Noise wasn't quite the expectation to wake up to. Waking up didn't even seem like a possibility. Everything stung and ached, the pain becoming more intense upon fully coming to her senses. A low groan exited from the back of her throat, hoarse and cracked. Braving the oncoming pricks of pain, she finally sat up, raising her hand to her head to nurse the pounding headache. There was such little light; where did this come from?

The only source was from above, and curiously, she peered up, finding nothing but white and dust particles floating about. Confusion whupped her about as bad as whatever had happened. Her attention rounded to her hands, an odd softness scraping her palms. Eyes casting down to her fingers, she lifts what she had grasped, finding golden petals and little amounts of pollen. Flowers, all the way down here? Expression scrunched with perplexity, she wasted no time standing to her feet, shuffling around for her belongings: a small but hefty backpack that never left her side. Gathering the contents that had spilled from their place, she slung the pack onto her shoulders once more, and began scouting for an exit of any sort. Finding a pathway to her right, she figured anything would be worse than sitting around like a helpless duckling without its mother.

Cautiously moving forward, her eyes had adjusted to the darkness enough to see where she was going. It didn't take her long to find another source of light – a spotlight, of sorts, centered on a small lump of dirt. Her initial thought was someone had planted something, perhaps more of those golden flowers a few feet behind her? The thought was quickly dispelled when the mound sprouted a flower, similar to the ones she considered, although… flowers didn't pop up from the ground so fast, nor did they have faces.

"Howdy!" cheered a voice. "I'm FLOWEY. FLOWEY the FLOWER! You don't look like you're from around here… You're new to the Underground, aren't you?"

She couldn't find the words. She only stared at the talking flower that grinned so happily. What was she supposed to do? There was no way this could be happening in reality.

"… I guess little old me will have to do. Ready? Here we go!" The girl shook her head, realizing she had missed part of whatever spiel the flower was going on about. Having missed that, she only panicked when she felt something incredibly odd. A strange glow caught her attention, and she looked down to see a small, pink heart.

"See that heart? That is your SOUL, the very culmination of your being! Your SOUL starts off weak, but can grow strong if you gain a lot of LV. What's LV stand for? Why, LOVE, of course! You want some LOVE, don't you?" The flower wasn't giving the girl even the slightest chance to speak or intervene. It was as though she didn't have any choice. "Don't worry, I'll share some with you! Down here, LOVE is shared through… Little white… "friendliness pellets"." Within seconds, she found herself surrounded by tiny, seed-shaped pellets that circled around her. "Are you ready? Move around! Get as many as you can!"

Although highly confused, she tenderly reached out, and her hand grazed against a pellet that aimed right for her. She sharply gasped, drawing her hand back and cradling it. A steady line of red poured out of a cut, and her eyes widened with dumbfounded shock. Drawing her sight up to the flower once again, that sweet-like expression had turned into something twisted.

"You IDIOT. You're just as naïve as you look, little girl." Her eyes lost their shocked spark and instead fade into fear. The flower chuckled sinisterly, surrounding her with the very same bullets as before, only now giving her no option to escape or avoid. "DIE."

She hadn't the time to even scream. Expecting to be sliced and pricked, she braced herself for a horrid impact… that never came. Hesitantly opening her eyelids, she then stood in front of another figure, but one much less intimidating. The figure had eradicated the flower, and then looked toward her with caring, sympathetic eyes, even offering a hand to the girl.

"Are you alright, my child?" The voice was soft, gentle – and very feminine. Shaken, the child took the hand of her savior, staring curiously at her. She had illustrious white fur blanketing her being, and the way it felt on her hands was comforting. Her eyes held a warm hue while her presence just emanated care and protection. The small girl realized she could, at the very least, trust this woman. "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." She paused to give the girl time to absorb her words, offering a patient smile. "Come along now. Let us see if we cannot dress that wound."

The slightest of smiles appeared on the girl's face as she was guided along by the kind woman. Her initial fear had dissipated, now replaced with some stability. She met the eyes of her guide and grinned wider, a gesture that was warmly returned.

"What is your name, child? I am Toriel." The name sounded odd to her, although it left a pleasant ring in her ears. Receiving an expectant (but soft) look, the girl paused in movement, parting her hand from Toriel's before doing some odd motions with them. Toriel's stare shifted to reluctant confusion, and almost immediately, the child understood. Nodding, she slid her backpack from her shoulders, digging into it to take out a spiral notebook and a pen. Opening the book, she flipped through various pages, all scrawled on with either rushed or precise writing. While the realization began to dawn on her, words were already written on the page and presented to her.

'I'm Katie. It's nice to meet you, Toriel. I'm sorry I can't talk with you, but I can't speak.' The words on the page surprised Toriel, although she showed no sign of ill-nature. She offered a smile and a nod in understanding, immediately noting the warmness sparking in Katie's eyes. It seemed prevalent that her impairment was often met with a negative reaction, which internally stung the monster. How could anyone abandon such a sweet, young child? It was despicable.

She held out her hand once more to the girl, of which she happily took it. Her acceptance was well-received, which surely pleased Katie. The child was introduced to puzzles and some ways of the Underground, which she contently acquiesced to. She was even shown what to do when she was to encounter a FIGHT with another monster, and took to it very well. A thought soon bumped into the caretaker's mind, and she stopped in the entrance of a long walkway, facing the child to deliver some news.

"I am going to ask something difficult of you, my child. I would like for you to walk down this hall by yourself. But, do not worry, I am not abandoning you." She lifted a hand to gently pat the young girl's head, apologizing with a pained look before scurrying ahead. Katie simply watched, but moved on ahead without much issue. True, there was tension in the air of the strangely long hall, but it wasn't anything she couldn't brush away. It wasn't long until she reached the end, looking around the area for any sign of Toriel. She did notice the seemingly out-of-place pillar, to which she curiously peeked behind to find exactly who she was looking for.

"See, my child? I did not abandon you. I was behind this pillar the entire time, watching." Her grin held her apology, so she had no need to outwardly say it. "There was a reason I had to do that, you see. I needed to test your independence. I have some errands I need to run, and I am afraid you will have to do without me for a little while." Katie's expression slightly faltered, causing Toriel's to do the same. Quickly, she bounced back, an idea surfacing. "I know, I will give you a CELL PHONE." She brandished an out-of-date phone, handing it to the young child. "That way, you will be able to contact me for anything you might need." There was a pause, a bit of an awkward silence as Katie stared at her, hoping to remind her of what they recently established. Embarrassed, Toriel flushed. "Oh, I am very sorry. I had… completely forgotten that you cannot speak. Please, keep it anyhow." The girl nodded. "I must go, now. Stay put, and be good, alright? I will return as soon as possible." With that, she received another pat on the head, and off the woman went to attend to her errands.

She was left with a simple cell phone, and an entire place to explore. Of course, she was instructed to stay put, and she wouldn't want to betray the trust that was placed in her. Time was all she had, now. It took but a few moments for her thoughts to round to where they were before she was attacked, and with it, the headache returned. Something ached in the back of her head. She remembers the injury on her hand, which Toriel must have forgotten to dress. Katie digs into her backpack, taking out a napkin and a bandage, wiping the blood from her hand and quickly covering it, hoping that infection hadn't already intruded. She was surprised that her belongings and supplies made it through the fall.

The fall.

The fall.

That's right – she'd fallen down a mountain, although for the love of life, she couldn't remember why or what she was doing there. All she could recall was that she thought her end was upon her, and yet, here she stood with a bandaged hand, a cell phone, and an expectation that a kind stranger would return. Glancing to the phone, she tucked it into a small pocket in her backpack, and decidedly continued forward. Thoughts of Toriel's advice infiltrated when they were needed the most, specifically during puzzles and battles. She saw and met with many strange things, including an introverted ghost who she quickly took a liking to. She picked up coins and even some items, which were stuffed into the recesses of her pack. The adventure was often interrupted with phone calls from Toriel, asking meager questions and just overall checking up on Katie's condition, despite how the girl can't reply. She supposed her picking up was confirmation enough that she was alright.

Random encounters were the most jarring out of the whole experience, and Katie found herself getting nicked and pricked more often than not. The concept of her SOUL dodging bullets of sorts still alarmed her, and she was still getting used to the process. She, however, had gotten used to the glow of her soul appearing now and again. Pink. It was pink – she didn't quite understand why, but she supposed that hearts were normally represented as pink or red, so it didn't leave her wondering for long.

After quite the journey, the girl happened upon a room with a blackened tree in the upper-center. Its red leaves were scattered about the ground along its base, which the young child bent down to observe. She hadn't seen red leaves since last autumn, and even then, they were rare. A sudden jolt ran through her when her given cell phone rang loudly, only for Toriel to dash towards her moments later. Her expression held tints of shock, relief, and happiness.

"I suppose I had left you for a little too long. Oh, no, you are even more injured than you were earlier… Come along, we will bandage you up immediately." She signaled for her to follow, which she gladly did so. Truthfully, she hadn't even realized how cut up she was, as her objectives were rather scattered while back farther in the ruins.

As the two approached a small flight of stairs, something caught Katie's eye, causing her to stray behind while Toriel entered what seemed to be her home. The item in question was a sparkling star of sorts, undulating frantically in place. Curious, she reached forward to touch the light. Upon making contact, an overwhelming rush of warm overcame her entire body, causing her to panic and jump back a step or two. Out of habit, she peered down, and noticed something jarring: her wounds were no longer there. A glance back to the shining star made her wonder if that was what sealed her injuries. Shaking her head, she bolted up the stairs and into the home, stopping when she nearly slammed into Toriel, of who was waiting for her in the entrance. Katie's panicked state brought a look of concern to her face.

"My child, what is the matter? You look much more shaken up…" A furred hand was brought to the girl's cheek, and then she noticed the disappearance of her wounds, much like Katie had moments before. "Goodness… Your cuts are gone. How did you manage that, little one?"

As her response, she gave a simple shrug, honestly unsure as to how it happened. The woman's expression did not change for a brief moment, then after tucking some hair behind the girl's ear, she stood to her feet and smiled.

"I have a surprise for you," she announced. "I have made you a butterscotch-cinnamon pie! I apologize if it is not to your liking…" Katie shook her head vigorously, waving a hand as to say that she would very likely like what she was given. Sated as she can be, Toriel continued, "And that isn't all." She reached for the girl's hand, and without hesitation, she took it. The young girl was lead into a hallway and stopped in front of a door. "Look, it is your very own bedroom!"

That phrase somehow stung Katie. She stared in awe at the plain door, frozen. This type of commodity wasn't what she had expected at all. Did Toriel truly expect her to stay here and live with her, when she had only just woken up from a nasty spill? In her trance, she had completely missed whatever else her savior had said before scurrying off, leaving her to stand dumbfounded in front of the door. Almost frightened, she stretched her hand forward to cover the knob, feeling the coldness of the metal. It definitely felt like it hadn't been used in a long time. Swallowing harshly, she creaked open the door, peeking inside. The room was as normal as any other child's room. Venturing in further, Katie began to familiarize herself with the furniture and additions. Yet, as she scanned the area, she felt a lump rising from the back of her throat, and her eyes began to mist over. Where this emotion was coming from, or what it even was, she had no idea.

Intensity swelled within her chest and she found herself reaching for the pillow placed pristinely on the bed. Her hands shook as she held it, unsure whether to hug it or toss it across the room. Her body responded with the former option, clutching it tightly to her chest, and then crawling onto the bed to bury her face within the pillow's case. Tears refused to exit. Eventually, her emotional stigma gave out, and she settled into the softness of the sheets. It reminded her of Toriel's fur and comforting hand. Eyelids slowly became heavier and shut gently, her grip on the pillow loosening. It wasn't long before the human child had fallen asleep comfortably atop the bed provided for her by the kind stranger who saved her life.