Undertale. This game is a gem that needs to be showered with more love! So. To warm up my writing gears—which have probably rusted horribly so please forgive me when the wonky stuff comes up—I present an Undertale fic!

I wanted to write from a third person POV but I keep forgetting to use the gender-neutral pronouns, so here you go. First person POV it is. In my head I imagine Frisk to be female, but since I'd like everyone to be able to enjoy the story, I'm sticking to the gender neutral thinga-magigs.

FYI I took a few liberties with the plot sequences and stuff, like how it's impossible to see Alphys's lab if you don't do the true pacifist run. Bear with me here.

Chara

There's dust all over my body.

Wait, is it my body? I can't remember.

Of course it is. I assure myself. It always has been. I frowned. Why did I feel bothered being covered in dust? Are they waking up?

I stop walking for a moment and listen intently. Looking down at my dust covered hands, I blinked a few times, as if to reorient myself.

All that greeted me was silence.

Hmmph. I snort in satisfaction. Of course they weren't here. They disappeared a long time ago. It was about when I killed the 10th monster. Their pitiful cries and screams had slowly dimmed. Or maybe I finally tuned them out. The coward hadn't had the gall to continue witnessing my journey.

I shook my head a few more times. Nothing to worry about. I didn't care where they were. As long as I was control, they were no more a threat than a fly buzzing around my head. If they were cowering in fear in a corner of my soul, all the better.

I gripped my knife tighter, feeling my soul being filled with determination. The end was in sight. Just a little more, and I would come face to face with Asgore. In the reflection of the blade I held in my hand, I saw myself grin. Casually, I wipe off the excess dust that had gotten smeared over it when I killed the last monster. Miss… Muffy? I couldn't remember her name. Only that she was some ridiculous spider trying to sell overpriced goods.

I stepped forward to a save point, breathing a sigh of relief as my body restored itself. Handy, these things were. I'm going to miss them when I get to the human world.

Feeling another smile creep onto my face, I step forward into a grand hall.

Golden sunlight shone through the tall arched windows, making deep shadows. The high arched ceilings were held up by grand pillars, lining the corridor as if silently guarding its secrets. It vaguely reminded me of a cathedral.

I walked slowly and deliberately, already planning my first move when I finally reach the surface. Perhaps I should research about it a little more, since the human world seemed to have changed a lot since my time. At least, according to their memories.

A shadow loomed in my vision. I stop, staring at the familiar outline of the shadow.

I look up, and a smile once again crosses my face. Well, that's a surprise.

That comedian.

He simply looks at me, with that ever present grin on his face. I know he isn't here to play, or make any more of his stupid jokes. In his pocket, I see a small bit of orange fabric poking out. A souvenir of a much taller skeleton who was his brother.

I say was. Because I killed him. Hehee.

So he must know. I wonder if he intends to stop me. I chuckled. As if he could.

At the sound of my laughter, the pinpricks of light denoting his pupils seemed to shrink. Ahh, so this is how he looks when he's angry.

And angry he is. I can feel it. The intense feeling of fury, rolling off him in waves of blue. I breathe, and I can almost taste it in the air. Fury, despair, regret… and disappointment?

I tilt my head in puzzlement. Why was he disappointed?

He begins his spiel. I know he's trying to wear me down. Trying to reach for my weak spot. Little does he know, I don't have any. Those worthless things called mercy, compassion, feelings…. I threw them all away a very long time ago.

He asks me, "Do you think every person has a little good in them?"

I want to shake my head. But somehow I can't. How strange.

His eyes dimmed further, the pupils in his eyesockets seeming to disappear. I can see his skeletal hands clenching in his pockets. He seems to have taken my silence as a yes.

"Then why did you kill him? … you dirty brother killer."

Involuntarily, I flinched at that.

What? Why? Why did I flinch? That wasn't me. I don't feel any regret at all towards killing that stupid loud—

Be-beep. The sound of my soul being drawn out interrupted my thoughts. The skeleton seems to have finished talking. His eye is glowing cyan, and somehow the sight of it is giving me shivers. My hand is shaking, barely keeping a grip on the knife.

Why… am I afraid?

Me? Afraid of that comedian? I think not.

I shake my head fiercely, clearing off the sense of fuzziness. I am Chara, and I am determined. And no one, least of all this skeleton, was going to stop me.

It occurs to me I have never seen Sans fight. Papyrus, his brother, was a challenge, but in the end the big moron didn't go all out and spared me. What. An. Idiot. He could have easily killed me, when my LOVE was not yet too high. In a way, because he chose to spare me, he caused everyone after him to die a meaningless death. I chuckle in glee. Serves him right.

Why, oh why didn't he kill me when he had the chance? He should have just killed me.

A thought, almost like a voiceless sob, ran fleetingly inside my head. I momentarily stop dead in my tracks, ignoring the countless amount of bones gathering around him.

For a moment, I am afraid. Not of the skeleton in front of me, but of the voice inside my head. It's them. And they're starting to wake up. Why? After all they had witnessed they decided to hide and cower, unable to handle the anguish of killing the monsters. It was at that moment they stopped fighting and relinquished control of their body to me. I am them now. And their soul is mine.

And it should stay that way.

I delved deeper into my soul and mentally gagged them. Tied them up. Not allowing them to speak. They struggled futilely, weak against my strong hold. I could feel them crying and howling, but I didn't care. I told them there was nothing they could do. If I died here, I could just load. Over and over again. Until I get my desired outcome. After all, that's how it's always been, right?

I see my soul slowly being dyed blue. Ah, so his magic is similar to his brother's.

I lick my lips in anticipation. The thought of the incoming battle is filling my whole body with determination. And adrenaline. Sans, noticing my expression, gives me a look of disgust. Well, as much a look as a skeleton can convey.

"That look on your face… you really are a kind of freak, huh?"

I ignore his question and dash towards him, brandishing my knife. Almost tasting sweet victory on my lips. I don't notice the skull-like cannons materializing around me. And by the time I did, it was much too late.

I woke up again at the entranceway, the save-point blinking and spinning in front of me, its glow clearing the fuzziness in my mind.

I… died?

I blink twice. That comedian actually managed to kill me?

And so quickly too.

In my shock, I just slump down there with I'm sure would be a dumbfounded expression. Even when faced with Undyne the Undying, I put up quite a good fight before a careless mistake got me killed.

I frown. How did he kill me so quickly? The last thing I remember was a few strange looking skulls surrounding me, and seeming to glow with an odd light.

All of them must have blasted me at the same time. To drown out my HP so quickly, it had to be the only explanation. I stand back up, contemplating my next move. Sans was waiting for me in the next hallway, this I knew. Would I be able to win this time?

I shrugged. It didn't matter. I would just keep trying and trying, until I figured out his tricks. It's worked before, why not this time? Even if I was a little disoriented from dying, I could feel excitement flicker in my chest. Finally, another worthy opponent. I was seriously getting bored.

I stand there, gasping. No, I can't call it standing. I was half leaning against one of the tall pillars, sunlight filtering though behind me. It casted shadows against the floor, and I could see my silhouette shudder now and again, barely keeping my back straight.

I was exhausted. Huffing and panting, I tried to remember how many times I died already. 100? 200? It seemed like this endless cycle had gone on forever. The first time where I had been caught off-guard seemed an eternity ago.

I had gotten used to his attacks. The first attack that he always used—the ring of gaster blasters—didn't damage me much anymore. I had learned to dodge it better. But what I didn't know was that he had a whole arsenal of attacks, each more brutal than the last. I kept resetting until I could barely avoid getting my HP completely drained, but the continual resets were taking their toll on me.

Physically and mentally, I was worn out. For the first time, my determination wavered. Heaving, I grasp at my soul, noting its red glow dimming slightly in tune to my determination. For a moment, I become mesmerized by it, staring at it blankly, noting the cracks in it. A small feeling of alarm grew, because out of the cracks were seeping red dust.

My HP was seriously low and I had no food left.

I glower at Sans, who is biding his time and observing me with that one glowing eye of his. Over the timelines, he has taken longer and longer to finish me off. Based on his commentary, it seems he just wants to prolong the inevitable resetting, over and over again.

Let me out.

Stop it. I snarl. What seems to be the worst of it all is that they have grown more vocal over the timelines. It shouldn't be the case. I admit my mental defenses have dropped considerably over the strain of reloading so many times, but I owned their soul now, and my determination should be greater than theirs.

At least it should have been.

LET ME OUT. Don't hurt him. Don't hurt my friend. Stop. Stop. Stop.

Gritting my teeth, I shook my head fiercely. Residual blood from my head-wound leave the tips of my hair and splatter the floor, making my head woozy. Sans looks at me strangely, with an expression almost like… concern.

I shook my head again, ignoring another wave of dizziness. It seems I've lost enough blood to start deluding myself. Nevertheless, I grip my blade and charge at him, hoping to catch him off-guard.

No such luck. Like all the other timelines, he steps casually out of the way, slippery as an eel. Unable to fight against momentum, I tumble on to the floor where he had been standing. I let out a muffled curse, aware that the fall had just accelerated my bleeding.

I try to stand up immediately, worried that he would stab me in the back if I lay immobile too long. Then a tidal wave of dizziness hits me like a truck, causing my body to slump the ground.

Sans observes me a little more. I just lay there, anticipating his next move, hoping to save my strength. I just need to recover a little bit. If he decides to attack me now, I think I can manage to dodge at the last second.

After a few minutes of silent contemplation, he holds up both arms and shrugs at me. I slowly get up, eyeing him suspiciously. What was he up to now?

"Look kid, I'm tired of fighting ya'. Why don't you just lay down your weapon… well, it'll make my job a lot easier."

I struggle to hide a grin from my face. This idiot! They're sparing me! After everything I've done to his friends! His brother! The idiot was sparing me! How pathetic!

I almost laughed in glee.

Finally. Finally after all these loads, I could finally kill him.

I pretend to contemplate his offer. Slowly, I hold the knife in front of me, making out as if I was going to drop it. I could envision it already, the look on his face as I slash it across his body.

He looks at me expectantly, heaving a sigh of relief at my actions. I smile internally. I did not intend to drop the knife.

In a split second, I close my fingers around the hilt tighter than ever before and lunge at him.

Or at least, I tried. I was still holding the knife at arms-length, pointed downwards in front of me. Confused, I tried moving again. Nothing. I couldn't move my fingers, my legs, even my face. It felt like I was frozen to the ground.

Suddenly, I watch in horror as my fingers slowly and deliberately unclasp. The knife fell to the ground with a clatter, leaving me unarmed. I start shouting internally, confused and afraid. My bewilderment turns into anger as I realize it's them.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING? I scream at them, trying to beat their consciousness into submission. DO YOU REALISE HOW MANY TIMES I HAD TO LOAD TO GET THIS OPPORTUNITY?

Yes, they reply calmly. And I want to thank you for it. Thanks to that, I can finally take back my body.

YOU THINK IT WILL BE DIFFERENT? YOU THINK SPARING SANS WILL UNDO ALL THAT WE DID? YOU THINK YOU'LL GET YOUR HAPPY ENDING THIS WAY? I laugh hysterically at their naiveté. YOU'RE A MURDERER, AND YOU THINK YOU'RE ABOVE CONSEQUENCES.

No, I'm not. I'll just take this opportunity to reset. Everything. Everything we've ever done. Everything about you. Everything about me. They'll live. Toriel, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys, Mettaton, Muffet… all the monsters. I'll make sure of it this time. I'll make sure they outlive me, long after I've turned to dust. They were frustratingly calm. But I could still hear slight trembling in their thoughts, and I knew it was all a big show of bravado.

You think you're so brave and kind aren't you? Saying such gallant words. But truth be told, aren't you prone to sit in the background and watch things happen? I laugh as I feel them mentally flinch. It was after the first few deaths, wasn't it? The point where you began fighting back. Then, it got so unbearable to watch them turn to dust you started handing the reins to me, didn't you? Don't like getting your hands dirty huh? And now you want to spout things like protecting everyone… when it was you who let them die in the first place.

Even if you reset now, you know you killed them all. You know how you didn't even try fighting back, letting me kill them. In a way, you're a better monster than me… because you watched silently as I massacred your precious friends. Tell me, will you be able to live with them? Knowing at one time, their deaths were a reality, and you did nothing to stop it from happening? Do you think you will ever be forgiven for that?

They remain silent, and lift their head to look up at Sans. He is sweating, and holding out his arms in invitation. Our dialogue lasted only a few seconds, even though it seemed like hours.

… I don't. They finally replied. I don't expect to be forgiven. But… I have to try…and fix it. And…and the best way I can do that, is to give them the happy ending they deserve.

I realise they don't mention what happens to us.

I'll cross that bridge when I get there. They said wryly. But rest assured, it's probably the ending we deserve as well.

They look at Sans again, and move their (my?) legs into a run. Trying to run into his embrace. It seemed they wanted to tell him about their plans, seeing as he knew about the different timelines.

"Finally." he breathed. "Kid. Buddy. Pal. I know how hard this is for you. To waste everything you built-up to this point." His eye-sockets go dark at this point. " I just want you to know…"

In the middle of running, they didn't notice thousands of bones materializing above them, all sharp and pointed vertically downward.

"I won't let it go to waste."

There was a moment of intense and piercing pain, before our consciousness started to blur.

The last words we heard as we were slipping into darkness were

"Geeeettttt dunked on!"

Even to their dying breath, I can feel them express some amusement at this, while I fume silently in the background.

No matter, I realize. At the last save-point, I was in control, so naturally they would still be bound at that point. I smile at these events. Perhaps I should thank that comedian for tricking me.

It was a small whisper, but I swear I could hear the words, "If we're really friends… you won't come back."

I feel them struggling to wrench control from my hand. And it's working. I know I have limited time left. Truthfully, I'm so tired. I can't muster anymore determination to continue. However, I will struggle against them until the last moment.

Sans is eyeing me, preparing to finish me off. Or… not?

He's just standing there blankly, that grin never leaving his face. My body aches everywhere. I don't want to, but I glance down and assess the damage. My clothes are burned in places, and the hem of my sweater is singed, glowing with a trace of blue flames. A few bones are stuck in my chest, causing a small waterfall of blood to gush down and form a shallow pool in front of me. The knife was long gone. I lost grip of it somewhere in the fight. Probably when Sans bashed me around the hallway. I couldn't move. My body felt broken.

The way humans die is so messy, I think vaguely.

As I look at Sans standing there, waiting to pass me judgement for my sins, I let out a chortled laugh. Which I then immediately regret, as it sent a stabbing pain through my being, causing the waterfall of blood to gush faster.

Sans looks surprised. But not in a good way.

"What's so funny, kid? I'm not joking around here."

"I-it's... just so ironic." I rasp.

He lifts a metaphorical eyebrow. His face is unchanging, but his unasked question lingers in the air.

"Y-you're st-standing there. Like an all-powerful judge… staring at me like I'm a m-monster…" I pause and chuckle throatily, and wince, "when in fact, you're all m-monsters. A-and I don't mean that as a species. Y-You're all hypocrites."

I wheeze and resist the urge to cackle as he blinks in surprise. Or at least his glowing eye winked out for a moment.

"You are a monster."

"That… I am. B-but are a-any of you less of a monster than me?"

I wheeze and cough, feeling my vision getting hazy, but I continue, not even caring whether or not he was listening.

"Y-you all need 7 human souls to break the barrier… and according to everyone, I'm the last one you n-need…that means, Asgore has al-already taken 6 human children's souls."

Sans's left eye started growing dimmer. His shoulders hunch and he clenches his fists tighter.

"That was—"

"Do you think you're all blameless? Did the children who fell down here all deserve to die? Did they deserve to die any more than Papyrus? Undyne? Toriel?"

"That's—!"

"Did they?! Did they hate humanity like I did?! Did they actually want to go home?! Were they helpless and weak, and did you murder them all anyway?!"

I started shouting and rambling, not caring that my body was getting colder and colder.

"You judge me for every little LOVE and EXP I gain, but how do you have LOVE too sans? How does Undyne have LOVE? How many people have YOU killed?"

Sans's eye is completely out, and I can hear his bones rattling.

"Y-you might say that it was necessary, b-but why didn't you just stop at the first human? Y-you could have just absorbed their s-soul and crossed the barrier… look for an al-alternate solution."

I try to steady my breathing, ignoring the dull aches everywhere.

"E-even t-the stupid royal scientist… they extracted the d-determination from the human souls, didn't they? And created a new kind of monster. The amalgamates."

If a skeleton had eyeballs, his would be bulging right now.

"h-how do you—" He stammers.

"I… broke into it," I smirk, "the lab that is. The stupid scientist forgot to evacuate the amalgamates. I killed them all, of course." I smile wider at him. "Wasn't that kind of me? I ended their pitiful lives, all meshed together into one cesspool of individuals."

I could see my soul being dyed blue again, and it started convulsing, like it was being squeezed. At this point, I didn't care. If I was going to die regardless, I might as well say my piece.

"A-and you want to stand there like a saint, telling me I'm the true enemy, that I'm the demon." I can't stop myself from laughing, although I know I'm only making things worse. "When you even experiment on your own kind, causing them to live in a state where they aren't even allowed to die." My vision started to blur for a moment, before I forced myself to focus. "A-and you created the greatest tragedy of all, even if you don't know it."

"what are you talking about?"

I consider telling him about Flowey. How ironic it was that, they are the ones who created that soulless flower, born from their determination experiments. The once-Prince of the underground. My first best friend.

A wave of sentimentality washes over me, and I decide not to tell.

Suddenly, I just feel so tired.

"A-and the funniest thing is," I change the subject, my voice is losing its edge and is descending to a whisper, "that everyone I met, every monster I met, tried to kill me."

"I didn't do anything, and they tried to kill me. And when they did, I have to go over that feeling of dying, over and over again. Until somehow, I meet their s-stupid expectations and… they spare me. But every time they kill me, every time my body got torn apart, that doesn't count, does it? They didn't know any better, right?"

I laugh again. It's barely a whisper now.

"And when I raise my hand in defense, you call me a monster, a murderer, a demon. It's all so hilarious."

I don't know where this is coming from. Is it my feelings? Or theirs? Either way, my short tirade has left them speechless. For a little while, their struggles cease and they stop screaming in my head for me to let them take this body back. I relish the silence, since I knew it couldn't last.

Sans, for all his glib jokes and that stupid grin, looks chagrined. If it was possible for a skeleton to look chagrined. I chuckle at his expression, knowing that I had hit a particularly sore spot. I don't really care about the other human children. I just felt… frustrated? The holier-than-thou way they view me makes me want to puke. It wasn't supposed to end this way. I was angry. It seems all monsters were destined to get in my way.

I didn't hate monsters at first. But if they were going to get in my way, then I just have to cut them all down. Simple as that. Humanity would soon follow.

At least that was how it was supposed to go.

The sound of rattling bones quiet down as he seems to settle some sort of internal dispute.

He doesn't say much, and just walks up to me, crouching down. I want to turn away, but my body is past obeying me at this point. They try to move as well, and I willingly hand the reins to them this time, knowing full well they wouldn't be able to do anything. They manage to move a few fingers, and then give up, and then I push them away again. Instead, I glower at his face, which is illuminated by his one glowing eye. His skull is covered in sweat, and somehow in the situation I find it in me to wonder fleetingly how skeletons can sweat.

He just stares at me for a while from where he crouches. His gaster blasters hover around behind me, just in case I happen to make any sudden moves. Would that I could.

"welp. I guess you're right kid. I'm not proud of the things we did, for sure. But some things are a necessary evil." He scratched his head nervously, probably wondering why he was bothering to justify his actions.

I cough and heave, trying to speak. My voice came out a whisper. "Pretty… words. Evil is evil. A-and there's a-always a ch-choice."

I made mine long ago. And I don't intend to turn back.

He sighs. "Nothing gets past you huh, kiddo. Yeah well, we all get what we deserve in time, and I'm not gonna waste any sleep over the things I've done." He stood his elbow on his knee and rests his skull on his palm, tilting his head in a questioning manner. "But lemme ask you a question, pal."

I raise my eyebrows. Even that took all the strength I had.

"You told me that you and I are the same, yeah? Well, I just wanna ask you a lil' something. Do you feel… any sorrow or… regret? For everything you done? When you killed a monster, killed Pa-… my brother, did you feel anything at all?"

I crack a sarcastic smile at him. "Sure I did." I croak.

"I felt reeeeallly happy."

His gaster blasters move forward. I close my eyes, awaiting the moment I wake up to a save-point.

"And that's the difference between you and me, buddy."

Whew. And that's the end of this chapter. Let me know what you think! ; )

…or not… if you don't want to, it's okay… *lays on the floor with Napstablook*