Wholehearted Half-Souls

Chapter 15: Revving (Part 2)

Susie enters the room first and plops Frisk down in one of the chairs. Asriel then takes his spot near Frisk while Susie sits across from them. Asriel sighs, takes another sip of hot chocolate, and stares at his brother. "Frisk, why didn't you listen to me?" the goat child asks curtly. "You can't shoulder this burden on your own; let me help you."

A long pause passes in the room. Without warning, Frisk slams his fists on the table. Asriel winces while Susie jumps in her seat, eyes bugged out. The ambassador shakes his head and sighs. "I'm sorry. I'm normally not this upset."

Asriel nods and hugs him. "It's ok, Frisk. Remember how you comforted me in the Underground? Maybe I can do the same for you here..."

Frisk shakes his head. "But with how they were talking about me, I just..."

Asriel lets go and pats Frisk on the back. "Don't listen to them, bro. You're doing a great job of being the ambassador of the monsters. I don't think anybody else could do that! And, with how good you've done even though you're not a grown-up yet, I think that's pretty cool."

Susie bites her lip and diverges her vision toward the ceiling. Frisk looks at her again, his brow furrows. "I'm a pacifist, but ya know..." He stops and thinks. "What if I did fight?"

Asriel grips Frisk's shoulders, widening his eyes. "Are you crazy?! I don't want you to lose your ambassador position! Ebott would revolt and throw you out! Besides...you can't forget our vow, right?"

Asriel's lip quivers, and Frisk stares at him sadly. He nods and sinks his head. "You're right...this isn't like me. I want to end this as soon as we can, but...I need to remember what I am: a keeper of peace, not a soldier."

Asriel nods quickly and looks at Susie. "Let Susie and I take care of the physical stuff. And we'll remember not to kill him, either. All we'll do is capture him and turn him in," the goat child says boldly as feelings of warmth and confidence filled his soul.

Frisk smiles slightly and nods. "Thanks, Azzy. I still wonder, though..."

Susie's pupils harden. "Even if you change your mind about fighting, I'm still worried about our lack of manpower."

Asriel's fur frizzles, and he leans in toward Susie. His snout sniffs as he focuses his gaze on Susie intently. "Don't you think we're gonna win? With the team we've got, we should be able to defeat Kris."

Susie shakes her head and sadly smiles, and her gaze lowers to the ground. "Seems you wanna fight too, little buddy. That's good, but you have no idea how strong Kris is."

Asriel leans back and relaxes in his chair, taking another sip of hot chocolate while looking at Susie. She creases her brow. "I've watched the news a lot lately. I usually don't care about politics, but the Kris case has me more interested. And maybe you should know this."

"Know what?" Asriel asks.

"A few monsters have been killed since the party," Susie flatly replies. 

Frisk's face turns pale, and he lowers his head. A ringing comes from his pocket, and he pulls out his cell. "Hello, Ambassador Dreemurr here...oh no, I'm so sorry...yes, I will attend the funeral." As the conversation moves, Frisk's brow furrows, and he tightens his hand. "I know, I'm really sorry...we're doing all we can to help capture him...I...I'm doing my best. Bear with me...I apologize...again, I'm sorry...yes, take care."

He hangs up the phone and slams it down on the table. Asriel worryingly looks over at Frisk. "Are you ok, bud?"

"Another monster informed me that they've had a death in the family...her sister," Frisk informs. He felt sick to his stomach. "It just won't stop. It won't stop."