//------------------------------// // How We Got Here // Story: My Little Undertale // by CTVulpin //------------------------------// It’s hard to move past a history of mistreating one’s peers and a reputation as a spoiled brat, but Diamond Tiara was determined to do it. Financing the new playground for Ponyille’s schoolhouse had only been the first step. The Filly’s new quest was to make a personal apology to every pony she had ever insulted, mocked, or bullied. It was a long list, but ponies were generally quick to forgive, and especially so after the Cutie Mark Crusaders set the precedent. It took several days just to get through all the colts and fillies at school, and there were still around two dozen adult ponies after that which Diamond Tiara felt obliged to apologize to. The Cutie Mark Crusaders continued to be helpful in tracking down the ponies Diamond Tiara sought. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Bell, and Scootaloo had tried so many different things in their quest to earn their cutie marks that they knew the routines of almost everyone in Ponyille better than anypony except Pinkie Pie. Apple Bloom was accompanying Diamond Tiara on the day she hit her first significant speedbump. Diamond Tiara had just escaped from the long-winded friendship lecture her apology to Princess Twilight Sparkle had mutated into and gave Apple Bloom a weary nod. Apple Bloom chuckled as she scratched Twilight’s name off Diamond Tiara’s list. “You musta caught her in a particularly good mood, judgin’ by how long that took ya,” AB said. “She wanted to make absolutely sure I understood how proud she was that I’m undertaking this project,” Diamond Tiara responded, “especially since nopony’s making me do it. As if I didn’t already know about the importance of forgiveness in making new friends and repairing old friendships.” She stuck out her tongue in mock disgust and then shared a laugh with Apple Bloom. “Anyway,” Diamond Tiara went on, checking the position of the sun, “I think there’s enough time to scratch off one last name today. Who’s next?” Apple Bloom’s eyes slid down the list, and her eyebrows went up. “Zecora?” she said in surprise before leveling a glower at Diamond Tiara. “What they hay did you ever do ta Zecora?” Diamond Tiara started to answer, but stopped in confusion before she got the first word out. “I don’t remember exactly,” she said, “but if her name’s on the list, I must have done something nasty. Spreading rumors about her, most likely.” “You and every other pony in Ponyille, before Twilight came to town,” Apple Bloom said in a dismissive manner. “That’s real old news, DT, and Zecora doesn’t hold a grudge against anypony for it.” “I must have put her name on the list for a reason,” Diamond Tiara said. “Maybe she’ll remember if I ask her about it.” She started to walk in the direction of the Everfree Forest, but Apple Bloom pulled her back and turned her around. “Nuh-uh,” the yellow filly said, “There’s no way I’m letting you try to walk to her hut; it’s too far to get there and back before dark, and trust me: that forest is dangerous enough in the daylight!” Diamond Tiara got a petulant look on her face, but Apple Bloom pressed on before the Filly could go off. “Zecora’s due ta come into town in a couple days anyway. Ya can talk to her then, ok?” Diamond Tiara blinked, and then her eyes went wide. “You’re right,” she said. “I don’t know why I was even thinking of going into those nasty woods.” “Least ya came back to your senses,” Apple Bloom said with a smile. Holding out the list, she asked, “Wanna move on to the next pony then?” Diamond Tiara shook her head. “I don’t feel like it anymore,” she said. “I think I’ll just go home and try to remember why I need to apologize to Zecora.” Apple Bloom nodded, rolled the list up and passed it to the Filly, and the two parted ways. As Diamond Tiara walked through the streets of Ponyville, she couldn’t get her mind off of Zecora’s presence on her apology list. The Filly wracked her memory, but she could barely recall how many times she’d actually interacted with the zebra mystic, let alone any particularly nasty incidents that had been aimed at her. “Ugh,” she mumbled after a while, “I don’t even remember writing her name down in the first place.” A rabbit hopped across Diamond Tiara’s path, causing her to stop and realize that she’d somehow wandered to the edge of town nearest the Everfree Forest. “I need to stop thinking about this,” she said to herself as she turned around to head home. But only Zecora can answer my question. Twilight and Apple Bloom both go visit her like it’s nothing, so she can’t live that deep into the woods. Diamond Tiara hesitated only for a moment, and then turned back around and ran into the Everfree Forest. “I came back to my senses eventually,” Diamond Tiara said, toying with one of the French fries on her plate, “but I was completely lost by then, and it was getting dark. I stumbled around looking for the path for a while, and then tripped over a root and fell into a deep hole. The fall must have knocked me out, because the next thing I knew I was in the Ruins and the sun was shining down on me from the hole.” She looked over at Sans, sitting next to her at the counter of Grillby’s restaurant. The skeleton was staring off into space, apparently ignoring both the Filly and his own plate of fries, so Diamond Tiara cuffed him on the shoulder. “Hey! Are you listening?” “uh huh,” Sans said, “it’s a real interesting story. what happened next?” “Well,” Diamond Tiara said, “right after I got up I met this crazy flower monster that tried to kill me. Then the old lady who guards the ruins showed up and chased the flower off, or so I thought. As the lady was introducing herself to me, the flower came back, wrapped her up, and tried to use her to kill me again. I-” Slam Diamond Tiara jumped as Sans’s fist pounded the countertop and his skull jerked around to stare at her intently. His eyes were glowing blue. “Flowey attacked Toriel?” Sans exclaimed. “He’s never… uh…” He hesitated and looked around to see that his outburst had drawn the attention of all the other restaurant patrons. “sorry, everyone,” he said, and then turned back to Diamond Tiara, the glow in his eyes fading as he asked in a low tone, “what happened to toriel?” “She’s fine,” Diamond Tiara said reassuringly. “I managed to pull Flowey off of her before he made her hurt me too bad.” Sans’s shoulders relaxed in relief. “Do… do you know Toriel?” the Filly asked. “yes,” Sans replied, staring down at his fries with faintly glowing eyes, “flowey too, but i know them both far better than i ought to at this point in time.” “What?” Sans got off his stool and turned toward the door. “we should continue this somewhere more private. you know where my house is?” Diamond Tiara nodded. “meet me there,” Sans said. He took a couple steps, but stopped when Grillby rapped a glass on the counter. “put it on my tab,” Sans said simply, and then walked out the door. As soon as the door closed, the silence that had fallen over the other patrons broke as they began gossiping with one another. Diamond Tiara caught snatches of the conversation among the dog sentries as she got off her own stool and headed for the exit. “It’s not like him.” “Yeah, he didn’t even joke about having her pay for the meal.” “No ketchup prank either.” “Wasn’t Toriel the…” Diamond Tiara exited the restaurant and trotted down the snow-packed road to the skeleton brothers’s two-story, holiday light-festooned house. Inside, she saw Papyrus in the kitchen flailing at a pot of dry spaghetti with such enthusiasm that he didn’t seem to notice her entrance. Sans was seated on the couch. As Diamond Tiara hopped up to join him, the cushions jangled with lost change. Sans leaned back and stared up at the ceiling for a moment, and then spoke. “let me tell you a little history of the underground.” “Long ago, Humans and Monsters lived together on the surface. One day, however, war broke out between the two races, and the monsters lost. They were driven to Mt. Ebott and then down into these caverns. The humans sealed the monsters in with a magic spell. We started out in what are now called the Ruins, but when things became too crowded we explored deeper into the caverns. Groups broke off to settle here in Snowdin, Waterfall, and around Hotland, but most of the monsters followed our king all the way to the end, where they found an exit to the surface blocked by the seal. We built the capital there and tried to settle into our new life. The King and Queen tried to keep us from losing hope, but it was a hard struggle. “Then a child came to Mt. Ebott and fell down into the Underground, and everything changed.” Papyrus came out of the kitchen as Sans paused in his tale. “OH, IS IT STORYTIME ALREADY?” Papyrus said. “JUST A MOMENT.” He ran back into the kitchen then came out with a bowl of spaghetti and sat down on the other side of Diamond Tiara. “GO AHEAD, SANS.” “sure thing,” Sans said with a grin. “Frisk held the fate of the whole Underground in their hands. They traveled from the Ruins to the king’s throne itself, making friends with every monster they encountered despite the hardships they were put through, and in the end found a way to destroy the barrier and free us all. “Except, sometimes they let fear, ignorance, or frustration guide their hand to kill some of the monsters who blocked their path, and simply passed through the barrier alone after ending the king’s plan to free us. “Sometimes Frisk just gave up at some point along the path. “And, at least once, they carved a bloody path through the underground, systematically hunting down and killing every monster they could find. I finally had to step in and cut them down myself, but not before the underground was mostly depopulated.” “W-what…” Diamond Tiara stammered, horrified. Papyrus was staring his brother with a similar expression. “YOU… YOU’RE MAKING THIS UP, RIGHT SANS? BECAUSE I DON’T REMEMBER ANY OF THIS.” “that’s because none of that has happened,” Sans said, “this time.” “OH,” Papyrus said with sudden epiphany, “THIS IS MORE OF THAT TIME AND SPACE STUFF YOU LIKE MESSING WITH. I NEVER UNDERSTAND THAT, SO…” He stood up and went upstairs. “Time and space?” Diamond Tiara asked. “Are you a time traveler, Sans?” “sort of,” Sans demurred. “i know there are… have been other timelines, but i mostly just go along for the ride. it all centers around frisk, you see. they, or some power that’s attached to them, has the power to SAVE and go back in time to fix mistakes or make different decisions. only a few people are ever aware on a conscious level that a reset has taken place, and i’m one of them. flowey is another.” Sans sighed and looked up at the ceiling again, longingly. “the last loop i can remember ended the best way possible: the barrier was destroyed and everyone lived happily ever after. i thought that was the end of it, that since everyone was making new, great lives on the surface among the humans, there was no reason for frisk to reset time. “but then something went terribly wrong.” Sans looked at Diamond Tiara with glowing eyes. “i woke up back here in snowdin, with everything back to the way it was before frisk came through. i could have lived with that, but that wasn’t the worst part. things are different. i remember the last loop too clearly, including events i wasn’t even present for. and toriel… before the kid arrives, i’m supposed to strike up a friendship with tori by trading bad knock-knock jokes through the ruins door, and then she has me promise not to harm any humans who come out of that door. this time, however, her jokes weren’t… quite right. too grim and not corny enough. then, instead of the usual promise, she repeated my standing orders to kill any human i find.” “That wasn’t Toriel!” Diamond Tiara exclaimed. “She told me she’s seen Flowey at the Ruins door, mimicking her voice to talk to… you I guess. Toriel even warned me to be extra careful because she heard Flowey telling you to kill anything that left the Ruins.” “interesting,” Sans murmured. “well, i guess that leaves only one, very big puzzle.” “Me,” the Filly said. “I’m not part of your story, so why am I here? How did I even get here in the first place? I fell into a hole in a forest, but you said the entrance is on a mountain, right?” Sans nodded. “So how does that work?” Diamond Tiara wondered, “Will the exit lead back to Equestria, or the surface world you’re expecting?” Sans gave her a thumbs-up. “you’re a sharp one, diamond tiara,” he said, “no bones about it. the only way to solve that mystery is to get to the barrier and see what lies on the other side. to be honest, i hope it leads out to the earth it’s supposed to, and that frisk is out there somewhere waiting to be found.” “Well, I’d prefer to be able to go home, thank you!” Diamond Tiara said, giving the skeleton a sideways look. Sans just shrugged and said, “what will be will be.” “S-SANS!” Papyrus came running down the stairs in a state resembling panic. “SANS, COME QUICK! THAT FLOWER I TOLD YOU ABOUT IS IN MY ROOM RIGHT NOW!” Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, however, he suddenly calmed and scratched his skull in confusion. “I… JUST FORGOT WHAT I WANTED TO TELL YOU.” “your timing’s perfect though,” Sans said, getting up off the couch. “have you reported to undyne yet today?” “NO,” Papyrus said, “I DON’T EXACTLY HAVE ANYTHING WORTH REPORTING. WAIT, SINCE WHEN DO YOU CARE IF I’M DOING MY JOB? YOU BARELY CARE ABOUT YOUR OWN JOB! ER, JOBS!!!” Sans ignored the criticism and gave his brother a dead-serious look. “a stranger that’s neither a human or a monster has shown up in the underground and you don’t think undyne would want to know about it?” he asked. Papyrus started to sweat – which surprised Diamond Tiara less than she expected – and stammered, “UH, R-RIGHT, I GUESS SHE WOULD.” Sans nodded in satisfaction. “ok,” he said. “do a me favor and tell her that diamond tiara needs to meet with the king.” Papyrus grinned. “OF COURSE!” he exclaimed, “I WAS GOING TO RECOMMEND THE PONY GO MEET THE KING AS WELL! …EVENTUALLY.” “Can I ask why?” Diamond Tiara cut in. Papyrus gave the Filly a pat on the head. “THE KING GUARDS THE BARRIER,” he said, “SO YOU’LL HAVE TO PASS THROUGH HIS THRONE ROOM TO LEAVE ANYWAY. DON’T WORRY THOUGH; THE KING IS A BIG FURRY PUSHOVER. I’M SURE IF YOU ASK NICELY, HE’LL HELP YOU FIND A WAY TO GO BACK HOME. YOU DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT GETTING THERE EITHER IF UNDYNE GOES WITH YOU. SHE’S NOT ONLY THE CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD AND ONE OF THE TOUGHEST MONSTERS IN THE UNDERGROUND, BUT SHE AND I ARE GOOD FRIENDS.” Diamond Tiara let out a tense breath and smiled. “I was going to ask one of you two, or both, to go with me the rest of the way,” she said, “but if you’re sure this Undyne will agree to escort me, I won’t impose on you.” “great,” Sans said. “that’s less work for me then.” He walked over to the stairs, but stopped at the bottom and looked back at the Filly. “i’ll meet up with at the capital anyway, d.t. i want to see what’s beyond the barrier for myself.” He walked up a couple steps and then stopped again. “oh, and did toriel give you a piece of butterscotch-cinnamon pie?” he asked. The Filly nodded. “i’ll give you a piece of advice then,” Sans said, “toriel’s pies have the most potent healing powers of any food in the underground. one piece can take you from the very brink of death to full health. don’t squander it.” He disappeared up the stairs. Diamond Tiara hopped off the couch and checked through her bag. After confirming that she still had the pie, and discovering that the Nice Cream she’d bought was still frozen, she looked to Papyrus and asked, “So, should I wait here for Undyne, or…?” “UH,” Papyrus glanced to the side, “IF I WERE YOU, I’D MEET HER HALFWAY IN WATERFALL. UNDYNE ISN’T FOND OF THE COLD AROUND HERE, FOR SOME REASON. HERE,” he guided the Filly outside and pointed down the road leading out of Snowdin Town, “JUST HEAD DOWN THE ROAD FOR A BIT, AND SHE’LL FIND YOU. AS SOON AS I LET HER KNOW YOU’RE COMING.” Sans walked into his brother’s room, stuck his hands in his pockets, and said, “if you're still here, just a fair warning: whatever you’re playing at, i’m on to it.” There was a rustling as Flowey emerged from behind Papyrus’s bed. “Oh, you think so?” he asked with a smug expression. “yep,” Sans said, “and you’ve made some mistakes, flower.” He closed his right eye and stared the flower down. “for one, i know what you’re capable of, and i will get in your way if you try to torture that little pony. second, nobody’s got a reason to give that pony a bad time, so-” “Kehaha…” “what’s so funny?” Flowey gave Sans his most twisted, sharp-toothed grin. “It’s just so amusing how you all think you know what’s going to happen!”