Chapter 8: Home...?
I just stood there awkwardly, as Toriel took in the fact that we were already here.
She then took a deep breath. "Chara, Frisk, how did you two get here? Are you hurt?"
I took a look at the two of us. We were pretty all right, all things considered.
"So... we're fine," I told her, "and as for us finding you, when we found out some dog took your phone, we wanted to look for you."
"Oh... I see. Yes, I understand. I should not have left you alone for so long. It was irresponsible to try to surprise you like this," Toriel explained.
"Surprise us?"
"Err... well, I suppose I cannot hide it any longer."
"Definitely not. But, sorry for leaving before you returned," I sheepishly said.
"Oh, that's all right. I was simply worried about you getting hurt in this unfamiliar place, surrounded by unfamiliar creatures. But you two arrived safe and sound. And you did you say you were an adult, Chara, so I should have figured you could take care of Frisk," Toriel responded.
Well, the 'creatures' aren't unfamiliar, I thought, but at least you recognized me as an adult. So you at least remembered I'm not a kid.
"...But, uh, you two... you didn't get into any trouble with the other monsters, did you?" Toriel asked.
"No..." I answered.
We spared them all! Frisk signed.
Though instead of translating exactly what she said, I said, "we had no problems with them. If something happened, we resolved it."
"I see... Well, as long as you are safe," Toriel said. "Please, come!"
Toriel led us past the black tree, where just beyond it... was a strangely familiar sight. At least, for me.
It was the entrance to what appeared to be a small house, with an open doorway and two windows. More red leaves were gathered outside, and above the doorway, there was a sign, but the words were long since faded. Still, it looked pretty clean and tidy, all things considered.
No way... my mind was running with memories of my past life with Toriel and her family. Happy ones, sad ones...
This place... looked like my old home in the monster capital, when I was a part of the Dreemurrs family.
Well, I could tell it wasn't the same house. Not only was this the Ruins, not the capital of the Underground, this place made from the same purple stones as the rest of the area. That and I haven't seen the inside yet.
Speaking of which, Toriel entered through the door, into the house. Frisk ran to one of the piles of leaves, though this time, she didn't play with them.
She turned to me and signed, it's another star!
"Well, you know what that means," I replied. "Seeing such a cute, tidy house in the Ruins... gives you determination!"
Frisk smiled as she reached out to the unseen star.
We followed Toriel inside, and well...
The home foyer was very similar to the one in the capital, just in a warmer light brown color. There was a doorway to the left, and hallway to the right, and a set of stairs right in front of us (though we would need to go around to the right to get to them, since a railing was in the way). I also saw a small bookcase by the stairway top, a simple potted plant on the opposite side, a few empty photo frames, and an unlit candle on the wall.
So it is just like home... I thought. Then I remembered, monsters used to live here in the Ruins, way in the past. Perhaps the Dreemurrs had modeled their new home after this one after they left, but didn't make it as... colorful as the new one.
"Do you smell that?" Toriel asked us.
I took a quick sniff, and I could smell something I hadn't had in a long time. Did she really...?
"Surprise! It is a butterscotch-cinnamon pie. I thought we might celebrate your arrival. I want you to have a nice time living here. So I will hold off on snail pie for tonight," Toriel exclaimed.
I couldn't help but smile. I loved her B-scotch pie, and I spent a long time trying to master making it myself (snail pie wasn't bad either). Looking at Frisk, I knew she was in for a treat, as well (before I remembered, she was here before in previous timelines, so she probably already knew this was coming).
But I didn't miss what Toriel had fully said. Nice time living here? I thought, what are you planning?
"Here, I have another surprise for you," Toriel said, as she motioned us to follow her into the hallway. Said hallway was more a yellow color than the previous room, with some more potted plants, candles, and empty photo frames going down it. There were three doors on the left side, each, I assumed, leading into a different room.
"This is it..." Toriel continued, "A room of your own. I hope you like it...!" she trailed off. "Oh dear, I just realized... There's only one bed."
Frisk seemed to think on this, then signed, I can sleep with mommy!
I just gave a nervous chuckle.
"What is it, Chara?" Toriel asked.
"Uh, Frisk wants us to share a bed..." I told her.
"Well... that's... sweet. I'm sure we can figure it out later." Toriel then raised her hands, and rubbed our heads. Frisk giggled at this, I was just kind of annoyed. Gaster used to do this to mock my height.
Suddenly, Toriel stopped and turned back to where we came from. "Is something burning...? Um, make yourself at home!" she cried before running off.
I shrugged it off, as Frisk entered the "our" room. I followed, and inside, it seemed to be a standard kid's room, colored red with a single bed (of course), a box of toys (which I wasn't interested in at all. I was an adult, after all), a rug, a few lamps, a dresser, a display shelf, and an extra box. On the wall, there was a drawing of a flower hung up (which reminded me of Flowey). On the shelf was an empty and dusty photo frame (they were all over the place). I went over to check what was in the box, and I found it was full of numerous shoes, all in different sizes (I figured none of them would fit me, but maybe Frisk?).
Frisk wandered over to the bed, sat on it, and yawned.
"You can't be tired already?" I asked.
Frisk just shook her head.
"Well, I guess we have been exploring the Ruins for a while. It's hard to tell time down here, so it could've been a whole day," I replied.
Can we sleep? Frisk signed.
"I know you want me to join you, but..." I took a close look at the bed. "It's not going to fit both of us. Besides, I'm not tired yet."
Frisk pouted.
"...But... Maybe I can tuck you in...?"
And Frisk beamed at that.
She laid down, as I pulled the bed's covers over her. "Sweet dreams, Frisk."
Frisk happily nodded, before closing her eyes.
I smiled, and back away before leaving the room, as I started to realize, that... was what a mother would, isn't it? I shouldn't... I can't be her mom.
I shook that off. At least it was a nice thing to do, regardless. And she's still young, so...
I decided the best thing to do now is let Frisk sleep, and check the place out. Toriel was checking her pie, and I could check on her... but I decided to look around instead. After all, the best to find out something about someone... is to check their room.
I noticed at the end of the hall, the last door had a sign on, running over to check it, I found it just said "Room under renovations" I didn't know what that meant, but trying to open the door, I found it was locked.
To the right of the door was a mirror. I stepped in front of it, taking a good look at my reflection, for the first time since I fell into the Void.
Well, it's me, I thought. Same old me, though I guess I looked more tired, more stressed. Everything that had happened most of had its toll on me.
I shrugged that off, and made my way back to the second door. Inside that one, I could tell the room had to belong to my mom. It was blue, and there was a large bed (definitely bigger than a twin-sized bed), a big bookcase with a pot of golden flowers on top, a dresser with a lamp on top of it, a desk with another lamp, a bucket ...of snails, and a cactus (truly the most tsundere of plants).
I checked the desk, and found an open book on it. Almost immediately, I noticed it was Toriel's dairy, due to the obviously handwritten text, and there was a passage circled in red marker on the open page. I figured if I wanted to know what Toriel was doing for the past few decades, I should read it.
And the circled passage read, "Why did the skeleton want a friend? Because she was feeling BONELY..."
After giving a small chuckle to that, and then flipping through the pages of the diary, I found that it was filled with jokes of a similar caliber. I always loved Toriel's humor, but this isn't exactly what I was looking for.
I looked at the small chair by the desk, and I noticed on the back, the name "Chairiel" was carved in the back. I remember me and Asriel helping to make a chair like this, the name being a pun of Toriel's name. Was this the same chair? It certainly looked like it. If so, how did it last this long?
Moving on to the bookcase, I pulled out a book. It was an encyclopedia of subterranean plants (which I was sure I've seen before when I was staying at Gaster's place. He probably even had me read as part of my homeschooling). Opening to a random page, I read, "'Typha' – A group of wetland flowering plants with brown, oblong seedpods. Known more commonly as 'water sausages'." Interesting, and I remembered seeing a few of those in the hallway, but not what I was looking for.
Putting the book back, I quickly skimmed the rest of them, and couldn't find anything of worth. So, I turned my attention to her dresser. I figured, screw it, and opened the top drawer.
...And it was Toriel's sock drawer. Scandalous!
...Then I remembered I've never seen Toriel wears socks. Or shoes. So why did she have these?
Closing it, I sarcastically said to myself, "well, that was helpful. Found out so much..."
Well, I knew she was still Toriel, still my old adoptive mother. But from the phone call earlier, it seemed she was being tight-lipped on what was really going on. And why keep us here...?
At this point, I figured it was best to go talk to the boss monster, herself.
"Oh, hello there, Chara," Toriel greeted as I entered the kitchen, crossing through the living room to the left of the entrance. She was busy cutting some slices of pie, presumably for me and Frisk. "Where's Frisk?"
"She went to sleep," I told her, looking around the kitchen. A fridge, the sink (which had some white fur stuck in the drain, of course), countertop, and a stove that seemed little used. I figured she must of used fire magic, most of the time. It made sense, but I didn't do it, even though I had mastered my fire magic.
I pointed to the fridge, and asked, "do you mind if I get a drink?"
"Oh, not at all," Toriel replied, as she placed some pie slices on a few plates. Looking at the pie itself, it was quite large, as Toriel always made them that way. It used to be imitating to me, but not so much anymore.
I opened the fridge... standard groceries, some milk, and... Score! A bar of chocolate! I grabbed the milk and chocolate, and placed them on the counter.
"Oh, uh, Chara, that chocolate..." Toriel started before trailing off.
"Yes...? Should I put it back?" I asked. If she didn't want me to have it, then that was fine, though disappointing. I loved chocolate, and it's been forever since I had some.
"No, it's fine, I just... I don't know," Toriel thought about it for a moment. "I know you're an adult, but even you shouldn't have a lot of sugary sweets, and I just made pie for you."
Good excuse, and I did want some of that pie as well... hm. "I'll save the chocolate for later," I told her, putting it in my pocket. Figured it was monster food, so it couldn't melt.
Toriel told me she was going to sneak into Frisk's room, and place a piece of the pie by the bed for her, which was sweet. Meanwhile, I was enjoying my slice with a cup of milk.
A simple room, a table with three chairs (how convenient), another bookshelf, some gardening tools, and a recliner where Toriel left a book in it, next to a lit fireplace. I could sense the magic coming from it, so I figured the fire was magic, which meant it would've been safe to put your hand in. It could only provide warmth and comfort.
Toriel returned, sitting down in the recliner while picking up her book, and reading it from where ever she left off.
As I finished up my food, I figured it was time to get to the bottom of things. Spinning around in my chair, I planned to start a conversation.
"So, Toriel, what'cha reading?" I asked.
"Oh, this is called '72 Uses for Snails,'" she replied. "It's quite an interesting book."
Yep, she still likes her snails, I thought. "That's nice. So... thanks for letting us stay here..."
"Oh, yes. Sorry for not having a bed for yourself, Chara. Until we can figure that out, do you think this recliner might be comfortable?"
"Uh, sure..."
"Anyways, I just want you to know how glad I am to have someone here. There are so many old books I want to share. I'd like to show you my favorite bug-hunting spot. And... well, I know you might not need this, but for Frisk, I've prepared a curriculum for her education."
Yeah, and so would Gaster, I thought, well, if I tried to convince him, maybe.
"This may come as a surprise to you... But I have always wanted to be a teacher. ...Actually, perhaps that isn't very surprising. STILL! I am glad to have you living here."
"Yeah, about that... know we can't stay, Toriel," I solemnly told her. "I need to take Frisk home."
"What!? But this... this IS your home now," Toriel exclaimed.
"Please, don't get me wrong, you're being so kind to us, and I'D love to stay here, but Frisk needs to go home, and I have to help her get there."
"Um... perhaps you would like to hear more about my book. How about it?"
"Don't change the subject!" I yelled angrily.
"I... I... How about an exciting snail fact!? Did you know the snails... make terrible shoelaces? Interesting."
I just glared at her in annoyance. Things were quiet for a bit, but then Toriel got up, and said, "...I... have to do something. Please, stay here." Then she rushed into the foyer.
I wasn't going to accept her trying to evade the subject, so I followed her.
Entering the foyer, I caught the goat lady disappear down the stairs. Intending to catch up, I simply lept over the railing, using my blue magic to control my short fall. As I hit the ground, as saw Toriel rushing down a purple tunnel. In the capital, this would've led to the Barrier, but here...
"TORIEL!" I called out, running after her.
She stopped when she heard my voice, and without turning around, told me, "...you wish to know how to return 'home,' do you not? Ahead of us lies the end of the Ruins. An exit to the rest of the Underground." She started walking forward again, continuing by flatly saying, "I am going to destroy it. No one will ever be able to leave again."
"Excuse me..."
"Please, go back upstairs..."
Anger washed over my face. "NO! Why are you doing this!?"
Toriel slowed down as she took a deep breath. "Every human that falls down here meets the same fate... I have seen it again and again... They come. They leave. They die."
That's what this is about, I thought, I know this... but-
"For an adult, you're very naive. If you lave the Ruins... They... ASGORE...! ...They will kill you."
There was a name I hadn't heard in a while... at least, not one I want to hear again. Not after he practically abandoned me for those same reasons.
"I am only protecting you, do you understand? ...Please, do not interfere."
Toriel continued on, but there was no way I was going to stay put. I didn't like what was going on out there, but that didn't mean she could trap us here.
Determined to continue after her, Toriel, as she walked around a corner, telling me, "do not try to stop me. This is your final warning."
I didn't listen.
Finally, we reached a sealed door, one with the same insignia on Toriel's dress. The symbol of the kingdom of monsters.
Toriel, with her back still to me, said, "you want to leave so badly? Hmph. You are just like others." Her head lowered. "There is only one solution to this. Prove yourself... Prove to me you are strong enough to survive."
Suddenly, as Toriel began to turn around, I could feel the tension in the air slowly began to build up, as she stared me down. I could see the pained sadness in her eyes, but at this moment I knew, she wasn't going to back down...
...And neither was I.
Author's Note: So, I figured I should add my author's notes for these chapters, because I'm doing with my co-writer for my new Hyperdimension story, and on DeviantArt, where I originally posted these, that's basically what the descriptions were anyways. I'll be adding them over time on every chapter on my other stories, though slightly edited, since some of the info will be out of date. If you're new to the story, you've probably already seen them, so this wouldn't matter to you.
Anyways, finally, we've reached the end of Ruins. The next chapter or two (hopefully just one), I'll finish up this area with the fight against Toriel and what follows. And man, I am so happy, because I am ready to move on Snowdin. So many more interesting things happen in Snowdin.
This is a bit of a late upload for me. Since I started putting my stories on Archive Of Our Own, I decided to wait to post this one until I caught up with the latest chapter in this story, so it could be updated with this one at the same time.