"ＴＨＥ ＣＲＡＶＩＮＧ."
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a/n:
QUESTION 4 U:
Is there any Undertale character you don't particularly like? Or feel weird toward / hold a slight grudge against?
ANSWER 5 ME:
Nope. I love all of them. Every single one. Flowey. Annoying dog. Jerry. All of them. Even the mad dummy. Who was a complete dicker (reading through to edit this, and I'm asking myself what the fuck a dicker is) to fight, but I love him anyway.
I've got this weird shame-grudge against monster kid, though. When I was playing pacifist, and the part where they're falling off the bridge, and Undyne is coming... I uh... kinda sat there for a second, and turned and ran.
Only thought going through my head then tbh: "LMAAAOOOO BYEEEE!"
Wow, I'm a big jerk. Afterwards I felt so bad about it though. And in my second play through of pacifist, I messed up again. Messed up on purpose, kinda. I wanted to charge Undyne and so I just...
Yep.
The kid didn't talk to me after that.
//sobs.
Anyways, enjoy this chapter! <3
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{your p.o.v.}
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The walk is ridiculously long. So ridiculously long, that you run out of food on the fourth day of travelling. Are you even that close to the town? You've made a really grave mistake. With another dawning realization just over the horizon, you shake your backpack. It's a nifty thing called a camel-back, and it has a bunch of water stored in it that's right at your fingertips.
What luck you have!
It's nearly empty.
And there are no sounds of running water in the small forest path you're walking. How screwed are you if we ranked it on a one to ten scale? Probably an eleven. Taking a breath, you try and steel your emotions. Some rustling sounds come from your left. Turning quickly, you shakily pull out the knife you brought.
Not like you're capable of using it, but it's a nice comfort.
Throughout the days you've been walking, everything has been slightly off. First it was the way the grass rustled, even when the breeze wasn't blowing. It could be an animal, of course. This is a forest, dummy. But the presence felt so wrong, so off that it just couldn't be ignored. Maybe it was the emptiness. You suppose that an empty presence is scarier than an angry one.
With a trembling voice, you speak up.
"Who are you?" Of course, there's no answer. For a while you stand and stare at the bushes. But you're wasting your time. The faster you get to a food or water source, the better. Taking a deep breath, you tighten your grip on the stick and continue walking.
>>>>
The city can't be this far away. There's no way that you are still far away. But you feel like you've been going in circles for hours now. Lost? No, you're too proud to admit that. Taking a brief break, you sling off your backpack and lean against a tree.
Without meaning to, your eyes slowly drift shut.
You don't really dream, but in the depths of your very being... your consciousness, it screams.
You're hungry.
When you wake up again, you sit up and rub at your eyes. Night has fallen and it's eerily silent. Usually you'd hear the distant calls of nearby animals. No rustling or anything. You wish you could get rid of the presence that's kind of crawling on your back. While it may be silent, there's still a slight voice in the back of your head. The survival instinct, we call it.
It's telling you to get up and run.
Run as fast as you can.
With quivering hands, you sling your pack over your shoulder. The only icebreaker for the silence is the sound of your stomach growling. While you should be resting at the moment, you're not really feeling up to it. The silence, while comfortable to others, gives off a creepy feeling. Not an empty, fillable silence. This silence is already full, but with what you're not sure.
"Is anyone out there?" You ask impatiently. It was meant to come out as a yell, but instead it's a hoarse whisper. A small rustle, to your left. You open your mouth to speak again, but still your voice does not come out like the strong protagonists in all the stories. Instead, you suffer from a major voice crack.
A seemingly demonic laugh rises from behind the tree only a few feet away.
You hold on the stick as if it can save your life.
But it's just a branch... it can't do anything for you.
Except boost your courage.
A small petals flutters to the ground at your feet. You kneel down and poke at the petal with the end of your stick. Hey, it could be an explosive or something. Nobody could judge your paranoia. Then you feel cold air on your neck. Slowly, you look up. Face to face with a...
Uh...?
It's a flower.
But the flower is breathing. And it's got this wide, creepy face that really makes you want to drop everything and run. You have really been getting that feeling quite frequently. Too frequently. As calmly as you can, you take a step back so you can study the flower. It seems to be doing the same to you.
It's hanging from the branches of the tree, vines wrapped all around the old trunk so it's supporting him. Can this flower fly? This isn't probably an appropriate question you should be asking, but you think about it anyway. The flower is golden, just like the petal.
You wait for it to speak first, still contemplating flower flight.
"Howdy! My name is Flowey. Flowey the flower." Damn, that's quite a voice he has. It's pretty and comforting, but at the same time, it's making the ugliest sounds that have ever reached your ears. "And you... you're (y/n), right?"
"Yeah, that's me. What are you?" Absentmindedly you reach out and touch one of the petals. It's soft. He flicks you away a second later with a vine.
"Did I not just say I was a flower? Man, you must be new around here." The sound of wood being scratched isn't new to you. Yet for some reason, when he retracts the vines and slowly starts to spiral down the tree, it sets you on edge. Is it going to attack you?
But it doesn't make any aggressive movements. Instead, it seems like the flower is friendly.
"I want food," you say. It's a main priority right now. The flower lets out that laugh again. You have to look down to speak to it, but you don't really mind. If it can get you food, it is a friend.
"Here you go, friend," Flowey says. A second later, an apple rolls out from the bushes. Then another. Another, another, another. You watch with wide eyes as apples spill out from the darkness and slowly come to a rest at your feet.
"How-"
"Did you not notice that there are apple trees all around here?" He scoffs at you. "Man, you are an idiot." You'd usually be kind of upset that someone you just met is already dissing you, but you're too happy to care. You pick up most of the apples and stuff them in your bag. One remains in your hand, it's a dark red. The flower is tapping its leaf against the ground, obviously impatient. How does that work? Are the leaves like his tiny arms? Giggling, you take a bite of the apple.
"Are you some sort of monster? Also... have you been following me?" Maybe you can trust him... just for now. "I've never really met a monster." For some reason, this feels untrue. But you try and ignore that. The monster you always used to draw, and write songs about.
You'd climb to the top of Heaven's tree, and scream down the lyrics to the songs about the person with the one glowing eye.
[IF WE WERE FRIENDS.]
[YOU WOULDN'T COME BACK.]
[BUT HOW COULD I LEAVE?]
[WITH THESE SINS ON MY BACK...]
Hoping beyond hope... that for once, somebody would hear the pain you're feeling. That the notes and the pitch could somehow express the idea that help and love was all you needed. And still, that's all you need. You screamed and you called out for help.
But nobody came.
You yelled and cried out for nothing.
If the flower notices your sudden discontent, it doesn't say anything. Instead, it seems to ponder your questions. The way it moves it really weird, at some points it will go underground and then suddenly pop again. It's a slow process. But at least you aren't lost anymore. He'll talk for short intervals, and then go back underground.
"You got it! I'm a monster. Little old me..."
"And yes, sorry about that! I've been following you to make sure you didn't run in to trouble. Someone has to teach you how things are run up here."
Makes sense to you. There's no objections in your mind. As long as he can lead you to the city, you're happy to go along with what he wants.
The short communication goes on for a while. After a while, though, the flower seems to tire. He grabs your wrist and tugs on it. Another vine is wrapped around your thigh, and then waist. At first you absolutely freak out, and nearly deck him in the face. But once you realize that he's only doing it so he can speak with you, you don't object. The flower pulls itself out of the ground. Roots hang off of it. It is steadies on your waist. Some more vines come out from the stem, and a platform forms under him. He's a comfortable distance, while still being attached to you. If it was a normal flower, that definitely wouldn't be healthy for it. But this is a monster.
"I heard you talking in your sleep," the flower squeaks. You find this creepy as heck, but you try and ignore it. Swallowing uncomfortable, you cross your arms. "How do you know Frisk and Chara?"
"Siblings of mine," you say, choosing to tell the truth. "I'm looking for them."
"And the skeleton?"
"Wha-"
"Nevermind! Forget it, really. About Frisk... they're at the city. They've got a little crown on their head, too. Both of them will be so glad to see you." A smile spreads across your face. It's an unplanned smile, and you barely notice it. You're too lost in your own thoughts.
Will Frisk and Chara really greet you like a sibling? Or will they do what you'd do, in their shoes? You're not sure why, but you honestly feel like you have to fight them or something. You don't really like fighting people. Not a fun endeavor, pastime, whatever.
But maybe...
Just maybe...
They'll love you again.
"Thank you," you whisper to the flower. It just jerks its head in a silent nod. "Thank you so much."
The sun is starting to rise again. You and the flower reach the edge of the woods, and you step out overlooking a vast meadow. A few hills rise and fall, but they're not large enough to hide the city that is in the center of the valley. Your feet smash flowers, and a lot of them. Honestly, you're trying as hard as you can not to.
What if Flowey gets offended, or something?
You reach a small ravine. It's like the world was cut open by a dagger. But it's not too deep, so the world won't bleed out. Instead, it's just a papercut on the world's surface. Still... it would be quite painful to cross it. You're about to cross the bridge but Flowey suddenly retracts everything and digs himself in to the ground.
"What are you doing? Aren't you coming with?"
The flower gives you a huge grin and a cackle.
"I can't pass here. He will notice me. And I can't have that." Flowey slaps the side of your leg with a vine. It leaves a stinging feeling, but you ignore that. "Just remember that I'll be here when you need me." And with that, the ground swallows him whole. You stare at the hole in the ground for a second. What a jerk... you were really counting on him taking you straight to Frisk and Chara. At least he gave you food and led you here. You try and be thankful for what he has done for you. Turning, you're face to face with yet another monster.
"HEY! PUNK! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?"