Heartwarming / Inverted Fate

"WHEREVER OUR JOURNEY TAKES US, I'M HERE FOR YOU. YOUR BURDENS ARE MY BURDENS, HOWEVER HEAVY THEY MAY BE. SO PLEASE DON'T FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO SHOULDER THEM BY YOURSELF."

ALL SPOILERS ARE UNMARKED

Main Comic

• The Ruins here are much more lively due to Asgore's management. He's planted flowers, he's made the puzzles safer, he's friendly to everyone, and unlike Toriel, he actually allows travel between the Ruins and the rest of the Underground.
• It's revealed early on that even after getting his robot body and becoming famous, Mettaton has stayed in contact with Napstablook, and even visited the Ruins at one point. It was explained by Word of God that since Undyne was the one who made his body in the new timeline, she refused to let him abandon his family and friends, and as a result he's become much nicer.
• Even though Frisk is left with a grudge against the Loox and Migosp after dying to the Ruins Bullies, they don't blame the Dummy, understanding that they were just trying to fit in.
• After they accidentally kill him the first time, Frisk reloads and eventually manages to spare Asgore after refusing to fight the second time. When he decides to let them leave, he gives them some winter clothes to keep them warm while in Snowdin, and the two share a hug before parting.
• Papyrus decides to accompany Frisk for most of their journey through the Underground, helping to protect them as well as becoming friends with them.
  • It's implied that Asgore called Papyrus and let him know that a human was going to appear soon, making sure he would be ready when they did.
• When Papyrus is explaining how orange attacks work, he compares them to himself, saying that Frisk should run towards him. Their response is to immediately glomp him, having started to see him as a friend.
• After Undyne's deadly puzzle, which Sans and Papyrus decide to shut down when they see just how dangerous it is, Undyne gets a call from Sans warning her about wanting to claim Frisk's soul and how that would make Papyrus feel.
• Frisk and Papyrus' conversation about the latter's lying in order to keep the former from worrying, especially when he explains why he accepted them so easily:
  Papyrus: THAT’S EASY, HUMAN! IT'S BECAUSE I BELIEVE ANYONE CAN BE GOOD PERSON IF THEY JUST TRY.
• When Napstablook appears on Mettaton's news show in Part 11, the banner at the bottom changes to say "LOOK AT MY DARLING COUSIN!"
  • Napstablook brings up how friendly Frisk was to them back in the Ruins:
    Napstablook: they never tried to hurt me... and when i played some tunes, they even hummed to the music...
• After Sans finally lets them pass through to Waterfall, Frisk decides to go back first and hang out with him, starting with them watching a badly-dubbed anime and then having a "date" that neither of them take seriously, just having fun together.
• It turns out that Alphys still likes humans as much as she did in the original timeline, despite the Waterfall incident and Undyne broadcasting the tapes that revealed Chara's plan.
  • Bratty and Catty are shown to be caring friends towards Alphys, recognising that she's pushing herself too hard and offering to help her, even if it means fighting the human themselves.
• In Part 21, when Frisk reveals that their kindness was just an act (or so they believe), Papyrus opens up about his own insecurities and assures them that they're not as bad as they think, and that they'll still be friends. He also asks them what their name is, realising that it's better than just calling them "Human", which they gladly tell him.
  Frisk: It's Frisk.
  Papyrus (while hugging Frisk): WELL, FRISK, YOU HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR.
• Mettaton shows up to save Frisk from being stuck in a fight with Bratty and Catty and accompanies them until Papyrus catches up with them, deciding to help them because of how kindly they treated Napstablook earlier. He also promises that if they can help Alphys, then he'll help them throughout Hotland.
• Gerson tells Frisk not to blame themself for the Waterfall Incident, showing that he doesn't believe that all humans are bad. This moment becomes even more meaningful when you learn that he looked after the first human to fall after the Incident, only to be Driven to Suicide out of guilt - he doesn't want any other humans to feel the same way.
• Frisk and Papyrus share another hug when they reunite in Forgespring.
• After getting Alphys to let them continue into Hotland, and giving her the anime DVD that they found earlier, Frisk decides they'd rather go back and check in on her first just to make sure she's alright before they move on.
• Despite the conflict it caused her, Alphys doesn't regret being convinced to stop fighting Frisk and befriend them instead.
• There is a fight with RG03 and 04 that plays out almost the same way as the original, unused fight did, where Frisk and Papyrus help them to reconcile their friendship.
• After making it through Hotland, Frisk and Papyrus visit the MTT Resort, where Mettaton has reserved one of the best rooms for them. He also didn't replace the statues of Chara and Asriel at the memorial fountain with one of himself like he did in the old timeline (although Chara's statue is shown to be missing).
  • During their "date" at the restaurant, Papyrus tells Frisk about how he first met "Santa" (Asgore). He had trouble fitting in with the other kids after moving to Snowdin, and got lost one day, but Asgore, who had come to give out presents while dressed as Santa, found him and let him help out. The two stayed in contact with each other after that.
  • Frisk then talks about their life on the surface and how no one wanted to adopt them, and they ended up seriously injuring their only friend. It ends with them telling Papyrus that he's their friend and that they consider him the best thing that's ever happened to them.
• When Frisk ends up trapped in the CORE, Undyne taunts them about how they don't have Papyrus to help them and how alone they are, leading to them breaking down. At this point, "Captain Cryptic" decides to be less cryptic towards them:
  Chara: Just... look. She's wrong, all right? You aren't alone. Papyrus might not be here, but... I am.
• Part 45 has several moments:
  • After getting angry at Undyne ignoring Papyrus' phone calls, Frisk ends up in another encounter with the Mad Dummy, only to be saved by the Annoying Dog. They're shown to be in a better mood during this, and even Chara is amused by it.
  • Undyne giving Mad Dummy the Mew Mew body, having realised that they weren't completely happy with the dummy and that Mew Mew was a more ideal form.
  • After dying for the second time during their journey, Chara takes over the Game Over screen to give Frisk some comforting words.
  • Chara apologising to Mew Mew for making fun of her as the Dummy earlier, acknowledging that it's their fault for making her so angry towards them and Frisk.
  • While Frisk is surprised at finding out that "Captain Cryptic" is a human, it doesn't make them view them negatively, and when Chara tries to assure them after they panic at seeing Mettaton's note, Frisk gives themself a hug so that Chara can feel it.
• Even though Undyne is trying to kill them and they admit that they hate her, Frisk still decides to rescue her when they realise her mecha is going to explode.
  Frisk: This is what Papyrus would want.
• It ends badly for both of them, but Mettaton tries to help Undyne when her body is melting despite knowing the risks as well as not getting on well with her.
• During Frisk's Heroic BSoD, Papyrus tries to assure them that what happened wasn't their fault, explaining what EXP and LV stand for and saying that it's a good thing that they have none, and that he understands why they attacked Undyne. He also says that he'll still accompany them for the rest of their journey.
  Papyrus: SO PLEASE, DON’T FEEL AS THOUGH YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE. DESPITE EVERYTHING, I STILL BELIEVE IN YOU.
• The ending of Part 48 is quite bittersweet. Papyrus and Sans (and Chara, though neither of the brothers know this) successfully talk Frisk down from wanting to blindly head for the barrier, and the latter even gives them a hug, which Papyrus joins in with. What makes it bittersweet is knowing that this will be undone by Frisk's reload, but it goes to show that both brothers care about them.
  • Before said reload, Sans decides to give Frisk his password so that they don't have to face him when they return to the Last Corridor, believing that they've already been through enough and that he probably won't feel like trying to stop them again.
• The phone calls from various characters that Frisk encountered throughout the Underground wanting to either stick up for them or their friends, or to make sure Undyne doesn't push herself too far.
  • Dohj of all people has a moment of this when she threatens to court-martial Undyne if she hurts Papyrus even more after he takes a hit for Frisk, despite her dislike of him.
  • Burgerpants had previously said that he was rooting for Undyne because he wanted to see the surface, yet he calls in for her sake, believing that the surface isn't worth the pain she's put herself through.
• Though it's mostly a Tearjerker and left her feeling even more depressed, it's nice to know that Toriel got to have another child who lived to old age.
  • In Toriel's house, there is a note which is implied to be the Mage's last message to her:
  Know that I will always be with you. Know that you do not have to put up walls around you. Above all else, know that you deserve to be happy.
  • Unlike the other SOULs, Toriel keeps the Mage's SOUL in a brooch that she wears, so in a way they really are always with her.
• Similar to Asgore in the old timeline, Toriel ends up destroying the MERCY button, and Frisk even fights her at one point, although they clearly don't want to kill her. Towards the end of her boss battle, Frisk moves to where the MERCY button was and stays there despite constantly getting hit by the fireballs. In the end, Toriel stops attacking, not wanting another human to die after everything she's been through.
• Frisk and Papyrus apologising to Dohj for the humiliation they put her through, and letting her stay in their hotel room.
• It turns out that after Undyne revealed the tapes that had Chara and Asriel's plan, Mettaton made a documentary about Chara in an attempt to get the monsters to stop seeing them in a negative light. While he never released it, it shows that not everyone automatically assumed from the tapes that they were evil.
  • Frisk decides to watch the documentary after finding out it's unreleased, thinking that it deserves an audience.
  • When Frisk starts crying, caused by Chara getting upset at the movie, Mettaton can clearly see that something is wrong and comforts them. This is even better when you remember that Chara can be heard by ghosts, meaning he's well aware of their presence and is comforting them as well.
• Remember the fountain at the resort and how the statue of Chara was missing? It turns out that Mettaton recovered and repaired it after the other monsters damaged it.
• The reason why Mad Mew Mew interrupts Mettaton's show? Because she thinks more people should be concerned about Undyne. When Frisk asks her why she's here and not trying to find Undyne herself, her response is to immediately run off and do so.
  • Alphys shows up afterwards, and she's also concerned about Undyne, leading to Papyrus going to look for her, and the others following when he doesn't come back after a while.
• Papyrus knew Frisk was likely to come looking for him, so he left a note for them in the True Lab. When Frisk and Alphys find him later, he apologises for not being completely honest about his and Undyne's past and the problems they caused.
• When Frisk saves at the beginning of Part 57, Chara says "We're filled with Determination," showing that they've fully accepted their role as Frisk's partner in their adventure.
• Alphys and Mettaton both get to help with calming down two of the mechamalgamates; Alphys eventually realises that AVN-13 is made of former members of the Royal Guard whom she recognises and is able to talk down, while Mettaton gives Frisk and Papyrus the song from his show in Forgespring to play to 4-NGL3R in the hope that Shyren's sister will recognise her singing.
• The computer in part 59 has some videos, one of which reveals that while they had the six human SOULs, Papyrus spoke to them as if they were still people, and even read to them.
• The entire scene when everyone finds Undyne, especially Mew Mew trying to convince her to stop hiding, Undyne and Mettaton both acknowledging how bad they were to each other and apologising for it, and Undyne calling Frisk by their name for the first time.
• In a bittersweet way, Asgore deciding that he isn't the right person to look after Frisk, believing that Papyrus, who they've spent more time with, would be better suited for it. He also decides to leave the Ruins even if it means having to face Toriel for the first time in nearly a century.
• Part 60 has Frisk and Papyrus walking through New Home again, only this time there are many of the characters they've previously met, as well as a few they haven't. This includes the mechamalgamates, who were allowed to leave the True Lab and go back to their loved ones.
  • It's shown that, unlike his Undertale counterpart, Rudy Holiday survived his illness, meaning that he'll get to see the surface.
  • It's just adorable to see younger versions of Berdly, Jockington, Catti, and Noelle, as well as Susie who previously appeared in Bonus 6.
• The Stinger of Interlude 3 and of Part 62 (as well as one of the secret GASTOS pages) reveal that Frisk's old friend from the surface, Lilac, was concerned enough about them after finding out they were missing that she travelled to Mt. Ebott to look for them. This despite the fact that the last time she was there, they got into a fight and caused an accident that almost killed her.
• Though the circumstances it happened under weren't ideal, Chara being brought back to life in their own body means that they're in control of themself again, and that they and Frisk can comfort each other. In fact, "Null: Part 1" has Frisk giving Chara a Cooldown Hug when they're panicked, and the two hold hands as they walk into one of the rooms of the now-altered Ruins.
  • During said hug, when Chara starts to cry and then feels bad about it, having been brought up to believe that it's a sign of weakness, Frisk has this to say:
    Frisk: Hey. Look. If you need to cry, cry. Don't keep that bottled up... I mean. It's not like I'm having the time of my life, either...
• While Part 2 and 3 of "Null" are mostly bleak, there are still a few moments:
  • When they arrive in Snowdin, Frisk gets the idea to let Chara wear their coat or jacket, before remembering that Papyrus had their other clothes.
  • After Frisk breaks down from being taunted by an illusion of Papyrus and Sans in their house, Chara assures them that none of what happened is their fault. When talking about the old timeline, they tell Frisk that they still called them "Captain Cryptic" back then, and even smile a few times without it being smug or forced.
  • Frisk and Chara's Sleep Cute moment on the couch.
• "Null: Part 4" has the title of "Hope", and reveals that not only did Napstablook avoid being absorbed (again) but so did the Riverperson. It's nice to see things start to look up, and to know that, aside from the robots, the two humans aren't completely alone, though Napstablook decides to stay behind.
• Even though Frisk initially freezes at the very sound of Lilac's voice, they still step in to defend her from Spamton.
• In the playable version of the boss battle against Spamton and the robots, if either Frisk or Chara gets hit by an attack that will reduce their HP to 0, the other will protect them from it once per turn. Chara also gives encouraging words to Frisk when they're stressed about both Lilac and Papybot.
  • The first question of the quiz that Spamton makes Robot 100 do asks who the greatest robot is, and Frisk almost chooses Mettaton as the answer in the video version.
• Even though what he's doing is terrifying and mostly cruel, there's something sweet about Asriel changing the name on Chara's memorial statue in the city from their birth name to their chosen name.
• When Frisk breaks down after Lilac's soul is taken, Chara comforts them with a hug, taking them by surprise.
• After being separated in "Rift: Part 3", the two humans are relieved and glad to see each other again when they reunite. Too bad they couldn't enjoy it for long since they ended up in a battle.
  • During the battle, when Frisk's HP is low, Chara lets them have the chocolate and pie that Asriel left for them back in Snowdin, showing that they care about Frisk enough to let them eat their favourite foods instead of keeping it for themself.
• The entire battle with the Fiend of Fatality. Rather than call Asriel out like the previous two battles, Chara owns up to their actions this time, acknowledging that their words and actions had scarred Asriel and gotten them both killed. Eventually, Chara is able to help Fatality accept their death, causing them to thank Chara for helping them feel fulfilled and helping them realize that their death wasn't in vain after all. Shame Asriel himself couldn't see otherwise, though, thinking it a façade just to advance further.
• "Rift: Part 5", appropriately subtitled "Reunion" has Frisk and Papyrus reunite after he was freed by the six human Souls (and it's shown in earlier parts that they did so because he treated them nicely). Once Frisk manages to get Papyrus out of his lost state, the first thing they do is hug him tearfully.
• "Rift: Part 6" reveals that when Flowey initially befriended all the monsters, he convinced Undyne to tell Papyrus the truth about her "training" him for the Royal Guard, and also got Mettaton to reunite with Napstablook and Shyren, both of which Frisk couldn't/never got the chance to do in their first run. Even Sans of all people was genuinely appreciative towards him for the outcome of his accomplishments. However, the moment turns into a heavy tearjerker when Flowey gets bored, resets the timeline and does the exact opposite of what he did previously.