Soft Reset

[buttercup_eater]

As everything fades away when they die, coming back to life is like seeing everything fading into existence again.

The first thing they're aware of is light, and that they can see, rather than seeing anything in specific.

The second thing they're aware of is sensation, the weight of their limbs pressing into a smooth, stone surface.

Where are they, exactly?

Chara tries to focus, blinking a few times in the hopes of clearing their vision. An empty stone hallway, rather like the one they last died in, with high windows flooding the area with sunlight.

They take a deep breath and try and push themselves into an upright position, only to be hit with a wave of sudden dizziness and have to flop back onto the floor. Okay, that's not good. What happened?

They can remember their SOUL shattering, and laughing so hard their sides were aching. Sans. Bruises. Blood. Theirs? No, not at first. Chasing the other child down unfamiliar hallways. Messy. No EXP increase, no LV.

No partner.

Chara waits a moment, just in case any input is forthcoming, but even after several minutes they remain alone. Once again, they're going to have to do everything themselves.

They manage to sit up with only a minimal amount of dizziness, then lurch to their feet. Minus the dizziness, it's rather like the last time they died and woke up again.

The knife is nearby, again, and they pick it up, again. Their locket is also still hanging from their neck, and they can still feel it faintly beating. But there's also a strange weight in their pocket, and when they slip a hand inside to check- oh. Right. An... alternative version of their locket, they guess.

Gripping the locket tightly, they set out to find their purpose once again.

[As with Frisk's post, this is set three days after their death.]

Comments

[littledreemurr]

Asriel had been a bit blessed to be able to avoid the big lead up to these deaths and the revivals that surrounded them. Completely and utterly oblivious, honestly.

He was simply scouting out some of the corridors, wanting to still get his barrings. He heard some noise and took some precautions as he rounded the corner. To his surprise, it wasn't a beast nor being of anything like that.

It was more family, his best friend, even.

He began to approach, trying to take in that Chara was really here, but goodness the look on his face was that of a bit of shock. He stopped a few inches forward, having to take in the utter idea that there was more familiarity in his life right now. He had his mother, but now he knew that Chara was here too.

"Chara?" He whispered, not realizing how soft his voice was. It grew louder, and his tone was just... so much more happier and cheerful now. "Y-you're here!"

[buttercup_eater]

The moment Chara meets Asriel's eyes, they find themselves mirroring that look of shock, if not magnifying it. Asriel! Chara's eyes grow huge and round and their head involuntarily jerks back.

Of course, after everything that's happened so far, the last thing Chara expects is to run into someone who actually seems happy to see them. Especially not someone who was also a flower the last time they met. And someone who. Had a multitude of reasons not to be happy to see Chara.

Taking a quick, shaky breath and clutching their knife tighter, they force themselves to step forward. "Right," they say. "I'm here."

But are you? they think.

[littledreemurr]

It was honestly innocence at it's finest.

"I'm really glad to see you! I thought that you'd be back home with Dad," he spoke, still so so happy to see them. "That's really funny, Dad still isn't here... Mom's here, too! Did you know that?"

His eyes wandered to the knife, and he grew just a hair nervous. There seemed really no reason to have that on them, as far as Asriel knew. He seemed to tilt his head, looking back up to meet Chara's look. There was just something peculiar about this, Chara couldn't have been from another part of the timeline like most of the others had been from... right?

"Hey..." He spoke with a bemused voice, very very lightly concerned as well, "Wh-what's the knife for?"

[buttercup_eater]

And that's the problem. Asriel shouldn't be innocent, not anymore, not now that they know what Chara's really like, what the world's really like- except they remember what the other child told them about timelines and damn it.

(All they can think is... And Flowey accused them of having a sick sense of humor.)

"No Asriel, I didn't know that." Their tone is flat, and they wonder if they feel anything about the idea of mo- Toriel being around.

"...Oh, this?" Chara lifts up the knife, almost as if they've forgotten they were holding it. "It's for stabbing people with."

rises from the dead...

[littledreemurr]

He shouldnt, but it doesn't stop him from being so.

"Yeah! She seemed really happy to see me," He smiled weakly, trying to invite more friendliness into the conversation. "I bet she'll be so excited to know that you're here too."

However, his expression ticked more and more curious, more nervous as the blade rose, studying it almost. He listened to what they said, and he swallowed hard.

"You... don't need that though," He murmured, one arm crossing as he nervously rubbed his sleeve. He was trying to be stern, especially after the conversation that he had with Frisk, "This place -- everyone's nice, a-and it's safe. You should b... be using that for other things, like cooking or maybe even just pruning plants or something."

hopefully not as a flower.

[buttercup_eater]

Chara chuckles at Asriel's words. They can feel the back of their skull throbbing. Somehow, they doubt Toriel will want to see them.

They lower their knife and watch the movements of Asriel's throat with interest as he swallows. He's nervous, they observe. Nervous, nervous, nervous, even with the fake bravado he's putting on it. It's just like he was the last time they saw him, before he started shaking all over and ran away. At the memory, another burst of laughter comes out.

"Cooking," they repeat. "And gardening. Asriel... You really don't understand anything. I don't do pointless things like those anymore."

hold on let me reset the timeline to 3 weeks ago

[littledreemurr]

[so that my tag isnt so late..........]

"It... It was just a suggestion," he shot back, mustering up a tad bit more courage within himself. He trusted Chara, even if the knife was present. "But they're not pointless! D-Don't you remember all of the fun we used to have?"

Even if he was still trying to act tough, he meant well. He just wanted a new start -- he didn't want to go back and have to experience what they did, especially after he had spoken to Frisk. He had to fix this, or at least try...

Even if it really didn't matter at the moment since they weren't in the Underground.

He had to try. "We can keep on doing that. Th-there's a lot of fun things on the island we can do."

[buttercup_eater]

"I remember a lot of things," Chara says. Does that make sense? They're not sure if it makes sense. They need to think, analyze the situation, they- they didn't expect to see Asriel again, not like this.

They shake their head, averting their gaze from Asriel's. "It doesn't work like that," they say. "I've... been employed towards a different sort of fun, Asriel."

Gaining power. Increasing their LV. Destroying things. Flowey would know what Chara means- but Asriel acts the way he did when Chara was still living innocently with the Dreemurrs. Before the buttercups. Before their partner came onto the scene.

Even if their partner isn't around right now, it's only a matter of time before something happens, isn't it?

[littledreemurr]

"Th... That's good then," He speaks softly, trailing off. The air is thick around him, he doesn't want to have to be like this -- but he knows that if he isn't too late he has to do something. At least he had hoped that.

Again, he swallowed hard, trying to get the courage to say something. If Chara was speaking the way they were, they had to be from a different part of the timeline. His gaze lowered away from Chara, voice becoming just a tad lower. "You're from the future then, aren't you?"

It was blunt the way he said it, but he had to give it a shot. He knew that if he was wrong and he hoped he was, that he could try to talk them out of it early. "Y-You don't have to do anything though. Thi-- Ther-- This isn't the Ruins, w-we don't have to worry about any of that right now."

[buttercup_eater]

The back of Chara's head throbs.

Even though they'd already figured as much, hearing Asriel bring up the possibility of time travel so bluntly makes their stomach plummet. They have a strange picture in their head of cold darkness welling up around them the way it does whenever they die, of time itself somehow reaching up through the clouds and the earth and the floor to snatch Chara up and swallow them whole.

"A future," they say, distantly. "I suppose that makes you from the past."

They never teach you how to deal with this sort of thing in school, Chara thinks, and the thought makes them giggle.

What Asriel says next makes them sober up. He's not terribly coherent, but one thing is terribly clear: He really doesn't know much about Chara's situation. He doesn't know about their partner, the one who walked with them every step of the way, the one who watched them every step of the way, the one who guided and the one who pushed, a maddening irresistible jerking that seemed as easy for them as it was for Chara to grind their way through monster after monster after monster after monster after monster...

Monsters like this past Asriel. Who probably doesn't realize how easy it would be for Chara to kill him, right then and there.

What would he say if they tried to explain...? But then, even the other child- even Frisk hadn't really known what they were talking about, and they'd been there. How could he possibly understand?

Chara doesn't know what to say. They stare at Asriel, waiting for him to provide any sort of input.

[littledreemurr]

He's aware in only the smallest sense of the word. He knows of only their death, and only of the sadness and destruction that it brings with it. He's not aware of how complicated it all is, how nothing seems to make sense but does in the same way, and of his own future.

He grows silent, the answer given wasn't expected at all. He was expecting more -- but at the same time he was glad he didn't. He wants nothing more than to try to continue to treat them as he had before he had came here, but he knows deep inside that it doesn't feel right, but he still tries.

"I am. But... I-I know what happens. I--" There's a visible pause, he looks down at his own paws and clenches his fists. He knows he has to be brave about this, "I was told. Frisk -- they told me."

[buttercup_eater]

Chara breathes in and out as quietly as they can manage. Asriel looks... determined now. Because of Frisk. And what they told him.

"Did they, now?" Chara says, pasting a placid smile on their face. Their throat feels too tight somehow, and they're surprised at how steady their voice sounds in comparison.

Asriel knows what happens in the future- well, so does Chara, obviously. And they can't help but think of how brave Asriel is being right now, standing up to them like this. And they can't help comparing it to how he was acting the last time they saw each other.

(* Creatures like us... Wouldn't hesitate to KILL each other if we got in each other's way.)

An impulse hits Chara, and they blurt out "Then you should know-"

They pause, and reach inside their pocket to grip the locket they took from Frisk, maintaining a stare upon Asriel's face the entire time. "-That I don't want to be friends with you anymore."

And it's better for everyone if they don't even try.