Hunger clawed at her insides. A ravenous feeling that stirred inside her like a tangle of worms. She had been wandering for a while now. She did not know how long. It had probably been a day or two but there was no sunlight to warm her or starlight to guide her. Just a strange consistent glow like twilight that hung overhead and never changed.

The wound in her leg had been deep. She had asked the voice if she could heal her but the voice said she was too worn out after bringing her back from the brink of death in the first place and had to conserve her energy now.

The voice, which said its name had once been Chara, tried her best to guide her through the place she simply dubbed "The Ruins."

Chara had saved them from more than one booby trap by now, leading them through puzzles she claimed to recall having some familiarity with once upon a forgotten time.

Rain was not sure just how old the voice was. Older than her for sure. Old enough that despite having apparently once known this place, her memory faltered and lead them down the wrong path and into dead ends on more than one occasion.

Rain learned a little more about the voice as they traveled together. She said she had once been a child who had fallen down into the mountain long ago. The first child. She spoke of how she had fallen in love with the place known as the Underground and had decided to stay; only to be betrayed in her time of greatest need by those she loved most. Yet somehow her spirit had managed to escape and cling to some form of awareness even after her body was gone.

She told Rain that many other children had fallen down since then. All of them lead away by a helping hand and a kind smile only to be later slaughtered like lambs later on.

They had been too weak to survive on their own or sustain Chara’s voice for long.

Rain was determined not to end up like these children. In a way that encounter with the flower had been a blessing. It had opened her eyes. And while she had originally feared the voice trapped inside her head, as the time stretched on she began to find that she was glad to have its company.

At first it had felt hungry. Slimy. Cruel and always grinning. But now that she had had time to adjust to the idea of it, it was not so bad. She enjoyed its strength. She took comfort in its bravery and confidence. It was like a part of her that she had always known was there was waking up for the first time and filling up gaps in her being she had been too afraid to acknowledge she had ever had.

She had always been such a shy, quiet girl growing up. The kind of person that never spoke because people talked over the top of her. The kind of person that got bumped into because no one ever noticed she was there. She had grown up tormented by her peers but never found the courage to raise her voice against them.

But now she had a guardian to watch over her even when her mortal eyes needed rest. She had a voice there to encourage her. A voice that listened. A voice that made her feel strong.

That voice was resting now. Sleeping deep inside of her. It seemed to need periods of rest quite often and they had just recently encountered a duo of monsters that had tiered them both out. Even though the voice had been there to guide her through everything she still had gotten hit more than once in her panic

Rain rested against a stone wall and pulled up her torn pant leg. The hole the flower had given her was still a nasty looking thing. It would leave an ugly scar for sure but seemed to be doing okay for now. It had a thick scab and didn’t look infected.

Next she rolled up her sleeve to check her freshest wound. A pair of nasty bites; one in the hand and one on the shoulder. The monsters that had attacked them- Chara had called them Froggits- had small needle like teeth that had sank right through her hoodie.

She shuddered at the thought of them and began to try and brush off the dust stains on her clothes. She had killed them with a sharp rock that now weighed heavy in her pocket. Watching their bodies just disintegrate after they died had been incredibly unnerving. Not to mention it made her worry about how she would feed herself. Would everything in this hellhole just turn to dust in her hands?

A rock tumbled free of its resting place somewhere up ahead. She froze, crouching low among the weeds. A few streets down, an eerie flame drifted through the darkness. She could just make out the vague silhouette of the flame’s owner, its white face illuminated in the dim light.

“Chara. Chara wake up. There’s something here.” She whispered through her teeth.

She felt the other human’s spirit stir inside her like disturbed smoke pooling itself together. “Oh? What is it this time? More of those stupid froggits?”

“Something bigger than a frog. Look.” She pointed out the moving flame.

“You can put your hand down; I can see you looking at it.” She chided.

“What is that thing?” She pulled her legs up close to her chest. It was wandering closer now. Most of its body seemed to be hidden by robes but its face was becoming more defined. Long floppy ears, horns, a more animalistic type of mouth…

“Shut up. Just think the words to me so we don’t get caught.” Chara paused for a moment, a sense of familiarity washing over them both. “Wow. I can’t believe she is still here. After all this time... I guess she never went back.”

“You know- oops.” She snapped her mouth shut. “You know it?”

“Of course. She was family once.”

“Family? You mean she was one of the ones who…?”

“Of course. Hold very still. If she is still standing guard over the Ruins then we will have to find a way past her.”

Rain pressed herself as far into the shadows as she could and held her breath. Once again her heart was racing. This monster was so much bigger than all the others she had seen thus far. She would probably only come up to the creature’s shoulder.

The flame grew closer and closer and soon she could hear the creature humming. The voice was soft but strong. A part of her - a new part of her- remembered the song.

“I think…. yes, she is going to find us.” Chara seemed to be more irritated than frightened by this prospect. Rain on the other hand, was a bundle of panicked nerves.

“Oh god. What are we going to do? That thing is massive!”

The voice laughed. “You underestimate yourself. I think I know what she will do. Quick, take off your hoodie. Hide it under the stones. If she sees the dust we will be in trouble.”

Hands shaking, Rain pulled off the torn hoodie and stuffed it into the corner among the weeds and placed a couple of stones on top of it.

The humming was growing louder as the flame drifted closer. The footsteps were crunching on gravel and dry grass. Then all at once the humming stopped. Rain’s movements had rustled the weeds too much.

“Hello?” The creature called out. “Is someone there?” The monster crept closer, peering over half crumbled walls and peeking over bushes.

Rain took a deeper breath and held it when the light illuminated her face.

The figured paused, taking a step back. The monster took in a strange, sudden breath. “Oh!” She said, then with more realization and a warmer tone, repeated herself. “Oh, hello.”

Rain gripped the stone in her pocket. It felt so pitiful and worthless.

“Easy now. She’s only made of dust like the rest of them. She knows this.”

“Greetings, human. Do not be afraid. I will not harm you.” Her voice was strong yet soft. It was like a heavy blanket being draped over her shoulders on a cold day. It was so strange to hear something so steady and soft coming from such a creature.

“I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins. I come through here every day looking for humans who have fallen down into the Underground. Although, I must admit, I have never seen one wander this deep into the catacombs on their own before. Are you alright?” She stooped closer, warm flames casting strange shadows across both their faces.

Rain shrank away from the flames, every muscle in her body tensing.

“Are you alright?” Toriel repeated with a frown, “Can you…speak?”

Her voice came out in a croaking whisper. “Y-yes.”

Toriel’s violet eyes darted down to the wounds on her arm. “Oh my! It seems like you have been having a rough day. Please, allow me to assist you.” She held out one large clawed hand and offered her a reassuring smile.

Rain felt herself torn in two by reasoning. This monster seemed nice. There was something reassuring about her voice. But the firelight created strange inhuman sparks in her eyes. The soft fur of her hands hid large claws and her welcoming smile reviled a large, sharp pair of canines.

Rain gave her a suspicious glare. She knew all too well how easy it was for someone to feign a motherly persona.

“Do it.”

“What!”

“The Ruins have decayed too much since I was last awake. She will be guarding the gate. We will have to follow her back to her home. Don’t worry. She won’t kill you. Not yet. Now get up.”

Rain opened her mouth in surprise when she took Toriel’s hand before she even realized she had made the choice to do so.

Toriel’s smile widened and her eyes nearly squinted shut. “Ah, there we go. Not so scary now, see? Come along then, I will lead you through the catacombs. I live not far from here.” She tilted her head curiously when she noticed Rain’s limp. “Is your leg injured too? You can still walk on your own, can you not? I can heal you if you would like.”

“Don’t let her see that you are weakened.” Chara warned.

“No. No I’m fine.” She croaked.

“Very well. Come along then.” She led them back through the way she had come. Past old, elegant crumbling flights of stairs, strange pockets of sourceless light and the occasional half-dead tree surrounded by a moat of its own leaves,.

“I must admit, I am rather surprised to see someone of your age down here.”

Rain was trying to find her voice now due to a constant stream of instructions from Chara. Her words came out in a hoarse whisper. “What do you mean? If you think it’s necessary to come looking for humans then they people of all ages must fall down here all the time, right?”

“Actually it is rather rare to find one down here.” She looked down at the floor as they walked, her ears becoming a curtain to hide her true expression. “At least, it’s rare to find them alive. They usually don’t survive the fall.” She let out a small sigh. “But it’s best not to dwell on such things. The true oddity of your appearance is that you are much older than any of the others. I have only ever seen children fall down here. How old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?”

To her surprise she had to think long and hard about this question. Just like when she had forgotten her real name, her age did its best to evade her. She knew she was an adult. A really young one. But how young? She felt a flash of panic when she realized she didn’t know the answer.

Toriel mistook her confusion for offense. “Ah, well I suppose it does not matter. We monsters don’t keep close track of our age either. We live for so long and down here without the sun to mark the passing of time, years just sort of seems to slip by when no one is looking.” She glanced sideways at Rain, seeming worried about something. “Are there… more people like you near our mountain? Adults?”

Rain shrugged, trying to dismiss the internal panic of not being able to recall her age. “Not really. Just a few houses down in the valley. A town with a diner is a few minutes’ drive away I guess.”

“Do they… climb the mountain often?”

She felt shame crawl up her throat. “No.”

“Oh. Well, good. It’s probably for the best. It’s not safe down here.” Her voice soured. “There are a lot of horrible, violent people in the Underground. I wouldn’t want to see anyone get hurt.”

The voice laughed at this.

“I guess the last big storm finally opened up one of the surface openings a little more, correct? I don’t think the opening was very large before but if you are here then I guess that’s changed.”

“Guess so.”

Toriel watched her out of the corner of her eye. It caused Rain to fall behind a few steps, a wary eye always trained on her flames. She had never been very fond of fire.

“So, how did you fall? What happened?”

Rain Bit her lip and tried to think of an easy way to dance around the truth. “I guess you could say I was trying to find something... someone... I just wanted to be with them again.” She lowered her eyes at the memory.

Toriel fell strangely silent at this, head cloaked by shameful shadows. She did not speak another word until a house in a lesser state of disrepair than the rest of the ruins came into view. The windows had a warm glow in them and a gnarled and twisted old tree stood sentry in the front yard.

Rain cast several wary glances at the flower bed out front before Toriel managed to get her to go inside.

“Well, here we are. It’s not much but its home. You can stay as long as you like. I even have a room set up in the event I find someone like you wandering around, so feel free to make yourself at home. Hopefully the bed won’t be too small.”

Rain poked her nose inside. Her stomach continued to do nervous flips but thus far nothing overly horrible had happened. She still wasn’t too keen to trust Toriel's motherly persona but so far the caretaker of the Ruins did not seem all that bad.

The inside of the house seemed to have been much better maintained than the outside. It was cozy to say the least. Most rooms were decorated with several plants, golden flowers seeming to be an unnerving favorite among them.

“Have you eaten anything lately, dear?” Toriel called from a few rooms away. The clatter of pots and pans echoed through the halls.

Rain wandered through the living room. “No. No it’s probably been a few days now.” She couldn’t help but feel excited at the prospect of food. She hoped it wouldn’t turn to dust when she touched it.

Chara tsked at her willingness to admit she had gone without eating for so long. “Careful.” She warned.

Rain let go of a fire iron she had not noticed she had been inspecting. Before she even thought to question it she concluded it was dull and thus boring and moved on before her mind had a chance to realize the thought had not been her own.

“Well I was planning on making a nice snail pie tonight. There should be enough for the both of us if you are interested. I usually like to celebrate meeting new friends by making a Cinnamon Butcher scotch pie but it’s so late in the day, it wouldn’t be done until way past a reasonable hour. So perhaps we can save that idea for tomorrow? Toriel poked her head around the corner while she dried her hands off with a rag. “You will stay until then, will you not?”

Rain’s stomach squirmed. She had not missed the forced emphasis on the invitation. It sent up red flags in her already suspicious mind. “Actually I should get going as soon as possible. Wouldn’t want to trouble you.”

“Oh. Well I understand snails can be a bit of an acquired taste. If you really don’t want them I can try and get the ingredients for Cinnamon Butterscotch-”

“It’s not that. I just- I don’t think I should be staying here for long. I have to find my way back home so…”

Toriel did not seem pleased to hear this. She opened and closed her mouth several times. She looked like she was on the verge of giving her some kind of order, only to give up in frustration at the last second. Her words were a little more clipped when next she spoke. “Well, I suppose I cannot stop you. You are an adult after all. But I don’t think you will like what’s out there. So I hope you will at least stay here long enough to regain your strength. I will even pack you a lunch if you are still here by tomorrow.”

“You shouldn’t have done that.”

“Done what?”

“Told her you planned on leaving. Her strategy is to keep you here as long as possible. If you’re not going to stay then she will probably do something drastic, something less predictable, to keep you here. She can’t slowly poison you like she did with me.”

“Poison? She poisoned you?”

The voice laughed. “Of course! What else do you think the Cinnamon Butterscotch pie is for? Stupid kids love sweets. Too bad she tends to confuse Buttercups with cups of butter whenever she makes it!” Chara all but cackled.

Toriel had reemerged from her kitchen to find Rain standing slack-jawed and wide-eyed in the middle of her living room. “Are you alright?”

Rain shook herself from her internal conversation. “Yeah. Fine. Thanks. Yup! So fine. Just fine. Yeah. Kinda tired.” What the hell had she gotten herself in to?

“Oh. Well the spare bedroom is the first door down the hall over there.” She pointed down the hallway with a single claw. “Also the washroom is being renovated but so long as you don’t use the sink and make sure not to get water on the floor, you can take a shower if you want. I will have dinner ready soon.”

“Thanks.” She murmured, wandering off before she was forced to do any more talking.

Sure enough there was an unoccupied bedroom waiting for her down the hall. The bed looked comfortable but she resisted its siren’s call and explored the rest of the house.

“Maybe she has changed.” Rain offered, trying to convince herself of the idea just as much as she was trying to convince Chara. “Maybe we have nothing to worry about. Maybe we will be ok”

“I doubt that.”

“Maybe she’s trying to be a better person.” People could change, right? Just because she had never seen it happen in her own life didn’t mean it was impossible.

“No.”

She pressed her lips into a fine line but didn’t press the issue and instead checked the door at the end of the hall. She felt weird sneaking into Toriel’s room but she felt it was necessary. She frowned when she found no incriminating evidence against her. No secret poisons or weapons, no creepy items or incriminating documents. She had a few journals but they were just filled with really bad jokes.

She shook her head in distaste and slipped back out of the room. She stopped dead in her tracks and did a double take when she caught sight of herself in the hallway mirror. She scowled at her reflection for several seconds. It seemed …off.

With a start of disbelief she realized she wasn’t sure what she was supposed to look like in the first place. That was another detail that had been lost to the looming haze that clung to her mind. All she knew was there were things that were now different from how they used to be.

Maybe it was just the lack of sleep that made her eyes look funny. Or perhaps all this unexpected stress just wasn’t good for her posture!

But she couldn’t ignore the feeling that something was very wrong with her hair. It was supposed to be bright red but it had white streaks in it now. She tried to brush away the white in a fit of panic. “Oh shit, you don’t think Toriel saw the dust in my hair, do you?”

“I don’t think so.”

It wasn’t coming out. Not all of it. She cast a desperate look at the bathroom door and slipped inside. “Well just another good reason to get a shower in before we go. You think it will be safe? She won’t like, come in here when I’m at my most vulnerable, right?”

“You have time.”

She pulled off her ratty clothes and stepped into the unremarkable tub, hissing when the fabric snagged on the wounds she had hid from Toriel.

Despite having craved a nice long shower for some time now, the experience was less than satisfying. The water on her raw skin ached and stung. There didn’t seem to be much warm water because even when she turned it up as far as it would go she still felt a sense of cold curling up inside of her that the water could not penetrate.

Her heart skipped a beat at every distant sound, always causing her to send a panicked glance towards the door. Fearing that at any moment, she would have to fight a monster while she was naked.

When she noticed the color of the water running off of her it made her queasy. It took a long time to get the dust out of her hair and even longer for the water to run clear again.

The smell of scented soaps was nice. Comforting even. They reminded her of her favorite lilac shampoo. She sank down into the bottom of the tub and hugged the half empty bottle.

Chara’s awareness whipped back around in surprise when she sensed Rain unraveling. “Hey. What’s wrong? Are you crying? Stop that!”

Rain wiped at her eyes, a pointless motion. “Nothing. It’s stupid. It’s just... the shampoo reminds me of the brand my parents used to buy. And it finally hit me that I’m probably never going back to that.”

“You’re homesick? Now? You fell into the Underground because you were trying to kill yourself! Surely what you left behind wasn’t that great.”

“No.” She sniffed, “It wasn’t. But at least I understood what was going on. At least I knew who and where I was. It’s all so dark and confusing now.”

“Well, don’t worry Rain. I will get us both out of here. I promise. All you have to do is trust me and stay Determined. That’s why I saved you after all: your Determination. It helped you survive the fall when you decided you didn’t really want to die. As long as you hold on to that will to live, no one can keep us from getting out of here. Alright?”

She wiped her nose. “Alright. Thanks, Chara. I honestly don’t know what I would do without you.”

***

Chara has to assure her several times that the risk of being poisoned on such short notice was relatively low before Rain could work up the courage to take a bite of anything Toriel had presented for dinner. Even then her hands shook a little. It frustrated her that Chara could be so confident while she still rattled around like a stray wind-tossed leaf inside of her own head.

Eventually hunger trumped her suspicion and she ate the pie. It wasn’t half bad to be honest. Chewy but buttery. The crust was great. They had some homemade bread and preserves to go with it too. She probably ate more than her fair share of that.

“Do you like it? I hope it’s not too chewy.” Toriel watched her eat with a warm smile, hands delicately placed before her on the table.

“It’s wonderful. Thank you. It’s nice to eat something warm again. I was chewing on grass and bugs there for a while.” She said, only half joking.

Toriel laughed, closing her eyes and causing the tips of her teeth to flash. “Well I’m glad my cooking is better than grass. I’m afraid there is no escaping the bugs though!”

Rain smiled a little. Toriel was an intimidating monster to behold but she was starting to wonder if perhaps she was just lonely.

“Rain, don’t let your guard down.” Chara warned.

“How do you like the bread? It’s been a while since I have made it.”

“It’s good. Reminds me of Thanksgivings back home. I had a friend who made fresh rolls like this every time there was a holiday.”

Toriel gave her an absent smile while taking up a fork to pick at her own slice of pie. “Oh? How nice.”

“Yeah. It really was.” Rain got a distant look in her eye. “Neither one of us had much in the way of family to hang out with during the holidays so we would just throw a little something together on the side like that. Make turkey sandwiches or something. Watch really dumb holiday specials on the computer, have leaf fights if it wasn’t too cold out, stuff like that.”

“Seems like you were lucky enough to know a very lovely person.” She let out a wistful sigh and propped her head in her free hand. “I always admired humans like that. Like you. You all have so much power, more than you ever seem to know, yet so many of you choose to be gentle and kind, do you not?” Her smile grew as she helped herself to another slice of bread. “Is cooking seen as a common hobby for humans now? Most monsters are not that concerned with it down here.”

“I don’t know. Depends on the person I guess.”

“Ah. I was just curious. You see, I got this lovely bread recipe for a nice young man that fell down here a few years ago. Smart boy, very kind. He simply loved to cook.” Her smile slipped a little. “He said it reminded him of home.”

Rain choked.

“Are you alright? Here, let me refill your glass.” She leaned over the table with a creak and poured her a fresh glass of ice cold water from the pitcher.

Rain fell deathly silent. She looked at the half eaten loaf of bread and was no longer hungry. She felt sick.

“Dear? What’s wrong?”

“What was his name?”

Toriel frowned. “The boy?”

“Yes. The boy. What was his name. How old was he?”

“Oh. Um, sixteen, perhaps? He was a lanky thing with a head of hair that never wanted to behave. His name was Daniel.” Toriel was looking away from her now. The fire burning in the fireplace sent dark shadows across her eyes. “Did you… know him?”

Rain nodded, feeling that sickness rise into her throat now. “Is he- did he?” She choked again and cleared her throat. “What happened to him?”

Toriel bowed her head. “I am sorry that I must be the one to tell you this, but Daniel, your friend…He is gone my dear. Just like the rest of them. I warned him not to stray from my protection but he wouldn’t listen and, well…” She stood up just a little too fast to be casual and picked up her plate. “You plan to leave too, do you not? Take the same path as the rest? It seems to be a strong characteristic in humans; never being happy with where you are or with what you have until you lose it.” Her voice became a low murmur and her eyes became distant. “Will you be leaving me here alone to dig another empty grave as well?”

Rain looked away to hide the return of her tears.

“Of course. They always do.” She let out a slow breath. “It’s getting late. Why don’t you get some rest? If you truly hate it here so much then I imagine you will want to be gone in the morning. Just like the others. Off to feed the beast.”

Rain excused herself without another word and hid herself away within the calming dark of the guest room. She could still feel Toriel’s words clawing at her back long after the sound of her footsteps had gone quiet.

Dead. He was dead. Her best friend was dead. She had known it for a long time now -he had been missing for years. But for a split second she had been given a reason to hope and now it was like burying his empty casket all over again.

“She’s planning something now. Why did you have to let your mouth run like that?”

“I had to know what happened to him.”

“The boy?”

“He was my best friend.” Rain drifted around the room, seeing but not quite taking in all the things in it. The walls were painted a garish color that hurt her eyes. There was a box full of old toys from lives long past.

...There was a box of shoes.

She collapsed onto her hands and knees and pulled out a familiar pair from the pile. Her hands trembled. She felt a wave of anger burn its way up her throat. “We were family. There's not that many people that live near the mountain. Not many friends you can make. My parents were violent; his were kind but always away due to work related demands. The walk to each others house took twenty minutes in good weather.

“I would walk up hill to his house at the end of every school day; even when it was snowing. Come Friday I would stay there all weekend.”

She held the shoes close. Black and green sneakers. Green had been his favorite color. They were dirty and singed around the edges for some reason.

“He let me hide there from the arguments. He was really quiet and shy at first and I thought I was bothering him but he enjoyed the company.

“A few years back his family set aside some vacation time in the summer. They wanted to go camping and see the sunrise… He was so excited to spend time with his parents. He invited me to go with them but my parents wouldn’t let me. We joked about the rumors about mount Ebott but they were just jokes.” She scoffed at her own ignorance. “Jokes that stopped being funny when they missed their return date. I had to be the one to report them missing. They eventually found the bodies of his parents… but they never found him.”

Chara’s grim and curious presence leaned in a little closer to inspect the shoes. “I wonder how Toriel got these if he died after he left like she claims.” Rain felt the sensation of being stared at, Chara’s voice taking on a poorly feigned ignorance. “Did you notice the burn marks?”

Rain pressed her lips into a thin line and dropped the shoes like they were hot. She paced the room, her hands slowly turned into fists now. “He would never hurt a fly! He’d sooner give it a home cooked meal and send it on its way than swat it! If he fell down here all he would have wanted was to get back home. And they… killed him! Him! Daniel! The boy who used to stand so still he got birds to eat out of his hand. They just…”

“Ripped his soul from his body and kept it for themselves.” Chara concluded, unflinchingly blunt. “And if you don’t toughen up you will be well on your way to being their next victim.”

“Did you know him? Did you try to save him too?”

Chara stirred inside of her. A shadow delving deeper and deeper inside itself in search of something. “Perhaps. I may have I offered him my help. But if I did then he rejected it and went on alone. And I fell back into a dreamless slumber and forgot his name.”

Rain sank down onto the bed and slowly tried to digest all of this. Eventually she fell asleep listening to the voice whisper to her. Telling her what their plan of escape would be. They would wake up late at night when Toriel was sleeping and take whatever supplies they could and be on their way. Chara assured her that she knew the way out of the Ruins from here.

So long as Toriel didn’t get in their way they wouldn’t try to fight her. Yet part of Rain hoped she would wake up and try to stop them. She just wanted to have an excuse to fight someone. Anyone. A shadow clung to her heart and cried out for retribution. Somewhere out there was a monster who had ripped her best friends soul from his body.

…How had Toriel gotten his shoes back anyway?

That night Rain watched her best friend die over and over in her dreams. She watched him run, beg, plead and cry for mercy. He just wanted to go home.

She watched shadowed faces rip his heart out and laugh.

She watched him smile sadly to his killer in each nightmare and whisper the same thing to them that he had always said to her whenever she had messed up.

“It’s alright. I understand. And I forgive you.”