Understay - Part 2

They could already hear metallic clanging echoing from the doorway. Frisk glanced to Asgore, who returned it. Frisk decided to knock, but there wasn't a response.

"I don't think they can hear me..." He commented, trying again to the same result.

"Let me try." Asgore requested. Frisk stood aside and Asgore stepped up, readying his fist to knock. The first thump shook some loose snow from the roof, the second dented the door and the third caused the rest of the snow to plummet from the roof, burying Frisk and half of Asgore with a resounding "whumph" sound. The clanging stopped and footsteps approached as Frisk worked to free himself. He'd just freed himself when the door opened, revealing a confused-looking Undyne. Her confusion turned to shock at the sight of Frisk's guest.

"A-Asgore?!"

"Hello, Undyne." he chuckled, reaching down to help Frisk to his feet.

"Whuh... what are you doing here? I thought you'd be in New Home!"

"I was in my palace when Frisk arrived. We went over to the barrier, and yes, I attacked him, but he's had an interesting idea."

"What, becomin' a snowman?" She gestured to Frisk, who was still dusting snow off of himself. "You'd better come in before you freeze your butts off."

"Thankyou." Asgore nodded, letting Frisk enter first. He sighed in relief at the warmth of the house; as beautiful as Snowdin was, its distance from the Core left it far too cold for his liking. Asgore followed behind, pulling the door gently.

----

"Wowie!" Papyrus exclaimed, peeking through from the kitchen. "Is that really you, your highness?"

"Hello, Papyrus." Asgore smiled, waving briefly. "How are you two?"

"Fine!" Papyrus grinned, starry-eyed. Undyne, however, was frowning, deep in thought.

"Sir, what kind of business would bring you out here? If Frisk had died you'd be working on breaking the barrier..."

"Undyne!" Papyrus chastised. "At least offer our guests a drink before anything else! The poor human looks colder than when we fought!" Frisk smiled gratefully, gently rubbing an arm as Papyrus disappeared into the kitchen again. Undyne's frown didn't improve as she continued to stare at the two.

"Something's up." she muttered. "Frisk, I thought you were more determined to get outta here. Why'd you come back?"

"I.. I was thinking about what Sans said... that I didn't have any LOVE but I had plenty of love."

"Oh, jeez, did he do that whole "judge of all beings" spiel again?" she sighed, rolling her eye. "Just 'cause an old friend of his did something weird..." Frisk chuckled slightly. Papyrus entered again, carrying a tray of glasses of water.

"Of course you have plenty of love, human! I do not date any old so-and-so, you know! I have very high standards!" He set the tray down, giving everyone a glass.

"You told me you dated him because he could cook spaghetti." Undyne commented off-handedly. Papyrus flailed in surprise, then tried to shush Undyne with a finger to his teeth. Frisk and Asgore giggled quietly at the show. "Anyway, what were you saying, kid? Somethin' about love?"

"Yeah, well... He made me think about what I wanted, where I wanted to go... and I figured out people would want me here more than in my world."

-----

"But what of your family?" Asgore frowned slightly.

"I don't really have any... My parents died a long time ago and I don't have any siblings"

"That sucks." Undyne commented, leaning back. Her glass had already been emptied.

"Yeah, and I think people here need me more than up there."

"Need you?" Papyrus asked, tilting his head slightly. "For what?"

"I brought them hope for unity, I think. If they can be friends with me, why not others?"

"I suppose..." Papyrus put his hand to his chin in thought.

"But there is still the issue of monsters desiring your soul." Asgore frowned slightly.

"Ha!" Undyne grinned, raising her hand and forming an energy spear in it. "Let 'em try! I'll remind 'em why I'm the captain of the Royal Guard!" Asgore chuckled, nodding in approval.

"I had hoped you would say that. Would it be possible to make some of the Guard protect him permanently?"

"Permanently? Well, I guess, but it'd be awkward to do so for too long." The spear faded as she lowered her hand.

"Ooh! Ooh! Pick me, pick me!" Papyrus blurted out, raising his hand enthusiastically. "I'd be perfect for it!"

"You're still in training, Papyrus, I can't accept you for any official mission."

"Then make it unofficial!" he grinned innocently. "The human deserves a guardsman as great as you or I, surely!"

"... I suppose if it went through the records it'd be harder to hide..." Undyne considered her options, closing her eye.

"Miss Undyne?" Frisk attempted to get her attention. "I'd like for Papyrus to help protect me, but I think he won't be the only one helping me."

"Whuh?" she opened her eye again, looking to Frisk.

"I'm going back to the Ruins. I know someone in there, she's very strong."

"How strong?" Undyne asked, eye narrowing slightly.

"About as strong as Asgore."

"Jeez, that's it?" she chuckled, her gaze drifting to Asgore. "If that's all you have, I'd do a better job of it."

"..." Asgore didn't reply, making Undyne's grin drop a little.

"Uh, everythin' okay, big guy?"

"Hm?" he blinked slightly, looking back to Undyne. "Um, yes, all is... I'm fine."

"... right. Hey, Papyrus, how's the spaghetti?"

"Oh, goodness!" he exclaimed, bolting to his feet and rushing through to the kitchen. Undyne sighed, getting up to follow.

"I'll try to not set the house on fire this time." she grinned, striding quickly into the kitchen. Asgore and Frisk exchanged nervous glances.

-----

To the relief of the guests, the house remained unburnt, and all four were soon seated around the table. Asgore and Undyne were on the couch, Frisk and Papyrus on the floor across from them. Asgore leant in to start immediately, but paused on seeing Frisk hesitate.

"Is everything well, human?" Asgore asked, blinking a little.

"Uh, yeah, it's just... The spaghetti down here's more of an acquired taste than it is up there."

"Ooh! You've had spaghetti before?" Papyrus leaned in, curious. "Was it as great as my own?"

"It, uh, it was certainly different, that's for sure..."

"Think you could cook it?" Undyne asked, eating hers without hesitation. "I know Alphys would wanna try some real human grub out at some point."

"Of course he can!" Papyrus declared. "He told me so himself!"

"Would you consider doin' it, then?"

"I, uh, sure."

"Fantastic!" Papyrus grinned, scooping another forkful of spaghetti into his mouth. "I, the great Papyrus, will sample some authentic human cuisine! Can I help make it?"

"I guess, but you'll have to follow my instructions closely."

"Okay!" Undyne and Asgore were smiling at Papyrus' enthusiasm as they got on with their meal. Frisk glanced at his still-untouched plate. He'd sampled Papyrus' cooking before; he could almost feel his tongue recoil at the thought of another batch. Still, everyone else had eaten it without complaint. Maybe this time would be different. He cautiously prepared a forkful...

-----

"Knock knock."

"Who is there?"

"I'm skel."

"I'm skel who?"

"I'm skelkin' around, sure you wanna talk to me?" She laughed. She always laughed. The laugh fell quiet, though, and was followed by a few seconds of silence. "Hey, uh, you seem kinda quiet today, everythin' okay?"

"... the human?"

"He's safe. Safer than you'd think, actually."

"Oh?"

"He's with Asgore now. They're comin' here."

"What? You mean... Asgore hasn't..."

"Kid's fine. So's Asgore, actually. They've got a plan, let the kid die of age and take his soul after."

"Age? This isn't like him..."

"Problem is, the kid's still a kid, he's gonna need a mom. Asgore seems happy to be the dad..."

"... He wants me to be the mother."

"Looks like it." More silence echoed, a soft, winter breeze flowing through the air. "... Still there?"

"Yes..."

"Cool... Uh, wanna talk?"

"... Asgore and the child... they didn't fight?"

"Kid talked him out of it."

"And they're coming here?"

"Yup."

"... should I forgive him?"

-----

"Huh?" Sans shuffled, looking at the door.

"... He's keeping us down here, biding his time before the next, innocent human falls down. Why doesn't he take the soul he has and use it to get six more souls from the outside?"

"You know he'd have to kill way more than six, even with the power of a fused soul he can't stop humans from being aggressive towards monsters."

"Not all humans are evil! We had a human in the family, you remember him?"

"Uh-huh."

"He was a good child... I don't know why he..."

"Hey, it ain't worth getting choked up over."

"Sir, please..."

"... sorry, didn't know you still hurt from back then. I'll shut up."

"Thankyou..." They sank into an uncomfortable silence. Eventually, Sans got up with a grunt.

"If you need a hand cleanin' up, I can find a shortcut or somethin', but I'll get goin' if you don't need it."

".. It's nothing I cannot manage."

"Alright. Same time tomorrow?"

"If I am not busy, of course."

"Alright." Sans grinned a little - only a little - and trudged down the long, straight path back to Snowdin.

-----

Frisk groaned quietly, stomach still objecting to the meal he'd eaten. Papyrus hadn't improved at all. He laid on the couch, feigning sleepiness, and tried to overcome the beast in his gut… and his mind. The voice had spoken up again, calling for their deaths. They had all wronged him, the voice said They had attacked him, they had wanted him dead. They didn't care for him. Only his soul. Even now others would be hunting him, blades ready, fangs dripping with saliva and malice. Hunt them first. Make sure he couldn't be touched. To survive among monsters, one must be a monster. Frisk rolled onto his side, facing the back of the couch, as he put the pillow over his head. The voice was stronger now, louder.

"He isn't me…" he muttered to himself, gripping the pillow tighter. "He can't be me…"

"Human?" A gentle hand rested on his arm. Frisk flinched a little from the surprise touch, but moved the pillow and sat up. It was Papyrus, frowning slightly in concern. "Are you okay? You were muttering in your sleep..."

"I... I'm okay..." Frisk muttered, managing a weak, fake smile. "Just... trying to talk myself to sleep, I guess."

"You said something about somebody not being you?"

"..." he considered talking about it. If he could trust anyone, it would be Papyrus, but he didn't want to cause undue concern to someone so… innocent. "I-it's nothing, Papyrus…"

"… If you want to talk, human, please…" Papyrus looked Frisk in the eye.

"… later, Papyrus, I promise. Let me… let me get myself ready…" Papyrus nodded wordlessly, resting a hand on his head in a show of sympathy, before getting up and walking up to his room. Frisk flopped onto his back, sighing quietly. Even if the voice was right, he could still rely on his friends. They, at least, meant him no harm. He tried to go back to sleep, still fighting the monster in his gut.

-----

Asgore trudged through the snow, quietly enjoying how his breath turned to clouds before him. The village of Snowdin hadn't changed since his last visit, despite the human's arrival. He didn't know what to think of that; had the monsters here adapted to their underground life? Or had their fondness of the human overwhelmed the desire for freedom? In either case, he was content. In New Home, so close to the barrier, all he heard were the grumbles of monsters demanding out, the angry rumble of a mob barely suppressed. It had taken all of his power, both diplomatic and physical, to ensure the hollow, fragile peace remained intact. He sighed quietly, shoulders dropping a little.

"Your majesty?" a citizen asked. He looked over, to see a young monster looking up at him. "Are you okay?"

"I am, thankyou." he smiled gently. "Yourself?"

"You aren't gonna hurt the human, are you?" This caught Asgore off-guard.

"Well, no, I do not wish to, but... you would not hurt him?"

"I know he has the Soul we need, but... c-can't we wait for another?"

"... you enjoy his presence that much?"

"Uh-huh! He's a nice human!"

"You may be a very old monster before another human falls down." Asgore warned. "You do realise that, yes?"

"I know, I know... but you'll be here too, right?"

"Yes, I plan to stay here for a while." He smiled, ruffling the child's hair. "The human will be in my care, too."

"Really? Can I visit?" the child's eyes widened at the prospect of a new friend.

"We shall see. Run along, now, I have business I need to take care of."

"Yes, sir!" The monster nodded, running off to share his story of meeting the king. He smiled as the child left, then frowned a little. He had business to deal with. He went to walk on, but was stopped by a very familiar laugh.

-----

The laugh was loud, echoing through the caverns the monsters called home, loud enough to awaken Frisk with a jolt. The laugh was cruel, sending Asgore's fur bristling. The laugh was long, letting Sans reach Snowdin without a shortcut.

"The hell is…?" Sans asked, looking around nervously. He'd heard that laugh before, but never in this timeline. "Asgore's still alive, what's..."

"Sans!" Asgore called out, rushing over to him. "What was that?"

"Sounded like a real piece of trouble." Sans replied. "You'd better get ready to fight."

"To fight? What on…"

"That monster just stole the six souls, and it'll come for the seventh. We're gonna have to defend Frisk."

"From what? What is coming?"

"Get everyone inside!" Sans suddenly burst into a run, heading to his home. "We'll need all the help we can get, but the monsters here won't be able to do anything!" The ground started to shake, nearly knocking Sans off of his feet.

"Right!" Asgore nodded, starting to herd the panicked population into Grillby's bar. For a guy that never spoke, Grillby had a way of keeping people surprisingly calm. Sans threw the door open, panting to catch his breath, to see Frisk on his feet, Papyrus right behind him.

"You two ready?"

"Waiting on Undyne." Frisk replied, trying to control his shaking. He was scared, and Sans could see it.

"Hey, kid, you don't need to..."

"Yes, I do It's me he's after, isn't it?"

"Heh... I guess he is."

"Sans, what's going on?" Papyrus asked, looking out the window. "Who would attack other monsters?"

"Paps, it's a long story, we don't have time for it now. Undyne, come on!" The ground shook again, harder this time.

"Nearly done! Stupid armour..." Frisk headed outside, looking around. Papyrus' house was on the outskirts of town so nobody rushed past him, but he could see the town cramming itself into the stronger buildings. He heard a mighty crash and turned to look, wanting to see what was going on. A towering beast lurched over Waterfall, a box of sorts - no, Frisk saw a television - shining a pillar of light onto the ground below. Vines reached to the ceiling, supporting the beast among the stars, shards of crystal clattering to the ground beneath. Worst of all had to be the maw, two slathering jaws that extended out, inviting prey to enter the literal jaws of death. Frisk couldn't help but take a step back, horrified at the sight. What sort of monster would do this to themselves? And why? One of the supporting vines unearthed itself, swinging out closer to Snowdin as the pillar of light swung closer. Sans opened the door and joined Frisk, Papyrus close behind.

"... sheesh..." Sans sighed, cracking his knuckles in front of him. "This time's gonna be different." Both Frisk and Papyrus looked at him, confused.

"Sans?" Papyrus questioned. "Have you seen this before?"

"It's a long story, Paps." Sans grinned sheepishly. "Let's get back to Asgore, we can fight together."

"Right!" Papyrus agreed, rushing off towards the king. Frisk followed, the heaped snow no longer as reassuring as before. He bunched a fist, determination welling again. This beast, whatever it was, needed his help too. It must be confused, possibly scared. Whatever the case, he would help it find peace.

-----

The lumbering of the beast was the only sound they could hear for a while, until Undyne joined them. She was sporting her full armour, including her creepy helmet, and was juggling a spear. "That's a big one, huh?"

"Seems like it's looking for the kid." Sans commented. "It's almost on us, but I don't think it can see past the light."

"Right." They braced themselves. Asgore gripped his trident, smoke gently pouring from his hands as his magic prepared to be cast. Next to him, Papyrus was hunched slightly, fists bunched. Frisk was in the centre, a hand clutching the pendant firmly. Sans just grinned, facing the beast as his pupils vanished. Undyne grabbed her summoned spear in both hands, grinning under the helmet as she anticipated the fight. The beast swung closer again, beam sweeping over them. The light was so intense that all but Sans and Papyrus had to avert their eyes. Papyrus gasped in surprise, lowering his fists.

"It can't be..."

"Howdy!" The box blasted, echoing through their heads and the whole of Snowdin. "I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!"

"I guessed that." Sans yawned. "Stand down, big guy, you can't beat all of us."

"Can't I?" he giggled, the light switching off - instead showing a monochrome picture of Flowey's face. "This hasn't happened before, has it? Frisk's Determination failed him! I'm strong enough to Save!" he laughed maniacally, ropes of saliva flicking away from that horrible maw.

"You think that'll save you?" Sans grinned. "'cause that looks like the face of a guy who's lost... five? Six times? Somewhere around that." The laugh died in whatever tube Flowey considered his throat.

"Big talk, comedian." Flowey grumbled, a vine high above swinging out to better support the monstrous bulk. "I've killed you three times before now."

"Me, maybe. But you were still stopped." he grinned, shuffling his weight a little. "So, who's first?"

-----

Flowey roared, raising a monstrous appendage before swinging it down with a crash. Everybody leapt out the way, scattering to make them harder to hit. Frisk tried to find a safe point, tried to find somewhere to watch this beast from without much risk. Flowey seemed aware of this strategy, however, and the terrible maw swung to face him.

"You're not going anywhere!" he laughed, waves of energy pellets pulsing from those terrible eyes and zooming towards Frisk. Frisk yelped, darting back and forth to avoid this rain of bullets.

"Hey, ugly!" Undyne yelled, throwing an energy spear at the monitor. Flowey turned to block it, the blanket of bullets turning with it. The energy forced Undyne on the defensive, holding her spear above her to parry the bullets. A distinct click echoed, the snapping of fingers, and a wall of bone-shaped energy rose from the ground in front of Undyne, saving her from the worst of the assault. Asgore launched a fireball, sending it crashing into the beastly vine Flowey was using as an arm. Flowey grunted, raising himself higher.

"You're all insects!" he growled. The vine Asgore had struck started twitching wildly, the end forming a crude maw of sorts. "I'll crush you with your own kind!" a horrid buzzing noise echoed from within the vine as Frisk caught a glimpse of a black, reflective surface...

"Get down!" Sans yelled, diving for a snow pile. Frisk did the same, ducking behind Papyrus' house as everyone scrambled for cover. The repulsive buzzing grew louder as a giant fly, at least as big as Sans, started to crawl out of the vine and divebomb the ground. Another one appeared, then two more... before too long the sky was filled with the buzzing of countless horrific insects, each plummeting to the ground in an attempt to strike the monsters. Frisk watched, horrified, as one started its deadly drop... right towards Sans!

"Sans!" he called out, running in. Flowey started laughing again, the screen now showing a maniacal face.

-----

"Say goodbye, you pest!" Flowey snarled, the maw below the screen starting to quiver.

"Kid!" Sans looked over. "This is how it's got to happen, you can't-"

"I'm not losing my friends!" Frisk replied, jumping to the side as an insect crashed into the ground where he was.

"Nor shall I!" Asgore decreed, waving his hand and sending a surge of fireballs into the air. The sky was filled with explosions as the corrupt insects met the volatile flames, destroying both.

"What?!" Flowey growled, caught off-guard. "You're not supposed to do that!" The buzzing grew quiet then stopped as the last of the insects met a fiery end.

"You will answer for these crimes, monster." Asgore pointed his trident up at the screen. "Stand down now, before you actually kill anyone, and I will not punish you."

"You can't punish a god!" Flowey grinned. Frisk stared up at the monitor, and noticed something. The murderous glint in Flowey's eye was being overshadowed by... confusion. Something was wrong.

"I-it's okay to be scared!" Frisk said, spreading his arms as though for a hug. Flowey just laughed.

"Scared? Me?" he suddenly swooped low, that deranged face staring into Frisk's eye, the light of the monitor forcing Frisk to squint. "What do I have to be scared of?"

"Yourself." Frisk replied calmly, lowering his arms, his knife dropping into the snow beside him. "You've become a demon of wrath for a cause you don't even remember. You attack others because that's all people have done to you. You've forgotten what it is to be shown mercy, to be shown kindness." He gently rested his head on the screen. "You're scared because fear is all you've seen."

"What are you talking about?" Flowey asked, frowning now, quieter.

"I was the same, at first. Before I fell down, I... I had to fend for myself. People didn't really look at me. They just walked by, pretending I didn't exist at best. I knew fear, hunger, sorrow... loneliness."

"Get to the point." Flowey snapped.

"When I fell down here, you were the first person I saw. The first monster I met tried to kill me. But when Toriel came, she reminded me of the goodness in people's souls. You have six souls, you have six times the emotions. You know exactly what I mean."

"I'm nothing like you." Flowey growled darkly, a growl that reminded Frisk of the voice in his mind. A voice that now, he realised, was screaming for Flowey's death. Screaming as though... it knew him.

"... you were, once."

-----

"What?" Flowey's frown grew sharper as he leaned away a little.

"We've both been exiles, Flowey. We both know isolation. And we both know the joy of being found, of being wanted." Frisk rested a hand on the monitor. "You know what it is to have a family, what it is to lose one. You don't know what it's like to gain one again." he stepped back, arms outstretched and inviting. Flowey hesitated, unsure on how to act. "I won't hate you, Flowey. I know what you need, and I'm happy to share it."

"What I need..." Flowey grinned a little as vines lashed around his ankles, holding him in place.

"Kid!" Sans gasped, scrambling to his feet, but Frisk held out a hand to stop him.

"I'm okay, Sans." Frisk smiled. "It's not my soul he needs, it's my love."

"Your LOVE?" Flowey asked, grinning again. "You couldn't hurt a fly if you tried!"

"I'm not talking about my level of violence."

"... what... what do I need your stupid emotions for? All they do is bring you pain!" Another vine lashed out, striking Frisk on the cheek.

"You punk!" Undyne growled, summoning a spear. Again, though, Frisk stopped her.

"I won't lie, there are a lot of bad emotions, but if we don't have the bad ones, how can we know the good ones? My friends want to protect me because of their emotions, and I want to help you because of mine."

"All you're doing is making yourself vulnerable!" Flowey yelled, more vines leaping from the ground and binding his wrists. "Feeling is pointless!"

"You don't mean that." Frisk smiled slightly. "You're crying now." The others looked, and sure enough, the pictures of Flowey's face were marked with tears. "You weren't always like this and you want to return to normal."

"... you... you idiot..." he sniffed, his face shifting again. Asgore gasped when he saw the new face.

"... Asriel...?"

-----

"Nice to meet you." Frisk kept smiling. "I'm Frisk."

"H-howdy." The vines started receding, leaving Frisk free again. "I-I thought I'd told you... the way of the world..."

"That was only the way of your world. We aren't alone in this, we have each other." the monstrosity that was Flowey started to recede, taking a new form.

"I... I guess that's true... Oh, um, Frisk?"

"Yeah?"

"Um, that locket, it..."

"Oh, sorry, is it yours?" he removed it, carefully collecting the delicate chain. "It's really beautiful."

"Y-yeah, it is..." whatever form he was taking, it was the same size as Frisk. "It actually belonged to my brother..."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, his name was Chara.. he was actually the first human to fall, but Mum and Dad took him in to live with us."

"Oh, yeah!" Frisk's eyes widened a little. "The monsters were talking about you two when I was at New Home!"

"Th-they were?" Flowey's form has finally settled into that of Asriel, a younger version of Asgore with a green-and-yellow striped jumper.

"Yeah, the kingdom was never the same after you d… a-after you visited the human world. Asgore and Toriel split up and he started waiting for more humans..."

"I know, I... Flowey learnt a lot."

"Yeah..." Frisk smiled slightly, but a bolt of pain scorched a path through his mind, forcing him to cry out and fall to his knees. The pendant dropped to the ground as everyone got closer, panicked. Frisk couldn't see them. He could only see the owner of the voice.