FILE 1 | [network/action for New Bark Town] adjusting to a new UI

[gainedlove]

[NETWORK]

[Frisk frowns into the camera, sitting a ways away from Elm's lab with their backpack in their lap and a worried looking Skiddo hovering over their shoulder. They chew on their lip and look back in the direction of Mom's house before finally speaking up.]

Does anyone know where Mount Ebott is? I...I think I'm lost.

Mom? If you're here, I'm by a lab right now...I made a new friend! His name's Buddy, lemme show you--

[The feed swings around, and now you all have a...very close up view of the Skiddo's face. It sneezes on the lens.]

He's really nice! I think you'll like him, too. He doesn't say a whole lot, though.

Um, okay, bye!

[ACTION]

[Frisk shuts off the feed, and slumps forward over their backpack, the cheerful facade falling away into worry. Buddy bleats and nudges their cheek, but Frisk doesn't respond outside of reaching up a hand to pet the Pokemon.]

[This is really bad. Nothing like this has ever happened before...it doesn't feel like a RESET, but Frisk can't think of anything else that would pull them away like this. And on top of that...]

[Again, Frisk closes their eyes and turns their mental focus inward, reaching and reaching and trying...but they're alone. Nobody came.]

[Frisk sniffles, and buries their face in their arms.]

...I wanna go home...

Comments

[Action]

[gainedlove]

[Oh, what a kind soul! Frisk lifts their head and blinks once, then shrugs a bit.]

Um...I think so. 'M waitin' for my mom.

[usedgravity]

Oh! [Maybe... they are a kid from around here after all? Or... did they really want their mom from wherever they came from?]

Is she coming here? Where did you see her last?

[gainedlove]

We were goin' shoppin' for groc'ries an' stuff, but I guess I got kinda dizzy 'cuz I woke up in that weird lady's house. An' then she kicked me out.

[Frisk holds onto their bag a little tighter.]

...she's not my mom. She said she is, but she's not.

[usedgravity]

Ohhh... [Yup, this poor kid got separated from their mom and... ended up here. Well, this might be hard.]

Yeah, that's what everyone who arrives her experiences - someone who's not their mom claims to be and sends you on your way with a pokemon partner. I, uh... [Is there any easy way to break this to them?] We're all kind of stuck here, it seems.

[gainedlove]

Stuck?

[They frown a little and lift their head.]

'S there a Barrier here, too?"

[usedgravity]

A barrier? Um, I'm not sure if there's anything like that... but no one's found a way back to where they came from. I'm not even really sure where we are in relation to that - this might be a different world, or some people are suggesting it's a video game?

[gainedlove]

A video game...?

[Well, that's dumb.]

How's it a diff'rent world? We're still on Earth...

[usedgravity]

That's one theory, anyway.

[She shrugs - she can't really say for sure it's right]

I'm not actually sure we are! At the very least, it's not Earth like I know it... we don't have monsters like this here [She nods towards the goat] and normally, most people would have Quirks!

[gainedlove]

[Frisk hums and kicks their feet a little bit, looking over to Buddy and patting his head. Well, their monsters aren't much like him, either...and unfortunately Frisk doesn't hear the capital at the beginning of Quirk there.]

Doesn't ev'rybody gotta quirk? Like Sans likes puns a whole whole bunch an' Grillby doesn't talk a bunch, an' I can do this!

[And then they proceed to stick their tongue out and do the clover trick with it.]

[usedgravity]

Ah, not exactly- oh, that's pretty cool! [Okay, she's impressed by that tongue trick.] No, but I mean... like, special abilities, unique to the individuals - Quirks! Like... I could make things weightless by touching them!

[She holds out her hands, palms up, fingers splayed, and wiggles them, showing the little soft pads on the ends of her fingertips]

[gainedlove]

[Gosh dang right you're impressed by the tongue thing! They worked hard to perfect that one. But what she's talking about...Frisk blinks in surprise.]

You have blue magic?

[usedgravity]

Blue... magic?

[...is that a video game thing? She never played many RPGs]

It's not really magic, it's more like... a special ability? I guess it seems pretty magical, but where I come from, pretty much everyone has some kind of power!

[gainedlove]

But...that's what Papyrus does! Or, um, I guess he makes things heavy an' not light, but it's still sort of the same!

[usedgravity]

So Papyrus has some kind of... gravity skill then, huh? I guess it does sound related! I'm pretty sure it's not magic for me though.

[Well, who could really say with Quirks, but she doesn't go around casting spells or doing rituals]

[gainedlove]

Mmm...maybe it's different for humans, but he's a monster so it's definitely magic!

[Besides, humans had magic too, way back when. Maybe her place just forgot what it's called?]

[usedgravity]

A monster? [Like... a pokemon? Or like a werewolf?] I guess it would be magic then, huh?