Frisk hurried through the snow, pausing for a moment to look up at the roof of the mountain. "I wonder how snow gets down here, anyways…" They breathed as they shivered and turned back to the path. They heard rustling behind them, and a shadow flitted between trees as they were followed. This time, however, Frisk didn't keep walking. Instead they stopped, turning back to wait.
"Sans, come out. We need to talk."
"…"
"Sans. You can't keep ignoring me. How many times are we going to meet like this until you give me a chance to explain?" Frisk pleaded. But nothing answered their call, and finally Frisk sighed. "Sans… I'm not the one RESETTING. I swear, Sans, please, it's someone else! Someone other than me and Flowey and you…Please, you have to help me, Sans... you're the only one that I can turn to…"
"…you think I'd believe that, kid?" Sans finally answered, and Frisk saw a flash of blue behind the trees. Suddenly Sans's voice came from behind them, and they spun around only to find no one there but a trace of blue magic lingered in the air for a moment. "i wasn't born yesterday. why does the RESET always end up… right when you arrived in the underground, then? kid. buddy. you're fooling nobody here. there's no one else here that can RESET, anyways…"
"except for you and the flower."
Frisk whirled back around, finally spotting Sans casually leaning against a tree with his hands stuffed into his pockets. "Why would you think I'd be lying?" Frisk asked, and to their shame, their voice cracked and they had to bite their lip before tears spilled from their eyes. "I wouldn't do that, Sans. You know me better than anyone else here. I've been completing everything the exact same way every time it all RESETS for what? A joke? Amusement? You c-can't… you can't honestly think that, Sans."
"…sorry kid." Sans finally said wryly, grinning at Frisk, his eyes studying Frisk for a moment. "i guess i do believe that. it's almost like the one thing you're here to do is convince me of something. you keep pleading for me to listen, and i have to hand it to ya, you really don't want it to be on my terms. if it was on my terms, you would've waited one day more to RESET, right? so. what do you want, kid?"
"No… Sans, please."
"…welp. everyone has something to hide, kid. i guess you do too. i won't hold it against you for now. but continue this for too long, and you might try my patience a bit. but that's okay, right kid? it's all for the laughs and giggles. now, let's just get this round over with. i'm tired and want to go get some sleep." Sans murmured, pushing himself back onto his feet and walking past Frisk. His footsteps crunched in the snow, and Sans glanced back at Frisk before stepping deliberately on a branch to make it snap in half as loud as possible.
Frisk merely watched them go. They were getting used to watching Sans's back as he walked away and left them all alone, after all.
.
Eventually, Frisk didn't want to go on anymore. They were tired, after all. Each smile felt fake, and they had started not to care what everyone thought of them. Was it really worth this?
Frisk could only hope it was as they pushed themselves back to their feet and kept going.
.
"We're not going to just be friends, human… we're going to be BESTIES… h-hey! What's wrong? What did I do?"
Frisk stiffened immediately, surprised Undyne had seen through them so easily despite their now-constant vigilance. Frisk sniffed, and then smiled wobbly up at Undyne, wiping at bleary eyes. "S-sorry, I just… I've been lonely for a while…I've felt really alone and I'm just…"
"Well you're in luck, human. Because I don't let my BESTIES feel sad."
"…thanks, Undyne."
Undyne gave Frisk a wide-toothed grin, then pulled out a spear. "So… want to practice fighting?"
Frisk giggled softly so Undyne would think they felt better, and nodded, already expectant of what would come next. They would really have to be more careful with showing their emotions…
.
"you get it right? buddy. without that promise, you'd be dead where you stand." Sans said, the atmosphere plunging due to the chilling implications.
Frisk, however, was unimpressed. "You mean without the power of RESET." They muttered bitterly. This was the eleventh time Sans had told them this, and they were tired of the skeleton's evasion and silence treatment towards anything new they tried.
This time, Sans merely gave them a long, calculating glance before shrugging and going back to his normal dialogue. Frisk wondered if he ever got tired of this farce. "hey, lighten up, bucko! i'm just joking with you! besides… haven't i done a great job protecting you? i mean, look at you. you haven't died a single time…. right?" And Sans turned a grin at Frisk that made them blanch at the icy gaze of their… friend? Acquaintance? Frisk didn't know anymore.
"…heh. well, i got to go. good luck, kid."
And once again, Frisk watched the skeleton leave them.
.
It was the twenty-third time they had woken up in the bed of golden flowers.
And yet they had made no progress, changed nothing, and Sans had continued giving them the same words, over and over, acting like nothing was different, almost as if to prove a point that Frisk understood perfectly.
Sans wasn't going to listen to them again.
Maybe this was why Sans acted like nothing bothered him anymore. Why he was always so aloof and careful not to overly involve himself. How long had he kept track of RESETS? Frisk didn't ask. Even if they did, Sans… wouldn't answer. Frisk was left all alone with their thoughts, laughing at the same jokes over and over again until they realized Sans himself didn't think they were funny. It was all part of an act. One that wouldn't change until the RESETS stopped.
Frisk bleakly wondered if they would stop sometime soon. Maybe they were doing something wrong, or maybe there was no end. Maybe they should just give up. But.. something told Frisk that giving up and accepting this would be even worse than having a goal and striving to reach it, even if it was impossible.
So Frisk kept moving forwards.
.
"You know, I don't care about destroying this world anymore." Asriel said with a shrug as meteors crashed down around Frisk. They stepped back, staring warily up at Asriel with a mix of pity and understanding. "After I defeat you, and gain control over this timeline, I just want to RESET everything. All your progress, everyone's memories… I'll bring them all back to zero… then we can do it all over again. And do you know what the best part of all of it is? You'll do it!"
Frisk dove away from Asriel's attacks, and they shivered at Asriel's ominous words. "Asriel, stop. You don't really want to fight me!" They tried. How many times had they seen this before? Thirty times? It hadn't even been that long since RESET had started happening and already, Frisk was starting to lose count.
Asriel merely laughed at Frisk's attempts, eyes glittering with malice. "Oh, but I do, Chara! You see, you'll lose to me each time… again… and again…"
Frisk scrambled back as meteors slammed down, and they felt their HEALTH start to sap away. They wondered bleakly if they failed and died here if this cycle would be broken. Maybe it'd be worth it. Maybe at least Sans would get out of this time loop. Maybe…
"And again! Because you want a "happy ending." Because you "love your friends." Because you "never give up." Isn't that delicious? Your DETERMINATION, the power that let you get this far, will be your downfall." Asriel laughed, and finally Frisk couldn't stay silent any longer. They had heard this speech over and over again and they were so tired they just… They couldn't pretend this time.
"How can you be so sure I'll keep going, Asriel!?" They yelled back. "How do you know I won't grow tired of this fight never ending? What if there is no end…?" They glared up at Asriel, who seemed surprised at Frisk's outburst. "…I'm not as strong as everyone thinks I am…" Frisk whispered, but despite that, they were glad at least someone believed in their DETERMINATION. Frisk wasn't sure they believed in themselves anymore, after all, no matter how Papyrus encouraged them or how everyone else backed them up each time. Because going through this battle over and over felt so fake now, and that was the worst part of it all, wasn't it? It became harder and harder to care for friends when it felt like they were just characters in a play or something, always rehearsing the same lines…
But maybe Asriel was right. Frisk was ok. All of Frisk's friends were worth this, and Frisk wouldn't… couldn't give up… not if there was even a glimmer of hope at the end of each battle.
Frisk raised their head and kept moving, kept calling out, kept reaching for their friends. They would SAVE everyone. Even Sans, with or without his help in the matter.
Asriel hissed in anger, then fear, as he felt his grip on all of the souls started to loosen. "Do you know why I'm doing this? Why I fight to keep you around? I'm doing this because you're special to me!" He finally bit out, even as Frisk smiled at him sadly and held out a hand to offer to him.
He shook his head, backing up a step. "Because you're the only one who's fun to play with anymore. … no. That's not just it. I'm doing this because I care about you. I care about you more than anybody else."
"...I know," Frisk said sadly, and they slowly looked up at him. "But RESETTING over and over… so I never remember you, so no one remembers you… is that really what you want, Asriel? Is that really fun for you?"
Asriel shook his head, desperate as he struggled to hold onto his power. "It is because I can start it over and over again, Chara… I won't be alone this way. Even if you don't remember me, you'll still be here. I won't be left alone. I'm not ready for this to end. I'm not ready to say goodbye to someone like you again. So please… just stop doing this and just let me win." Asriel finally tore himself away from Frisk's offered hand, unleashing all of his power at once. Frisk yanked their arms up in front of their face, bracing themselves as pain shot up and down their body. It never got easier to withstand this, but they knew that it would be all right. Somehow.
"…Stop it." Asriel finally demanded, even as Frisk felt themselves start to grow weak. But Frisk kept standing, and this time they realized they understood Asriel perhaps even better than they understood themselves.
"STOP IT AND JUST LET ME WIN!" Asriel yelled attacking Frisk with every amount of power possible.
But Frisk held on.
Eventually Asriel stopped, and he looked at Frisk, lost. He finally broke down, shivering miserably as he fell to his knees. "Chara… I'm so alone, you know? And… I'm so afraid. Chara… I… I'm so sorry," he cried, and this time, Frisk wasn't afraid to step up to Asriel, still so large in their upgraded form, wrap their arms around him and whisper in his ear.
"It's okay, Asriel… even when I win, you'll get your wish. You and I won't be saying goodbye just yet…" And then they stepped back and sadly smiled and comforted Asriel as the barrier was, once again, shattered.
.
"…? WHERE'S THE DRAMA IF YOU KEEP GETTING EVERYTHING RIGHT," Mettaton complained, sounding annoyed with its robotic voice. "EVEN THE NEAR IMPOSSIBLE ONES. I NEED DRAMA, FEAR, ANGST FOR THIS SHOW TO BE A SUCCESS, DARLING! WHICH… YOU AREN'T GIVING ME."
"Ah. Sorry, I'll get one wrong, then," Frisk volunteered, zoning back into reality. They had been distracted, thinking back on the happy future Mettaton would one day have with Napstablook and the others.
Frisk was now uncertain if that day would ever come, though. Somehow, the thought of it not coming just made them feel more tired than sad now…
.
Frisk and the Monster Kid stood silently in the rain, the rain dripping off of the umbrella as Frisk gazed out at the castle. There was a comfortable silence, and Frisk was grateful for the temporary reprieve.
"…why do you idolize Undyne so much?" Frisk finally asked, after the silence had lapsed for several minutes.
The Monster Kid turned, and grinned up at Frisk. "That's obvious, duh!" He grinned, turning back to look out over the castle. "She always does her best to help others and is super cool while doing it!"
"But what if she fails?" Frisk persisted, curious.
Monster Kid just hummed to himself, cheerfully thinking about it. "Heroes never fail!" He finally declared. "They always get right back up if they lose a fight, so they never fail, of course!"
"…I see."
I hope that I remain the "hero" type then… Frisk thought silently, gazing up at the fake stars. I hope that I always stand up more than I fall…
.
"…haha." Frisk said softly, cracking a wry smile at the whoopee cushion as they fished it out from under them and tossed it at Sans. Sans just grinned and silently handed Frisk the ketchup bottle, a dare in his eyes.
Without hesitating, Frisk turned it upside down and drenched their hamburger in the red sauce before reaching for Sans's food and eating that one instead.
There were no extra words passed between the two anymore as they mechanically carried out the same routine.
.
Wake up...you need to… listen to me… Frisk…! Don't… give up…
Frisk blinked their eyes open, turning their head to the side as they rested for a moment, panting as they regained their breath. Sixty times. They had done this sixty times. They were sure of it. Their DETERMINATION was sapped, and they were nearly at a breaking point. This time, the RESET had been… different. Turning wide eyes down to their stomach, Frisk nervously felt for the wound that had killed them.
Because they had messed up. They had died.
And it didn't end the cycle. Instead, it just sent Frisk right back to the start. There were no SAVE points, no QUIT options. There was just RESET, nothing else. And Frisk couldn't even control that anymore. Whether they liked it or not, Frisk was going to wake up, surrounded by the golden flowers…
But Frisk was still ok. They could still keep going.
.
Until finally, on their seventy-second RESET, Frisk by accident gained their first LOVE level.
And everything they had worked so hard for started to crumble down from there.
.
.
.
DETERMINATION fills you as you think of what's to come and leave a review...
((There will be a week or so of a hiatus due to exams, see everyone afterwards! Thanks for supporting me.))