Not One, But Seven

His Bravery

He should have planned how she'd react. He knew she wouldn't be happy, and may even be angry with him. He could have never anticipated how furious she was, how much she cried as she sat many nights with Tally's body. She ordered a proper funeral casket be built, one with her SOUL's color imprinted on the front along with the name he'd told her.

When she finally re-emerged, she went straight to her room. Later that same night, she announced her departure and vanished from his life.

He didn't even hear from her when a human child entered the town of Snowdin. If he'd fallen just as Chara and Tally had, he likely would have encountered his wife. He could have thought of no reason she'd let him continue further into the Underground with her knowing his true intentions, unless he hadn't run into her or she was dead. The thought chilled him to his bones and made him feel sick, but he wouldn't go to find out. It was very clear she hated him, so the only thing to do was to focus on ending the new human at hand.

This human looked a bit more intimidating than Tally or Chara. His hair was blonde and fell down as shoulders; a very masculine bandana held it out of his face. He walked with a broad stance with his shoulders squared and his chin held high, and the hand with a glove on it stayed balled in a fist.

Since he had to cross a bridge before entering Snowdin, Asgore had been given a brief time to make an announcement to the local shopkeepers. By the time the boy made it to town, everyone was locked away safely in their stores and off the streets. The boy didn't miss a beat, simply walking further in with no indication of fear on his face.

The night fell soon, forcing the child to stop; it was then the king was able to see the humane worry in the boy. He walked to every building and banged on the door, jiggling the knob frantically and calling out repeatedly for help. His subjects were very loyal to their king, however, and nobody came to assist the child. Everyone knew that a night out in the frozen conditions of Snowdin would dramatically effect his health and possibly kill him, but he'd been very clear in his orders. He told them this child had likely killed their queen and that was to be avoided and feared no matter the circumstances.

Eventually the child curled up in front of the transporting igloos, his entire body shaking as he closed his eyes. Asgore shut off his camera and shut his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh. Deepening the divide with the humans was dangerous, but he'd killed Tally just as much as he was killing this boy. He knew he could do it, and the thought of simply doing it again filled him with a terrible sense of determination.

...

The boy was alive the next morning. He had an abundance of blankets wrapped around him, and when he stood up, about seven heated packs fell to the ground.

There was no way for anyone to predict who'd made sure the child survived. The king merely sighed and leaned back in his throne; some people were capable of less than himself.

The boy moved forward at once, knocking on the doors and calling for anyone. All of his sense of urgency was gone in the light of day; he seemed more curious than anything else. He was obviously very brave, so much so the king decided he was far bolder than himself. As he watched the youth wander Snowdin and cross the bridge away from it, he could not help but long to be more like this human. After all, if he was as bold as this child, he might not have lost his children. Perhaps they'd be alive and the other humans who fell down would prove to be kind allies.

The youth returned to Snowdin before night fell. Everyone was still locked up, but he rewrapped himself in the pile of blankets and bunched up as tightly as he could. He hadn't cried at all since he fell, but the emptiness in his eyes was obvious even from the king's limited view. He's too once had a family, people who cared about him. Now he was as alone as Asgore, and in the lack of terror he found loneliness.

Asgore concluded that he was much more alike to this boy than he wished as he settled back to watch him through the night. The biggest difference was that he knew he'd have to arrest the catalyst for the child's life, which was a coward's move. Then again, he supposed, everyone had their method of surviving when they were truly alone.

...

She was a lovely shopkeeper who he often bought from. He didn't want to outright arrest her; protecting humans was no violation of law, and as it turns out, she wasn't the one protecting the child. It was her daughter, a small, purple-furred child was shrunk away from him when she saw him. His task became much heavier the second he saw the fear across her face and the stubborn gleam in her eyes once her mother explained why the king was visiting their shop so early in the day.

"Sweetheart..." He ventured softly. "I understand that you have been assisting the human child in town. Is that correct?"

"Yes sir," she replied softly. "Is that wrong?"

He saw her mother tense as she placed her hands on her offspring's shoulders. "Yes, dear. The king doesn't want us bothering with that boy child. He's dangerous."

"B-but he's not dangerous!" The young girl squeaked in disbelief. "H-he's nice! He came from a place that it only snows some of the time, and-"

"You still can't bother with him, love." Her mother replied. Her tone was not unkind, but the look he gave her made the message very definite.

The child looked to him now with tears in her eyes. "K-King Asgore, if...If no-nobody helps him...A-Akin..."

"Is that his name?" He asked weakly, his voice aching with the fatigue that grow with each day he knew this human was alive and was giving Snowdin anguish. "Akin?"

She nodded vehemently and he sighed softly, his trembling hands carefully resting on her tiny shoulders. "Akin will be...Well taken care of, little one. I will watch over him in my castle. But in order for me to do that, I have to ask you to please leave him be tonight."

It wasn't a complete lie and he and the shopkeeper knew it, but they also knew that this child wasn't going to buy it so easily. She knew exactly what would happen if she didn't give Akin blankets or heating pads. Of course she knew; they all knew but they wouldn't admit it in front of him.

"Yes sir," the youth replied quietly with her eyes downcast.

"Thank you, little one," he said with a bit of relief leaking through. "Would you like a peppermint before I go?"

She accepted it with a simple thank you and remained silent as her mother apologized for her offspring's actions. He pardoned her gently and cast a look back at them as he exited, but the girl didn't wave back like her parent did. She obviously had nothing more to say to him, but that said everything in itself.

...

Akin's SOUL was orange, a firey embodiment of the bravery he held through his trials in Snowdin. The boy'd been uttered rejected in the small time he'd remained alive Underground, but he was never afraid. Asgore wished he had that same bravery as he laid the small body down into the coffin, but all he had was determination.

The snowkeeper's child deserved better than to live under his rule, he decided as he began painting the color of Akin's SOUL over his final resting place.