So many people were watching him.
The ambassador was in the middle of the room, filled with adults and monsters. A solemn silence had settled, waiting for the child to finally speak, while he was lowering the microphone to his height.
Did they hear his shortness of breath? The rapid beating of his heart? From the podium, Frisk guessed what the majority thought without having to check it, especially those against him: this young child should not be there in this place, during such an important day that would go down in History.
Like it was just a game.
However, he was not just any kid. Frisk had long ceased to be just a common child, and this one had almost forgotten this.
He had braved dangers that no one could imagine.
He had survived many adversaries from another world.
He had become their friend.
He had stood up to the mighty King of the Underground.
He had appeased the fury of an angel of prophecy, before saving him.
Finally, he had broken a long chain of eternal suffering.
On a second thought, Frisk realized, what I accomplished on the Surface seemed so much easier. This last weekss, he had been deciding what should be said, because Frisk had feared that he would not be able to overcome this trial. Dozens of papers and written essays had been written, before he started again because none really pleased him. Immediately, it faded from his mind.
Now he realized how pointless it was. Asgore had reminded him, earlier, Frisk should speak with his Soul. After all, wasn't it by doing exactly that that he survived the challenges that presented themselves?
And what it said to him, when he listened carefully, was to share with them the feeling of happiness that filled him at this hour. "I will not begin my speech as you might expect; but, first of all, I wanted to thank everyone, humans and monsters, for the efforts that have been made to make possible the cohabitation between the inhabitants of the Surface and those of the Underground", he proclaimed, without hiding his joy and his happiness. "Without all of you, united in the same goal of bringing this integration project to fruition, we would not have been able to come all this way to today."
Many appreciative murmurs were heard at his statement; Frisk turned briefly to his friends in the back, and Asgore's nod of approval told him he had made the right choice. The child continued:
"As you know, almost two years ago the Dreemurr Royal Family and the Council of Ebott agreed that before true cohabitation between our peoples was possible, monsters would have to earn the trust of humans. To do this, it had been decided that the people of the Underground could live on the Surface, provided that they remained exclusively in the vicinity of the mountain where few humans lived. In return, the monsters could settle on the Surface and build a place where they would live in complete safety. Day by day, I can see our village becoming a beautiful place, and I know that it will not stop developing sustainably, like peace between our peoples."
In each of his words, Frisk had tried to infuse his emotions into them. It was necessary that everyone present knew how he felt, to hope that they experienced the same feelings. The child drew them from his memories, in the early days of the return of the monsters. The beginnings had not been simple and difficult; it had taken patience and a great deal of persuasion for everyone to get used to living near each other, and for the neighbors to begin to establish contact. To make things easier, rules had been established in Second House, some of which incorporated conditions into approved agreements, such as mutual respect between races and the absolute prohibition of monsters and humans fighting each other.
"The establishment of a patrol service has greatly contributed to ensuring that security is the best possible", as Frisk explained," provided by several monster-human teams who have were mainly separate groups of humans and monsters ; now, they have become homogenized thanks to the intervention of our captain in charge of surveillance", he added.
Frisk hadn't mentioned her name, but he heard the temperamental merfolk give a proud giggle, grabbing her teammate and lieutenant Papyrus to give him a strong friendly hug. A rumor of approval rose in the Assembly, praising the spontaneous prevention of the inhabitants of Second House. Thanks again, Undyne, for suggesting it to me. Your idea is bearing fruit.
Faced with the growing number of inhabitants of Second House now exceeding a thousand individuals, all peoples combined, Undyne had suggested that he integrate a form of police to ensure the security of their small community which was becoming a real city on the Surface.
"It's true that we didn't have too many problems," she replied when the child pointed out that there had been no incident. "For now, at least," she added, pinning him in place with her yellow eye. "We are doing well, Frisk, I grant you. So imagine for a second that something is happening, anything. It doesn't matter if it's the monsters' fault or someone else's, those like that viper Jordan don't leave us the slightest margin for error. They will fall on everyone, by giving us the pretext that we should have foreseen this kind of eventuality. Having rules is good. But not enough to be certain that all risk is averted, especially with so many people in the same place."
Undyne had given him food for thought that day, and after Frisk had seriously considered the matter, he had quickly recognized that her friend had an important point. Moreover, it would greatly benefit the cause of the monsters, by showing them protecting the population together. With a sly, insolent smile on his face, the ambassador asked her suggestively, "Tell me: would you like to come out of your retirement and become the captain of the New Guard?"
Evidently, the ex-captain had quickly catched him by the collar of the sweater, half ripping him off, then had sprinted all over the village with him hovering helplessly and choking "Un...Undyne. .. Can't breathe..." under the bewildered gaze of the passers-by they met.
The most humiliating day of his entire life.
Thanks to her athletic form, they had soon found Asgore at his home near the forest, outside the Second House. Frisk, while rubbing his bruised throat in a bad mood, had nevertheless told him about Undyne's project which did not hide her excitement. He had explained that this could be favorable to them, in order to better gain the trust of humans who would see them protecting their home and integrity to all.
"It's a very good idea," admitted the monarch, who had been openly impressed by the correctness of this decision. "I will discuss it with the mayor later in the evening, although I guess he would be completely on board with your proposal." And, the next day, the New Guard was created, with Undyne at its head.
Her first recruit was, of course, the skeleton Papyrus. Somehow, as soon as Asgore had confirmed to them the creation of the guard when Frisk and Undyne had come to his house with the news, he had burst from the window with a deafening crash. Beneath their stunned expressions – not too surprised by his two friends, and that completely bewildered by the king in front of this mess of broken glass – he shouted, raising his ribs: "I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, ARDENTLY WISH TO JOIN THE NEW GUARD IN ORDER TO PROTECT OUR FRIENDS, MONSTERS AND HUMANS!"
"So what do the results of the implementation of these patrols give?" one of the counselors asked him from the middle row, snapping Frisk out of his memories.
"Lastly, none incident has been reported," continued the ambassador, answering this question. "The most important thing is that everyone works together, while getting to know each other better. Captain Undyne made sure the teams had a good dynamic, with human-monster pairings."
When he finished, Frisk watched the contented man sit back in his seat. Immediately after, he saw an old lady, learned and severe in appearance, get up. The young child recognized her as the former principal of the town's high school, now head of Ebott's Department of School Services:
*This old lady doesn't carry monsters in her heart, revealed his secret Check and Frisk understood that she would not be easy to persuade, as the minister argued:
"I have heard of a school, not far from your village, which would be ready to open its doors to young children of our two peoples. What do you hope this brings us, exactly? I admit to having some reservations about this project and wondering about its real necessity.
"We hoped to share our respective cultures and knowledge, so that each would gain a better understanding of the other. This school would make it possible to better familiarize the presence of monsters in our daily interactions, whether as other students or teachers, and to teach what we have learned from each other." Frisk answered, repeating what Toriel had explained to him when his adoptive mother mentioned this endeavor to bring their civilization closer together.
He thought like her and believed that this simple reason would convince his interlocutor in the same way, but she shook her head curtly and insisted:
"Isn't it too early, on the contrary, when so few time has passed since the integration of the monsters? Not that the idea is bad in itself; however, it seems rushed to me. Not to mention that we have no way of knowing if the monsters who will educate our children are truly adept at the task. At least, I'm reassured to know that human teachers will assist them."
Frisk didn't know what to say at the time, a little taken aback by her obvious skepticism and the other nods that followed his statement. Hiding the frown that threatened to reveal his thoughts, the ambassador preferred to take a new question addressed to him, after the minister had returned to her place.
...
Further down the front rows, as the debate continued after the minister's intervention, Asgore waddled uncomfortably in his seat. He imagined that his ex-wife must have watched the broadcast of the meeting and, sure, the words that had been spoken would greatly displease at her. Himself did not appreciate at all this insinuation of the incompetence of his family to teach, especially knowing that it was for his beloved a real passion to educate the younger generations.
Tori might take it very personally, he guessed as the monarch concentrated as best he could on the other speaking engagements. However, stubborn as he knew her, it was not his harsh words that were likely to demotivate her. On the contrary.
-oOo-
In her own chair, Toriel hadn't missed a beat of Frisk's speech; her mother's heart overflowed with pride for her child, and a broad smile as she listened to him speak so bravely. However, the next exchange between her human son and the old woman spoiled her joy. As a future teacher of this school, the comments that this human had made were absolutely intolerable and insulting, especially coming from a person who had accumulated only a handful of decades of knowledge, ridiculous compared to her vast centuries-old.
Narrowly managing to control her irritation, the former queen of the monsters royally suppressed the indignation invading her at the moment, which only manifested itself at the curling of her muzzle. She knew very well that these kinds of words were motivated by a clear lack of open-mindedness, obviously forgetting the major advancement of her people in technology and science, especially during the last fifty years. Defiance and the desire for revenge emanated from her voice, when she coldly retorted:
"Hmpf. We will see at the end of this semester if your doubts are justified, dear minister. When we get there, I will demand an adequate apology for this rude behavior."
Hearing it, Asriel hadn't missed the passionate flame that burned deep in her red eyes. Fantastic. Mom might be more motivated than ever to turn us all into her little geniuses, Frisk, he lamented comically.
However, Asriel was fine with proving to this wicked woman that her mother was more than capable of making their school one of the best in all of Ebottland. Finally, his reading of almost all the works during his years of wandering in the Underground would really serve him for something. Moreover, from the look on Frisk's face when the Minister made such false allegations, Asriel knew his brother had the same idea in mind as the argument continued.
-oOo-
For a long time, Frisk continued his speech. He had discussed future projects, such as the construction of a major road between Second House and the city of Ebott, but he had also cited the city's thriving economy thanks to the export of various magical products from from the Underground. Thus, the realm coffers that had been used to build their homes had been replenished, and the debt to those on the Surface almost entirely paid.
Gradually, the questions from the assembly had become rarer. Frisk realized, with relief, that the end of the assembly was approaching. The initial weight that had weighed him down since his departure had been lightened.
Towards the end, the earlier fatigue from this morning had slowly come back to weigh on him and was starting to take effect. Forced to constantly stand behind the desk, his legs, which he held straight, tired. His throat was starting to ache, as he forced his weak, childlike voice to be heard all the way to the back of the room. No one could have guessed, but behind his long thick eyelashes, his eyes were near to droop to the point of closing completely.
It's almost over, he thought to give himself strength, as his own speech finally concluded: "On behalf of all the people of the Underground, I express my deepest gratitude to you for listening to me. I sincerely hope that I have answered your questions properly. I know, of course, that many find me strange to act on behalf of monsters," he said, looking at his opponents. "But I, who live with them, know that coexistence isn't a fantasy. They granted me a wish that I had expressed so ardently: a family. Now I have wonderful guardians, an awesome brother and so many friends. It's more than I could have expected ever. And I want to defend all of that. Thank you for your attention."
He bowed in front the whole Assembly, respectful, while many of them greeted him. The huge room became noisy, and Frisk sat up only when the President of the Assembly spoke:
"In this case, the session is closed! Now everyone please leave!" Frisk came down from the stage, slowly because of his wobbly legs. His exhaustion was partly the cause, but also the relief that softened his muscles. When his feet hit the ground, he was slammed into a steel-hard body, and arms threatened to shatter his fragile spine.
"That is my bestie for you! You assure, little punk!" Undyne congratulated him, squeezing harder, dangerously threatening to drop his HP as he lost his air.
"IT-IT WAS A-MA-ZING, FRISK!" Papyrus added, wiping the waterfalls of tears dripping from his eye sockets. "I-I KNEW YOU WOULD MAKE IT, I NEVER THOUGHT OTHERWISE!"
He was starting to see black spots dancing in his vision, but Frisk suffered in silence and, with a crushed smile, he gave a thumbs up. Lack of air... Need... to breathe... urgent... help me someone...
"Undyne, I think you should let him go, now," Asgore interjected, watching the distressed child slowly turn as blue as his former student choking him to death.
As soon as the affectionate and lethal hug ended (it wouldn't be surprising if his health bar was quite low), Frisk nearly choked took a breath of precious oxygen. "T... Thank you Undyne, Papyrus," he spluttered between two well-deserved breaths.
When his breathing returned to normal, the child felt a large paw - Asgore's - flatten his hair and rub it tenderly.
"You made us all proud, Frisk," he told with emotion. "Once again, you show me that I was right, to make you our ambassador. I couldn't have chosen better."
"...Thank you, Asgore," Frisk replied, almost tearful hearing him say that. He had no other way to express how he felt at that moment.
But the sovereign yes, while he placed himself at his height as before, on his knees in front of the child; Frisk felt an involuntary shudder as Asgore, hesitating, opened his massive arms for him.
An image was superimposed suddenly: in the great hall of the East Gate, where the Barrier was and which held them all prisoners unless one of them perished, Frisk had refused to inflict this deathblow, accepting that his fate was to live and die in the Underground. The incomprehension in front of the merciful gesture of the child crying his refusal, whom he had hurt so much and almost killed, had shaken the fallen king, before he had decided to welcome the lost human as his own son.
"We could be like...like a family," he said, with eyes full of pure love, where hope shone brighter than the stars in the sky.
Frisk had stepped forward, staggering from the burns and bruises of the fight, but wanting to take refuge in his open arms. And when he finally reached him, the petals...
This... had never happened in any other timeline. Not like this, on his own initiative. Frisk thought he was dreaming, and in a moment the illusion would vanish.
"Frisk... Can I?" Asgore inquired, becoming uncertain as the small human hadn't moved. His arms had dropped slightly, but he wouldn't let him back down. The child threw himself with an emotional laugh on the king, who flinched a little at the impact as he retreated into the embrace, feeling his golden beard tickle his forehead, as Frisk hugged the sturdy neck of the king. No, he wasn't imagining anything.
Asgore gently tightened his grip around the frail body of Frisk snuggled against him, marveling at what was happening and unable to suppress a blissful smile. If... If only it were possible. And if it really is, maybe I...
"I call it a celebration!" Undyne exclaimed, overflowing with good humor at their emotional display. "What do you think, Papyrus?"
"NYE HE HE, I SAY IT'S A BRILLIANT IDEA, MY FRIEND! HURRY TO THE CAR, AND WE WILL ALL GATHER AT LADY TORIEL FOR A PARTY!"
The skeleton took the lead, followed by the fish monster. Frisk had moved away from Asgore, then grabbed his hand and together they walked to join their friends to go home. Before, the child looked at the seats where Senator Jordan and his party had observed him. None of them had said anything the entire session, and they left immediately on the announcement of the dissolution of the assembly.
He didn't know what to make of it, and honestly, Frisk preferred not to worry about it right away, enjoying his walk alongside the king.
-oOo-
"OH. MY. DARLING!" exulted Mettaton who had filmed everything in great detail and was spinning with MK. "The drama, the romance, the BLOODSHED! The ratings of the MTT program reached unprecedented heights! What do you think, everyone?"
Behind, Burgerpants lambasted and repackaged the material, casting a dirty look at his employer who overexploited him, although he replied, "Obviously boss, obviously", while Shyren gave a long melodious affirmative note and MK chuckled his agreement.