Almost Becoming Human Kabobs

Poppy's POV

Poppy remained in her spot by the tree, writing in great detail about what had happened until snow crunched in the distance. She looked up to see the others approaching through the fog.

"Hey, guys," she greeted, standing up. Frisk, Teri, Clover, Kat and… "Wait… where's Ray?"

"He stayed behind with Sans and Papyrus," Frisk replied with a shrug. "He promised he'd catch up."

Poppy raised an eyebrow. "Okay… on we go then…" Frisk nodded, taking the lead as they always did. The others followed. Ahead of them, the snow gave way to a strange blue stone. A river flowed beside them. It led them into a cavern, full of mini waterfalls. Frisk stopped in front of one of the cave walls before turning and making their way toward a short, yellow monster. It took Poppy a moment to recognize them: the monster kid.

"Yo!" they called, marching toward them. "Are you sneaking out to see her, too?"

"Who?" Poppy asked, cocking her head.

"Undyne, obviously!" Monster Kid exclaimed, their eyes shining. "She's the coolest. I wanna be just like her when I grow up... Hey, don't tell my parents I'm here. Haha."

"We won't," Kat replied with a nod.

"Thanks!" Frisk nodded to the monster kid before turning and making their way down the cavern. The others followed them. They stopped again in front of a dark pool. Rocks tumbled down the waterfall, scraping against the bottom of the pool before falling down another waterfall.

"How many waterfalls are in this dang place?!" Poppy exclaimed, throwing her arms into the air.

"Too many," Teri replied, stepping into the water.

"Careful," Frisk warned, reaching out to her. "Pay attention to the rocks." Teri nodded. Lifting her tutu above the water, she weaved her way around the tumbling rocks. The others followed her lead. Poppy cringed as the water coated her body. However, she pushed herself forward, slipping past rocks and eventually pulling herself out of the other side. Her clothes now stuck to her skin, dripping wet.

"Ugh." Teri shook her tutu around, getting the water out of it. "I have a feeling we're gonna have to do that more than once… gross."

"It's kind of annoying," Clover admitted, fanning himself with his hat.

"The sooner we get through it, the less we have to deal with it," Poppy replied, fanning herself with her shirt. "Now let's go." Frisk nodded, taking the lead again. The others followed until Frisk came to an abrupt halt in the middle of some shrubbery.

"Frisk, what-"

"SH!" Frisk cut off Kat. In the silence, footsteps began to echo through the cave.

"HI UNDYNE." Poppy cringed at the familiar voice. Papyrus. "I'M HERE WITH MY DAILY REPORT… UH…. REGARDING THOSE HUMANS I CALLED YOU ABOUT EARLIER…" It was harder to make out the second voice, though Poppy was sure they were female.

"Did you fight them?

"Y-YES! OF COURSE, I DID! I FOUGHT THEM VALIANTLY!" Papyrus's voice actually shook as he spoke.

"Did you capture them?" the second voice asked.

"W-W-WELL… NO. I TRIED VERY HARD, UNDYNE, BUT IN THE END… I FAILED." The cave was eerily silent. Only the water tumbling down the rocks filled the air for a moment.

"Fine, then I'll take their souls myself," the female voice growled.

"WHAT?" Footsteps echoed through the cave. "BUT UNDYNE, YOU DON'T H-HAVE TO DESTROY THEM! YOU SEE… YOU SEE…" Papyrus trailed off.

"We need to get these souls," the voice snarled. "Even if it means killing every human." Poppy's eyes widened. "With the souls, we can finally be free. We have to fight. If you don't like that, then maybe the royal guard isn't for you." More footsteps echoed through the cave.

"I UNDERSTAND," Papyrus sighed. "I'LL HELP YOU IN ANY WAY I CAN." The footsteps came again, this time getting quieter until they faded entirely. Frisk ushered them forward. The grass rustled around them and more footsteps filled the cave. These were harder, almost metallic. The group screeched to halt, Poppy's heart pounding like a drum. She looked up. An armoured figure stood on the cliff above them. She glared down at the brush the group hid in, a spear in her hand. Poppy could barely stop herself from shaking. The figure took a step back, their spear disappearing, and their metallic footsteps echoed down the cave. Everyone sighed in relief. Frisk led them out of the brush. There was another rustling sound that made Poppy's heart skip a beat. She turned and sighed in relief. The monster kid had emerged from the brush, eyes bright as ever.

"Yo… did you see the way she was staring at you...?" they asked. Yeah, it nearly gave me a heart attack. Poppy bit back the response. "That... was AWESOME! I'm SOOO jealous! What'd you do to get her attention…?"

"Exist?" Poppy suggested with a shrug.

This made Monster Kid's eyes widen more. "WOAH! You guys must be super cool! C'mon, let's go watch Undyne beat up some bad guys!" They sprinted down the cavern, falling flat on the face. Pushing themself off the ground with their legs, they stood up and marched down the tunnel. Frisk stopped to touch the air again before following. Ahead, was another pond.

"Ugh… More swimming," Teri grunted, lifting her tutu. She took a step forward. However, Frisk blocked her path with their arm, pointing to some flowers. They grabbed one and placed it in the water. The flower floated to the other side, as did the others Frisk put in the water. Once they were all in line, the flowers sprouted. They were wide enough for them to walk single-file to the other side. However, a monster blocked the way. This one was a muscled brown horse with a green fish-like tail… a seahorse. Poppy facepalmed. Does the entire underground run on puns?! Frisk dealt with the horrid amalgamation by out-flexing it and walking away. The next area contained more flowers. This one was trickier, so it took longer, but eventually they crafted a bridge to the other side. A ringing sound filled the air.

"What was that?!" Poppy demanded, nearly jumping out of her skin.

"Just my phone," Frisk informed, pulling the metal object out of their pocket. They put it to their ear. "Hello?" Frisk's eyes widened. Poppy immediately recognized the yelling from the other side of the phone.

"PAPYRUS!" Kat exclaimed, rushing toward Frisk. They put the phone on speaker.

"How'd you get this number?!" Poppy demanded eyes narrowed.

"RAY TOLD ME!" Papyrus announced, his voice almost making the phone shake. "HE'S WITH SANS RIGHT NOW. SO… LEAD HUMAN…" Everyone looked at Frisk. "WHAT ARE YOU WEARING…? I'M... ASKING FOR A FRIEND." Undyne! "SHE THOUGHT SHE SAW YOU WEARING A GROSS BANDAGE." So she did see us! And that's what she noticed…? Frisk glanced down at their bandage, the one they had on since before they fell. "IS THAT TRUE? ARE YOU WEARING A GROSS BANDAGE?"

"He's asking for Undyne," Poppy murmured, covering the phone with her hand. "If you tell him, he'll tell Undyne."

"But Papyrus is our friend," Teri argued, taking a step toward her. "Can't we trust him to know something as trivial as what Frisk is wearing?"

"He is our friend," Kat agreed with a nod. "We can trust him." Frisk nodded, lifting the phone to their ear.

"Yes, I am," Frisk answered.

"SO YOU ARE WEARING A GROSS BANDAGE. GOT IT WINK WINK, HAVE A NICE DAY!" Papyrus hung up. Frisk pocketed the phone, already walking down the next corridor.

"Who the heck says 'wink wink' out loud?" Poppy asked, tilting her head.

"Someone on the phone," Clover grunted in response. That's not what I meant. As they made their way down the corridor, voices filled the cavern.

"A long time ago, monsters would whisper their wishes to the stars in the sky. If you hoped with all your heart, your wish would come true. Now, all we have are these sparkling stones on the ceiling..." Poppy felt a pang in her heart. She had barely thought about this, but Papyrus had told them that all monsterkind were trapped underground. They still didn't know why. However, it was undoubtable that some monsters had never seen the sky. Poppy could barely imagine that.

"What's that sign say?" Kat asked, pointing to a sign on the wall. Frisk stared at it. It was covered in symbols Poppy didn't recognize.

"Wishing room," Frisk informed after a pause. They walked down the corridor. The voices of the echo flowers continued to fill the room.

"Thousands of people wishing together can't be wrong! The king will prove that."

"C'mon sis, what's your wish?" This voice was much younger, undoubtedly a child.

"I wish my sister and I will see the real stars one day," another young voice answered. Before they could continue, a turtle-like creature shuffled in front of them, making their souls appear. It had a blue shell with a tiny duck floating inside. The rest of its body was green and its tail spun in circles behind it. Poppy reached for her notebook. However, she quickly retracted, taking a step back. I can't kill it. I've gained enough LV, I can't hurt anyone else.

"Seeks to cleanse the world, huh?" Frisk muttered to themself. They took a step toward the turtle-like creature. "Clean me, Woshua," they ordered, holding out their arms. Woshua… seriously? Woshua jumped up and down.

"Green means clean!" it announced, spraying water drops from its shell. Most were white, though some were green. Poppy weaved around the white drops, reaching out to touch a green one. It sent a surge of strength through her body. The others touched the green too. Woshua continued to jump and down, a smile on its face. Frisk gave a thumbs up. Woshua shuffled away as the others made their way toward a telescope. Frisk looked through it. The others crowded around it, flooding Frisk with a series of questions.

"You." Poppy flinched as a voice squeaked behind her. She turned to see Woshua. "Your soul in unclean."

Poppy bit her lip. "Yup… sorry…" Woshua tilted its head to the side before shuffling away. Poppy let out a sigh. She followed the group down the corridor. Frisk punched the wall, revealing a hole big enough for them to walk through. Somehow that wasn't the weirdest thing that happened.

Frisk's POV

Frisk made their way down the corridor, stopping in front of a sign.

"What does it say?" Clover asked, cocking his head.

"Chara?" Frisk asked, gesturing to the air.

Letting out a sigh, Chara read the sign, "The War of Humans and Monsters." Frisk repeated the words aloud.

"So there was a reason," Clover mused, their eyes wide. "A war…"

"Keep reading." Kat gestured to Frisk, who stopped in front of the next sign. Chara read out the next signs and Frisk repeated what they said to their friends.

"Why did the humans attack? Indeed, it seemed that they had nothing to fear. Humans are unbelievably strong. It would take the soul of nearly every monster… just to equal the power of a single human soul."

"Our souls are that powerful?" Teri asked, gripping her chest.

"How?" Poppy raised an eyebrow. Frisk shrugged. They pointed at the next sign.

"But humans have one weakness. Ironically, it is the strength of their soul. Its power allows it to persist outside the human body even after death." Frisk shivered as they remembered seeing Ace's soul separate from his dead body.

"That's why they want our souls!" Clover's eyes were wide. "They want to take them… and use them to escape the Underground…"

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Poppy asked, cocking her head.

"Not sure yet," Clover admitted. Frisk nodded before going to the next sign.

"If a monster defeats a human, they can take its soul. A monster with a human soul… a horrible beast with unfathomable power."

"Well that confirms it," Clover replied, pointing at the sign. "They want to… to absorb our souls for their goals!"

"Their only goal is to be free though," Kat insisted, taking a step toward Clover. "What's wrong with that?"

"It also never said they actually did anything," Frisk pointed out gesturing to the sign.

"You heard what Undyne said," Clover argued, biting his lip. "She'll take our souls even if she has to kill us. That sounds like something to me."

Poppy chuckled darkly. "We're all gonna die."

"Don't say that," Teri insisted, resting her hand on Poppy's shoulder. "We'll be fine, we just have to keep going." Poppy shrugged in agreement. They turned to the hall, only to be confronted with a deep chasm below. Frisk stepped onto the platform. As they tried to step forward, the platform followed them.

"The platform will follow your steps all the way to the other side," Chara informed. "Though it's only big enough for one of you to go at a time."

"This platform will take us to the other side," Frisk informed, looking over their shoulder. "I'll go first. Then we can take turns." The others nodded. Frisk pushed the platform beneath them to the other side of the chasm. Once they got off, the platform floated to the others. Kat came next. Then Teri, Clover, and finally Poppy. The next corridor was no different than the last: a long wooden bridge. Something landed in front of Frisk. They staggered back, their eyes widening when they realized it was a spear. Looking up, Frisk saw the armoured figure above them. More spears appeared beside her. Poppy let out a shriek, shoving past the others. Frisk's heart pounded as they dashed across the bridge, weaving past the spears as they were hurled at them from above. As Kat ran, she slipped on her foot, falling on her face. Frisk dashed toward her. Before she could get up, a spear sank into her back. She let out a cry. Frisk yanked the spear out and grabbed Kat, wrapping their arm around her as they ran after the others. Teri was at Kat's other side in an instant. Clover and Poppy were ahead, already diving into a cluster of reeds. Frisk and Teri followed. Finally, Frisk and Teri stumbled into the reeds, gasping. Kat fell between them with a cry. Frisk covered their friend's mouth, ducking further into the reeds. Spears zipped above them. Frisk pulled Kat closer to them, gazing up at the towering figure in the reeds. They were all frozen with fear as she marched toward them. Then she stopped. For a moment she just stood there. Then she slammed her hand into the reeds, reaching to grab them. Instead, she pulled out a small yellow figure. Monster Kid! The child beamed at her. The warrior put them down and marched away. Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief.

"Are you okay?" Frisk asked Kat, their eyes wide with worry.

"I'm fine," Kat grunted, struggling to sit up. Clover scooted closer to her, pulling out a piece of candy.

"Here, I still have one left," he insisted, handing it to her. Kat took the piece. She unwrapped it and ate it in one bite. The red mark on the back of her shirt faded until it was gone completely.

"Thank you," Kat sighed, struggling to her feet. Frisk lead them all out of the reeds. Their heart still pounded from the chase, and their arms shook.

"Yo…" Frisk whipped around. Monster Kid had emerged from the reeds, beaming. "Did you see that!? Undyne just... TOUCHED ME! I'm never washing my face ever again...! Man, are you unlucky. If you were standing just a LITTLE bit to the left...! Yo, don't worry! I'm sure we'll see her again!" Monster Kid tripped before rushing ahead.

"I'm kinda hoping we don't," Poppy murmured to Frisk. They nodded. "You sure you're okay, Kat? That spear almost went all the way through you." Teri's face turned green.

"Yeah, I'm fine now," Kat insisted, brushing the debris off her apron. "Frisk got the spear out and the candy healed the rest."

"You sure you don't wanna take a minute?" Poppy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Maybe not to heal, but maybe to take a breather?" Frisk suggested, gripping their own pounding heart.

"Sure," Kat whispered the rest in Frisk's ear. "But you need to find a save point first." Frisk nodded. The room ahead of them contained one of the save points.

"We can rest in the next room," Frisk replied, gesturing for them to follow. The others slumped against the wall as Frisk reached out to touch the save point. Sadly, it didn't take away Frisk's panic.

"You okay, Frisk?" Chara asked.

"No," Frisk muttered, sitting against the wall across from the others. They all talked amongst themselves. "That Undyne… she means business... Kat could've died." Frisk wrapped their arms around their legs, pulling them into their chest.

"Yeah, the guards were never like this when I was alive," Chara agreed.

"What do you mean?"

"Dad must've hired her too… he… why? he… he'd never." Chara descended into sobbing.

"Woah, Chara? Are you okay?"

They sniffled in response. "Yeah, I���m fine, obviously," Chara scoffed, their voice steady all of a sudden. "I'm just confused. Dad was such a gentle guy. What happened? I guess this explains why Mom left to live in the Ruins but… ugh, sorry. I know you don't care."

"Yes I do," Frisk insisted, allowing their legs to fall. "You can talk to me, Chara."

"If you say so," Chara grunted. "...you should get going soon."

Teri's POV

Frisk lead the others to the next room where Teri spoke with a puffball-like monster.

"What's a star?" they asked. "Can you touch it? Can you eat it? Can you kill it?" They paused. "Are you a star?"

"In a way, yes," Teri answered, spinning in a circle. The monster's eyes were wide. Poppy and Clover emerged from the side hallway, each carrying a few ice cream cones. They handed one to each of them. Frisk pocketed theirs and Teri's, who had no way to carry hers. Kat entered the room, taking an ice cream.

"There's a way forward down that way," Kat explained, pointing down a hallway. "But it would mean swimming."

"And I never learned how to swim," Teri admitted, tapping the ground with her foot.

"We can go this way," Frisk insisted, pointing to the south. They all nodded. Teri twirled after the group to the beat of the peaceful music that filled the room. She followed just behind Kat and Frisk, who walked side by side. They passed some echo flowers as they walked. They continued south, taking a right before a ringing sound echoed through the cave. Frisk grabbed their phone.

"It's Papyrus again," they informed, pressing a button to put the phone on speaker. Teri and the others crowded around the phone. Is he going to explain why he called earlier?

"HELLO! THIS IS PAPYRUS! REMEMBER WHEN I ASKED YOU ABOUT YOUR CLOTHES?"

"Yeah…" Frisk replied, picking at their bandage.

"WELL, THE FRIEND WHO WANTED TO KNOW, HER OPINION OF YOU ALL IS VERY… MURDERY."

"Yeah, we figured that out," Poppy grunted, crossing her arms.

"But we survived!" Teri added, forcing a smile. "That's what's important." She forced a laugh. We almost died...

"SO YOU KNEW THAT ALREADY!" Papyrus exclaimed, probably smiling brightly. "AND BECAUSE YOU KNEW THAT… I TOLD HER WHAT YOU TOLD ME YOU WERE WEARING! A GROSS BANDAGE." Teri facepalmed. "BECAUSE I KNEW OF COURSE, AFTER SUCH A SUSPICIOUS QUESTION… YOU WOULD OBVIOUSLY CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES."

"Frick," Poppy muttered, facepalming as well.

"YOU'RE SUCH A SMART COOKIE! THIS WAY YOU'RE SAFE AND I DIDN'T LIE! NO BETRAYAL HERE! BEING FRIENDS WITH EVERYONE IS EASY." Papyrus hung up.

"We probably should've thought of that…" Teri admitted, clenching her fists.

"Yeah, Frisk, take off that bandage," Kat insisted.

"What good would it do?" Poppy grunted, kicking up a clod of dirt. "She's already seen all of us. I don't think a bandage would make much of a difference."

"Do you have to be negative about everything?!" Clover exclaimed, glaring at Poppy.

"Maybe not," Teri cut in. "But she has a point. Undyne will recognize Frisk with or without a bandage as well as the rest of us… we'll need better disguises."

"There's not much we can disguise ourselves with," Poppy sighed, taking a step forward. "I think we just have to endure her attacks."

"We'll survive," Frisk replied, turning to cross the bridge. "I promise, now let's go." How can they be so sure? Is Chara's guidance really that invaluable? Stay positive, Teri. Keep the negative thoughts to yourself. They would get through this as long as they kept their spirits high. The group encountered one monster, another Woshua, before making it to a new room: one with a slim bridge entirely surrounded by water. It seemed to be empty. However, Teri noticed thin tentacles emerging from the water.

"What is that?" Teri asked, shaking as she pointed at one. Just as Frisk turned around, the tentacle disappeared underwater again.

"What was what?" Frisk asked, their head cocked to the side. Teri stiffened. Something huge began to emerge on their side. The figure rose from the water, causing the water to disperse as they emerged to reveal… anime eyes. Teri tilted her head to the side. This monster was kind of… cute... in a way.

"Hey… there… noticed you were… there." The creature spoke slowly, always keeping their bright smile.

"Um… what are you?" Teri asked. The creature's tentacles disappeared underwater. Their smile… faded? And was replaced with a… a different look. Is this actually an anime character?

"I'm Onionsan! Onionsan y'hear!" The creature replied. Frisk turned and walked away. The others followed… including Onionsan, who drifted after them through the water.

"You're visiting Waterfall, huh! It's great here, huh! You love it, huh!" Onionsan's anime eyes and blush returned.

"Uh… yeah…" Teri answered awkwardly. It wasn't a lie or anything. Waterfall was a nice place… when they weren't about to become human kabobs that is…

"Me too! It's my big favourite!" Frisk and the others continued onward, Onionsan following them. They shoved their head underwater. "Even though, the water's getting so shallow here. I have to sit down all the time but... " Their head emerged from the water, with that awkward expression. "He-hey. That's okay! It beats moving to the city and living in a crowded aquarium-" A new expression. Teri couldn't figure out what this one meant… "-like all my friends did." Frisk continued onward. This time they didn't stop as Onionsan spoke to them. "And the aquarium's full a-anyway, so even if I wanted to, I… That's okay though, y'hear! Undyne's gonna fix everything, y'hear!" Teri shivered at the mention of Undyne.

"Fix it by killing us?" Poppy muttered, clenching her fists.

"I'm gonna get out of here you and live in the ocean," Onionsan continued, seemingly not hearing Poppy. "Y'hear!" Frisk stopped before the exit of the hall. "Hey… there… That's the end of this room. I'll see you around! Have a good time! In Waterfall!" Onionsan disappeared underwater.

"Thanks!" Teri replied, waving at Onionsan before following the others out.

"That was really weird…" Clover admitted, adjusting his hat.

"But kinda cute in a way…" Teri added, with a shrug. "I don't know… they look like an anime character."

"Everyone looks like an anime character to you," Poppy teased, nudging Teri's shoulder. Teri couldn't prevent her smile. She had been just as angry at Poppy for killing monsters as the others had. However, it was clear she stopped. So Teri saw no point in being bitter against her now. Frisk lead them to the next room, which was generally empty aside from a tiny waterfall. Before they could continue, Teri's soul appeared. She whipped around to see a fish-like monster backed up against the cave wall. Their hair covered their face.

"Shyren, huh?" Frisk muttered to themself. "A singer?" Frisk turned to the group. "Can any of us sing?"

"I can!" Teri announced, raising her hand. "Everyone, follow my lead." She cleared her throat before humming the first song that came to mind. The others joined in. However, they obviously didn't know the song as they kept singing the wrong notes. Shyren locked gazes with Teri, following the melody as well. Her voice echoed through the cave, making Teri shiver as Shyren's haunting voice filled the cavern.

"Creepy," Poppy muttered, shivering a bit. Teri looked back at Shyren. A smile now adorned the monster's face.

"You guys go on ahead," Teri replied, gesturing with her hand. "I'll stay with Shyren for a while." Frisk nodded, leading the others down the corridor in front of them. Teri and Shyrn continued to sing together. Most of the songs Teri sang were either Disney songs or anime intros. Shyren was easily able to follow along. Monsters slowly entered the cave, more and more as Teri and Shyren continued to sing together. Suddenly, it was a concert. Even Sans was there, selling tickets made of toilet paper… cheapskate. It was a full house.

Teri basked in the cheering, twirling and jumping around the makeshift stage as her singing became more cheerful. Shyren stood off to the side, her volume gradually increasing. The crowd went wild. Socks and gold went flying through the air. Teri twirled around on one foot as the objects landed around them. She picked up the gold. Then it was time for the next song: the final song. They both had their own journeys to embark on and now, Shyren would be famous. Teri and Shyren put all their energy into this final song, belting out the notes as Teri twirled and leaped around the stage. Finally, Teri did one final spin before ending it all with a pose. The monsters cheered as Teri took her earnings and made her way out of the cave. Her heart was still pounding. However, the performance hadn't tired her out, only filled her with energy.