the_isle | A Fallen Child Falls again

Open/locked?: Open
Who: Chara and whoever finds them
What: Chara's arrival
Warnings: Death, child abuse, Undertale spoilers, suicide mentions (potentially), heavy angst, violence, and some unpopular fan theories.

Chara felt a familiar sensation. Falling. The landing was shorter this time, but somehow less pleasant. No yellow flowers. No wonderful new mom, probably. No...

Asriel...

Chara's throat tightened. Asriel was dead. They were both dead.

And for what?!

For nothing.

It was all for nothing.

Chara looked up from where they still lay on the ground. That almost looked like clouds. But the barrier past was familiar. Sort of. They hadn't really looked at it closely the last time they'd passed through it.

But if they were trapped behind the barrier that was good. That was better. They were where they were supposed to be.

But did it have to hurt so much? Why was being dead as painful as being alive?

A tear ran down Chara's face as the child sat up.

Was... it possible they weren't dead? Then...

"Asriel? ASRIEL!? MRS. GOAT MOM LADY! MR. KING DAD GUY! Someone...." their voice broke as their shoulders rounded.

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The shouting outside, and the fact that it was an unfamiliar voice doing it, drew Foulques out to see who was causing the commotion. When what he found was a teary-eyed child, he bit his tongue to keep from cursing aloud. It would have likely come out as so much nonsense, as usual, but its tone would have remained, and it wasn't the child that was the object of his ire. On the contrary, it was whatever had dropped them into this miserable place to begin with.

After taking a deep breath to calm himself he stepped forward and addressed the child. "I know none of the people that you mentioned, child," he said. "But for good or ill, you are not alone on this Isle."

They looked up sharply at the voice, scared. But calmed seeing that whoever spoke wasn't a human. Closer to human looking than most monsters, but not human. They sniffed. "Is... is this where bad children go when they die?" they asked, voice quiet. "Cause I didn't mean to get Asriel killed." tears welled, then fell. "I didn't! I thought he could do it! I thought we'd save everyone..." that voice broke on a sob.

He considered what to say for a moment, using the time to get down on one knee so as not to tower over the child. At least they didn't seem frightened of him. "No child deserves to be in this place," he said finally. "Yet several have ended up here recently regardless. I will do what I am able to see to it that you are not forced to remain here longer than necessary however."

"I am Foulques of the Mist. What is your name, child?"

"I... I'm Chara. Chara Dreemurr.... What kind of monster are you? You have funny ears," they said, sniffing a bit. "I like 'em..."

They thought he was a monster? His first instinct was to be offended, but given their reaction, the term clearly didn't have the same meaning to them as it did to him.

"I'm a Duskwight Elezen," he said. "And I am no monster; at least I wouldn't be considered such by the standards of my own world." Not in the physical sense, at any rate. Morally... that was open for debate. "I am merely a man, though of a different sort than you may be used to."

The kid shrugged. "Never heard of a monster called that, but I like it. Even if it is a bit of a mouthful. Have you seen my family? They're goat monsters. And maybe... maybe if I'm here... Asriel is too...? Asriel wasn't supposed to die..." their voice quieted. "Just me..."

He frowned. "There are no beastmen of any sort on the Isle at present, so far as I'm aware," he said. "Except perhaps Chell, though he's far more plant than beast. Like as not they remain in the world from which you came, though it's also possible they arrived on the mainland."

"Main.... land...?" they asked, cold dread in their voice as it ran down their spine. "We...we're Underground still, right? That's just a weird thing, not really a cloud, right? I see the barrier... we have to be Underground... right?" The kid was clearly terrified. Even reached out to grab his arm in desperation, needing an anchor to cling to.

"'Mainland', as opposed to an island," he said, allowing Chara to cling to his arm. "I assure you, we aren't underground. There is a barrier around this Isle, called the Isle of the Lost, as it was meant as a prison. The barrier both prevents escape and prevents the use of magic, which- however inconvenient it may be for us- was a sensible precaution, as many of the prison's original inhabitants were powerful mages."

"No!" The child cried, panicked. "No! I have to go back down! I'm supposed to be Underground! I can't be up here! I don't want them to take me back! I want to go to home-place!" They started looking around wildly, crying freely.

Another crying child. At least this one wasn't as hysterical as Eli had been, but yet again, he had no idea what to do about it. He awkwardly patted Chara's head with his free hand. "None of us can go home at present," he said. "Nor is there means to go further underground than the school's basement levels. But whoever you fear may 'take you back', they are not here. Nor will I allow them to do so, should any of them somehow appear."

"I don't want to go back to them! I want to be with the Dreemurrs! I want Asriel! I want to go back to home-place! I'm a Monster! A Monster!"

"Did you not listen to what I said, child?", he said, perhaps a bit sharper than intended. Taking a deep breath he continued, more calmly. "Those you fear are not here and I would not allow them to take you even if they were. But nor are the Dreemurrs, and no one here has the means to return you to your home, wherever it may be."

"Monster or man, no amount of weeping or begging will change the fact that for the present, we are all confined to the Isle. But due to a quirk of the magic which brought you here, should you be returned whence you came, all will be exactly as you left it, for better or worse."

A Fallen Child Falls again - OTA