A World Full of Possibilities

Thwack. Thwack. Smack.

The morning sparring contest was fun to watch. Sometimes Undyne beat her opponent. Sometimes she didn't. She knew a lot. She also had a lot to learn. Still, watching the spectacle was a nice break from being the ambassador to the monsters.

Eventually, they were going to have to find a way to put footage of it online.

On his way home, Frisk stopped to get supplies. He arrived and walked through the front door, dropping everything off in the kitchen. It was at that moment that he noticed the flower pot was on the floor. It was in pieces, and there was dirt everywhere.

Frisk's heart skipped a beat. He leaned against the refrigerator, shutting his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he knelt down and dug through the dirt pile.

Flowey was nowhere to be seen.

Frisk looked outside again, in the backyard. Birds were chirping. The sun was shining. It was a perfect day.

Could he have gotten far? Could he have burrowed into the dirt and disappeared? Frisk walked around the perimeter of the house, inspecting everything. No sign.

Frisk paused for a moment, sitting on a staircase. Was he gone for good? Maybe he just wanted a way out. If he really was gone, hopefully he was happy wherever he was now.

Frisk hoped dearly that he was okay, too.

After a few moments, he got back up. He searched through the rooms.

Eventually, he stepped into the living room. His breathing stopped when he caught sight of what lay in front of him.

Bright sunlight streamed through the windows onto the couch. A pillow was sitting on the ground. It must have been knocked over. And, something else was on the couch. Something that had never been there before. Slowly, Frisk crept over.

He didn't want to wake the creature. Who knows what he had just been through? But he had to be sure, too. He had to just see, if it was what he thought it was.

Reaching out slowly, he touched the creature's white fur. It was warm. There was a sign of a pulse. Looking closely, Frisk saw that the chest was rising up and down.

The creature was bigger than what he remembered. Almost as if he had grown somewhat, since last time.

At that moment, the creature opened his eyes. Those soft blue eyes met Frisk's.

"Oh. Hi Frisk."

Frisk slowly got down onto his knees. He placed a hand on the cushion. A tear rolled down his cheek. His voice quivered.

"How are you feeling today?"

The creature just looked at him for a moment. Then slowly, he reached up to rub one of his eyes.

"Haha. Come on, Frisk." He gave a soft smile. "Do you have to ask?"

A few more tears dropped from Frisk's face, and he smiled too. It was the biggest smile he could muster. He reached out with both hands, wrapping his arms around the creature and hugging him as tightly as he could, tears streaming down his face and into the creature's fur, leaving it wet and matted where his face pressed against it. The creature reached out and hugged him back, just as tightly. They rocked back and forth gently.

After a moment, the creature sniffled. "I've always been a crybaby, Frisk." His voice was breaking.

"I don't care. Be the biggest crybaby you want to be."

They sat there in a tight embrace for several moments.

Suddenly, Frisk broke out into a laugh, his eyes wet. "You still didn't answer my question."

"Frisk. I... I really don't want to let go." He paused. "Does that count?"

"Yeah. Yeah, it does." He squeezed the creature some more. "...I'm proud of you. You have no idea."

The two sat outside on a swinging bench, facing away from the house. The stream flowed nearby. Birds were chirping. The sun was shining. A few small clouds hung overhead. It was a perfect day.

"Hey Asriel. When I was in the Underground, I found this." Reaching into his pocket, Frisk produced the locket. Tentatively, Asriel took it and opened it. He was greeted by a picture of himself, and Chara. Best friends forever.

Asriel gazed over the image. He was silent. His clawed hand slowly wrapped around the locket, squeezing it. He shut his eyes. A heavy feeling came over him.

He stood up. A pause. A slow, deep breath.

Then, he pulled his arm back and threw it. It sailed through the air, landing in the stream. It made a small splash as it hit the surface and was carried away by the current.

Slowly, he sat back down. "Um. Sorry. Unfinished business."

"Your old friend?"

Asriel turned to glance at him forlornly. "Yeah."

Frisk nodded.

"I was wrong about all that, Frisk." He put his chin in his hands. "I guess I just wanted a friend."

A hand rested on Asriel's shoulder, rubbing it.

"Chara wasn't that bad of a person, Frisk. She had some problems, but she was funny. You may have liked her even." He looked at the horizon. "Looking back, maybe she was just trying to do the right thing. I don't know. Either way, I paid the price for it."

"Yeah."

Asriel looked over at him. "The thing is, Frisk, the things we do have consequences. There were consequences for me. For her."

"Everyone makes mistakes, Asriel. You shouldn't have to pay for every mistake forever."

Asriel looked down silently. He huffed. "Maybe. But even so, I did some pretty bad things."

"Yeah. You went through a really hard time though."

Asriel stared ahead, pursing his lips. "That doesn't mean it was okay. I still had a choice." Slowly, his face dropped, sliding into his hands. "I thought it was all my fault."

"I know." Frisk rubbed his back. "We need to start over. We need to think about the future now."

Asriel slowly lifted his head back out of his hands. He smiled weakly, his eyes glistening. "I know."

"So I really want to know. How do you feel now?"

"It feels like..." Asriel wiped one of his eyes as he searched for the right words. "It feels like I've woken up from a dream. It's... different. In a good way. I guess... like I have myself back. It's hard to explain." He stretched his arms out, flexing his fingers. "I feel like I can do anything."

"Yeah, I think you can too."

"It's going to be interesting, living on the surface. With humans. I feel like maybe I have some catching up to do."

"You're not the only one." Frisk smirked. "You want to know something? I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm going to miss being your enemy."

"Haha... what? Why?"

"Cause you're a good opponent." He brushed his knuckles against Asriel's shoulder. "I told you, I like challenges. I know you've still got that fight in you. Don't ever lose that, okay?"

"Uhh... I'll try not to!"

They continued looking over the horizon.

"We still need to tell your mom and dad."

Asriel laughed nervously. "Yeah. Uh... I wonder how they're going to take it?"

A pause. Then, they broke out into laughter.

"I wouldn't worry about it." Frisk put his arm around Asriel's shoulder.

"Haha... yeah. You know... I'll probably have to stay with them. I mean... I'd love to stay with you, though." He turned to look at Frisk. "I'd miss you."

Frisk smirked. "We'll share. How's that?"

Asriel turned his gaze away from the mountain. He glanced in another direction, looking at a large, vacant stretch of land, covered in grass.

Frisk tilted his head. "How about a new locket?"

"Oh! Um... that would be nice!"

"I can find one. In the meanwhile, we'll need a picture." Frisk pulled out his smart phone. "How about a selfie?"

"Haha! Yeah!"

After Frisk found a new locket, it soon contained a picture of the two. They were both smiling in the grainy photo, and Frisk's arm was outstretched toward the camera.

It wasn't long before the others caught wind of the news.

"SO... WE CAN'T HAVE A FLOWEY FAN CLUB ANYMORE..." Papyrus' gaze shifted left. Then right. "BUT... NO MATTER. NOW WE MUST BEGIN ANEW. IT'S TIME TO START... THE ASRIEL FAN CLUB!"

Frisk chuckled. "That's a good idea, Papyrus. But what will you do with all the Flowey stuff?"

"HMM... THAT IS A GOOD QUESTION... ONE THAT I'M SURE HAS A GOOD ANSWER..." His face suddenly lit up. "I KNOW! I'LL SELL IT ON EBAY!" He dashed off.

Alphys was mostly silent. But the weight was gone. She found herself calmer than she ever had been. Maybe her experiments didn't work. But this one did.

If this was possible, maybe anything else was too.

Undyne looked at Asriel silently. Eventually, she spoke. "I'm just... I'm speechless. I can't believe it, Asriel. I'm so happy for you. I really mean that." Then, she grinned. "Now, I can punch you in the face for real!"

Asriel tilted his head.

A sweet, innocent grin crossed Undyne's face. "...kidding!" She gave him a big hug. "But I still want to be your frenemy! Okay?"

The glow of the computer monitor illuminated Frisk's room. He was answering questions on his social media sites. Asriel lay on his bed, idly thumbing through a picture book.

"Frisk..."

"Yeah?"

"I've been meaning to ask you." He shifted around a little bit. "How can I say this. I mean... you've done so much for everybody. You really helped me a lot. But I have to wonder. What about yourself? What kinds of things do you want?"

"Such as?"

"Well... I don't know. I think you deserve to have something nice, too. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Frisk turned to face him. "Asriel, you don't have to do anything for me. I just want you to be happy and live your life. No matter what you decide to do."

Asriel frowned. He looked at Frisk in the eyes, almost sternly. "Come on, Frisk. That's not a good enough answer." He rolled over and sat up. "I know you care about me. You're a great friend. But I care about you too. It's not fair if you're helping so many people and not getting anything nice for yourself. So I'm going to ask you again. What can I do for you? How can I make your life better?"

Frisk paused. His mind searched for an answer.

He was used to being on his own.

"There has to be something, Frisk." He eyed Frisk's facial expressions, studying them, waiting for a response.

Frisk's expression was blank. "That's... really kind of you to ask. I just can't decide right now. Can I get back to you on that?"

Asriel's muzzle slowly turned up into a smile. "Sure. But you have to tell me eventually, okay?"

"I will."

Asriel continued looking at him in the eyes. "Promise?"

Frisk laughed softly. "Okay, okay, you win. I promise."

"Haha! Finally, you let me win. I feel better now." He thought. "Well, if you can't think of anything right now, maybe I can just be your friend. How's that?"

"Yeah..." Frisk nodded slowly. "I would love to have you as my friend. I really mean that, too."

"Yeah. I know."

"In fact... right now, I can't think of anything better you could give me."

Later that evening, Asriel found himself outside, looking at the stars. It was different this time looking at them as a monster, instead of as a flower. The sound of crickets came from all directions, and the stream nearby was trickling softly. A gentle wind blew through the trees and bushes, making the leaves rustle. Things seemed clearer, richer. The details more apparent.

"we meet again."

Asriel blinked. He knew that voice. He turned his head and peered into the darkness.

"You."

"couldn't be anyone else, right?" The figure grinned, staying in place. A glowing blue light met Asriel's gaze.

Asriel turned around completely, facing him. A tumbleweed rolled through the space between them.

"So... what now?"

"that's a good question. what now?" He looked up at the stars. "it depends, i guess. what hopes and dreams do you have?"

"Well... what about you and me? I mean... are we good?"

"only under one condition, kid."

"What's that?"

The figure stepped in a little closer. "just that you enjoy your life. and take care of yourself. cause someone's looking out for you. okay?"

A long pause.

"O...okay."

"keep your chin up. i can't promise things will always be easy. but they will get better. sound good?"

"Yeah... yeah, it does." Asriel smiled a little bit. "Thanks. That means a lot to me."

"i'll take you out for lunch soon. there's this really good place near downtown. i know a shortcut."

"I can't wait."

"see you later, kid."

He winked. He was gone.

Asriel looked back up at the stars. There was so much out there. The world was full of possibilities. Which direction should he choose?

He would have to pick one. Sooner or later.

END

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