Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Frigid morning air hit you in the chest as you pushed the door open onto your new life. Your very last final was over, and days of sweating on a volleyball court for your scholarship were done. Sure, some things you would miss, like seeing your friends and a few of the teachers but it would be good to take a break. And that’s what you’d attempt to focus on. You’d scraped and saved to be able to afford a few months of just personal time with no worries to drive you up the wall. That is if you could keep your mind off the creeping panic that you had no idea what you’d do with your very general degree. You’d never made your mind completely up, and so this time of “nothing” was when you hoped you’d strike your passion. Hiking your bag further up your back you practically skipped down the stairs, spotting your friend Dorothy chatting with a girl you only sort of knew. You considered just quickly passing by, but she caught you at the last second, waving and shouting your name to come and join their small group.

Smiling, you waved back and jogged over, books jostling uncomfortably, you hiked the bag up again.

“Hey, girl! You remember Lauren, don’t you?” to which you nodded eagerly, relieved to have a name supplied to you rather than look like a dunce. “Uhg! Can’t believe it’s the last day for you! We still have a week with Mr. Lawson.” and you noticed both girls scowl as if on cue, Lauren even rolling her eyes at the name.

“Wow,” you laughed, “seems like you guys have had your work cut out for you. I think I remember you mentioning him… he’s the one who gave you the wrong test, but insisted he didn’t?”

“Yes!” Lauren blurted, slouching forward and pulling at her hair in exasperation. “It’s been such. A. struggleee.” she held out that last word in a groan of emphasis and you couldn’t help but laugh. It really was looking up for you, and to be in the presence of others still trudging through coursework really put you at ease.

Optimism suddenly pulled in your heart, lifting you up in a pleasant way. You shrugged while you laughed and made a move to stretch dramatically in jest.

“Yeaah, I’ll be working real hard getting through all those Hallmark movies I have lined up!” you joked, but as you stretched to the right something caught your eye. Your laugh was cut short, because out of the corner of your eye you could swear you saw some creepy figure standing out in the middle of the Eastern field. But when you turned to get a full look, there was nothing there. That nice feeling in your heart constricted a little with a faint bit of paranoia.

“What? What is it? Dorothy asked, also peering out at the field to witness the same conclusion. You shook your head, sure that it was just post final brain fog.

“I don’t know… I just thought I saw something but… guess not. Anyways, I really should be going.”

“You know, you always get so freaked out by little things. Like some type-ah deer. Good thing you’re done with class! You gotta relax.” Dorothy said, slapping you gently on the side of the arm. “But hey, I’ll text you sometime and we can go for a jog?”

It was as appealing to you as it was to her, but, you knew after a couple weeks of solitude that a run with a friend would sound great, so you nodded.

You gave each of them a brief hug, and a promise you’d call Dorothy tomorrow to let her vent about class, and then went on your way, glancing out at the field once more to be safe. Once sated with the secure feeling that there definitely wasn’t anyone there, you pulled your headphones out, turning on the last bit of an audiobook you’d saved exclusively for the walk home. You always liked saving a good thing for a good situation, it always helped to heighten the euphoria you might feel. The smile you had was hard to get rid of, and you didn’t want to seem crazy but it was hard to keep the almost grin fended off.

Your walk was always fairly long, several miles, but you walked along tree lines and fence lines of pastures, enjoying the day. The usual bike ride was foregone for the sweet smell of fresh air and wildflowers, because today was no rush, and there was time to stop and smell the roses.

A figure appeared to the side of you suddenly, and you screamed in surprise, jumping enough that you weren’t sure you saw right and prayed you didn’t. But as you calmed, you once again saw nothing. You took your headphones out anyways, stuffing them hastily into your pocket and returning to walking a little quicker. It was all in your head, or some teens were playing some weird prank. Staying in the inherited small cabin outside campus had been a fiscally responsible choice but… you still got scared about living so far from anyone else, and not owning a vehicle.

Your mother had bought it after she had taken up a job at the very same school you had just finished, Ebott University. She hadn’t been there to see you graduate though, a car crash had taken her life only a couple years ago… but you missed her often, and even more so in situations like this, where fear gripped at your chest. It’s nothing, nothing to fear. You reasoned with yourself, but you glanced over into the tree line anyways.

The cabin was quickly approaching, and you made a mental note to never not bring your bike again. But the closer your safety came, the more your gaze shifted around.

There! There it was again, and you shrieked loudly, breaking out into a run. Your legs found themselves and you sped the last thousand feet to your door, nearly dropping your key as you fumbled the door open and slammed it behind you.

Sweat dripped down your body as you dumped your bag and you yanked off your purple and blue striped sweater which had been almost too much to wear that day to begin with, but it usually acted as your good luck charm. And you hoped that luck would continue. Quickly, you double checked to make sure your door was locked, before rushing to the back of the house, scanning over things and being absolutely sure the back door was also secure. A shiver ran down your spine, and you peeked out a window and thanked your lucky stars that you’d gotten back before the sun had even started to lower. Your hand reached for your phone, contemplating calling the police but… you feared being ridiculous and time wasting. The more you mulled it over, the more that shadowy figure had seemed like a mirage. And besides, if it was anything, it was probably just those dumb boys that lived a few miles away at a little farm. The closest town was primarily agricultural, with students from the small university that kept it afloat to “town” status instead of village.

Moving to the kitchen, you shakily poured yourself a glass of water and downed it quickly in an attempt to cool down in more ways than one. Filling it again, you pressed the cold glass against your temple and walked back into the living room to plop down in front of the TV. This was nothing a good rom-com couldn’t fix, you thought, and soon enough you were leveled out.

As the credits rolled, you sighed deeply and gratefully. Scary moments sure did make you appreciate the little things but as you made your way to the bedroom you felt that gnawing fear creep into you again. Out of habit, you opened up your bedside drawer to ensure your gun still had its place. You changed into a long nightgown, checked on the gun, and laid down. But it was only minutes that passed when you got back up to check the doors, and then the windows. Laid back down. And then back up once more to do a thorough sweep of the area for the last time. Tense but tired, you lay down and pulled your blanket up near your face as though it was all you needed to keep the entire world at bay. Sleep found you eventually, but the fatigue was what drove it.

Snap

Your eyes shot open, and you wished you’d kept the hallway light on, but instead, you laid perfectly still and intensely aware. A slight rustling to your right and you rushed the turn your lamp on, the light sputtered on for a moment before the bulb burst and you screamed. At that moment, you caught a glimpse again of a shadowy figure, a man certainly, wearing a hooded sweatshirt. You jerked the drawer open and removed the 9mm gun, shoving a preloaded magazine inside and readying the weapon.

“Do not move! I have a gun! I will shoot you!” you shouted, trying to sound even toned but coming off a little more hysterical than you’d like. You sidestepped towards a light switch as your eyes adjusted to the dark, but as you flicked the light on, he had begun to advance on you. Once again, the bulb exploded and you couldn't even make a noise as you shot at your aggressor. You heard splintering, but no other noise and before you could take another shot, a cold boney hand wrapped around your wrist, the hold so tight that your fingers weren't able to move and your finger locked on the trigger. He turned the gun away from himself till you were sure you were staring down the barrel directly, but it was too ill-lit to tell.

“shoot.” a gravelly voice commands, and tears begin to well up, your breathing coming out quicker.

“ shoot .” the man said again, and to your extreme shock, bright blue illuminated his face, the light pouring from his eye… sockets. You screamed as a skull came into your vision, and you were in awe at the detail. It felt too real to be a nightmare, but it felt like one in every way.

“Leave me alone! Please! You can have my money or whatever you want!” you screamed, kicking out at him but he slammed his other hand hard against the wall, so hard you could hear the drywall give way.

“leave you alone?? like you left me??”

The words made no sense to you, and you shook your head vigorously, unsure what else you could do.

“Please! You have the wrong person! I- I don’t know you!”

“you don’t remember? i’m the fucking judge, and your executioner.. and the JURY AND THE WITNESS.” he shouted, face getting closer and closer to yours while getting louder and louder, glowing blue saliva spitting from his mouth.

You felt it and trembled, rethinking that this could be a nightmare. Your brain could barely comprehend the terror let alone the extreme special effects this burglar has put on.

Suddenly, your gun was ripped from your hand, and with his eyes on it, it glinted in the dark. You made to scramble away but you were frozen in place as he squeezed the barrel closed, dropping it uselessly on the ground. It was inhuman, and you tried again to dart away but another hand slammed down against the wall, breaking through more of it.

“you left me to ROT in the underground, thought i’d never find you up here, that i’d never escape. but even without that fucking sweater, i’d know your soul anywhere.” he snarled, and it was then that more light filled the space as he stared down at your chest. You felt a pressure build up, getting tighter and tighter like gas built up in your rib cage until it burst forward in a surge of light and you gaped as a red heart-shaped… thing came pulling from your body. Your mouth hung open, but no words came out because this had gone so much farther past what you could comprehend. The skull-faced man stared, and suddenly numbers began to read out in front of you, looking like statistics, but you quickly refocused to the man, watching his reaction.

It was one of confusion, twisted with more anger. He pulled his hands out of your walls, before grabbing your shoulders and throwing you down against the floor. Cruelly, he slammed a foot down on your hand when you reached to help yourself up and you cried out in pain.

“stay down. and tell me who the fuck you are.”

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

“I don’t want to fight!” you pleaded, beginning to panic and trying to reach out to the glowing red soul in a vain attempt to put it back in.

How did it go back in before?? You wondered staring at it in wonder.

“that was your turn, buddy. might wanna use it a little more wisely next time.”

A barrage of bones flew towards you and you were suddenly extremely grateful it hadn’t been long since your last volleyball game. Throwing yourself about you dodged, ducked, and jumped past each hurling bone, when over you noticed that San’s soul was a blue color, and also pushed out in front of him, but as you finished his attack, it dulled slightly as though dormant. Yours, now, pulsed brighter than before but you didn’t know what to do… Run towards him to punch? That didn’t seem like it would work. If you were honest, it might have been a choice you took but given what had happened earlier there was no way.

Silently, you wished you were able to pull up his numbers, like you had briefly seen your own and suddenly you could. In front of you, were his Attack and Defense, with 1s next to them.

Does this mean… he’s… number 1?

You squinted at them in confusion, and refocused to look at him just in time to notice him scowling angrily.

Maybe not then…

Before you could think more on it, though, your soul dimmed slightly and once again his came back brightly. More bones, appearing as though from smoke in front of you for you to avoid, and then disappearing again behind you in a puff of what looked like vapor. You almost started to think that this might not even hurt if you were to come into contact with these things, but while leaping out of the way, your ankle caught just barely onto a smaller bone and your whole body pulsed with pain for a moment. Yelping in surprise you darted a look at your heart which you saw had a small section on the top of it go into a faded color. When it was your turn again, it flared into life again but with that small part remaining in a faded color.

Is he trying to kill me??

“Sans, please! I didn’t mean to fight you!”

Sans shrugged, hands lifted up in a nonchalant gesture.

“intent was there, pal. you can’t say it wasn’t.”

More near misses, and more hits in flurry after flurry. The only thing spacing out his attacks being your pleading with him to quit attacking you. Lower and lower, the bright part of your soul kept on sinking until it was taking a dramatic effect on you. Did you have to keep dodging? Couldn’t you just… run instead? After a quick sidestep from his last attack, you stared him in the eye for a moment, wincing when he winked at you but with a deep breath, you simply turned and ran. This was all futile, almost stupid- but if you could get down your dirt pathway and onto the road… maybe someone could find you there.

To your immense relief, your soul almost seemed to sprout legs, and it itself rushed past you before quickly gliding back towards your chest and diving inside your body. There wasn’t any time to think about it as you ran for your front door and flung it open. Dawn was just barely breaking, and with the trees surrounding your home it wasn’t as much of a help as you’d have liked, but maybe that would work for you. You knew your land better than Sans did.

Your legs were wobbly for a few seconds but soon they found their stride. You had been pretty fast on your volleyball team, not as fast as Sarah Andrews, but still good enough.

This could work! I can wave someone down!

That wave of exuberance was squashed when you smashed hard into something that felt like a stone wall and you fell backwards. Exhaustion wracked your body, lack of sleep, the paranoia, it had to have been hours of dealing with this man. You beat your hands down into the soil throwing a small fit. It just wasn’t fair, not long ago at all you were completely oblivious to all of this. You had a kind and loving mother, and a considerate and patient grandparent. There was no way that their souls were tainted, they were good people. And you believed you were too.

“If it can’t be helped… just do it. I don’t know how you’re doing it. But it seems like I’m unable to escape. I miss them anyways. I miss my family. So just get it over with.”

You hung your head in defeat and acceptance, even though there was a tiny hope that this admission would grant some leniency or convince him to let you be in some way. But you tried not to focus on that, just incase you were getting your hopes up for nothing.

A long pregnant pause stretched out between the two of you, but you didn’t dare lift your face to guess at his expression. It hadn’t worked out so far… so why now? But just as you were starting to feel the quake of regret in not fighting him you noticed fingers in your field of vision, boney ones. You tilted your face up but he wasn’t looking at you. Instead, he was scowling out in another direction, but you could tell what you’d said had pushed through. A little late you realized it probably had to do something with your mention of wanting to be with your family. The two of you might have something small in common, the general longing for your family to be back.  

Very hesitantly, you reached out and took hold of his hand. You didn’t much want to touch his hand, the idea of touching bone directly just skeeved you out, but you took a quiet breath and rooted yourself in the attempt to smooth over the situation. Vain as it may be.

Sans wrapped his fingers around yours, the other hand in his pocket, but without much effort at all he pulled you up into standing position. Standing closer to him now you noticed needing to look up at him, and shuddered.

“I wasn’t trying to fight you.” you repeated, folding your arms in front of your chest and resisting the urge to look away.

He didn’t respond.

“Please… just… I’ll go along and believe you, what you say about my Jiji Frisk. I mean… I wouldn’t believe you were real except the thrashing I’ve gotten from you has felt too real… There has to be something we can do like… get you a home here? Maybe a cabin somewhere? Or you could pretend to be a burn victim and live your days out here if… everyone else of your kind is gone.”

“they’re not all gone.” he quickly said, “and… an idea might be able to dawn on me if you go back to the house.”

“Will you attack me again? Cause I’ll keep running. Pretty sure I can just keep dodging and running until someone finds me…”

“doubt that very seriously, buddy, but c’mon, i wouldn’t kill a friend! we’re even on first name basis.” he said, swinging an arm roughly around your shoulders, and spinning you around. His grip was tight on your upper arm as he guided you back to the house and the feeling of impending death wasn’t shaken from your heart as his vice like grip dug into what was surely a bruised area.

This night into the morning had been an absolute terror, and with all the surprises you felt your mind and body might just be in some type of shock because you believed that you were handling the situation fairly well. You resolved to give it one more desperate attempt to hear him out.

How many more times can I possibly accept being attacked?? And then try to move on like it didn’t happen?

You tried not to think about it and focus on getting information now.

“Uh… so when these events occurred,” that you didn’t believe, “how old was my Jiji? Surely it was before my mom.”

“i assume it was. they were ten.”

Your body went rigid for a moment before almost immediately continuing. When you tried to stop, his grip tightened enough that you knew he’d drag you along if need be.

“Ten??” you asked incredulously, “No! A ten year old wiped out a race of monsters?” Was that okay to say? Monsters? He didn't seem bothered by it.

“nearly wiped out. and yes. they were determined.”

Shaking your head in disbelief you held back from guffawing at the statement. This skeleton must be deranged. There was just no way that your sweet old grandparent could perform mass genocide at the age of ten. In your head you began to roughly make calculations, based on your grandparents age and mothers age when they had children, as well as your own age currently. 89 years ago they had met Frisk… He was a skeleton, after all, but you couldn’t wrap your mind around why he’d wait 89 years to attack you.

The two of you were on the doorstep once again, and walking inside as the door was still open from when you’d fled. Finally, he released you and you slowly shut the door with the two of you inside. By now, light filtered in through the trees and you glanced around your childhood home to see the mess that had been made during your several scuffles.

“Why wait over 80 years to come back??” you demanded, turning to him, balling your one good fist again. He had taken a few steps past you into the house and didn’t turn around, but his shoulder slumped at least an inch.

“i didn’t mean to. i was working on a way through the barrier, and after the first couple years went by without any progress, i froze time in my workshop. the remaining monsters kept coming to me. demanding my help…” he paused for a few moments, “but that’s just not who i am. i couldn’t help them. so i stopped time for myself… but i didn’t know time on the surface had kept going.” he glanced behind his shoulder at you, a glint of that blue shining in his narrowed eye and you flinched. “otherwise you wouldn’t be here.”

He turned back forward, and walked around the couch to slump into a seat, hands dug into his sweatpants pockets and his white shirt displaying his arm bones. You decided to ignore his comment. Maybe he’d never stop acting like you’d killed his people, so you might just have to live with the accusatory tone.

“So what is your idea?”

“what?”

“What is your idea? The one you said you’d tell me when we got here.”

Sighing heavily, he leaned back forwards and resting his elbows on his knees. Hooking two fingers into his eyes again and tugging but not nearly as much as he did before. An instinct came over you and you walked around the couch to sit next to him. Pointedly, you made the movement swift and firm as you wrapped your fingers now around his wrist and unshackled his eye sockets. There was no way you’d know what to do if those cracks in his face came together and his head shattered. Would he keep moving around as a headless entity? He already defied laws of being alive as far as you could tell. It had to be magic or spirit energy or something holding him together.

Sans didn’t resist the touch. He even stared at you with an expression so layered you knew you wouldn’t be able to entirely perceive the meaning. You chose to ignore it too, and laid his hands down onto his lap, patting them gently before shifting away from him.

“am i cracking your composure?” he asked jokingly, but the wink he gave you seemed too slow and somehow broken. It added onto the creepiness of the situation rather than any… fun. Crossing your arms over your chest again, you used the motion as an answer and he sighed again. This time, making you wonder if there were lungs floating under his rib cage to produce what you were sure was air.

Probably best not to think too much about any of that… you thought to yourself.

“yeah. i got an idea. but it’s not really one you can refuse.” You scowled. “we are going to go to the barrier between our worlds, and you will reset the timeline.”

Chapter Text

You stared at Sans with an unbelieving expression. This whole situation was just getting thicker and thicker with twists, turns and confusion- you could barely sift through all this new information. Reset the timeline? Everything?

“Reset… the timeline? All the way back to when Jiji Frisk was 10? … how… how will I even be able to exist? This feels like I’m gonna die anyways!”

“so what?”

“So what?!”

“you won’t ever have existed. do you remember before you were born?”

“No- but-”

“listen, pal. i don’t know if frisk will reset. the barrier split our worlds apart in more ways than one. it was confirmed to me that it was when my timeline was successfully put on hold… while yours kept going. the barrier is still intact, and i can feel the string from my soul to where i supposedly belong. based on my research, when you reset the timeline it won’t reset the human world. but frisk had altered so much of my time… i don’t know if they’d be tethered to it or not.”

“This… uh… this is a lot to take in.” you admitted, rubbing at your temples reflexively as you processed this new information. The mentioning of resets had worked you up very quickly- into thoughts of resetting and somehow saving your mom, changing time just enough that she wouldn’t have gotten in the car that day. This thought more than any other you now tried to push out of your mind, you could tell it was making you a little more bitter and cynical.

Firstly, you weren’t even sure you believed what he said about Frisk, and especially the idea of them being 10 years old and committing mass murder. You might have humored the idea of them being in a fugue state or mental collapse or… something. But not just a child, he had to be lying. If anything, his people died of some natural cause, and after all this time? He had to be going actually insane. People died, even if you could reset the timeline, maybe they died for a reason?

Destiny and all that… right?

“And I can’t refuse it? You just said you wouldn’t kill me.”

“not in a direct way. i’ll just stay with you forever, i don’t mind. i’ll have a good casket made and we can be buried alive… together, and chat the rest of your life away. it’ll be nice.” he said, his grin widening and you could see the stress to his face caused new micro fissures to spider out along his skull.

“That is the same as killing me.” you said flatly, but he shrugged in return.

“nah, not really.”

You rolled your eyes, looking away towards your bookshelf that lay covered with a thin layer of dust. The plan had been to read more during this break too… fiction and nonfiction. Carpentry in Art was one of those, your mom had bought it in an attempt to fulfill a lifelong dream of building a simple table, but had never gotten to it. This break was going to be your chance to fulfill it, you had thought, and with lots of time to look into it. No working at a breakneck speed like your mother had done all her life.  

“so?” he asked, verbally nudging you forward. You closed your eyes in annoyance, your face still turned away from him.

“Seems like I don’t have an option, do I?” you grumbled, and jumped a little when his large skeletal hand clapped down on your shoulder again causing you to hiss in pain.

“that’s the spirit! you’re a bone -ified buddy, ya know that?”

This only made your burgeoning scowl deepen, and he chuckled in response.

“hey, you don’t look too good. maybe you should get some water or somethin to eat?’ he suggested, putting his hands behind his head and leaning back while putting his feet up on the coffee table, crossing them in a relaxed way.

Glancing over at him, you rolled your eyes again, your mind calming now more than ever, but with the release of deathly fear came the growing sense of mental and emotional calamity. Popping upright, you lightly stalked off around the coffee table and into the kitchen, grabbing your empty water cup from the table as you did. It was annoying to do as he said, but you were hungry, and the extreme events had left you parched once you were aware enough to even feel it.

After downing several cup of water you pulled out milk, oatmeal and began to prepare it. The thought crossed your mind to prepare only enough for one person but despite your displeasure and suffered abuse you made enough for the skeleton anyways. He breathed… he could eat too probably, you reasoned. Once the food finished up, you took out two bowls, setting one by the pot.

Peeking out from the wall of the kitchen, you looked at the... thing sitting on your couch and cringed a little. You didn’t want to ask…

“Do you want some oatmeal?” you asked anyway. Sans opened one eye lazily in your direction, his constant grin making it difficult to know what he was thinking.

“nah.” he said, and then went back to closing his eyes, head leaned back a little.

Quickly, you ducked back behind the wall, pursed your lips together tightly and rushed to grab an oven mitt which you set against your thigh and punched into with your good hand. And the thought that you couldn’t just wear it on one hand and punch with the other sent you into another wave of frustration over how bruised you’d gotten. You’d been kind, suffered the abuse, offered up chances, refused to fight, attempted to talk it through. Nothing about this situation had anything to do with you- except that it had been your grandparent. His situation had been done and over by the time you came along! But still you’d tried to reason. Sure, you feared for your life the majority of your time spent with him, but why did he have to be so insufferable?? He could at least have given you a thank you, or just accepted it as your very tentative peace offering.

Never before had you eaten oatmeal so angrily. But up on the counter, you had seated yourself with bowl in hand eating like it had threatened you.

Over your meal though, you began to calm down. A repeated mantra of “be kind to others” was all you could focus on. Besides, this was probably contact with a race of beings unknown to anyone on Earth. Sure he was awful, but these steps you took could dictate future relations forever. Maybe the others he spoke of weren’t so bad… You blew air out your nose in exasperation, nearly throwing your bowl into the sink in anger, but thought twice and simply set it down. After you shut the stove off you left back into the small dining space, not wanting to clean up at the moment. From there you were able to keep your distance but also look at the being sitting in your living room. Propping your head up on your hand you glared at how he seemed to be so relaxed, almost happy.

Snoring… you could hear it. He had started snoring, as though it was perfectly fine to just fall asleep! It didn’t seem reasonable, to attack you and destroy your home, and then just fall asleep on your couch? You could kill him- choke him to death or…

On second thought, maybe that’s why he didn’t have any fear. A skeleton was probably already dead, right? If you pulled his head from his body, could he just affix it back? Your thoughts continued deeper into considering if maybe you took apart every piece of bone and hid it around town… would he somehow Iron Giant himself back together?

“don’t they teach you up here? it’s ghoulish to stare.”

You flinched, realizing you’d been staring at him while lost in thought for quite some time, and then you thought on his words. It had happened a few times, but you’d been too afraid to give it enough time to think.

“Are… you making puns right now?”

“that’s the skeleton key to my popularity.”

There were no words, and you couldn’t find it within yourself to humor his jokes.

“are my attempts to tickle a human’s funny bone in vein ?”

“Fuck you.” you said angrily, standing up and shoving your chair back a little forcefully. You wanted to charge forward in intimidation, or yell at him to leave, but even your two words were setting your heart beating at a faster pace. It made you nervous to speak up against him, but he had been treating you like trash and then apparently thinking that you needed to laugh at his lame jokes. It brought you back to middle school when some boy in the grade above you would shove you into the lockers, but days later make a joke and then call you out for not laughing. It was rude now too albeit on a much more dangerous scale.

Although slowly you reminded yourself what you had only just considered- that this could be your one shot to build relations with a new species. So you very quietly muttered an apology, crossing your arms and keeping them tight against your chest.

“what?” he asked, his grin seeming purposeful in its attempts to infuriate you.

“I said I’m sorry.” you said evenly, looking down at the floor, and before he could poke at you again you continued, “Listen, I don’t wanna be held in limbo. What are we doing? Or what am I doing? I just want to get this over with.”

“whoa, buddy. offer me to sit down to a meal, but then wanna rush off? i’ve been waiting around for a long time… maybe i wanna live in the moment.”

The pause stretched on for almost minutes. It seemed to be a routine of his to make these awkward pauses stretch on, and you thought he must know right when you were about to say something because then he’d continue.

“we have to climb up Mt. Ebott. the bridge between our worlds is up there, and we’ll go in together. from there, i will tell you. for now, you should get some sleep, friend.” he said and his brow bone seemed to crinkle even though apparently it was just… bone. But it moved almost like flesh, although it had certainly felt like bone. Confusion seemed like it would never stop for you. But, you thought about it, and decided it was probably best. You didn’t know at all what you were getting yourself into, but it was likely going to happen whether you wanted it to or not, because certain death was the other road, a road you didn’t want to try your luck with.

“Well, I dunno how we’ll get up there. Not like I have a car, and I doubt you can take public transport.”

“why not?”

“Are you kidding?” you asked, trying not to laugh at his question, “You’re a skeleton! How could you possibly get around without people noticing? Did you ever do anything except lurk in the bushes?”

Sans only rolled his eyes at you, before lazily pulling himself up, and walking around the corner into your bedroom. Immediately, you followed him, a little furious that he’d once again just invite himself wherever he wanted, but when you looked inside you couldn’t find him.

“Sans!” you called out, poking your head into the closet and the small bathroom attached to your room, under the bed, and then unrealistic places like under your pillows and in drawers.

This has to be some sort of… magic invisibility thing… you speculate, and very slowly retreat back into the living room where you ended up picking up a book you could only half read. Although things seemed to have become… peaceful for lack of better words, you still were very far from trusting the skeleton and didn’t want to be too distracted in case he snuck up on you or attacked.

.

.

.

Hours had passed when you woke, startled, to loud knocking on the door. The sun had dipped much lower, and you guessed it to be 4pm without looking at the clock. You set the book on the coffee table and rushed for the door, pulling it open without even thinking. Everything had seemed like a dream but as soon as you registered it could be some monster behind the door you almost made to slam it closed again. To your relief, it was Dorothy standing there, staring at you mouth agape.

“Hey! When did you get a motorcycle?? Do you… uh… need to talk?” your friend asked, clearly perplexed and her eyes darted from you to something outside. You pushed past her, and tried not to also look shocked as there was indeed a standard black Harley sitting in your dirt driveway, parked right in front of Dorothy’s car.

Could it be his?? You wondered, but surely you would have seen it during your scuffle outside… unless…

“Oh! That… uh… it’s my boyfriends.” you told her, trying to keep the nerves from your voice while you scratched the back of your head. Dorothy narrowed her eyes, clearly not buying it, and then took note of your pajamas.

“Is it Derek? I thought you were done with that sleazeball years ago…”

“No! Not Derek, a new guy… uh, his name is Tony.” you blurted, and would have rolled your eyes at the name if you weren’t trying to get away with this stupid lie. Sans was just too weird a name to say without inviting more questioning.

“Tony?? You dating some Italian mobster or something? A motorcycle? New? Mysterious?” she paused, and then attempted to push her way in. You scrambled to block her way. “What?? Lemme see Mystery Man Tony!” she demanded.

“He’s naked!” you almost shouted, cringing a little, and nearly jumped out of your skin when a voice inside the house called out to you.

“babe! come back to bed!” Sans called, and your heart tripped over itself in how odd that was to hear, but also that he’d somehow snuck back inside without your knowing… and acquired a motorcycle.

Dorothy didn’t seem convinced but she didn’t push her way inside now either.

“Hey…” she whispered, “If this is some sorta like… murder thing, you can whisper it to me, I’ll get the police here. You know my Uncle still works for Ebott police.”

For a moment, her words were a saving grace, a light, a halo of heavenly energy- but this situation was just way too out of their reach if you really thought about it. Maybe if Dorothy had someone she knew with the FBI who trusted some college girls unequivocally, but to just call the police? To arrest a skeleton that would probably kill them and her and then disappear forever?

The long pause was causing Dorothy to encroach into your home again, her shoulders squaring. Your hands flew up defensively.

“No! No, just a guy I met online, okay? It’s embarrassing! I uh, was about to get… ya know… uh… naked.” The last bit of your words came out almost as a hiss between your teeth of embarrassment, and you feared it would be long lived as Dorothy began barking with laughter.

“Girl! Whatever! You are the most VIRGIN!” she shouted the particular word into the house, “woman I know. You better not be blowing it on some rando loser.” But she then pulled you forward out of the doorway and closed the door so you were both outside, and that’s when she noticed your hand all bruised. Your eyes threw themselves to hers in panic as she suddenly began to look very angry.

“Oh! No! I swear it wasn’t him! Honest! Oh my god, this is so stupid but… I met him at a bar last night, and you know, the no car thing, I took a bus into town and right when I got off I realized I forgot my purse, I tried to rush back on, but the driver shut my hand in the door! Honestly, it’s worse than it looks, but it wasn’t him!” Never before had you been very good at lying, and honestly, this lie was also pretty threadbare but it seemed to keep Dorothy from kicking the door in.

Is this Stockholm Syndrome?? You wondered to yourself, unbelieving that you were lying for a monster skeleton hidden somewhere in your home.

“Listen, whatever. Just… answer your phone okay! You didn’t call like you said you would, and then after several calls AND texts I just came down to check on you. I’m gonna let you do you but…” she lowered her voice to a whisper again, “You let me know. Just call me and act like you’re ordering a pizza or somethin’.”

“It’s not like that, Dot.”

“Uh-huh. Just remember, okay?” she said, a tone of concern flushing her voice, but she eventually backed off a little. “Well… let… Tony know that I’ll be checking on you again.” and she added in another whisper. “And don’t tell him, but I’m writing down his license plate number.”

You couldn’t help but smile at your friend before hugging her tightly. Even if this was a legitimate date of some type, you know she would be just as thoughtful about your safety, and it made your heart swell with appreciation.

“Thanks, Dottie. You’re the best… I’ll let you know how it goes, okay?” you promised her, and hoped you would be able to at least tell a lie about it in the next week, and maybe even the truth years from then. Dorothy lightly punched your shoulder that had you bite back a yelp of pain, and she eventually made her way back to the car. You watched her scribble some stuff down on a piece of paper, glancing at the new vehicle in your yard now and then before waving at you as she pulled out, and drove away, a little more slowly than usual.

A sigh of relief at the end of this ordeal surprised you, because now it was just back to the real nightmare… but, it was a nightmare that served more as an annoyance. Pushing the door open, you walked back inside and nearly screamed as Sans was right in the doorway, hands in pockets and grinning at you like usual.

“skele… tony?” he joked, and all you could think was how happy you were that he didn’t know about the awards show.

“What is with the motorcycle outside?? Where did you even get it?” you demanded, instead of responding to him.

“we leave tomorrow morning. might wanna get some food and shut eye.” he responded, also ignoring you more or less. You huffed in annoyance.

Chapter Text

Sleep never did come to you easily, but it had been especially unforgiving that night. Painful spasms had encroached on your back, most likely from hitting the ceiling so hard. Vaguely, you remembered hearing that the second day was always when you’d be the most sore. But you hoped for that to not be true- not when you would probably be hanging onto the back of a motorcycle for several hours.

Or… he couldn’t drive… could he? He had no license, if they got pulled over they’d wanna see his face certainly.

I could always drive… you reasoned uncomfortably.

You had driven a friend’s motorcycle a few times when you were a more daring teen, and had had your head almost bitten off by your mom who asked why you’d wanted to be an organ donor so soon. She’d had a tendency to go a bit off the rails when it came to her only child’s safety… and while at the time it had felt annoying and bothersome- you now would give anything to be there again, getting scolded for dumb decisions.

The frequency at which you spaced off thinking of your so closely lost life had been starting to lessen, but with this new being in your life wreaking havoc, you had found yourself gravitating to your mother’s memory more often.

No time for that right now… you mused as random essentials were crammed into a backpack- undergarments, hygiene products, an extra pair of slacks, a long sleeping gown, two sweatshirts, a Swiss Army knife, a few protein bars, and a small family portrait of you, Jiji Frisk, and your mother which you folded up and stuck in the front pocket.

“hey, buddy.” Your eyes darted up to your doorway where Sans stood, leaning against the frame. “you didn’t pack that striped sweater didya?”

“No.” You responded simply. You’d contemplated packing your good luck charm, but he’d brought it up on that first altercation, and you knew it had been your Jiji Frisk’s as a very young girl. Apparently that sweater had some type of meaning to the skeleton, and you didn’t want to hear more. It was pretty stretched out at this point anyways and you always had to wear an undershirt with it from how thin it had become. Best to pack things more out of necessity.

Glancing up again you scowled, making eye contact and deciding not to sway from it. He needed to know you weren’t scared, even if you admittedly were terrified and already at your wits end. After a bit though, he only laughed, his teeth still clenched shut in that creepy grin.

“almost done?” he asked. To this, you zipped the bag shut with more force than necessary and slung it onto your back. When you reached over for your phone though, he said, “you won’t be needing that.” You rolled your eyes, and grabbed it anyways, powered it off, and stuck it in that front pocket with your family photo. With a quick look around the room you stood up, grabbing onto the straps, and marched right past him. You intended to be getting on the bike first, making it clear that you’d be driving- you had no idea the nightmare that might ensue if, God forbid, someone did get into some type of situation with this skeleton. It was shit enough that you were dragged into all this, no way did you want someone else to be put in harm’s way.

Sans watched after you with amusement, following behind you and shutting the door. He paused, staring at the door lock.

“Just leave it. No one comes out here and honestly, who knows if I’ll be back. I’d rather they open the door than break the windows.” He gave you another odd expression, and it was your turn to shrug him off as you straddled the bike and gripped the handle bars. To your amazement, he didn’t protest, and simply handed over the keys to you. First his pause with your lock, then this? And he seemed a lot calmer today, the crackle of threat didn’t fill the air around him like it had these last two days. Deciding not the question it, you paddled yourself into a good position, turned the engine on, and motioned for him to get on. Again, he paused, but then got on behind you after he’d tied a face protecting cloth around the bottom of his face, and pulled on a hoodie to cover most of his head. Now only his eyes peered out from an otherwise fully clothed man.

“Oh! No helmets!” You suddenly remembered, but he shot you a look that you could understand the meaning of fully, and you let it go. Sitting behind you, he snaked his arms around your waist and you were almost sure you could feel him shudder slightly. You tried not to be creeped out by that, and focused on trying your best to remember how to drive…

“Hey, uh, by the way… Can we make a very quick pit stop half way up the mountain?”

“well i’m inclined to say no.” He chortled at this, and then went silent.

You waited a few moments, and then just sighed, resigning yourself to the idea that you probably wouldn’t get to stop by the old town that Jiji Frisk had grown up. One of the aunties who lived there, Auntie Cait, had known Frisk all their life, and had been the only one who told you snippets of information now and then. Information that you’d largely ignored, being a child and all, but now you desperately wanted to remember everything she said. It came back in random bits, but even then you couldn’t be entirely sure you remembered everything she said correctly. The people in that very small village also were the only ones who you thought could actually help, they might know some sort of ritual to banish Sans back underground, or how to destroy him- especially if he planned on killing everyone if you weren’t able to… reset the timeline.

Don’t think about it. You begged yourself, and kicked off to start driving down your dirt path, and eventually onto the paved road that wound its way up almost to the top of the mountain. If he wanted to get to the summit, they’d have to ditch the bike and hike a couple miles the rest of the way. But it was going to be several hours of driving, and maybe you could convince him to make that stop. Or even if you could make a dash for it- distract him somehow and then get to Auntie Cait and beg for help.

About half an hour was driven in silence, your mind buzzing with too much to consider to miss the radio or conversation. Life alone out in plains and forest had given you a penchant for silent musings anyway.

“what is the pit stop you’re wanting?” sans suddenly asked, breaking you from your thoughts.

You felt a little hesitant before you responded, suddenly feeling apprehensive about what information you might give him. “Oh uh… well my Jiji grew up in a village near the top of Mount Ebott… I thought I might ask my Auntie Cait about Frisk and… maybe uh… Your kind.” You could feel your heart swell up in your chest, beating irregularly and your ears strained in anticipation for what he may say to you.

“we’ll do that.” he said simply, and right before you could get a burst of conspiring energy he followed up with, “but i won’t feel too bad about killing all of them if you cross me. you’re sticking to the plan.”

Blood surged to your face and you were glad he was sitting behind you, because it already felt like he could read your mind. So seeing your reaction would just make it worse. This skeleton was becoming more and more intolerable by the second, but each time he did or said something awful it felt like he had another finger wrapped around your throat. Soon there would be no pulling away without sure death, if you weren’t already there.

Pushing back on the dread you concentrated on the world around you as it became aware to you that this may be the last time you saw any of this before you’d… cease to exist. And so you became wrapped up in the drive, the cool breeze on your face, and the fields of grain and corn that melted into the skyline making you feel like you were sitting safe in a snow globe. Just had to ignore the skeletal arms encircled around your waist.

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Darkness had begun to overtake the day as you quietly rolled towards town, the urge to relieve yourself at the absolute forefront of your mind. Sans directed you into the brush a hundred yards away from the lighted area, and you jumped off the motorcycle before he could, leaving him to drag the bike into some bramble. You didn’t go too far before pulling your pants down clear to your ankles and squatting as far from your feet as you could as you finally peed, sighing as the pressure on your bladder was relieved.

“humans... so often urine a rush to go.” Sans laughed, and you rolled your eyes. In other circumstances you may have been embarrassed but with how otherworldly Sans looked you just couldn’t see him as something on the same spectrum as a human. More like an intelligent beast that you’d never be able to see eye to eye with- and it made your shame dissipate. It barely mattered to you if he saw your private areas or not.

After a few awkward shakes you resigned yourself to pulling your pants up, buttoning them taking a little longer as your hands shook with fatigue and anxiety from the long trip and the looming task at hand.

The shadow grew, darker and larger. And Sans was the enigmatic caster, so quickly switching between two sides of himself it seemed. As you made to walk past him, he grabbed your arm, still sore and you flinched but with no reaction from your captor. He forced you to turn towards him, and, with his free hand, he pulled a chain from around his neck and said nothing as he slipped it over your head. You chose to stay silent, but couldn’t help but feel the hitch in your breath as he now used two fingers to dig into his right eye. It was disturbing to say the least, and you began to sweat in anticipation. A tittering, manic sound pushed out from between his teeth, his bones shuddered, and his grip tightened making you stifle a cry as he finally pulled from his socket a small white light. He was sweating now too, and grabbed the thin necklace that hung from your neck and pulled you closer, holding the catenary and light in his large boney hand, and squeezed until the light stopped shining through his fingers. One blue eye was now trained on you, looking so deeply into your eyes you felt like he was staring straight into your soul.

“don’t try to betray me.” he said, voice guttural and threatening. Brow furrowed and hand still clenching your arm painfully he continued his eternal grin. “i’ll make existence pain for you.” Releasing you, he casually put his hands into his hoodie pockets and his expression melted into an easier one, back into something you thought you could handle and manipulate but were realizing that was completely wrong. It was a hard pill to swallow, but your stomach was lined with a grit that wouldn’t accept total defeat- even in the face of an impassable being. So you nodded, and turned to begin the walk to the small town, hoping you could remember where your Auntie Cait lived if she even still lived there at all… or was living.

Chapter Text

A couple hesitant raps on the rough hewn door that bled out memories of your distant childhood. In your mind’s eye, you could see ghosts of your mother and Jiji, you clutching their hands as your Auntie Cait came into view with that sparkle in her eyes. And when she opened the door this time, it was no different.

“Little late for a visitor… oh, but never too late for you, child.” A grin grew along the thin line of lips, bringing a crinkle to her eyes aged with wisdom. “It has been too long.” And you were felt a weight pulled off your shoulders that made you weak in the knees when she scooped you into a strong embrace. Your family had always been made up of strong women and persons. “Taking after your mother, I see.”

Ushered inside the cozy home, you were set up with slippers, a blanket, tea, and a crackling fire as your host gently chided you for being out after dark in the mountains. “Don’t ya know, child? Monsters lurk just under your feet!” she laughed, and you struggled to keep from wincing.

I only wish they were all under there…

“Funny you mention that Auntie… uh, so, see I came out here to ask about-”

“You know, child- how did ya come to get here? I’d heard ya still didn’t have a car after your mother’s passing.”

Your fingers tightened around the warm cup of tea, a small gesture but you thought Auntie Cait may notice. Not that it would bother her- as kind as the woman was she could often be cavalier. “Uh, I had a friend drop me off. We… were going camping, and they dropped me off so I could learn a lil more about my Jiji… which, well, I was wondering if you could retell the story to me? About Jiji getting lost in the forest-”

“And being saved and returned by the monsters.” Auntie Cait finished, smiling and looking into the fire reflectively. “What’s your friend’s name?” she asked, turning her attention back to you. You bit your lip.

“... Tony.”

“A man?”

“Yeah, uh, we met online… like a dating website.”

Auntie Cait scrunched her nose a little but smiled, nodding and rocking in her chair.

“So, could I heard that story again? I’m a little hazy on the details.”

“Oh, hm… well. Honestly, it was a bit my fault if I’m honest. Your Jiji- always determined, that one. We had heard the old tale- of the monster and the human they had killed. And, as you know, children had been known to go missing near the top of the mountain. But rumor was that the golden flowers at the top of Mount. Ebott bloomed to be the size of your head. And I dared them to go get one… mainly as a joke, but my folly all the same.” The rocking of the chair became rhythmic as Auntie Cait fell into the beat of the story, and you were transfixed on her face, expression reliving the story.

“They went out that afternoon and went missing for three days… we all searched high and low for them. And on that third day as we all got ready to go back out- they came walking back into town just… unhurt. Fed, calm- if anything they had gained weight.” She glanced over at you for a moment, a grin on her face. “They insisted monsters had helped them get back home, that they were kind beings. Even as they got older, they insisted on this. And our village had always been the protectors of the world- we prided ourselves on the traditions we kept- the ceremonial reenactment and such we’d put on for sealing the barrier. But Frisk had insisted we had been the wrong ones. They had to get a little older before they were able to burn the books detailing the ceremony- the elders held onto old traditions, ya know?” You nearly dropped your cup, and realized how far forward you had leaned towards the other woman and she raised a brow at you. You murmured an apology, and inclined your head to hear more.

“We now are ambassadors, the ones who will introduce monsters back to the world when they come home. We are brokers of peace. And all thanks to your Jiji.” she finished, a proud look on her face. “If you ask me, it’s much more noble! And exciting, less scary, ya know?” You only nodded absently, looking out through the window as though you’d see your skeleton captor in the darkness. This wasn’t at all what you had wanted to hear despite how chipper Auntie Cait sounded about it. Instinctually you touched the necklace around your neck, and startled yourself when you felt a small object attached to it. Auntie Cait followed your hand, and gave you an inquisitive look. “A necklace from your boyfriend?”

You looked down at what appeared to be a small milky white marble attached to the thin silver necklace Sans had forced onto you.

“Ah, yeah. But he’s not my boyfriend. Just dating.”

“Tony, right? He should come on by.”

“He’s not really a social guy, honestly.” you said, and hoped she wouldn’t press the issue. “Auntie Cait… do you know anything about the monsters? Or… about this war? Wouldn’t our ancestors have had a good reason to put them down there?”

“You know, I could go on- but Frisk seemed certain that it was all miscommunication. They told me for the all of their life that monsters were simply misunderstood, and that humans had jumped to conclusions. But if my memory serves me right, it all stemmed from a fear of monsters stealing the souls of humans. It was only furthered with that long ago rumor about the monster that had emerged with the body of a human. The monster was lethally wounded and never seen again. But Frisk had said that the monster was only trying to make right by their adopted human sibling and take them home to die when they’d mistakenly eaten raw buttercups. It is the mission of the village to right our wrongs in the future.”

“And you... believe all this? Like for real?” you quietly asked, holding onto the small pendant around your neck.

Auntie Cait looked thoughtful and stilled for a moment, looking past you before taking back up her rocking motion. “I think I do, child…”

A heavy chime sounded, announcing the time to be 8pm with the hour tolls. You jumped at the first one, making Auntie Cait laugh. “It’s late! And your man has not come to fetch you.”

“Oh!” You stood up quickly, setting the tea down on a side table, and folded up the blanket. “He’s meeting me- out in town, he-”

“No, no, no. Your mother would have my head. I’m not sending you out in the dark and entrusting you to a man who doesn’t have the decency to knock! If he has no business coming to get you here, he has no business in your company tonight!” Her voice was stern, and furthered by the crossing of her arms- daring you to argue. You would always be the child, in her eyes.

Your thoughts began to race as you felt heat rise through your body. Sans had not given you a curfew. He’d actually not said anything at all. Just pulled out his eye, stuck it on the necklace and threatened you… you shuddered. Looking down at it again you thought it must be some type of tracking device or magic item. Or literally his eye, watching your every movement.

“Doesn’t look like Tony’s gift is fillin’ you with joy.” Auntie Cait remarked wryly and stood as well, motioning you to follow her. The excuse of ‘You didn’t tell me when to come back.’ was already loaded into your mind, ready for if Sans ever came for you. Nothing betraying, nothing wrong- just a peaceful night in a home from your childhood before the nightmare continued. The more you reasoned, the more it all felt like a good idea until you followed dutifully behind the old lady to a small guest room you instantly recognized. Many nights had been spent here when things had gotten hectic with Frisk’s failing health in old age. All the way to the end your mother had been a dutiful daughter, caring for her parent without much complaint. You touched the bed spread wistfully, wishing you could have done the same for her. “Well make yourself at home, child. You know where everything is- nothing has changed. And breakfast will be ready in the morning, if Tony decides to show up he is welcome to eat with us but… for now he better be thinkin’ of ways to shape up!”

Teenage you might’ve rolled their eyes, but as an adult you found her mother henning to be endearing and you nodded, surprising yourself when tears stung at your eyes and you turned around quickly. No doubt Auntie Cait still noticed, but she said her quiet good nights, and shut the door behind herself.

Taking off your backpack, you dug through for a fresh pair of underwear and slipped into your long white conservative nightgown. Gripping the fabric in your hands you remembered your mother who had worn the same thing to bed- always demure looking and modestly clothed. But it had been a distraction of sorts from her firecracker personality, being the only female professor for so long had given her a spine of steel. Something you hadn’t inherited. Slogging through work had always been your forte, pushing until the task was complete- but you had never been a leader. Always the sheep and never the dog, often times you faded into the back of people’s minds but that had only seemed to trouble your mom. She wanted a strong willed and stubborn girl who would crack skulls and get the job done- tip of the spear. And a lot had been learned from her impressive strength but at the end of the day you were a follower. It was probably another reason you were now following orders from a skeleton. Your mother would have put an end to it, fought tooth and nail and with quick wit and determination, she would have vanquished her enemies. An image of her simply shoving Sans to the ground and threatening his life made you smile, especially the look of shock that would surely accompany the monster’s defeat. Tears burned again and you rubbed them away fiercely. Auntie Cait, Jiji, your mom- none of them would have time for crying. They’d be hatching another plan while boxed into a corner, but you weren’t so sure you could see a way out.

The necklace felt heavy now that you were alone to contemplate its meaning in Sans’ plan, and without much thought you made to pull it off. The second it came away from your neck though pain erupted in your chest, the feeling spun out into the rest of your body and your sight whirled around you until you were on the floor locked in pain. Your mouth was open in a silent scream, your eyes wide and the necklace still gripped tightly in your hand. Dread was a cold bucket of water dumped onto you. The skeleton was suddenly filling your vision as he approached from seemingly nowhere, as though he had been in the corner of the room waiting. He grinned at you and tsked, forcibly uncurling your fingers to remove the necklace and you writhed in pain, back seizing.

“i wanna be friends, pal. ya must not be in your present mind to remove my gift, you saw how hard eye worked to make it for you.” he said, pointing at the now inky black depths of his right eye socket. “no hard feelings though, i’m not mad.” And he now pressed the pendant against your collar, and slipped the necklace back on. As soon as the cool material touched your skin the pain dissolved, leaving you to dry heave painfully, desperate not to vomit. Shifting up into a sitting position with hands planted on the ground, you pleaded with yourself to calm down. He knelt down beside you and you felt him get closer. But when a hand rubbed your back in some display of comfort something snapped within you. Your hand came flying at the skeleton, anger at his weird manipulation tactic, or so you perceived it. You made contact with a loud crack, and for a moment you almost choked again on the idea that you’d put a hole in his face delicate looking face. Skeleton or not you weren’t that violent or macabre. But when you hastily looked, he looked the same. Bone must be stronger than you thought... specifically his.

The contact rattled him, and he stared at you in shock and… hurt? But both of you were much more surprised when the door flew open and your Auntie Cait stood tall and straight in the doorway.

“What is going on?!” she bellowed, her old age hidden behind a raw urge to protect. You watched her face fill with shock as Sans turned to look at her, but there was barely time to react as you lunged forward and tackled him to the ground. Magic crackled through your body as you attempted to hold him down, but you were thrown off as his eye flashed that blue color.

“She won’t hurt you!” you all but screeched, getting up swiftly with the adrenaline racing through you. “She wants to introduce the world to monsters! Frisk told everyone your kind was good!” A white blade had materialized in his hand, but without him moving it to attack, you stayed still. Auntie Cait stayed motionless as well, wide eyes fixed on what you were sure she thought she’d never live to see.

Chapter Text

Sans stared at the older women, his psyche like a river of thick sludge. Slow and contaminated, diverting off into new branches to only become stopped up causing his thoughts to flicker. The human had said something similar before, but he had only believed she said it to save her own life. Frisk had all but destroyed the Underground save for a few monsters at the very beginning of their journey. They had begun with Toriel, and left the rest of their way in a smouldering nightmare. He still wasn’t too sure of what had happened to make them so awful, but the timelines had been messed with so much his computers had barely been able to keep track.

And now here he stood, hearing for the second time that Frisk had borderline prepared for the return of monsters- and not just that but prepared for their welcomed return.

This was more than a little confusing, even for a genius like him. Was the motive to only let a few of his kind return? Things like this had gotten harder to process with all those years of isolation and work. In the trenches of his mind he knew- he had unraveled. Sometimes he was back in the beginning, doing puzzles with his brother and a kid who didn’t seem too bad, just severely misguided. Sometimes he was watching all his friends die. And other times he was back in the lab second guessing the oath he’d taken as the Judge to not interfere with Encounters. Not to save his brother every chance he got. To let things go as they were supposed to. The time left to think had made him second guess every step and hate himself. It had felt futile, that they would keep resetting and erasing time, sending them back over and over forever. But then the last time… it had just stayed like that. Frisk had gone into the throne room… and then time just continued. Until weeks later he froze it and holed himself up in his lab, all to avoid any contact with the other monsters who expected him to lead… he was no leader.

“It’s true.” Sans looked up sharply to this, realized he had materialized a weapon, and stood up straighter to look at the older woman with the intent to kill if she tried to change things. She continued, “Frisk spoke highly of your kind. We mean absolutely no harm, and are on the side of the monsters. We pride ourselves to be the ones to lead peace amongst our races.”

This could set them all up- and if everything he thought about timelines was correct, when he forced you to reset the Underground- the surface would be just like this when they returned. The only thing he couldn’t be sure of was his… key to the reset, if you’d come through alive or not. A lot of it he was uncertain of but it was his only chance.

Dematerializing the knife he focused on what was going on around him, because setting up the world to accept his kind, it would help with their transition and Paps… Paps could have a better time of it. His eyes shifted to you still braced in the corner of the room and willed you to stay quiet as he lied through his teeth.

“yes... frisk was always well liked…” he could have choked on his words, “we just had some loose ends to tie up, but now we just need her to help us prepare. it was something we wanted to happen quietly though…” His words were chosen with care, and he watched the elder’s expression carefully.

“Absolutely, I understand. My name is Cait by the way, and we will do our-”

“no. sorry, friend but i want as few people in the loop as possible for now. if it could stay between us three, that would be the best.” The fewer that would miss Frisk’s granddaughter the better, because if she didn’t make it out of the Underground or even come out from the reset…

“Ah… well, I can understand that. When- when might we see you again?” Cait asked, and Sans could hear the hesitation in her voice.

“it could be days… it could be months. but i estimate within the year.” There were honestly so many variables he couldn’t even be sure of that, but better to give some type of timeline. With the resets you could never be too sure. Frisk had ruined so much, and for what? To come to the surface and say all this? He tried again to pull himself from the mire of thought, but the words stuck thick and seemed to be taking root. Before he could stop himself, his fingers hooked again into his eye sockets, a piece of him mindful that you had one of his eyes around your neck.

“Um… Auntie Cait, I’ll talk to Sans here for a moment, um, uh I’ll see you in the morning?” you asked, and Sans slowly unhooked his fingers and took a step back. Cait nodded, staring a little longer at him, and then shut the door slowly and with more noted hesitation.

Sans sighed now, and felt fairly sure that you wouldn’t be trying anything, not now at least. Clearly you had an emotional attachment to this woman, and the threat of destruction to your life could be played much more heavy handedly. Sans didn’t feel like he was inherently a bad guy… really, his biggest fault through this timeline had been his decision to let fate play its hand. What a fucking joke.

You took a step towards him now, and he turned to face you, hands deep in his pockets absently fiddling with a collection of lint as he tried to stay calm. It wasn’t often that he felt like he had his head above water- he needed you more on his side, and the violence was never going to help. His rational mind knew that.

“sorry about the necklace, kiddo. sure that was pretty shocking wasn’t it?” You scrunched your nose a little and crossed your arms firmly over your chest. A moderate temper- all bark and no bite though. It made him regret some of his cruelty seeing as you may have simply helped him willingly. But you looked so much like your grandparent in ways he couldn’t put his finger on but particularly in your soul and even now while calm looking at you made him desire that violence. To tear you to shreds. To avenge his brother and finish out a killing he longed for.

“What is this thing even? Are you watching everything? Recording my movements?”

“nah, not like that. it’s more like a tracking device. most of my magic is kept in my other eye.”

“Kept in your other eye?”

“yeah, dontcha know? eyes are the windows to the soul. both mine happen to be able to cause a lot of pane. ” He fired off a finger gun at you, and watching you jump at the motion made him chuckle. “i don’t shoot bullets out of my fingertips. bone attacks are more my style. but i’m not trying to maim you anymore… as long as ya don’t get on my bad side.”

 “By not following commands? And slapping you?” you asked cheekily. Sans thought back to the contact you’d made with his skull and rubbed his face, feeling a few new cracks having formed. He needed to be more careful, and glancing up at you he knew you felt the same. “What happens if you… fall to pieces?” you asked, looking squeamish.

“probably nothin’, held together by magic i suppose.” he said, and made a show of disconnecting his arm by the elbow and pulling it from the sleeve of his jacket. You blanched and he chuckled again, twiddling the fingers of his detached arm. He held his arm out to you now, motioning for you to grab it but you stepped further away, looking a little sick.

Being alone for so long, so many years, he had forgotten how fun interacting with others could be. These last couple days had probably been the worst of your life- but the best days he’d had in a long, long time. The promise of a reset, the fun conversations, even the physical contact with another living being could send shivers down his spine. Solitary life… it wasn’t meant for monsters or humans. And all the work that had gone into forcing a way into the surface. Sure, he could have waited for a new human to fall into the Underground, but those had been so few and far between. A synthetic soul had done the trick, it had just taken generations, apparently, to make. He now even more wanted you to hold his arm, to feel someone’s touch, and maybe get more of a laugh out of how grossed out you clearly were.

“what? you’ve got a skeleton inside of you, what’s wrong with mine?” he asked playfully, before his eye darkened a little, a more sinister thought weedling in. “you also have a thing against monsters? like your grandparent?” You now reached out and yanked the arm from his grip, but retched a little when you did.

“No! And apparently Jiji Frisk didn’t either, seeing as everyone in this town is pro your kind!” you responded angrily, and held his arm precariously in one hand, eyeing it like it was explosive. The way you held his arm furthered the little flame in his soul, anger pushing through him. It reminded him of the way Frisk had done so much damage to his little brother. Like he wasn’t a real living being. Like he was an other…

“i dunno what frisks deal was… but they clearly didn’t feel that way when they murdered my brother.”

To this, you sighed and looked at him with sympathetic- or possibly empathetic eyes.

“Listen, honestly, I just can’t think of my Jiji doing something like that… but if your brother is passed on… it is difficult no matter what happened to them. And I’m sorry he’s gone… I’d give anything to have my mom back, to let her live out the rest of her life. I dunno if I’d torment an innocent person…” you looked at him with hard eyes for a moment before they softened again. “But I can understand you’re doing everything you can to get him back.” you finished, holding his arm back towards him. He took it slowly, and shouldered his jacket back so he could fuse the joints together again with a click of magic. The area around the connecting bones glowed blue for a moment, and he felt mildly amused as you watched with awe on your face. Your words… he knew he needed to hurry this process up. You seemed like a good person at your core, and he knew if he got close he’d be unable to doom you to an uncertain fate. He knew his brother would not approve of the way he’d been treating you… The thought made him hang his head a little in shame, for the first time his constant grin faltered and you immediately saw it but made no comment.

A couple strides closer to him, and you put a hand on his shoulder, lightly squeezing.

“Whatever Frisk might have done… I can’t explain it. But… I apologize for my Jiji’s transgressions. I’ll do my best to right the wrongs and… be a broker of peace.” you said finally, standing a little taller as you looked at him with determination. Sans smiled a little, pulling his shoulder back and out of your grip and you dropped your hand dumbly, blushing a little.

“don’t be a dork.” he said softly, and you rolled your eyes, crossing your arms again.

“I’m trying to be serious.”

“i know… listen. i know i’m a little unhinged, and i can’t say this whole process is gonna be smooth sailing but just try to deal with me, okay? not much else you can do but- i can’t promise i won’t continue to be volatile. but i’ll try to take a more gentle approach.” You motioned to the necklace and he chuckled. “nah, sorry pal, you’re gonna leave that on until the reset.” You opened your mouth to say something but he held up his hand for silence. “you need your beauty rest, kiddo. we’ll talk more when we get to the underground.” His bones itched with fatigue, and he motioned to a chair in the corner of the room. “i’m gonna snooze over there for a while. no funny business, capiche?” The glow in his one eye tinted a very slight blue and you shuddered, nodding and crawled under the covers. With him in the room, he wasn’t sure how much sleep you’d get. But better to be feared, he thought. 

Chapter Text

 Three evenings had been spent at Auntie Cait’s in relative peace. You didn’t have much to say to Sans, so it became limited to your two cents every now and then as he and Auntie Cait planned out how they might introduce the monsters to the outside world. They talked about diplomacy, a monster ambassador, an ambassador through the village that Auntie Cait would pick(someone younger and passionate) and things of that nature. Decisions were made about you, even. About how you may be a bridge between the two races, working between both sides with small things they may need help with- as well as being a face to both races with Jiji Frisk being your legacy. You wanted to tell your Auntie Cait that you may not be coming back, to not hold out hope for you… but each time you were brought up, Sans would look at you, and then the necklace. A subtle note that bad things would happen if you mentioned it.

 That second evening it had dawned on you that Auntie Cait never even brought Tony back up, and you were unsure if she just assumed it was Sans or if in all the excitement she just forgot. This had been a lifelong goal of hers, a dream she’d hidden away at the risk of being labeled a fanatic. Jiji Frisk had apparently toed the line quite well, fervently convincing those who listened with an open mind and being light hearted on the subject with people who were less easily persuaded. So if you were honest with yourself, she’d probably just pushed “Tony” out of her mind entirely. Along with the necklace around your neck. You desperately wanted her to ask about it again, ask if Sans had given it to you. Because as tranquil as your conversations with Sans had been you couldn’t trust him.

 So it went, you woke up, toyed with the pendant, pulled at the chain, allowed it to clink against the table when you leaned forward to stretch in your chair. She never brought it up, Sans continued to stare you down, and the conversations persisted.

 But the worst of it was at night. Auntie Cait had pulled in a small rollaway cot into your room at the skeleton’s request. He made up some bullshit about needing to establish a soul link or something so the barrier could be opened to allow the return of the monsters. No mention of near genocide was spoken of, and the story of the monsters all rallying around Frisk to get them home safely was left alone as truth. It all made your stomach churn, and you once again doubted that Jiji had done anything malicious. Not that you’d ever been fully convinced of what he was saying, they had been ten for God’s sake. But he was being so deceptive, manipulative, and tricky you thought. It became difficult to even maintain the story seeing as more than half the time you’d known him had been spent in Jiji’s old village. This week had felt like an eternity, a constant nightmare that you needed to bear. You were Prometheus, strapped to a rock- and Sans was the eagle feeding on your liver. Because every morning there was that moment where you thought you’d finally woken up from the nightmare, but then he’d be there, ready to eat at your mind.

 Each night you lay down his one eye stared at you, making the necklace feel heavier. Never again did you dare to try remove it but you so desperately wanted to. Instead you just clutched it in your hand tightly, willing him to just shut his fucking eye for even one second while you tried to sleep. But he simply stared at you unblinking and with that creepy grin on your face. You preferred the violence.

 So it went, each night you glared at him, squeezed the pendant as hard as you could as though you could shatter the eye, and then turned in bed to face the wall with a huff. You never brought it up in the morning, and Sans continued to stare you down. Day- and night.

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 Finally the third evening he had stood up from the table while you all drank tea, Auntie Cait scribbling down notes and plans, and he announced the two of you would be hiking up the rest of the mountain. He’d let you wash your clothes and pack some food if you wanted, but that you would be leaving very early in the morning. Auntie Cait had stood solemnly, and taken San’s skeletal hand into her own- you cringed. But she squeezed it with confidence and nodded at him with her own determination.

 “I know you’ll bring us humans and monsters back together. I’m so, so happy that Frisk’s dreams are coming true.” she became a little teary eyed before continuing, “I’d felt as though I’d doomed my sibling to death when they couldn’t find her… but you all brought her back.”

 You almost thought she’d pull him in for a hug, but you also noticed how straight backed Sans got at the mention of Frisk being safely returned by the monsters. Instead, Sans squeezed her hand back, and stepped away shrugging.

“it’s in our souls. my kind is made up of good, misunderstood monsters.” Auntie Cait nodded in agreement and then turned to you.

 “You’ll do us proud, I do wish your mother was here to see you. She’d be astounded for sure, never really believed what your Jiji said, but proud nonetheless.” And with that, pulledl you into an embrace which you were grateful for as tears stung at your eyes. Bitter tears, though, because your mom would not be proud… she’d be angry that you were letting this happen to yourself and consequently the rest of the world. Sans was so awful so often… you should stop him right? But Jiji, who you trusted with everything, wanted the monsters back apparently. Even though they’d had you and mom stomp around the floor boards to keep from taking her. You were hoping the right answer would appear to you as time passed.

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 Dreaded night came soon and with it your nerves. Although you hated being here with the monster holding you effectively hostage in front of your Aunt, it had at least been comfortable being in a familiar place. Now, you were headed off into the unknown with literal monsters in your future. And it was an ordeal being cheered on by one of your only close family member.

You were laying in bed clutching the pendant, staring past Sans when he asked you, “cait is frisk’s sister?”

Startled from your thoughts you focused in on him, your brow furrowing, “No, we just called her that. She’s a distant cousin or something, but we’re related somehow, ya know what I mean?”

 “no.” he responded. You kept from rolling your eyes, feeling your blood heat up. Three days of not being attacked had made you a little less fearful of him and instead more easily annoyed. The bruise in your hand where he’d stepped throbbed a lot less, but it was a constant reminder that he had attacked and stalked you. In the face of danger you’d been meek, but now you felt more aggrieved. You were fairly certain he could tell… but still he stared at you. That eye boring into you… it was making you crazy! Wasn’t it enough that you had one hung around your neck?? A weighted reminder that you could do nothing to escape him truly?? You were going to give him a piece of your mind… let him know that you weren’t a puppet, that you may have been kind! Had he not been so awful! You’d speak calmly but firmly- fierce and passionate while being level headed!

 “Piece of shit dumb ass fucking skeleton.” you hissed instead and immediately brought you hands up to your face, and reflexively curling your knees towards your chest. Sans looked surprised at you when you peeked over your fingers, but he was grinning in a jovial way and not his “normal” way. You’d seen it a couple times like when he’d learned about the distinct changing seasons on the mountain, and specifically, the heavy snow that fell in winter. But you weren’t expecting the look after your quick string of curses.

 “i probably deserve that.” he said quietly. You looked away, embarrassed and feeling a little badly. It stood to reason that with the extreme stress you’d been under, you might be a little more “needlessly” mean. But you still felt a little bad about it… although you’d say much worse to get him to quit staring at you every night. But something had nagged at you that you could be inviting worse situations if you went too far.

 “I’m… I’m sorry… Sans.” You only tacked his name on to the apology to further the humanization of yourself. You’d be in the underground soon, and he’d be your closest thing to an ally. The name did roll of your tongue easily though and didn’t feel stilted besides the pause. And he seemed to always react in some small way when you said it. A small fidget, or shifting his weight. Laying in his cot and hearing his name now, he rolled onto his back.

“don’t apologize.” he said… and closed his eyes. A cheer threatened to escape from your lips at the exuberance of such a simple act. You too turned to lay on your back and grinned at the ceiling.

“Good night, Sans.”

“g’night, human.”

Your eyes closed with a darkened thought, squashing your grin.

He has trained me so well.

Chapter Text

With quick goodbyes and tears threatened away by Auntie Cait, you and Sans had taken off to summit Mount. Ebott.

The climb went by quietly, attention unable to be diverted without any trail to guide you. Certain portions required you to grapple with loose rock and roots to pull yourself up steep inclines, but annoyingly Sans never seemed to have that problem. That quiet suspicion that he was trying to get on your good side to better manipulate you kept your mouth sealed. Although you wanted to ask him a flood of questions to better understand what was going on- you instead stayed focused.

Only a couple times did you trip or slide a bit while climbing, and a single time Sans seemed to be at your side in a breath when you nearly took a tumble. His hand felt cold on your back, even with the air already chilly where you were so high up. But neither of you said a word and you’d kept on pushing.

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 After several hours you felt the fatigue wearing you down, but also a wish that the climb wouldn’t end. You preferred the labor to the non negotiating hand of fate.

But it did end, and you stood at the top with a heavy stone in your stomach willing you to stay put. You shifted your feet minutely, leaving an imprint in the dirt that you hoped would mark that you did exist if you ceased to. Sans studied you, surely waiting for a reaction, but you only looked at him peripherally as you kept your eyesight on a crater sized hole in the ground that seemed to go on forever. When his hand grazed yours you yanked away viscerally, shooting him a glare but he gazed at you placatingly.

“it’s time... to make this easier, just take my hand.”

“Why?” you asked with uncertainty. You didn’t need your hand held while you two walked down.

“we’re going to jump. take a leap of faith, buddy.” he said, winking at you.

Jump?? Does he think I’m crazy?? you asked yourself, leaning away from him. But his patience must have been thinner than usual because he grabbed your hand without prompt, and leapt forward. There was no way to tear yourself from his grip so instead you fell forward with a shriek, twisting violently to attempt grabbing onto something- anything- that would keep you from plummeting to your death. You heard Sans grunt, and a pull like your arm would come from it’s socket as mid air he yanked you close to him. Reacting without thinking you grabbed onto him, wrapping your arms tight around his waist as your legs flew upwards with the wind rushing passed you faster and faster. Despite this Sans still stood straight up, gazing down leisurely as his clothes flapped around wildly. That “stone in your stomach” feeling was now lodged in your throat, the air coming so quickly you couldn’t even scream as you gripped him tightly, barely registering his other hand coming around your back to tuck his hand under your armpit, securing you close to him.

It felt like you fell forever, vomit would sporadically make its way into your mouth and you fought to keep from hurling, your eyes shut tight as you prayed to whatever Gods may be that you didn’t die.

A change in pressure made your ears pop and all at once the wind died away, and the two of you had alighted onto something unnaturally soft. When your eyes hesitantly opened, one dug into Sans’ hoodie and the other peeked out at a huge expanse of yellow flowers. More awareness came to you and you pushed away from Sans, blushing a little as your face had been dug into his waist while you were on your knees. He didn’t protest, probably knowing you had nowhere to go anyways. Not in this place. A place that had thick air, almost like being underwater or extremely humid but without the wet feeling. Each breath felt heavy with something and when you shifted to a standing position the air felt like it was full of electricity. When you opened your mouth to say something you snapped it shut again as that feeling seemed to rush past your lips and burrow into your body. You yelped and clawed at your throat in fear before Sans pulled your hands down.

“you’ll get used to it, just magic… no charm done.” You didn’t respond, and barely had the energy to glare at him. You were too busy trying to not have a complete mental breakdown, your breathing began to come in heaves until you took deeper breaths, shakily releasing them as a shaking hand clutched at your chest feeling your heart beat a thousand miles a minute. There was no help now. Only your captor.

I’m stuck. No way out. It’s over, he took me here to kill me and that’s it. I’m done for. No emergency call, no help, no Auntie Cait. No mom. I’ll be dead where I stand… minutes. I don’t belong here, I’m out of place. I’m done for. It’s over. I’m dead. I can’t-

You weren’t handling this well.

“hey, pal.” Sans spoke softly, placing a hand on your back like he had right before you’d slapped him. But this time, you were too in your own head to perceive it fully as him and so it actually was a slight comfort. So out of place, he was literally the only thing from the surface besides your backpack and clothes and now in the darkness, surrounded by this field of yellow flowers you felt yourself drawn to your skeleton keeper for safety. It wasn’t until he cleared his throat that you snapped out of it, having begun to lean into him, head nearly on his shoulder. Your breathing had slowed, but your head pounded as you looked in the opposite direction of him, trying to save face. But in the distance from where you looked, just visible, an archway of some kind stood.

Sans walked past you towards the structure and you dutifully followed, not even wanting to glance around where you were- seeing as you already had a slight sense of foreboding. Jumpy and anxious you heard things that surely weren’t there, and nearly fell to your knees just on the way to the archway. All you wanted at that point, honestly, was your mom. But she wasn’t coming and no one was.

He didn’t glance back as he walked through the opening that only poured out more darkness, and you followed him through another shadowy room, the flowers now becoming patchy as you walked. Through a similar archway you went inside a purple bricked room, twin staircases leading up to a platform hosting another door. Red leaves were scattered around, and the space had a cavernous feeling but the thing you couldn’t help but stare at was a small yellow light suspended just ahead of you. For whatever reason, you felt drawn to it and even as Sans proceeded up one of the staircases, you moved towards this light. Not hearing you follow him, Sans turned to look at you but you hardly noticed. Instead you reached out to the light but just before your fingers grazed the source you were thrown back and over into a corner of the room, but instead of slamming against a wall you were set down fairly gently. A little dazed you looked up at Sans who seemed to be shaking.

“you seeing somethin’ i ain’t?” he asked, anger tinting his tone. You nodded. “don’t fuckin’ touch it.” he growled, and you looked back at the light that seemed so inviting.

“Why?”

“you’ll die.” he said quickly, “and i need ya around.”

You felt suspicious that he was lying but… he really did seem to need you alive, so touching the light might be a fifty fifty gamble and for now, no matter how much you wanted to, you decided to leave it alone. With an audible sigh of relief, Sans turned and went on his way with you reluctantly trailing behind him careful not to fall too far behind as every slight change in scenery made you jumpy. Through more long purple halls you went, following close behind him and after he told you to follow him step by step you grew much closer while walking, every footfall making you nervous of something terrible happening.

The hallways had little notions here or there, pin like things, holes in the ground, Sans told you they were all parts of different puzzles throughout the ruins, but you didn’t ask about them. Just kept letting him guide you while you glanced around nervously.

Over time you became a little less jumpy, but still guarded, and began to relax a little as you made your way through tunneled halls. But as you came into a room with a massive tree, red leaves surrounding it, you saw your second monster.

It looked almost like a child with a sheet over itself, billowing in place. You might have even assumed that if it weren’t for the slight translucency and that it was floating inches off the ground, its face passive… or sad.

“sans.” the ghost said quietly, and Sans waved half heartedly in response. “may i ask... why have you brought them back?”

“it’s not them. she’s gonna try to help us.”

“oh... how did you find someone… so fast? it’s been weeks, or something.”

  Weeks since what? You wondered, before suddenly remembering. This time, underground, was much closer to when Frisk had been a child. The thought made your brain hurt a little, seeing as technically where you stood, Frisk had apparently just come through. You glanced around, wondering suddenly if you’d be able to see signs of them having been here, but you weren’t even sure what you’d be looking for.

“better not to ask questions, blooky. for the time being at least.”

“Um… hi.” you said carefully, and told him your name, “It’s nice to meet you… uh… Blooky?” The ghost’s expression lifted a little, but he looked at your hand warily.

“... sure. i’m gonna go, i guess. sorry to disturb you.”

“Oh! No! You didn’t-” but he had faded away before you could tell him that you actually enjoyed the company of a monster who didn’t immediately try to kill you. Sans just shrugged, and motioned you to follow and within a few feet you suddenly felt at home.

Through the doorway was what seemed to be a small home. Everything was quaintly decorated, a small layer of dust showing the home had been unoccupied for a while. It made your stomach hurt, wondering if what Sans had said was true… that most of his kind was gone. Once again, you didn’t ask about your surroundings. And although you felt the want to explore the home, you followed him down a staircase while only taking glances to the left and right to see more of the home.

Without much shock, you went through another long purple hallway, much more narrow this time and for some reason safer feeling. Tension that you hadn’t noticed build up in Sans was slowly releasing, and his shoulders slumped forward minusculey as you went, and a couple doorways later you were in snow.

There was no hiding the shock you felt, as you whipped your head around wildly, it felt like being back at home in the winter. The trees making way to a path reminded you of your home, and for the first time you wanted to ask questions, but Sans was now moving much quicker. You weren’t totally sure how someone could walk this fast, because while he seemed to be making no effort, you had to jog to keep up. You were a little grateful to be picking up the pace though, the snow had already soaked your sneakers, and you shivered even with the sweater on. But after a while, you could barely take it. Socks soaked, and now the bottom of your pants too, the wind bit at your skin, and your face was reddened with cold.

“Sans,” you finally gasped as you both walked past a little cardboard hut. You wished you had stopped at the more sturdily built station a ways back, but beggars couldn’t be choosers and you were freezing. “I… I dunno if I can go much longer through here.”

“yes you can.” he said, giving you a look that almost seemed worried. “just be determined.”

“I can’t be anything when I’m freezing my ass off!” you complained, nose now running profusely.

“... give me your backpack.”

“No!” you nearly shouted, reaching your arms back to clasp around your bag.

“just let me borrow it.”

“No way! You’ll leave me here!” But as you felt a crackling of energy against your back, you knew he’d be taking it anyway. With a tug, it pulled from your grip, and untied from your arms, gliding over to Sans in an envelope of blue light. Once in his possession he winked at you, and carried it behind the cardboard hut and right after watching him disappear behind it, you heard crunching footsteps behind you. Stifling a scream, you rushed to follow him behind the structure but paled when he was nowhere to be found. He must have teleported… like he had when he was in your house, or when he’d caught up to you so fast while you ran away from him. Ironic, you thought, that you’d run from him on the surface, but now ran to him in the underground.

“Sans!” you shouted.

“yes, pal?” came his amused response. And with a hesitant peek, you saw him, meandering down the path you had both just come from. It didn’t fail to shock you, even though inside you knew he could do that already. You’d not seen such an obvious display until now.

As he came to you, he handed off your backpack after inspecting it for a moment.

“look inside.” he instructed, and you shuddered. Taking a deep breath of air, you unzipped the bag half expecting it to be full of moths or something scary but… it was just your stuff. “what’s in there?”

“Uh… my stuff?”

“nothing missing? or messed up?” he asked, and you dug through it for a moment.

“No…”

“cool, follow me.” he instructed, as if you were going to do anything different. Slinging your backpack back on, you continued with him, but a blink later, you stood in a small home in front of a green couch. If it weren't for the overwhelming relief of warmth, you might have reacted with more shock.

Chapter Text

You blinked a couple more times, a pressure on your skin like you had been plunged deep underwater waning away as you took in your surroundings. A sparsely furnished home, a long table with a… rock on it in a dish, a side table with a book on it set too far away from the couch, and a large tv behind you set on a plain stand. Another room you assumed would be the kitchen was off to your left when you turned your head to look, and stairs were on your right.

Sans took a seat on the couch, a messy stack of bones forming a reckless pile that he put his feet up on. It made you tense, wondering if he had made them to potentially attack you with.

“welcome to my home… sure you’ll chair -ish the moment.” he said, motioning for you to sit down next to him. You didn’t move.

“What did you do to my backpack?”

“nothin’.”

“Why did you take it then?” you asked, reaching for his necklace around your neck.

Maybe he’s put some type of new tracking device in it…

“to see if i could take you on shortcuts. you’ve had no magic food and i didn’t wanna soup-rise if your organs turned to mush or somethin’.”

“So you practiced with my backpack?? A backpack is hardly a person!” you said, eyes wider than usual at the idea of taking his shortcut and coming out all wrong and horrifically disfigured. It made you shudder, and your eyes narrowed when he barked out a laugh.

“hey, pal- you’re here aren’t you? no harm done.” He stood up, moving to the kitchen, and you stayed in the living room, crossing your arms over your chest and rubbing your arms of the lingering cold. Glancing at the doorway where he left, you decided to pull off your shoes and socks, eyeing the pile of bones as you did so. While you draped the wet socks over your shoes to try and dry them, Sans returned with a cup with a few sticks poking out from it. “here you are, bone appetit!” he said, handing the cup over to you.

“What is this?” you asked, your nose scrunching a little when you peered into the cup to see dust settled in the bottom.

“a cup of noodles.”

“Uh… what should I do with this?” You stared at the cup dubiously, and he reached over and pulled out what you now realized was a dry spaghetti noodle and took a bite of it. Watching him open his mouth made your insides clench since he rarely did so unless in a significant rage. When you continued to just hold the cup, he ground his teeth together a little with his next bite and you gulped audibly. His response was to grin bigger at you, a look that you were starting to see as a sign of him losing his cool. Quickly, you pulled noodle and took a bite, and when he leaned towards you threateningly, you ate hurriedly until the other four noodles were gone. A few moments passed where Sans stayed leaning towards you, watching for a reaction when you felt it. Your eyes widened as your stomach suddenly felt full. You’d begun to really feel the pang of hunger, but had largely ignored it to focus on everything else until you could get time alone. But now, you felt a weird sense of contentment. He leaned away from you, a little less tense.

“the magic in the food shoulder acclimate you better to life in the Underground. we eat mainly for pleasure down here, and the cold shouldn’t bother you as much.” You nodded, pretending to understand how that all worked but really you were too tired to care. Oddly enough, not tired in a normal way, but just tired in your body rather than mind. Maybe sore was the right word? It didn’t matter, all you wanted was to lay down, but the couch looked like it could swallow a couple people, Sans withstanding.

“Is… uh…” you felt unsure how to ask, and fidgeted with the necklace, “Can I rest somewhere? Or sleep?” Sans stared at you, a signature pause extending out until he shrugged.

“yeah, sure. come with me.” he said, walking towards and up the stairs. You followed quietly, and once he started down the hall, you saw a door covered in what looked like caution tape and a signs that reminded you of what a 14 year old might have on their door. Pausing briefly to inspect it, you leaned forward a touch to look but didn’t get the chance as you very quickly found yourself smashed against the wall, a skeleton hand wrapped tightly around your throat. Your screeche came out as a wheeze and you grabbed at his hand, feeling yourself flashback to when you were at home being attacked over and over by him. That tentative feeling of trust went out the window as you squeezed your eyes shut, willing him to let go and leave you alone. “that room… don’t you ever go in there. don’t even fucking look at it, you understand?”

His grip was too tight on your throat for you to respond, and you began to see stars.

“do you understand?!” he roared, making your ears ring. Your vision tunneled in, sight getting smaller and smaller. His hand did not let up from its grip, and your nails scratched against his phalanges until they didn’t. The last thing you saw was that one empty eye socket, boring into you.

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You went limp in his grip, and he yanked his hand away, swearing. As soon as he did your body slumped down against the wall, head lolling to the side and a panic rose in his rib cage. Scooping you up, Sans took a step to shortcut into his room and shove his ball of sheets from the bed and lay you down. Sweat broke out and slide down his skull and he swore again. Grabbing your wrist, he felt for a pulse and was relieved to find one. Away from his brother’s room and with the realization he’d choked you out he began to pace, fingers shoved into his eye sockets to being his yanking.

i shouldn’t have done that… fuck! i shouldn’t have done that! He thought, his steps quickening with panic.

He needed to get away… away from you as worry began to push him down into murky sludge of dread. Progress had been made… and he’d fucked it away. It made him angrier to know that 80 years ago he never would have done something like that. He had to go talk to Grillby… the only one who knew about his freezing of time or how incredibly undone he was to have been locked in what was essentially a cell of a lab. In case things had gone badly and he never returned, he’d dropped by to talk before he’d left. Probably needed to see him anyways and explain everything so far.

Deciding against leaving a note, Sans made a shortcut to the front of Grillby’s and quickly went inside, ignoring a couple people who called to him in what was probably just surprise. As he entered, a couple monsters filtered out to give him privacy with Grillby. It had been only a few weeks since Frisk had left, for them and the wounds they had left were still fresh.

It had been a few days of total silence as people stayed inside to mourn the loss of so many of their kind, as well as their rulers. But after that things had become a sorrowful chaos and he was only able to endure a week or so of it before he locked himself away in solitude. Looking back, he wasn’t sure if that had been the right thing to do completely but… now he was able to get them a cure to the situation without them being in pain for that long.

Grillby looked up from his polishing of a glass that was surely growing thin from his constant cleaning. Quiet as always, he set it back onto the shelving, and motioned for Sans to sit as he set out a bottle of ketchup. Sans did settle onto a chair but pushed his favorite drink away with some regret, but he hadn’t been able to keep it down since he’d found his brother’s red cape fluttering in the snow. His hand balled into a fist and Grillby reached for a new glass to polish, giving Sans space to just think if he wanted to.

“i dunno what i was thinking, grillbz. but i brought her here.” Grillby raised a brow, the motion shown by a shift in his flames. “time... it kept going on the surface, frisk is long dead.” he slammed his fist down on the counter, “and now… i got their granddaughter. i... had thought this might happen so i’m gonna go with the forced reset option, see if i can send em back far enough but,” he growled, reaching for an eye socket, but Grillby gently pushed his hand back onto the counter. “i don’t think it matters how much determination i inject em with… i dunno if it’ll be enough.” Grillby nodded, setting the glass down to tap his fingers against the counter top, leaning his head onto one flaming hand with elbow on the table. “plus, who knows if they’ll come back or… if it’ll be frisk. back to kill. i dunno if my Premonitions will be enough to know to kill ‘em…”

“grillbz... this girl… woman, she’s ok. i’ve been pretty cruel to her, but she seems to have a kindness in that red soul. just... i’m gonna bring her here tomorrow to maybe smooth stuff over. try and make her feel welcome will ya?” Grillby nodded. “and maybe i can keep it together to be less of a dick but… if i can’t, hold me down. i’m not meanin’ to make her life hell. i just want everyone back…” he said, feeling comfortable enough that a couple tears rolled down his cheekbones. “and i’m willin’ to do anything to bring ‘em back.”

Chapter Text

A creak woke you up and had you immediately screaming while swinging out wildly. The light flickered on and your eyes adjusted to a disgusting room and a small tornado of trash. The quick moving garbage caught your eyes first but a split second later you found Sans, standing in the doorway with his hands in his pockets, head down. Instinctively you sat up and backed yourself against the wall, looking for any windows and found just one behind you.

Perfect.

Watching his eyes face to be sure he kept looking down, you reached to open the window, and only looked away from him for a moment but to your dismay you found your only escape encased in that blue glow. Your hands jerked away as though it might burn you because at this point it wouldn’t be surprising.

“I wasn’t going to go in that room!” you shouted in pre-defense, turning to face him again.

“i know i… i’m sorry. i can’t make up for how i’ve acted but i’m not in my right mind.”

“Clearly!” you said, rubbing at your neck and started when you felt something. Or rather, the lack of something. The necklace was gone, and when you looked back up he was staring at you, both pinpricks of light present in his eye sockets. You chose not to comment on it, but you both knew there was acknowledgment. The gesture was hardly a relief as your back surged with pain when you leaned forward, fresh agony from bruising that had only recently begun to heal.

“What time is it?” you asked, pinching the bridge of your nose as a headache began to appear.

“about 8 in the morning, Underground time.” It surprised you to hear you’d slept through the night, but it was probably for the best to let your body rest from his vicious attacks that you had hoped were behind the two of you. “i want to bring you somewhere. would you come with me?”

“Could I shower first?” you asked, surprised that the urge to use the restroom hadn’t hit you. To this, Sans shifted awkwardly, rubbing at the back of his head sheepishly.

“uh, i got a towel and a sink?”

“You don’t shower?”

“nah, just wipe myself down every now and then.” he said, making you scrunch your nose. He moved forward into the room and you pushed yourself back again in fear making him stop at your reaction. “bottom drawer on the right side there are a couple towels… clean ones.” he told you, and glanced over his shoulder. “the kitchen has the only sink, i’ll put some soap or somethin by it if ya wanna use it.” And with that, he left the room.

The idea of stripping naked in his kitchen made you feel weird, but even if he saw- you found yourself as weirded out by the idea as when your friend’s dog had nosed his way into the bathroom when you’d been changing. Sans wasn’t human, clearly. He could talk, sure, but there was no way he could relate to your human body… he was fleshless. If anything you were wearing clothes on clothes in his mind and it made you laugh mirthlessly.

You didn’t wanna face him again. The idea of having to take another look at him filled you with anxiety of being further tortured. His apology didn’t even help it just made you feel weird about the situation. And why didn’t he just take you straight to this reset place or plan? Why didn’t he just do it now rather than drag out your imprisonment? You jumped a sudden idea forming, and you looked behind you at the window.

Is he stupid?? You asked yourself, but knew it was probably just him in his own thoughts again, because there was no blue light on the window, and with a testing tug upwards it opened up a sliver. Your heart began to pound making your ears ring as you checked to be sure he wasn’t staring at you from the doorway. With a sharp, controlled movement you opened the window and had one leg out before you spotted your backpack next to the bed. Leaning forward you swiped it and shoved your other leg outside. Shifting quickly you slid out from the window until you hung onto the ledge with your fingers, legs dangling and dropped into the snow, grateful that it was there to soften your fall. He had been right, after eating that little bit of food the cold barely bit, and while it didn’t feel great you mainly just felt the melting snow where your bare feet stood. Briefly you wondered if the food only helped you feel better and didn’t make you immune to the cold.

No time to think about that.

To your left was another larger brick building, and you thought you caught a glimpse of a figure leaning against the it and that prompted you to pull yourself against the house and shift right towards what appeared to be a shed. Quickly getting to the corner you saw what looked like an igloo but moved past it, hid behind the shed to glance around before you decided to make a run for it, staying close to the pine trees with hope that no one would see you running, but you didn’t look behind yourself before you took off. Your heart began pound faster as soon as you took off because just ahead of you, facing the water, was a small… dinosaur? You squinted a little to try and gauge the threat, but it had no arms that you could see and seemed to be leaning forward in a sorrowful pose. Maybe you could just sprint past it with little reaction…

It was too much to hope for, because as soon as the monster heard your quickly approaching footsteps it turned to face you, expression going from shock to anger. But once you were close enough to notice that, you also knew that this monster was clearly a child… or at least deceivingly youthful looking. With speed that surprised you, the monster kid began to run towards you and you bit down on your tongue to keep from shouting in fright because little or not, monsters seemed to be immensely powerful. Trying to run a little to the right to evade him but also not stand in the middle of the path, the kid only moved to block your way as you got closer and closer. Finally with no more than a few feet between you you felt that tightness in your chest and knew your soul was being pulled out for a confrontation. Not only that, but the kid sucked in a breath with clear intent to begin screaming and in the moment you did the only thing you thought you could. Lunging forward as though you’d be going in for a dig at volleyball, you tackled the kid to the ground, shifting your weight so you’d not crush him, but aiming your palm for his mouth. Although those sharp teeth were almost enough to change your plans. Lucky for you, the kid had closed their mouth in shock and to brace, and you both tumbled into the snow, you immediately rolling the two with him into the bushes.

“Please!” you said in your loudest, most desperate whisper. “I’m not going to hurt you! Please, please just don’t yell!”

Really, you had no idea if this monster was going to be a friendly one or not, but you had to hope that not all of them here were evil, they had apparently helped Jiji? Or… Jiji had trusted them? It didn’t really matter, you just didn’t have many options. But this monster was glaring at you fiercely, so you pulled your face away a bit to give some breathing room and suddenly the anger changed to curiosity. You only noticed once he had stopped that he had been struggling, the attempts so weak, and you were shocked to realize you must be much stronger than him.

Stronger than a dinosaur… albeit a baby one. You wanted to laugh. There had been too much disillusionment for you not to find humor in these insane situations. Every time things went right for a moment they soured quickly, and this was sure to be no different. But you had to try.

Very slowly, you peeled away your hand, pleading silently that he not yell. He twisted his mouth around, crinkling his nose as he got control back to his face.

“Yo… you’re not Frisk…” he said slowly, and you almost laughed and felt that weird sensation that they, in fact, knew your grandparent and had probably seen them recently but as a child.

“No, not at all.” you said, telling this monster kid your name, to which he did not respond with is own.

“And so, uh, you a human too? Cause, the last one was a kid like me and they made a lot of people disappear.” he said, now looking fearfully at you. The sentence struck you hard in the chest, a knife in your heart that almost left you breathless. This was the first time that hearing it felt like it had any credibility. Sans or any adult for that matter saying it was one thing… but a kid telling you that your Jiji had caused people to “disappear”? You shook your head of the thought.

He’s just a kid. You reasoned, but the seed of acceptance had just sprouted, tiny in your mind, but absolutely there. Adults had motives, children typically did not.

“Yeah, I’m human too but…” you stared down at this kid, knowing that there was no escape anyways and you had semi willingly come to the Underground. Not that you were at all okay with the abuse you’d been forced to endure. “I’m here to… help.” It was too quick that Monster Kid’s eyes widened with the absolute trust of an easily swayed child. The knife twisted again and you moved so you got off the kid completely, sitting in the snow with some reluctance to the wet seeping into your pants, but you didn’t want to risk standing up and startling Monster Kid.

“Help?? Humans are powerful! And I didn’t know you guys got so tall! Yo! You gonna bring everyone home?!” You flinched.

“Uh, I… I’m just gonna try to help.” you replied, reluctant to say anything that might give false hope. It was then that you squeezed your eyes shut with frustration, a headache coming over you. How in the world could you possibly help? Sans was the one with the plan and…

Uhg! you silently groaned, I have to go back to him! … Unless.

“Hey,” you began with hope, opening your eyes, “who is your leader down here?”

“Sans!”

Fuck.

“There isn’t anyone above him? Or like… someone who is also as in charge?” you asked, but once his face fell you wished you’d never even brought it up.

“No, Frisk made the King, Queen… even the guard disappear, all of them… even Undyne.” he lamented, and you saw tears grow in his eyes, caught by the snow when he looked down to hide his crying. “Sans… he doesn’t seem to like leading. Yo, I may be a kid but, I know he’s doing his best and he’ll be the new King someday. And I’ll be the Head of the King’s Guard! Like Undyne!” And if he had an arm to thump against his chest, you knew he would. In a much more graceful motion than you were anticipating, the kid jumped up to his feet, grinning at you. “I’ll take you to Sans now!” he stated, and before you could ask him for a few more minutes without the skeleton, he took off running and made it a few feet before face planting into the snow. You gasped, but within seconds he righted himself and took off again without even glancing back to you. And with very slumped shoulders, you trudged after him, feet growing noticeably yellow tinted and itchy with the effects of the snow, even though you couldn’t feel as much of the cold.

Chapter Text

Sans wasn’t sure when you might return(as you surely would be), but upon realizing that you’d disappeared he made no move to track you down. After he had informed Grillby of his unwavering will to force the reset, he’d been scolded and reminded of how he was letting the past eat at the one chance he had for a good future. It was humbling, and had put him in a reflective mood, like cool clear water pushing out some of the sludge that clogged his mind. He didn’t blame you for running, he reasoned that’s all he’d done his whole life. Run, or give up. He couldn’t blame you for things your grandparent had done… especially not when he hadn’t done enough himself to stop them.

And for the first time, he began to wonder if he really should be forcing this reset, or if he should just let sleeping dogs lie. He could take you to the barrier, and allow you to kill him to cross back into the surface but…

Thoughts of all the people still here in the Underground flickered through his thoughts and he sighed deeply, gripping the edge of the door frame to his room, splintering some of the wood in his inner turmoil. A turmoil he was desperate to get a grip on. Being back in the Underground was surprisingly soothing, because while memories of his brother triggered him into violence and anguish, just being home made him feel closer to his lost family and friends. On the surface, it was as beautiful as he imagined it would be. But without those he longed to bring there, it only made him blind with rage and other complicated emotions. And it had cost him his sanity. Not that he would have done any different if he did it again but…

He envisioned the pain he’d brought to your life and grimaced, hands slipping down and his skull caught the doorframe, leaning into the area he’d crushed. His brother would be so disappointed in him… his brother who never gave up, even on Frisk, even knowing that they’d been driven by something truly and absolutely evil. But his brother wouldn’t have given up on him either. Papyrus would have made his signature spaghetti, and set it on the table, inviting in whatever woes Sans would place on his shoulders.

Straightening his spine, Sans decided. This wasn’t time for jokes, no snide comments, no attempting to scare her… and when he felt himself losing it…

I need to give it to her now. To avoid hurting her again.

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It only took a couple knocks by Monster Kid for Sans to open the door with sadness in his face, mixed with a little shock. Probably not expecting for you to return so soon, and not with a child in tow.

“Yo Mr. Sans!” the youth crowed, “I brought a human who says they can help us! Oh… uh, yo, Mr. S, you okay?” he asked, and Sans nodded, rubbing his cracked face a little and offering a placating smile.

You didn’t meet his eyes during the “introduction” but instead looked slightly past him, even the proximity making you quiver. Monster Kid blustered past Sans and into the house, eyes going wide with excitement and almost immediately accepting that Sans was okay. When he nearly face planted in his haste, blue light encased him and set him back up right gently.

“Yeah. I’m here to help… and I’m ready right now.” you said, hoping that you could force his hand. You weren’t totally sure of the hang up, but hoped that supplying yourself as willingly as you could might speed up the process.

“i don’t really think you could be...” he said, but with more melancholy in his voice than bitterness.

“I am though.” you responded with determination, and took a confident step forwards.

“It’ll be painful… and dangerous.” Sans told you, and Monster Kid whooped behind him.

“Human said she can do it! She’s like Undyne! No pain no gain!!” the kid said, feeding the situation with a lot more tension than he’d realize. Sans turned to face him, hands in his jacket pockets.

“wanna help?” he asked.

“Yo!! I totally wanna!”

“i need you to run to Grillby’s and get lots of ketchup… 7 or 8 bottles at least, and take them to the Snowdin sign. we’ll all meet there.”

Monster Kid let out a loud whoop again, and ran full speed towards the door, and you opened it only just in time for him to not go crashing into it. You watched as he ran clumsily, and before you could shut the door behind him, Sans stepped forward and your chest tingled as though he was about to initiate a fight with you. But your soul stayed put.

“actually... we’re leaving too.” he said, eyeing you warily and strode passed with you once again diligently following.

It felt too easy to just convince him. You couldn’t keep yourself from asking, “Uh… why didn’t we just go to do this right away? Cause… you needed ketchup?” you asked, being sure to keep several feet between you two as he rounded the corner of his home.

“no... honestly. i needed you to want to force the reset. and…” he paused, “well, it doesn’t matter. but i can see in your soul, the determination is there.” he told you, and you clutched a little at your chest, where the tingling began again. “even if it’s mainly determination to get this over with…” he added but with that same sadness. “i’m sorry, again.”  

You stayed quiet, and when you came around to the back of the house you were surprised to see a door to a cellar that you hadn’t noticed when you’d jumped down from the window. Sans looked over at you with a pained look.

“uh, i haven’t had time to clean up.” he told you, but you didn’t expect any less from the state of his room. With a deep breath, he opened up the doors, and stepped down into the dark, motioning you to follow him. You shook with anticipation and some fear, thinking back to the other time not long ago that you stood in front of an intimidating hole in the ground. Taking your own deep breath, you plodded down the stairs with feigned conviction that you were mainly trying to trick yourself with.

What met you at the bottom was absolute chaos. Some disturbing looking machinery, syringes everywhere, vice grips, papers that coated the floor like a carpet, and Sans looked the most wrecked at that moment, as he fidgeted and pulled at his eye sockets. You had half a mind to turn around and run up the stairs but stood tall, forcing yourself to look at him head on. He laughed a little, that tittering sound that caused goosebumps to form up your spine. Shaking his head, he took a shuddering breath and before you could stop him, he was digging his fingers now into his left eye but instead of just the sweat and exertion in pulling it out, his eye began to spark, flashing between a blue and yellow. He dropped to his knees with the endeavor crying out in pain. You backed up, glancing behind you to be sure you weren’t running into anything dangerous as he worked on pulling it out. Cracking and popping sounded next, making you jump, and the lights exploded reminding you of when you’d first met him. You couldn’t hold back a scream. Sans followed you, howling in pain again as he pulled. Between his fingers came a bright glowing ball of light, still sparking and dragging out of his skull with it what looked like blue nerves and sinew. Your hand clapped over your mouth, ears ringing with his keening which very slowly started to quiet into a dull cry as the ball of light finally broke free from what kept it tethered to his socket.

“i- i was… going to….” he couldn’t finish the words between his labored breathing, and instead focused on attaching the ball to the silver chain that had housed his other eye for a time.

Not again… you thought, still taken aback by the display you’d witnessed. Another tracking… thing?

“this. this has… more of me in it. memories. knowledge... power and magic. you-” he paused to wretch, catching himself with one hand before he collapsed in his knelt position. “you have to take it to the next time line… and give it to me there. i... i know who i am… it’s not this. i’ll be more for you in your future.” he finally finished, holding the necklace out to you with a heavily trembling hand. You barely understood his words, it felt more like a puzzle than a message, and too much was going on for you to digest his words properly.

His eye was the only light source now, a steady blue light in this underground lab and you reached out to it with sweating palms, for some reason you were attracted to what felt like raw power. And as soon as your fingers brushed against the chain, he lunged and grabbed your other wrist gently. You flinched, but let his hand stay. “i won’t have much time, as soon as you put it on, we will need to act quick… an injection, and then a shortcut.”

“An injection??” he said, stepping back from him, and Sans looked up at your pitifully.

“please.” he said, that desperation heavy in his voice again. “it’s the only way.”

You made a whining noise, but pulled the necklace from his grip, and ducked your head into it, somehow tasting what you could only describe as what electricity might taste like once it hung around your neck. You had no time to explore that, because Sans was quick, reaching haphazardly for a syringe filled with a golden liquid.

“close your eyes.” he instructed, but they were already shut tight. You’d always had a hard time getting a regular shot let alone one administered by a skeleton in an underground hell hole.

The tingling sensation came over your chest, his hand clutching arm a little tighter when you shifted uncomfortably.

Oh my god… mom… Jiji… please, please help me. Tears slipped down your face and you shook with fear, eyes still squeezed shut.

Your chest tightened, a sharp prick and then… an expansion. You almost felt like maybe your chest was painlessly splitting open, baring your insides to the outside world and taking in everything around you. Before you opened your eyes, Sans pulled you forward a step, and when you finally looked you were back in that purple room with scattered red leaves and… that light in front of you. Instantly you were transfixed by it, that almost overpowering urge to reach out and touch it coming over you again. Had you been in your right mind you’d have looked down to inspect your soul shaking and sweating with so much extra determination, looking like it was about to burst. But you didn’t, you stared intently at the yellow light suspended in the air.

“You must think of Frisk. Think of them as a child. Falling down that hole at the top of Mt. Ebott. Landing in that field of golden flowers. Think of them, and then think of you being there with them and nothing else.” Sans told you, his voice sounding at the same time distorted but also firmer. Stronger while it faded. But you didn’t cast him another glance, as you leaned in towards the light, feeling stronger and more determined than ever.

The thought of your family flooded your mind, filling you with determination.

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Everything went dark. For a few seconds, you thought you may have gone blind or died and fear gripped you until a soft blue light illuminated from Sans’ left eye around your neck and you could see the outline of a small child with their back to you.

“Jiji!” you breathed out in surprise, his words had rung in your ears but… to see your mind’s vision come true…

But there they were, and when they turned to look at you, a knowing look adorned their consistently bored seeming expression. It almost made you laugh as their childhood photos always had, but instead you began to cry.

“Jiji, I’ve missed you so much!” And when you collapsed to your knees, they strode up to you, and placed a firm hand on your shoulder. Their mouth didn’t move, but you heard them in your head.

My granddaughter.

Chapter Text

 “Jiji…” you breathed again, tears still falling down your face when they squeezed your shoulder gently. It was weird to feel the familiar touch of your grandparent, but coming from a much smaller and younger version of themselves. You couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of safety to be in the presence of someone you trusted with your life. “Jiji, I- I have so much to tell you, I have so much to ask you! Sans- he- this light- I came here- talked to Auntie Cait! She told me-” you were tripping over your words trying to rush out too much at once and they leveled you with a firm stare, tilting their head forward to quiet you.

 “Child you don’t have much time.” they said urgently into your mind, and looked down at your body pointedly. Following their gaze you noticed that you had begun to fade, parts of your body already translucent. You yelped in terror, having just felt this small form of relief in your grandparent you didn’t want to fade away at that moment especially. Each second seemed to speed it up, and you looked back at Jiji with panic. “I’m woven too deeply into this timeline,” they began, “I reset too many times and- Listen! Listen to me!” they scolded urgently, shaking you a little when you’d begun to break down into sobs. Quieting just a bit you shook with the effort to listen, biting your lip with the attempt to calm down. “I need to give you my soul.” More strangled sobs. “Stop that! Get ahold of yourself!” they shouted, but you felt like you couldn’t. You could feel it now, extreme fatigue emotionally, mentally, physically- it weighed heavily on you and threatened to break you with each trembling step you’d taken in the past week. But now that you had your Jiji here, it was as though you’d been carrying a boulder for miles on your back and suddenly the person to help lighten the load had appeared, but was now shaking you and demanding you continue on your own. The fading of your body felt like something you could ignore, Frisk had enough determination to save you, you thought. Why couldn’t they? Why couldn’t they just give you a break? They’d always taken care of your before… so why stop now?

 “Jiji-”

 “No! You need to take this, it will rest right behind yours but- Listen!” they shouted again, distressed, and placed a hand on either side of your face, pulling you down to your knees to look into their eyes, “Follow your own heart! Don’t listen to the other words that might try to lead you down the wrong path! Be determined, and do not give Sans his eye. When you get to the surface, your own time, bury it under your home. Do not let him have it. Listen to yourself. Do not give Sans his eye. Say it.”

 You blubbered out a half response.

 “Say it!” they shouted.

 “Listen to myself! Don’t give Sans his eye!” you shouted back, and your Jiji took a deep steady breath before reaching fast and hard into their own chest. A noise of pain ripped from their throat, making you cry out in worry, but they pulled out a brilliantly bright red soul and while distress laced their eyes they kept themselves composed. Compared to what you had seen of yours, this one looked so much stronger, and somehow had an edge of malice to it that made you shiver. Without your noticing, your soul had pulled from your chest as well, hovering in front of you and looking much dimmer and weak. With a brow furrowed in concentration they carefully placed the soul behind your own and closer to you. The two souls clicked together, making yours take on that strong glow. When you tore your gaze away from the souls and back to Jiji you shrieked, because before your eyes Frisk was aging and fading fast. A glance at your hand confirmed that you were growing more solid in this darkness, taking their spot.

 “You are taking my place in the Underground’s timeline… but your own waits for you on the surface. Do not follow my footsteps. Guard your heart, and listen to only your own. Your mom and I love you. We will be with you… right my wrongs, save them… and stay determined.” they said, their voice becoming gravely and wheezey as it had when they had drawn close to death. You reached out desperately, your soul- and theirs- sank into your chest as you attempted in vain to pull them to you and keep them there. You arms flailed forwards but before you could draw them close to you- there was nothing. And you cried out in anguish.

 “No!! No, Jiji!! I can’t do this without you, please!!” you shrieked, tears and snot mixing now and you scrubbed at your face, trying to see where they may have gone to or the last faded remnants of them. But too soon the ground broke beneath you, giving away and allowing you to fall into darkness that at this point you embraced. Because the moment had been too quick. You could barely process their words, and the boulder felt heavier than ever.

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.

 It felt like falling for hours again, your eyes gazing up into the nothingness and allowing your mind to draw blank. It had been too much, you thought. Even while all of it was happening, all the violence, the planning, the journey, and the Underground- you had no idea how you’d just kept pushing on. It didn’t feel like there was an alternative, you reasoned. It was a one track situation… but now, now you could just fall forever.

 Your eyelashes barely kissed your cheeks in acceptance when your chest clenched in pain. It shot through you and your back arched in agony, eyes now open wide. It was quickly changed, the pain dulling into something familiar, an ache similar to how you’d felt when you had to look your Jiji in the eyes and tell them you’d broken their beloved heirloom vase, or you’d lost your first volleyball game, or when you’d barely been able to meet their tearful gaze when you told them you were sorry for sneaking out after they had been out all night searching for you with your mom. Their words echoed through you.

 Stay determined.

 They could have taken your place, you reasoned. Let you fade into nothing and continue on through the Underground and get to the surface again as a child… but you’d have surely never come back.

 You shuddered at the thought of just fading away… of ceasing to exist. Of not dying but instead just never being. The feeling in your chest bordered on pain again, and you pulled yourself out of the existential crisis to instead concentrate on the falling.

 Twisting in the air, you faced downwards, your clothes once again billowed around you and for once you wished Sans would appear if only to just get you down safely and… You scratched that, he’d only hurt you you thought. So instead you focused on the golden flowers, on just getting to the bottom and before you knew it, you were there.

 Watching the ground rush to meet you made the crash into the flowers much more intense, mainly due to your seizing up, but the flora still cushioned your fall enough to keep from sustaining major injuries.

 Taking a couple labored breaths, the pain felt like it blew away in wisps, as though it was struggling to let go of you. Once it was gone, you found yourself wishing it had stuck around because oddly, it had helped to ground you in some way. But even with it gone, you knew you needed to pull yourself together. So with reluctance, you got yourself up from the ground and dusted yourself off, realizing with great relief that you still wore your backpack. Without taking it off, you unzipped the front pocket, and pulled out the picture of you, your mom, and Jiji. You only allowed yourself a few moments to look at it, tears threatening to fall again, and when you wiped at them your face felt crusted with old tears and mucus that must have dried from all the wind while falling. Putting the picture back, you rubbed at your face, and noted the patch of flowers was much smaller than it had been when you first fell down.

 I really did reset…

 Turning, there it was as expected, the archway into the second darkness, and then off into those ruins. For some reason though, it felt even more familiar… as though you’d seen it a countless times rather than twice but you didn’t think much of it. Instead you focused more on not thinking, and clearing your mind for what was sure to be a difficult journey. Sans had spoken a lot to Auntie Cait about the monsters and how much they varied, that they weren’t all skeletons underground, but rather a very diverse population. Something about the King and Queen resembling goats.

 Going through the first archway, you were prepared to simply continue on without much of a look around, but to your surprise, you saw a single brilliantly blue flower. It was tall too, with what seemed more like the trunk of a sapling than a stem. Absently, you brushed your fingers along the petals, content to move on from it.

 “Don’t kill and don’t be killed, alright?”

 You whipped your head around, searching for the sudden noise but you already knew where it came from, if you were honest. Touching the petals again, the voice repeated, childlike and lost sounding. Your heart felt heavy with the implications of why a child would say something like that, but with no other movement around you, you continued on through the second archway. Taking too long to consider things didn’t seem like a good idea.

 Once again, you came up to another surprise. Except this time, you crashed right into it and your arms flailed to right yourself, just barely keeping yourself inside the purple room. When you were able to focus, you looked up at a tall goat woman and gaped.

 Even without Sans’s words, the robes would give it away that this woman had some regality and you opened your mouth but closed it again when no proper words could form. You weren’t really expecting to come face to face with another monster so soon…

 “Oh! My child you… how did you end up here?” the goat woman asked, smiling at you kindly, but seeming a little nervous herself. When you didn’t answer immediately she crouched a little to inspect your face, and frowned. “You seem to have taken a tumble! And you look quite tired, how about we get you fed and cleaned? I haven’t seen a human here in quite some time, and if I’m honest, never an adult human! Please, follow me and we’ll get you all fixed up!” And without waiting for your answer, they turned and walked up the right ride of the double staircase to wait for you by the door.

 Your eyes drew immediately to that yellow light once she had moved out of your line of sight of it. It was beckoning to you again, and you stole a glance at the goat woman before approaching it, but she surprisingly said nothing and just looked at you with a soft smile. So without her speaking up, you slowly reached out to the light, and grabbed hold of it but this time without much of any thought in particular.

 Thoughts of your Jiji flooded into you, and your mother’s embrace- it filled you with determination that made you feel much safer and much stronger than you did moments ago. Along with feeling determined, the bruises you’d sustained lately also felt as though they melted away and looking at the goat queen, she only continued to smile at you if only a little awkwardly.

 “Um… you’ve had your hand in the air for a while now. Maybe this is a human custom I don’t know about?” she asked, tilting her head to the side a little.

 She must not see it.

 “Oh,” you dropped your hand to your side, “Uh, no, it’s… nothing, sorry.” you said with a light laugh, and then let her know that you were sorry for not saying it earlier, but told them your name.

 “A lovely name, I’m Toriel.” she said, and you both walked deeper into the cavernous ruins.

 In the next room, Toriel walked through a puzzle, triggering the door open, and then looked at you curiously.

 “You seem like a very strong human and… this may sound odd, but it seems like you have been here before, am I right?” she asked.

 You were a little unsure if the truth was the best option, but ended up nodding in confirmation.

 “I can tell… well, I am usually much more wary of allowing humans into New Home but this seems to be a very different situation. I can feel the strength from your soul without even Checking it. I’m unsure if even the monsters who keep me company here will approach you just from the feeling of your soul.” she paused, “I’m not saying you’re scary, it is just unusual for us. But, you seem like a fine young woman. And I have an eye for knowing good people!” she said with another gentle smile, and you smiled back at her feeling comforted. “Plus, it seems like maybe you have a suitor from here in the Underground? I haven’t seen everything, but this is quite an odd situation!” she laughed, clearly confused, “You seem very human, you’ve been here before, but you’re wearing a Monster necklace with quite a lot of power, the aura of it alone is quite intimidating! I’m sure you would have corrected me but… you are human, right?”

 “Oh… uh, yeah and I don’t have a suitor, honestly I’m… friends with Sans...” you weren’t completely sure how to say what you wanted and you weren’t even sure if you should even divulge that you were essentially from the future. But, you reasoned, you took the place of Frisk. Nothing that Sans had described from before had happened, and if he were even around in this timeline, he shouldn’t even know of any mass murder. You shivered.

 “Oh! You know Sans? Well, this changes up the situation a bit again, you are quite the curious human! Here, I will guide you through, we can get you sorted out and then, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’ll let you into New Home, seeing as you already know the Judge.”

 Her last word made your breath hitch a little, thinking back to when he’d shouted that at you so loudly you’d felt your teeth rattle. The Judge, Jury, and witness… and he had threatened to also be your executioner. But it seemed like maybe the first part was actually true. But once again, you decided not to dive into the word with her, finding it better to keep quiet.

 “He gave you the necklace then?”

 “What?”

 “Your necklace, clearly it’s been made with great care, with something very close to a monster.” she leaned in a little closer as though to inspect it but snapped back, blushing. “I’m sorry, I’m not sure where my manners are! It’s really none of my business, please, we’ll be on our way.” she told you, and with that she turned and led you through the ruins as Sans had done only the other day for you. While following, you quickly tucked the necklace into your shirt, going as far as to tuck the small round pendant into the cup of your bra to keep it from moving much under your shirt. You didn’t want any more attention drawn to it, and especially not when you saw Sans again as you expected you would…

Don’t give Sans his eye… you repeated in your head.

Chapter Text

By the time you left it had been two days. You were well rested, fed, and honestly happy. Toriel’s mothering nature had put you so at ease you weren’t sure when the last time had been that you felt so… complete? You weren’t sure the exact word for it, but you were grateful all the same. And although you felt gratitude a lot of your visit was spent making evasive verbal maneuvers. You had to dodge several questions about where you came from, how you knew Sans, and diverted to asking about snail facts and requesting another helping of cinnamon butterscotch pie. It seemed like her mothering instincts won out against any meddling she might’ve wanted to do.

So with a long hug, and a promise that you would see her again, she sent you on your way. She had continuously brought up how odd it felt, to send a human away willingly and even request they see her again.

“It’s very strange, for us to see an adult human. I don’t know if anyone ever has, except maybe the king and Gerson. Not only that but you have an abnormally strong Soul, without needing to Check it so I assume not many will approach you but…” she had trailed off for a moment, brow furrowing, “Anyways, Sans will find you quickly I’m sure.” she had finished, and let you pass through a large door heavy with a fortified magic, much more “alive” than it had been the last time you saw it.

Once through the archway, the door closed abruptly behind you and you stared out at the long snowy path. Although the cold didn’t bite nearly as much as it had your first time, you were grateful for the huge brown boots you now wore. Toriel had given them to you when she noticed your feet only in socks, and she’d given you several extra pairs of long socks that you shoved into the toes of the boots in order to walk in them. Although it threw off your gait, you felt safe in them- and you needed all the safe feelings you could get. Because if Sans didn’t find you, you’d have to find him and since you’d taken a shortcut to his home, who knew how long it’d take for you to get there now.  

Fortifying your thoughts, you went trudging through the snow, slowly acclimating to your new shoes and considering what you might say to Sans the first time you saw him. Or, the first time you saw the “old” him.

It was a lot to consider, images flitted in your mind’s eye of his dangerous magic crackling about him. Of his face broken with stress that hatred burrowed into him. How he’d be fine one moment, and on you with threats and blows to your psyche the next. You had to take this in and then push it aside, visualizing yourself packing it all away and shoving it into a dark corner. This first meeting, you didn’t want to give much away. After all that time, that felt like years, you wanted to have an upper hand. For him to be so powerful when you met him, he had to be just as strong now. If not stronger, with what was surely more mental control. And while your Jiji hadn’t told you to stay away from him, she had seemed to be wary of him.

You took a bigger step over a branch in the path, nearly tumbling when your foot almost came out from inside your boot. Restoring your balance, you continued on until you heard a crack echo through the wooded path. You froze, going back to when you’d heard a similar sound that night, in bed, in your own home… it sounded like-

Whirling around you came face to face with nothing but your own breath that fogged in the cold. When you turned, you saw the branch cracked in two out of the corner of your eye and chose to keep moving at a quicker pace. Nerves shot through you, and your breathing came harder.

Not now you whined internally, not so soon.

A short distance later you came on a peculiar bridge, the slates between it so large you could side step through without difficulty. But as soon as your boot connected with the wood, you froze. With old fear rising up you tried to turn your head to the sound of heavy footsteps crunching through the snow but you were caught. It didn’t matter if you turned around anyways, you knew who it was just by the feeling of the magic. In the cup of your bra you felt the pendant pulse a little, getting warmer as he approached and you hoped it didn’t get unbearably hot.

“H u m a n.  D o n ‘ t y o u  k n o w h o w t o  g r e e t a n e w p a l ?  T u r n a r o u n d a n d s h a k e  m y h a n d.”

Very slowly, and with extreme trepidation, you carefully turned around to face him with a feeling like you’d be forced to even if you didn’t want to. It was who you guessed, although his voice sounded less strained and gruff. The smooth skull was also slightly startling, and your breathing was coming out loud and shakey. You reached out for his hand, not wanting to go down this path and then he put his hand back in his pocket before you could grab it. The movement stunned you, and you looked from his pocketed hands, to his face, and then back and forth once more.

“hey, you’re a human right? that usually tickles my funny bone but… wow, kinda killing the mood right now with your heavy breathing, bud. somethin’ scary following you? playin a game of hide and go shriek ? cause i dunno if i’d have the guts to join in, know what i’m sayin’?” Sans said, his eye sockets lifting up into a wider grin. And noting his eye sockets, you saw two eye lights in there, even though one was definitely sitting against your breast, and now a steady almost too hot temperature.

“Uh… yeah, I- I guess I’ve just never met a skeleton before.”

“well, here i am- sans the flesh.”

“You mean in the flesh?” you asked, still stunned to see him looking so jovial and the words just spilled out. For a moment you expected him to retaliate with a modicum of violence but instead he chuckled.

“nah, pal- i’m sans. sans the skeleton, so sans the flesh. kinda creepy ya already knew my name though.” he said with a wink. To this you reddened, primarily out of anxiety to have already let it slip that you knew something about him. How would you keep up the charade if you just let things fly in moments of fear?

“Oh um, Toriel let me know that I’d be meeting you.” you said, and inwardly hoped they didn’t speak very often.

“tori did? huh, well… guess i’ll be givin’ you a personal tour through the underground. i’m supposed to be on the lookout for humans so, mind bein’ captured for a bit? my bro would love it. he’s been tryin’ to capture a human for ages.”

You considered this for a moment, eyeing him warily. Nothing was too surprising now-a-days.

“Are you gonna hurt me?” you asked.

“what? no. what do i look like? a monster?” he said with laughed off surprise.

“Okay then... sure. I’ll just follow you.”

And without more discussion, Sans walked past you, motioning with his shoulder for you to follow him. It seemed so easily decided, you wondered if he was surprised by your immediacy to follow. But the two of you barely made it a few yards before a figure came up somewhat suddenly from the path the two of you walked on.

“SANS!” bellowed a tall lanky skeleton, his teeth barred in a menacing way and eyes full of annoyance.

“oh, sup bro?”

“SANS I HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR- SANS…” the tall skeleton’s mouth fell open a tad before snapping shut and he wiggled a little to pull himself up into a taller position, “SANS… WHO IS YOUR FRIEND?”

“this? It’s my new pal, human.” Sans responded, and a stolen glance in his direction cowed you. After seeing him so full of pain and anger, the look of pure joy to see his tall skeletal brother, it made your chest ache.

“SANS… OH MY GOD, HOW COULD YOU NOT SEE?? YOUR NEW FRIEND HUMAN IS IN FACT… A HUMAN!” the skeleton shouted, somehow louder than he had been before. But the tone in his voice… somehow you could feel it, that he wasn’t a threat. So instead of flinching in fear, you found yourself unable to stop a smile from spreading across your face.

“no way… a human? you really think so?” Sans asked, looking over at you with feigned intrigue.

“I DO BELIEVE SO, AND I HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO BE HIGHLY SKILLED IN HUMAN DETECTION, BROTHER.”

“oh? how many humans have you cau-”

“IT’S NOT IMPORTANT! BECAUSE BEFORE ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, IS MY TICKET TO THE ROYAL GUARD! I WILL BE SHOWERED IN KISSES! BATHED IN HUGS! ALL WILL KNOW OF MY GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENT! NOW,” he directed his attention to you, grinning with excitement, “I HAVE BEEN PLANNING FOR THIS A LONG TIME, I’LL WARN YOU HUMAN! SO ONLY CONTINUE IF YOU DARE!! NYEH HEH HEH HEH!” he said, pulling his legs together, and lightly pounding his chest once, before turning to run off, laughing as he went.

You watched him go with wide eyes, a little stunned by the whole display of it, and when you turned to Sans you jumped a little to see him already staring at you, eye lights gone.

“Listen. I can tell you’re strong, and I’m just gonna let ya know, I’ll be keeping an eye socket on you, so don’t try any funny business, got it?”

You nodded, a little startled by the display of aggression. It was over quickly, and he smiled at you with a shine to his sockets again. “cool. well, maybe just play along with papyrus, will ya? you’d be doin’ me a big favor.” And you, again, nodded. “well, i’ll catch ya up ahead.” he said lightly, and strolled off in the other direction from his brother, leaving you to wonder. It was all coming at you rather quickly, but there wasn’t much to do besides place one crunching foot step in front of the other.

So his brother was still alive, and everything seemed okay, not that there was much to see when you’d been here before.

As you continued along the path, every now and then a monster would seem to move to approach you, but even when you smiled a little at them, they quickly retreated away. The first time had been a little worrisome, to see a giant snowflake, or a big headed being with an ice formation settled on the top of his head come towards you with what looked like combative intent. But when none of them ever even asked what you were doing there, you began to feel a bit worried. Were you really that intimidating to monsters? You’d thought Toriel was being hyperbolic. But you’d be lying if it made you feel a touch better, and a little stronger and confident. Maybe this time in the Underground would be easier, and if Papyus’ nature was any indication- maybe a little more fun.

Chapter Text

 That morning had been brutal for Sans. His eye sockets throbbed, one in particular leaving him reeling. His face ached fiercely, and his soul felt like it’d been ripped out and laid bare to the elements for years before being shoved back into him. It was a tide pulling in, washing over him and forcing him to sputter and gasp for breath as it threatened to sweep him away. Apparently he’d been groaning loudly in agony because Papyrus had rushed in, yanked him from his bed and took him outside into the snow. Only once he was sitting in it did he realize how badly he was sweating and shaking. The powdery landscape had helped to calm him down, but mostly it was his brother’s concern that helped him yank away from the shoreline of impending doom.

 A few deep shakey breathes later and he was able to smile up at his brother, shrugging off the harsh wake up. He was nonplussed. It had happened before, a Premonition that a large timeline had been hacked off. But nothing at all like this. Nothing to this scale.

 His sockets still pulsed as they ate a spaghetti breakfast, and they hurt when he waved goodbye to his brother. The smarting didn’t stop even as he walked leisurely along to check up on his posts and go over puzzles. Laziness and pain won out and he ended up bypassing all of his duties. Besides, for some reason shortly after he’d left his home he felt a tug at his soul leading him. It was a unique feeling, but with the morning he’d had it didn’t come as a huge surprise.

 But when the string around his soul tugged him to an adult human, he’d be lying to himself if he said he was expecting it. He could hardly see your features with as bright as your soul was. He knew he was unique as the Judge, able to see deeper into the soul’s of humans and monsters so things hardly amazed him, but you managed to. LV of 19 but no EXP. It was confounding. Anything at that Level of Violence should surely be taken out, there was too much devastation that could occur but stats didn’t lie. And you’d clearly harmed no one. Not only that, but even when he got so close to you he felt the still growing urge to draw nearer.

 As you spoke to each other, and even more so when you focused on Papyrus when he showed up, he couldn’t help but stare at you out of his peripherals. The glow about you strengthened when you spoke to Papyrus, clearly happy to see him and it set him at ease slightly. You were your own puzzle, and one he was apparently magnetised to in some way.

 Never before had he felt much in the way of attraction, he was too busy doing his best for his kid brother. But in this moment he could not define what he felt about you. Just an urge to meld you into him or something… It was hard for him to pin down. Thoughts flitted around too quickly for him to get a good scope of what he thought.  

 Not much time could be spent thinking about it, so he just settled on the idea that he may just be attracted in some way to you, a human. Some sort of deeper feeling in his soul- something that couldn’t be explained easily. He’d heard it happen to some monsters. But it seemed rare.

 Still, he made to be threatening, pulling out tricks to seem more ominous and foreboding. Not that it seemed he needed to, you were freaking out just by the sight of him.

 When he walked away, he realized that he’d felt no urge to comfort you when you were scared. But as he left, he felt like he was leaving a piece of himself behind with you. It was almost dizzying for a skeleton who had never before felt this way before.

.

.

.

.

 After meeting up with his brother, Sans had suggested they make marks in the snow leading them to the “puzzle” which would really be their house.

 “OR MAYBE… TO A SPAGHETTI DINNER! HOW COULD THEY RESIST?” Papyrus shouted triumphantly.

 Sans took a sigh of relief, glad to not need to argue about bypassing the puzzles. You seemed like too great a possible threat to not take seriously.

 “sounds like the perfect plan, paps. a puzzle of the mind. all that walking will surely work up quite a bone appetite.” he said, which Papyrus gasped at, agreeing enthusiastically while ignoring the pun before they both took off to Snowdin leaving notes like ‘THIS WAY TO A SPAGHETTI DINNER (NOT A TRAP)’ in their wake.

You seemed smart enough to catch on , Sans thought mildly.  

.

.

.

 Each message in the snow made you laugh, almost surely written by the taller brother, Papyrus. It endeared you to him, his antics were probably meant to read dangerously- but they played sweet. You even fully expected to be met with a real spaghetti dinner by the end of the path. Without knowing him well, you just felt like it was part of his character.

 It didn’t take terribly long before you began to slightly recognize buildings you’d only seen from a distance. Strange to see so many monsters, although they clearly leaned away from you- or some even ran away. Scuttling into little homes and nooks that lined the streets. For some reason, it almost made you smile. The last time you’d been here, it had been nothing but fear in your heart. Now you were still the sheep, but cloaked in the clothing of the big bad wolf. You touched the pendant through your shirt and wondered if maybe they felt Sans’ power emanating from near where your soul could be found.

 Not long into after entering town you found the house you were looking for. At a certain point you had even stopped looking for little arrows, remembering your way through. And even without the arrows, each new area felt at the same time new and old. Like you’d traversed the paths a thousand times but were just now seeing it.

 Standing now in front of their house, you looked up from the big arrow that pointed directly at the front door. Before your knuckles made contact with the it though, it was wrenched open by an excited looking Papyrus.

 “HUMAN!” he shouted, looking genuinely happy to see you. But then, as though remembering himself he straightened up and allowed you to enter with a more controlled exuberance. Still grinning as you walked into a place shockingly still the same. The only difference being it felt somehow happier, and there was a big, obvious pulley system with a laundry basket hanging from the ceiling directly over the right side of the couch.

 “Hi Papyrus!” you greeted happily. Seeing him had such an effect, as though you knew he’d never really hurt you. “Man, what a clean house! And it smells so good!” you announced, shamelessly feeding his ego. Praise was clearly important to him if the spiel you’d heard earlier indicated anything. “Ya know, ya don’t even need to capture me. I think I’d rather stay here!” you added, and it startled you slightly how true the words felt.

 What was waiting for you up top anyways? An old house full of memories of your dead mom? A few relatives that could only remind you of your Jiji? Sure you had a few friends, and you’d miss them- but you could make new ones.

 “WELL I AM VERY FLATTERED BY THAT, HUMAN. IT IS VERY UNDERSTANDABLE THAT YOU’D BE SO EAGER TO STAY IN THE PRESENCE OF THE GREAT PAPYRUS!” he said, but he seemed to have turned a very light shade of orange at his cheeks as though he were blushing. “HERE HUMAN, PLEASE HAVE A SEAT!” he said, gesturing to the seat right under the laundry basket. You shrugged and accepted, thanking him as you sat down and he zipped away and returned with a TV tray and a plate of spaghetti.

 Eagerly he stepped back and clasped his hands up near his mouth. A little ticking noise could be heard you and swore that he might be chewing on the ends of his fingers. After a smile you dug into the food he’d set in front of you. Upon first impact with your tongue, it genuinely wasn’t very good, but as soon as you’d chewed and swallowed you were hit by a heavy feeling of nostalgia. It… tasted just like Jiji’s. Tears pricked at your eyes, and you stared down at your plate in wonder, and then up at Papyrus who was now open mouthed staring at you.

 “Human… is something wrong?” he asked, quietly and filled with concern. He clearly wasn’t sure how to handle your state of emotions.

 “I… this is just so great I’m… I’m moved to tears, honestly.” you said, and it was true. As a child you’d always complained about spaghetti nights at Jiji’s, but now as an adult you’d give anything to be  back in that memory. And now, before you, was the closest thing you’d ever get.

 Papyrus was exultant, grinning so widely that a tear even escaped from his own eye that he wiped away with gusto.

 “OF COURSE! I KNEW YOU WOULD LOVE IT!” he said, but you knew he hadn’t been expecting your reaction.

 “Yeah, maybe I could get a lesson from Undyne too.” you found yourself saying, and then promptly looked up at Papyrus quizzically as he looked at you with a mirrored expression.

 “YOU ALREADY KNOW MY MENTOR??” he asked.

 “I… uh, yeah. I guess.” you half murmured, a little confused yourself as to how you knew that name. But while you mulled it over, a red headed fish woman came to mind, maybe just plucked from your imagination. With quiet alarm you glanced down at your chest and shivered.

 Are these Jiji’s memories? You asked yourself, feeling an urge once again to cry.

 “OH. THIS IS EMBARRASSING, HUMAN. I WAS ACTUALLY GOING TO CAPTURE YOU BUT SINCE YOU KNOW UNDYNE I GUESS I’LL LET YOU GO FREE.” he said, now sitting down next to you on the couch, looking a little dejected. “IF YOU WOULD LIKE, YOU CAN GO. I UNDERSTAND IF YOU DO.”

 To this, you shook your head, and knew in your Jiji’s soul what would comfort him. “No thanks, I’m having a great time right now- good food and a good friend.”

 Once again Papyrus lit up before trying to corral his emotions into something more “dignified”. But still, he was now grinning and stood up so quick you flinched back a little in surprise.

 “YOU KNOW MY BROTHER WAS A LITTLE SUSPICIOUS OF YOU, HUMAN BUT- I’LL GO TELL HIM THE GOOD NEWS!”

 “Where is he?” you asked, looking around as though you’d suddenly find him standing in a corner of the room. It wouldn’t shock you.

 “IN HIS LAB, MY BROTHER HAS A LOT OF READING HE DOES, FOR AS LAZY AS HE IS.” he said, and with a promise to return soon he took off in search of Sans.

 Acceptance and friendship seemed all too natural for Papyrus.

Chapter Text

A startled jump didn’t go unnoticed by Sans, who looked at you with something akin to cheerful skepticism. So unlike the Sans you’d known before who only had eyes for your pain, it had felt like. It was a steep learning curve, but one you were eager to grow accustomed to. You needed these two on your side most especially, it seemed. Because in that short period of time that Papyrus had left you alone you began to wonder if it were even possible to get home.

So when they entered, you wasted no time in asking him, “How are we going to get through the barrier?” Papyrus only just shutting the door on his way in.

Surprise was evident on his skeletal face, and Papyrus suddenly looked extremely uncomfortable, kicking the carpet a little while rubbing the back of his skull, hand still on the door knob.

“OH! I ALMOST FORGOT!” he shouted, one finger pointing upwards, “I’LL HAVE TO COME BACK LATER AND MAKE MORE OF MY FAMOUS SPAGHETTI BUT FOR NOW I NEED TO GET BACK TO WORK!” he announced, laughing nervously as he spoke, “SANS! HUMAN!” he said, nodding to each of you and then promptly kicked the door down in his haste to leave, shouting a sorry over his shoulder as he jogged away.

Sans chuckled a little, and his eye flashed blue for a moment. You whimpered involuntarily, shaken at the sight but he seemed unphased even while you cringed in embarrassment. Next to him, the door was encased in that soft blue glow, and pulled upright into the frame of the house to block out the flurries of snow outside. Then his eyes descended on you.

“papyrus says that you’ll be our guest here.” he said, apparently ignoring your noise. “and it seems like you know of undyne, but not about the barrier.” You stared at him wordlessly. He sighed, and then sat down on the couch next to you, sinking into it heavily with a bored look on his face. You took a small note that he left a little less room between the two of you than you’d have normally preferred but did nothing about it. “We need your soul to get through the barrier. to make a long story short, we need you dead.”

You blanched at the way he delivered those words so matter-of-fact.

“Does- does this I mean… are you?”

“nah, pal. that’s not my place anyways. but i actually doubt that anyone would harm you. except maybe your friend undyne. that’s why i’ll be keeping an eye socket on ya. can’t trust ya just yet not to go on a murderous rampage.” he said, grinning at you. “but you wouldn’t do that, would ya pal?’

“No, of course not.” you said firmly, a little unbelieving that he was being so forward.

“okay, that’s cool. ice to know you’re chill.” he chuckled, and you sighed in exasperation. Sans raised a non-brown up in your direction. “not a fan of my punny jokes?”

“I never have been.” you said nonchalantly, propping your elbow on the armrest of the couch and leaning into your hand. But then you froze, and out of your peripherals you could see him gazing at you intently.

“huh, not many are. hey, refresh me. when did we meet again?”

“We uh… we.” you squeaked out, you had no idea what to say and you knew he knew that..

“not to be nosey, pal.” he said, gesturing to his lack thereof, “but you seem to know a whole lot ‘bout a place you’ve never been.” He leaned in towards you, the little space between the two of you lessening and you felt your breath hitch slightly. You couldn’t look away from him, even as he encroached further into your space. Mere inches seperated your faces, and you knew he’d feel your shakey breathing against his face. “and if we’re speakin’ truths here.” he paused, his brow furrowing enough that you knew he wasn’t sure he wanted to say more, “you have a certain… pull. i think we’ve met before. in another time. and it’d really help me out, ole buddy ole pal, if you’d let me know what happened.”

Lies and stories flurried through your head. Should you tell the truth? Would he kill you in that case? Surely you couldn’t tell him everything. But how could you explain the pulling? Was it the eye? Around your neck? You scrunched your nose, and then relaxed- because you knew what you’d say. Your face began to heat slightly, and your inhale trembled.

“I-I- We… We were lovers.” you said, hoping that a skeleton could even make love or fall in love with a human. The way he sat back in shock, mouth slackening, you assumed they could. “I… fell down here and… we spent a long time together…” you had no idea how this would work, you suddenly realized. No idea how much Sans knew, or how you could pull off this lie when you didn’t really know much about the world. “I don’t totally remember what happened… something… happened, and then I woke up at the beginning. I’m still remembering, but all I know for sure-” Something occurred to you then, a ghost of a memory about promises rarely broken. “Is that we loved each other, and that you promised to protect me.”

Over the time you spoke, Sans had begun to tip forward until his elbows sat on his knees, and his head was propped up by his hands. He looked lost, and was perspiring lightly, his trademark grin had faltered while clearly deep in thought. He glanced at you skeptically, but there was confusion in there too.

“How do I know you’re not lying?”

More memories came to you, pillars to support a rickety lie.

“You’re the Judge. You love ketchup. You used to tell knock knock jokes through the door to Toriel. You want to get to the Surface to provide a better life for Papyrus. You sell hot dogs in Hotland. You-”

“ok.”

You stopped abruptly, heart beating wildly with the lies, but you scooted closer, testing out these deceitful waters. Normally, you hated lying. But right now? It felt almost easy, words just spilling forth.

“I feel the pull too. Because I love you.”

To your surprise, your hand was steady as you reached to touch his cheek facing away from you. But when he finally faced you fully, his extreme stress and flushed blue face caused some kind of dissonance in your soul… or maybe souls.

This isn’t right.

As though it burned, you yanked your hand away blushing now in actual shyness. What had you been about to do? Kiss him to further a lie? A lie that messed so plainly with the emotions of someone who actually seemed... kind. Or at least someone who only cared for his friends and brother, and just wanted the best for them.

“I’m sorry.” you mumbled sheepishly.

“it’s... okay,” he said, his face tinged a blue color. He chuckled a little, rubbing along his jaw and looked away. “i honestly wondered if this might be some sorta… soul bonded thing. i mean, i’m sorry i don’t remember, so i’m still gonna be a lil’ wary, and this doesn’t explain everything but… anyways.” He looked back at you. “what’s uh… your name? probably not great that I keep callin’ you human.”

With new reticence, you told him your name and he nodded. Even still, he looked a little taken aback by this revelation of forgotten love.

“why didn’t you tell me sooner? like when i first saw ya? and why did you assume i’d hurt you?” he asked, and you cringed, regretting immensely weaving this lie. But how did anyone back out of something like this?

“I didn’t remember anything for a while. It’s coming back in pieces.” you said, speaking only a half lie you guessed. Memories were flooding to you just… not your own. He nodded to this, leaning back into the sofa again and staring up at the ceiling in contemplation.

“what’s your plan?” he asked, and you had no idea.

“Find a way through the barrier I suppose.”

To which Sans nodded gravely.

Chapter Text

After Papyrus returned, it had been decided that you’d be sleeping on the brother’s couch while Sans did some research and tried to find out more about the connection the two of you had, and how it might be used in some way to break the barrier or to at least return his memories. You’d nervously offered your help, but were all too relieved when he refused it saying he worked better alone. Being close to him made you nervous that you’d inadvertently lead him to finding out about the necklace you wore with what felt like maybe his energy from the previous timeline stored in it. And you didn’t want that. It didn’t go with the gnawing fear that he would somehow restore his own memories and find you out.

A couple days had gone by mainly filled with long talks between you and Papyrus about your mom, his dreams, and favorite movies as well as a few impromptu cooking lessons. It wasn’t long before you felt almost at home amongst the two skeletons, although you saw very little of Sans. Your interactions with him largely consisted of idle, awkward chatter, puns and catching him staring at you a little longer than necessary when you entered a room he was in.

You’d been sitting on the couch, clutching the pendant from over your shirt and considering how you might move forward with Sans when the commotion began. The disruption of the relatively calm pace of events came when the door was once again kicked down and a large fish woman you remembered from your Jiji’s memories barreled into the living room with a fire in her eyes that burned very obviously for you.

“HUMAN!” she shouted, pointing accusingly at you when your eyes met and you flinched back from her.

“Undyne!” you responded in a reflex and regretted it because it seemed to only make a scowl appear on her mouth. Moments later and your soul was front and center glowing as bright as when Jiji had given you their own. Surges of power pulsed through you and a grin unconsciously came over your lips.

“I’ll let you off easy if you just accept your defeat!” Undyne shouted, drawing two spears from what had to be the air as she was clad in only jeans and a tank top. A push to the challenge rose in your gut uncharacteristically and you took a very definitive step forward and caught a spear she tossed at you. For whatever reason you felt it, that you could defeat her if you wanted to.

Not that you did want to, you reminded yourself, but a fight appeared to be the only way to sway her from killing you if you remembered correctly. The memories of her chasing you down… or rather Jiji through a myriad of areas in the Underground flashed fast through your mind. The exhaustion, the desperation, the determination came at you fast… and the sweet defeat of her, the fight you knew she put up before she’d been slain. Triumph was overtaken by a shiver that ran down your spine. Whatever reason Jiji had for ending all these people, they obviously regretted it. You would do right by them.

Everything around you and Undyne began to fade away into darkness, although you caught a glimpse of a finger biting Papyrus staring fearfully from the doorway. There wasn’t a chance to dwell on it or ask why Undyne was suddenly at your throat because she was already attacking.  With speed and strength that shocked you you leapt and rolled out of the way of her spears. The last spear she threw your ways you somehow batted back towards her with speed and dexterity that caused her eyes to blow wide open but she too dodged expertly.

“Why don’t you be the one to admit defeat, hm?” you asked, a little teeth peeking from your half grin. Undyne let out an angry roar before materializing another spear and chewing it up as though it were nothing, spitting out chunks of it at you like bullets. It didn’t matter, you danced around each of them with hardly any effort, determination practically moving your feet for you. This time, you surprised both of you by rushing forward, slashing out at her with such intensity that you scared yourself. Purposefully missing, you leapt back to lock eyes with her and you exchanged confused looks, but for different reasons.

Weren’t you trying to get these monsters on your side? Instead of attacking again, you saw your own statistics float out from your soul, and watched as Undyne choked a little. AT 46, DF 14.

“You’re strong, human! But not close to being able to defeat me! Prepare yourself for so! Much! More!” she shouted, flexing each arm before curling them down to flex her pectorals. With a deep breath she pulled out another spear and swung it at you with clearly all her might. For the first time, you felt a little nervous but before you could leap away it stopped suddenly. Encased in blue light it stayed suspended in the air for a moment, before clattering to the ground.

“whoa, undyne. trying to spark spear into our guest?” You nearly jumped from your skin, Sans having emerged from the darkened room and into the lit “soul arena” you stood in with Undyne. Looking at her you flinched again to see a deep scowl on her face, arms crossed and veins angrily protruding.

“Sans! You brat! You aren’t supposed to interfere! This is my fight, and you shouldn’t be protecting a human anyways!” Undyne groused, fixing him with a cross stare. Sans only shrugged.

“sorry undyne, not gonna happen in my abone.”

“Abone?” she asked, raising one eyebrow high.

“yeah, you know, like abode… it’s not punny when i have to explain it. anyways, papyrus made some nervous spaghetti. why don’t you joint us?” he asked, letting his arm hinge back and forth to emphasize his joke.  

“This is bogus.” Undyne grumbled, but with obvious reluctance, her soul sank back into her body and she turned to walk into the kitchen. Her willingness to scold him but not push it that far made you curious about his place in the Underground again. He seemed too lazy to command any actual respect.

You moved to follow, but stopped when Sans spoke. “hey... i don’t think there’s any way we can realistically pass through the barrier without the death of one of us, and no real way for me to access what my memories were in the other timeline.” he said, and paused for a moment, taking a deep breath, “and i... i’m not really good at this type of stuff so. can we just start fresh? i don’t know what happened for us to fall in love but i think it’s best we just approach this… organically. is that okay?” he asked, hands shoved deep into his pockets and one slippered foot kicked a little at the carpet.

“Of course!” you said enthusiastically and struggled to reel back your excitement. It was a relief to think you could have your lie and be able to maintain it. How could you ever fall in love with a skeleton? You liked Papyrus a lot and Sans actually seemed okay but really, how much could a Monster in the Underground relate to a human? It just felt too unnatural. You could barely even touch his bones without being skeeved out, how could you form a romantic bond with him? “I… I’m happy to, I dunno, get a re-do? Since I can’t remember very much it’s been… confusing.” Another half lie.

“well... c’mon. it’s impastable to not have at least a lil of papyrus’s cooking. it’d be fusilli not to try and get on undyne’s good side, too.”

“You’re reaching.” you noted. He grinned at you. And in one of those increasingly common instances, you smiled back at him genuinely. You didn’t think you’d ever consider him to be a lover, but a friend? It seemed more and more a possibility.

.

.

.

Dinner went as well as you could have hoped for. Undyne conceded eventually that you were a guest of Papyrus’s and as his mentor she needed to see you as a guest too. With that came tea practically forced down your throat, at one point her even trying to bring the cup to your lips insisting that she’d be the greatest host but Sans once again gently dissuaded her of it and talked Papyrus out of… jumping out the window in a fit of nerves. After that, Undyne became much more bearable, and memories continued to filter in. You knew that Jiji had killed her, you could see the death in flashes but forced them away because the more you got to know her, the more you felt bad about the excitement you’d observed in yourself at the prospect of defeating her.

Concerningly, memories of your Jiji turning Papyrus to dust had never surfaced, but when he did certain unbearably cute things your heart ached deeply, too deeply for the short time you’d known him. Out of some morbid curiosity you even tried to purposefully recall the memories of how or when it might have happened, but the thoughts stifled themselves out in a haze. Brain fog was becoming more and more common with all these new inputs constantly rearing up.

Sans was the first to leave, followed soon after by Undyne citing a need to get back on patrol, leaving you and Papyrus who went immediately to washing dishes with you settling in comfortably beside him to do the drying.

“Hey… why doesn’t Sans help you by the way?” you asked him after a couple minutes had passed.

“OH! MY BROTHER DOES, TYPICALLY. I THINK YOU MAKE HIM NERVOUS, IF WE’RE TELLING SECRETS.” You weren’t telling secrets, and you wouldn’t tell one so loudly either, but you grinned at his antics.

“Why would I make him nervous?” you asked, speaking in a much lower voice in hopes that he’d meet you there, but your attempt was for naught.

“I BELIEVE HE THINKS YOU’RE HIS SOULMATE.” Papyrus announced, nearly making you drop a plate in shock.

“Why… why would he think that?” you asked, hoping and praying that it didn’t all have to do with that “pull”.

Papyrus set down the cup he’d been washing into the water, and turned to look at you with the most solemn expression you’d seen yet.

“It’s a rare thing for us. Some even call it a myth but… to me it’s more something you build and then bind your souls together. My brother has never been one to seek out… romantic companionship.” Papyrus, already speaking softly, brought his voice down to a whisper, “He’s always been scared of it. Something about timelines. He doesn’t talk much about it but I’ve seen his workshop. But he seeks you out more than I’ve seen before, he seems to like being close to you.” Moments passed between the two of you, him staring down into the sink and you staring at the plate in your hand. This made you feel so much worse… clearly you were causing him some sort of confusion, and you once again wished you’d never told him that lie. But, you guessed it was just as well that he’d be confused instead of actually trying to have a relationship with you. How could that have gone?

“WELL ANYWAYS, I THINK UNDYNE LIKED YOU A LOT!” Papyrus said, going back to his loud self, and you smiled at him. “You really think so?”

“I KNOW SO! I HAVE LOTS OF PATROLLING AND PUZZLE MAKING BUT IN A COUPLE DAYS, WE SHOULD GO VISIT HER AT HER HOUSE!” he announced, driving a finger into the air with aplomb.

“Yeah… lets do that.” you said, committing yourself to several more days with the skeleton brothers, although sooner or later you knew you needed to face the barrier and face a lot of unknown.

They needed 7 souls, and you potentially had one to spare, but you had no idea where that would put you. Would you disappear? Cease to exist? Or would things just carry on like normal? All you knew was that the more time you spent down here, the more content you felt to just stay. Wondering why you’d ever wanted to return to the Surface was a daily occurrence, even with Papyrus occasionally waxing on about his dreams of getting to see the “real world” and drive cool cars. It stabbed at your heart the first couple times, but more and more you became numb to it.

So his comment to visit Undyne in a couple days? That sat just fine with you. Anything to delay what Sans would surely push you towards eventually.