Away from Home

Wake Up

I do not own the above image. All credit goes to its creator. :)

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This had to be a mistake. How did I get here?

Millions of questions flooded my mind as I weakly lifted my body from the bed of bright yellow flowers beneath me. My body ached as if I had fallen from a great height, so I attempted to remain as still as possible, wrapping my arms around my sides. Everything seemed so strange, and even my thoughts seemed to echo unnaturally.

I'm dreaming, right?

~Of course you are...~

Momentarily taken back by how clear and foreign my thoughts sounded, I finally gained enough strength to stand. Unable to recognize my surroundings, my eyesight adjusted enough to make out a small path to my left.

Maybe I can find some help...

I continued down the dark path until the path disappeared beyond a columned archway, where I hesitated.

Maybe I should just stay here and wait for someone to find me... Then again, who knows when that will be...

Coaxing myself to move forward, I past the archway, approaching a small patch of grass and yet another yellow flower. But the closer I stepped toward the plant, the more I began to make out facial features in its center.

"Howdy! I'm FlOWEY. FLOWEY the FLOWER!"

Wait... Flowey? As in creepy, psychotic Undertale Flowey? Oh, heavens no...

I must be dreaming. I dug my nails into my skin, attempting to awaken, but nothing happened.

"Hmmm... You're new to the UNDERGROUND, aren't cha? Golly, you must be so confused. Someone ought to teach you how things work around here!"

Yep, definitely dreaming...

"I guess little old me will have to do. Ready? Here we go!"

Whenever you are, you weirdo...

Suddenly, a strange sensation flowed through me as a glowing heart appeared before me.

What. The. Actual. F-...

"See that heart? That is your SOUL, the very culmination of your being!"

I reached out to grab the heart, but it moved away. Returning my hand to my side, the heart moved closer. I began to wave my hand, controlling the movement and direction of the heart... my soul.

"Your SOUL starts off weak but can grow strong if you gain a lot of LV."

Listening to his ramblings, I continue moving my soul around, becoming more comfortable with the motions.

"What's LV stand for? Why, LOVE of course! You want some LOVE don't you? Don't worry, I'll share some with you! Down here LOVE is shared through..."

Oh no...

"Little white... 'friendliness pellets'."

I mentally readied myself for what was to come.

"Are you ready? Move around! Get as many as you can!"

I moved my soul, avoiding them and trying to keep my nerves under control. Flowey suddenly seemed annoyed.

"Hey buddy, you missed them. Let's try again, okay?"

Once again, I moved my soul away from them once again and watched as Flowey's demeanor became frustrated.

"Is this a joke? Are you braindead? RUN. INTO. THE. BULLETS!!! Friendliness pellets..."

I dodged the bullets one final time, and tried to back away slowly. Flowey's everchanging expression shifted to one of insanity.

"You know what's going on here, don't you?"

His voice screeched and echoed.

"You just wanted to see me suffer."

Ummm... This seems like a good time to wake up!!!

"Die."

As the bullets surrounded my soul, I began to panic. This was a cool dream and all, but this was starting to worry me. I pinched at my arm once again, hoping to wake myself up, but to know avail.

I tried to cry out, and beg him to stop, hoping to appeal to his mercy, hoping in vain he had any, but the words seemed to become trapped in my throat. It was as though a pair of hands were wrapped tight around my throat. The odd sensation caused me to gasp and scratch at my neck, trying to rid myself of it in order to breathe, as a strange laughter that echoed in my mind mingled with that of the homicidal flower.

The bullets continued to close in around my soul and I had to close my eyes. I had heard that if someone dies in a dream, they wake up, because no one knows what life is like after death. I waited in fear for the end, when I heard a yelp.

I opened my eyes and, to my surprise, in the place of a psychotic flower stood everyone's favorite goat mom.

"What a terrible creature, torturing a poor, innocent youth..."

How come I haven't woken up yet? Dreams don't usually last this long. I need to wake the hell up. I love this game, but I have no desire to live through it.

"Ah, do not be afraid, my child. I am TORIEL, caretaker of the RUINS. I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down.You are the first human to come here in a long time. Come! I will guide you through the catacombs. This way."

I followed quietly, hoping something would change or differ slightly from the game, but was frightened to see that everything was identical. I was the only anomaly. My clothes looked nothing like Frisk's. I was still wearing my jeans and the black t-shirt I had on this morning.

As we passed through another archway into the ruins, I tried to figure out what could have caused such lucid dreaming. I had arrived at my dorm from my Psych class and finished my homework assignments by 7:30 PM. I had then watched the latest episode of Supernatural, when it started to rain and thunder outside. It wasn't long until the signal on my television was too weak to continue.

I remember I had then pulled out my computer and opened Steam and...

And what? I couldn't remember. Had I fallen asleep?

I was so lost in thought that I almost ran into a glowing, star-shaped object. I recognized the save point and reached out to touch it. I was met with a strange tingling sensation, but that feeling isn't what worried me. What worried me was the goosebumps covering my body. What worried was the hair on my arms standing on end and the air cooling the beads of perspiration that formed on my forehead.

It all felt too real...

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Hello dear, Readers! This is the first fan-fiction I have ever published, and I'm excited you made it this far! If you have any constructive criticism or ideas for where you want this to go, I am all ears!

~ Clover May Johnson