Waterfall - Part 2
The area didn't change much in terms of looks or design the further they went. Even now, it was still mostly wet grass in a dark cavern lit only by various bluish hues from plants and pools of water. Even so, Frisk felt it had grown a lot more lively after the arrival of their new companion. The kid eagerly spoke a lot, and Frisk was trying to absorb all their various words and terms while nodding and pretending to keep perfect attention. Meanwhile, Flowey's mood seemed to have not one bit changed.
"So where are you two headed?" the monster kid inquired.
"To New Home, The Capital," Flowey answered.
"Really?" MK asked. "Yo, that's kinda far away, isn't it? What's the occasion?"
"You know, stuff," Frisk replied.
"I think the better question is," Flowey began. "Why are you out here?"
"Oh, I decided to take Frisk's advice," MK answered gleefully.
"Wait, what advice?" Frisk asked.
"You don't remember?" MK asked back. "You said if I wanted to learn more about the world, I should just go out by myself, remember? So that's what I did. I left town. On my own."
"Wait, you… you actually took that seriously?" Frisk asked, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"Yeah!" MK answered enthusiastically. "I thought about it for a while, and then I decided, why not? It's not always I have an opportunity to go outside of Snowdin, so why wait for one? Why not just make one while I can?"
"Err… taking any advice from me, kid," Frisk began. "Is like… rarely a good idea."
"Why not?" MK pried, having turned confused.
"Chances are I'm just talking out of my ass," Frisk answered.
"Oh," MK replied, now sounding unsure of themself.
The group, now a trio, arrived at a surprisingly long wooden bridge that stood over a clear azure lake. Each step they made on the timbers gave out audible thumps, while Flowey's quick crawls rumbled through like soft drums.
"Yo, I don't think I've ever gotten this far out of town!" MK exclaimed as they stared star-faced at the blue lake. "Or at least not for long as I can remember."
"I can relate, kid," Frisk said. "I mean for the longest time, I never stepped foot outside my own town."
"Really?" MK asked with surprise. "Man, for being an Ape-monster, that must've sucked."
"Yeah," Frisk answered. "It sure did…"
"Can't believe I can relate to an Ape-monster," MK added.
Man, they sure are a curious kid, Frisk thought.
Suddenly, it hit her. They. This whole time she had referred MK in gender-neutral terms, both internally and outwardly. It almost felt instinctual referring them that way, like some weird hypnotic suggestion. Yet she never thought about why she did that. Now that Frisk thought about it, she never really learned the kid's gender. She was sure they were a boy. But something about them just made her unsure.
"Hey, kid?" Frisk asked them.
"What?" MK asked back.
"Sorry if this is a stupid question, kid," Frisk began. "But… are you a boy or a girl?"
The kid's footsteps suddenly came to a halt.
"Kid?" Frisk asked with worry.
She turned around nervously to look at the kid and saw an unexpected reaction. MK's smile had faded while they stared at the ground as if to hide their face. This was very reminiscent of how he looked during their meeting outside the library in Snowdin, Frisk quickly realized.
"What's the matter?" Frisk asked, trying to sound calm.
Oh, fuck! her thoughts wailed. Did I go about this horribly wrong?! God! I should NOT have asked that question!
"I…" MK began, sounding as if they didn't know how to answer her question. "I'm not a girl."
"Er… cool?" Frisk said. "But why are you so upset about that?"
MK took a while to answer. Frisk waited patiently while her anxiety grew inwardly. Once the kid finally spoke, their voice had a depressed tone to it.
"Because… I don't think I'm a boy either," MK said. "Or at least, I don't feel like it."
"Huh?" asked Flowey who had stopped as well. "You're not a girl, but you're not a boy either? What are you then?"
"My parents and friends say I'm a boy," MK continued. "And I have a boy's body. But… I don't know. I don't feel comfortable being a boy. Or a girl. I know it sounds crazy and dumb, but… I don't feel like I'm anything."
MK didn't say anything more for a good few moments. This was the most silent they had been this whole trip, and Frisk didn't know what to make of it.
Then, out of the blue, a rush of realization washed over her.
"Oh…!" she said. "Oh, wow! I… I get it. That's… that is perfectly valid, kid."
The kid quickly looked back up at her, confusion clear on their face.
"Sorry?" they said as if they didn't know how to process what she said. "What do you mean by.. I'm valid?"
"Maybe your gender is not that of a girl or a boy," Frisk explained. "Perhaps you're neither. And that… is completely cool."
"Erm… I'm confused," Flowey added. "You're saying this kid's neither?"
"Well maybe," Frisk explained. "It's something I've read about online. You see, there are some folk, and even young teens, who may not necessarily feel like the gender they're born as, boy or girl. Or at least not mentally. But at the same time, they're not the other gender either, so they're not exactly trans. It's called being non-binary."
"Non… binary?" MK repeated.
"Yeah, that," Frisk answered. "Or enby for short. It means that while you may be physically either gender, mentally you're not. It's nothing bad or anything. You're not crazy or anything."
"So am I truly this… en bee?" MK asked curiously.
"Well, I'm not a psychologist," Frisk replied. "But if you feel like it, then sure. There's nothing wrong with being one. Nothing at all."
"But… what if you're wrong?" MK asked nervously. "What if I'm not one of those enbys after all? You said it yourself. Taking your advice seriously is not a good idea. You said something like that just a moment ago."
Nervous sweat began forming on Frisk's face while she looked away and instinctively began rubbing the back of her neck.
Oh, fuck me, she thought. I should've known that would come back and bite me.
"Oh yeah…" Frisk replied while smiling nervously. "Heh, sorry. I was mostly just being facetious with that, kid."
"But what if you really are wrong?!" MK pried with a bit of desperation. "What if I'm wrong?! Then what am I?"
Frisk looked back at the kid's conflicted face, realising the corner she felt pushed into. She feared as if every word she said now had the potential to backfire, and would affect this kids happiness for days to come. She knew she wasn't an expert on these things, but she was already far too gone in this conversation. She knew she had to say something. Running away like parts of her wanted would only make it worse.
Then she looked at the kid's expression again, their bright eyes that seemed to plead for an answer. It was true had no answers, none she was confident of. So she decided to say something along those lines.
"Then you are… just you," Frisk told them. "Whether you feel comfortable being a boy, girl, or neither... you're just you. And what you feel like? What you think fits you best, who you are, or what you feel like you are… is nothing to be ashamed of. Now whether I'm wrong or not, as I often am… that is something only you can decide. And only you, no matter what your, erm, biology or anyone else says because your mind is your mind. If you feel you're a boy, then you're a boy. If you feel comfortable as a girl, then you're a girl. If you don't think you belong to either gender, then you're not wrong either. Dresses, tuxedos, wear what you prefer, kid, societal norms be dammed. No matter what anyone says, hell, no matter what I think… you are who you are, kid."
MK looked like they didn't know how to respond to that. Then they looked away, clearly considering something. Frisk felt a pit in her stomach, afraid she accidentally said something horribly misinformed or harmful.
"Well if I don't feel like a boy or a girl," MK began.
Then their eyes lit up again, and a smile returned. They looked up at Frisk, making their excitement utterly apparent.
"Then… I guess I am an enby!" they said with excitement.
Frisk didn't show it, but she sighed inwardly, feeling a rush of relief.
"That's great," Frisk encouraged.
"I am an enby!" the kid repeated, with happiness. "Yo that's so weird but… it explains so much! Thank's Frisk! That helps a lot."
"Eh, its no biggie," Frisk said.
Truthfully, she was unsure of how to accept the praise.
"Good for you, kid," Flowey began. "But can you lower your voice? Don't want to get too much attention."
"Why?" MK asked. "There's no-one around."
"Yeah, but… just in case you know," Flowey added.
"Right, sorry," MK whispered.
So the group continued their walk. MK trailed behind, smiling and wagging their tail with joy. The kid from before, the overly curious and hyperactive kid who had gone so suddenly, had returned once more.
Meanwhile, Frisk was just glad she appeared to have succeeded in this challenge.
"You seem to know a lot of this stuff, huh?" Flowey asked Frisk. "I'm honestly kinda surprised."
"Believe me, I'm surprised myself," Frisk answered. "I really thought I was gonna mess this up royally. Still kinda nervous that I did."
"If it's any consolation, I don't think you messed up," Flowey said. "Then again, this is something beyond my expertise. Despite me knowing pretty much everything down here, or at least once upon a time."
"And what your expertise?" MK asked curiously.
"Err… living?" Flowey replied.
At last, the strangely long bridge came to an end. The group was growing used to the thumping hardwood so that the change into squishing steps on the soggy ground was immediately noticeable.
Later, on the road ahead, Frisk saw a decently large pool of water covering the road in the distance. She didn't think it to be much of a big deal at first until the moisture in the air increased and the noise of rushing streams had become audible.
"Can't wait to tell my mom about me being enby!" MK said excitedly. "And my sister! And my other mom of course! If she's back by now."
"Back?" Flowey pried. "Huh. Kinda assumed she was… you know?"
"You know what?" MK asked back.
"Hey, guys?" Frisk interrupted. "I think… we have a problem."
Now that they were close enough to gaze across, there was no doubt of Frisk's suspicions. In front of them was another wide, rushing lake but no bridge or any method of transport across in sight. Dozens of lilypads lay by the brink, and the nearby waterfall gave out loud gushings. The immense moisture filling the air felt like water sprinklers were spraying across their faces.
"Oh?" Flowey said, surprised. "Well, that's… not good. Certain it wasn't here last time."
"Oh darn," MK said. "How are we going to get across."
"Good question, kid," Frisk replied, thinking.
"We could swim it," Flowey said.
"Wha- no way," MK replied. "I can't swim."
"And I'm a pretty terrible swimmer," Frisk said.
"I don't wanna be here all day," Flowey replied dismissively. "So… guess you two better start training then."
"No, I meant I literally can't swim," MK said, sounding almost insulted. "Can't tell if you've noticed but I don't have the… equipment for it."
They wiggled their body around to give notice to their lack of arms.
"Oh… right…" Flowey said with embarrassment.
While the two had their talk, Frisk was looking around to see if she could find something that could help. That was when she finally the wooden sign placed on a short beaten path to the right.
"Hey come look at this!" she called. "I think I found something."
The other two turned to her curiously before coming towards her, Flowey carefully while MK seemed to be almost rushing. They all gathered together in front of the sign where they could finally see the text inscribed on. Unfortunately but not to her surprise, Frisk couldn't read it. It looked to be written in the same unfamiliar language as the book in the library.
"What does it say, Flowey?" Frisk asked him.
"Give me a moment," Flowey said. "Much of the text is faded."
"Yo Frisk, you can't read?" MK asked curiously.
"Of course I can," Frisk answered. "Just not this language."
"Can confirm," Flowey added.
He looked at the sign a bit, crossing his eyes as he read the small, almost illegible text.
"What does it say?" Frisk asked him. "Anything that can help us?"
Flowey's eyes opened up again and gave out a small, "huh".
"What is it?" Frisk asked.
"It's a puzzle," Flowey answered casually.
Frisk thought for a moment she misheard him. Why would there be a puzzle here blocking the middle of the road, Frisk considered. But then suddenly remembered something he told her about monsters when they were in the forest.
"The good news is: I recognize this one," Flowey added. "See those lilypads around the lake? We need to place them in the correct sequence to get across. The bad news: I can't remember the correct sequence."
"Seriously?" Frisk replied with perplexion.
"I know, Frisk," Flowey said and sighed. "I too hate my conveniently selective amnesia."
"It's not that," Frisk replied.
"Ooh, I get it now!" MK said excitedly. "See Frisk? What you have to do is-"
"No, I got that as well," Frisk interrupted. "What I mean is… is this stuff normal for you? Doing all these puzzles in the middle of the road? Is this what monsters- sorry, other monsters go through while travelling?"
"Pretty much," Flowey answered.
"That sounds… pretty inconvenient," Frisk said, eyebrow raised.
"I told before you that monsters- excuse me," Flowey replied. "Non-ape-monsters have a huge affinity for puzzles. For better or worse."
"Huh…" Frisk replied. "Sounds weird but… well, who am I to judge?"
They all three turned their gazes towards their current obstacle and over towards the lilypads gathered by the edge of the lake.
"So how should we start?" MK asked.
"Beats me," Frisk answered. "Maybe we should… I don't know, map out the place first? Before placing the lilypads, that is."
"Good idea!" MK said.
"Hey, kid?" Flowey said to them. "I just remembered something. I need to have a bit of a private chat with my companion over here. Just some ape-monster business and such. Can you maybe ponder the puzzles by yourself in the meantime?"
"Sure, ok!" MK answered enthusiastically. "Yo. My very first puzzle. Sweet."
"Great," Flowey said, sounding glad. "Frisk?"
"Wait, do I get a say in this-?" she replied.
Before she finished, Flowey had gone towards a small road past the sign. Frisk felt truly befuddled. Even though she had suspicion or two what Flowey was going for, she still wasn't sure what to make of this sudden meeting. Still, she followed him down the small road. There was no luminescent light down that beaten path, so Frisk had a gut feeling he was leading her someplace very dark and hidden. Eventually, they both stopped just outside of the lit area, with nothing but piercing darkness further down the path.
"Ok, Frisk?" Flowey whispered. "You know I like kids and all. And I see how you're-"
"Just say it," Frisk blurted out.
"We should ditch them!"
"No way."
"Why not?"
"Ok, why do you have such a problem with having someone else with us?" Frisk whispered.
"I… I don't have a problem with having another person with us," Flowey said. "At least not in general."
"Then what is it?"
"I just… I don't … I don't really…"
He sighed tiredly, sounding as if he was upset at where he was going with this.
"What?" Frisk pried.
"Don't you think their appearance here is a bit… convenient," Flowey explained.
"Convenient?" Frisk asked, not understanding him.
But she quickly realized his implication. And she couldn't fathom his suggestion.
"W-wait," she whispered. "You're telling me you don't trust this kid?"
"No, I don't," Flowey answered simply.
Frisk looked at him and chortled.
"You're telling me," Frisk said while smiling with disbelief. "That this kid is… what? Like a super-secret government spy or something?"
She pointed towards MK, who was currently busy trying to gnaw their spiky tail to pay attention to anything.
"Not necessarily a government spy, no," Flowey said. "It's possible though, that Mickey or someone else in The Hunt forced or bribed them to look for us."
"Are you actually for real now?!" Frisk replied.
"I know Mickey better than you do," Flowey answered. "And trust me. Forcing a kid to spy for him isn't one bit beneath him."
"That's… not what I was getting at," Frisk replied. "I mean, look at them. Do they look like some inexperienced kid suffering from god knows how much pressure working for some crazed maniac like Mickey? Did they make any signs of that during the whole time they've been with us? Cause I sure as hell haven't noticed any."
"Yeah, good point," Flowey said. "Then they must be a planted mole then. Maybe a kid trained in birth to blend in with ordinary groups. Specifically to look for humans like you? Yeah, I'm actually talking about a full-blown, fully trained government spy. Maybe they've been spying on us since Snowdin."
Frisk looked down at her companion, unable to comprehend his words properly.
"You're really convinced that this kid is a spy, huh?" Frisk asked him.
"Pretty much," Flowey admitted.
"Are child spies even a thing down here?" Frisk asked.
"Ehh… not as I recall," Flowey admitted.
With that, Frisk lost all mark on him.
"Oh, for the love of-" she began.
"Just think about it, Frisk!" Flowey said, sounding desperate now. "This is the same kid we met in town, and they just happen to have been on the same road as we on the exact same time?"
"They just told us like ten minutes ago that they were simply following my, admittedly ill advice to leave town," Frisk pointed out.
"That's not all," Flowey began. "They also could have, following your advice, left town much earlier. But here we find them just moments after the disaster at Grillby's, which, by the by, they just HAPPENED to have also missed? And then, they just happen to be hiding in the bushes near us, watching us at the exact same time we took a small pause?"
"I think you're being super paranoid," Frisk said dismissively. "Coincidences happen. Plus, it doesn't look this road has had many forks or anything. Just been one straight line for the most part."
"Maybe," Flowey replied. "But even if I'm wrong… should we really take that risk? Not to mention, since Mickey knows about resets, he's sure as hell isn't gonna-"
"Wait, wait, wait, Mickey knows about resets?!" Frisk asked back. "When were you going to tell me that?"
"I did tell you," Flowey answered, sounding surprised.
"What, when?"
"Back when we were spying on him. Or at least I heavily implied it then, when I told you he wouldn't give you a chance to reset. Surprised you didn't catch onto that. I thought I made it very clear."
Frisk looked back at the kid, who was now examining some weird blue flowers. They seemed so careless yet joyful like their mind was in a different, much happier place than them two.
"Just think Frisk," Flowey added. "How much do you truly know this kid?"
Frisk examined the kid further. Suddenly, she felt something. A doubt that was slithering up and through her like one of Flowey's vines. Crawled under her skin and into her mind. She couldn't shake it off, no matter how hard she believed otherwise.
"I dunno, this kid just doesn't strike me as a spy or anything," Frisk said.
"The best ones rarely do," Flowey said. "I guess it's your choice. I'm just worried about y-... I'm just worried about our safety. Just don't be surprised if it kicks us in the bum later."
Frisk thought again. The kid was now kicking dust and mud into the air with their clawed, reptilian feet. Even though nothing about them looked unusual, the creeping vines of doubt lingered, now reaching into her inner conscience.
What if he's right? the vines asked her. You've seen first hand how unhinged Mickey is. You're willing to give yourself to that maniac? For what? For some kid that you barely know?
"Well?" Flowey asked impatiently.
"I… I guess you do have a point," Frisk admitted.
"Oh, thank you, "Flowey whispered with relief.
But the, she looked at MK again, who currently was sitting down by some rocks and gave out a long bored exhale. Something about it struck a realization within her. She saw that even in a state of boredom, they looked so filled with life. The joy and excitement the kid carried in spades lay even under those bored eyes. She couldn't see any signs of dark motives under there. They just looked like a kid. A simple kid that had grown bored with waiting.
So what if they're some kid I don't know? Frisk told her doubts. This ain't the first time I've risked my life for some small acts of sympathy, even before discovering my powers. Why should this one be different?
"So what is it gonna be?" Flowey asked.
"I'm gonna give this kid a bit more time," Frisk answered.
"Wait, really?!" Flowey replied, his relief instantly vaporising.
"Yeah," Frisk said. "Look, I get it. I'm scared of those maniacs too. But honestly, if we're ready to mistrust every person we come across, even kids… then we're pretty much against everyone. But I'm willing to take these risks. At least this time."
"For… what?" Flowey asked. "Some kid?"
Frisk gave out a small sigh.
"I… I'm not sure," she admitted. "I just have a hunch, is all."
"Gods, you really are an idiot," Flowey said snarkily. "Even if they are innocent, just having this kid with us in the first place puts them in serious danger."
"I'm aware of that," Frisk answered. "But… I don't know."
Flowey stared up at her, his face taking on a defeated expression once more.
"Well, since I'm not gonna get through you… fine!" he said. "The kid can stay. For now."
"Ok, good," Frisk replied.
"But," Flowey added. "We should keep an eye on them, at the very least. And if it turns out I'm right… then don't say I didn't warn ya."
"Deal."
And with that, they both shook hands. Or rather, Frisk shook one of Flowey's vines, and then they proceeded to head back.
"Gotta admit Frisk," Flowey began. "You are the nicest yet simultaneously the dumbest human I've ever met."
"You've met many?" Frisk asked curiously.
"No," Flowey simply answered. "So I better hope you're not the norm. Or at least not close to it."
"Heh, good news then," Frisk answered. "I'm terribly far from the norm. Because I'm dumber than most."
"Oh I sure hope so," Flowey said, smiling.
The kid looked at their direction, their great excitement returning as they saw them both come close.
"Alright, I think I figured it out!" MK said excitedly. "Yo, you two were long."
"Yeah we… we had a bit of a talk," Frisk said.
"About what?" MK pried.
"Err, nothing," Frisk lied. "Just some private stuff. Not something I want to… share with others."
"But you shared it with him?" MK replied.
"You know what I meant."
"Erm… I think so? But if it's really personal, then whatever."
Frisk sighed tiredly and looked towards the river.
"Anyway, how do we go about this, kid?" she asked.
"Oh right, the puzzle!" MK said. "So the solution is actually pretty simple. All we need to do is place them in a bridge formation across. The problem is that we can't walk on them if there are less than four lilypads in a line. We'll just fall into the water, so we have to place them in a way where there are more than four across."
"Oh yeah, now I remember it," Flowey said
"Sounds… nerve-wracking," Frisk said.
"It's not," Flowey said unenthused.
"Sounds exciting!" MK said.
"It's not that either," Flowey added. "Alright then, who's gonna start moving?"
Frisk didn't know whether to answer that. She was sure doing the puzzle was simple. Yet she was nervous she would accidentally ruin it somehow, or make it so that they permanently couldn't cross. But the designer or designers of this trial couldn't be so unfair, she thought. Right?
She turned to MK as if to expect them to answer that question in her mind.
"Don't look at me," they said. "I don't have arms, in case you haven't noticed. And my jaws are too strong. I'll just rip the lilypads apart."
Now that it was obvious who was left, Flowey frowned and sighed tiredly.
"Ugh fine," he said grumpily. "Wait here."
Following that were long moments of Flowey dragging lilypads around with his vines, while the other two watched while sitting down by a patch of grass nearby, which Frisk instantly regretted doing. The moisture of the grass made sitting on it a pain. Yet she sat on, giving in to the discomfort as she thought moving would only make it worse.
Seeing Flowey do all the work by himself was almost a pitiful sight. But even after Frisk offered, the flower stayed stubborn and adamant, even though it almost looked like he would tear his vines apart at any moment.
"Yo, Frisk?" MK asked. "You mentioned earlier you never left your village before?"
"No," Frisk answered. "Maybe I did as a baby. But not for as long as I remember."
"Huh," MK said. "You know, I used to be envious of you people. Going around, seeing the world and never staying in one place forever."
"Yeah, I kinda used to envy those people too," Frisk said.
"I always assumed exploring the world was normal with every ape-monster," MK said. "Shows what I know. A kid who's never allowed to leave town."
"I'm sure your parents have good reasons," Frisk said. "It seems like a dangerous world after all."
"Maybe," MK replied. "But still, it sucks. I don't wanna stay in one place forever. I want to see the world. I want to see New Home, The Capital?"
"So do I," Frisk said. "God, why do they call it New Home? For being the capital city of the whole monster kingdom, it doesn't sound that epic."
"Yeah, King Asgore isn't really good with names," MK agreed.
"Sounds about right," Frisk replied.
"Is there someplace you want to see?" MK asked. "Other than New Home? As an Ape-monster, you must have heard of a lot of places from relatives."
Frisk thought about that question for a moment.
"Well… I always wanted to see this one place called… Iceland," she admitted.
"Iceland?" MK asked. "You mean Snowdin?"
Frisk chuckled in amusement.
"Nah, it's another place entirely," she answered. "I've read and heard and seen a lot of images of it. It has like a bunch of mountains and volcanoes. Erm, mountains under this one I mean. And there are also rock fields surrounding a bunch of beautiful hills. Oh, and the people there make some kickass music. That is always a plus."
"Never heard of it," MK replied. "Sounds like a nice place. But why is it called Iceland? Doesn't sound like it has much ice in it."
"No frigging clue kid," Frisk said and chuckled. "But there is another place I want to go to. It's a very hot place called Mexico, so the very opposite of Iceland. Mostly because that's where my mom was from. I never met her but seeing the place she's from would be nice. Could give me some context or something, I dunno."
"Hmm," MK said thoughtfully. "I never met my mom either. My birth mom I mean. My moms are cool but… I often wanted to meet her. She died in the war. A soldier apparently, like my dad. The worst part is, I hadn't even hatched by then. Took me years for that."
"At least you were raised with a mom," Frisk added. "Ok, two moms rather, but… you know. I only had one and… she died when I was a baby."
"Sounds rough," MK said.
Their voice and look had turned visibly dour once more, so Frisk decided not to speak further.
Oh my god, why did I turn this into a freaking pity contest? Frisk thought to herself.
Shortly afterwards, Flowey came up to the two, looking utterly exhausted.
"Gah!" he muttered tiredly. "There! I'm done!"
He waved his vines towards the river where a nice looking bridge of lilypads had now formed.
"Awesome!" MK exclaimed and stood up.
"W-wait, kid!" Flowey called out. "I'm not completely sure if it's stable or-"
Before he could finish, MK already ran across the lilypad bridge with no hesitation. But luckily, it didn't budge, and before they knew it, MK was standing on the other side of the lake.
"Sorry, were you saying something, Flowey?!" MK called across.
"Nevermind," Flowey muttered. "Frisk, you coming?"
"Of course."
With that, she stood up from her seat, grateful she wouldn't have to go through more discomfort for the time being.
Flowey crawled ahead, slowly and tiredly, and crossed the lilypads. They made barely a shudder from his crawls as if Flowey's steps were light as paper.
Frisk, meanwhile, felt more unsure about them. She stood overlooking the lilypad bridge, noting how small it seemed up close. Then she took a breath and made the first step.
The first lilypad wobbled wildly up and down from her step, making her feel a quick thrill as she thought it was going to sink.
"Jesus," Frisk said to herself.
She placed her other foot on the next lilypad, which wobbled as well. Before she noticed, her hands were in the air to keep her balance.
"Am I like the heaviest person in this world?" Frisk said to herself.
She looked down at the stream surrounding her. But that proved to be a big mistake. The water stream looked rapid, and it looked like the slightest misstep would throw her into it and lead her to whatever dark corner of the underground.
Frisk then looked back ahead, seeing the several lilypads she had yet to cross. There were only five of them left, yet they felt like 50. Flowey, meanwhile, was already by the other side, panting and leaning against a small rock.
"Yo, is something wrong, Frisk?!" MK called out with concern.
"I'm… fine!" Frisk replied.
"She… she's just… scared, heh," Flowey said, tired yet amused.
"N… no!" Frisk called out. "I'm just… being careful…"
She stepped on the next lilypad, which sunk much farther than the other two, she almost felt the pull of the stream. At first, Frisk was glad she was wearing protective boots. Unfortunately, she then realised that a great deal of water splashed into her socks and ran down the boots from above, soaking them immensely.
"Alright, fuck it," she said to herself.
With that, she proceeded to just run over. The lilypads bounced visibly with each step until she jumped by to ground by the last one. She then clumsily stumbled across the ground as she landed, waving her arms around as she tried to adjust herself.
"Woah, Woah!" she exclaimed.
She was almost on the verge of falling backwards. Fortunately, she managed to adjust herself and she stood tall.
"Phew," Frisk muttered.
"Wow, Frisk!" MK said with a cheer. "You did it! Go you!"
"Yeah, thanks… kid," Frisk said as she took a deep relieving breath.
"Yes, congrats," Flowey said with a deadpan delivery. "You completed the ultimate challenge. Crossing a bridge."
"Shut up," Frisk said, smiling. "This was terrifying."
"Maybe so," Flowey began. "But still. Gah!"
Frisk quickly turned to her companion. Flowey was moving towards her, but then his body suddenly gave up after a few steps, and he fell lifelessly onto the ground.
"Flowey!" Frisk called out.
She ran up to the flower, who at the very least still had their face visible. But it was currently wracked with pain.
"Yo, are you alright?" MK asked him.
Flowey took a deep breath.
"Gah, no!" he answered. "I am, in fact, not ok."
"Why, what's wrong?" Frisk asked, worried.
Flowey gave out a couple of tired breaths, sounding as if he was completely depleted of energy.
"It's… I… I can't move," he explained. "Like barely move anymore. I'm just so exhausted. Need a break."
"Oh… fuck," Frisk replied.
A tinge of guilt began growing in her.
I shouldn't have been such a wuss, she thought. I should have just done the puzzle myself.
"Alright, let me carry you-" Frisk began.
"No, no, no," Flowey said adamantly. "I'm good, I'm good."
"I'm obviously not just gonna leave you here," Frisk stated.
"I know that, Frisk," Flowey said. "I… I think we should just rest for a bit. Take a bit of a break from… all that walking. And crawling."
"Erm… you sure that's a good idea?" Frisk asked with worry.
"I don't see the big deal with it, personally," MK added.
"Yeah, but… I didn't tell you this, kid," Frisk began. "But we are… in a bit of a hurry."
"Nonsense!" Flowey added. "Alright, Frisk, I admit it. I was a bit paranoid before. I guess if we were in danger, we would've noticed by now."
"Really?" Frisk asked, unconvinced. "Are you actually sorry, or this your stubbornness speaking?"
"Let's just go on a frigging break!" Flowey exclaimed tiredly. "Ugh. Sorry for that, Frisk."
It was hard for them to find a good spot to rest. A spot wasn't covered in any semblance of dew or moisture. But they eventually agreed for a spot that was just good enough. Or at least close to it. It was by a lonesome corner with a small patch of bluish grass over mud, and the only object of note there was a bluish flowey with a rubbery texture. Flowey sat between the two kids, who sat across from each other. Frisk began running through her phone, hoping vainly that something worked this time. Of course, it didn't, to no surprise of her own.
"Yo, I always wished I could use one of those," MK said. "But even if my parents could afford it for me and my big sis, I don't think I would be able to."
It took Frisk a moment to realize they were talking about her phone.
"You mean this?" Frisk asked as she waved it around. "Yeah, it's… a neat thing. Er, no offence."
MK examined her phone with a hint of envy. Then they looked away, trying to turn their ever-shifting focus someplace else. Frisk then turned towards Flowey, seeing that his previous expression of pain was now gone with barely a trace.
"Hey, how you're holding up, Flowey?" Frisk asked him.
"Umm… better," Flowey answered. "Still can't feel my legs- sorry, roots though. Guess we should stay a bit longer."
"Hmm, if you say so," Frisk replied. "I'm really sorry about that, Flowey. I should have been the one to move the lilypads."
"Don't," Flowey said sternly. "Don't apologize, I mean. Unless you wanna reset all the way back to Snowdin, I don't see the point in dwelling on it. What's done is done, ok?"
"That's pretty ironic," Frisk said.
"Reset?" MK asked curiously.
"Oh, erm… that's a long story, kid," Frisk answered. "Tell you later."
Mk looked at her curiously for a moment, before shrugging. Or at least they did the closest the could for a shrug as an armless person. Frisk watched them as they proceeded to look around frantically. It looked as if the monster kid was filled with pounds of curiosity that weren't allowed to go unspent.
Finally, their moving glare stopped as they looked at the large blue flower, and then, out of the blue, their eyes lit up in awe.
"Yo is that a…?" MK said with excitement.
Frisk turned toward the same flower, seeing nothing out of place about it.
"Is that a what?" she asked curiously.
MK stood up from their seat, eyes still intently on the flower, and proceeded to walk towards it.
"Yo, how did I miss it?" they ask themselves as they stood in front of it.
"Miss what?" Frisk asked, confused.
"Oh yeah," Flowey said. "That's an echo flower."
"Echo flower?" Frisk asked. "What's so special about them?"
"Watch," MK replied.
They leaned closer to the flower and touched it lightly with their snout. Enough to push it slightly away and make it dangle a bit.
"Watch," an eerie echoing voice said from the flower.
Frisk didn't know what to expect at first, so when she heard the strange voice come out of the flower, she felt a twisting in her chest, and almost fell on her back. The voice sounded like MK's, but with an echoing, almost muted quality to it, like it was being said underwater.
"What the hell?!" Frisk asked, startled.
"It's an echo flower!" MK explained with enthusiasm. "If you touch them, they repeat the last things they heard. See?"
MK quickly nuzzled the flower again.
"... they repeat the last things they heard… see?" the flower echoed.
The same voice of MK came again, with the same underwater quality of it.
"Holy shit," Frisk replied. "This sounds awesome! Let me try."
She stood up eagerly, feeling the water from the grass stick to her pants. But Frisk ignored that discomfort as she eagerly headed towards the flower.
"Erm… how does it work exactly?" she asked as she stood over it.
"Simple!" MK answered. "Just say something in front of it and then touch it. Like so."
MK quickly bumped the flower with their snout again.
"Simple… just say something in front of it and then touch it… like so," the echo flower said.
"Ok then," Frisk said. "Hmm… pendejo?"
Frisk proceeded to poke the flower.
"Hmm… pendejo?" the flower repeated.
The flower sounded eerily like herself, but with the same underwater echo to it. It was like listening to a recording someone made of her in secret. It gave her a great sense of discomfort and amusement simultaneously.
"Oh wow!" Frisk exclaimed.
"Awesome, right?" MK asked.
"Ok, let me try again," Frisk said with enthusiasm. "Ahem. Frisk rules, ok? And Mickey is a dumb-dumb monkey who… literally flings shit. Signed, Frisk."
She poked the flower again.
"Ahem. Frisk rules, ok?" the flower repeated. "And Mickey is a dumb-dumb monkey who… literally flings shit. Signed, Frisk."
But that's when she realized, her voice also sounded much worse than she thought. It had an almost strange, childish growl to it.
"My God, do I really sound like that?" Frisk asked herself, clearly unsatisfied with it.
"Eh, are you sure saying that was a good idea?" MK asked nervously.
"Yeah, sorry for saying "shit", kid," Frisk apologize.
"Wha- no, no, no, I don't mind swear words," MK replied. "But speaking ill against Mickey like that? You know I don't like him myself, but that's like super dangerous. You could be detained for that, you know? Or worse."
"Relax kid," Frisk reassured, smiling. "He ain't gonna hear this. You said these flowers only repeat the last thing they heard, right?"
"Right."
"Well, I'm not done yet. I still got one more thing I wanna try."
She gave out a small cough before leaning closer towards the flower until she was close enough to kiss it.
"Rubber baby… buggy bumpers," Frisk said quickly into the flower.
She then lightly poked it.
"Rubber baby… buggy bumpers," the flower echoed.
Frisk chuckled, almost in a childlike way.
"Rubber baby buggy bumpers," Frisk said again, this time faster. "Rubber baby buggy bumpers. Rubber baby baby- whoops! Rubber baby buggy buggers- I mean, rubber buggy baby- fuck! Eh. Whatever."
Frisk poked the flower once more.
"Rubber baby buggy bumpers," the flower repeated with similar intensity. "Rubber baby buggy bumpers. Rubber baby baby- rubber baby buggy buggers- I mean, rubber buggy baby- fuck! Eh. Whatever."
Frisk gave out an audible laugh, and MK followed with their own laugh as well.
"Holy shit, I love these things!" Frisk exclaimed. "They're like shitty audio recordings but organic."
"What are you, like five?" Flowey asked, unamused himself.
"Maybe," Frisk said jokingly.
With that, she proceeded to go back to her spot. The moisture stains on her pants had barely run dry before the touch of the wet grass made it worse.
"These are truly something," Frisk said. "Echo flowers, wasn't it?"
"Yeah, echo flowers," MK repeated as they sat back into their previous spot. "You don't have them where you're from?"
"No, unfortunately," Frisk answered. "Not that I recall."
"They're like favourite flowers!" MK explained. "You know, when I lived in the orphanage, there was this one teacher, miss Salamandra I think, who knew a recipe for an echo flower herbal tea."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. She even made us try one. Didn't really like the taste. But the best part, one other kid drank too much, and he had hiccups for days that sounded like the last words he spoke before."
Frisk chuckled a bit. Flowey did as well, although lightly. All three of them then turned quiet, looking around, each expecting the next person to speak first.
"Say, Frisk?" Flowey asked. "You've been wildly curious by a large, admittedly dangerous margin the past day or two, so I guess it's only fair it's my turn to ask. Does water truly have a taste up on the surface?"
"Well I'm not sure if it technically has a taste-" Frisk began.
"Wait!" MK interrupted. "Did you just say "up on the surface"? As in… "the surface" surface? Yo, Frisk?! You've been to the surface?!"
Frisk looked at them, mouth slightly agape, while Flowey placed a vine over his.
"Whoops," he muttered under the vine.
"Err…" Frisk began. "No actually. That's just… the name of my… village? Ape Monster village."
The little monster kid's smile faded slowly once more.
"Oh," MK replied. "I just assumed since Flowey said, "up on the surface". You know, up."
"Yeah, he meant up as in… up in the direction of my town," Frisk lied. "You know, north."
"Err… what?" MK replied with confusion. "But… Apetown is to the south."
Oh darn, Frisk thought.
She was beginning to feel incredibly awkward. Making up all these lies at the spot, and only hoping they would be close to the truth. Even though they seemed to be nothing more than an innocent kid, she still couldn't shake off the possibility Flowey told her.
"Erm, I knew that…" she said. "We, erm, to us… I forgot to tell you, we Ape monsters, that is… to us… up is down. And north… is south."
"Yo, for real?" MK replied with intrigue. "That sounds weird. Must be confusing for you, right?"
"Y-yeah," Frisk said, stressfully. "It… it totally is."
A great relief washed over her, drowning her slight sense of guilt for lying to them. As MK turned to stare at the grass, thinking something, Frisk turned to Flowey, gazing at him with clear annoyance.
"I'm sorry," Flowey whispered. "It just slipped from my mouth."
"I heard Mickey's been to the surface," MK said.
"That is impossible," Flowey said. "The barrier is too strong for a monster soul to get through."
"I know that," MK replied. "But that's what they say. But now that I'm thinking about it, do you think perhaps that what it actually meant that he's been to your village? Since it's called The Surface as well, and everyone just got confused?"
Frisk didn't know how to answer that. She felt like she was in a court trial, where every word she said could be held against her.
"M… maybe?" Frisk replied.
"Yo, has he been to your village?" MK continued. "Have you seen Mickey?"
"Maybe," Frisk said. "If he has, I wouldn't have recognized him."
"Oh, ok."
MK turned thoughtful once more.
"Hey, there's something I've been meaning to ask," they suddenly.
"Go for it," Frisk replied.
"Why did you leave home?" MK asked.
Frisk felt her heart sink from that question. She did not know how to answer it.
"I… it's complicated," she answered.
That's a lie, Frisk thought.
"Well I'm not going anywhere," MK said. "So what? Did you want to go on an adventure like me? Either way, I won't judge you."
"Of course you won't," Frisk said. "But sorry I'm not gonna talk about it."
"Why not?" MK asked. "Oh, I get it. It was something embarrassing, wasn't it."
"Wha-no," Frisk replied.
"It was, wasn't it?" MK pried, smiling.
"No, I…" Frisk said, starting to feel irritated. "Look, kid. I really don't want to talk about-"
"Why not?" MK pried. "Did something happen or-"
"Just drop it!" Frisk almost shouted angrily.
Immediately after saying that, Frisk irritation faded, as the kid in front of her looked startled and uneasy. Regret washed over her as she placed a palm over her mouth.
"Oh Jesus I'm sorry, kid," Frisk apologized. "I didn't mean to…"
"I… it's alright," MK said with nervousness. "I shouldn't have asked, I'm sorry."
"N-no, it's not ok," Frisk said. "I… sorry. I've just been really anxious recently and-"
"Yo, what's up with him?" MK suddenly said.
Frisk realized the kid's attention had been taken away from her and they were now looking at Flowey with a worried look. Frisk turned to look and saw her friend staring into the distance as if hypnotised by some weird anomaly. Frisk looked at where he was staring, but there was just a simple rock wall.
"Flowey, what is it?" Frisk asked him with worry.
She placed a palm on one of Flowey's vine, which startled him awake from whatever daze he was just in.
"Whoops, sorry," Frisk quickly said.
"Sorry, it's nothing," Flowey answered. "I just… I just got this weird chill is all. For a moment, I almost thought that… nevermind."
"Well, let's talk about something else," MK continued. "You've heard of Ashu-Tsuki."
"Ashu-Tsuki?" Frisk repeated. "Yeah, isn't that the vigilante character?"
"Vigilante?" MK asked back. "Yo, they're more of a superhero!"
"That's… nevermind."
God, where have I heard that name before? Frisk thought. Was it from a movie or something? No that can't be it. Right?
"Gods, I've never seen them before!" MK began. "But they would definitely beat Mickey in a fight!"
"Heh, how do you know that if you've never seen them?" Frisk asked, smiling.
"Well… it's just based on what other kids say, ok?" MK answered. "Also, no one knows who they are, but I think I cracked the code. From what my parents have told me, I'm betting they're Undyne."
"Undyne?" Frisk asked back. "Sorry. Who was that again?"
"Yo, you've never heard of Undyne?!" MK asked back.
"She was The Royal Guard leader," Flowey explained. "The group before The Royal Hunt. I've told you of her before, remember?"
"Oh right, her," Frisk replied. "Yeah, I've heard of Undyne. I'm sure she was great."
"I'm sure she was too," MK replied. "I hatched long after she quit, but she sounded awesome! Also, from what I've heard, her quitting doesn't add up. She never would've given up so easily, so Ashu-Tsuki just has to be-"
Suddenly, Flowey gave out a loud wail of agony.
"Gah, Jesus Flowey!" Frisk exclaimed. "What the hell was that?"
"Oh, gods!" Flowey muttered fearfully, sounding on the verge of breaking down. "Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods-!"
"Yo, what's up with him?" MK replied worryingly.
"Flowey, what's happening?!" Frisk exclaimed with great worry.
"I… I… feel…" Flowey muttered.
"Slow down Flowey," Frisk said calmly. "What is it? What do you feel?"
He looked up at her. His face was wracked with utter despair, and he clung a vine to his body as if he had a heart beating rapidly under there. His eyes were wide open like he was on the verge of frightened tears, and he breathed quickly and anxiously.
Then, he uttered a single word. But that one word, the pure desperation in it and alongside the utter implication, said everything necessary.
"Run," he said.
Author's note:
God, I have so much to talk about with this chapter. I guess it's about time that I did.
So this, like most chapters I've written so far, has been brewing in my mind for a long time. Now while it may seem like just a lot of talking and backstory, because it is, it also has some ideas I've been pondering and even been somewhat nervous about.
There are a lot I can talk about I think. I can talk about Flowey's paranoia and whether or not Frisk is making dumb mistakes or not. I can mention Frisk's heritage which I mentioned here, or how she refuses to talk about her family life. I can even talk about the cliffhanger at the end there, and give some hints of that. But the thing I wanna talk the most about is my decision regarding MK's gender identity. It's something I've often gone back and forward about. As you may have noticed, a lot of people, me included, often decide specific gender to some of the, let's say ambiguously gendered characters, like Frisk and Chara. Reason being that a lot of people consider them to be almost blank slates, characters that you yourself insert your interpretation of. Presumably, that was Toby's intention regarding them, but a lot of people often attribute it to them being non-binary. Honestly, I never thought of it like that, and although I disagree, I can understand that interpretation on it. Truth is, for the longest time I've never even known anything about non-binary people. In fact, until just a few short years ago, I never even thought about them. But I've always known about Transgender people ever since I was a kid, and I've always supported them and their choices for the longest time. (I've even have planned about 1 or 2 trans oc's in this fic for the future).
Hence, I was really nervous about this chapter. I had already picked Frisk's and Chara's gender long in advance, but MK was almost a mystery to me. Eventually, I decided to make them gender-less, not unlike the ghost cousins or a certain minor character in this AU so far. I was even going to have their monster species to be the type to start gender-less and grow into a binary one once they reached puberty, and that MK wasn't old enough for that.
But then around that time, I began to learn more about Non-binary people and so I decided to change it, but not throw it away all together. Instead, I was going to make MK old enough to "supposedly" have gained a gender, but the thing is, they either ended up as neither, or they ended up as one but didn't feel like that or the other gender, so basically non-binary. It was supposed to be a sort of allegory, as I was honestly scared to tackle it seriously.
Fortunately, I soon realized that it was a terrible idea, in that I was kinda accidentally giving the assumption with this idea that NB's are some sort of alien thing, people who aren't "normal" in terms of body or mind. So I decided to scrap the whole biology and puberty aspect and thus decided to just have MK someone who doesn't identify as either gender like most real life non-binaries, instead of trying to create some complicated allegory as a "justification" for it, when in actuality, they didn't need one. So instead, I just opted to go for a more "human" or "relatable" route of having them be NB normally. As for why I made them a male at birth, that was pretty much just a coin flip for me. Never thought it really mattered.
Now the scene of them with Frisk helping them realize their Non-binary identity was something I was really nervous about. I, like Frisk, was incredibly uneasy on whether or not I was gonna get their "coming out" right, even though we both were sympathetic to it. In fact, I tried to base this scene on things I've read about online regarding NB's coming out. At the same time, I didn't want it to be something utterly vital to MK's character or identity, even though it still is kind of a big deal for them because I always saw the underground society as being incredibly diverse and open in terms of gender and /
Now if there are any Non-binary or Enby readers out there, I sincerely hope that I got this scene in a respectful manner, but if I didn't, I would like to say I really, really am sorry and I would love to have some feedback on it. Just give me feedback, either way. I really wanna do this aspect respectfully.