Frisk's eyes flutter open as the smell from a warm pie reaches her. She looks to her right and sees a slice of pie on a plate, sitting on the floor. She sits up and looks around the room, then looks down at herself. She's been tucked in, and the room has been tidied a bit more than it was when she first arrive. She gets out of the bed, then grabs the pie. It's still warm. The smell of cinnamon hits her the strongest, but there's another scent she can't quite place her finger on. She walks out of the room with the pie.

"Need a fork." She mumbles as she walks through the quiet house. She decides to follow the way that Toriel had gone before, and when she walks into the next room she finds Toriel, sitting in a rocking chair, reading a book. She smiles as Frisk.

"Hello, my child. I'm glad to see you're awake. You've slept for so long that I was getting a bit worried." Frisk smiles.

"Sorry. I was just really tired. This is kind of exhausting, you know?" Toriel stands.

"Yes. You've certainly been through a lot. Tell me, why are you carrying your pie around?" Frisk looks at the pie.

"Oh, I need a fork."

"Oh! I forgot!" Frisk smiles.

"It's alright. Where's the kitchen?"

"It's through that doorway." Toriel holds her hand out towards a doorway on the right. "Once you get your fork I can read you a story while you eat your pie." Toriel sits back down as Frisk walks to the kitchen. She sees the rest of the pie is sitting on the counter. It's twice the size of pies she's used to.

"Wow…" She walks up to the counter and sets down her piece. Then, she begins opening drawers, until finally she finds a fork. She grabs it and sticks it in her pie, then looks around the kitchen in more detail. "The stove is clean… She must use fire magic to cook. This looks brand new." She grabs her pie. "This is… It's really nice." She smiles and walks back out. "Okay, Tor… er… M-mom." Frisk's voice gets quiet quickly. Toriel smiles at her.

"Come sit down over here and I'll read you a story, my child." Frisk nods and sits in front of Toriel. As she begins to eat her pie, she listens to Toriel read the book, and her mind drifts off with the words.


Frisk watches a couple of loox as they stare at each other. Their stares are intense, and neither blinks. Their eyes begin to water, until, finally, one of them blinks.

"Greg is the winner!" Frisk shouts. "Sorry Lolo."

"He's gonna pick on me now!" Lolo shouts.

"Nah. Greg is a good sport, right?" Greg nods, though that means his whole body moves.

"I won't pick on you, Lolo."

"Frisk!" Frisk looks to see Toriel at the door to the house.

"Sorry, I've gotta go. See you guys later." She runs inside. "What's up, mom?"

"I've prepared some lunch. I thought you might be getting hungry." Frisk smiles.

"Yeah. Lunch sounds great. Can I eat outside though?"

"Well…" Toriel looks at Frisk and sighs. "Okay, okay." Frisk follows Toriel into the kitchen and takes a sandwich and some salad on a plate off the counter. She then grabs a fork and heads outside, munching on her salad as she looks for a place to sit. She walks around the front of the yard, then she looks back at the house.

"I don't wanna go inside…" She mumbles. "I hate being stuck inside…" She sees some rocks behind the house. "Perfect." She walks to the back of the house, but before she sits down she spots a break in the trees. "Hm?" Frisk sets her sandwich down and squeezes between the house and the tree line. On the other side of the house is a tall plank of wood, it almost looks like it's part of the house. The gap between the trees and the house is also bigger. When she reaches the gap she sees a long, dark tunnel of trees, with a small twinkle of light at the end. "Is… Is that… The… The outside…" Images of the beach and the city and mountain fill Frisk's mind. "This is the way to the rest of the world, outside the forest…" She simply stands there, staring at the light at the end of the tunnel. She then looks to the side. "Mom… Why didn't she ever show me this?" She looks down the tunnel one last time before she makes her way back to her sandwich. She doesn't bother with it though. Instead, Frisk runs back inside, to Toriel. "Mom!"a

"Frisk? What's wrong?" Toriel, who is cleaning in the kitchen, turns to see Frisk.

"Mom! Why didn't you tell me there's a tunnel leading out of the forest?" Toriel freezes. "I could go see the rest of the world! I… I wanna see what else there is, and meet all those other monsters out there! I…"

"I must… I must go do something. Please, stay here." Toriel walks out, and at first Frisk does stay there. However, when she hears the front door open, she frowns.

"This… Can't be good." She runs after Toriel. "Mom!"

"Go back, my child! I won't allow another child to suffer because of my weakness." Frisk continues to follow her around the opposite side of the house from the rocks.

"No! Mom, what are you doing? Mom? Toriel!" Frisk shouts, but Toriel doesn't respond. She grabs the plank of wood and looks back at Frisk, tears in her eyes.

"Please, my child, go back. Too many times before I've allowed you children to go beyond my home, and each time Asgore has ended their lives."

"Wh-what are you talking about?" Toriel drops the wood.

"I'll fell so many of those trees that there will never be found another means by which to leave. I… I won't ever allow you to be hurt!"

"Stop it!" Frisk shouts, surprising Toriel. She turns and looks at Frisk rather than walk into the gap. "Please, you… You can't do that! There's a world out there! I don't want to leave forever, but… But I can't be expected to just stay here when I know I can go and meet so many other people and see so many other things. There's an ocean! I've only ever heard stories about that! There's a city, and it looks so much better than the one I know. I…" Frisk and Toriel both have tears in their eyes. "Please, mom… I know it sounds selfish, but I've been wanting so much to go see more of the world."

"I…" Toriel looks towards the tunnel, then back at Frisk. "My child… If… If you are determined to leave me, then… Then I must test you. Prove to me that you are strong enough to survive in the world out there!" She holds her hands out and fire forms in them. Frisk takes a step back. "If you run back inside then I'll forget all about this. Please, my child, just… give up." Frisk grits her teeth.

"No!" She shouts. "I'm not going to back down now. I… I'm strong enough to survive out there." More fire appears around Frisk, and it all swarms at her. Frisk drops to the ground, below the flames that are flying at her.

"Fight! Prove your strength!" Frisk jumps to the side and avoids a wall of fire.

"I won't fight you! I don't want to hurt anyone!" Frisk shouts. Toriel hesitates, but then she continues her attack. Fire wall after fire wall shoots out from Toriel, and after the fifth wall, Frisk finds herself up against the house, unable to dodge. She's hit by the fire, and she can feel her skin and clothes burning. She bites her lip so hard it bleeds.

"F-Frisk!" Toriel once again hesitates. However, Frisk doesn't stand down. She shakily continues to face Toriel. "Why… You could be happy here. You've been happy here. Frisk… My child…" A few tears roll down her face.

"I…" Frisk grits her teeth. "I've spent all my life being bullied, and cramped, trapped in that crowded house with all the other throwaways… Now that… I'm happy, you're right, but…" She smiles. "I… Have never been so desperate to live my life than when I thought I was really gonna lose it. I… Can't stop here. I can't just say good enough. The moment I saw the beauty of this world… I knew I had to go and see it all. And…" She trails off. "Well, that part isn't as important."

"My child…" Toriel's fire once again comes down, but it doesn't hit Frisk. "You…" Toriel sniffles.

"Please, understand, I don't hate you. I'm not going to fight you either. I… I just want to go forward, see more, learn more, do more… Please, Toriel."

"You don't understand! You're the eighth child to come out here. Your… Your life will be lost if you go out there, just like all the other children!"

"It won't." Frisk smiles. "I believe in that. I've learned through my short time in this forest that I'm capable of so much more than I ever knew."

"Child, you…" Toriel's arms drop. "You don't even understand why this world is so cruel to you young ones… You won't listen to me even if I explain, will you?" Frisk shakes her head. "I… Come here, my child." Frisk hesitates a moment, but then she walks forward. Her right arm and her cheek still sting from the fire, but she can see the burns slowly disappear as the magic wears off, though the pain doesn't disappear with them. Toriel kneels down and gingerly wraps her arms around Frisk. "My sweet child… There is so much pain in this world, but you are one of the beautiful lights that keep everyone happy. I… I wish you only the best. However…" She stands and looks down at Frisk. "I… I ask that you… You don't come back. You must understand." Frisk feels her heart ache.

"I…" She looks down. "I'm sorry, mom." She quietly says.

"B-be good, my child." Toriel's voice is barely audible. Frisk walks past Toriel, and heads to the tunnel. She heads into the darkness and walks towards the light. When she looks back, she sees the house, and that's all. She looks forward, and heads towards the light.