"You want to leave so badly?" Toriel asked.
She wasn't facing the kids. Instead, she was facing a purple door with that symbol on it. It was surrounded by purple walls.
"Hmph," she scoffed. "This is foolish. There is only one solution to this..." She sounded like she was holding back tears. "Prove yourselves... Prove to me you are all strong enough to survive."
She turned around, the lights going out. Faye felt awful again.
"I... We don't wanna fight!" Cody sniffled.
"I won't argue with the cowgirl or Melody again, I promise!" Brayden added.
"Toriel, we don't have to fight," Melody spoke up. "You yourself said it's not right."
But Toriel wasn't listening. She stared at the kids with intense, red eyes. The eighth human had their head down... were they regretting something?
Toriel blocks the way!
Percy was examining her status.
"ATK - 80, DF - 80," he said, taking notes. "The strongest monster we've encountered so far. According to the text box, she knows best for us."
Faye had to agree with that. Toriel was a great mom. But right now, Faye didn't want to be scared of Toriel. She wasn't going to argue or fight back like the others. No. She had a different plan. She was going to stop Toriel from fighting by doing nothing at all.
Toriel took a deep breath. She made fireballs like the one that hit Flowey rain from everywhere. Everyone scrambled to avoid them. But Faye didn't. She stood still, letting them hit her. Her HP went down to 13. She tried not to flinch. She had a plan.
"What the heck, Faye?!" Brayden asked. "Move or you'll get hit!" But Faye didn't move. She kept standing still in the same place.
"Look ma'am, I don't wanna hurtcha," Clover told Toriel, holding out her gun. "But if you don't stop now I'll have ta." The eighth human shook their head at her. "You really don't like hurting monsters, do ya?"
"Toriel, I'm sorry!" Cody whimpered. "If we made you upset, then I'm sorry! I don't want to fight you anymore!"
The eighth human simply spared her and non-verbally encouraged the others to do the same. Toriel brought down another wave of flames. They were shaped like an hourglass. Percy was figuring out a strategy to avoid them. The eighth human just flowed around them like they did it for breakfast. They didn't get hit at all. They seemed to be more worried about making sure the others didn't get hurt.
Faye still didn't move. Her HP dropped to 7. She didn't say anything. She just held onto her toy knife and faded ribbon.
Toriel prepares a magical attack.
The kids (even a hesitant Clover) spared Toriel again, causing the goat lady to look confused. Faye stayed still as Toriel unleashed her next attack. Her HP was 3. Brayden was glaring at her. So was everyone else.
"Faye, ya need to move." Clover told her.
"You'll get hurt!" Cody agreed.
"It's most likely you'll die." Percy added. Faye didn't say anything. She just stayed still. Toriel unleashed another attack. Faye still didn't move. The eighth human leaped in front of her, protecting her from Toriel's attacks.
Toriel is acting aloof.
"What are you doing?" Toriel asked discontentedly.
"MOVE, FAYE!" Brayden yelled at her.
Faye ignored even him. Toriel attacked with more fire. The eighth human kept defending Faye. They were doing a pretty good job, since they had to defend themself as well. They gave Faye a short look that was saying the same message: move!
Faye ignored it. She kept staring at Toriel, holding her knife. It was actually a little creepy. Even Toriel was fazed for a moment.
"Attack or run away!" the goat woman commanded, bringing down more fire.
Clover was protecting her brother whilst resisting the temptation to shoot. Percy was avoiding Toriel's attacks and taking notes. Melody was jumping out of the way. Brayden was sort of running all over the place. It seemed he took this no-fighting nonsense as a challenge now. And convincing Faye to move. She wouldn't budge.
"What are you proving this way?" Toriel asked, twitching. She stared at Faye. "What are you doing?"
Even more fire. The eighth human was getting slightly hurt from all this protecting. They looked a bit annoyed that Faye wasn't moving. It seemed their patience was running out. But Faye knew what she was doing.
Toriel takes a deep breath.
"Fight me or leave!" she commanded.
No one fought her. Faye didn't move.
"Stop it," Toriel spoke. She stared at Faye when she said this. "Move, child!"
But she didn't, of course. She got down to 1HP because the eighth human was really sick of her. But they didn't want her to die, because they started protecting her again since she was on the verge of death. Faye didn't say anything. She kept staring at Toriel.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Toriel asked her. "Why will you not move?"
Faye didn't answer. She'd taken on the eighth human's approach to answering questions.
Toriel attacked again, a solemn expression on her face. "I do not understand. What are you doing?"
Her attacks continued coming, but Faye still refused to move.
"What is that crazy girl doing?" Melody asked. "That kid will get sick of her sometime, won't they?"
"I have no darn idea," Clover replied, making a face.
"Faye is very patient," Percy commented, reading his notes. "It's likely she's waiting for something."
"Waiting for something?" Brayden asked, looking confused. "What the heck could she be waiting for?!"
Cody had a worried expression on his face. He watched Faye, not liking where this was headed. Toriel continued bringing down fire. Faye didn't move. The eighth human defended her. Toriel frowned.
"My child..." she said sadly, looking at Faye. "They cannot defend you forever, do you understand? You must move."
Faye didn't say anything. She didn't move.
"I do not understand what you are trying to prove," Toriel spoke.
Her fireballs came down. The eighth human looked tired. Faye thought about her parents. Brayden was right. Who was going to wait for them if she stayed here? What would her aunt do? What would her friends do? She knew deep down she really couldn't stay here. It wouldn't help anyone. And Faye wanted to help people.
"I..." Toriel looked upset. "Is there something wrong...?"
Her fireballs came down again, but they intentionally didn't hit anyone. Faye still didn't move, though she started feeling sad. "
Are you waiting for something? Do you really dislike movement? I do not understand." Toriel sounded upset. "What is it that you want, child?"
Everyone was staring at Faye now, even the eighth human.
Toriel had stopped fighting. She'd done it. She'd waited her out.
"I don't want anything, really," Faye finally spoke. "I just want to go home."
No one else spoke. Not even Brayden yelling something or Melody making a sarcastic comment. They all just listened.
Toriel replied depressingly, "I know you want to go home, but... please, go upstairs now. I promise I will take good care of you."
"I want to stay so much, Toriel, but..." Faye sighed. "But you can't always get what you want."
She stared at her friends. She felt like crying until her eyeballs fell out. She missed her parents, her old home, everything. Then she came to a reminiscence of those things - and now she had to abandon them all.
"I know we do not have much, but..." Toriel had a sad smile. "We can have a good life here. All of you."
She was sitting on the ground. She was vulnerable. Faye bit her lip. She gripped her toy knife. It was time.
She ran forward, her toy knife aimed for Toriel's chest. She loved Toriel. Toriel was like a mother - the mother Faye had missed for a long time. But right now, Faye just wanted to go home. Everyone wanted to go home. And Toriel was betraying them. She wasn't helping them go home. Faye was wrong. She wasn't like a mother after all. So she had to die. And plus, she almost felt like she had to have revenge on some monsters for some reason. Something about this world felt... different.
The eighth human suddenly appeared in front of Toriel. They had a defensive pose. Faye stopped and stared at them. The other kids were yelling things in the background. Toriel was stunned. She was shivering. She was so confused.
"Hey..." Faye spoke quietly. She eyed the eighth human. "If... you're really my friend... you'll stop this..."
"Faye, you can't hurt Toriel!" Cody squeaked. "Or the kid!"
"Aren't we tryna spare everyone?" Clover asked, raising her brow.
"This is no way to deal with your sadness!" Melody added, folding her arms.
Brayden was just staring at Faye. She found it odd he wasn't saying anything. The eighth human was still staring at her. They hadn't budged.
"I..." Faye mumbled. She started crying. She dropped her knife. She couldn't take it anymore. "I... I just want to go home..."
"I understand, my child," Toriel spoke. She got up, moved around the eighth human and kneeled down to Faye's height. "I see the mistake I made. It would be so wrong of me to keep you all here. Your families would be most worried about you. And... the RUINS are very small once you get used to them."
"But my mom and dad..." Faye began.
She just wanted her family back. She wanted life to return to before Mount Ebott, where she lived in her little house with her parents and Brayden was over half the time. Why couldn't she go back to that? It wasn't fair. She couldn't wait forever.
"If you children truly wish to leave the RUINS, I will not stop you," Toriel spoke, facing them. "However, when you leave... please do not come back. I hope you understand." She turned to Faye and whispered, "You will be alright, my child. Do not give up hope. And remember to stay with your friends. They will help you through any difficult times."
"Okay." Faye said, wiping her eyes.
"Awww, what?!" Brayden complained. "Why?!"
Melody bonked him on the head. Toriel spread her arms, giving the rest of the kids a hug.
Cody was crying now as well. Even Melody looked a little upset. The eighth human didn't say anything. Toriel stood back up, smiling at all the kids.
"Goodbye, my children." she told them, walking away. She looked back and smiled at Faye. Faye smiled back. Then Toriel left. Cody was still crying.
"I'm sorry." Faye said quietly. "I... I... I'm terrible... you should all leave me here. I tried to kill her."
"Hey, Faye," Brayden walked up to Faye. He punched her shoulder so hard she fell on the ground. "YOU WOULD'VE DIED IF THE STICK KID HADN'T PROTECTED YOU! AND THEN YOU TRIED TO KILL GOAT MOMMA! AND THEN YOU CRIED! DON'T DO THAT AGAIN OR I'LL BEAT THE HECK OUT OF YOU!" He grinned and helped her up. "That was actually pretty brave though - nice one! You're pretty tough after all."
"Quite smart, actually," Percy complimented. "You waited her out. Very tactical. Though I wasn't expecting you to try and kill her."
"Kinda scary pardner, I'm with Brayden here," Clover admitted. She frowned. "But I see where you were comin' from."
The sobbing Cody nodded.
"You're a funny girl, Faye," Melody sighed. "You know how to scare someone. She would've died if the eighth human hadn't protected her. Please don't do that again."
The eighth human stared at Faye. A tense silence passed between the two.
"I'm so sorry," Faye told them. "I... I was so..." She sniffled.
The eighth human said something. They gave her a hug. "Yes. I know what you mean. I won't do something like that ever ever ever again." She cried a little more. "Thanks for forgiving me."
They smiled at her. Then they pointed at the door.
"The door?" Clover caught their gaze. She gazed at the others. "Are y'all ready to go?"
They nodded. So the crew pushed the purple door open and proceeded through a long, purple hall. At the end of the hall was a black room like the one they first met Flowey in. A patch of grass was in the centre, and behind it, a purple gate with the symbol. Speak of the devil - Flowey was there.
"You." Clover growled, giving Flowey a death-stare. Brayden put his fist in his palm. The eighth human just stared at him. Faye stood near them. She wasn't really a fan of that flower, since he almost killed her.
"Clever," Flowey said darkly, with a grin of mockery. "Verrryyy clever. You all think you're so smart, don't you? In this world, it's kill or BE killed."
"N-no it's not!" Faye squeaked. "It's, uh, m-more than that!"
"Ooh, the cyan freak is growing some backbone!" Flowey teased. "You IDIOT. What can you say when you were the only one who was stupid enough to take my bullets?! And then you tried to kill that old hag!"
"How does he know that?" Clover asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Hey, don't talk to her like that!" Brayden yelled at Flowey.
"Wow, aren't you all such great friends?" Flowey asked. "Hee hee hee. You're all IDIOTS. So you were able to play by your own rules." He looked scary. "You spared the life of a single person. Well, MOST of you tried. I bet you feel really great. You didn't kill anybody this time... well, almost."
He stared at Clover this time. She was still aiming her gun at him. "But what will you do if you meet a relentless killer? You'll all die and you'll die and you'll die! Until you tire of trying. What will you do then?"
"We keep trying!" Brayden yelled at him. "No one's gonna stop us!"
The others nodded.
"Oh, really?" Flowey asked, making another face. "You can't say anything, you IDIOT! You're not the one with the power here!" He gazed at the eighth human. "But the one with the power... what if they turn on you? What if they give up on this world... and allow me to take control? I am the prince of this world's future. Don't worry, my little monarchs, my plan isn't regicide. This is SO much more interesting."
He made a terrifying face and cackled evilly.
"Lemme at him!" Brayden begged his friends. "I'll stuff his stupid, uh, leaves or whatever into the ground!"
Flowey disappeared.
"Coward," Brayden huffed.
"I'll have a go at him myself," Clover agreed. "No one messes with my friends."
"Let's go on, shall we?" Melody asked, sighing.
The kids proceeded towards the gate. This time, Faye walked next to her best friend - Brayden.
"You're pretty brave, too, Brayden," she said quietly. "Thanks for never giving up on me."
He gave her a thumbs up and a big grin.
"What're friends for, Faye?!" he asked, giving her a noogie.
"Well, here we go," Clover sighed, facing the gate. "Are y'all ready?" Everyone nodded. "Then let's go."
They entered the gate, leaving the RUINS behind.