A/N: Hey guys! Didn't expect me to be back with more so soon, eh? Sadly it can't always be this quick, a lot of stuff has been cropping up, so the next one might be a while. But, you have my word that I will stick with this story, and see it completed. So far it's been great fun writing this, and I don't see that changing anytime soon.

Disclaimer: Undertale and all ist characters are still owned by Toby Fox.

Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 3: Concern and comfort

Frisk blinked, waking up to the sound of her cell phone recieving a text. She didn't want to get up though, not when she was so nicely snuggled aganst a big warm pillow. That pillow was even better than the ones in MTT resort, it was soft, had the best shape to cuddle into, felt nice and fuzzy against her cheek, was breathing steadily, and... wait, what now?

The human turned her head to see Asriel sleeping peacefully. Oh. She remembered. Then she looked around, and recognized where she was. Old Home. Or just 'Home', as the king had aptly named it. This was the room Toriel had given her when she first arrived here, the same bed even. Part of her just wanted to go back to a cuddly sleep with the Dreemurr. Heh. Dreemurr. Sleep. Sans would probably find a pun to crack there. Come to think of it, she seemed to remember seeing Sans recently, and... fighting... him? No, something was wrong here.

The human was groggy, but the text, the memories, and how they got here, were nagging her too much to let her sleep again. She propped herself up with an ellbow, carefully, so as not to wake Asriel up... Asriel! The goatlike monster had a couple visible sore marks on him, and his sweatshirt was torn, smudged and burnt in some places. By now Frisk was fully awake, panicking slightly, and quite frankly peeved at whoever had... Sans? What's going on with my memories? Did Sans attack me or... Azzy?

She climbed out of bed, again careful not to wake her friend. She noticed a few things were different about the room. For one, it had another bed in it, across from hers. It looked out of place, and recently used, but empty. Then she saw her cell phone on the dresser, glowing with the newly recieved message, and next to that... Food? Her stomach grumbled at the mere thought. Sure enough, there seemed to be a care packet of some of the best foods from all over the Underground. Next to it was a note that simply read 'i'm sorry'. The font was unmistakeable. Well... now she was certain something had happened with Sans. She picked up her cell phone, and saw there was a message from Toriel

Hello my child,

how are you doing? I haven't heard from you in quite a while. Sans told us not to worry, and I understand you need time to say goodbye, but still, I hope you will join us soon. We wish to see the surface together.

L-O-L (This time it means lots of love)

-Toriel ]: )

Frisk smiled as she read the message. It seemed everyone was okay for now, and that whatever went wrong with Sans was already resolved, but she still needed to know. She responded to the text, telling her friend and guardian that she would be on her way back as soon as she had rested a bit, and that she also loved her a lot. It was then that she felt like there was a gaze on her. She turned to see Asriel up and awake, sneaking around behind her, making funny gestures. He immediately stopped.

"Haha, I was wondering when you would see me."

"Azzy!" The human almost toppled him with a hug. "Are you hurt?"

"Hey, easy there Frisk! Im still a bit sore, but mostly I'm ok, and um...since when did you have that nickname for me?" He rubbed his ear sheepishly.

*ACT *Flirt

"...since the first time I saw you, sweetcakes." She hushed with a flirty smile.

Much to her enjoyment, the fuzz on Asriels cheeks wasn't thick enough to hide his blush.

"Friiiisk, stop being so weird!"

After many laughs were had, they decided to move to the livingroom. They took the packet of snacks with them.

"So Sans left these?" Asriel was even more surprised than her.

Frisk nodded. "Seems like it... Do you know what happened with him?"

He grimaced, not looking forward to recounting that whole fiasco. At least he had someone to talk to. They sat down in Toriel's big comfy reading chair. It was almost the size of a small couch to them. Breaking a cinnamon bunny for the two of them, Asriel began to tell Frisk about everything that had happened, since she tried that crazy idea of hers. Frisks expression changed only minimally throughout the tale, as always, but it spoke volumes to him.

"In the end I can't really blame him... He's been through so much loss and suffering, so many times over... a good part of it because of me... I'm not sure he knows I was Flowey all this time, otherwise I don't think he'd forgive me... or even let me live..."

Frisk frowned. She didn't like it when Asriel got so down on himself, but she knew he had his reasons. And she was determined to stick with him.

"How can you be so sure? I forgave you." she argued.

Asriel held back a scoff. He knew she meant well, but it just wasn't that simple!

"But Frisk, you have no idea of the ammount of suffering I've caused! The lives I've torn apart, again and again, out of sheer boredom! You wern't even there to see most of what I did!"

"Nether were you!"

The Dreemurr was dumbfounded by such a rertort. "...What?"

Her face softened again as she explained what she meant.

"Flowey was soulless, so your soul, who you really are, wasn't even in there! You are an entirely different person than Flowey, Asriel."

This seemed to help Asriel a little, but he was still doubtful.

"But... Flowey, and those memories, are still a part of me... and if what you say is true, then... am I really Asriel now?"

Frisk hadn't thought of that. Come to think of it, how had she known that what she did was the right thing to do, or that it had any chance of working? She didn't. She had felt it. And for now, that would have to be enough.

"Well... do you feel like Asriel?" She asked gently.

He got quiet for a moment, looking down at his paws, inspecting the fur on them, and the small claws that protruded from each digit.

"I... guess I do... I mean... I feel so many things now, its overwhelming! It's wonderful, and I can never thank you enough for what you did, but... I'm so confused..."

The boy buried his head in his hands, not knowing what to do with himself. Frisk rested a hand on his back.

"Its okay Azzy... Maybe when you see mom and dad, you will feel like yourself again."

Suddenly he shivered, his eyes tearing up again. "...M-mom... and d-..dad...?" Waves of raw emotion washed over him. Under all those gruesome memories and dark thoughts was still a little child, one that hadn't seen their parents for a long, long, long time. Once again Frisk was there to comfort him.

"Im being silly again, arent I? I haven't even seen them yet, and I already get like this."

Frisk just took his shoulders, giving him an understanding and supportive look. Frisk had teased him before, but really she admired his emotional strength. How many would have gone insane from his ordeal, even with a full human soul? Maybe human souls were more powerful in terms of raw power, but emotionally? Frisk couldn't think of monsters as anything less than humans in that regard.

Once he was feeling better, she split a bisicle for them, and they just enjoyed eacothers company by the enchanted fire, that was still burning after all this time. After a while, Asriel asked something he felt he should have asked much earlier.

"So Frisk... how do you feel? You... tore your soul apart! I don't think anyone has ever done that before. Are you okay?"

It was almost funny that they would talk about this only now, they had just been so preoccupied. Frisk thought about it for a moment

"Im okay Azzy, but I noticed something wierd. When I saw you were hurt, I... remembered the fight with Sans, but, as if I was in your place. First I thought I was half asleep, and having a strange dream, but it was just like what you told me about it..."

The human was only realizing the implications of this now. Asriel looked very concerned at this. The last thing he wanted, was for her to have to see all the grueling memories he was burdened with, even worse, to remember them as if they were her own! He felt horrible just thinking about it.

"So... you saw my memory of it? Did you... see any other memories too?"

Frisk knew where he was going with this. She put his fears to rest. He exhaled in relief.

"But still, thats strange... do you think we have some kind of... connection now?"

Sure we have, hot stuff.

The poor boy blushed furiously. How did she always catch him off guard like that?

"C- Come on Frisk, be serious...!" He huffed in mild annoyance.

His flushed face quickly morphed into one of puzzlement, then astonishment, when he realized her mouth hadn't moved. From the stunned look the human sported, she had come to the same realization.

"We can speak with our thoughts now?!" Asriel yelped.

This was going way too fast for the resurrected prince, and Frisk wasn't sure what to make of that ether. She shrugged in a way that said 'maybe?'

"That would be so wierd... but also kinda cool!"

After initial bewilderment, they got excited at the possibilities. They tried sending eachother thoughts, back and forth, but to no further avail.

"Maybe we can ask Alphys to help figure this out? She knows a lot about how souls work." The human offered.

The monster's expression souered at the mention of her name. He had always resented her after the time he spent in her lab as a flower. But, looking at it now, he wouldn't be here with Frisk, and about to be with his family again, if it weren't for her fateful experiments, all that time ago.

"Yeah... maybe we can." he managed a smile.

That was enough for them for now. After finishing their unisicles, they decided to begin their journey back to the others. They packed the remaining food items, and Asriel changed into a new sweatshirt, much like his old one, but a bit dusty. He sneezed. It was the cutest sneeze Frisk had ever heard, but she decided she had teased him enough for now, so she just smiled warmly and helped him dust off. Once all preperations were made, they went on ahead and left the old home through the basement tunnel, all rested and refreshed.

Asriel had mixed feelings leaving this place, but he couldn't fathom how much he was looking forward to meeting his parents again, and all of Frisk's friends on top of that. It still felt a bit unreal. Frisk too was looking forward to everyone being together. Her journey through the Underground had been long and arduous, but for the great friends she'd made and brought together, and all the great times they'd had, it had all been worth it. She looked at the fuzzy boy walking by her side, a bright smile on his face. Definitely worth it.

They reached the great door to the snowy forest. The children could hear and feel the cold draft, that permeated these huge caverns, whistle through the gaps. Together they pushed it open, and set foot in the snow. Together, they set off on their trip to the Riverperson. Frisk was somewhat used to the cold by now, and Asriel had his fur, but still, it was nice to have someone to hold your hand on this snowy path.

A/N: Well, Id say that rounds off the intro arc, and the journey is only beginning! As you can tell by now I Focus heavily on emotion and character, but Action will not be absent ether, as well as other underliying themes. At this Point I'm still not sure what genres to put this in, so feel free to tell me which ones you would find most fitting, based on what you have read so far. Any other thoughts or constructive criticisms greatly appreciated, as always!

Thanks for reading, and have a great day!

~Lonesome Sage