A drop here, a drop there (a one-shots/snippet book)

Icarus' Flight (Undertale)

Frisk furrowed her eyebrows, a slight wariness and confusion starting to color the disappointment she was feeling. "Why? There was that hole I fell in. I can fly." As if to emphasize her point, she spread her wings slightly open.

The demon smiled sadly for a moment, eyes lingering on the appendages before shifting back to Frisk's face with a solemn expression. "A long time ago, humans sealed us monsters underneath this mountain. They created a magical barrier that can enable anyone to get in, but none can get out."

Frisk paled, and the dark, cavernous walls that stretched above and around them suddenly seemed oppressive. Caging. She shifted her wings, overcome with the urge to fly, to be free, to prove Toriel wrong because she is not staying here.

"I want to try." Frisk was stubborn, and as kind as Toriel was, she was still a virtual stranger.

"But you'll hurt yourself," Toriel fretted worriedly, like a mother would, and it made something in Frisk's chest hurt. But Frisk shook her head and repeated herself. She didn't wait, she turned around and started walking back from whence she came.

Something splashed beneath her shoe, making her look down. She faltered.

It was blood. Her's.

Frisk swallowed and continued on, knowing even without looking that bloody footprints were left in her wake.

Toriel followed behind her as they arrived at the patch of golden flowers. It was a point of color and light in the darkness with sunlight bathing its petals from above. It had called to Frisk as a safe place to land when the ground beneath her had collapsed, when her wings hurt from hitting the side of the hole and she was too disoriented and in pain to fly away.

Now, she hoped these flowers hadn't led her to her doom.

Frisk stared up at the point of light far above her. She took a breath, before turning to Toriel with a smile.

"Don't worry, if I get out, I'll come back to say goodbye. Then tomorrow I'll bring you some snacks we have at home!"

Toriel chuckled, but it was sad, so Frisk continued, "There are these candies where they're all rolled up like tape, but you can eat them! They're my favorite."

But the demon still looked quite sad, so Frisk sighed. She lifted her head towards the light and muttered, "Well, here goes nothing." With a slight crouch, she jumped and opened her wings.

They flapped a few times to lift her weight off the ground, and soon she had them spread in all their glory as she soared. Higher and higher she rose with each movement of her wings, different shades of feathers ranging from brown to yellow bathing in golden light. A grin spread itself on Frisk's lips.

But then–

"Ah!" Frisk yelped as impossibly, improbably, she hit something.

She flapped wildly to reorient herself in the air, and then hovered in place as she looked up.

There was nothing there.

She tried again. And again.

And each time she reached a certain height, a burst of light would explode in front of her as she simultaneously hit an invisible wall. Again she tried, again and again trying to reach that light which was so close and yet so dauntingly far.

Distantly, she knew that her chest was heaving, that her eyes were starting to burn, but she paid it no mind as she slammed on that damned wall again.

"Child, please!" someone's voice cut through the haze of desperation, "Please, stop! You'll hurt yourself..."

Frisk shook her head and prepared to try again, but stopped. Her attempts were futile. There was nothing she can do against an invisible, apparently magical, wall. Frisk closed her eyes in defeat, trying to staunch the tears that threatened to escape.

She stayed in the air for a few more moments, to gather herself. Once she landed back down, Toriel's eyes wet with tears, and she knew that her own face was a picture of dismay and grief. Toriel's arms wrapped around her, whispers of assurances and home reaching Frisk's ears.

Frisk didn't move to return the hug, and not a single word escaped her mouth.