Last Chance

The journey didn't take long. Having finally reached the mountain, Frisk made his way toward the opening where the barrier used to be. The occasional monster could be seen exiting the Underground. A few helicopters circled overhead.

He entered the opening and went back into the Underground. Passing through the throne room, he made his way through the gardens, eventually moving outside of the palace. He attempted to use the elevator that would take him down toward the entrance. It was broken.

He traveled down the long road that overlooked the large monster city. At one point, he paused for a moment to take in the view.

Previously, he had not taken the time to really appreciate its size. It was huge. So many monsters must have lived there. Those buildings would soon be vacant, and would likely only surface again during an archaeological excavation.

Frisk surveyed the city for a few more moments. Then, he moved on.

Fewer lights were on in the Core than what he remembered. Its chambers were eerily quiet. Only low humming sounds from indeterminate sources could be heard, likely from transformer boxes or electrical panels.

Making his way down the hallways, he eventually reached the hotel. The same quiet permeated the atmosphere. Nobody was in the lobby. Frisk could hear his footsteps echoing through the building as he walked slowly through it.

In Hotland, the sound of churning lava filled the air. Frisk decided to pop over to look at Alphys' lab. He could find no way inside. It didn't really matter. Frisk wasn't convinced he needed anything from it anyway. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he made his way through the region.

Some of the monsters he encountered recognized him. They cheered him on, and thanked him for what he did. Some of them asked for autographs. Frisk would stay and chat for a few moments, often explaining that he was there just to pick something up that he had left behind.

He would also ask them if they had seen a talking flower anywhere. But nobody had.

Frisk made his way through the waterfall area, down the dimly-illuminated paths. He did his best to remember which way to go. Stopping to listen to the echo flowers, he found that most of them echoed conversations from monsters excited at the prospect of starting their new lives. No mention of Flowey.

Eventually, he reached Snowdin. He noticed that it seemed to be colder than normal. The wind howled, assailing his jacket with the bitter temperature. At least he was prepared to deal with it. Many of the homes were now empty, but some monsters were still there, wrapping things up in their lives before moving on.

He stopped to chat with the monsters, again, always sure to ask about Flowey. Again, nobody had seen anything.

He paused, taking a short breather. He could see his breath in the air.

"psst... hey. wanna grab a bite?"

Frisk turned around. "Sans. I didn't know you were down here." He thought. "Where can we go?"

"grillby decided to stick around a little bit more, until the town dries up. come on. i know a shortcut."

"Uhh... Sans. It's just right over there."

"i know. that was fast, wasn't it?" Sans winked.

Grillby's was still as alive as ever. Plates and glasses clinked. It was cleaner than Frisk expected, but there was no sign of etiquette anywhere. Off in the corner, a large monster gorged on an unidentifiable piece of food. A humanoid monster clad in a pink body suit scurried on all fours up to the counter, then stood up and banged on it repeatedly. "Hamburger please!"

Frisk munched on his burger. Sans munched on his. Not much was on the menu anymore. All of their food was on clearance before Grillby's closed up for good. Sans grabbed a ketchup bottle.

"this is a good time to ketchup, don't you think?" He rolled the bottle back and forth to get the condiment to come out. Once he had a steady stream, he raised the bottle in the air and poured it into his mouth. Satisfied, he turned back to Frisk. "hamburgers are the best. i'll make no buns about it."

"I'm glad you decided to meat me here."

"touche. you know, i told grillby once he needed to use more baking soda. he said he didn't like my baseless accusations."

Frisk's expression didn't change.

"anyway, i had to come back to get some things from my house. i was working on moving my stuff out earlier, but i threw my back out. thankfully, someone saw it in the garbage can and left it in front of my door."

"You should get on that. I don't know how much time you have."

"i'll get around to it eventually."

They continued eating. Frisk looked around, observing the activity in the restaurant.

"Having fun on the surface?"

"it's great," replied Sans. "down here, i spent a lot of time doing nothing. up there, i get to do much more nothing than before."

Frisk sipped on his drink. "That's a good deal." He glanced around the restaurant. "Is it just me, or has it gotten colder here?"

"it's colder. some of the facilities are being shut down. it's affecting the temperatures." He grinned. "so, you're here for the same thing, i take it? came back to get a few things?"

Frisk looked at him. "What made you think so?"

"it's pretty obvious. you're carrying that flower pot around." Sans watched as Frisk took a deep breath. He did a little jig and sang off-key. "you'll always be a pot of me." He grinned. "just messing with you, kid. whaddaya think?"

Frisk let out a sigh. "You're right, Sans. I came back for him." He set the pot down on the floor. "I couldn't just leave him here. That's not right."

"i see. you want to try to help him somehow?"

"He needs another chance."

"well, kiddo, you always did the right thing. i'm sure whatever you're doing now is the right thing too."

"It's more than that, Sans. I mean... I think there is a way for him to be himself again too. There has to be. I have this idea that... maybe if he learned how to love again. That could really help."

Sans nodded. "maybe." He drank out of the ketchup bottle again. "i'm sure you know about the experiments by now."

"Yeah. I know they tried to help him then." He paused. "I think I know why those failed."

"i'm all earholes."

"Remember how they tried to put determination into the monsters to bring them back? Determination doesn't work that way. It has to come from inside you." Frisk looked at Sans, seeing the blue light in one of his eye sockets. "That's why I think we can get to him. I think he already has the power inside of himself. Once he finds it, he could be who he really is again."

"interesting. think he'll want to?"

Frisk looked down. "Well... that's the thing. I don't know." He clutched his napkin. "If he doesn't... I mean... I think if he knew he had a choice, he might. But I don't think I can do it for him. I can't fix him."

"so, you want to save him, and you think he can be saved, but you can't save him."

"Yeah. I guess you could say that."

Sans nodded. "well, at least you're not ready to throw in the trowel yet. that's good."

Frisk gave a small smile. "You know why, right? Because nobody knows the trowels I've seen."

"i guess you have a point." He patted the table. "i'm fresh out of ideas for you. but i'd like to see what you come up with."

"Do you know anything else that might help, Sans?"

"are you trying to dig up some dirt on the situation?"

Frisk gazed straight ahead. "Yeah. You could say that."

"well, let's say i've heard a few things."

Frisk set his drink down. "Sans, I have a feeling you know a lot more than you let on."

"hey, kiddo. you're in uncharted territory. i can't tell you the right way to handle this. i just know you surprised everyone with what you did. nobody thought it was possible. if you have a hunch about this situation, i'd say go for it. who knows what you might turn up?"

Frisk smiled. "Thanks Sans. Thanks for believing in me."

"i told you to knock 'em dead. you did that." He leaned in to Frisk, and lowered his voice. "what do you know about flowey so far? what's one thing he hates?"

"If I had to guess, boredom? That, or he doesn't want anyone feeling sorry for him."

"that's two things. don't overdo it, kid. but, that's pretty right on. anyway. don't feel sorry for him. just be matter-of-fact with him. that's the only way you will get through."

"Come on, Sans. What are you not telling me? I know you know something about this I don't."

"hey, if it makes you feel better, i just know a good idea when i see one." He polished off the rest of his food.

"Any idea where to find him?"

"i'm sure he's not far. if i were you, i wouldn't overlook any details." He grinned, stood up, and paid the bill. "anyway, see you round."

Frisk trudged out of Snowdin. He made his way to Toriel's home. It was completely empty. While in the abandoned home, he took a few moments to look through some of the items that she had left behind. Maybe he would find some clues, or some information that would point him in the right direction. He leafed through the cookbooks, gardening books, sewing books, until something fell out of one of them.

He bent over and picked up the photo. It was Toriel, with Asriel. A heart was scrawled over the picture with a marker. Frisk turned it over and saw a very emotional, heartfelt goodbye note written on the back. A far cry from the jokes he was accustomed to seeing from her. He could feel how much she missed him. Given how she had hidden the photo away, Frisk guessed that at some point, she must have tried to distance herself from all of it.

He looked at the photo for a few moments before placing it back.

It's not over, he thought. We're going to make this right.

He went outside, searching through the gardens. Somebody had been taking care of the flowers. He made his way back to the entrance where he had initially fallen, and where he had seen Asriel for the last time.

Everything was as he remembered. But there was no sign of Flowey.

If not there, or in the gardens, where could he be?

"don't overlook any details."

Frisk paused, mulling over those words. Then it hit him. Did Sans really have to do that? Frisk made a mental note to get him back to Grillby's, and keep grilling him.

Stepping back outside, he made his way back towards Snowdin. He walked up the large hill that led toward the ledge overlooking the village. He passed a gyftrot, which was huffing about in the cold with Halloween lighting strung about on its antlers. It vanished before Frisk could do anything. He chuckled softly to himself at the sight. Poor thing.

A cold gust of wind besieged Frisk's jacket. As he got closer to the overlook, the wind became more frigid. His boots crunched softly against the thin layer of snow. Sparse snowflakes could be seen blowing in the wind. They came down harder the higher up he went. He had to shield himself from the cold as he neared the top.

Why was there so much wind here anyway?

He crept up slowly. Gently. So as not to startle him.

"That's a nice view."

Flowey turned to look at him. A large cheerful smile was plastered on his face. "Hello!" His smile abruptly vanished. "Oh... it's you. You came back."

Frisk looked down at him. "Yeah. I did. Want to guess why?"

"Uhh... maybe you're a glutton for punishment?" He grinned brightly.

Frisk smiled softly, and shrugged. "You can decide that for yourself." He stood and looked over Snowdin, watching the inhabitants scurrying about, wrapping up loose ends before beginning their new lives. The wind howled occasionally, nipping at Frisk's clothes.

After a few moments, Frisk knelt down so he could be at eye-level with Flowey. "How are you feeling today?"

Flowey appeared confused. "What kind of question is that? A pretty dumb one, if you ask me."

"I don't think so." He thrust his hands in his pockets. "It's just a way to show someone that you care about them." He surveyed the town from his position.

Slowly, Flowey turned his head away. "Why are you even here? You should forget about this place. You won. You had your happy ending. Now go on. Go be with your friends."

"You're wrong. It wasn't a happy ending. Not without you. That's why I came back. I had to take you back too."

"Oh..." Flowey thought for a second. "Well... that's silly! You came all the way down here just to get a flower, and take it up there so you could take care of it. Gosh, that's really sad. You must be lonely or something. Did all your other friends leave you? Is that it?"

"Someone has to take care of you, too." Frisk adjusted his hat. A snowy gust of wind blew his scarf to one side. "I've been thinking. See, I think you and I actually have a lot in common. I get bored easily. I like challenges too."

"You've been thinking. Well, there's a first time for everything, right?" Flowey smiled cheerfully.

Frisk's expression didn't change. "Look. You don't have a future here. Everyone is leaving the Underground. You should come up to the surface too." He paused for a moment before continuing. "You really should be part of this. I don't want to see you stay down here."

"Well..." Flowey thought. "I see. So you decided to take pity on me. Is that it?"

"I decided it's not fair for you to be alone here while everyone else starts a new life."

"Interesting. And this, after all I did to you. And everyone else."

"That's not important right now."

"Huh." Flowey folded his leafy arms and turned his gaze away dismissively. "You really are a glutton for punishment. I was right. Well... what if I refuse?"

Frisk eyed him. "You can if you want. I want you to have the choice. It's up to you."

Flowey hesitated.

"But if you stay, there won't be much here for you. I think you should have something better. You can have a new life on the surface. You might make friends. You can see new things." The wind started to pick up and howl even more. He gazed over the edge of the cliff, as the cold wind nipped at his clothing. "There's sunlight up there too. You might even have fun. When's the last time you had fun?"

Flowey thought for a moment. It was a good question. At his best recollection, the last time he had fun was when he watched someone get hurt.

Frisk stuck the end of the trowel into the dirt. "I know your life can mean more than this. That's why I'd like you to come back."

Flowey started to tremble. His petals drooped. "...why do you care about me?"

"If you have to ask, then you don't know me very well."

Flowey's expression sank. "I... I don't know. Really, Frisk. You wasted your time coming back here. Why don't you take care of yourself instead?" He feebly tried wrapping his stem with his leafy arms. "Don't you have anything better to do?"

"Come on." He reached out with a mittened hand. "I know things didn't go well for you. But whatever you decide here... I will never stop believing they can get better. Things can change. I especially believe they can for you. So, what do you say?"

He waited. Then he pulled his hand back a little bit. "This may be the last chance you ever get."

Flowey kept his gaze on the town. "It's not so bad here. Really. You should leave."

The wind started to blow harder. Small icicles were forming on Flowey's petals. The trees were swaying.

"Are you sure?" Frisk placed a hand on the ground. "Are you afraid of something? What is it?"

Flowey didn't answer.

"If you really don't like it up there, I'll bring you back. Okay?"

After a few moments, Frisk wrapped his mittened hand around the trowel. He was starting to shiver. "Whatever happens here, you're dreaming if you think I'm just going to forget about you."

Flowey frowned. He trembled. Either from the cold, or from something else. He reflected on the choice. If he went with Frisk and changed his mind later, he could always reset and come back.

Wait. No, he couldn't. He was not able to do that anymore. Not since the barrier was broken.

How many ways out did he have left?

He could fight Frisk again. Just for fun. He would lose. But so what?

Frisk looked at him straight in the eyes. His determination was almost palpable.

"Let's leave this place for good. You and me, together."

Flowey wavered some more. Looking over the people bustling around the town center. Feeling the chill of the winds, which were worsening by the moment. Then, looking at Frisk, who was waiting patiently in spite of his shivering. Finally, he slumped in the dirt. "Fine. You win."

"Am I finally getting through?" He gently, but quickly, began to dig Flowey out of the ground. "Come on, let's get out of here before the cold gets worse."