterned shirt, the same color scheme as Asriel's shirt. They are slim like Asriel but have long brown hair covering their eyes. They also are of the same race as Frisk: human. As this figure places their binoculars beside them, they fold their arms.

"Findings over the past hour have been promising. So, it seems like they're planning something big. Costumes, hushed discussions with townsfolk…if something big is indeed happening around the corner, I should make my move soon."