Chapter 7: Chills

I slid my donut, phone, and toy knife into the bag Toriel had given me as I walked through the door. While I walked the long hall, I examined the tiny embroidery of her name on the edge of the flap on the purple item. I would miss her… I knew that right away. All she had wanted for me was safety, and I had decided to go out on my own, away from that safety. I felt bad… but I promised myself that I'd remember her forever. My determination and knowledge that she believed in me kept me walking forward, toward the exit of the Ruins.

When I looked up, near the end of the hallway, I stopped dead in my tracks. The next room was black, apart from a small shaft of light from the ceiling. And in that light… sat a golden flower. Staring right at me with his black eyes and sly grin, was Flowey. I heard his bone-chilling giggle echo through the room.

"Clever," he chuckled. "Verrrrry clever. You think you're pretty smart, don'cha? I told you, in this world, it's kill or be killed." He grinned at me. "So you were able to play be your own rules. You spared the life of a single person. I bet you feel pretty great, huh?"

I gulped. "L-leave me alone," I said as confidently as I could.

He laughed. "Oh, don't you worry, I won't do anything to ya right now. You're far too interesting to watch. I haven't seen a human like you in a long time." He glared at me maliciously. "You didn't kill anyone, this time. But what will you do if you meet a relentless killer? You'll die and you'll die and you'll die. Until you tire of trying. What will you do then? Will you kill out of frustration?"

I clutched my sleeve and focused on breathing steadily.

Flowey grinned an unsettling grin. "Or will you give up entirely on this world… and let me inherit the power to control it?"

"P-please…" I forced the words out.

The flower laughed at me. "I am the prince of this world's future. Don't worry, my little monarch, my plan isn't regicide. This is so much more interesting. So, for now, let's just see how you fare out in the real Underground!" With that, he burrowed down into the ground and disappeared again.

Shakily, I took in a breath and let it out. I hoped so badly that I wouldn't run into him again. He scared me more than anything I had seen so far down here. And just to think… What might be waiting for me on the other side of this door…? I clenched my fists. "S-stay determined…" I told myself out loud. "Just stay determined… I can do this…"

I could do it. I knew I could. I just had to believe in myself and my ability to press on. With will and might, I could make it through the Underground safely, and no one had to be hurt in the process. Flowey was wrong, I knew it. I wouldn't kill any monsters. I refused to. There was no was I could live knowing I had killed an innocent being.

My thoughts returned to the present. I knew I couldn't wait for Flowey to return. Not wanting to linger here, I put one foot in front of the other, making my way to the door on the other side of the dark room. I rested my hand on the hard surface. Taking a deep breath, I pushed on it as hard as I could. A chilling breeze swept in the gap, catching me underneath the hem of my sweater and causing me to shiver. When I got the door fully open, I stood in the center of the exit of the Ruins, staring out at the sight that was the outer Underground. What it looked like took me completely by surprise.

There was snow. Lots of snow. It fell softly from above, blanketing the ground in white powder. Trees stretched down a long run, ending in a bridge-like structure way down at the end. The tall, dark trunks stretched toward the roof of the humongous cavern, which was what looked like a quarter-mile above, at the very least. It was beautiful… but deathly quiet. My mouth opened in awe, a plume of fog flowing into the air. I wasn't sure if I should be intimidated or comforted.

I wrapped my arms around myself in an attempt to save my warmth. My sweater obviously wasn't designed to protect me from this level of cold. I figured I'd just have to keep moving. Slowly, I moved one foot forward and crunched it down into the snow. It wasn't too deep, so my boots were able to protect my skin. After a few steps in, it got even thinner. I must have reached a path. Puffing out another breath, I began walking down the long pathway with a steady gait.

I watched as my shoes made indents in the snow as I walked. This was so amazing to me. I'd only seen snow once in my life, and that was before I could remember. I never would have thought that the next time I would see it would be… in a cave.

I stepped over a large branch that had fallen in the road and glanced up at the bridge. I was about halfway down the long stretch of path. I wondered what was across the little bridge.. Maybe, if I was lucky, there would be someone nearby that could help me. Maybe I could find someone who knew how to get home. Maybe…

SNAP!

I whirled around as a loud crack echoed through the still air, expecting to see a monster appear right behind me. However… no one was there. I searched the snowy landscape for a moment, in case I had missed something. My eyes landed on the branch I had stepped over. It was shattered, like it was nothing… I shuttered and picked up my pace toward the bridge.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps louder than my own behind me, causing me to spin around once again. There was no one there, but there looked to be a small portion of footsteps alongside mine just a little ways back. I broke out into a quick run. Someone- or something- was definitely following me. My breath sped up and puffed in the air in front of me.

When I finally reached the bridge and was about to step onto it, I heard more footsteps. I stopped dead in my tracks. The sound was very close to me, and getting louder. There was no way I could outrun the pursuer. I didn't dare turn around when whoever was there stopped just a few feet away. My heart raced inside my chest.

"Human." I held my breath as the monster spoke in a deep, gravely voice. "Don't you know how to greet a new pal?" The monster, obviously male, spoke slowly and methodically, sending shivers all throughout my body. "Turn around and shake my hand."

I hesitated, unsure of what to do. For all I knew, this monster could kill me in an instant. Toriel had been right; I really didn't know about this place. But… I decided, I only had one choice. Slowly, I turned around to see the monster who had approached me. He was only a bit taller than me, and wore a blue hoodie pulled over his head, hiding his face from my view. All I could see was his mouth, which bent into a toothy, sideways grin as he raised his hand for me to take. Shakily, I raised my own and placed it in his…

The sound of farting filled the air for a good ten seconds. I drew my hand back, stunned. Suddenly, the monster burst out laughing. "Hehehe, the old whoopie cushion in the hand trick. It never gets old."

After the tension he had put on me, this was an odd way to let it off. I laughed nervously along with him.

He chuckled again as he slid the hood off his head, revealing two black eye sockets with pinpricks of white light for pupils. He was a skeleton. "Anyways," he continued, his deep voice changing from the gravely one it had been to a more laid-back, joking one. "You're a human, right? That's funny." He noticed my confused expression and smiled a bit more. "I'm Sans, Sans the skeleton," he introduced himself. When I didn't respond, he chuckled and raised an eyebrow. "You got a name, too, kid?"

I shook my head. I had to play it cool with this skeleton. He was the first monster I'd met out here, and if this calm demeanor he was putting on was true, then I might have a good shot at some protection out here. I tried to smile as best I could. "U-um, yeah… I'm Frisk." Despite what Toriel had told me earlier, I still felt weird telling my name to him.

"Frisk, huh?" He blinked, which surprised me, with the fact that he was a skeleton. "That's kind of a neat name." He let out a puff of air (also strange for a skeleton) and watched it dissipate. "It's kinda funny, I'm supposed to be on watch for humans right now. But, y'know, I don't really care about capturing anybody."

I let out a held breath I didn't realize I was keeping. It was a relief to know that he didn't want to try to fight me.

He looked at me again. "Now my brother, Papyrus… He's a human-hunting fanatic." He looked over my shoulder, and, seeing his eyes widen, I followed his gaze. In the near-distance, I could just make out the figure of a taller monster doing something to an object nearby. He must have been another skeleton. "As a matter of fact… I think that's him right over there."

I tensed, and Sans must have noticed.

"Hey, don't worry, I've got an idea." He pointed through the gate around the bridge. "Go right through this gate-thingie. My bro made the bars too wide to stop anybody." He began walking across, and when he realized I wasn't following him, He looked back and gestured for me to come. "C'mon, hurry before he sees ya."

Quickly, I jogged to catch up with him.