The story continues ! I hope you're all doing well. Enjoy this new chapter !

Chapter Fourteen : I'll Be Waiting For You

When morning came, the grayish walls of New Home were brighter, but still pretty dark. Only the Golden Flowers were shining in all their glory. Everyone were still sleeping, some peacefully, others were struggling to find sleep through the night.

In their room, Frisk and Asriel were sleeping in their beds unaware of their parents' presence not far away from them. But the human was also unaware Asriel was sleeping in his bed, she was convinced he wouldn't be able to go inside since she locked the door… But what she doesn't know is the fact that a certain skeleton took the room's key without her consent.

In the living room, Sans' snores were the only noises we could hear in the house, the skeleton was deeply asleep in the very comfortable armchair besides the chimney, which belonged to Asgore…and Toriel before her flee.

Speaking of Toriel, the goat woman was beside Asgore through the rest of the night…she was unable to close her eyes because her ears caught Asgore's whimpering and crying. The noises he made weren't so loud they could wake everyone, but only Toriel heard him since her room is just beside his. She knew there were nothing she could do for him while he is witnessing his memories, but she couldn't resist the urge to watch him sleep.

After realizing it would be useless to try to sleep, Toriel got out of her room and went to Asgore's, staying by his side while she was reading his diary…

When he was moving in his sleep, Toriel hold his hand and hummed a lullaby, which at least stopped him from moving but his crying still remained.

Back to present time, Toriel took a look at the hourglass and realized it was nine in the morning… She was awake through the entire night, watching Asgore… A few hours ago he stopped crying, but he didn't look like he was sleeping peacefully.

Toriel put her hand on Asgore's forehead and frowned : he was burning hot, he got a fever… And it won't go away until he recovers all of his memories…

The goat woman closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. "How long…" She whispered. "How long this fever of his caught him…? If I noticed it like I should have…"

After she withdrew her hand off Asgore's forehead, Toriel went to the bathroom searching for some items which could get his fever down. When she came back, she was carrying a bucket of water with a washcloth. Toriel was a bit disappointed : she was also looking for some medicine for fever but couldn't find any she could use, all the medicine in the bathroom were obsolete for ages ! She was seriously starting to wonder if Asgore was in the right state of mind… Well, of course he wasn't, but to forget about getting new medicine ? Does Alphys knows any of that ?

When she stared at the sick child, Toriel noticed that Asgore was sweating, his body temperature must have risen due to the fever… After she put aside the bucket of water, she lifted him by the armpits very gently, making sure to not wake him up and stripped him off the sweater he was wearing, with him being shirtless.

After she laid him down without forgetting to cover his body with the blankets, Toriel took the wet washcloth, squeezed all the water from it and put it on Asgore's forehead. When he felt the cold cloth he groaned, a little uncomfortable, and very slowly he opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Toriel's eyes watching him, acknowledging his awakening.

"…Tori…" Asgore called with his voice very cracked, before coughing lightly. As he licked his lips, he felt his throat was very dry, he concluded he was getting dehydrated. Toriel noticed and laid down him when he tried to stand up.

"Don't move Gorey…" She said. "You got sick since last night, you have to stay in bed…" When Asgore reached for her, Toriel caught his hand and hold it with both of her hands.

As Asgore coughed again, she asked. "Do you want me to get you something ?" Unable to talk, he just caressed his neck hoping for Toriel to realize he was thirsty.

She nodded in understanding and answered. "Alright, I'll get you some water. Wait here, and don't get out of the bed." She warned. Without waiting for a response, Toriel stand up and went to the kitchen.

It was just a matter of time Asgore would get thirsty… She thought. Now that I think about it, he didn't eat or drink anything since he woke up last night from his coma. I should get him something to eat too…

When she reached the living room, Toriel noticed Sans' sleeping form in the armchair, the skeleton still deeply asleep judging by his snores. Toriel chuckled as she shook her head at the sight of silliness right before her. When she reached the kitchen, Toriel looked around.

Just like all the other places of the house, New Home's kitchen was entirely grey. The fridge, the sink, the stovetop, and even the trash can are in the same color ! Then, Toriel remembered what was written in Asgore's diary. From his point of view, the loss of color was caused by the lack of HOPE in the place, but Toriel thinks there is something more…

Recalling the diary's words, Toriel saw what Asgore was feeling at that time : sadness, loneliness, anger and fear. For now, she only read the first pages, when he spoke about the first human of the six who fell in the Underground. This chapter proved that Asgore wasn't blinded by bloodlust as she believed, he was already starting to doubt… But he was afraid by sparing the humans would be an insult of Asriel's memory, he forbid himself to forgive the humans for what they did to him, for what they did to her family…

Even though Asgore was wrong, she was starting to understand him, and pity him…

When she looked down, something caught her eye in the trash can. When she picked it, she recognized a recipe of Butterscotch pie, and looking in the trash can again, there was other crumpled recipes…

Toriel laughed, knowing Asgore tried many, many times to recreate her Butterscotch pie but never succeeded. Just like her when she tried to make a Golden Flower tea exactly like he did, but failed as miserably as him.

Toriel gasped when she realized Asgore was waiting for her to come back with some food and water, and hurried herself. When she looked in the fridge, she noticed some containers of snails, and some food from the surface. She concluded that Frisk and Asriel did some groceries before the went in the Underground.

At first, she wanted to make a snail pie, but it would make too much time… So she took a yogurt instead. But it's still not enough… As Toriel looked up, she noticed the storage on the wall. Letting her curiosity guide her, she opened it and stared, blinking…

There was only a cereal package, Toriel took it and read the words "Temmie Flakes" on it. She was sure she could hear someone screaming the title.

"Temmie Flakes ! Such a cute !"

Toriel jumped and turned around, but she saw nobody. Sans was still sleeping like he didn't hear the very high pitched voice.

Such enthusiasm. she thought. Those cereal must be really successful…

But comically Toriel put the Temmie Flakes' package back in the storage, a little annoyed of the voice who nearly disturbed the peacefully atmosphere of the house, and picked the food and water she intend to give to Asgore. When she came back into his room, his patient was struggling to stay awake, blinking each five seconds. When he noticed Toriel, he smiled.

Toriel sat in the chair beside the bed and gave Asgore the glass of water. "You're tired Asgore, if you're so sleepy why didn't you go back to sleep…?" She asked. Asgore drank some water, coughed a little and answered.

"You went to get me a drink, it would be a waste of time for you if I fell asleep right now. And to be honest, I don't wanna sleep anymore…" He said as he looked down.

Toriel noticed Asgore was shaking sightly, she could guess what was tormenting him so much. As she looked closer, she could swear he was gritting his teeth, clutching the bed sheets.

In an attempt to comfort him, Toriel put her hand on his shoulder as she put the other hand on his cheek. "Is that your memories which are making you so down ?" She said softly. Asgore looked away, his eyes hidden by his hair.

"I have been seeing things I don't understand… Scary things… Our child, Chara dying of illness, Asriel absorbing their SOUL and going to the surface carrying their body, and… him, d-dying in our arms, t-turned i-into dust…!" Asgore stuttered and went shaking. Toriel put her hand under his chin and turned his head, and at that moment she could see terrified eyes, afraid something terrible would happen around him.

"Everything you're seeing are memories…" She muttered. Asgore looked up to her as she continued. "Remember you saw Asriel, alive and safe… and Chara… She is alive as well…" Toriel would have preferred she would avoid talking about Chara as long Asgore doesn't remember what happened between him and them.

Asgore became relieve, but went confused. "Our children are still… But how…?" He asked. Toriel just shook her head.

"The answer will come to you with time… Like Gaster said, you have to be patient…" She said. Asgore was still reluctant to go back to sleep so she added. "I know it's painful, but you cannot stay in this state forever… You have to remain strong for your sake Asgore, for our sake as well…"

Asgore stared at her and answered. "Tori…Could you do something for me…?" Toriel nodded and smiled.

"Anything for you Gorey… What do you need ?" Asgore blushed and asked.

"Take me in your arms… Like the other night under the northern lights…" Toriel felt her heart warming up and embraced her "ex-husband", putting her head on his as he continued. "At that time, it was just you and me… Only our love mattered, far away from hatred, far away from war and far away from the day we got sealed…"

Toriel could feel Asgore's arms around her as she answered in turn. "And I promise it will remain like that… Nothing would separate us anymore…"

Asgore didn't understand what Toriel mean by the word "anymore" but remained quiet, as he slowly closed his eyes, the warmth of Toriel's hug made him very sleepy. Before he falls asleep, he could hear Toriel laugh and say "You didn't even notice the yogurt I took for you, even if it was nothing… Next time you wake up, I will make you something more filling… Remember Gorey, I'm here now and you will never waste my time…"

When Asgore fell asleep, Toriel laid him on the bed, and sat on the chair. When she was sure he was deeply asleep, she took the diary and continued where she was, the moment Asgore acknowledged the presence of the first of the six humans who fell in the Underground…

BGM : Home

Meanwhile inside the children's room, Asriel started to wake up slowly. At first, he wanted to stay on the bed, but he wasn't tired anymore. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the sight of Frisk, still in Morpheus' embrace.

In an instant, Asriel felt his cheeks burning, just like last night… or every night… Fearing Frisk was watching him, he hid his head with his hand, red like Undyne's hair.

It's that feeling again… he thought. I need to get out of here before I do something I would regret later.

Making sure he wasn't doing any noise, Asriel got out of his bed and walked very slowly. Each time Frisk would move or mutter in her sleep, Asriel freezes and his blushing gets worse. When he closed the room's door behind him, he let out a long relieved sigh.

I think a shower would make me feel better, it has been a little while since i didn't take one…

Minutes later in the bathroom, Asriel stripped himself of his sweater and looked at himself in the mirror : because of his young age and the lack of time he had for exercices, Asriel didn't grow much muscle, compared to his father or even Undyne, he was a little thin. But at least, his chest was a bit muscular much to his delight. He guessed he gained this from Asgore.

Before, he didn't really care about his appearance, but recently he felt a need of growing some muscles, he didn't really know why. But there were something else : when Asgore gave him one half of his SOUL, he was more younger, Frisk was much older and taller than him. And now his height competes with hers, his growth was very fast within two months.

Does a boss-monster grow faster than a human ? Maybe I should ask Mom and Dad about it…

After he put his clothes in the laundry basket, Asriel turned the water and went in the shower enjoying the hot water…

Fifteen minutes later, Asriel came out of the bathroom only with a towel around his waist, some water still dripping on his fur. It was easy to wash the fur, but to dry it… It was a pure trail of patience for him.

This is why I hate this fur ! He thought, annoyed. They can say anything about us but humans are so lucky for not having fur ! They call it cute, fluffy and all but it's easy to say that when they're not having trouble drying themselves !

But this wasn't the only reason Asriel was annoyed : he forgot to take fresh clothes with him, which are in his room… with Frisk still asleep.

Asriel gulped and turned the door's handle very slowly and opened the door, and took a look inside. Frisk was still asleep and she didn't seem to have heard the door's opening. Asriel sighed of relief and went inside.

As he walked very quietly, he was so focused on the drawer he didn't look very often at the human, certain she wouldn't wake up. When he finally reached the drawer, Asriel opened it and took the clothes he needed, he noticed some of the sweaters he have were green with yellow stripes. Even the shirts were in the same color. He facepalmed as he remembered green and yellow being his favorite colours, like Chara…

Asriel shook his head and continued to pick other clothes. Since it was summer, he took a shirt with a pair of shorts. Asriel was relieved he succeeded to get what he wanted without Frisk waking up and seeing him wearing nothing but a towel…

BGM : Nyeh heh heh !

Suddenly a shriek echoed in the room, making Asriel flinch before he turned around. What he saw was a wide awoken human staring at him like he grew two other heads, her face turned crimson clutching a pillow, threatening him to throw it at his face.

Asriel was in a very bad position. "Uhhh…" Scared of the pillow, he stuttered. "H-h-howdy…?"

So much things were rushing in Frisk's head. The noise of the drawer aroused her from her sleep and when she looked up to the source of the noise, she saw Asriel… naked…only wearing a towel around his waist…not even covering his knees… most of his fur wet… and… a very fluffy tail…

"What the hell are you doing here ?!" She screamed. "Get out, get out, NOW !"

Asriel was very embarrassed, but he still tried to calm Frisk so she won't throw the pillow at him. "F-Frisk this is a misunderstanding ! I was just looking for clothes, you see—" He tried to explain but Frisk interrupted.

"Your story doesn't interest me ! I was just right here and you…" She was beginning to be in loss of words. Asriel took the occasion.

"But you were sleeping ! I was just looking for fresh clothes ! It's not like I was stalking you or anything"

That comment sent Frisk on edge. She threw the pillow to Asriel's face with all her might, making him yelp and stepping back, but suddenly…

bump !

That sound was telling Frisk she shouldn't dare to look down what has just fallen, instead she covered her face with her hands so she couldn't see anything. When Asriel took the pillow away from his face, he was confused as he stared at Frisk looking very embarrassed, but then he realized he didn't feel his towel anymore and looked down…

"BAAAAAHH ~ !"

In a blink, Asriel hid himself with the pillow and closed his eyes in embarrassment. He expected Frisk to yell at him but instead, he heard something like…laughing.

When he opened his eyes, he noticed Frisk was keeping from laughing but a few seconds later, she let out uncontrollable giggles.

Asriel blushed like a red potato, he was so embarrassed he couldn't control it. "What's so funny ?!" He asked, bemused. Frisk didn't give any answer as she continued her laugh session until the door opened, showing Toriel rushing inside the room.

"What's going on here children ?! I hope you have a good reason for making so much noise because you could have awoken As-"

Toriel's eyes widened and her mouth formed a 'o' as she looked at her children : Frisk was hiding her face, still giggling and Asriel… was naked, hiding himself with a pillow.

When she blinked, she crossed her arms and asked "Is there something I need to know Asriel ?" She could see Asriel was in a bad mood and she couldn't help teasing him a little, when he stared at her, he was using the pleading look.

"C-could I h-have some p-privacy please ?" He looked down, a little humiliated. Frisk noticed that a managed to hold her laughing, only with her smiling. Toriel nodded and smiled as well.

"There is no need to make a big deal Asriel, I mean I already saw you naked countless times." That only made Asriel fuming in anger. "MOM !"

Toriel lifted her arms in surrender and chuckled."Okay I got it, I've said enough ! We will let you change yourself in peace. But please keep quiet, your father is sleeping and he was quite reluctant to go back to bed."

Asriel snorted. "I'm not the only one to blame…" At this moment Frisk cracked and laughed again, making Asriel growl.

Toriel stared at her, a little amused "Let's get out of here alright ?" She asked. Frisk only nodded and followed Toriel going out of the room. Before she closed the door, she heard Asriel one last time "Golly… This is the worst day of my life…"

As she walked toward the living room, Toriel asked"So why were you laughing like crazy back then ?"

Firsk snickered. "Asriel did something really unexpected when his towel fell down." She added. When Toriel asked for more she answered

"He… bleated…" And once again, she laughed again.

At first Toriel was confused, but when she got the scene in her mind, she tried to contain her amusement.

"I think you should get used to it my child, it's kind of like a habit for Asriel to bleat when his embarrassment exceeds the limits." She advised as she sat at the table.

Frisk sat in front of Toriel and answered. "Well, I guess I found myself a hobby." Toriel noticed the fact that Frisk wasn't heartbroken anymore, did Asriel apologize yesterday ?

Wanting to know how Frisk feels, she asked. "By the way, how do you do Frisk ? Are you feeling better from yesterday ?"

Toriel immediately regretted asking this question when she saw Frisk's joyful side vanish into a gloomy one.

"I'm sorry for asking that…" She told her. "When I saw you laughing with Asriel, I thought you talked with each other, that he gave you his apologies…"

Frisk interrupted her by lifting her hand and replied softly. "Mom, you don't have anything to apologize for, it would be surprising if you didn't ask me anything about it… To answer to your question, yes I'm feeling better… this night gave me a lot of good. But Asriel and me didn't have a talk until the misunderstanding we had this morning. Yesterday I was already asleep before he came to sleep in turn."

"Then how come weren't you mad at him back then ?" Toriel asked. Her child should be scowling at Asriel instead of laughing at him.

Frisk snorted "Oh, but I am still mad at him…" That's what I expected… Toriel thought.

"…But not in the same way as yesterday : I was furious with Asriel, but what happened in the room just now relieved the tension…" Frisk chuckled. "…and, I calmed down before I fell asleep with Sans' help."

Toriel arched a brow at the sleeping skeleton on the armchair. "Oh ? Sans managed to talk with you ?" She asked. Frisk nodded slowly while she crosses her arms on the table. "Mmhm… To be honest, I wasn't willing to talk with anyone… I even locked the door ! But that doesn't seem to stop him. Sans made me think a lot of things last night."

"Can you tell me about it ?" Toriel asked, letting curiosity get the best of her. Frisk looked like she hesitated to tell her but agreed. "Alright… But I'm warning you : it's gonna be long."

Toriel answered cheerfully "I don't mind, I don't have much to do anyways. We will wait for Asriel to come out and for Sans to wake up."

"What about dad ?" Frisk asked puzzled. She didn't get any news of Asgore's situation since yesterday. "Shouldn't we wait for him as well ?"

Toriel shook her head with a tiny frown. "I'm afraid not, Asgore is deeply asleep, he got a little sick… His memories are going back to him…" Then, she folded her hands. "But I'm afraid the worst is right ahead…"

Frisk stared in silence while Toriel looked down. Asgore's diary keeps revealing her new secrets but as she read, the contents made her more and more worried for him. What would happen when he would see his past actions ? And… How is he going to react when he sees her rejecting him and hurting him during their new life on the surface…?

Asriel, fully clothed, hid behind his room's door as he listens to the conversation between her mom and Frisk. He leaned his back on the door as he crosses his arms.

I hope Chara's corruption has entirely vanished from dad… If not, when he sees his last memories… the conflicts he had with mom…

Meanwhile, Asgore was still in bed. His memories were rushing to him, but it was not like with the trident : he was seeing unmoving images, but there was still voices echoing through his mind. He was seeing things, scary things.

Asgore was shaking as he saw himself, aiming his trident towards a human.

"No… Not another one… How many others came to me…?" He thought. Asgore was seeing the third human getting killed because of him. He was so urged to scream bloody murders, but for now he kept resisting. But for how long…?

When we look at him he seems to sleep peacefully, but inside him, Asgore was getting crushed under the horrors he witnesses.

Back to the living room, Frisk was sharing with Toriel her conversation with Sans. The latter was still sleeping like if nothing could wake him up. The conversation continued on every detail, even with Asriel's attachment on Frisk. Toriel chuckled and told her human child that she already had her suspicions about his son's behavior with her.

Asriel departed from the door when he heard her mother's comments. His embarrassment wouldn't fade away for a long time after hearing all of this. When would his torture end for once ?

Then suddenly, he heard someone knocking on the door. "Come in." He answered. When the door opened, Frisk came inside the room and walked to her bed. "Good morning Asriel." She greeted. Asriel noticed the soft tone on the human's voice, maybe she is still upset with him but at least, she seems to have calmed down.

"Good morning Frisk." He greeted back. He looked down at his fingers, playing with them as Frisk opened the drawer. Urging himself to get a conversation with her, he muttered, still not looking at Frisk in the eyes.

"Are you going to take a shower as well ?" Frisk stared at him, looking puzzled. What is he trying to do ? "Well yes, like every morning. I would have preferred to sleep again, but I'm not tired anymore… Since a certain someone woke me up from bed." She hissed.

Asriel flinched and tensed. Yep, she's still mad at me… He thought. Then, Frisk sighed a put the clothes she intends to take with her in the bathroom on her bed before sitting alongside Asriel. "Sorry, I didn't mean to be so aggressive. I was just—" But then, Asriel stopped her.

"No don't apologize. I'm the one who gets the blame. After what I said to you yesterday, you have every right to be angry…" Frisk stayed quiet, she urged Asriel to continue, knowing he have other things to say.

BGM : It's Raining Somewhere Else

"When Chara showed up, I lost control over my actions. The moment I looked at them, I saw past events of dad being manipulated by them, getting controlled by them… and getting impaled by his own trident because of them… Everything dad has been through in these last months, was because of them. I was angry and, I wanted to avenge him… I felt like another person.

I'm so, so sorry for saying you didn't have a family before Frisk, it's not something I'm supposed to say since I don't know much about you… I didn't know you and I still don't. It's okay if you don't forgive me, I understand…" When he finished, Asriel closed his eyes to prevent his tears to escape. He jumped a little when he felt something soft on his cheek.

He opened his teary eyes to look at Frisk caressing his cheek with her hand, with a warm smile. "Asriel… If you went to see me yesterday, even if your purpose was to apologize, I would have done worse than slapping you like I did before." When she tapped his cheek, Asriel looked like a whipped puppy. Frisk chuckled at the adorable sight and continued.

"But now, I have relaxed, thanks to Sans… I'm not really angry at you anymore, but I'm still hurt. My past is something very sensitive to me, if I had the power, I would have forgotten everything until I fell in the Underground. If you really want to know me, you have to give me some time. For not I'm not ready yet…" When he felt Asriel's hand on hers, Frisk blushed. "I'll wait, I will always be waiting for you. Even if it would take months, years… I'll always be there…f-for you…" He promised, stuttering in the last words. This time, he allowed himself to cry and hugged Frisk very tightly. The human leaned on the warmth Asriel's fur was giving her and hummed, crying a little.

Then, she heard Asriel once again. "Frisk… There is something I need to tell you…" After resting her head on his shoulder, Frisk asked "What is it Asriel…?"

For a moment, there was a great silence. Asriel hesitated and was unable to control his words anymore, but his mouth stayed closed. Frisk could feel his heartbeats echoing all over them. She was feeling hot on her cheeks, she couldn't understand why… Asriel just have something to say, it's not like he would…

After he took a deep breath, Asriel manages to talk. "Frisk…" He whispered. The latter lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him with her eyes opened, staring at his.

"Frisk… I lo—"

BGM : But Nobody Came

Suddenly, they heard a very loud terrifying scream making them alarmed. When he regained his senses, Asriel recognized the voice of the one who was screaming with so much force.

"Dad !" He yelled. "It's dad !" Without wasting a second, Asriel took Frisk's hand and ran. When they opened their room's door, they saw Toriel running as well, and they followed her towards Asgore's room.

When they came inside the room, they saw Asgore trashing in his bed, still screaming with the blankets on the floor. His eyes were closed, but he was clutching his head, meaning he was still trapped in his memories. Toriel was horrified at the sight, that was what she feared : he was witnessing the killing. He was certainly refusing to admit he is the one who killed all six children.

Toriel's fear increased when she heard Asgore screaming with all of his might. "MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOOP !" When he was out of air, Asgore took a deep breath and shrieked again.

"TORI ! HELP ME ! I NEED YOU !"

At that moment, Toriel felt a great amount of guilt through her entire being.

How many… How many years have you been in this state Asgore ? she thought. Why did you choose to endure this pain all alone ?

Back to Alphys and Undyne's house, the screen was showing the scene with Toriel trying to shook Asgore off his nightmare. Papyrus and Alphys were petrified because of what their eyes were staring at. Undyne seemed less frightened but her fists clenched and her gritted teeth told otherwise.

The ex-captain of the Royal Guard couldn't control her tears as she grew scared for Asgore. When she realized she was crying, Undyne looked down, hiding her face as she whispered so no one could hear her. "Father…"

Well, that's it for now... Asgore is beginning to snap, what he is seeing is the killing of the last humans. The memories are going back to him more faster than the last time. I know you don't want Asgore to suffer anymore, but I'm afraid he is not done enduring pain...yet.
By the way, there is something I should've asked to you since the very beginning : what do you think about the background music I put on the chapters ? Should I keep them or should I stop ? I need your advice on this.

I hope you liked it, I'll see you for the next time. Have a nice day !