A trip to the movies is harmless, right? Perhaps. But with darkness spreading everywhere, countless unanswered questions, and a stashed weapon… Is anywhere truly safe?

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Chapter 8: The Movie Theater

Chara was silent. Her victory in the closet was really being rained on at the moment. Her eerie smile had turned into a scowl. She didn't like all of this talk about Gaster, especially Papyrus' praise of the monster. Frisk's opinion was pretty clear, and she shared it entirely. The man was a douchebag. If he hadn't gone and done whatever it was that he had done, then none of this would ever have happened. She wouldn't have sealed her fate. She wouldn't have…

Chara violently forced the memories from her head, viciously forcing an image of slicing the infuriating cowboy to pieces into the now empty space. The past was the past. It was dead, and she was going to make sure that it stayed that way. She was going to erase the Underworld, and every single thing that lived inside of it.

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As they made the familiar trek towards the movie theater, Frisk kept her eyes open for Gaster. She did her best to take the same route that she had the last time, though it was difficult with Papyrus striding in his silent, moody way. She didn't worry about it though. His moodiness would disappear as soon as Gaster showed up. Her logic was faulty, considering how he'd been pretty mood afterwards in the last run, but she was too focused on her objective to notice the flaw.

Rather, Frisk was focused on a problem. They were getting close to the movie theater now, and there was absolutely no sign of the monster. Frisk pulled out her pocket watch. 9:50. This was most certainly the time that Gaster had appeared last time, and she was pretty sure this was where he had done so. But there was nothing. Just snow. A shiver ran down her spine, though whether it was from the unnerving situation, or the cold, was unclear.

This wasn't how time travel was supposed to work. Things didn't change like this. Where was Gaster? How was she supposed to find the building if he never bothered to show up? Unless, something she had done had caused him to change his plans. There was also the possibility that he remembered resets. She was pretty sure he wanted her to see what was in Chara's room though. So even if one of those options was the case, it still didn't make any sense. With a sigh, she glanced over at Papyrus.

He'd slowed down and was now humming the tune to The Papyrus Song. He'd mentioned briefly back at the cabin what film that they were going to be watching, and despite everything else going on, Frisk was actually excited to see it. The story was about a crew of monsters who launched a spaceship out of the hole near in the ceiling near The Ruins and journeyed to find a new home in space.

It was another film in a long line of films by the greatest producer/director/actor in all of the Underworld, a robot by the name of Mettaton. About three years before, he had appeared out of practically nowhere. He'd had a small following for years before that, but he hadn't found his niche yet.

Back in those days, he'd been way too self-absorbed to actually make it. Once he'd lost a little of his over confidence, he'd exploded into stardom. Kinda ironic, in a way. At the time of his appearance, he'd been the only star in the Underworld, but he'd inspired countless other monsters. As a result, there were quite a few TV stars now. None of them measured up to Mettaton in fame or skill, and none of them was as loved.

At last, they arrived at the movie theater. Gaster had never appeared, and Frisk was ticked. Why the HECK hadn't Gaster done what he was supposed to do!? The time jumps were one of the only things she'd ever felt like she had any sort of control over. She'd mastered them. She understood how they worked!

Even if somebody else was using it, she knew how to use it to her advantage. But something had gone wrong. She didn't know what. She couldn't think of anything that she could have changed that would have altered Gaster's appearance. She was visibly tense, quickly and repeatedly tapping the back of her fisted right hand against the palm of her left one.

Then there was the question of who exactly had the power, and what he had been doing before the return to the past. What situation could he possibly have gotten himself in that would require something like that? She couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen. Her hand, without even consciously being told to do so, began reaching for her toy knife. She needed a distraction, and quick.

Frisk reached into one of her coat's outside pockets and pulled out her wallet. Then she took out some Gs and tossed them over to Papyrus. "Here. You know what I like. Buy us some snacks, alright? I'll pick up the tickets for Escape to Space." She was a huge Mettaton fan, and had been since day one.

She'd practically dragged Toriel to the theater for his opening premiere, which had been a pretty long trip considering the only theater was in Waterfall at the time. Megan had invited them to stay at her and Alphys' house. Now that had been a good memory. Why couldn't she have more of those kind?

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Chara was enjoying watching Frisk squirm. Unsettled was good, very good. Without it there was no way that Chara could ever hope to break down the heavily armored shield that she'd used to hide herself from the world. She knew who Frisk was supposed to be. Frisk had seen it for a moment too. Frisk spent so much time running from who she was meant to be, trying to forget, trying to run away… But Chara was determined to help her friend.

They were cut from the same cloth. Partners in a shared destiny. No matter how much time it took, Frisk would remember who she was, Frisk the Genocider. Of course, they were going to need a way to bring Frisk's true self back to the surface. A target of some sort… She smirked. "I'm a genius," she thought to herself with a grin. "I just so happen to know the perfect imbecile."

Although she was beginning to grow impatient with her choice not to join the action, Frisk needed to think that this next part of Chara's plan was a realization she had come to. As such, it was imperative that she bide her time before returning. The moment would come. The line of thought she was about to introduce to Frisk's subconscious would ensure that.

"Something is off, and you know who is behind it. You met him at the party that you were never meant to attend. He's been watching you, said as much himself. He remembers everything that you have ever done, and he knows how powerful you truly are. He wants to ensure that you stay weak, an opponent without even a weapon. No LOVE. No XP. An ant warring against an elephant. All the souls disappear except one. You, Red. And now Yellow has come to collect the missing piece. You are in danger, and that means… so is everybody that you know."

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Chara's thoughts registered somewhere deep in Frisk's subconscious mind, but there wasn't anything she could do about it at the moment. So, the thoughts remained in her subconscious mind, festering. Unaware of this, Frisk made her way over to the ticket booth to purchase the tickets.

The cashier was a mouse with a scarf that tended to spend all of his free time wandering around Snowdin looking depressed and being pessimistic. It had never struck Frisk as odd, to be honest. All of the monsters in town were depressed, most just attempted to hide it. It wasn't that surprising that at least one wouldn't bother to do so.

"That'll be 40G…" the mouse said mopily, not really bothering to look up from the cash register. Frisk glanced into her wallet, and grimaced. She was short 10G. It wasn't much, and she most certainly had more at home, but considering that the movie had only been out for a day or so, there wasn't really time to go back home if they wanted good seats. So she simply stood there, feeling foolish.

Papyrus came to her rescue. He strode over to her looking completely bewildered. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, FRISK?" He didn't say it angrily, more as if he truly was unable to comprehend what she had been thinking. "THIS IS A PLATONIC DATE. THAT MEANS, AS ALWAYS, THAT THE GREAT PAPYRUS SHALL BE PAYING FOR EVERYTHING." Then he promptly pulled 40G out of his pocket.

Frisk smiled, blushing ever so slightly, though whether from embarrassment, or for some other reason, remained unclear. She really was distracted today, wasn't she? How could she have forgotten that there was no way Papyrus was going to let her pay for everything? She wondered if he'd realized that she had given him the money to pay for snacks. She chuckled quietly to herself. Didn't really matter either way.

Papyrus marched up to the mouse and boomed, "MY PLATONIC DATE AND I NEED TWO TICKETS TO ESCAPE FROM SPACE BECAUSE METTATON IS AWESOME!" He slammed down the 40G like a boss and simply stood there grinning. The mouse looked up from his cash register for a moment, and the slightest hint of a smile crossed his face. Taking the money, he handed them the tickets.

Papyrus took Frisk by the arm, like a gentleman, and turned towards the movie theater. He escorted her through the ticket register area, to theater room number twelve, and to a seat in the middle of the fourth row. Papyrus didn't say a word as he did walked Frisk, holding himself the way he'd seen gentleman do in movies. He had a massive smile on his face the entire time. As soon as Frisk sat down, he did so as well. Then he broke the silence. "LET THE MOVIE BEGIN!" His booming voice reverberated through the room, but nobody hushed him.

Frisk smiled, finally beginning to feel herself relax for the first time in… She frowned. It was hard to estimate time when one did the same day more than once. She shrugged the frown off as she glanced over at Papyrus. As long as he was being his goofy self, and not his scary unsettling self, it meant everything was fine. She could relax and enjoy a movie with her date… platonically, of course.

The movie started with the logo of Mettaton's personal production company, Leg Productions. Then the scene opened. Mettaton was wearing a brown lab coat, standing in a makeshift laboratory, and looking up proudly at a massive rocket in front of him. The rocket looked… unstable. It wasn't even straight. The likelihood of it actually making it to the hole on Mt. Ebott, let alone space, seemed quite small.

Three other monsters wearing lab coats stood next to him, smiling as well. The only Temmie who lived outside of Temmie Village, and had a name, which was Bob played one of the three. The other two were a muscular seahorse with a horse head, and a strange creature whose body shape resembled a demon. Half the time, its body was covered by a giant eye, but when it closed, two demon eyes and a smirking mouth took its place. Frisk had encountered hundreds of both species in her runs, they were called Aarons and Astigmatisms.

Mettaton looked up at the hole, then over at his three companions. There was the sound of an explosion behind them, and the four companions glanced at the sealed doors behind them warily. "I guess this is it," Mettaton said with gritted teeth. "We're going to have to risk it. Are you guys ready?"

"It's now or never," Bob said, stepping up next to him. "All we can do is hope for the best." The metal door behind them began to crack under the constant pressure. "Let's go,"

Like all Mettaton films, the film was packed with solid choreography, good one-liners, and romance. Bob, Ron, and Dr. Meta each met and fell in love with somebody during their journey, so that the crew grew to seven. In most aspects, it was a great Mettaton film. Unfortunately, there was an unsettling theme running throughout the entire story. The encroachment of humans.

It was revealed rather quickly, with the door to the room shattering open just as the spaceship took off, that they were fleeing from humans who had finally made their way into the Underworld. Dr. Meta and his crew were the only monsters left on earth. Mysterious troubles kept occurring in the spaceship, and the places they were forced to land.

Towards the end, the crew found out that Astigmatism had a human soul, and it had taken control of his body. They were able to bring him down, but not without both Ron and Dr. Meta's lover being killed. Worst, however, was what happened once Dr. Meta's group crash landed on Paradise after the battle. Humans were already there.

When the monsters emerged from the spaceship, they were instantly attacked by humans who were out for blood. The battle choreography was stunning, but it was clear from the beginning that the monsters were outclassed. One by one, they were struck down. Dr. Meta was the last, collapsing to the ground with a sword through his chest.

His last lines were, "I get it now. We were doomed before we even began." The second to last shot was a circle of the battlefield, showing the bloodied corpses of his crew. "There is no escape from humanity." It then cut to the humans, smiling proudly and walking off into the sunset to celebrate.

Frisk gulped. She was used to movies being somewhat anti-human, but this one… took that whole concept to a new level. It implied that there was no escape, and that a fight could be won. It was only a matter of time before humanity wiped out monsterkind once and for all. Watching it, Frisk couldn't help but remember that she was the enemy. No matter what she did, or how she did it, as long as monsters remained underground, she always would be.

Toriel, Sans, Megan, Grillby, and Papyrus watched out for her. And if push came to shove, she could protect herself. She touched the pocket where she hid the toy knife, but instantly pulled it away, ashamed. Considering how tempting it seemed to be, she probably should have left it at the house. She was beginning to feel certain that she would soon regret bringing it along.

For the moment, though… she slipped into the seat and pulled her coat up over her head. Maybe if she left quickly enough, while it was still dark, nobody would realize that she was human. Frisk tugged on Papyrus' arm gently. "Come on Papyrus, let's get out of here. Please." Papyrus looked in her direction, sniffling and attempting to wipe the tears from his eyes. The final scene had pretty much the entire audience bawling, besides Frisk. She'd been too busy watching the screen, horrified. The ending was pretty clearly screaming Genocide Run.

"NO NEED TO HIDE YOUR TEARS BEHIND A HOOD, FRISK. EVEN THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL PROUDLY SHOW HIS TEARS AFTER AN ENDING LIKE THAT. IT WAS AWESOME." He promptly choked up and started bawling again. Then he stopped rather abruptly. He reached over and gently removed the hood from Frisk's head. "You have nothing to fear," he whispered gently to her. "As long as I am here, Frisk, you will never need to hide."

Frisk blushed and gave a genuine smile. He'd completely let his outward appearance go and spoken from the heart. No loudness, no 'The Great Papyrus', straight heart-to-heart communication. For a moment, she considered telling him what was going on, what had been going on for the last five years. But she decided against it. She didn't want him to get wrapped up in her troubles, both for his sake and for her own. She didn't want him to know the terrible things she'd done.

Frisk looked around the room, at all of the bawling monsters. Nobody had moved yet. All just sitting there in a shared mourning. She had a feeling that it wasn't just the events of the film that caused this. It had spoken to a deeper part of the monsters, a truth that all of them had come to accept a long time ago. It was quite impressive how far Mettaton had truly come since her runs.

An image of a bloodied and broken Mettaton crossed her mind, and she had to consciously prevent herself from gripping her heart in pain. That was right… She had tasted his dust… the dust of nearly every monster… including Papyrus. She wanted to run… and a look of terror and panic and darkness came over her face for a moment. She needed to get out of that room, away from the large crowd of monsters.

She breathed in and out, in and out. Forcing her emotions to lower, forcing herself to calm down. As quickly as she was able, she replaced the emotional mask over her face. She glanced back at Papyrus, who was now simply sniffling while watching the other monsters begin to leave. "Thank you," she whispered to him. "For everything."

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Chara had mixed emotions, but one thing was clear. She had enjoyed that film. She had enjoyed that film very much. Stories like that had always appealed to her, even before Gaster's death. It was something that she had spent much of her time trying to teach the monsters of the Underworld, that the humans were dangerous monsters. Ironically, her being a human had seemed to lighten their fears at the time.

This story was one of hers. It was clearly based on a campfire story that she'd told at one of the cookouts that Asgore had put on back when she was still alive. It was rather shocking that it would actually show up as a film several hundred years later, considering how vehemently the monsters had argued against it at the time. It wasn't that they were trying to defend humans as much as they trying to defend their ability to escape from them, however.

Seemed they had changed their minds. "Enjoy the film, Frisk?" She whispered to the subconscious. "Hit a little too close to home? And don't fool yourself. Papyrus can make as many promises as he wants, but we both know how this is going to pan out. In the end, it will be you killing him. And I will be cheering you on.

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Papyrus smiled and took Frisk's arm again. "YOUR VERY WELCOME, MADMOSELLE. LET'S GO PICK UP MEGAN, AND THEN GO ANNOY SANS." He grinned mischievously.

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Things are looking dangerously precarious. Frisk struggles to hold onto her sanity, but the path that she has chosen can only end one way. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. As always, your fanship means a lot to me. Hope to hear from you.

~ Xanatos Stones

(Thanks again for your reviews. ^_^ )