Art commissioned by the author from 89animegirl
Let me tell you about six fallen virtues, and two royal children, and a sharp-edged genius and his staff of the rejected. About two brothers—one who reached out with open arms, and one with incredible power and an even more incredible heart.
And about three children—a boy, a girl, and something not quite either—who looked at their fate and said, “No, I refuse to die.”
— Author's note
Not as Simple as a Happy Ending is an Undertale fanfiction by PastelClark.
Not as Simple is a work in progress and is currently in pre-canon territory. It is fairly popular—the fanart tag on its official blog is over 85 pieces strong, and its design for the soul of integrity has become common within the Undertale fandom. Not as Simple (as well as PastelClark in general) is known for focus on platonic love and inclusion of several OCs.
This fanfiction provides examples of:
- Abusive Parents: Physical violence and withheld food were regularly used as punishments in Integrity/K Lin’s home. She was left with a debilitating fear of the dark from her father and/or mother often locking her in the hall closet. At one point when she was nine, Integrity accidentally broke a plate. Her punishment was denial of proper food for several days, and her father left her with a bruise that lasted a week. When Integrity came to the Underground at twelve, she had several bruises from her mother and had only eaten a stolen candy bar in the past two days.
- Coming of Age Story: Not as Simple serves as Sans’s coming of age story.
- “The characters that open this fic are not the ones we know and love in Undertale, and they’re seen through the eyes of a young, idealistic monster—as well as the reflections of an older, tired, even bitter one. Sans leads us through this world—he is not an impartial narrator, nor an omniscient one. He grows and changes, and so do the people around him.”
- Doomed by Canon: All of the pre-Frisk fallen children, as well as Gaster and most of his staff.
- Driven to Suicide: Strato Cumulus, Wind's mother, witnessed the brutal murder of the Perseverance child and couldn't bear to look at her own daughter afterwards. Six months later, Strato, who could fly, jumped into the Waterfall abyss.
- Family of Choice: Sans and Integrity, Sans and Gaster, and Sans and the lab staff.
- Foreshadowing
- He trusts her to only use the time power she’s been granted for the sake of their survival, but the thought of someone else with those powers is…worrying, to say the least.
- Gen Fic: There are a few romantic relationships, but platonic love is highlighted more often.
- Harmful to Minors: The entirety of Act 1.
- Happy Flashback: The start of Chapter 20.
- Heroic BSoD: Sans at Integrity’s death.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Integrity’s death.
- Meaningful Rename: Wind's.
- ““Excellent.” Gaster goes to leave, and then pauses, turning back around to look at you curiously. “Oh, one last thing. What shall I call you?”
You arch an eyebrow. “Don’t you already know my name?”
Gaster hums. “I didn’t ask for your name, I asked what I should call you.”
You pause, studying the peculiar monster in front of you. It’s a second chance, you realize, a fresh start, away from secrets and lies and cots in living room corners, away from everything it meant to be Nimbus.
“Well?”
“…Wind,” you say. “Call me Wind.””
- ““Excellent.” Gaster goes to leave, and then pauses, turning back around to look at you curiously. “Oh, one last thing. What shall I call you?”
- My Greatest Failure: To Sans, Integrity’s death. Even years later, Sans suffers from a clear-cut case of survivor's guilt.
- “Before Sans had inevitably killed the brightest star in his life?”
- "Not So Different" Remark: Sans and Undyne.“In essence, Sans is the epitome of everything Undyne is not, and yet, he thinks, they’re not completely different in their positions. They just placed their faith in different people.”
- Parental Substitute: Gaster to Sans.
- Take Away Their Name: A side effect of capturing someone’s soul; happens to the six fallen children.
- The Reveal: “It is feeding on us.”
- We Used to Be Friends: In chapter 22, Gaster briefly recounts to Asgore how much he looked up to him, and how they used to be like family. (This is shortly after nearly having a breakdown and detailing that Asgore destroyed his life.) He then goes on to explicitly tell Asgore that he hates him.
- You Can't Fight Fate: Remnant’s sentiment towards Sans.
- You Did Everything You Could: Said almost verbatim from Gaster to Sans about Integrity's death.
- ““I’m sure you did the best you could.””
