As she climbed the hill, the wind blew down from the peak, tilting the flower crown on her head.
She clumsily reached up to adjust it and kept walking.
Gravel slipped under her feet, and she had to steady herself with every step.
It hurts…
Reaching the top, she stopped to catch her breath.
The sight before her made her pause.
The back of the hill was a gentle slope covered densely with yellow flowers.
It looked as if someone had just dumped a massive bucket of yellow paint from the peak.
She didn’t pay it much mind and continued walking down.
Reaching the densest part of the flower patch, she squatted down and reached out to touch the petals.
Then, something seemed to burrow out of the soil beneath her.
…
Chara flinched backward sharply, her hand already gripping the hilt of her knife.
What burrowed out of the dirt was a flower.
Yellow petals and a green stem, looking no different from the flowers around her, except it had a face…
Chara’s breath hitched for a split second.
She drew her knife.
!
● You encountered a little flower.
● Attack: Flowey
She had just raised her knife when the thing spoke.
“Hey!
Hey!
Wait!
You idiot!”
“You’re gonna stomp on a ‘flower’ right when we meet??”
Chara’s hand froze in midair.
She stared at the flower for a few seconds.
It can talk??
This flower can talk?!
She had seen talking monsters, but never a talking flower.
And its tone didn’t carry the hostility of a monster; it sounded more like it was scared.
She lowered her knife a bit, but didn’t let go of the handle.
● Action: Check
● Flowey ATK ??
DEF ???
Looks like a flower that gained sentience.
“Hey there, pal.
I don’t know how you got here, but I can tell you I don’t mean any harm.”
“I’m Flowey.
You can call me Flower.
Can you tell me your name?”
Chara didn’t answer right away.
She squatted in place, gripping her knife, looking at the flower named Flowey.
Its stem was still planted in the dirt, and its petals were speckled with soil.
It really didn’t look like it was about to attack her.
But she was still cautious.
She had encountered too many hostile things, both human and monster.
Every single one of them looked harmless before revealing their true colors.
But when this flower had called her an idiot just now, its tone didn’t sound fake.
● You look at this innocent-looking little flower.
You are very guarded, but you tell it your name anyway.
“Chara.”
Flowey’s petals swayed gently.
“Chara?
Right?
That’s a really nice name.
I thought you weren’t going to tell me.”
Flowey continued, “So, can we have a nice chat now?”
His voice sounded incredibly sincere, so sincere that Chara felt a bit uncomfortable.
It had been a long time since she had heard someone talk to her in such a tone.
(Note: Pacifist route’s Flowey)
● The little flower is sparing you.
● Mercy: Spare
● You won!
You earned 0 XP.
…
She put her knife away, tucking it back into her waist.
Flowey let out a long sigh, his petals trembling a few times.
“That was close.
I almost lost my flower life.”
Chara squatted in front of him, looking into his eyes.
She felt like Flowey was sizing her up.
“You haven’t told me yet, are you a monster?”
“I…
I…
am not a monster, nor a human.”
● You feel very confused.
It is neither of the two, so is it a third kind?
She tilted her head.
Not a monster and not a human, so what could it be?
Of all the things she had seen, there were only humans and monsters.
There was no third kind.
…
“Hey there, pal.
This is my first time meeting a human like you, instead of ‘The Human’.”
“They treat me like a monster without asking, and almost uprooted me by my roots.
Even if I explain, it doesn’t change a thing.”
Chara listened without speaking.
She understood that feeling, the feeling of being treated as an outcast…
Even explaining was useless.
It was the same in the village.
No matter what she said or did, the adults and children looked at her the same way.
Some were disgusted, some were scared, and others just ignored her existence entirely.
She squatted there and started chatting with Flowey.
Flowey said he had always stayed on this hillside, ever since he could remember.
Occasionally, monsters would pass by, and humans would pass by too.
Most monsters weren’t very friendly.
Some would bark at him, and some would try to bite his petals.
As for humans, needless to say, upon seeing a talking flower, their first reaction was either to scream and run away, or to reach out and try to uproot him.
“Once, a human almost actually pulled me out,” Flowey said, his tone carrying a hint of lingering fear.
“I tried my best to explain I didn’t mean any harm, but he acted like he couldn’t hear me, grabbing my stem and pulling upward.
It hurt like hell.”
Chara listened, the corner of her mouth twitching.
She remembered that her own first reaction just now had been to draw her knife.
“Hey there, pal.
Talking with you is really relaxing.
Honestly, Flowey hasn’t felt this in a long time.”
“We’re friends now, right?
So can you take me with you, Chara?”
● You feel confused.
You are clearly wandering yourself, so why does this little flower want to follow you?
Chara stared at Flowey.
O.o
“Oh, I’m just really bored here.” Seeing she didn’t answer, Flowey added, “Occasionally running into those humans is super annoying, so I want to leave.
It’s a shame I don’t have legs.”
No legs.
Chara looked down at Flowey’s stem.
Indeed, it was planted in the dirt.
It had no feet to walk with, and no body to move with.
It would have to stay in this place its whole life, waiting for those unfriendly humans and monsters to pass by, only to be scared off or bullied??
She thought about it seriously, squatted on the ground, and held out her right hand.
Flowey was stunned for a moment.
Then, his stem pulled out of the dirt.
His roots swayed in the air for a few seconds before slowly climbing onto her wrist.
Green vines extended from his stem, wrapping around her right forearm in loops.
Not too tight, not too loose.
Just right.
Flowey’s head crawled up along the vines, finally stopping next to her head.
His flower head tilted slightly, as if looking for a comfortable angle.
From a distance, it looked like a little child wearing a giant yellow-petaled flower on her head.
Chara looked down at her right hand.
The green vines wrapped around her skin, feeling cool and carrying a bit of the dampness of the soil.
She clenched her fist.
The vines moved with her muscles, neither tightening nor loosening.
“Alright,” Flowey’s voice came from right beside the top of her head.
“You continue.”
She stood up and patted the dirt off her knees.
The flower crown on her head had tilted again from the movement.
She reached up to adjust it and happened to touch Flowey’s petals right next to it.
So soft.
● You gained a sentient little flower with no malice.
Having your right hand wrapped in vines feels quite novel.
This fills you with DETERMINATION.
She dismissed the panel and walked down from the hilltop.
The green vines on her right hand swayed gently.
Flowey’s flower head rested beside her shoulder, completely silent.
But at least now, she wasn’t alone.