✱ Chapter 5
It wasn't all the time Flowey was happy to be awake, as he opened his eyes to a new day he met himself with the surroundings of Sariel's living quarters once again with surprise. Like he hadn't expected to see them again, there was a small part of him that probably thought it was all a dream.
At some point he and Sariel had returned back to her 'home' the day prior, but at the end of that day's events he could barely recall. While trying to rise his stem bumped into the edge of something causing him to look down.
Oh yeah, This stupid thing.
Recollection flashed in his eyes, it was yesterday that he had come to rest in a dented old kettle. This less than ideal solution as a result of Sariel's only pot fitting him having disappeared into the bowels of the Underground during the previous day's adventure.
He felt so exhausted. It was the most he had exerted himself in a long time. Being a flower wasn't easy, he had his physical limits despite the greater magic it offered him.
Once broken from his brief trance, he darted his eyes over at Sariel, who seemed to still be resting. She was laying down on a ruined royal couch, in a rather uncomfortable position grabbing her torso and was turned toward the flower. A wrinkled shirt covered her eyes, and her mouth lay open.
Flowey couldn't help but find his sight affixed to her, it was only a little more than a day ago he met this creature and yet the experience remained entirely unreal to him. Looking at her partially covered face he recalled looking at his own appearance in a mirror many times previously in years long past. While all Boss Monsters share obvious aesthetic characteristics, Sariel could pass as his former self to a tee. He wished he could see her whole face uncovered while she sat so still.
The bridge of her nose wrinkled and scrunched up, causing Flowey to flinch back.
"Did you leave the door open?" she groaned out in a raspy voice, finally closing her maw. Flowey was startled slightly.
How long did she know I was watching her?
"First, How? Second, Why would I do that? Third, there is no door around!" he replied in a nervous, exasperated tone.
"It's cold in here," she snorted, licking her dry lips and shifting her position on the couch, likely for more comfort.
"It feels fine here!" It was true, the temperature hadn't changed at all since… the last time he recalled being here the night previous. At least he didn't think it changed.
"I mean, if it were to suddenly get really cold I think I'd have woken up before you, being a plant and all… are you alright, Sariel?" He squints at her quizzically, it was at times like these he wished more than anything to have limbs, and not his unappealing roots. The chance to crowd over his sleeping sibling and give her a hug was his only desire at this point.
"I do feel cold… maybe I'm getting sick, somehow." she dry heaved and cleared her throat, she sounded rough. The action seemed to be so ridiculous she couldn't help but break into a brief laugh
Monsters don't get sick like that! at least not Boss Monsters
He straightened up his stem, "You're full of it!" he laughed with her back, he was having fun.
"I'm honestly surprised that you didn't leave after everything that happened yesterday. I was half expecting it." Sariel uttered, she started to tug the blanket over her head and writhe around slightly.
This caught him off guard, he blinked a few times thinking over what he just heard from her. It brought a bit of disappointment to him, he leaned in and asked, "Why's that?"
"Not sure, seemed unreal, like a dream, you know?" she opined, Flowey couldn't believe what he was hearing.
Oh, You have no clue…
She wasn't wrong, this was unlike him. He wasn't into this at all, at least he hadn't tried it in a long time. Domestic or friendly life of any sort to Flowey was… undesirable. He had grown bored of it after having done it more than a hundred dozen times.
But this Monster drew an attention he couldn't dissuade himself from. At the very least, he couldn't lie that it was something new he hadn't seen before. And yet? He thought he left no stone unturned in the Underground…
"I rarely talked to any of the monsters save for when I had to, and it really made me unhappy," she shifted upright now, taking the blanket off of herself and tossing it aside, she briefly turned her head, seeming to search for him around the room before lowering her gaze down to the table. Oh! Was what her expression appeared to be. It was clear from these motions she forgot she put him there.
"There were times when I tried to be myself and I found those I tried to befriend less than enthusiastic." she spoke in a tone that was more… emphatic, not only signalling that she was completely awake now but also she remembered who she was talking to.
This whole conversation really caught Flowey off guard, he wasn't sure what to make of it but it brought him a kind of mixed bag of things to consider but a cautious comfort he wasn't expecting.
"I… can relate to that…" he managed, letting out a heavy breath with that. He couldn't help thinking this was beyond him. "I'm not running away, at least you haven't given me a reason to. If anything you've given me a reason to stay…"
He toughened up to manage a strong delivery on this next line, "I k-know we don't know everything about each other but at the same time, I just get this feeling that we'll be great friends."
"If there's really a part of me in you, how am I supposed to say no?" He quipped with a nervous laugh. He didn't want it to seem like that was the only reason.
Sariel just stared at him, and smiled.
"More than that, we're family buddy!" she said softly.
"Yes… uh, 'family'." He quivered slightly at that, the idea of family was actually rather disgusting to him.
She reached over and pulled him by the kettle onto her lap, holding it with both hands and looked down at him for a moment.
"How does it feel to have found me?"
"I don't really have feelings… but I do think it's amazing." he averted his gaze from her out of embarrassment, if only for the moment. He could tell this cold reception made her a bit sad.
Flowey didn't think he deserved this at all in the slightest, his head was a tangle of thoughts and other matters at this moment. What was there to say? He had to simply pick out the positive thoughts from the negative ones.
I really hope I don't screw this up, I don't want to be alone again…
"What do you mean no feelings? You seem to have plenty of them…" she started to go on slightly, "You're so expressive and I can tell you care about me and…"
Flowey couldn't stand this kind of talk, he heard it before and certainly didn't want to hear it again. No one understood him at all, it wasn't his choice to be empty. He did his best to not blow up on her and simply explain himself. He started by cutting her off.
"I have no Soul Sariel!" He shot up right at her like a cracking whip, his eyes meeting hers, "I'm empty. When I died my essence spread over this flower. It became a vessel for me. You know this already…" It occurred to him how close he was to her face and slowly went down slightly ashamed at how animated he managed to become over this conversation. He didn't want to scare her; he just hated talking about the matter again.
Sariel's expression (or lack thereof)was frozen the entire time, her eyebrows twitched slightly. Flowey worried that he was scaring her with this revelation but he didn't like having to explain this.
There were many times in the past he had tried to make this very clear to others, to no avail. So many thought they could fix him.
Again, and again, and again. He explained it so many times to so many Monsters before Resetting.
"Being and Essence are but two halves of a greater whole, I am sadly but only one facet of that…" he looked up at her with a slight smile,
"You know already you have the other half of that on loan from me, my Soul, my Being."
He tried to laugh this little interaction away but her cold expression remained.
"Flowers aren't supposed to have Beings, no feelings; Monsters and Humans are. I'm just supposed to sit still and take in sunlight and that's all… I'm an Animate."
"Animate?" She uttered, confused somewhat by the terminology.
"Means like, Animated. My Determination and Essence coalesced together into an energy of sorts to do this. Attached me to this flower. Like passing electricity through a lightbulb. It's dead otherwise. I'm an accident, a mistake, an abomination-"
Before he could continue on this little rant more she interrupted with a soft utterance of "I'm sorry…"
Although he was incapable of feeling bad, he did know right from wrong even if it didn't mean anything to him since there were usually never any consequences.
"It's not like I don't want to have feelings… I just am incapable of them! You understand? Really I should be the one apologizing to you Sariel…" He blinked a few times and nestled into a more comfortable position but he couldn't help but feel a slight quivering in his stem. He was so sick of this existence, he wished he could just die.
She tilted her head quizzically for a moment and a smile grew out from her snout to the edges of her cheeks, letting go of the kettle and resting her hands at her sides, her expression grew more mischievous in nature.
"Maybe we can…"
Oh, don't say it, please don't please don't please please.
"Get you a new Soul!" she closed her eyes while continuing to hold that uncharacteristic grin on her face, drawing a finger to her cheek.
The Flower Shook himself silly, communicating his disagreement. "It doesn't work that way! at least not without hurting anyone and I don't want to hurt anyone anymore…" he began to mimic her head tilt, but rather than appear quizzical like her it simply made him look even more sad like he was wilting.
Sariel opened her eyes and looked confused, Flowey attempted to explain, "I've spent so long destroying I've grown tired of it, you have no idea the things I've done. I wish there was more I could do but this is what I can manage. All I can manage. Believe me I've tried…"
Could he even attempt to explain how he gained all this knowledge? The experiences he's had? Not likely, he figured, it would sound crazy unless they knew. But they did know somethings…
Really it should be her answering my questions.
"The only SOULs that can be acquired easily are those from Boss Monsters and… the only two I was familiar with are Mom and Dad… I don't want those."
Returning to his old self would do no good without both his parents or… His precious human sibling… Maybe it would have been better for him to have tried and just stayed like that. He can only think of the possibilities he never took.
"-beyond that, there are rules to this sort of thing, after all. I'm a SOULless flower, I would need to possess a Human's SOUL to take a Monster SOUL and... well, you get the idea."
"We can talk it over more later, but I don't think you should give up. Sometimes in life you have no choice but to go on, go on broken, go on alone. Life keeps going, it's not a choice even if you kinda wish it was one." As she was speaking out her advice she started to do that thing where she gently touched the back of his stem with a soft digit, but more cautiously than yesterday.
The warmth of her paw relaxed him slightly back down and ceased the quivering.
Her words on the other hand, made him want to cry again, he didn't want to keep going. He wished more than ever just to be dead like his Human Sibling although at times like this he privately wondered what dying would be like now since he couldn't Save or Load.
He shook himself, causing some minor concern from Sariel. He always did this when his thoughts were in the gutter, best to stay away from those rough thoughts. He had to focus on the here and now. With Sariel it seemed he had a chance at a clean break from his past, he also possibly had a chance at a future but he wasn't expecting it.
At least… I hope so.
"You okay?"
"Yeah… never better." though, a question from the previous day that he seemingly forgot about returned, now in this moment he had to ask.
"Say… how do you know so much about me, and all that Soul stuff anyways?"
"I was taught, we've been over this." she laughed, probably not intending to offend but this jovial optimism Flowey began to find somewhat tiring when talking seriously like this. It reminded him of his overbearing mother, if only more people he encountered could be quiet and direct like the Human it would make him happier.
"Taught how? My parents aren't really knowledgeable in all that Soul stuff. They're idiots." His comment seemed to really bother Sariel and she shifted slightly, who likely wasn't expecting the prince to be so… cynical. With two paws, she grabbed him up by the kettle and placed him down on the table again, putting a small amount of space between them. Flowey could tell this was probably to situate him for serious discussion.
The caprine beast slid down the couch and situated herself before it on the ground, dragging the blanket down with her. Flowey began to realize how much he liked watching her expressive eyes react to his words. The worst part about being alone is being unable to engage in back-and-forths like this.
"The Royal Scientist, they had guessed it in the form of a theory when they recovered the SOULs from the garden. The remains of a Human and a Boss Monster SOUL attached to each other just don't come from anywhere…"
She drew a paw to her chest and pointed inwards.
"The Prince-" she stopped herself "You had absorbed their Soul, grew in power and it remained as such. Such power, such determination comes with abilities… beyond typical Monster understanding but… all that determination was lost when you faced destruction…"
She nodded to herself reciting words that weren't her own but that she likely recalled hearing or reading, "I think you know as good as I do, if you met her she's not hard to get any information from. Poor thing." she cocked a brow at that as if he was supposed to be impressed.
Flowey accepted this but it didn't satisfy him as to why she would have been down in the lab, continuing to drill her with questions was the imperative right now, he had curiosities on his mind that required satisfaction if he was going to continue to tolerate her.
"-and what about that thing you said about being sure I wanted to go die? About our plan, going out there to the surface. Seems like you knew more than you let on yesterday… more than anyone should know besides me."
Sariel started to rub her arm slightly and huddle more in the blanket, she looked down at the ground.
Oh stop it already, it's not cold. You cry baby!
"Since you know me so well, why don't you say anything! Golly, did you have to study for a test?"
Flowey gritted his teeth and his petals became bristly and wiggled once more as they had the previous day.
"When I was old enough and they thought I was 'ready' they… The King…" Her eyes fluttered and started to tear up slightly causing her to look away, but through it she persisted. Upset.
Flowey enjoyed this kind of torture, it made him think he was alive again. Every time someone got a chance to hurt him and now, alone with this 'sibling' of his. He always enjoyed having the upper hand and the possibility of twisting the knife on someone... It was exhilarating to him, his gritting teeth turned into a forceful stretched smile.
Whatever she was trying to say through choked gasps wasn't going to satisfy but this sight certainly was.
"They made me watch these tapes they had, The Royal Scientist kept them in her lower labs. They were these strange videos of the family and they… kept telling me they were of us. Of me-"
His eye twitched, this wasn't what he was expecting to hear…
"They made me watch them over and over and over again. They made me-"
Slowly, Flowey shrunk down slightly into the kettle somewhat, his gritting smile fading fast, and his eyes drooped. The kinetic energy from a moment ago was gone. The thrill of hurting Sariel for the moment had passed, he realized it was wrong to have bothered her with this matter.
Even more so, it was a personal failure on this part that material like that existed at all.
"You… Saw those huh?" he stifled out as a response. As she sobbed slightly and nodded, he wasn't far from tears himself at this point if they kept on this topic, he decided he wouldn't pursue it further.
I am a sick creature. was the only coherent thought he could manage in a sea of things.
"Hey… hey, we don't have to talk about it anymore." The flower tried his best to console her as if he didn't do this intentionally. At least he really hopes she didn't think he did. He tilted his stem forward and outstretched himself as far as he could and pressed himself to her head.
"You don't have to worry, like you said we have each other now."
Sariel continued to whine and sob slightly, choking while attempting to wipe her running tears away on the blanket. She managed a slow nod at him. Eventually after a few more heavy breaths, and a loud cough, she managed a weak reply. "...That's right."
I have to be careful not to ruin this. I can't do THAT to her again.
She continued to sniffle for a time and stared at him, sticking her arms out with palms open before him. Flowey wasn't sure what she wanted, but she let out a little smile and pressed her finger tips to him as if asking for something.
What? This confused him, but he thought he knew what she was getting at, the concept of what was going on was very silly to him.
Oh, whatever! Fine, I could use it anyways.
He stuck his 'head' forward into her palms and she enclosed her fingers around it for a moment and clutched him in an embrace. He closed his eyes briefly and wished it could be this way forever. There was something oddly delightful about the lazy life, living in the warmth of sunlight among flowers and sleeping eternally, but only if it could be like this… where he knew he wasn't alone. It would be perfect.
Sariel slowly let go and for a short while Flowey didn't open his eyes, while closed he imagined his sibling, the fallen, or Frisk holding him like this instead of Sariel. Even if the human's hands would be colder and less inviting, its what he really wanted.
"No sense in just staying here on the floor all day, we should get to work on ourselves. Together. There's much to do." Sariel happily touted, clearing her throat one last time and walking away from the centre of the room toward the dividers once more.
It took a moment for him to hear what she had said.
As he left his imaginary fantasy behind, and opened his eyes, slinking back into an upright position it came to him that Sariel hadn't complained once about what he did earlier. He wondered if she would bring it up again but hoped for the best that she wouldn't.
"Oh, oh no, what's this?" Sariel sounded mortified at something, causing Flowey to chuckle. He wondered what frightened the Boss Monster so much?
"Flowey…" she cried out, more scared sounding than she did the previous time, breaking his thoughts, "I think I am sick!"
He turned to face the dividers, not sure what to make of that comment,
"What do you mean by that?" he called out back.
Sariel slowly emerged from behind the dividers, the slight pitter patter of her feet reminding Flowey of the first time they met. But this would be very different. Sariel came out with her arm extended out before her chest slightly like she was holding up an imaginary shield. Her face consumed by a worried expression that caught Flowey entirely unready for what was next.
He darted eyes down and up until she got close enough to him that he could see it.
Sariel's arm was covered in blotches of red and purple just beneath the fur, looking sore, with rows of punctures. Flowey had never seen something like this before.
"Flowey…" she uttered, a slight quiver in her voice "this was where you grabbed me the other day…"
"Wha…" His eyes widen at the horrific discovery, injuries so distinctly marking the regions of her arm he'd grabbed with his vines. He'd never seen anything like it, then again, he realized that he'd never done something like that before. At least he had never done something like that so hard before.
Flowey certainly had gripped and binded Monsters before but…
"I don't know! An allergic reaction?" Flowey suggested, guessing it using what little approximate knowledge he had of Monster biology.
"Boss Monsters don't get sick! This has to be magic… or…" She gazed over at him with big worried eyes. There was only one other possibility. "Are you… Poisonous?"
Flowey ground his teeth together, wrenching his gaze away from hers, he'd never exactly considered that possibility. But it would make sense, he was a golden flower after all.
It's just like the buttercups…
"I don't know!" he shouted.
Sariel was barely managing to stay on her feet from shivering so much, clearly very scared at this revelation. She continued to eye her arm with a fear that absolutely shattered him.
"W-what should I do?!" She cried out at him.
"Do you have any healing magic?" He asked, sounding rather calm, though he was beginning to get riled up himself, panic thrumming through his little 'body'. Who were they supposed to go to for help in a place like this? As far as he knew, they were the only two remaining creatures in the entire Underground.
"No, I don't know how… I never l-learned" She said with shame in her tone, "I think we need to find someone who can help me."
Sariel looked to Flowey not only out of conversation but it was clear it was for direction. This poor Boss Monster had little in the way of hiding her emotions, that much was clear to him.
Flowey swallowed hard at hearing her words, realization striking deep into his core. He'd made a new friend, some who mattered to him only to put them in harm's way, as per usual. And already he hurt them emotionally, It seemed to be all he was good for.
Hurt again by some stupid plant. Just like his sibling…
But Flowey knew he couldn't focus on those stupid thoughts right now, he had to focus on the here and now.
"But WHO?! And how?! Isn't this place completely empty?!"
"Not here, but there has to be a Monster out there somewhere that knows how to help me." she points at the exit out of here.
No, there's no way. You can't just leave like that.
"Unless you have any reservations, I have to go find them out there." She squeaked out, looking at Flowey as if to agree.
Flowey didn't want to though, what a disaster and he caused it all.
"You're right." Flowey frowned dejectedly, peering back up at her. The flower wasn't sure what he could do to further assuage her negativity, certainly this could not have been what she was expecting to do this morning after waking up.
All I've done is be a problem for her...
He did his best to think of something helpful to say, but he could only draw a blank. There was nothing else helpful to say on this matter that he could think of.
As Sariel stepped before him, Flowey tilted himself upright to get a good look at her. Ever taller than him, he caught her face contorted to more of a slight worry than the pained horror she was emoting earlier. From her face, he slowly drew his gaze down and over to the affected limb. It looked bad, even from where he was seated.
"But you… have a long way down before you make it anywhere from what I remember you… must be careful you…"
She didn't even wait for him to finish before Flowey found her two paws on the kettle yet again, picking Flowey up. He could feel the slight shaking from her hurt paw, and even the kettle tilted slightly on it. They blinked silently at each other a few times. He wasn't certain if he should continue or not. She just held him there before herself and the two were locked in brief trance.
"What are you doing? What is it?"
Sariel pried her gaze away from the flower, and started laughing much to Flowey's confusion. It was like she was laughing directly at him, "You're coming with me! Save the directions out there!" she cackled.
No No NO NO NO!
"Are you crazy? I'm not going out there!" Flowey shrieked at her, shaking his head wildly. Even the SUGGESTION of going out there for anything terrified the flora, it was the one thing he worked desperately not to think about. He tilted himself downward and hung his head down low, below even the kettle as if he was hiding from looking at her.
"I know you don't want to go out there…" she started to speak softly, trying to be comforting to him, it seemed she understood now that this was his greatest fear.
"But I can scarcely imagine you staying here uncertain of my fate, I don't want to be alone and I don't want you to be alone." his head rose somewhat when hearing that, it was a realistic thought… she was right. Only together could they be of any help.
"Besides, if I die I don't want to be alone when it happens, alright?" a grim giggle followed that request.
"Guh…! Y-you're not gonna die! Don't SAY that!" Wide-eyed, Flowey stares up at her with an expression of sudden terror, he wanted anything but that. Abandonment issues are a bitch.
"No, I won't, that's right!" she persisted with a genuine hearty laugh, clutching him tighter.
"With that attitude I know I'll be fine."
"Gah... what, did ya just wanna hear me say that didn't you?!"
Flowey chuckled along with her in spite of the situation, smiling wryly back at her and narrowing his eyes at her. If one thing was certain to the flower, it was that this was most definitely his sibling, if not at the very least she carried their family spirit. He also realized that despite his initial fears when woke, this negative reaction from him was unconscious… he did care about her. If only just.
✦‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿୨ ✿ ୧‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵✦
A loud breeze overtook any other sound, it ripped and tore at all forces and oppressed any sounds that opposed it. Beating them down with only distant echoes of life beyond able to penetrate it, though only for an instant every few minutes. The only thing working with it was the grass, in a symbiosis of nature the scattering of plants and grass waved back and forth peacefully.
Large swathes of the mountain weren't just grass, trees, and bushes but also patches of flowers of many varieties.
These patches covered endless stretches going on for as far as the eye could see, on and on, into the distance. In that distance the green was beatback by a string of greys and browns that were buildings. It was there, in the distance, a small township settlement that looked like it could be of no more than several hundred people. Even in the early afternoon it emanated a glow to it which was characteristic of light. The town, small as it be, was further identifiable by a few large buildings. The sea was visible in the distance.
The sea conjoined with the sky above into a great white and blue hue, though, from that hue came a series of clouds which were endless in number and moved at a slow pace. The sun remained strong as it hung above the land, casting a high humidity but it was slowly disappearing behind the ferocious clouds that threatened something frightful mother nature had up her sleeve.
For a time Flowey wondered what it would be like to see the pair from far away, they must look like bugs to the distant eye of anyone who happened on their unorthodox journey down.
Daylight hit them both hard, but the weather helped substantially when they emerged. Both knowing somewhat that the clouds conspired to help them somewhat by blocking the rays. Sariel took it harder than Flowey, who was focused on not letting the wind take him out of his kettle.
For a while the two dare not speak as they knew it would be drowned out by the sound of nature. At least, Flowey didn't bother, his voice was soft and rather squeakily pitched and knew that it wasn't worth the effort. Besides, what was there to discuss? Nothing. He had nothing to say anyways. Anything he had to say had been discussed and…
Among other things… he was taking in the beauty of the surface.
Flowey seemed awestruck, gazing into the light of the sun, though brief as it was when it did peer beyond the clouds, with welcome abandon feeling it shine on his face. Seemed to just about immediately perk him up from his drowsiness. It energized him and made him even more aware that he was more of a Plant than Monster at this point.
Another reason for the silence was just being in awe of what he was seeing and he could only assume it was the same for Sariel, he didn't wish to bother her experience. For him, it wasn't the first time after all…
The memories he had of the last time he had come down the mountain were not good, but they were so faded now they were beginning to mesh with his current experience. Flowey felt like… he couldn't trust his memory and when they initially had emerged, instead chose to let Sariel follow her gut to direct them down toward civilization.
Flowey could scarcely imagine what she thought he must be thinking, but knew that from their interactions she must have had some idea that he was utterly terrified at what he was seeing, what he was about to see. Whatever people were down there terrified him beyond the capacity to want to discuss the experience further.
He didn't hate humans, he wished he could, he just was terrified of them.
Flowey was about to be proven right, as he heard Sariel clear her throat as if it was a warning to prepare him for her question.
"Flowey… are you scared of humans?"
She asked honestly while carefully cutting a path through some bushes and a few trees, but he couldn't help but feel like it was a coy swipe. He did his best to answer diplomatically, "I can tell you for sure that I am. I don't know what they're like… really. I only met a few out here who weren't nice and I don't want to judge all of them…"
Thinking again, he tried to think about something else to say.
"They're not hard to deal with I suppose." He did his best to stare straight ahead and ignore the question. Flowey was uncertain why he bothered trying to sound nice, its not like he was talking to a human. Although in his mind he liked to picture the human, Frisk, rather than the ones he met out here last when answering Sariel, which is likely what was steering his thoughts toward a moderate positivity.
Sariel spoke up another question,
"Just curious, what should I call you?"
"Just Flowey, although I don't think I'd mind it if you call me by my old name. But, in front of people… There's no explaining that one. It's a unique name, get it?" Flowey turned back for the first time since leaving to look at her, slight apprehension in his eyes. Her expression wasn't much better, seeing him made her smile for a second but the moment before it he saw her tired, pained face, as she carried forth. Both of them. If only he could walk, or dig in pace with her. Being forced to carry him made Flowey feel like the ultimate burden.
"Does saying buddy, brother, or bro make you uncomfortable?"
The whole question caught him off guard, he wasn't sure how to respond to that.
"Those are good too," back to questions, he hated this game of questions but knew it was only a friendly curiosity. Besides he had some of his own from time to time, just not nearly as interesting as the ones she asked him which frustrated him. They were not equals.
"So… I think I know the answer to this but have you ever tried to be friends with anyone else besides me? I mean now… as a Flower…"
"Yeah... believe me, I tried. I tried the best I could. Some of 'em even enjoyed being around me. But, I couldn't keep going like that. When I felt nothing for them, no matter how hard I wanted to, and believe me I really wanted to."
"I'm sorry… I kinda figured from how you were talking about it earlier…" she clutched him close to her as they began to get through the rough of some trees, the woods were dense and full of thorny branches not unlike his own. Sariel went to great efforts to keep him out of harm's way, lifting him out of the way of anything that would hurt. If anything it was apparent to him what a detriment he was to this whole trip, as it made her unable to use her hands.
"Don't be, it's not your fault." he could see she was hurting herself trying to navigate her way through the brush, and his attitude today probably left a lot to be desired. He tried his best to think of something reassuring to say to her.
"With you, I know things will be different. I promise." Flowey didn't think before uttering that sentence, though it made Sariel pause in some bushes. She managed a slight playful laugh at his words, and Flowey sighed, "I mean it."
"I know you do, or you wouldn't have said it." she briefly let one of her paws loose from holding him to press her finger into his face as a tease. He wasn't expecting it and took it humorously.
Maybe things will be okay after all. If we can get her help.
Sariel managed to clear through the rest of the brush and entered into what seemed to be the edge of the town they saw from far above, a scattering of paved roads choked with traffic overwhelmed their senses. Beyond the roads were multiple suburban houses, and beyond that more regimented buildings of brick and stone which detonated in the commercial area. Sariel looked up and down the road just in utter awe, it was obvious that this trip was at least for her a shocking cultural experience.
The Underground had no roads of asphalt, only stone. Rather uniform houses which were built around and above previous ones, and while New Home was of a large size containing thousands of monsters, it couldn't seek to rival the activity of this place.
The cars that passed, the Monsters walking along the sidewalks, the various stores. The pair couldn't help but find their senses overwhelmed.
A shudder ran down Flowey's stem as the full weight of their new surroundings began to sink in. Humans. He knew they had to be crawling around the streets, how many of them were staring them down as the two entered? He dare not look in the direction of movement frightful that they may be here.
"I'll be honest with you, humans do scare me a little buddy." she whispered at him, attempting to find a crossing in the road.
"They shouldn't, don't be stupid, they're good…" He's lying through his teeth, why did there have to be so MANY of them? Frisk was one thing; a kindhearted SOUL and also a well-meaning child, but the thought of seeing so many humans in one place. He can practically still feel the sensation of cold steel cutting through his tiny body from memory alone.
"Do you think the gods live in the heavens, in fear of what they've created?" Sariel asked him, while making her way passed a street.
Flowey didn't find it very amusing, in fact it scared him further,
"I don't know. I mean... It would make sense."
"Oh relax, it was something I read in a book somewhere. I thought it sounded awesome but I had no one to share it with before now." she scrunched her snout trying to hold back laughter
He jolted back, "Erk! Why would you say that to me!"
"Cause I know you're scared and I want you to relax, besides everyone knows the gods are dead." she cackles maniacally at such a sacrilegious comment.
Flowey baulked at this experience, sinking down into the soil in his pot, now he's trembling with anxiety AND embarrassed.
"You're not wrong" He huffs, face red with slight embarrassment.
A monster after his own Soul, if he had one…
Though he began to realize something rather curious as did Sariel it seemed as she traded quizzical looks while eyeing up and down the strip of road they were crossing.
"Flowey… you seeing what I see?" There weren't any humans around, there seemed to be only Monsters. How strange.
Finally passed the street the two make their way into the centre of the town that looked to be no different than that of a suburb just beyond that of New Home. It filled Flowey with a sense of nostalgia in comparison to everything else he had witnessed.
The only thing different being the sky, which, now was overcast with those previous clouds congealing into one large dark one that covered the sky above.
Sariel carefully footed around the streets, running to the nearest sidewalk and keeping on it for the time being. Flowey was just as shocked as his sibling, the both of them lost themselves at the sights, looking into the restaurants and stores that littered the streets, they were full of people - all monsters. No Humans. Not one. Not that they could see anyone.
That's one fear dashed I suppose.
Sariel slowly came up on a rowdy grouping of monsters ahead at some sort of stop sign, they were all waiting in a line. Flowey could recognize some of the monsters from the group. A few of them were inhabitants from Snowdin whoms names he simply couldn't recall, save for two: a Loox, arguing with Snowdrake, and some other monsters from New Home getting involved in the argument, seeming to take sides.
Despite the monsters' relatively contained feud, as Sariel and Flowey passed by the group they turned to stare at them. The strange sight of this moment unnerved both of them and rather than wait to cross the road, Sariel opted to continue around the corner until they were clear from their sight. Not the friendliest bunch.
Neither Flowey nor Sariel had bothered to bring up what just happened.
A loud crack of thunder signaled an coming rain, it caused Sariel to jolt up and skip with fear across a few blocks of cement. With numerous onlookers uncertain of what just happened they simply stared at her.
Sariel calmed down and slowed her walking to stop in an alley, Flowey tugged at her shirt with a root and whispered.
"It's just thunder, I've heard of it… Nothing to be afraid of."
Flowey sighed, embarrassed by the sight caused by his 'sister' and here he imagined he was going to be the one worse for wear. He didn't like the sight of where she brought them either. Trashy and dank, while not unlike the back streets of New Home it was a different kind of trashy. The trash cans behind the buildings reeked of something dead and rotting and the ground was littered in foul smelling liquids, with papers blowing in the wind.
Sariel sat Flowey down in between a staircase and a dumpster and then went back to the corner, she peaked her head out of the alley and cocked it back and forth.
"Hm… you don't mind if I leave you here for a moment?" Sariel stepped back over to the flower and pointed back in the general direction of the group they just passed. "I know so far the Monsters around here haven't been the most friendly but we have to ask them for the nearest place I can get this treated." Sariel held her arm up as if he needed a reminder, despite being covered now by a warm unassuming sleeve it shook somewhat uncontrollably.
"Y-you're just gonna leave me here?!" Flower sinks back into his kettle petals drooping back like the ears of a frightened animal. Rationally, of course she'd come back for him, but even so...
The thought is making him feel queasy. He deserved to at least be abandoned after all, he's the one who did this to her.
"No no! I just want to ask around to see if someone has a phone or something, I just need to step away for a moment and I'll be back."
She knelt down to press her hand to his face, she knew by now that he liked it.
"I promise I won't leave your sight! No more than a street over! It would make this a lot easier for us, and the sooner it's over the sooner we go home. You want to go back right?"
The Golden Flower swallowed his fear, and stared at her only responding with a simple "Okay."
Diverting his Inky eyes from her eyes once more, It seemed like everything in the world was out to humiliate him today.
Oh, The freedom of the surface world.
The Boss Monster's smiles were his only respite, she tucks him more against the corner building wall and with a smile she steps up and walks off back to the group they passed, which now seem to be crossing the road, Sariel in pursuit.
At least if she didn't come back he would know the way back over the Mountain, he thought.
This day had been more than enough for him, he grew tired of this endless meandering with her which began the previous day and privately contemplated just disappearing here and now. But he knew he couldn't do that, it would mean disappointing her, his friend, his… family.
Afterall, I did promise…
He watched as two monsters, Migospel and Migosp passed by the alley quickly, catching his attention he wondered why but it soon became apparent. He could feel the slight trickle of rain, it was coming in waves and washing aside the trash.
As a plant rain felt good, but as a Monster, he hated being wet. It reminded him of baths when he was a kid. The feeling of his petals soaked dripping with water not unlike the feeling of his sopping fur heavy with water that weighed him down and made moving more straining.
Flowey started drifting in his own thoughts again despite trying to focus on the now. Narrowing his beady eyes to track his monster sibling once more and looking across the street, having spotted her, he could see Sariel waving down the group and attempting to talk with them. But it was too far to make out exactly what they were saying, and the group seemed disinterested with her talking.
A few more monsters passed by the alley way very quickly, though none he recognized. A large one that appeared to be a stack of cards with humanoid arms trailed closely behind by a snake like one wearing sunglasses with a jacket made for an interesting sight. Monsters that he didn't know. He wondered how many there were now.
Just as he turned his head to see the last group of monsters pass by, he could feel the presence of someone come up beside him. They were a tall monster in a decorated purple raincoat, it caught him totally off guard and craned his head upward quickly to look at them. The rain playing hell to his already poor vision, he could barely make out their face while continually blinking at the rain fall.
"Oh, hello there!" a familiar voice greeted him, Flowey froze in complete terror and stayed still unsure of what to do next.
No… it can't be…
"I did not notice you were a Monster! I thought you were just an ordinary flower, thrown away. Poor thing." she crouched slowly before him, lifting up her hood slightly to reveal herself.
There could be no doubt now.
Flowey wasn't sure how to even respond, his eyes imply went wide and he leaned back. His stem locked.
"Can you hear me? I nearly took you! I'm sorry…"
Flowey recognized this voice, it was the one person he really didn't need to meet again. Not now, not ever. He didn't need this.
"Are you alright my child? You look utterly terrified, if you're lost I promise you I won't hurt you."