Chapter 3:
Chara and I managed to make it through the next few puzzles effortlessly, but we also did decide to take a stop to the spider bake sale and I picked up a bottle of spider cider, which cost 13 of the 20 gold I'd received and it actually had a cork on it, which I smiled at. It meant that it wouldn't spill, even if I put it in my inventory... but I was also confused at how I could pull up my inventory.
"Hey, Chara?... Another dumb question... how do I put things in my inventory and take them out?" I asked after I got the cider.
"Ugh... you have to put it in your pocket. Then, when you want to get something from your inventory, you reach in and say what you're getting out... but be careful, because if it's a food item you want to take out, you'll need to choose whether or not to eat it or leave it on the ground," Chara said, obviously a bit annoyed.
"Sorry... I may be knowledgeable about certain things from an outsider's perspective... but doing it for myself? It's a bit new to me," I admitted to her as we then finally got to Toriel's house... though I did notice that there was something on the ground to the east. It was a ribbon, one that looked like it had seen better days. And when Chara saw it, she was shocked.
"T-That's the ribbon that belonged to the second human that fell down here... the one immediately after me..." Chara gawked.
"What was their name?" I asked.
"Her name was... Ribbon... be prepared, because a lot of names in this place are puns," Chara said, me smirking at that.
"Yeah, I'm aware of that... like how your name is a take on the word 'Character'," I said, Chara groaning at that.
"So how'd you know I was a girl when we met?" Chara asked.
"Well, two reasons. First, Chara doesn't really sound like a boy's name at all. And second, I can see that you have a developing chest and more feminine features, like most girls of 14 or so," I smiled.
"Well, I'm actually 13... at least, I was when I killed myself... I'm sure you know that story all too well, huh?" Chara frowned.
"I do, so no need to explain it," I smiled at her as I then got to Toriel's house and I saw that she was right by the dead tree and was about to call me, her being surprised when she saw me arrive as I adjusted the ribbon onto my left arm. My hair was in a bob cut, so it wouldn't feel right putting a ribbon in it.
"Oh my! I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly... please, come with me. I have something that I think you'll like," Toriel smiled as she led me and Chara into the house and I knew immediately what it was just by smelling the air inside of the cozy house.
"Butterscotch cinnamon pie, right?" I smiled, Toriel nodding at that with a giggle.
"I had a feeling you'd know that, Indie. Is it your sense of smell?... Or you being vastly knowledgeable about this world?" Toriel asked.
"Both, actually... and by the way, I have a bit of a mission to carry out, which I learned on my way over here when you-know-who actually talked to me directly," I said, Toriel gasping at that.
"B-But how? Shouldn't the world have suffered, then?" Toriel asked.
"Well, it didn't... for two reasons. One, he actually stopped time completely in order to speak with me and Chara... going to be honest, though, it's difficult to translate his Wingding speech whenever he goes into a bunch of monologues... and the second reason, we were in an area that he called a Void Hotspot... it's a specific area where those lost to the Void can be spoken to... I think," I said with uncertainty about the second part. I also did look around the house and I saw it was very intricately detailed. I could see all the little spots that were depicted in the game. The hallway to the east, the dining area to the west, and the staircase to the basement in front of Toriel.
"How curious... I'm still trying to grasp the fact that this world is a different reality... and how your reality says it's a video game..." Toriel said with a shudder.
"Well, believe it or not, there are actually some people in this world with full knowledge about the state of the world being in a game... that flower was one of them," I said, Toriel looking a bit surprised at that.
"Really?... Good thing I came in to save you from him, then!" Toriel said with surprise.
"If you happen to see him again, do not trust a single word he says and don't tell him anything that I've told you. Okay, Tori?" I asked, her nodding at that.
"Of course," she smiled as we then heard a dinging sound and she perked her floppy ears up at that. "Oh! The pie's done cooling off. Come over to the dining area, Indie," Tori smiled, her grabbing my hand and Chara smirking at how Toriel looked at her happily. "I'm also still getting used to seeing you again, my child... how are you still around, but invisible?" Toriel asked in confusion.
"After Asriel and I died in our combined bodies, our souls proceeded to the afterlife, since we didn't have a body to go back to... but my conscious mind still remained in this place, forever trapped behind that cursed barrier... but according to the man who spoke in hands, we can finally put an end to the constant time loops from this thing called 'resets' so long as we do a couple of criteria during this adventure," Chara said, Toriel looking at me with a smile as we sat at the table and I opted for the big girl chair on the right.
"And what would those be?" Toriel asked.
"Well... it's a bit hard to explain, but I have to have it so that everyone Underground has a happy ending... and that means that not only do I have to find some way to destroy the barrier, but I also need to find some kind of method to revive Chara and... well, this is going to be a tough pill for you to swallow... Asriel is still alive in this world, but in a different body," I said, Toriel gasping at that.
"H-He is? My son is alive?! Where is he?" Toriel asked.
"He's well, I'll just go ahead and flat out say it, since he can't hear or see me at all... he's the flower that you saved us from," Chara said, Toriel gasping at that. Geeze, it's a wonder she hadn't had a heart attack yet, given how old she was supposedly. "Here's the story... after Asriel's dust was spread in the garden at the castle, and after the 6 humans before Indie had arrived and gotten their souls taken from Asgore, a woman named Alphys became the Royal Scientist. Asgore asked her to study the nature of souls, to try and find some method of destroying the barrier... by prolonging the lives of monsters," Chara said as Toriel listened more as I then ate a bite of the pie... and it was just as tasty as I'd dreamed it'd be!
"Alphys isolated a substance from the human souls that she called Determination, which is the very substance that makes up mine and Indie's souls, the ones that are red in color. But... after injecting numerous batches of Determination into dying monsters, nothing happened... and Alphys also did experiments by injecting the Determination into some of Asgore's flowers, without his knowledge... and then, one of the flowers gained sentience. Able to be aware of its surroundings, having the mind and consciousness of Asriel himself, but fueled only by Determination and without a soul... without a soul, Asriel feels no emotions. He can't feel happy, sad, scared, or anything... he eventually learned he could come back to life at any point using his Determination, much like how I used to do when I was... alive... to prank Asriel all those times," Chara said, me smirking at that.
"So... it was accidental, you mean?" Toriel asked.
"Asgore had no knowledge of it... but that's only because, after Flowey, as he calls himself, reset his life using Determination, he found that everything he told Asgore was for nothing. He didn't remember a bit... so, Flowey decided to try doing good things. Being nice, offering life advice to the monsters... but he eventually grew tired of seeing the same scenarios over and over again, because he was uncertain what would await him on the other side, since he didn't have a soul, so he kept resetting his life constantly... he eventually found you, but once again, he couldn't feel anything... even with someone as nice as you, he felt nothing... so, Flowey decided to try another, more brutal method... he began to kill monsters, sometimes going for every single one of them before being stopped by another monster until his will got broken... this monster is actually related to the man who shall not be mentioned and has power up the wazoo. So, Flowey just stopped killing and decided to try and let things play out for longer... and that's when Indie showed up," Chara said as she then did something surprising. She forced my soul out of my body on her own. "It's very hard to tell with the color scheme, but Indie's soul is Determination, just shrouded in mystery by her high FUN value. Those things combined are why she's able to see me, allows anyone who touches her to see me, and it also has cut Flowey's powers of Determination. Now he can't reset even if he tried and his powers are at their bare basics, only being reduced to using measly pellets to attack... so we need to find out how to get Asriel back into his original goat form and stay in it... and we have to find a way to revive me from death... but to be honest, we don't know how the heck we're going to do either of those things, right, Indie?" Chara said after a very long and very informative speech.
"Yeah... sorry for not saying much else... I'm just a bit surprised at how long that speech was... I'm amazed that your mom hasn't fainted yet from all this truth bombing," I said, Toriel simply smiling at me as I finished my slice of pie and she cut another piece of it and put it in a to-go container.
"After learning Chara is alive and that... HE... is still around, I think I'm becoming numb to the surprises," Toriel admitted. "Either way, take this and put it in your inventory... and do not take it out until you meet with Asgore... I'll probably never forgive his actions, but he's always a softy for my cooking. If you eat it when you face him, it'll make him lower his guard," Toriel said, me smiling at that.
"You know, Toriel, there is another way we can go about things," I said, her looking at me in confusion.
"What would that be?" she asked.
"Well... how would you like to come with us?... But at a safe distance? Like, we'll go out through the basement and then you'll follow us after about, say, 3 hours have passed by," I said, Toriel looking at me, then at Chara, then at me again.
"I think that's a good plan... at least we can make sure that Asgore doesn't hurt you when we do that," Toriel said, me nodding at that.
"That's the idea... though I will keep the pie in case of emergency. You never know when I'll come across a fight that tests my limits," I smiled widely, Toriel giggling at that.
"Okay, you should go ahead and be off, then... if you need me to wait an extra amount of time, just give me a call on your cell phone, okay?" Toriel said, me nodding at that.
"Of course... well, we'll see you later, mom," Chara smiled as she went to hug Toriel... and I was surprised at how Chara actually was able to touch her so long as I was holding onto Toriel's furry hand. Toriel was also surprised, but I could see tears in her eyes. Happy tears.
"I'll see you soon... Chara... my child," Toriel sniffed as Chara then ended the hug after a good 10 seconds and I then took my hand off of Toriel, ending her ability to see Chara. I then bid my farewell to Toriel and proceeded down through the basement the whole way and through the door... until I saw the flower we were talking about earlier.
"Huh?... This is unusual. Normally you'd be fighting with her by now... did you happen to kill her while I wasn't looking?" Flowey asked with a sinister grin.
"No, I did not. As a matter of fact, I made her quite happy, while also warning her to stay the hell away from you," I said, Flowey looking at me with a bit of a surprised look before he then got mad.
"That's... that's not how you're supposed to do this! That's stupid! YOU'RE STUPID!" Flowey exclaimed.
"No, I'm not stupid. Quite the contrary, actually. I know my way around tough situations. And I refuse to harm anyone down here... now, if you could kindly burrow back under the ground so I can go out that door?" I said in a mocking manner, Flowey growling at me.
"Don't think you're safe for long, bitch. I am the Prince of this world! And in this world, it's kill or be killed. You'll learn that eventually, I'm sure," Flowey smiled before he then cackled happily before then burrowing under the ground and Chara frowning at him.
"Also, just to clarify, he can't see or hear me unless he's in his God of Hyperdeath form at the end of True Pacifist... any other time, I'm unable to be seen by him," Chara said, me nodding at that as I then went towards the door and went through it, wondering how the hell I'd even begin to explain what happened to Sans... would he even believe me? Or would he treat it like a joke, as per his character?