Chapter Text
Flowey says he is content with life on the surface. He kind of has to be, especially with the fact that he is stuck with Clover for as long as he has left to live. If this could be considered living.
After Frisk freed the monsters from the underground to live alongside humanity, Clover took it upon themselves to take care of Flowey. They said something aimlessly about how Chara would appreciate it. At first he retaliated, reminding them about the fact that Chara is still dead and bound to Frisk, but after months pass, Flowey lacks the energy to argue.
The two live with Martlet, since Clover had basically nowhere to go otherwise. Flowey and Martlet got…used to each other, he'll say. Clover made them get along, especially since they're living under her carefully built roof.
Flowey is supposed to be appreciative.
Nevertheless, they are on the surface, living in a time of peace, and Flowey lays with Clover atop a hill, looking out into the sunrise.
Alas, Flowey is a simple creature. Curiosity alone can only get him so far.
"Clover," he says plainly, in a way that is sure to get their attention. The human in question does not falter, continuing to gaze out into the sky, only nodding their head and humming a short mm in response.
Flowey is disgruntled by Clover's lack of acknowledgement. "Tell me about when you were dead."
At this, Clover cocks their head towards the flower. "You bored or 'sum?"
"Can't a guy be curious?!" The bud snaps. Then he turns away. "Whatever. Forget I asked."
Clover hums again, longer this time. "It was dark for a long time, yeah?"
Flowey perks his head up. "Yeah?"
"Not always," they begin. "Sometimes, if I brought out the strength deep within my soul… I saw them."
"Who?" Flowey tries to inch closer to the human, showing genuine interest. A rare sight, these days. "Who did you see?"
Clover looks amused, glancing down at Flowey before closing their eyes wistfully. "The others? Who else?"
"The others?" Flowey repeats, baffled. "The other human souls? You saw them?"
"I talked to them!" Clover clarifies. "Some more than the rest."
"Well—Well what do you remember?"
"The conversations weren't very long at all, Flowey," Clover grins awkwardly. "I didn't have a lot to go off of. One of the younger ones, Ellie, she said she died in the Ruins and that's basically all I heard from her before she disappeared without a trace!"
Flowey groans, letting his stem go boneless as his head plops onto the grass. "Of course. Why do I rely on you for anything?"
"Because I'm all you got, you little sociopath," Clover chuckles, leaning back with him. "There was… one thing."
"Let me guess, you shared some boring interest that never contributed anything to society?"
"You wish!" Clover pauses for a few moments, looking around for some odd reason before turning on their side, looking to Flowey. "Two of their stories overlapped."
"What?" Flowey turns to face Clover. "Who?"
"The soul of BRAVERY and the soul of KINDNESS," Clover explains, their voice so low that they're nearly whispering. "I think they were real good friends."
Then, after a beat, they add, "I think they were SOULmates."
‧₊˚❀༉‧₊˚.
The first time they recall being astounded by one of the interactions with the other souls, the other person got the first word out before they could.
"You're yellow," the boy blurts out astoundingly.
"And you're orange," Clover crosses their arms. "Aren't you the bravery soul? We've met before."
The other soul looks like they're rolling their eyes. Here, in the vast white space, where their physical forms are fluid and flame-like, unconstricted and easy to lose, nothing is truly constant. This one looks like they're about to blend in with the background. "Again with this bravery stuff! You and Percy both are gonna nag me until the end of time, aren't you?"
Clover stops. They press forward. "Percy? Who is that?"
"What do you care? You're just trying to get a story out of me! I'm not blabbing off to some journalist!"
This one seems particularly distrusting. Not as much as the one in glasses, but untrusting nonetheless. Clover presses again, "Is Percy someone you knew from the surface?"
"What?" The sound of knuckles cracking fills the nonexistent air. "No. Is—Does that mean—" The orange soul looks back and forth. "They have this dirty apron. Their hair is fluffier than a coat, and they're- they're so nice, sweeter than anyone you've ever known. They're alive. They have to be."
"If- If they're alive, buddy, I can't—" Clover yelps when the person grips onto Clover's arms. "Hey!"
"Please, they have to be alive, I… I have to see them!"
"Calm down, buddy, I—" Clover is about to say more, the soul's conscience scatters into the air once more, dancing with the wind.
Clover sighs, looking down at their imaginary feet. Then they ponder.
Percy. They will remember that name.
Percy, Percy…
"Percy."
"What?" Clover's head snaps up. Again, they feel like they're phasing in and out of time… How long have they just been speaking on autopilot?
"Oh, sorry," the soul laughs. This one is warmer, greener, and their form is more stable than a lot of the others. The last one that was this coherent was integrity, if they could remember correctly.
Clover frowns. They remember correctly, all right.
"I'm Percy. That's my name, since I remember you asked last time, Clover."
Clover blinks, taking a closer look at Percy. "Ah… you remembered my name?"
"Of course I did, Clover," Percy smiles. Clover can't see it, but they can feel it. Percy is smiling. It's warm just standing next to them. "You look like you just really gotta ask me something."
"I do!" Clover blurts out. "Do you know someone named—"
Clover stops. They don't remember his name. Damn it, Clover, you didn't get his name of all things? They hit themselves on the head, about to apologize when they feel the way Percy starts to falter, their form becoming more… unstable.
Percy breathes heavily, their voice shaky. "Augustus? Is he here?"
"I-I'm not sure," Clover murmurs. "Is he…brash? A bit hot-headed?"
Percy lets out a trembling laugh. "He's a warrior. And if you've seen him, and you're talking to me, that means… He really…"
Clover reaches out for Percy, watching their form start to shake. It becomes fiery, smokey, and all sorts of scattered. The soul lets out a weak "sorry" before dissipating fully into the wind.
Clover lets their hands fall to their sides.
This felt like something they had to do.
They had to find out, to help them.
They had to do the right thing.
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
It's the right thing, Percy tells themselves as they shakily lug themselves across the rocky blue path. Their feet are bare, making it extra painful whenever they fail to notice a stray crystal on the ground.
They did not come here for no reason. They jumped in that river with meticulous intent.
Percy does not know if they're going the right way. All around them is humidity, is rushing rivers, luminescent rock, is—
…Snow?
The human hugs their bruised and injured arm, lifting their head up. Sure enough, snow falls from the sky, gracing their skin carefully as they exit the damp caves.
It's… so cold.
Looking in front of them, there looks to be a town out in the distance.
A town… out…
After barely taking a step out into the snow, Percy's legs give out, and he topples out into the fluffy snow. They try to use the strength left in their arms to get up, but their left arm struggles first, managing to force them to land on it, letting out a strangled argh as they fall.
Percy breathes in and out. In, and out…
The scenery is so white. So fluffy…
White is their favorite color.
Their vision begins to blur. In the distance, they can hear someone exasperatedly shout out something incoherent before their consciousness starts to give out too.
It'd be unfortunate if this was how they ended, having never meant anything to a single soul.
Percy hugs the snow as tight he can muster.
They just want to be useful, for the first time. And now they're just going to be another inconvenience.
…When they wake up, which is a phenomenon they certainly didn't expect, they're met with warm oranges, jazzy music and soft, plush bedding to boot. Percy touches their arm, which has been since been wrapped in bandage tape and a sling made out of silk.
They attempt to prop themselves up into a sitting position, but they're stopped by gentle purple hands, pressing against their shoulder and the small of their back.
"Here, let me get that for you, hun." Her voice is soft and protective, Percy notes. Taking a closer look at her, she is a tall monster, resembling that of a purple bunny. Her eyes are kind, worn with wrinkles seen on those who take care of others. She helps Percy up, putting their back against the wall and feeling around their arm for any further injury.
When satisfied, she sits at the edge of the bed, smiling at them. "Hey there, hun. You're in my little sister's little inn. She's outta town right now visiting her husband, so don't worry about you getting found up here."
Percy nods slowly. He opens his mouth for a second to speak, but it closes back up.
"You're a human, aren't'cha?" Just from the look on Percy's face, she nods. "I'm QC, what's your name?"
"Percy," he replies weakly.
QC blinks and reaches behind her, picking up a steaming mug from the nightstand, handing it to Percy carefully. "Here, drink this. It's a little hot, but it should help your voice and any other injuries you got."
Percy blows uncomfortably cold air against the mug, tilting it up into his mouth. Almost instantaneously, their chest feels lighter and their throat clears up.
"Thank you," they say to QC. She smiles.
"Is it okay if I ask you a few questions?" Percy nods. QC folds her hands together, thinking about her next words. "Did you come from Waterfall? You were a little damp when I found ya."
Judging from the name, that must be the place with all the caves, and, well, waterfalls. Percy nods.
"Right. I guess it makes sense… All those waterfalls must connect to the surface at some point, yeah?" QC then frowns, clutching her pants. "Kid… You know that monsters don't really take kindly to humans, do you?"
"I know," Percy replies. QC looks surprised, as it's likely the first words he's said to her.
She lowers her shoulders, tilts her head to try to look at Percy. "Did you know when you came down here?"
After a beat, Percy lifts his head with a warm smile. "I did…"
QC smiles sadly. "You're not much of a talker, are ya?" Percy shakes his head. QC nods. She then continues, "Well, then let me help you out. I'll be right back."
Percy watches QC rise to her feet and walk out of the room. Examining the room itself, it was a nice place. The walls were nicely furnished, rugs fluffed, the table lined with various snacks as well as a bright lamp.
It's about as nice as any room they've ever been on.
The door creaks open again and QC walks back in, holding a few clothes and a backpack in her arms. Percy perks his head up at her, and she flashes a grin as she places it at the foot of the bed.
"Here we got this old hooded cloak that my mom used to own," she begins, pointing at the stack of clothes. "And also, I washed that little apron of yours and managed to get some stains out. Hope you don't mind, it was gettin' kinda dirty. Also, I found an old backpack in my shop, in case you gotta carry anything. I put a lil' notebook and on-the-go snacks in there. Hope you like my lil' care package, hehe."
Percy puts the mug down on the nightstand and crawls over to the edge of the bed, picking up the apron with gentle care. It's almost as soft as it used to be. He looks up towards QC. "Thank you."
"No problem, hun," QC grins. "In the future, remember to be stealthy going 'round the underground. Monsters aren't gonna be as friendly as me, 'kay? And if you ever want to visit," she grins, pointing back at the door, "I run the shop just next to here. If I'm not there, you can leave me a message through my sister, alright? She'll take kindly to ya."
Percy nods, slowly putting on their apron. "Are you going back there now?"
"Yeah, sorry, can't leave it unattended for too long. You'll be okay, though. I can see it in your eyes."
Percy pauses, looking up. "My eyes?"
She puts a hand on her hip, opening the door for herself. "Yeah. There's some people out there, where you take one look at their eyes, and you just know they got that SOUL in them, y'know?" At Percy's blank stare, she rolls her eyes and sighs. "You'll know it when you see it, kid. 'Til then, I'll see you later, yeah?"
Percy nods as QC walks out the door. They stare at their newly washed apron before getting off of the bed.
They put on the cloak and the backpack before walking out into the hallway, looking left and right…
Percy clutches their chest. It really does feel lighter.
He walks down the stairs and examines the room below. The reception desk was indeed empty, marked only by a closed orange book on its surface. The lamp in the corner looked faulty, flickering on and off. There's a red couch against the wall, looking really comfortable to lay on right now…
Percy shakes his head. He has to get out of here.
Walking past the warm interior and pushing the wooden door open, Percy is immediately met with a flurry of snow.
God, it's cold. It's a good thing the cloak they were gifted is as soft as…
…
Percy's eyes trail towards the faint traces of child-sized sneakers in the snow, almost completely hidden by more snowfall, headed towards the darkness of the forest.
Percy's brow furrows, and they take one big step foward to find—
The human yelps, backing up into the inn's door. They huff tiredly, looking down at their bare feet.
…Percy meekly walks over to QC's shop to ask for a pair of shoes.
.𖥔 ݁ ˖⋆ ˚❆
Augustus lets his head thud back against the cell window. He can't believe that he actually let himself get captured.
A quick look around the room and they could see a few basic amenities. Things like their items put neatly high on a shelf outside of the cell with snacks and a small mattress on the inside of their imprisonment, basking in the warm winter light from outside.
It's not that their accommodations were downright awful. Far from it, in fact—Augustus has taken his rest in worse conditions, but Toriel's was leagues better than this hastily put-together shack, and they would definitely appreciate it more if it hadn't been their imprisonment.
Augustus blows a puff of hot air, crossing his arms and slumping against the wall with his legs crossed.
Just then, he can hear the door creak open, though whoever it was is out of sight. He groans loudly and exaggeratedly, turning away from the cell bars and continuing his tactic of annoying his captors until they get so tired of his antics that they let him go. "Ugh, this AGAIN? Didn't your boss tell you to stop talking to me? And anyways, I'm not saying nothing or fighting in any more of your tournaments until you let me the hell out of here!"
When no response is given, Augustus pauses. Usually one of the lackeys would have talked over him by now. And now that he's thinking about it, they would probably be stupid enough to leave the door, unlocked, so…
Augustus turns his head.
He jolts, almost, seeing how close the intruder's gotten with such little to say. The figure is ominously cloaked in purple robes, with slim pale fingers coming out of the oversized sleeves to grip the cell bars. If Augustus concentrates really hard, they can make out sharp, pale green eyes.
Everything else about them is covered in shadow from their coverings. Another thing that doesn't make sense down here.
He wants to say Who are you? or What's with the disguise? but instead, alerted by how the stranger fumbles with the sliding lock, he snarls, "I don't need your help."
The voice scoffs. It's light, airy, and particularly masculine. Hot air fans out from inside their hood, and this is when Augustus fully sits up. The figure pulls off their hood, and—
Augustus blinks.
They're human.
Their skin is much paler than his, and their hair slightly damp, likely from the snow. When the human turns towards Augustus, he thinks for a slight second their eyes flash green again—but upon closer inspection it turns out to be much closer to a light gray.
Augustus slowly rises to his feet, coming closer to the bars as the grey-eyed boy looks him straight in the eye, unlatching the door's flimsy lock. When the door opens and Augustus doesn't move, they finally speak up. "It's…open now. Is there something keeping you here?"
"Uh, yeah," he frowns, crossing his arms again. "You're human. And suspicious. How do I know this isn't some magic… trick?"
They take a step back at this, weary of their every action. They look down at their feet, pulling on their cloak's hood strings. "Um… I'm sorry. I was just hoping I could help somebody, and you looked like you…"
Augustus breathes heavily, watching the boy slowly walk towards the door. After much longer than he should've waited, he slams his palm against his forehead, muttering "God, that kid's gonna get himself killed—Hey! Wait up!"
Augustus kicks the cell door wide open, grabbing his gloves and other items before rushing out the shack into the harsh cold. The figure turns around towards Augustus nervously, and this time he can see their face.
"Are you really human?"
The other one nods, hanging their head low. They start to say, "I really didn't mean to disturb you if you wanted to stay in there—"
"What's—" Augustus pauses, putting his palms up with an amused laugh. "Okay, first of all, I did not want to stay in that dang place for any longer than I had to. Second of all… My name's August. Don't call me Gus or Augustus," he extends his hand out. "What's your name?"
The stranger blinks, staring at August before shaking his hand. "I'm Percy."
"Percy? That's a nice name," August grins, gripping their hand firmly. Their hands are tattered, yet soft in their own way. "Sorry for the attitude. I wanted to thank you for letting me outta there."
Percy looks stunned, momentarily, before a smile graces their features. "You're welcome! What were you doing in there, anyway?"
"Ugh," August scoffs, hugging himself once more and drawing away from Percy's touch. "This pretentious oversized snowman and his damn lackeys jumped me from behind and made me participate as their warrior or something in some annual Snow Kingdom Tournament or something…"
"Oversized snowman?" Percy says shakily. August laughs to himself—they must be a huge scaredy cat. They're really lucky they have him around, lest they get themselves killed.
"Yeah, it was so stupid. He would throw snowballs at me until I had to hide out and sleep in that shack, and suddenly that cell was built around me when I woke up!"
"Snowman?" Percy repeats strangely.
August raises a brow. "Uh, yeah? What's up with you?"
"Behind you!" Percy yelps.
August wearily turns around behind him and, sure enough, his captor—large, floating, and foreboding—racing towards them with a large snarl on their face. "Oh, damn it—"
Percy grabs August by the hand, muttering a quick "Come on" before racing out in the snow. August yelps, almost tripping over his feet trying to keep up with Percy's pace.
Percy is fast. Incredibly fast, for someone of his stature. August jots this down in his mind palace.
The monster in the distance roars, chucking sizeably large snowballs at the two boys as they run in-between and swerve through the tall trees. It all happens so fast. Where August previously struggled just days before, Percy's impeccable reaction time makes it a breeze to find their way back to the… town..?
They run past the bridge. They run all the way to—
"There!" August yelps, pointing at a large elevator made out of show in the shape of a dog's mouth.
"Are you sure!?"
"Positive! He won't fit in there!"
"Okay!" Percy pulls himself and August into the oddly shaped elevator, slamming the doors closed.
Huffing with heavy hot air, August slumps against the back of it, feeling relief both from Percy lets go of their hand and from the slowing adrenaline in their chest. The room lights up and stirs to live, a soft mechanical sound coming out from the back. August hums, "Oh, this should take us down and distract them for a while."
Percy still stays standing, which makes August feel a little ostracized, looking and spinning around. "No," they then respond.
"No?" August sits up straighter, putting his hands on his knees. "'No' what?"
"No," Percy repeats, "This elevator is ascending, not descending."
August blinks, putting his hand against the chilly floor of the shaft, feeling around for the vibrations. He's only been in about three or four elevators his whole life, but sure enough, the elevator is going up.
Their suspicions are only confirmed when the movement comes to a stop and the elevator doors creak open—where the first thing they see is trees almost completely covered in snow leading a narrow path towards a cave not too terribly far into the distance, which not even eight seconds later is masked by a massive snowstorm that lasts for about the same amount of time.
August thuds his head against the back of the wall and takes a long sigh before looking up at Percy with the most snarky face he can muster. "Sorry, scaredy-cat. Looks like you're stuck with me for a while."
Percy looks down at him, putting his hood down before flashing a smile that comes off as kind of scary. "How do you know you're not stuck with me?" Then, after a bit of careful consideration that makes the follow-up a bit awkward, he adds on, "You're a bit of a slowpoke yourself."
"I-" August shakes his head, standing up and playfully punching Percy's arm. "Alright, you're getting way ahead of yourself, mister."
Percy laughs shallowly, following August out into the cold.
He looks glad to have made a friend.
He looks glad to be alive.
Clover opens their eyes again, staring down at their little bud. "Make sense?"
"What?" Flowey buffers. "That's it? That's all you're going to tell me?"
"Whaaat?" Clover presses their hand dramatically to their chest. "Flowey! You expected me, master of storytelling, to tell you my second favorite tale all in one sitting!? Who do you take me for?"
"I take you for a thorn in my side!"
"Aww, I— Hey, cause you're a flower? That one was pretty funny."
"Shut up! Fine! Tell me the rest tomorrow!"
"I'll think about it," Clover hums, tuning out Flowey's incessant blabbering as they look back out into the distance.
Huh.
It was already suppertime.