Chapter 1: Fallen Down

I felt a distant warmth as I came back to consciousness. Through my closed eyelids, I could make out a light coming from in front of me. Or was it above me? I couldn't tell. I felt a soft surface pressing against my back, and my mind immediately told me that I was lying down… On a bed, presumably. My body ached a little bit, but it wasn't so bad that it would worry me.

Without opening my eyes, I tried faintly to remember what had happened last. It began to find its way back to me… I had went exploring by myself on Mt. Ebott. I hadn't told anyone; I didn't remember doing so, anyway. I couldn't recall why I went there. Maybe it was because I heard stories that whoever climbed the mountain never came back, and I was curious. But… odd, I didn't remember going back home.

With great effort, I finally decided to pry my eyes open. Light from above made it hard to see clearly. I shut them again. Gathering my strength, I decided to try to sit up. I heaved myself upright, finally getting the light out of my eyes, and blinked. I was alarmed when I saw what surrounded me.

I was sitting on a bed of soft, golden flowers. And around it… definitely wasn't home. It was a small cavern, lit only by the distant light filtering in from above. I lifted my gaze to follow the walls, and found that I was at the bottom of some giant hole. I was suddenly filled with panic. I didn't know how I had gotten here! I didn't remember anything… Except… Oh god. I had fallen down here. The memory streamed back. I had caught my foot on a vine up on the mountain, and plummeted down into a dark chasm. I had screamed in terror, thinking I was going to die when I hit the bottom…

But I guess I hadn't.

And… now I was here. Where was here? How would I get back? I let out a cry of horror and shoved myself to my feet, tears starting to gather in my eyes. I ignored the dizziness from standing up so quickly and tried to look around as best I could. There were pillars… That was good. That meant someone else had to know about this place. Was there a way out? I spun around, observing the walls. There, behind me, was a tunnel… almost a hallway. I stared at it, wiping the tears that had escaped my eyes and sniffing. It was dark, and I didn't have any light that I could bring with me. What if there was something down there that wasn't so friendly?

The tears in my eyes flowed over and dribbled down my cheeks. What if I died down here? What would happen to my family back home? Did they even know I was missing? My heart ached as sobs emerged from my throat. I was eleven years old, but I had to admit, I was deathly scared. I had never been in a situation like this in my life. I held in a scream. I felt my fears ball up and grab at my pounding heart, making me wish I was stronger than I really was. I wished I didn't have to be the kind of kid that panicked so easily.

I took a deep breath and let it out shakily. Nothing was going to get better if I didn't do anything more than cry. Continuing to breathe as steadily as I could eventually made my sobs die down. I looked up with wet eyes, but seeing the dark hallway again just made me whimper. I wanted to do anything other than go there.

However… It was my only choice. I was young, but I knew enough to have some instincts. I couldn't stay here. I had to try to find a way out on my own. I picked up a fair-sized stick from near the flower bed, hoping it might protect me from at least something. With a deep breath, I began walking toward the hallway. Walking blind into the darkness made my heart race. I had to force myself to keep going, holding the stick in front of me protectively.

I didn't have to go too far before something caught my eye. On my left, there was a doorway. And through the doorway… More light. I went through, eager to get out of the menacing darkness. Before I reached the lit area, though, I saw something there. It was another golden flower. This one was taller and bigger than the others, and it was facing away from me. Curious, I stepped toward it.

The flower turned around. I froze when it stared at me with two little eyes. It blinked, then smiled at me. It was alive. I was even more shocked when it actually spoke.

"Howdy!" It said in a cheery, high-pitched male voice. "I'm Flowey! Flowey the flower!"

I looked at it in awe.

He grinned bigger. "Hee hee! You're new to the Underground, aren'tcha?"

I nodded slowly, wiping away another tear that I hadn't noticed before.

"Golly, you must be so confused. Someone ought to teach you how things work around here!" He chuckled again. "I guess little old me will have to do." He looked up and me and raised a hand-like leaf. "Ready? Here we go!"

I blinked a couple times. "I-I…"

Suddenly, a strange feeling swept over me. In a couple odd flashes, almost like rapid heartbeats, a glowing, red heart-shape appeared on my chest, casting a light through my pink and blue sweater. It was about the size my actual should have been. I looked at it, confused yet curious.

"See that heart?" said Flowey. "That's your Soul, the very culmination of your being! Your Soul starts off weak, but can grow stronger if you gain a lot of LV."

I cocked my head in confusion. I had questions, but Flowey spoke before I had the chance.

The flower watched me. "Do you know what LV stands for? Why, Love, of course!" He laughed again. "You want some Love, don't you? Don't worry, I'll share some with you!" He winked, and tiny white dots appeared over the flower in an arch. "Down here, Love is shared through…" Flowey seemed to be searching for the right words to explain. "Little white… friendliness pellets!" He looked at me with a smile. "Are you ready? Get as many as you can!"

The pellets began to move toward me through the still air. Eager to see what they would do for me, I reached out to the nearest one…

I fell to my knees. My whole body was filled with a burning pain. My eyes widened and stared at nothing, confused and scared, choking back a scream.

Suddenly, the flower grinned. Not a friendly grin… An evil grin. "Hahaha! You idiot!" He laughed in a crackling voice. "In this world, it's kill or BE killed! Why would ANYONE pass up an opportunity like this!?" Fangs poked through Flowey's jaws, and he stared at me with horrifying, empty, black eyes. A large amount of the little pellets appeared, and aimed at me threateningly. "DIE!" With a blood-curdling, terrifying cackle from the flower, the pellets began to close in. I fell down onto my rear and scrambled backward, trying to escape the horrible pellets, but to no avail. They moved wherever I did. Tears flowed back into my eyes as I felt my back hit a wall. All I could do now was watch as the pellets drew nearer and nearer…

Suddenly, the pellets disappeared. The glow from my Soul went away, too. I stared in surprise as a little ball of fire flew toward the flower, and he was thrown across the room with flames dancing across his leaves, only to dig into the ground and vanish.

Soft footsteps approached, then stopped in front of me. I looked up and gasped at the new form that loomed above. It was almost exactly what I had been told that a monster looked like. She was female, obviously, and had a white, goat-like head with big floppy ears hanging down over her shoulders. Two big white paws stuck out from under a long, purple dress. But her face… It was not like Flowey's had been. It was sincere and housed a kind smile. She knelt down and reached out to me with a white, clawed hand. Weak from the attack before, I couldn't move away as much as I had wished. I just whimpered in fear.

The monster continued to reach. "Please, child," she said to me in a soft, feminine voice. "Do not fear. I only want to heal you."

I halted my movements for a moment, debating if I should trust that she wasn't lying like the flower had. Looking at her genuinely worried expression, though… I decided to let her touch me. Her hand was extremely careful as it pressed lightly against my chest. I was alarmed to see the red, heart-shaped light shine through my shirt under the contact… But suddenly, I began to feel better. My tensed muscles relaxed and I let out a small sigh as the harsh aching feeling subsided.

The white monster lifted her hand, and the light faded. "What a terrible creature, torturing such a poor innocent youth," she cooed as she watched me compose myself. She stood up and held out a hand to help me up. I hesitated, then gingerly took it.

When I was on my feet again, I took my hand away and stepped back; although she had healed me, she was a monster, just like the flower. I didn't know if I should trust her fully or not.

She seemed to notice my reaction right away. "Ah, please do not be afraid, child. I mean you no harm. I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins. I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down. I must say… You are the first human to come here in a long time." Her expression shifted for a moment, seemingly in thought. After only a moment, though, her friendly smile returned. "Come! I will guide you through the catacombs." She turned around and started toward another door with dim light coming from it. When she realized I wasn't following her, she looked back at me and gave an encouraging smile. "Please do not fear. This is the only way to safety. I only want to help you. That horrible flower may come back if you stay here alone."

I hesitated. I did want safety, and the light coming from the door was welcoming. Plus… I couldn't really go anywhere else. This seemed to be the only way to progress. If I stayed back, I figured I would die of hunger or something. Or, as she had said, the flower could come back. With a breath of confidence, I walked toward her. "O-okay," I sighed, trying a friendly smile.

Toriel smiled. "Good, child. Please come; the Ruins are this way." She disappeared through the door, and I followed just behind.

The room inside the door was well-lit, to my relief. The whole place looked very old, yet well-kept, probably due to Toriel. The walls and floor were purple, with white stairs leading up to another door at the far end of the room. Red leaves lay at the middle of the base of the stairs, splitting them into two sets. Toriel waited for a little bit at the top of the stairs while I caught up, then went through the door. I stopped before the leaves and looked up at the strange picture of a crest painted upon the purple wall above the door. For some reason, I felt that this was going to be the beginning of a long journey home. As the shadow of the mysterious Ruins loomed above, I was filled with determination. I made my way up the stairs and entered the door.