They were going back to the Headmaster's office. It was important they not try to appear where anyone was likely to be, and while the plateau was large enough that was a very unlike problem, Hogwarts rooms were not. Both Sans and Kurt wanted to come with them, to see the reactions of the king and queen. Dumbledore had thought carefully. "There's already going to be enough people that Poppy will be chewing me out," Dumbledore said. "But she's unlikely to have any other patients, so I think she will complain, but that it will be fine."

"That seems fair, thank you Albus," Kurt said. He went first, with Sans, Neville, Harry, Ron, and Ginny with him. They took hold of the red flying disc and vanished from view.

"We'll give them a couple minutes to clear the office before we return ourselves," Dumbledore explained. "Or it will be very crowded in my office."

"Headmaster," Hermione said. "I thought you couldn't apparate or disapparate from inside Hogwarts. I remember reading it in 'Hogwarts: a History'. Does a portkey get around that somehow?"

"Ah, most of the time, it would not. But you must understand, headmasters have been known to make exceptions to the rules from time to time. In important situations like this, for example." He winked at her. "It's one of the lesser known perks of being in charge of the school."

Asriel was still standing in the sunlight, looking out into the world, just as his parents had when they'd first been released from the barrier. "I never thought I'd see this. I thought I was going to be a flower forever."

Frisk just smiled. "We always were going to find a way. I know what I promised, but I would have never forgotten. I hated leaving you behind." They stood, just watching the world for a few more minutes, until Dumbledore said it was safe for them to depart.

Frisk tugged at Asriel's sleeve. "Let's go. I don't think we're done with the miracles today." Allowing the monster to lean on her, they waited for Dumbledore to count them down, and took their own portkey back to the office.

The office was empty of everyone except Fawkes, sitting on his perch, and Sans, who had stationed himself on top of the stairway. "didn't want to get too far in front of you," he said, "didn't want to scare any students out of their skin."

"Very wise of you, Sans," Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling. "I assume everyone else has headed down to the hospital wing?"

"yep," Sans said. He drew up the hood on his jacket, covering his skull.

"Ms. Granger?" Dumbledore said as they left, addressing Hermione, "I believe I will need Professor McGonagall's assistance in our last task today. Would you kindly go to her office and ask her to meet us?"

Hermione nodded, turning the other way from the grand staircase, while the rest of them headed towards the hospital wing.

When Asriel saw the beds, he was confused. "Why are we here?" he asked. "My parents aren't here," he said, looking around. The others from the mountain were there, including Mr. Kairos, but they were all standing back. They were watching Madam Pomfrey perform a charm on someone lying on the only occupied bed.

"Is that it, Poppy?" Dumbledore asked as he rounded out the procession into the hospital wing.

"Yes," Madam Pomfrey said. She looked up, appearing uncomfortable with all of the people invading her workspace. She looked at Sans with momentary shock. "Is that a student?" she asked, horrified. Then she must have seen the eyelights. "Or is that one of Frisk's friends? She's told me about them," she said, shaking her head.

Sans just grinned at her.

"But headmaster, this child is, as far as I can tell, dead. There's nothing I, or anyone else, can do to help her. Her soul has moved on."

Asriel looked up. "Who are you..." he stepped to the side, seeing the person on the bed for the first time. "Chara?" he asked. He tried to run to his fallen friend, but for the third time in the hour, he tripped, face planting on the stone floor. "Ow."

"Oh," Madam Pomfrey said, "You poor thing." She reached down, helping Asriel back to his feet. She held onto him, as Asriel struggled to reach out to his friend. "She's not going anywhere, here. You should lay down, I think. Or at least sit on a bed."

Asriel was about to protest, looked up at Madam Pomfrey's face, and decided against it. He climbed on the neighboring bed, looking across the space between them. "It is Chara," he said swallowing. "Did you bring her soul back, too?" he asked, "Like you brought mine?"

"Asriel has guessed correctly," Dumbledore said, holding out the bottle that contained Chara's damaged soul. Madam Pomfrey stared at it. "For whatever reason, this girl's soul did not move on. We have brought it here." He looked directly at Frisk, and his face was grave. "To attempt to reconnect the soul to the body, though I do not know what will happen next. It is likely we only will have one chance."

Hermione came in through the door, and following her was Professor McGonagall.

"Excellent timing, Minerva," Dumbledore said. "I think this is going to take all three of us if we are to help young Chara here."

McGonagall observed Asriel, watching from the bed, and gave Frisk a small smile. "I see you have retrieved young Mr. Dreemurr," she said. "Congratulations." She turned back to the headmaster. "How will we be doing that?"

"The rennervate charm, I think," Dumbledore said. "It is a guess, but it is my best one. Poppy, is there anything we should be ready to do, in case this does work?"

"If I understood your note, she poisoned herself with buttercups. I've repaired the acid damage to the throat before you came. So I think a bezoar would do the trick." She walked to the cupboard, withdrew an ugly looking lump, opened Chara's mouth, and placed it on the tongue.

"Very good. Come here, Frisk," he handed the jar to Frisk, and withdrew his own wand. "When Frisk gives the signal, I would like all three of us to cast the spell simultaneously. Are we in agreement?" Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall nodded, each of them drawing out their wands. "Go ahead Frisk," Dumbledore said.

Frisk walked next to, and reached over Chara's body, and opened the jar. Her heart was in her throat. This needed to work. The broken soul floated free for a moment, up and down, before descending into the body, vanishing from view. Frisk silently looked over to Dumbledore and nodded, retreating to the edge of the room. Around her, Ginny, Opal, Neville, Luna, Stephen, and Ron, all of whom had risked their souls to bring back Asriel, as well as Harry, Hermione, Sans, and Kurt, watched as the two professors and professional healer raised their wands. Asriel was sitting up, staring at Chara, as if willing her back to life with his stare alone.

"On three then," Dumbledore said, and together he, Professor McGonagall, and Madame Pomfrey pointed at the unmoving body. "One, two, three," he counted. "Rennervate!" they said together, and three beams of red light struck Chara's body.

Chara's body spasmed, swallowing the beezor, and for a moment, Frisk was convinced Chara was moving on her own. Then the moment passed. Frisk looked up desperately at Dumbledore, her eyes pleading.

"One more time," Dumbledore said without acknowledging Frisk. "On three. One, two, three. Rennervate!" Chara's body spasmed again.

This time, the sound of her breathing filled Frisk with determination.

But after about a minute, something was clearly wrong. "She still looks so pale," Hermione said. After another few seconds, the breathing stopped, and Chara's soul did not reappear.

"No," whispered several of the students. Frisk could feel Ginny's hand on her shoulder, squeezing it for support. Asriel still sat, shell shocked.

But it was Madam Pomfrey who took it the worst. "Her blood. It wasn't in circulation enough to distribute the beezor around the body. "She needed a blood replenishing potion. It should have worked, and it's my fault," she collapsed onto the floor, burying her hands face into her hands, and sobbing.

If that was all it would take, Frisk could fix it. She closed her eyes, remembering exactly how she felt the moment she heard Chara's breathing, and she would go...

Chara isn't worth it!

The unbidden thoughts that entered her mind broke Frisk's concentration. But she was not going to be deterred. Not here, not now. She closed her eyes again, and focused on that exact moment in time, and she would...

Chara... I'm, I'm not worth it!

Frisk's eyes popped open as her concentration failed her again. "Everyone... everyone is 'Worth it'," she whispered, softly enough that nobody heard her.

You don't know what I did. I tried to take control of Asriel's body. To make him hurt people. I didn't care about humanity. I didn't care about myself. I only wanted monsters to destroy them all. How could anyone who knows what I tried to do forgive me?

"At that moment," Frisk whispered, "you may have been the worst person in the world... but you can change! You have changed, this whole time you were with me. In the underground, telling me how to make friends with the monsters, with Buckbeak, the hippogriff, and with Neville, asking not to leave him. You have changed! I know what you did. And I forgive you. I forgive you." Her voice had gotten somewhat louder, though no one was looking at her yet; they were too focused on Madam Pomfrey's sobs.

I killed myself. Her son died because of me. She went to live alone because of what I did. Mom... Mom would never forgive me.

"Mom," Frisk repeated, "Mom keeps a chocolate bar in the fridge. It's got your name on it, just in case, somehow, you come home! Mom would forgive you, she just wants her daughter to come home." And people were looking at her in confusion now, as the tears of two souls were streaming down her cheeks.

I got his son killed. Dad ordered people to die because of what I did. I made his wife leave him. Because of me, Dad tried to kill you. Dad would never forgive me.

"Dad," Frisk said, and her voice was bordering on hysterics, "I think he knows what you did, and Dad blames himself. For putting too much pressure on you. He just wants to see Asriel, and you, again. You heard what they said. They both miss you. Dad would forgive you."

And Asriel, Asriel knows everything. You remember what he said! I am not a very good person. You are the friend he wanted, the one he deserves Frisk. Not me. Not me, not at all. Asriel would never forgive me.

Frisk's head snapped up and she stepped forward. "Asriel!" she said, no longer caring who heard her. "She needs to hear it. She needs to hear it from you. Do you forgive Chara? You know what she did. Can you forgive her?"

"Frisk," Ginny said, trying to take Frisk's arm. "Chara's dead. She can't hear anything anymore. It's... it's alright."

But Frisk shook Ginny off. "Asriel! She needs to hear it from you! Do you forgive her?"

Asriel stared at Frisk. Then he reached up, his hand searching for something around his neck that wasn't there. "Chara was my sister," Asriel said. "My best friend. And I forgive her. I forgive her for everything."

For a moment, there were no foreign thoughts in Frisk's mind, and Frisk went back.

"Rennervate!" said Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and Madam Pomfrey together. Chara's body spasmed a second time, and she began to breath.

After several seconds, Ron spoke up. "You're right Hermione, she does still look pale."

Hermione stared at him. "I didn't say that Ron, I was thinking it... but how did you know that?"

"Hey," Harry said. "Where'd Frisk go?"

Frisk had torn her way to the supply cabinet, climbing dangerously up the shelves to reach a red bottle on the top shelf.

"Asriel!" Opal said, alarmed, "You should be sitting down still!"

Asriel had gotten out of his bed, staggering on his feet. Opal hurried forward, letting Asriel lean against her body. "She needs to hear it," he said. "She needs to hear it from me." He took Chara's still hand in his paws. "Chara?" he asked, tears beginning to mat the fur under his eyes, "Chara? Are you there? Please say you're there. It's me! It's your brother... it's your best friend. It's Asriel... and I forgive you! Hold on, please! I can't lose you again! Please hold on!" Tears continued to stream down his face.

Frisk ran back to the side of the bed, clutching the red bottle, and fumbling with the stopper.

"A blood replenishing potion," Madam Pomfrey said, "Of course! I'll handle the mouth, Frisk, pour in the potion. Not the entire thing, she's not an adult!"

Frisk's hands were shaking, but she got enough of it into Chara that the healer told her to stop. There was silence for another few seconds, and color began to slowly return to Chara's cheeks. Only then did she step back, and realize Dumbledore was staring at her. Sans was looking at her as well, but his hands were in his pockets, and he gave her a wink.

"Such rosy cheeks," Madam Pomfrey said, "I hope we didn't use too much potion, Frisk. I'd hate to have to bleed her after all this."

Frisk felt a gentle tugging on her soul. It was something that had been with her a long time now. Something ready, and finally able, to leave her. To go home.

Thank you, Frisk. For my brother. For everybody and everything... and for me.

"Please hold on," Asriel whispered again. Then his mouth dropped open in shock.

Chara had opened her eyes, and had grabbed his paw in her own hand. "It was a bad plan, Asriel, it was a bad plan, and..." she stopped, looking around the cluster of people on the bed. "Where am I, and who are all these people? What happened?"

Dumbledore stepped back, clapped his hands, and called a name. With a crack, a small creature that Frisk didn't recognize appeared at his side. He leaned down, speaking to him quietly. The small creature nodded eagerly, and disappeared again. Professor McGonagall began to speak to him in low tones.

But Frisk wasn't paying attention. "This is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. My name is Frisk Dreemurr."

Chara stared at her, then at Asriel. "Hogwarts is above ground. The barrier's broken?"

"Yes," Frisk said. "It has been. Monsters are on the surface now." She began to detail how that had happened, but she didn't get far before Dumbledore interrupted her.

"You may want to save that, Ms. Dreemurr," he said, his eyes twinkling. "After all, most people don't like to repeat themselves."

"What?" asked Frisk, turning toward him in confusion.

If he had been hoping that someone was going to walk through the door right after he said that, he was disappointed. His timing was a bit off. It was another three or four minutes before the door was opened, and that same small creature escorted in Toriel and Asgore Dreemurr. Everyone not named Frisk backed away, giving them a chance to see the children waiting for them. Toriel and Asgore looked petrified, still expecting to hear something tragic had happened to Frisk.

For about about the span of two heartbeats, there was absolute, perfect, silence.

"Mom, Dad," whispered Asriel.

"Asriel?" said Toriel. She stood, dumbfounded, staring at her son, her large green eyes wider than cinnamon and butterscotch pie plates.

"Chara..." said Asgore, staring, open mouthed, at the first fallen child.

Then they raced forward toward the beds, everything else, and everyone else, forgotten, to hold the children they thought consigned to their memories. Frisk looked around, confirming there was not a single dry eye in the entire hospital wing. Even Dumbledore wasn't immune, taking out a large handkerchief, and dabbing his eyes behind his spectacles.

One by one, the other students filed out. They were content to know that they'd been part of something truly special. Perhaps a miracle. Mr. Kairos, Professor Dumbledore, Sans, and Professor McGonagall all left as well. Even Madam Pomfrey retreated to her office, closing the door, content to leave the Dreemurrs to have their reunion in private.

Frisk had started to back away herself, feeling uncomfortable, but Chara had looked her right in the face and asked, "Where does my sister think she's going?"

"Get over here, Frisk," Asriel demanded.

Asgore and Toriel both turned toward her, and for the first time, the Dreemurr family had a hug with all members present, and accounted for.

It would not be the last.

A/N: About half to two thirds of this chapter has been written for a very long time. When I told it to myself, on one of my long evening walks, I had to stop, because I was crying. That's how I knew I got it right. It's been a long road, and it's not quite over yet.