“So, do you believe me?” I asked Chara.

“About what?” Chara scowled.

“Everything I told you about the last time.” I said, wary.

“No… Just go away.” Chara said, unsure of herself.

“I told you last time, I can't just go away. Not until you believe me, but I can see now that’s not going to happen.”

“If you have nothing else ‘important’ to say, then I'm just going to walk as far away from you as I can.” Chara said, walking into the darkness.

“I'm just trying to help.” I said. “If you'd just listen.” Chara paid no attention and just kept on walking. I knew I had to take a different approach.

“Plus, then you'd die.” I said, hoping this would help to change her mind. “And if Asriel did survive, he would have to live without you being there for him. Do you want him to have to go through that?”

Chara stopped for a second, but then kept walking. I decided to show her the one thing that might change her mind. I sent her images of the genocide run, flooding them into her head. Suddenly, images of dying monsters flooded the darkness. Chara collapsed onto her knees, and tears rushed down her face.

“Why….” Chara said in a very faint voice.

“That's what happens if you don't listen to me. That's why I'm trying to help.”

“I won't become that….” Chara said in denial.

“And how can you be so sure?” I asked in response.

“Because that will never happen! It's fake! I don't know who you are, and I don't care if you're from the future. I would never….”

“It did happen though. Please choose the right thing.”

“Technically it hasn't happened yet. And it never will.”

“Fine. Don't believe me then. See how that leaves you, and everyone else you care about.”

“Just go away…” Chara said wiping her tears off her face.

“I've told you before, I can't just go away.”

“Just walk away from me. Or… I have other methods…”

“Okay, okay, I'll walk away. I just hope you make the right choice…” I said, walking away.

“Whatever. Just leave.”

“Bye, Chara.”

Chara didn't respond. Instead she had images of her with her new family above her. I swear I could have seen a little smile flicker across her face. If only she would realize the dangers that lied ahead…

~~~

Chara woke up the next morning feeling more awake than she ever had before. “Az? Are you up yet?” She asked as she looked over at Asriel’s bed. Of course he was still in his bed snoring. Chara sighed. “Come on, you’re never up when I am.” She climbed out of bed and silently slipped out the door, and walked over to the living room, where Toriel was sitting. “Oh, good morning, Toriel.”

“Oh, hello child. If you would like breakfast now, just tell me what you would like.”

“Uh, well, what do you have?” Chara asked.

“You may check the cupboard for something to eat.” Toriel replied.

Chara went into the kitchen and opened up the cupboards underneath the sink. There was a large container of oatmeal. “Can I have oatmeal please?” Chara asked.

“Yes child. You can go do something else while I make it for you.”

“Thank you.” Chara said, wrapping her arms around Toriel in a hug. “I love you, mom.” Chara said.

“I love you too, Chara.” Toriel said, hugging back.

“Oh, sorry. Is it okay that I called you mom?”

“Whatever is comfortable for you, is fine with me.”

“Oh, um, okay then. Can I help you make oatmeal? Asriel’s still asleep, and I don't want to risk waking him up by going back into the room.”

“Of course you can help.”

“Alright.” Chara said, grabbing the oatmeal out of the cupboard.

“Asriel was telling me you had a bad dream a few nights ago.” Toriel said to Chara.

“Oh, he did?” Chara said, upset Asriel had told.

“I just wanted to check in with you and make sure you're alright.”

“It was just a bad dream…”

“If anything is troubling you, then please tell me. I want to help you.”

“Everything's fine.” Chara said coldly. “You don't have to worry about me. I took care of myself for five years, I can take care of this right now…”

“Chara, please don't think that. I care about you, and I want what's best for you.”

“How can you care about me when you’ve only known me for a few days?”

“Down here, everyone cares for everyone. And that includes you.”

“Everyone?”

“Yes, everyone.”

“Wow.” Chara said, handing Toriel the brown sugar.

“That's just how it is down here.” Toriel said, putting the ingredients in a bowl.

“I wish it was that way on the surface…”

“You don't need to think about that down here.”

“I try not to…”

“Please, just think about the good things in life.”

“Like being down here?”

“Anything that makes you happy.”

“That is what makes me happy.” Chara said, getting a spoon for Toriel to mix the ingredients together.

“Thank you.” Toriel said, taking the spoon from Chara.

“When do you think Asriel will be up? I want to play with him.”

“You may wake him up whenever you like.”

“But then he'll be mad at me…”

“You may blame it on me. It is time he woke up earlier in the morning.”

“Haha. Okay, I'll wake him after breakfast.” Chara said, grabbing her bowl and sitting down at the table.

“Okay, child. Please excuse me, I must go check on Asgore.” Toriel said, leaving the room.

Chara started eating, and Asriel walked into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes. “You're up!” Chara said, surprised.

“I’m just kind of hungry. Is there any oatmeal for me too?”

“Yeah, there’s some on the stove.” Chara replied, gesturing towards the kitchen.

“Okay, thanks.” Asriel said, giving himself some oatmeal.

“So, anything you want to show me today?”

“No, not really.”

“Want to just draw again today, then?” She asked.

“All day? I guess if you want.”

“Not all day. Just for a little bit.”

“Okay then. After I eat breakfast though.”

“Well, yeah, of course. Did you sleep well last night?” Chara asked, putting another spoonful of oatmeal into her mouth.

“Yeah. I had a dream that I was fighting rainbow ninjas. Of course, I won in the end.”

“Of course.” Chara said, though a confused look was on her face. Where would that have even come from? “Do you think the oatmeal’s good?”

“Yeah, it's pretty good, why?”

“‘Cause I helped make it.”

Asriel fell to the floor. “Oh! I'm gonna die now! The oatmeal has been poisoned! Bleh.”

“Relax, Mom’s the one who helped me. The oatmeal’s fine.”

“The poison has now reached my brain! There's no hope for me now!”

“Come on silly, get up!” Exclaimed Chara as she laughed, trying to pull him back up.

“No! I'm dead now! It's too late!”

“Fine.” Chara said. “I guess all your toys are mine now.”

“Hey! Not fair!” Asriel said, getting up.

“Come on, let's go draw now!” Chara said, pulling him toward their room.

“Okay!”

“So, what do you think you’re gonna draw?” Chara asked, grabbing the paper and crayons.

“Me fighting rainbow ninjas! Inspired by my dream!”

“Ah.” Chara said. “Cool.”

“What are you gonna draw?”

“All of us. Up on the surface.”

“Fighting rainbow ninjas, right?!”

“Haha, no. I actually have a plan. To break the barrier.”

“Wait, What?! You do?!”

“Yeah. So, you know how you said only a monster and human soul together is powerful enough to go through the barrier?”

“Yeah, but you still can't break the barrier.”

“But a monster can absorb a human soul, right?”

“Y-yeah. What's your point?”

“I'll eat some buttercups, you can take my soul, cross the barrier, collect six more souls, and break the barrier, so you guys can all be free!”

“Wait, eat buttercups?”

“Yeah. How else am I gonna die?”

“DIE?!?!?!”

“Uh huh. That's the only way you can take my soul. Plus, don't you want to see the surface? If you break the barrier, everyone will regard you as a hero!”

“But what about you?!”

“What do you mean, what about me?”

“If you die, then I won't have anyone to hang out with. My best friend would be gone and they wouldn't be able to come back…”

“But if you're on the surface, there will be plenty of other people for you to make friends with.”

“But you said they were bad.”

“The ones I knew were, but just to me. Everyone else they were nice to. Plus, like you said, there has to be nice ones somewhere…”

“But… But I don't want to lose you…”

“Hey, it'll be okay. Plus, haven't you dreamed of seeing the surface?”

“Yeah, but you were there with me…”

“Well, you'll have my soul, so in a way, I will always be there.”

“But what about mom and dad?”

“They'll have you. Besides, I've only been here a few days. The can't miss me that much.”

“Is there another way to break the barrier without killing you?”

“I don't think so. Come on, you want to see the surface, don't you?”

“Yeah…. More than anything.” Asriel said, looking at the ground.

“Then this is the only way to do it.”

“I-I guess we could do it then…”

“Okay, first of all, we need the buttercups. I think five will work…”

“You need to eat that many?”

“Well, we don't want to risk having too little now, do we?”

“No… So when are we gonna do this?”

“I was thinking tonight we can sneak out of the house and get the flowers.”

“We could go a just pick some right now. We don't have to sneak out and get them.”

“Yeah, but then mom would wonder why we were picking them.”

“No, I pick flowers all the time.”

“I still think we should wait until tonight. Because if mom sees us pick the flowers, and the next day the flowers are gone and I'm sick, she'll put two and two together.”

“Okay…”

“Great! Just you wait, in a matter of days, you'll get to see the surface!”

“We’ll get to see the surface together.”

“I won't be there, remember?”

“I’ll have your soul, so we would kind of be together.”

“I guess… Just don't tell mom or dad about our plan.”

“Okay… I understand.”

“Good.”

They spent the rest of the day coloring and helping around the house, and later that night, after Chara heard Toriel shut the room door, she went over to Asriel’s bed and shook him awake. “Az, c’mon, we gotta go get the flowers!”

“What time is it?”

“Eleven thirty. Come on, we have to do this now!”

“Okay, okay give me a sec.” Asriel said, slowly rolling out of his bed.

“You ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be…”

“Then let's go. And be really, really quiet.”

“Do you want to go in the elevator?”

“Isn't it noisy?”

“Not really, plus we wouldn't be going past mom and dad.”

“Mmkay then, sure, it'll be quicker.”

“Then follow me!” Asriel yelled accidentally.

Chara froze. She heard Toriel move about in her room, then heard a door open. Chara and Asriel dived into bed just as Toriel opened the door.

“Hello? Are you two awake?” Toriel asked.

Neither of them stirred. Satisfied, Toriel left the room. Chara waited fifteen more minutes, then sat up.

“Asriel, you almost gave us away!” Chara whisper-yelled.

“Sorry...You need to be quiet too though…”

“It's fine, just don't shout like that again. Now, let's go get the flowers.”

“Come on then.” Asriel said, sneaking out of their room.

“Okay, but I'm following you.” Chara said quietly.

They both snuck out of their house and made their way towards the elevator. “We’re almost there.” Asriel said.

“Alright then.” Chara said. “Thanks for coming with me.”

“It's no problem, I just wanted to spend more time with you.”

“Well, thanks anyway.” Chara said, wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

“I love you Chara.” Asriel said, hugging back.

“And I love you too. That's why I'm doing this…” She started crying.

“Chara, I don't want you to leave…”

“But I have to…”

“You don't have to… We could stay together as friends.”

“But then… then you might never see the surface…”

“And I would never see you again…”

“But…”

“If we do this, then… I want you to always remember that there are people that care for you.”

“If I'm dead, how can I remember anything?”

“I don't know, but I'm sure you'll figure out a way.”

“Okay then. Let's keep going. I-I'm sorry.”

“It's fine…”

The two of them walked on in silence, their footsteps echoing off the walls. “What's the first thing you’re going to do on the surface?” Chara asked.

“Uh… I guess I haven't really thought that far yet…”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Can you… can you bury me in the golden flowers in my village?”

“Why would you want me to do that?”

“I always loved those flowers.”

“Where are they in the village?”

“Right on the edge. Oh, they’re so pretty!”

“Are they like the buttercups in my dad's garden?”

“Well, they’re yellow, but I don't think they’re buttercups.”

“Oh, okay.”

They walked into the garden, and Chara bent down to pick the flowers. “Do you think Dad will notice that they’re gone?”

“He probably won't notice.”

“That's good. Okay, I got them.” Chara said, her hands full of the bright yellow flowers. “Let's go.”

“We need to be quick. Mom will be up soon.”

“But it's the middle of the night!

“She's been getting up really early so she can check on Dad. She's been really worried about him.”

“Alright, let's go then!” Chara said, taking off at a brisk pace.

“Can you walk me through the plan again after you… die?”

“How am I supposed to walk you through the plan if I'm dead?”

“I meant what I’m supposed to do after you die.”

“Oh. Well, you’ll absorb my soul, put me in the golden flowers, then take six more souls to break the barrier.”

“What do I do after that? What about the other humans? Wouldn't they get mad?”

“What do you mean, what do you do after that? Be happy. Enjoy yourself. As for the humans, if you don't hurt them, they'll probably ignore you. What reason would they have to get mad?”

“Because I would be taking their friend’s souls, or a family member’s soul.”

“You’ll be extremely powerful. You can fight back if they try to hurt you.”

“But they could be like you. I don't want to hurt more people than I have to.”

“Exactly. They won't dare fight back. You'll be fine. You aren't having second thoughts, are you?”

“No! At least I don't think so.”

“Good! Now, once we get home, I'll eat the flowers, okay?”

“That was the plan…”

The two of them hurried home. Toriel was still asleep, and they snuck into their room.

“Perfect. Everyone's still asleep.”

“Are you gonna eat the flowers then?”

“Honestly, I'm kind of nervous…” Chara replied. Then she thought back to what Frisk had told her. If she ate the flowers, Asriel would die. But they had come so far. And yet, was it worth it? “Hey, Az?”

“Y-yeah?”

“I don't think this is a good idea…”

“Why?”

“Something… something someone told me a while ago…”

“Someone told you not to eat buttercups so a monster can break the barrier with your soul?”

“No. Someone told me not to eat the buttercups, or you would die, and every human that falls down here will suffer…”

“How could that happen? Who told you this?”

“Someone named Frisk…”

  “Huh… That's a nice name.”

“Yeah. And...and I don't want you to get hurt!” Chara put her head in her hands and started crying, the flowers falling to the ground.