Hi there! I know it's been a lot longer than I said it would be since my last update - something like two months. Sorry about that - life kinda came at me. I was struggling with laying out the chapter for the first two weeks, then I went on vacation for a week. After my vacation I essentially had to play catch up for the next three weeks. See, I have a lot going on. I've got a fully time job, full time relationship, full time hobby, and two part time hobbies. There just aren't enough hours in the day some times, I have to micromanage pretty much every hour that I'm awake or asleep lol. But I think I'm starting to get the hang of it, and don't you worry. DoubleTale ain't goin' anywhere until it's finished! The next update should be December 28th, two weeks from today. I've already started on the next chapter, and I'm pretty excited for what's being built to. Season 6 is gonna be epic.

Thanks go to Wingah, 10burgers, ZeraoraTheKnight, DuckLIT122000, Zack Frost, Tbone8454, TiredWhiteMayge, sauceman95, and CrystalGamer82!

Tbone8454, the opening seemed familiar because it was a reoccurring nightmare for Angel! You saw the first instance of that nightmare back in chapter 69, I believe. :)

CrystalGamer82, the Frisk betrayal was not always in the plans but the pieces were certainly always there. I could drop my whole analysis and explain everything because I think it's so fun and interesting, but I think you guys will all have a lot more fun going back and seeing their development in earlier chapters with this new context if you guys ever feel like it. :)
Also - Angel busting up his arms isn't a reference to Midoriya in MHA, but I can definitely see the similarities lol. If only Anarchy had a dad like All Might, then perhaps DoubleTale would be a much happier story.
Also also - you should always at least skim the author's notes. They sometimes contain mighty important information! For example:

Disclaimer: I do not own Undertale.

(P.S. Go read DoubleScramble on Tumblr at DoubleTaleAU)

"... So, Nightmare cheated and Frisk was the traitor." Future furrowed his brows down at the tile floor, his frown digging deeper into his expression. He wondered briefly about the morality of his own Frisk, what they had thought in their private moments until Chara betrayed and murdered them, along with most of his other friends. Didn't matter. None of that mattered. Frisk, MK, Asriel, Chara, they were all long dead. But Future was still here, and he had work to do. His eyes darted back up to where Predator stood, "How do you know it was Frisk?"

"My reliable and secret informant told me." Predator moved one arm from where it had been crossed with the other under her chest. She used this hand to pull open the eyelids of her left eye, tiling her head some to look closer at Future with this eye. "Guess they gouged his eye out at a wedding."

"Oh god they fucked up the wedding..." Future muttered, pulling one hand off the bed he was propping himself up on and running it up his face. He could feel the relentless black hairs of a beard grown in his sleep, and that only soured his mood further. Whatever, didn't matter. Work to do. Something to do, right? There, was something he could do, wasn't there? He spread the fingers covering his face, looking to Lexi from behind his hand. "And, by secret informant, you mean CORE Alphys, right?"

"... Okay bucko." Predator's eyebrow twitched with irritation, and she recrossed her arms. Baring her teeth in her madwoman snarl, She kicked up one leg before bringing it down on Future's bed, just beside his hand. It made him flinch, yank his hand away and watch the frost spread over his sheets from where she'd stomped. His exasperated eyes darted back to her, a few nervous sweat drops appearing on his forehead. But, he still didn't really look scared. Didn't look like much more than tired. "You're here to answer my questions. And you gave us a serious hand with Xander yesterday, so don't make me torture you for answers."

Future chuckled at that. Wasn't exactly sure why, it wasn't really funny. Maybe he was just glad to see her again, maybe it was a relief to see someone who had died in his head fifteen years ago still alive, see how she'd grown and evolved. Would she think it was weird if he told her he was proud of her? Probably, he thought it was weird. So, instead, he just lifted the head on which his heavy crown laid, flashing his version of an Angel's iconic smirk. Even as a dead man, king of a dead kingdom, he preserved just enough of that Cter charm to keep her from kickin' his ass. "You don't gotta torture me, Predator. Just ask a question, n' I'll give you an answer."

"... Alright, first thing's first." Predator narrowed her cyan eyes at the king, taking a moment before pulling her boot off his bed and giving him some space again. She didn't let her skepticism fade just yet though, prepared in full to knock sense into him if he tried to give her the run around. "Who are you? And why'd you help me get the Metal for Nightmare?"

"We know yer some kinda Angel." Clover chimed in from where he stood behind The Predator like some wild west bodyguard ready to deal out Southern JUSTICE. And Future had seen first hand that not being a red soul didn't slow that cowboy down - the way he'd flashbanged and blasted Character to pieces with a shotgun was proof enough to Future that there was a damn good reason this particular Clover made it outta The Underground. "Ink wings and earbud blasters made that mighty obvious."

"I'm an Angel alright, even though I kinda forget sometimes." That was a lie, there was no forgetting the wretched thing that he was. Where was his flask..? No, no, not the time. He's supposed to be going easy on the liquor anyway. Probably the stress that made him wanna... Didn't matter. Work. He had work to do. "From a time glitched timeline, so I'm about fifteen years older than most'a the other DoubleKids. Just call me Future, rolls off the tongue easier."

"... Alright, 'Future'." Lexi had thought about calling him a DILF again instead of using the name he requested, but there was a time and a place for harassing older men and interrogation was not that time and the infirmary was not that place. She arched a brow, a clear lack of trust remaining apparent in her tone. "And what's your stake in this? How do ya know everything ya know?"

"I work with The Angel. The four winged one." Future carelessly explained - not like he had much to gain from lying. Odds were the truth was gonna come out one way or another eventually, and Lexi didn't really have much to gain from trying to ransom him or execute him. Her and Angel weren't on the same side, but they weren't on opposing sides either. "I knew things would be better if you found Anarchy, so I came to help."

"That pretentious fuck knew this was goin' on and sent his dad instead'a coming himself?!" Predator snapped suddenly, throwing her hands up into the air. The temperature in the room lowered, and Predator's face twisted into a furious smile. She pointed at Future with one accusatory finger, "You tell that fucker-!"

"He's trapped." Future was quick to interject, lifting one hand to cut Lexi off. Begrudgingly she stopped her sentence at the halfway point, grinding her teeth and crossing her arms. She arched a brow after taking the time to process Future's words. Trapped? Whether she would admit it or not, that was more bad news. Future went on, "Gatherer set a trap for him before this all went into motion. Him and Chara returned to their home timeline from training in mine for a two week vacation, and - presumably using Frisk - Gatherer set up a firewall to trap the two of them in that timeline until those two weeks were up."

"..." Lexi's eyes darted to the side. The room got even colder, and her jaw clenched a little tighter. Xander "Chess not Checkers" The Gatherer. Smarmy fuck had a plan for everything. Here's hoping he had a plan for removing her boot from his ass after she next finds him. Skeptically, her eyes glossed back to Future. "... How long until he's free?"

"Three days counting today." Future leaned back on his palms, his frown sinking deeper into his face. If he'd had any pride left, he's certain admitting such a brutal defeat would have stung. But he'd failed worse than this, to less impressive opponents. His jaw ached, and he remembered the feel of Character's knuckles. "Til' that firewall breaks down to time, nobody can contact him and he can't contact any'a us."

"... Alphys can see Angel. She can see Anthony, Gatherer, everybody. That's her gimmick. That's how we know Frisk was the traitor." Predator gave more bad news, her gaze shifting to the side. Her brows furrowed and she shook her head with disgust, "She can see whatever plans Gatherer's putting into place, but Anthony's worms won't let her talk about it. They won't let her leave her dark ass spire. It's the same reason we couldn't get Anthony's location outta her - those worms block out any screen she tries to show us and start laughing louder than any words she could say to us."

"And it ain't worth the risk tryna find another way to relay the message." Clover added in his Southern drawl. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, and his jaw tightened with clear irritation. "Alphys is too important ova informant. We can't just go n' risk one'a those ugly things poppin' out her shadow n' eatin' her."

"Only thing she's been able to say is that Anthony did go with Xander." Predator looked back to Future, and she uncrossed her arms, resting her hands on her hips. She looked exasperated, like she was more irritated she had to deal with this situation than he was afraid for her life. Future hoped that meant she was confident in herself and her crew. Not that confidence did much against Anarchy's overwhelming power. "And we are, like ya said, in some real deep shit."

"Ah fuck... Was kinda hoping Anarchy would just beat Xander to death and then go back to watching paint dry or whatever the fuck he's been doing." Future reached up, rubbing his tired eyes with one hand. "But, if he didn't wanna be found, his bugs woulda put a stop to the scavenger hunt as soon as it started."

"..." Predator exhaled a stream of white mist, lowering her head and shaking it. This was hard. Anarchy was finally out of hiding, but he seemed even further away than he was before. Lexi didn't know what his plan was, what Xander could offer him. Must've been Angel, that was the only thing that made sense. All of this, just for his head on a silver platter. But, killing Angel wasn't the answer. And Anthony had to have understood that on some level, that was why he'd spared Angel nearly three years ago, wasn't it? But what had Anthony been doing since then? Had he changed? Was he, truly out of her reach now..?

"Listen, Angel." She lifted her head, looked back to Future. It looked like it took him a minute to register she was addressing him - how long had it been since he heard someone call him Angel? Probably not since his Chara died. Didn't matter, more pressing issues. Predator went on, "I don't trust CORE Frisk and I hardly trust young you - he biffed it pretty hard last time he was face to face with Anthony. But you? You're alright. You put your life on the line for me n' my crew, and we aren't gonna forget that."

"Fact'a the matter is, there's a war coming." Lowering her head some, Lexi let shadows slip over her face and shade her eyes, which glowed their PATIENT blue. There was a certain calculating element to her, a thought and precision that did not exist in the eyes of the Lexi that Future had known nearly twenty years ago.

"And if Xander's got Anarchy, then we need The Angel."

Chapter 75: Deer Die Ari

Or: "Dear Diary..."

"I ran all the numbers I could, looked at things from every angle." Gaster explained while he leaned over the kitchen table he'd covered in notes and blueprints. There was a doodle of a wall of flames separating two groups of stick figures. On one side was two stick figures, one with swords and the other with wings. Both had little angry faces drawn on their circular heads. On the other side of the firewall was three more stick figures, one with a grin, pen-drawn red eyes and a curvy line that I figured was a crowbar, one with an evil little smirk and a fireball in its stick hand, and one with poorly drawn long squiggle hair and a scythe. Above the firewall was a stick figure with Frisk's signature (-_-) face drawn onto it, an arrow pointing to either side of the wall beneath them. If Gaster really had stayed up all night, I hope the sleep deprivation is what had effected his art here. He continued, "Unfortunately, Frisk was right. There's no getting through this firewall until midnight, two nights from tonight."

I turned my head, looked to the clock on the kitchen stove without really thinking about it. The green numbers flashed 11:54 AM. It felt like the countdown to the end of the world. I blinked my eyes shut for a second or two, tried to remember that stressing over things I can't change is as useless as it is exhausting.

"So... What do we do then?" Chara spoke up, a hint of frustration in their voice. They glanced over to Gaster and then to me, and when we both shrugged they exhaled and took a step back from the table and began pacing. "Do we, train? Try to make a plan?"

"It's a little hard to prepare for the unknown." I chimed in, an unfortunate and realistic frown on my face. Chara paused their pacing to look over at me - they looked annoyed with my blunt statement, but I knew it was just the situation that had them pissed. I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head, "All we can do now is try to gather as much information as possible and keep ourselves rested and ready for whatever is on the other side."

"..." Chara went quiet, looked like they might start pacing, even opened their mouth for a moment like they wanted to refute my statement. But, then they sighed, letting their shoulders sink forward and taking a moment to get their nerves under control. After shutting their eyes for a few seconds and presumably letting go of some of the stress in their clenched fist, they lifted their head and opened their scarlet orbs again. "You're right. I hate it, I hate all of this, but... Panicking isn't gonna solve anything. We're here now, and most of what we can do is wait."

"Lookit me, being rational under stress." I smirked some - it was a relief to see them relax. Putting them at ease always helped me feel better, too. I rose my hands over my head and waved them down like I was making a rainbow, "Can you say character development?"

"You must be so proud of yourself." Chara crossed their arms over their chest, tilting their head and smirking some at me. I grinned like an idiot on purpose, giving them a thumbs up. Honestly, I kinda forgot Gaster was there until he spoke again.

"I'm glad you two are handling this so well. You've really..." Gaster trailed off, his smile faded a little. Whatever he was about to say, he must've figured it wasn't his place. He paused for only a moment, quickly changing the subject when Chara and I turned our confused stares his way. "I-in any case! It would be best to investigate however we can, try to gather all information available and compile it to theorize what you should be ready for."

"All available information huh..?" I pondered, reaching up and scratching at my chin. Free of inky stubble, thank god. It'd probably pop up again in another few days, overnight like always. I thought briefly on available information, and my thoughts drifted quickly back to the one vacant room upstairs. I shifted a little uncomfortably... "I, guess we could investigate Frisk's room."

"Eee..." Chara pulled their arms tighter to themself, turning and glancing up the staircase. Their expression shifted and changed, showing clear discomfort while they pondered. Eventually they grimaced, glancing back to me. "What if we find something gross in there? Like weird underwear or an Anarchy x reader fanfiction?"

Gaster almost spit his coffee at that line, hunching over and doing a weird sort of laugh-choke. I smiled and tried to play it cool, speaking through stifled giggling. "Well Chara I'm not going to lie to you, there is a high possibility we find both of those things."

Chara groaned and threw their head back, and their pouting made me break into my own laughter. They didn't wait for me to stop laughing though, spinning on their heel and marching towards the stairs in the living room. They were slouched forward, shoulders sunk and a frown shaping their face. "Lets just get this over with..."

Those stupid red souls! Didn't they know how to use a door? It was scary enough just knowing she was in the same timeline with Anarchy, Mew Mew didn't need him jumping off balconies while she's trying to garden and giving her a heart attack! She'd jumped right into a thorny rose bush, and then had to spend the next hour picking her own stuffing out of the thorns. Which was in fact an effort in futility, because she just kept catching her hand or arm on a thorn and getting more stuffing on the bush.

Mew Mew flinched at the sound of a passing conversation - the familiar sound of Anarchy's voice made the fabric stand on the back of her neck. So, she crouched behind Cliff's statue and near the flowers she was watering. Briefly, while she glared at the unaware or uncaring Frisk and Anarchy, she wondered what Cliff would think about these recruits. A traitor and an Anarchist... And now, what? They were friends? Mew Mew didn't like this one bit.

"So what'd ya think'a the lab?" Hands behind their back, Frisk tilted their head to look towards Anarchy with their hardly open eyes. They smiled, like they always smiled when they looked at him. And just like always he didn't like it. "Seemed pretty interested in the Rainbow Dash-ed skeleton."

"I don't pity that dwarf in his flask, but I can understand how he earned himself that brutal existence." Anarchy explained without hesitation. His scarlet eyes looked up towards the sky - overcast. Felt like home. This whole place did, in a weird and vague sorta way. Hands buried in his pockets, The Anarchist glanced over towards Frisk. "... Also I don't know what you're referencing."

"Google it." Frisk stated with a casual smile, before mimicking Anarchy's posture. They tried to take the same long strides that he did, but seeing as his legs were far longer than theirs, they just ended up stumbling. After that, they righted themself and walked normally as though nothing had happened.

"No." Anarchy answered swiftly. Whether that was from his lack of interest or lack of internet know-how or even lack of a phone, he didn't care to share. Regardless of the reason, his immediate denial got a giggle out of Frisk.

"So where we goin' now?" Frisk once more folded their hands behind their back, leaning forward some to look around Anarchy's broad frame and see his stoic expression. Seemed they'd given up on mimicking him.

"This way." Another short and straight forward answer. Anarchy pointed straight ahead, the direction they'd been walking. There was a twin set of doors down the cobble path - Frisk wondered if that was why Anarchy was walking this way, or if he was simply walking in this direction to walk in this direction? If it were a wall in their path instead of a door, would he have changed route to find a doorway, or would he have blasted through the concrete with his fist?

Such a fascinating man. They could stare at him and ponder his thoughts for hours. He was nothing like the toys they'd played with in their timeline, not even all that similar to The Angel that had spoiled their fun. It could have been that Angel was a mortal man and Anarchy was not, but Frisk had met a god before too, and that god was still plenty easy to play with. An intricate puzzle for them to fiddle with, unlike anything Frisk had ever seen before or would ever see again. They smiled just staring at him, and they pondered what he might think if he heard their thoughts. They pondered what he might think about everything and anything at all.

Anarchy would have told them to stop staring at him if he thought they would listen. But it was apparent to him for whatever reason that the traitor beside him was immune to his intimidation, they were unharmed by his harsh words. If this were any other setting he certainly would have beaten sense into them with the bloody side of his crowbar - which was every side of his crowbar. But, Frisk was another hand working for Xander. So Anarchy would not murder them unless they got in his way during the mission - something he was almost hoping for. Their constant attention bothered him, it was not something he was used to. They said strange things, gave compliments that he'd never heard before with implications he'd never considered. They were strange, to be blunt. And unlike Frisk, Anarchy was not a man who desired to 'figure out' other people. He knew all he needed to know from the words and actions others showed him, he did not care for backstories or psychoanalytical deep dives. He thought himself to be a simple man, he thought humans and monsters to be simple creatures. Even the peculiar ones, like the traitor smiling up at him.

"Lead the way, cap'n!" Frisk exclaimed, straightening out their back and raising one hand to the forehead to give Anarchy a salute. Then, in spite of their words, they scurried ahead a few steps to reach the door before Anarchy. They pulled one of the double doors open, standing aside and smiling in a welcoming way at the approaching Anarchist.

Anarchy just shot them a look from his eye's corner, before pushing open the door that they weren't holding open for him. It was a dark brown wood, Frisk thought it looked fancy and Anarchy didn't think about it. Instead he just strut into the hallways of Gatherer's Strategy Hall, and Frisk followed after him after taking just a moment to examine the seat of his pants. No reaction to his rudeness, as per usual.

Creeeaaakkk...

Chara and I stepped with heavy skepticism onto the purple carpet of Frisk's room floor - I almost felt like I was gonna step on a pressure plate and get hit with a poison dart. But, nothing like that happened. It was a perfectly normal room, generally clean. Anything that wasn't clean gave the sign that two day ago someone had lived in this place, and that made me feel uneasy. It was eerie, wandering into such a forbidden place. It felt private, like something I wasn't ever meant to see.

But still, Chara and I wandered across the violet floors. Felt the soft carpet on our bare feet, let our eyes wander the walls. There was a hamper in the corner near the closet door, dirty clothes still laid within it. The bed had been hastily made, wrinkles clear in the blanket - which was tucked in unevenly. Villain or not, they really had been there with us the morning of the wedding. Hastily preparing, just like the rest of us. Like that night had really mattered to them. They'd been there, been our friend and our family. Stood by the alter, eaten dinner, laughed and smiled and...

And lied. I thought, wrapping my cracked left hand around the handle of one of their bedside table's two drawers. Not hesitating for another moment, I pulled the drawer open, let the few wayward objects inside jingle and slide around. Nothing too important, some loose change. Two or three arcade tokens, old coupons for MTT Boutique... A pen. I picked the blue ballpoint up - it was a long shot, but that could be a clue. I was kinda synonymous with writing utensils these days, pens specifically.

So, I picked up the pen. Looked it over, flipped it around in my hands. I stared down the tip of the ballpoint, before clicking the button at the top of the pen. And the moment I did, blue ink exploded out from the pen and splattered into my face. I'd clenched my eyes shut and scrunched up my nose on instinct, and in the few seconds of blindness that followed I could feel Chara grinning at me.

With deliberate slowness I reached up, wiping my eyes clean of the blue I'd been painted with and looking to Chara with unamused eyes. My less than jovial expression didn't stop their grinning. They were kneeling by Frisk's dresser, the bottom drawer half open beside them. I tried my best not to crack a smile. "... What? I have something in my teeth?"

Chara didn't say anything, just rolled their eyes and shook their head before looking back to the drawer they were rifling through. Socks, from the looks of it. How scandalous. While I lifted my hand and used my magic to pull the ink off my skin and filter it back into the prank pen I'd just been blasted with, Chara asked. "You think that was a coincidence, or is this place booby trapped?"

"All I'm thinkin' about is how you just said the word booby." I responded with a complete and utter lack of maturity, prompting Chara to throw a pair of white socks into the side of my head. I chuckled after the fabric bounced off my dome, setting the pen back where I'd found it before I looked over towards Chara again.

I was happy to have them here, I was glad we were in this together. The atmosphere in this room was tense and emotionally raw - it was beyond weird for us to be snooping through here, felt wrong for a handful of reasons. But, they made things a little lighter. Made this task almost fun. I watched them pull a larger piece of folded fabric out of the sock drawer, furrow their brows at it. "What's this doing in the sock drawer?" I figured they were wondering, until the silky white fabric unfolded in their grasp. It tumbled open, revealing the shape of what I - as a cultured man raised on the internet - immediately recognized as a thigh high sock.

"... Why am I not surprised?" Chara squinted at the gold heart pattern along the top of the thigh high they were holding between thumb and index finger, like they thought it was dirty. They hastily dropped it back into the sock drawer, which they then shoved shut, leaving a few pieces of clothing stuck and hanging out through the crack. "We're two minutes into this and I already regret agreeing to help."

"I hear you but I'm gonna feel a lot weirder snooping through Frisk's old stuff if I'm alone." I knelt down, opening the second drawer of the bedside table and furrowing my brows at its contents. Paperwork mostly, government nonsense that I couldn't make heads or tails of. It looked like Frisk had gotten so bored reading some of these pamphlets that they'd wasted time doodling in the margins. I frowned a little at that, remembered what they said about hating this life. How long had every day gone on for them..? How brutal were those years that I was away? I shook my head, tore my eyes away from the paper. No use thinking about it now, that's what I told myself as I shut the drawer. "Also, maybe this just feels weird because we keep sayin' it's weird."

"Then you come over here and play Underwear Drawer Roulette!" Chara snapped back at me, glaring over their shoulder to me before looking back to the four compartments of Frisk's dresser. Hesitantly they grabbed the handles of the top drawer, wincing some before pulling it open. Immediately they recoiled, slamming the drawer shut and spinning around to shoot me a look that perfectly encapsulated their annoyance and discomfort. "Fffffffffound it!"

I couldn't help but laugh a little at Chara's frustration and embarrassment, shaking my head at them. Carefully I lowered myself onto the ground, laying on my stomach and glancing under the bed. I called back to them, "You two literally shared a body once. Shouldn't that kinda make everything else not weird?"

"No, it makes this more weird!" Chara kicked the dresser while I flipped myself onto my back. After not finding anything on the ground, I slide myself beneath the bed frame to see if anything was hidden beneath the mattress. But before examining, I looked back to Chara to assure them I was listening, arching a curious brow. "And with how much me n' Frisk look alike, coupled with the many years we shared a body, imagining them wearing these things is almost like imagining myself wearing these things. It's, weird!"

I tried my hardest not to imagine Chara wearing whatever less than wholesome things I had just imagined them finding in Frisk's top drawer, blinking my eyes a few times and glancing back to the underside of the mattress above me. I felt kinda bad about this idea now - I didn't want Chara to feel this kind of discomfort, didn't think about the strange and personal connection that they still had with Frisk three years removed from their time as partners. But, then again, wouldn't it also have been weird for them if I was alone up here going through Frisk's clothes? Ugh... "Maybe this, wasn't such a good idea. But, if it helps, I never really thought you and Frisk looked all that much alike."

"You don't..?" Chara seemed to relax some, arching a brow down at me. They'd crossed their arms and huddled close to themself, it was something they did pretty often when they were embarrassed or less than comfortable. But, their grip on their body eased, they must've been reminded that they were safe here. I glanced back over to them, shrugging my shoulders casually.

"I mean yeah, your hair and eye color is the same and you're around the same height, but outside'a that?" I looked back to the mattress over my head and the wood boards holding it up, furrowing my brows at the notebook I could see peaking out between wood and cushion. I continued while I reached up to grab the notebook, "I think Monsters just thought you guys look alike because they probably think all humans look alike."

Chara snerked at that - I was glad to hear them laughing. I hoped I'd helped them feel a little less tense. They wandered away from Frisk's dresser, instead grabbing the handles of their closet doors and sliding them apart. While they glanced over the clothes hung up, they responded. "Hot take. What exactly makes you think monsters think we all look alike?"

"Well, I mean, look at monsters. Some of them are goats, some are rabbits, some are dinosaurs. some are literal fireballs and one of them is a goddamn plane." I stuck my tongue out of the corner of my mouth while I fiddled and finagled that notebook out from under the mattress, squinting thoughtfully in the dim lighting beneath the bed. But, after a moment of struggling, I glanced back over to Chara. "Compared to that level of differentiation, don't all humans kinda look alike?"

"... Huh." Chara furrowed their brows thoughtfully, pushing their tongue into one cheek while they glanced up at the shelf over the rack all the hangers hung on. Shoe boxes occupied most of the space. "Guess I never looked at it that way."

"It's kinda easy to forget how fundamentally different humans and monsters are sometimes, I think." I said my stream of consciousness aloud - it was a nice distraction from the grim task at hand. Well, I guess the task itself wasn't particularly grim, it was more so the implications. Treachery, evil plans, final showdowns... I decided to just focus on fumbling my way out from under Frisk's bed with that notebook now in hand. "Hey, I might'a found something."

"Hm?" Chara looked up from the hung up dresses and suits they were pushing apart, furrowing their brows at the notebook I was now holding up after climbing back to my feet. They grimaced at the sight of it, "... That better be a diary and not the Anarchy x reader fanfiction."

"Knowing Frisk it could be both." I answered with a little smirk. the notebook was heavy in my hand, but Chara's wishful (Or, the opposite of wishful. Curseful? Bah.) thinking made it a little lighter. I took a seat at the foot of the abandoned bed in hopes of finding some comfort while I read, only to find that sitting in a bed you weren't welcome in was hardly comfortable. But then Chara walked over and sat right beside me, and suddenly I was at ease again.

We sat there for a moment in silence - I stared anxiously at the cover. If this was some kind of journal, it felt wrong to read it. Clearly, whatever it was it was supposed to be private. But, Frisk had stabbed me in the eye and left the thing here. So their privacy shouldn't have been my concern. Maybe I was just, afraid of what I might find. Finally, after what was probably too much time, Chara leaned over and looked at the same cover I was staring at. They spoke quietly in the silent room, "I think it's easier to read when you open it."

I smiled sourly over at them, and they just grinned innocently back at me. I scoffed, shaking my head and trying to hide my smile while I looked back to the notebook resting in my hands. Begrudgingly, I took the cover between my thumb and index finger, pulling it back and away from the first page. My eyebrows rose at the sight of writing - I guessed I really figured this thing would be blank or boobytrapped in some way. Silently, I let my eyes wander the page.

June 17th, 2019

It's hot today. One of the first boiling hot days of the Summer. I've never experienced today before - June 16th is the furthest I ever went before RESETing. I actually had a panic attack this morning when I saw the date. Don't know why. Don't wanna think about why. I don't like thinking about who I am. But, I started writing in this notebook because of it. I thought, I know how to help other people once I know how they think. Maybe if I log my thoughts here, I'll learn how to help myself too. But I'm scared. I don't want to know who I am.

"A panic attack..?" I muttered, quiet but loud enough for Chara to hear. My brows furrowed, a sense of guilt and discomfort igniting quietly in my chest. I carefully took hold of the page, preparing myself for whatever else might be past this entry. "They never said anything about it to me..."

"Yeah, Frisk liked to keep their secrets." If they'd said it in a different tone, I probably would have thought Chara was sarcastically stating the obvious. But there was a hint of care in their tone - they understood how I felt. They knew that I was wishing that Frisk had told me, that I had been there for them on that hot summer morning. One hand gently rubbing my back to quell that dark feeling the first entry had sparked in my chest, Chara asked. "What do you think they mean by "I don't want to know who I am"?"

"Only one way to find out..." I shrugged reluctantly, and gradually turned the page. The paper was cheap - just a lined notebook they'd probably yanked out of a closet somewhere on that sweltering June morning. It would be easy to tear, and I didn't want that. Don't know why, maybe some part of me was worried about leaving evidence. But that was dumb, Frisk wouldn't ever stand in this room again. They'd never write another word in this book.

September 14th, 2019

Guess that logging my thoughts thing isn't working so good. I just don't have much to say about myself. But, anyway, I'm here because next week is Cter's birthday. Today he told me he's inviting Chara to the party - brought it up like he was asking me if it was okay without really asking me if it was okay. He's not stupid, he knows I don't really like them. But I put on a smile and told him it was a great idea, because that was the right answer. Because he would have been upset if I asked him why he was still talking to that freak. But he can't know I'm still angry at them, nobody can. Everybody wants Chara in their 'happy ending' - they can't know that a part of me just wants this happy ending to end.

... I had a dream last night. I was underground. I'm always underground in my dreams.

Silently, I glanced over at Chara. Their eyes were narrowed, turned away from me. They frowned quietly to themself, and this time I was the one to put a comforting hand on their back. This seemed to lessen the weight on their shoulders some, and after another moment's hesitation they spoke. "... I just, don't understand why they didn't say anything. If they were upset, why did they keep acting happy? If they hated me, then why'd they pretend to be my friend?"

"... I don't know." I answered honestly, my eyes drifting back to the notebook. My eyes glossed over to the next page, there was more writing. But, I didn't know if Chara wanted to keep going. When I looked back over to them, they forced a smile to reassure me. So, reluctantly, I let myself begin reading the words Frisk had written.

September 16th, 2019

Cter stumbled in the door while we were in the middle of dinner, covered in blood. His clothes were shredded, I could see the nasty scar Chara left on his chest six months ago. Is it six months? Feels like years. My sense of time is bad, I think. Anyway, he was jabbering about some fight across the multiverse - a wide expansive universe that I did not care about. What I did care about was that apparently he had went in secret on some brand new adventure and brought CHARA along. Chara? Why does he let them fight with him? Why do they get to keep a knife? Now they're some type of hero to him? What about me? I freed the Underground, I promised not to hurt anyone, I shuffle the GOD DAMN PAPERWORK! Has that stupid Hacker ever had a thought in his life?! I wanted to kill him. I wanted to hit my RESET button, just to spite him. Who cares if he kills me for it - this life is fucking miserable. He's no Angel, he's a piece of shit.

... But I'm worse. Because I just stood there, smiled like a circus clown, and said I was glad he was okay when I wanted him dead. Said I was proud of Chara when I hate them. I want this to end. I want to stop feeling this way. I want to be as happy as everyone else, but I'm miserable. I'm doing all the right things, so why am I still a bad person? Maybe it isn't me. Maybe it's all of them.

I didn't want to stop. Couldn't - after how brutal that entry felt I knew I would never continue reading if I stopped now. So I flipped the page, forced myself to read more. I had forgotten that I was here to gather information, had forgotten about any details about Frisk's betrayal beyond their loathing for Chara and I.

September 22nd, 2019

Those two were holding hands on the bench this morning. I should have guessed - people as wretched as them deserve each other. I stood there and watched them through the glass kitchen door for what felt like hours - they just sat there on that bench, so fucking enamored with one another. The door was closed, I had no idea what they were talking about. But, eventually, I couldn't take it anymore. They looked so stupid and happy sitting there, talking and holding hands and being trash people together. Finally I threw open the door and shouted that breakfast was going to be done soon. Used a silly and jovial tone, smiled so they wouldn't see that I was about to snap. I wish I could RESET. I wish they would go away. I just want my life back.

... I had another dream. I was underground. It felt nice. It felt like my body belonged to me again.

September 23rd, 2019

I met a new boy last night. I think he's exactly what I've been wishing for.

"..." My eyes trembled in their sockets, shrunken pupils reading that single sentence over and over again. I would have checked on Chara, if I remembered that they were still sitting beside me. September 23rd, 2019. The day after my fight with Anarchy. The day after my old best friend beat me and my closest friends - including Frisk - within an inch of our collective lives. The day after the worst night of my life. I'd been in a coma, would be until October. And I'd never thought of what those days were like - maybe that said something about who I was as a person. Did I think the world had just stopped while I was unconscious? I think I just didn't think at all. My fingers took shaky hold of the paper, and I dared to peer into the next entry.

October 6th, 2019

Chara called Toriel earlier, excitedly told her that Cter was awake. I knew the call would come eventually, but I didn't know if I would be happy to hear it or not. I know in earlier entries I threatened to kill him, but... Whatever I said and whatever I felt, when I watched Anarchy clobber him... My first instinct was to rush to save him. I don't know why. I'm afraid to learn why - I'm afraid it might teach me something about who I am.

... But, for the first time in the lifetime it's been since we left The Underground, I'm feeling something. Something intense, something that reminds me I'm alive. And that's his fault. Anarchy - what a dramatic name. Everything he said, I can't unhear it. It's replaying in my head over and over and over and over. He knew my name. Called everyone who wasn't Cter some nickname, but he knew my name. Hearing him call me Frisk made me feel special, and I haven't felt special in a very long time.

I think when I rushed to defend Cter, it was the last bit of me that wanted to play his game. That wanted to give his 'redemption' a chance. And when I lied and told Anarchy that Cter had helped me get better... He freed me. Struck sense into me with his fist, told me the ultimate truth.

"People don't get better."

He saved me.

November 1st, 2019

I just watched Cter and Chara leave for their next grand adventure without me. I, think I'm supposed to be happy or proud. That's the right answer. That's how I acted when Cter told us about his childhood - supportive. Fortune City, what a nasty place. I think I might like to visit. See the city that shaped The Angel and The Anarchist.

Anthony, that's his name. Cter said his name was Anthony. I love that name. Has a ring to it, one I can't explain logically. It just sounds like the perfect name for my hero. A bright eyed, friendly albino boy who grew into a man after my own heart. A perfect tragedy he is - I was on the edge of my seat, I hung on to every word Cter said about him. I know I shouldn't be thinking about him, he wants to destroy Cter and Cter is supposed to be my friend. That's the right answer. That's how I get my good ending, isn't it?

... But he's perfect. The perfect character, deranged and layered and hurt in ways that I adore imagining. I don't know what it is - I just want to dissect him. Metaphorically, of course. I wanna learn everything that I can about him, explore every angle of his psyche. Learn how he would react to anything and everything...

I'm starting to think there's an alternate ending to this route. I'm starting to think he's the key to my True End. I just have to figure out how to see him again.

December 26th, 2019

Cter and Chara couldn't make it to the Christmas party. I'm glad, I feel better with them gone. When they're here, it feels more like my body doesn't belong to me. A lot of my life has felt like that. A puppet on strings, being danced around by a higher power. A tool, a toy for something greater than myself. Ever since I fell into Mount Ebott, and there was nothing before that.

... But, when they aren't here, I'm angry at them too. Free of strings, basking in the spotlight. What it must be like to be the main character, and not just the skin the main character lives in... I wanna be free, but I don't know what free means.

I had a dream last night. I was laying on concrete, purple brick walls surrounded me. The Ruins, I think. Anthony was talking to me. I couldn't see him, but I knew it was him. He was asking me questions about myself. Juvenile things, like my favorite color and my favorite sport. Whether or not I liked burnt popcorn. I don't remember how I answered. I can't think of the answer to those things now, I don't have someone here to speak their favorite color through me.

But, in the dream, I knew I was answering. And it made me feel free.

April 14th, 2020

I got a call this morning. The number wasn't displayed, but I had a good feeling about it. And when I answered... Well, someone finally saw me for my worth. A new adventure, a new role to play, a new route...

Today, one year ago, you sprouted your wings and freed everyone but me, Angel. A year later you and Chara don't even have the time to play with your toys. A year later, I get the call I've been patiently waiting for. A year of time wasted, but my new route is finally open.

So Angel, if you really are reading this, I want you to know something. I could threaten you with the future or scold you for reading my diary, but I wanna say something much more important. After I got that phone call, I remembered my favorite color. It's red. Isn't that wonderful? Something about me, something that I know about myself. Something about me that is entirely mine. My favorite color is red, and my body belongs to me again.

"..." I flipped the page. Nothing. Flipped another. Nothing. Flip, flip, flip, flip flip flip flip flipflipflipflipflipflip. I shut the notebook. Took it carefully in my hands. Then, I straightened my arms. Pulled the diary up over my head, and chucked it into Frisk's closet. Chara leaned back away from me some, shifted their weight onto one wrist and rose their eyebrows at this emotionless display of anger. Pursing my lips, I let my hands drop back to my sides before speaking loudly. "That book sucks and I want a new one!"

Chara scoffed, at least a little amused by me in this grim situation. But, their eyes were tired. What smile they had looked like it took a lot of effort to keep up. Still, they reached out, putting a comforting hand on my shoulder. Then they sighed, glancing over to the notebook that laid sprawled open on its pages on the floor of Frisk's closet. "I, guess it was kind of a long shot to hope they would have wrote Gatherer's plans out in their diary."

"Yeah..." I squinted at the papers I had thrown, frowning lightly. They had stopped logging their thoughts after what had to have been Gatherer's recruitment call - maybe it was to stop leaving evidence. Or, maybe it was because they started writing in their journal to fix themself. And, once they no longer believed they needed fixing, they stopped writing in it. "All that really did was confirm that Frisk hates our guts and really does have a crush on Anny of all people."

"I mean... I, guess we know they weren't always working for Gatherer." Chara let their hand slide off my shoulder. They leaned their weight back on their palms, shaking their head thoughtfully. "That's... Something useful, isn't it?"

"Yeah, now we have it on good faith that they really were trying to get better and my negligence really did drive them away." I stated pessimistically, slouching forward. I stared straight ahead, let my sunken in eyes admire the fascinating wardrobe that they'd abandoned in their closet. Felt like I'd been hearing this song and dancing this dance my entire life. I care about someone but that's not enough. I screw up, and somebody I loved hates me. When was the goal post gonna stop moving? Three years I'd been seeking redemption, and it's never felt further away. I slouched forward, let my stare drift to the floor while I began mumbling. "I should have known they hated this life. I should have thought harder about the promise they were keeping. I should have known, I should have-"

"Angel, mind reading is not one of your powers." Chara stopped me dead in my tracks, looking over to me with a serious frown and a knowing raise of their eyebrows. They were so certain of the words they were saying, of course it caught my attention. It was always so easy for them to get me to listen. "You believed Frisk was okay because Frisk lied and said they were happy. They lied to everyone. They can't spend three years pretending they're happy and then get mad at you for not 'saving' them - that isn't fair to you."

"... Yeah, well... Fair or not, it's what happened." My hands rested on my knees, gripping the fabric of my pajama pants. I appreciated their words, and I knew what they were saying was true... But how could that be right? Everything was always my fault - dramatic to say or not, that was true. Just about every shitty thing that has happened between me, Anny, Xander and Lexi since we got here to Undertale can be traced back and blamed on me somehow. Blaming myself felt like the right answer here. "And now, what? They think Anny's their hero? They're gonna get themself killed clinging to his leg!"

"Frisk is stubborn." Chara patted me on the back, even though they didn't seem particularly happy about their statement. I felt bad - they had to have had their own complex feelings about Frisk's betrayal. I made a mental note to ask them about it while they continued, "They survived Anarchy once, I'm sure they can find a way to do it again."

"... You're not how I thought you'd be." Frisk finally chimed in. It made Anarchy blink his eyes - he'd almost forgotten they were there in the two minutes of quiet between the doorway and here. They were wandering down a long hallway, finished wood floors. Dark color shades on the walls and ceilings - did Xander always like things to look so gloomy? Anarchy wondered what Mako might think of a building like this. She'd probably want to throw pink paints on the walls. Anthony almost smiled, before Frisk reminded him they were there again. "But, then again, I didn't really know what to think."

"I don't know why you thought about me at all." Anarchy responded casually, glancing over to them from his eye's corner. They perked up as he arched a brow at them - why did they always listen so intently when he spoke? "Shouldn't you have been busy kissing Angel's ass or something? Seems like all anyone in that timeline knows how to do."

"Eugh, I know right?" That soured Frisk's expression. Watching that ever present smile fall into a frown made Anarchy's lips curl up some, and he watched Frisk open their eyes just to roll them. Crimson orbs darting to the wall, Frisk buried their hands in their pockets. "Self righteous prick. I was so tired of playing his game - I can't thank you enough for snapping me out of that fantasy."

That got Anarchy's attention. His eyebrows furrowed at their casual statement, absentmindedly reaching out to push open the door that the two of them were approaching with one hand. Quietly he repeated, "Thank me..?"

Without thinking about it, Anarchy held the door open and let Frisk inside. The two of them wandered into a board room, wherein the odor of cigarettes already smoked lingered. Across the room, Xander The Gatherer stood beside doctor Wing Ding Badster in front of what appeared to be some kind of presentation projected onto a screen on the back wall of the room. Frisk, eyes squinted once more, wore a gentle and plastic smile while they stared up at the projection - the outline of an Underground, it looked like. From Ruins to New Home was mapped out, lines darting out from each area and leading to paragraphs of information or, in some cases, sprite art of little characters. Frisk's eyes opened at the sight of these - a Cter and Chara? In Snowdin? And what was with that Cter's dopey grin?

"Ah, Anthony. Frisk. What a surprise." Xander glanced over his shoulder to spot the two of them as they entered the room, nodding his greeting and flashing his perfect smile. He looked back towards the screen, where Badster and Frisk's eyes remained. Anarchy wasn't looking though - his brows furrowed, he was glancing from side to side. His thoughts lagged a minute behind. Thank him? For what, punching them? Why would Frisk thank him? Why would anyone ever thank him for his crusade against Angel? Xander, the man who had called Anarchy a hero, continued. "I'm glad the both of you are here, you'll want to see this."

"Quite a power point you've got here, boss." Frisk stated, eyes hidden in their lids once more while they wandered right up to the projection. They glanced over the little notes. "Swap universe", "Glitched timeline", "Four human souls"... Alphys and Asgore don't belong in the Ruins. What was Gaster doing there at all? Frisk tilted their head, frowning. "This, uh... Isn't right, I don't think."

"It is a separate timeline, one different to the timeline you're from." Badster chimed in, turning his crescent smile towards the traitor. They appreciated his face, could see how fake it was. Badster was an intriguing character - his body was not him. Every part of him was just a cloak that his brain wore. The only real part of the bad doctor was what lurked behind those two dark eye sockets. "Your timeline, Frisk, was originally an 'Undertale' timeline. It was transformed into a 'DoubleTale' timeline three years ago, when Cter The Hacker dropped into Mount Ebott. This timeline here is a 'DoubleScramble' timeline."

"... Un huh." Frisk's frown grew more bored, and they tilted their head the opposite way. Alternate universes, yada yada. Frisk had never been interested in all that existed outside of their timeline, had never really listened when these things were discussed. But, regardless, now they were here. "And, it's important why?"

"This will be the stage of Anarchy's debut." Gatherer assured, hands folded behind his back while he smiled up at the screen before the four of them. Anarchy sauntered up beside him, finally lifting his scarlet gaze to the screen. Reaching up and pulling thoughtfully at his bottom lip, one of his sharp canine teeth was visible while Gatherer elaborated. "Timelines like this one are very rare, which keeps it under the watchful eye of beings like CORE!Frisk and Ink Sans. If we strike here, there is no doubt in my mind that it will garner the attention of everyone we mean to destroy."

"And why aren't we just goin' straight to Angel's timeline, exactly?" Frowning, Anarchy's eyes glossed over from the presentation and to Xander. He did not remove the finger from his lip, instead just pulling down further and revealing his gums without much thought. "S'what I did last time."

"Yes but after your assault on him, Angel has seen to it that firewalls have been put up all around his timeline. The only one who could possibly get back in would be Frisk, as they're a native to the timeline and their code matches it." As Xander explained this, Anarchy's gaze shifted back over to the treacherous tagalong he'd been dealing with since the morning. They looked back over their shoulder to him, and with one of the hands they'd had folded behind their back they reached up and pushed a finger into their cheek while they smiled innocently, striking a little pose. Anarchy just squinted at them, wished they weren't so weird. "So, we must lure him out. And besides, fighting out in the open will give all loose ends the opportunity to rear their ugly heads and be dealt with."

"... Loose ends, huh?" Anarchy finally let his hand drop away from his face. That arm hung limp at his side, and he looked over the words scrawled along this map. Human souls, humans living Underground, an empress and not a king. Didn't matter, these people would die. They were just the battlefield. Embers of life, meaningless things... Briefly, Anarchy thought back to Mako again. His frown deepened, and he turned his head back towards The Gatherer. "Xander, I'm here to kill Angel. Anyone who gets in my way is collateral, but I'm not looking to genocide species and ERASE timelines these days. Don't try to sick me on any spare enemies you got lyin' around."

"I wouldn't dream of it!" Xander assured without so much as flinching. Whether or not he had been prepared to here Anarchy's refusal to help beyond Angel or not, Anthony wasn't sure. Flashing his perfect smile, The Gatherer showed no sign that he was upset by this decree from the higher power in The Anarchist. "Myself and my inner circle will handle anyone who would get in your way, Anthony. You will have Angel all to yourself."

"..." That put the smile back on Anarchy's face. That was what he'd wanted to hear. All these years, and he would be reunited with his best friend again. Once again, the future was laid out in front of him. Strange as all of this was, he was... Getting what he wanted. Those words he'd said, they'd landed. People had heard him when he said he was the hero, people were siding with him. For the first time in his life, someone else looked at him as the hero. People understood that this story was about him, and that Angel was the villain. Validation... What a strange feeling.

"... Alright, Xander. Lay it on me." Anarchy, flashing his fangs in his smile, turned his head back towards The Gatherer. They were all smiles now, Frisk and Badster smiling right with the two DoubleKids. It was a joyous day, after all. The Angel was going to die, striped of his wings and knocked off his pedestal. Good would finally triumph over evil, Anthony The Anarchist would take his rightful place as the hero of this story.

"What's your plan?"

Please Favorite, Follow, and Review.

XWolf26, out