AN:

Heh.. hi… *dodges rotten fruit

I know! I know its been awhile! I've been extremely busy these last few months what with school, work, social life, and well—LIFE in general. So I'm sorry this is so late. But I've finally found some spare time to continue this story. Not sure how many of you are still waiting around, but I suppose nows as good a time as any.

This will be a short one. This scene gave me enough trouble as it is, and will probably be pretty rough still, even after all this time. I'm rusty and need to get back into the swing of things. Thanks for being patient!

Incase you've ever wondered what I look like… I've posted some photos of my Chara cosplay from last year's comic con on the Tumblr Blog. Not much. But hopefully you enjoy it. ;)

RESPONSES:

A human: Glad you're enjoying it. Papyrus should be coming sooner than you think :P Thanks for being patient.

BadDRUMMERboy15: I'm alive (I think) XD

tokyoghoul234: So you have wished it, so shall it be.

Emathasks: Thanks for waiting.

Another Peepul: *Rolls down the mountain "AAAASSS YOUUUUU WIIIIIISH….!"

Lunar Loon: Gerson knew Chara in passing. She was Asgore's daughter so he glimpsed her from time to time when he came to the palace. But he was never 'jolly old uncle Gerson who gives piggyback rides'. He actually really dislikes humans and avoided Chara whenever he came by. Considering the fact that he was a war general who killed many humans and watched a lot of his friends die because of them, its understandable that he avoids them. He is one of the few old enough to have been involved in the war.
Aster definitely has reasons to hate Gerson and vice versa. If you remember the story of how they met, Aster saw him as a condescending and cruel warlord and was very adamant about not showing weakness in front of him. And Aster definitely killed a lot of Gerson's comrads over his lifetime as well as made his mark on the patchwork of scars decorating the old general's body.
They're not pals.

Thanks for your words of encouragement. They are always a big help.

Guest : Good question. Try to figure out what you want the story to be about theme-wise. For this story, I wanted to use Undertale to write about a lot of different issues and subjects, a big part of that was exploring Chara as a character and developing them as realistically as I could in regards to what is known of her backstory. So much of the character development was in service of the plot.
Try thinking of your characters as tools that fulfil a need in the story. The plot and purpose of the story should be the focus and the character is a tool in order to further that plot.
That's a really good question and I would like to answer it at length, but I don't want it to take up too much space here (I know you're all waiting for the story and all). Send me a PM from your account and I'll chat you, we can spitball some ideas and I can help you get started. Okay?

Guest : Good advice.

An Peepul: psst…..….… Hiatus is over.

kagami dhusara: He's definitely been around the block and back.

Kohoi: lol

Raha: Don't die tho.

AceLegends: Thanks! I really like Gerson. He's a grouchy old guy that really doesn't get enough attention in the game or in fics. Glad I'm not the only one who enjoys him.

PlatinumFire: Three days is pretty fast. I'm impressed.

CHAPTER 29: Jackass

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"Chara…" came a pleasant mild voice. Charlotte glanced up, her heart soaring when she saw who stood in the doorway of the hospital. Warm smile on his face, and a vase of beautiful purple flowers tucked into the crook of his arm. Charlotte made to rise, eager to greet her visitor. Gerson's hand fell on her arm like a metal clamp and squeezed sharply, holding her in place. She blinked, feeling a wave of contempt roll off of the old General and slam into her like an ocean wave hitting the shore.

Senator Aster's eyes locked onto the place where Gerson's rough hand clutched into Charlotte's flesh. His straight white smile lengthened. "What a beautiful pet name…"

"Jack Ass-ter" Gerson gruffed. Charlotte felt Gerson's vice-grip jerk her back and she nearly tripped as the old monster shoved forwards to fill the space between her and Senator Jack. "Yours suits you even better."

Jack's gaze tracked Charlotte's movements sharply before locking onto Gerson's haggard face like a laser beam. His lips spread into a smile that didn't reach his eyes. Then Jack laughed. A noise like a diamondback's rattle. Charlotte felt a chill.

"I certainly walked right into that one didn't I old friend?" Jack chuckled, advancing into the room. Gerson stayed where he was, but his upper body turned casually to keep parallel with Jack he moved, as if he didn't want the human to get behind him. Jack set the vase of flowers onto the nightstand. Charlotte gave herself a shake.

"O-oh! Thank you! Are these for me?" She squeaked, making a brilliant attempt to slice through the tension that had filled the infirmary. Jack straightened.

"Of course. This morning when I came in for the day I asked the guard how you were doing. He said you hadn't gone home yet. I thought I'd stop by and see how you were feeling." Jack smiled, showing fewer teeth and gums than before. Charlotte flushed.

"Really? You didn't have to do that." She insisted.

"No. You really didn't." Gerson chimed in flatly. He stepped up closer to Aster. Charlotte noticed dazedly that he left his cane behind. "Don' you have places to be?" Gerson's bad leg planted poorly on the last step and he half stumbled. but to the old monster's credit he didn't fall. Aster's lips twitched.

"Careful old man." Aster tutted, closing the distance with a long stride. "You're liable to fall down." Charlotte audibly heard the old turtle's teeth clench. She peered between them dazedly. What was this?

Had she misjudged Jack before? The young senator seemed so kind and friendly he had been nothing but warm towards her and the guards when they'd first met. But now? Something was up. He and Gerson acted as if they knew one another. Extremely well. And it didn't feel as if this was a friendly reunion.

Hey. Whats this guy's name again?

Uh. Jack?

His last name moron. What's his last name?

Oh. Aster. His name is Jack Aster—why?

Red silently rolled the name around in their head but gave no reply.

"You know I heard a funny story from the gentleman at the front desk." Aster went on. "He tells me this young woman spent most of her stay in the laboratory, and was only recently moved to a sick bed." The statement sounded almost like an accusation. Charlotte bit her lower lip. Should she say something? She wracked her brain for something, anything to assuage the tension that had formed. But came up empty.

"Not much choice. Our medic didn't come into work. Hasn't been in for days." Gerson grunted. He raised his chin. "Though I'm sure you've already heard all about that haven't you?" The monster's voice took on a slight edge. But again Charlotte couldn't divine the reason for it. Her head kept swiveling between the two, as she tried in vain to read their cryptic tones. Jack waved a dismissive hand.

"I have. Dreadful business. You'll have to let me know how the search goes. Doctor… Sylph was it?"Jack asked. Gerson gave a hard nod. The senator shrugged. "I'm sure he'll turn up. He hadn't any legs after all. How far could he have slithered off?" Charlotte didn't think it possible. But Gerson suddenly appeared even more haggard and old than he had before. His fist clenched. The human patted Gerson on the back, fingers slightly splayed so that only his palm brushed the knarled shell.

"Hows about you have a rest old sport? I really think it would do you some good." Jack mused leaning in so that he was almost nose to nose with the old monster. For a dark instant, Charlotte thought Gerson might actually hit him. Gerson's voice came out, a deep barely retrained whisper.

"Hows about you take a long walk off of cliff? Do us all some good?"

The clockwork turnings of Red thoughts clenched to a sudden almost painful halt. Charlotte sucked in a gasp.

What? What is it?! Whats wrong?!

Jack's expression darkened like a thunder cloud. Red let loose a silent string of expletives.

Jackass.

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Sorry its a bit short. But this next update should be much quicker than the last.