Polly's Eternal Adventure (P.E.A)

Part 1 | Segment 5.6 | Don't Slip!

"Alright, so how did this happen...?" I muttered, clinging to the edge of the icy platform, my heart racing as I teetered on the brink of a fall.

Mani, eager to help, reached out for my hand. But as soon as she grabbed me, my already slippery grip faltered. Before I knew it, I was tumbling down. "Where's this 'bottom' you ask?" Well, it was just a snowy sheet of ground below the platform—only about ten to fifteen feet down.

I landed on my feet with a soft thud, glancing up just in time to dodge a few icicles that fell after me. Once I steadied myself, I looked around and spotted two snow figures that looked suspiciously like Sans and Papyrus. But my attention was drawn to a little monster, a lemon-like creature with a purple scarf and red mittens, who seemed just as fascinated by the snow figures as I was.

"Lemy!" they exclaimed, trying to construct a snow figure of their own. In their enthusiasm, they accidentally knocked down Sans's snow creation. They scrambled to fix it, but it didn't seem to work.

I approached Lemy, curious about their struggle. "Need a hand?"

"No," Lemy replied softly, their voice almost hollow. "I just wanna do it myself. My mom said that taking accountability is a sign of 'ma-sure-rightey'! I don't really know what that means, but I want to grow up fast so I can help and be nice to everyone!"

I paused for a moment, taken aback by the earnestness in their words. Standing up straight, I said, "Lemy, let me tell you something..."

"...?" they looked up at me, wide-eyed.

"You don't have to grow up to do those things. You're already doing it."

"Lemy doesn't have to grow up... to be nice and help everyone?"

"Exactly! Just keep listening to your mom and do your best. That's what my parents told me!"

"Oh, okay! I will! ... um... erm..."

"Hmm? What is it, Lemy?"

"I-I don't know your name. What is it, miss?"

"Ack!"

"teehee~" Mani chuckled, trying to stifle her laughter.

"What's wrong?" Lemy asked, puzzled.

"U-uh... I just remembered I have somewhere to go..."

"Huh... You won't tell me your name...?"

"... haa... ahem! Well, sorry! I asked for your name without telling you mine. My name is Polly. It was nice talking with you, Lemy."

"That's such a pretty name!"

"...uh..." I blinked, flustered.

"Hehe, I hope I can talk to you again, Miss Polly!"

With a big smile lighting up their face, Lemy waved goodbye. I awkwardly waved back, feeling a strange warmth in my chest as I made my way back to the icy puzzle.

As I walked away, the thought that this girl would one day grow into a kind person filled me with DETERMINATION.
[Save or Return]
[.... SAVE.....]

"Alright," I said, gathering my thoughts as I prepared to tackle the next challenge. "So, I fell last time because this whole area is covered in ice. I didn't notice those 'X' marked snow patches scattered across the slippery surface."

"I won't spoil it," Mani chimed in with a teasing lilt in her voice, "but those patches are definitely meant to catch you when you're sliding across the ice."

"Right! And now that I see these 'X' marked snow patches, they remind me of a puzzle Papyrus laid out before."

With determination surging through me, I deduced that if I could transform all the "X" patches into "O's," I'd be able to move forward without any issues.

One by one, I slid across the ice, my heart racing as I turned the X's into O's. Finally, I completed the puzzle with a triumphant grin. "7/10," I said aloud. I rated the puzzle, noting that, unlike the last one, this one had managed to indirectly coax me into solving it.