Core Issues: Season Five
By Nicolle
Disclaimer: Undertale belongs to Toby Fox. Gaster!Sans is the the creation of Borurou/NatNat PrinceTale belongs to SoraldelSol. Further disclaimers will appear as necessary on each chapter. This fic is copyright to me.
Note: This story is rated T for language, suggestive jokes/themes, and violence.
Prologue: PrinceTale
"I just want to understand what you're doing with your life."
Chara adjusted the phone, and resisted the urge to growl in annoyance. "I'm living the life that makes Frisk and I happy. Aren't the grandchildren enough for you?"
His mother sighed into the phone. "It's not about that. Listen, Charles, you and Franchesca are the best dimensional physicists in the world! Why in God's name would you choose to raise sheep on a mountain in the middle of nowhere? What did I send you to school for if you aren't going to use the degree?"
Chara stared out the window at Mt. Ebott and the flock of sheep that roamed the pastures on it. "Last I checked, I was the one who chose that program and paid for that degree. Not you. What I choose to do with it is my business and mine alone. Now unless you have something to say to me that's actually important, I have better things to do than listen to you berate me for not providing you a life of luxury."
Before he could hang up on her, he heard her gasp as the phone was pulled out of her hand.
Chara sighed, a relieved. "Greetings, Dad."
"Sorry about that, kiddo. You know how she gets."
Chara nodded. He would never, ever, say that he didn't love his mother. He loved her a lot. That doesn't mean he was blind to her flaws. In that way, he was glad he took after his father. When Chara had told him what he and Frisk intended to do with their lives, he'd nodded appreciatively, and sat down with AutoCAD to design a house and farm buildings to fit their needs. Chara's father, a highly respectable architect, was a mountain man at heart. And he envied his son and daughter in law a little.
"How's Frisk?"
"She's alright." Chara looked over at her as she poured out tea, baby Benjamin slung to her chest. "A little baby crazy."
Frisk stuck her tongue out.
"And the grandkids?"
"Julia's finished her schooling for the year and Noah is being a little piss ant. So the usual there. Asriel called me 'Dad' yesterday."
"I told you he'd come around to it eventually. Especially after he started calling Frisk his mom. How are you doing?"
"Good. Are you coming by next week?"
"Yeah. I've got some drafts for you and Frisk to look at. Are you sure you want to move the yarn spinning on premises? It means hiring more people."
Chara sighed. "I'd rather deal with people I trust up close than worry about my supply chain when I ship my wool out. The last batch came back the wrong size and mixed with fiber that didn't come from my sheep. That's a huge allergen and quality issue."
"I got ya. See you soon, kiddo. Love ya."
"Love you too, Dad."
Chara hung up and shoved the phone in his back pocket. Frisk handed him a cup of tea and he took a sip, looking out the back window of the wool shed. Though shed wasn't a fair assessment of the place. The wool shed was twice the size of the barn and the barn was made to fit 200 sheep and any associated lambs. A long, two story building painted with a massive, super colorful mural on each side, the wool shed was where they dyed, dried, separated into hanks or skeins, labelled, and shipped off their yarns to retailers or direct buyers.
They had a part time wool painter, a high schooler named Abigail who would sit with Frisk and paint unique colorways into one line of yarn. They had two full time wool dyers; Sarah, who was Abigail's mother, and Brandon, both of whom were also responsible for hanking and labelling when the yarn dried. Matt came in every other day to do the accounting and send out the shipping. For the flock, they had Sophia, who was the biggest woman Chara had ever seen, a literal amazon as tall as Undyne, as a full time shepherd, and Declan, a true shepherd boy, who watched the sheep on the weekends.
It was Saturday evening and the shed was quiet but for Frisk, Chara, and baby Benjamin. Everyone else was home for the weekend and the kids down the mountain at the Ackerman Farm to play with friends for the afternoon. Frisk could just make out Declan out the back window, sitting in the upper paddock with a group of lambs and their Australian Shepherd Hound, Snacker.
Frisk put her arms around Chara's waist, hugging him lightly from behind to keep from squishing the baby. "So what's this about me being 'baby crazy?'"
Chara put his tea down on the table and turned around to hold her. "You tell me." He lifted his chin so he was looking down his nose at her. "You're the one who keeps jumping me at night, and riding me like a pony."
Frisk lifted her nose, eyes closed with mock indignation. "It's not my fault you're good in bed."
Chara snorted. "One, thank you. Two, that was nice turn around. Just placing it all on me." He tickled her sides and got a giggle as she tried to twist away. "You are seriously determined to have another baby."
She gasped a bit before getting her breath back, gripping Chara's shoulders. "Oh please! We just had Benjamin! Or are you saying you don't want anymore kids?"
Chara smiled, hugging her close. "No. If all we manage is Julia, Noah, Asriel, and Benny, I'm happy. If we have one or five or even ten more, I'm happy."
Frisk rolled her eyes. "You weren't happy this morning when they were running all over the house."
Chara shrugged. "Yeah. They need to not do that. But that's the price I have chosen to pay for my happiness."
She put her arms around my neck. "So all of life is suffering?"
"Yes. And anyone who says otherwise is trying to sell you something." He leaned over and kissed her nose. "But in life, you get to choose how you suffer. People who actively avoid the choice and don't take responsibility do great impressions of my mother. They're always looking for a quick fix and the next high to keep the suffering away. And then you get the people like my dad. He knew what he was getting into when he married mom. He chose his suffering and took responsibility for it."
Frisk gave him a sly smile. "And is that what you are doing with me?"
"It works both ways, Frisky-bits. Either of us could have chosen to have a nice, cushy job in an office staring at a computer all day. Instead, we chose to live knee deep in sheep shit. And ten years on, I am still very happy with that decision." He pulled her hips against his. "And apparently you're happy with it too."
Frisk smiled and went up on her toes to rub her nose against his for a minute before settling into a hug. Chara sighed, content.
When Chara had started uni, it was just him. No one else. He would have a mountain home, raise his sheep, and not need to have real human contact with anyone unless it was on his terms.
And then this girl took the seat next to him in the back of the classroom. He hadn't paid any attention to Frisk until the instructor called on her to elaborate on a subject. Quick as a snake, she'd grabbed Chara's hand, holding onto him for dear life while she gave the most brilliant and elegant response he'd ever encountered in all of my studies on dimensional folding. When the instructor had finally finished staring at her, dumbfounded, and turned to explain to the class exactly how exquisite her response was, she noticed that she'd been holding his hand and dropped it with a red faced apology. Chara remembered smiling a little and asking her if she wanted to study together at the library later.
That was twelve years ago.
Watching the little world he'd planned for himself expand to include not only another person, but three demanding children was easier than anticipated. To suddenly include the goat prince of all monsters and his associated caretakers was a rougher transition, but one that still made some strange kind of sense. As the family grew, so did Chara's heart. It'd been an unexpected, but welcome course of events.
That wasn't to say it was all roses and sunshine.
No. Cross that out. Roses and sunshine described it exactly. Roses had thorns and children could be thorny little jerks when they wanted to be. A trait they got specifically from their father. Thank goodness they mostly took after their mother.
Speaking of children, Chara spied Asriel and Julia out the south window. They came up the path pulling Julia's red wagon behind them. The wagon had to be heavy with the big milk can weighing it down, even empty it was a workout to haul around, but with Asriel helping, they brought it up like it was nothing. Noah ran up past them, carrying a small, canvas bag full of something, while Mrs. Ackerman walked along with them. Undyne and Sans both followed behind, both having relaxed quite a bit since leaving the pocket dimension they'd been trapped in for so long. Frisk caught Chara's look and they left the break room in the wool shed to meet the kids outside.
"Hey, Carol!" Frisk called, waving.
Mrs. Ackerman gave Frisk a hug before planting a kiss on the baby's cheek. "Hello, Honey-Girl. Ju-Ju and Azzy's got eggs, onions, garlic, carrots, and some lemons in the wagon. Noah has leafy greens in the bag." She handed Frisk a wine bottle. "And here's a bottle from the first batch of the blackberry wine."
"Have you tried any yet?" Chara asked.
"Bill and I popped a bottle yesterday and…" She shivered with a smile. "Oh, I'll be making more this summer!"
Chara nodded toward the house. "Come on. I've got some lamb for you."
Chara liked Carol and Bill Ackerman. They were a lot like him and Frisk. They just wanted a home in the middle of nowhere to have their poultry farm and the lower parts of Mt. Ebott were perfect for that. They had four rugrats, the youngest being romping pals with Julia and Noah, and the oldest two being teens. Together, they'd managed a nice little cooperative arrangement in which they traded food stuffs and childcare.
Chara opened the door and hefted the milk can, carrying it inside. Bess, their dairy cow, produced around seven gallons of milk every day, which was way more than they actually needed. They traded most of it with the Ackerman's for eggs. Because Chara was not going to deal with chickens. In his own words: 'The feathered assholes can stay off of my nicely kept property. The damn things destroy whatever land you give them.'
Lamb, cheese, cow's milk, and some goat's milk exchanged for the Ackerman's produce, Frisk settled in to making dinner, and Chara settled in to getting the kids bathed.
The next morning, Frisk yawned and stretched, rolling over to place her feet on the floor as she sat up. It was early, but not too early. The sun was just starting to peak over Mount Ebott and soon its rays would reach down the mountain side, over the many paddocks, and down to the low, ranch house she called home. Chara slept peacefully, baby Benjamin tucked into the crook of his arm. For just a few moments, the world was quiet.
Frisk stood, running her fingers through her hair to straighten and untangle any knots. Stopping for a moment to check her figure in the mirror. She pinched her side, frowning at the last bit of baby weight that was refusing to budge. Not that Chara minded. He never minded that sort of thing at all. She wondered sometimes if he'd even noticed that time had gone by and she'd gotten older.
Tummy grumbling, she headed out of the bedroom and down the hall for the kitchen. Julia slept in the room on the right, Snacker laying at the bottom of her bed. Noah and Asriel shared the room on the left. Asriel had lost his parents to murder at too young an age and had attempted to shoulder the responsbilities of rulership while still only a child by human standards. But a year with a real family had seen him slide back into being a normal child for his age. Which had been a huge relief for Dr. Gaster, who'd been doing his best to fill in. A few weeks past, he'd started calling Frisk 'Mom.' Yesterday, he'd called Chara 'Dad.'
Undyne had smiled sadly when she'd heard it. As much as the fish woman was happy to see her sovereign living a much more normal life, she still ached at the loss of Asgore and Toriel. Seeing their son call someone else dad was bittersweet at best. Speaking of the captain, Frisk didn't see her at her normal spot in the kitchen, meaning that she'd gone for a swim in the pool. Looking around the living room, she didn't see Sans, and supposed he was napping on the deck.
Making herself some tea, Frisk gazed out the kitchen window, watching the world fill with light. She was particularly proud of it. Mount Ebott lived in a state of perpetual dimensional folding, different parts of the land turned back in on itself or stretched so as to make paddocks larger or keep wandering sheep and children from walking off a cliff. The folds were imperceptible to the untrained eye, but a sunrise or sunset would reveal them in a heartbeat, the light being trapped in the folds. To have the sun rise over the land and have it look as if nothing were the least bit out of sorts took a special sort of genius with dimensional folding. And as amazing as Chara was at it, this… This was Frisk's work.
Her 'Artist's Hand' as Chara called it.
The sound of baby Benjamin smacking his lips hit her ears and her breasts suddenly felt too full. She grimaced at the sudden let down and headed back the hall for her baby boy. Sighing a little, she lifted her shirt before lifting the baby from her husband's arm. In a well established routine, Frisk tapped the baby's upper lip and his mouth opened wide to latch. After checking his nose to be sure he could breath, she stepped softly back to the kitchen to relax with her tea, Benjamin's tiny hand resting against her breast.
Looking out the window, she saw Sans in his blue hoodie, looking over one of the dimensional folds in the lowest paddock. He walked over to another fold, looking it over and nodding his skull. She watched him until Benjamin finished nursing on both sides. Lifting the baby to her shoulder, she patted his back, feeling his hiccup-like burp. Slipping on the baby sling, she placed Benjamin in it securely before sliding on her shoes and stepping outside.
The morning was warm with summer's heat, the grass dewy. The sound of water splashing meant Undyne was doing laps in the pool. Walking around the house, Frisk saw Sans looking up at the sunrise appreciatively, watching the light spread over the mountain.
"*you did this, right? the folding?"
Frisk gasped and stepped back. "You aren't Sans."
She looked around and saw Sans, unconscious in a heap against the wall of the barn, his hoodie in tatters. Frisk made to run and a circle of bones enclosed her, trapping her as she clasped Benjamin tightly to her chest.
The skeleton monster turned to her, one eye glowing an ominous yellow. "*you'll be coming with me."
As the world around her came apart into a black void, Frisk squeezed her eyes shut. "Chara!"