Grouptale-Undertale AU Story

The First Death

Ace's POV

Ace trailed after Toriel and the others. She had found Ray and Clover before going to get Ace and Teri, who she praised for following her directions. Her praise made Ace's heart light up. He hadn't done it for praise, yet it still felt good. Toriel dealt with all the monsters along the way, frightening them away with her gaze alone before leading Ace and the others onward. Finally, she stopped in front of a quaint cottage. She ushered everyone inside. When Ace entered the house, he was immediately greeted with a sweet smell wafting through the air.

"Toriel's back!" a voice called. Ace looked to see Kat, Frisk, and Poppy rushing into the main room. Toriel held up one finger.

"So that makes..." she pointed at each of them. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven! Good, all seven of you are here."

"What is that smell, Toriel?" Teri asked, tugging at Toriel's robe. "It smells good."

Toriel smiled. "It is a cinnamon butterscotch pie. I thought it would be a good way to-"

"PIE?!" Ray exclaimed. He jumped up so high that when he fell back down, the floor creaked beneath him. "HECK YES I WANT PIE!"

Toriel chuckled. "I will cut it so you can each get a slice. In the meantime, however, there is one other surprise waiting for you." She made her way down a hallway. Ace followed her, keeping a steady pace behind the others. "It is a room for you!"

"All of us?" Clover asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes... sorry I only have one room to spare..."

"It's okay," Kat insisted, smiling brightly. "We can find a way to share it."

"Can we?" Ray muttered, raising an eyebrow.

"I may have spare pillows and blankets lying around somewhere," Toriel insisted. She paused, her eyes going wide. "Is something burning... Um, make yourselves at home, my children." She turned and rushed away. "But I will see if I can find those pillows and blankets after we have some pie!"
"Thanks, Mom!" Ace called, waving.

"Mom?" Ray scoffed. Frisk pulled the door open, ushering everyone in. Ace rushed in. He avoided everyone's gazes as he plopped down on the floor.

"It just slipped out," Ace admitted.

"It's understandable," Clover replied, sitting on the bed. "She does act like a mother."

"Wait..." Poppy froze "Did she just surprise adopt us?!"

"Probably," Ace replied with a shrug.

"Well, that's not happening," Frisk replied, crossing their arms.

"Why not?" Ace asked, raising an eyebrow.

"We have to get back to our real families," Teri insisted.

"Yeah!" Kat agreed, "My parents are probably worried sick by now!" Ace glanced at Frisk. His friend was staring at the ground, letting out a sigh.

"It's not just that," Frisk replied. Everyone glanced at them, cocking their heads. Frisk let out a sigh. "There's a reason we're here... I don't know what but... we have to keep going."

"But... but I want to stay," Ace admitted. He wrapped his arms around his legs.

"Why?" Clover asked, cocking his head. "Don't you have a family to return to?" Ace cringed as thoughts of his parents flooded his mind. His mother's smile... his father's scowl... The first being a distant memory, the other being his reality. Plus the yelling... and empty bottles everywhere...

"Not really," Ace sighed. "Besides, Toriel's really nice..."

"Ace, you can't stay," Frisk insisted, marching toward him. "We all have to keep going... we have no future staying with Toriel." Ace let out a sigh. Arguing with Frisk was a lost cause.