A lot of stuff had been moved into the new house before Frisk even woke up. The impact of it finally hit them as they left their room and looked at the rest of the house- bereft of furniture and looking sad and strangely large.
They were excited about having their own room, being able to do with it as they wished- although that hadn't sunk in yet either, really. Toriel had bought some fabric of their choosing with some of the money she'd changed, for their curtains and bedclothes. When the value of gold and the novelty of the monsters were taken into account, their currency was worth a lot- it had helped their attempts to be accepted, Frisk was sure, but so far the monsters were barely spending any of it, so used to getting by on cast-offs and what they could make.

They looked out the front door as they passed it, looking for Toriel. The old tree, it's black, dead-looking branches reaching for the sunlight it would never see, had become so familiar. "Home", Asgore had named this place, countless years ago. Frisk felt a pang as they realised that that was what it had become.

They found Toriel in the kitchen, cleaning up. Everything was gone except for a few plates, most stacked in the sink- but one was steaming with beans and chopped vegetables covered in a tomato sauce. Whoever had been here had probably been the one to disturb their sleep; the oven was gone, but it couldn't have been gone long.

"Oh dear, I hope we did not wake you, my child!" Toriel bustled over to them, wiping her hand on a towel. "We have a big day, I wanted you to sleep as long as you could."
"It's okay. I wanted to... Look around, before we left. Uh, if that's okay."
"Oh... Yes, of course you would want to. That is fine, but make sure you eat your breakfast first, will you not? And you will be able to come back, even if- well, even if we will no longer be living here."
"I know." Frisk gave her a smile to try and reassure her, and took the full plate and the utensils next to it. They ate sat on the floor of what had been the living room, shovelling food in as fast as possible. They stacked the empty plate with the others- it seems they'd missed a shared breakfast, which normally would bother them; but today, they needed to be alone. They hugged Toriel goodbye, grabbed their bag, and took off into the ruins.

A couple of monsters hadn't even left the ruins, yet- and a couple had ventured in since they'd opened up. Frisk didn't see many of them, and didn't stop to talk to any.
They reached the room where they'd first met Toriel... And Flowey. A shaft of morning sun shone through from the high ceiling, and Frisk sat down, using the light to rummage through their bag and pull out a pencil and the sketchbook Asgore had got them- their first "real" gift. Upset, Toriel had bought them sketching pencils, everyday pencils, fine pens, coloured pencils, and even some paints... Almost as though in retaliation. Although touched by the thoughts of them both, Frisk felt a bit like they were being used as a tool to express Toriel's anger.

They put their thoughts to one side and flipped through to the next empty page. There was no sign or sound of Flowey, and part of them felt they should be more wary, after all the damage he had done. But... They remembered the last time they had seen him, or rather, his other form. He had begged them not to think of the two sides of him as the same person, and for the most part, Frisk didn't. But... They still carried a painful burden of knowing that whatever was left of Asriel, he would be left here, alone.

Their pencil whispered across the paper; sketching rough lines, then going back and adding detail. They weren't thinking too hard about what they were drawing, just letting it happen without stress. When they sat back, they frowned.
They could never, ever let Toriel see this. Or Asgore. The sketch they had done looked undeniably like Asriel- the way they remembered him, the last time they saw him. They couldn't capture the deep sadness they remembered in his eyes, though- and suddenly they were glad for it. They turned the page roughly, tempted to tear it out entirely.

Their next attempts just frustrated them. The page was covered in scribbles and erased lines, before they threw the book down in disgust. Of course it wasn't going right, of course. They were trying to force what they were drawing away from what they were thinking of. They sighed and turned to a new page and tried again.
This time, they drew a flower, growing out of a patch of grass. It was surrounded by petals, which they carefully shaded to highlight the light falling on it. They looked at it- it looked good, but they hadn't touched the centre. They hadn't known what to do. Now, though- now that they looked at it, they did.
They bent their head and started drawing a face- an ugly face, with a nasty slash for a grinning mouth, which even through their untrained drawing exuded malice. So intent on getting it right were they that they didn't notice someone arrive near the entrance back to the ruins. They'd been down there a while, and their friends worried. Someone had had to look for them.

They sat back and held up the sketchbook. Their ability to draw when they just relaxed was the one thing they were proud of. They used to steal scraps of paper and pencils when they could, and it was the one thing they'd always done- but after the constant practice since falling down here, they finally felt happy with it; that was summed up with this picture- a beautiful flower shining in the sun, with a vicious, vile grin that made them shiver. It seemed very... fitting.

They sighed and packed the sketchbook and pencil away. Slinging the bag onto their back, they headed further, to where they had fallen. They didn't know if he would be there; it didn't really matter that much. They needed to say goodbye- not to Asriel, the poor, innocent, hurting boy who they'd given their farewells to; but to what he had eventually become. He didn't really need to be there for that. They weren't sure they wanted to see him.
The flower patch was before them. Frisk sat down. This patch was where they had fallen- presumably, where all the humans had fallen. Including Chara. The flowers had been well-cared for after the fall, any broken ones cleared away. It looked pristine.
Frisk remembered seeing Chara's coffin in the castle, kept with the other humans- even though it was empty. They remembered the strange flash of memories which were not their own when they had fallen. They frowned.

Was this flower bed here not to commemorate the fall of Chara from the Aboveworld, but...?

Their line of thought was interrupted by a voice. "Why are you here?"
They looked up. The flower looked a lot less terrifying than he did in Frisk's drawing, or in their nightmares. He looked... Almost sad.
"I'm leaving. For good. I'm going to the surface and- I don't know if I'll ever come back here."
"So go." Flowey turned away.
"I came to say goodbye."
There was a long pause. "Why?"
"Why not?"
"Because I killed you." Flowey turned back to Frisk, his face twisted into that horrific, malicious grin. "I killed you over, and over. I remember it. Do you? Do you remember each time I ripped your life from you?"
"Yes," Frisk said, simply, and just sat there. There was a long pause. Flowey's face eventually changed back to his sad expression

"So, why are you here?"
"I came to say goodbye."
"You know I'm not him, right?" His face contorted, showing a vague, mocking semblance of Asriel. "I'm not your friend. If I could kill you now-"
"But you can't. And you wouldn't." Frisk spoke with a certainty they weren't sure of, especially as his eyes flickered to behind them and back and his face turned back into his innocent smile.

"Not with your protector there, no. You idiot. You have no idea what he is, do you?" He let out his evil, unnerving giggle, and even as they fought it a shiver ran through their body at the sound. Then his face turned serious.
"I don't love you, Frisk. I can't. But- what you did- well, I respect it. So let me give you some free advice. The smiley trashbag caused more resets for me than everything else put together. If you value yourself- don't let him know anything about you." Then he disappeared.

There was a pause. "Go to hell, Flowey," Frisk finally said, with more vehemence than they expected. Then, much more softly, "goodbye."
A hand on their shoulder didn't surprise them. They didn't look up, just spoke in a flat voice.
"Why are you here?"
"Time to go, kiddo."
Frisk sighed. "Yeah. Yeah, okay." They got up and walked heavily out of the cavern, back towards the ruins, without even looking at Sans. He had spent the entire time that flower had been there ready to intervene, and now Frisk was acting like he wasn't even there. He grabbed their shoulder, dragging them roughly to face him.
"Why?"

Frisk blinked, then looked away. "I don't understand."
"That thing killed you, didn't it? It killed everyone, once- didn't it?"
"Um. I don't know. I mean..." Frisk bit their lip. "He... definitely killed me." They shivered and rubbed their arms, refusing to look at Sans. "I thought I knew what had happened with him, but after what he said... I guess I don't know as much as I thought."
They looked up at Sans- he was staring at the spot Flowey had been. The flower had said not to trust Sans- but Frisk didn't think he was being malicious. Not that time. He had still remembered being Asriel, despite trying to scare them away. No- Flowey had believed it.

But that didn't make him right. Frisk suddenly made a decision. Maybe Sans was dangerous- he definitely knew more than he had ever let on, that much was clearer than ever. And Frisk hadn't forgotten when he'd said he would have killed them if he hadn't promised Toriel otherwise. But despite all of that- Frisk felt utterly safe with him. And they felt like he needed someone more than any of the other monsters did. They took his hand.

He whirled around to stare at them, startled. "S-Sans," they said, nervousness suddenly uncoiling from their belly and threatening to choke them. They swallowed, trying to make it go away. "I don't know w-what's going on. I thought I did but I don't. But I know that I trust you. And, um, if you ever want to talk about it... I'll listen."
Sans stared at them like he had never seen them before. It was a few moments before he spoke. "Why are you- never mind, kid." He sighed and shook his head, pulling his hand from Frisk's and turning back towards the ruins. "Come on."

Frisk ran to catch up, catching onto his sleeve so he couldn't ignore them. "No!" They pulled him to face them. "You- you always tell me you're not leaving and that you're there for me, b-but I've never said it to you." Frisk crossed their arms, looking like they were trying to mimic Toriel, and Sans' eyes showed his amusement. "I'm saying it now! I trust you, and I want to be here for you, and I'm not leaving here until you're not upset with me any more!"

"Aw, kid." Sans reached out to ruffle their hair; they ducked away, trying to hold on to their serious stance. "I'm not upset with you, Frisk," he said, more soberly. "But I don't think you know how much of a threat that thing is- it's like you don't even remember what happened at the barrier."
"I remember better than anyone." Frisk pouted; their lower lip wobbled a little, despite their attempts to look mature. "I remember you all de-defending me, and... I-I remember everyone's p-pain..." Their voice faltered, before they took a deep breath and went on. Sans simply listened.
"I- I don't know what happened, before, with you, and I don't know what Flowey meant by you causing him 'resets', but I remember what happened. And I know how Flowey happened. And I know that- even with everything that happened, we wouldn't be leaving the Underground if he hadn't... done what he did." They bit their lip, finally dropping their eyes. "I just... think he deserves some mercy for that. And a lot of pity."

"You think everyone deserves mercy. I don't know how you do it, kid- but that's what got us out in the first place, isn't it?" He put his hand on Frisk's shoulder; they continued to stare at the ground. "Can't say I agree with you on that-" he jerked his head back the way they had just come- "but okay, kid. I guess you did what you felt you had to. No harm done."
"Y-yeah?" Frisk looked back up at Sans. "You aren't upset any more?"
"Nah. Come on- everyone'll be heading up to the surface in a lily bit."
Frisk groaned. "You oak me a favour after that one!"
"I thought we were sticking to flowers? I can't match you for tree puns, I haven't bot-any."
Frisk giggled. "Iris my case- these puns are painful!"

They disappeared from the sight of the flower patch, clearly the best of friends once more. The flowers were unmoved, stretching their faces towards the sun- except for one, who watched them depart.

When Flowey spoke, it was in a voice unlike his usual one. "Goodbye, Frisk. Please don't come back."

This was the hardest chapter to date- the others wouldn't let me go until I finished them, but with this one I ended up outright scrapping the original second half. It was too angry and angsty and didn't feel right. I think this is better.
Starting next chapter I intend to focus on a specific arc dealing with some pretty heavy issues. Assuming I don't get sidetracked (by Sans!) it'll be at least 3-5 chapters long.

So far Sans has hijacked almost every chapter. He was only supposed to be focused on in two. He's kind of one of the hardest characters to write- I am not good at puns or bad jokes and I worry that he doesn't sound like himself, so any constructive criticism there would be great.
Actually, all comments would be great. Critique or otherwise, I'd love to hear if you read and enjoy this. It's my first foray into putting my work online.

-Ren