Chapter Text
It was another busy night. He couldn’t count the dishes he had to clean, and struggled not to steal fries from the meals he served. His father meanwhile, had the simple of job of chatting with customers and ordering him around. Sure, it was a way to pass the time, but was it ever loathsome. He hated the smell of the gloves he wore to protect his hands from the water. He hated the sound of day old patties frying on the little grill that kept him company. Mostly though, he hated how lonely it was in the back.
He brought food out to tables, but the people never wanted to talk. Sometimes they wouldn’t even thank him for it, simply eyeing him down until he turned to return to his station. It was horrifically lonely. He could hear all the chatter outside the doors, just loud enough that each conversation blurred into each other and he couldn’t tell what anyone was saying. The sound of bells reached him from the front door and he sighed, violently scrubbing at a stubborn bit of food on a plate. Another customer, that meant another meal, another couple of plates to clean. He tried to hold back his sigh.
Gradually though, he heard the chatter die down, getting replaced by silence. He stopped his cleaning, turning to look out the door. Had something happened?
He took a few steps toward the door, opening it enough to peer out and into the bar. At the front door stood a tall man, dressed in all black. The man was pale, and looked to be made of bone. He frowned, only drawing one conclusion as to who this could be that seemed impossible.
A skeleton.
He saw two other people with the tall man, one who was about half the size of the first, wearing a t-shirt with a smart science pun on it, and one who was even shorter, wearing a red scarf that seemed to swallow him. All three seemed to be made of bone. He couldn’t identify any organs at all. Skeletons, he thought once again. He knew it was impolite to stare at guests, he tried to pull away from the door, from where he was stuck, staring.
It was just that he had never seen a skeleton before.
He had never even imagined they were still around.
He watched as the continued in, as the tallest generated two hands by his face, mouth unmoving. His hands had large holes through them, which made some of the motions seem a bit jerky. The hands gestured as words spilled from him. “Go and sit down. I will pay for your meals.” Everyone’s attention was glued to the newcomers.
How does one speak without motion of the mouth? How could he hear and understand when those gestures and that voice was so unfamiliar? He looked to his father, calm, waiting. He wondered how his father could be so calm in the presence of these, things he had never once witnessed. He glanced back to the group stood by the door.
The medium sized skeleton was looking at him, watching him. Dark black eyes were watching him. He didn’t even know if he could call them eyes. Specks of white in a void, replicating the look of eyes. Those were used to observe. He was being observed. He was frozen for a moment, staring back. Skeletons. He couldn’t get over that.
He couldn’t tell if he was in awe or was feeling something else entirely. He blinked, tried to break away from his fascination. He glanced across to his father, once again. He was walking over, still totally calm. He pulled himself away from the door, allowing his father to enter and shut the door.
He leaned heavily against the door as he looked at his father, who stood before him, rummaging through the fridge. “You know who they are, don’t you Grillby?” His father asked.
“They are skeletons.” He replied quietly. “I thought all skeletons died in the war? Isn’t that what you said?”
His father smiled, shutting the fridge and placing a chunk of meat on the counter. “Yes, they are skeletons. Many skeletons fought in the war against the humans, as did many other monsters and myself.” Grillby nodded, acknowledging what his father said. “But that tall skeleton who you saw, the one who created more hands to speak with? That skeleton is incredibly intelligent, and is very close to King Asgore, and his name is Dr. Gaster. He has brought two colleagues with him. We will treat them the best we can while they are here, do you understand?”
Once again, Grillby nodded. He understood. His father reached out and patted his shoulder. “I’ll go see what our esteemed guests would like to eat.” He said, pushing open the door and going over to the table. The chatter had resumed, somewhat quieter than before. He heard a couple bits and pieces of gossip through the door, examining what his father took from the fridge.
“Is that really the Royal scientist?” Said one voice.
“Don’t know how many other skeletons are still kicking around. Wonder what he’s doing in Snowdin?” Queried another.
“Whatever it is I want him to get it over with and get back to the Hotlands where they came from, we don’t need his kinda folk kicking around Snowdin performing all sorts of experiments.”
He took a knife and began to pry apart the patties from the parchment paper between them. So, he’d have to draw his own conclusions about these guests. His father came back in with a slip of paper. “Think you’ll be able to manage this?” His father joked.
He took the slip of paper, looking over the order. Two burgers, one with fries and one without. “I should be able to make it work.” He replied, placing it on the line and getting started while his father returned to his place behind the bar.
The basics. He placed the meat on the grill. Plopped the fries into the bubbling oil and toasted the buns in his hands. He poked his head out of the door while he waited for everything to cook. He prepared and plated everything, before going to walk through the door, where he stopped.
His heart rate was normal, as far as he could tell, and he didn’t feel any other symptoms he usually would. He just felt incapable of moving forward. It had to be something. He started to breathe deeply, perhaps it was just nerves.
His mind flickered back to the skeleton who had been watching him. Was it something in that look? He didn’t know, couldn’t tell. He knew there was no reason to feel nervous. He sighed. It was just the fact that they were more respected guests than the usual, he supposed.
He took another deep breath, determined to push onwards. It seemed like it had returned to how it normally was. He looked around for the skeletons, his customers. The tall skeleton - the Royal Scientist – was sat at the bar, talking with Grillby’s father. The other two however, were a bit harder to spot.
He moved further out into the bar, looking around. He should’ve watched where they went to sit down. He got stuck behind a particularly large group of doggos, all sentries. Eventually, he squeezed past, making it closer to where the booths were. He heard an unfamiliar voice, and followed it.
The two were talking. “Have you ever been to Snowdin brother? I have never seen so much snow! This is nothing like the Hotlands!” Said an excited voice. “I hear that the youngest sentry in the underground lives here! Do you think she’ll train me?”
“That’s great bro. Maybe she’ll take you in when you’re a bit older.” The other replied, much calmer than his brother. Grillby moved closer, lifting the plates slightly to get over the heads of a couple customers.
Grillby cleared his throat as he reached the table. “Two orders of the Flint original?” He declared, getting both brothers’ attention.
Their eyes were glowing. The older of the two seemed to notice it sooner than his brother, blinking and extinguishing the light. “Sorry about that, it’s been a long trip here, guess our eyes really lit up when we saw you coming with our dinner.” He joked. His voice was nice. It reminded Grillby of old mobsters in some of the movies his father liked to watch, but it wasn’t unpleasant. “I dunno about my brother here, but I can’t wait to get stuck in.”
Grillby placed the plates on the table, watching as the younger of the two seemed to grow increasingly excited at the sight of his food. It was almost amusing, but he didn’t dare risk laughter. “Then by all means, don’t let me hold you back.” He replied, knowing his voice was rather quiet.
The older skeleton had his hands slightly, signing along as he spoke. “Thanks kid. This looks amazing.” He said. He then turned to his younger brother, who looked eager to dig in. “Now what do we say Papyrus?”
“Thank you mister!” Papyrus exclaimed, beaming up at Grillby.
Grillby smiled back. He hardly ever received compliments on his meals. “Bone-appetite.” He said after a moment, taking a step away from the table and beginning to walk away.
He heard laughter erupt from the table behind him. It was a big laugh. His pun had been received. He made his way toward the kitchen but stopped when his father called him over. He moved closer to where his father was stood, talking with the tallest skeleton. Now Grillby noticed he was dressed quite smartly, a black sweater with a white shirt underneath. Appearance must be important to him. “Dr. Gaster, this is my son, Grillby. He is my most trusted employee here.”
The man had scarring on his face and on his arms. The holes in his hands, Grillby noticed, seemed to have been made intentionally with the use of a laser. The edges were clean, but rough. It struck Grillby as odd, they were clearly intentional, but for what purpose. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance Grillby.” The man said, extending a hand.
Grillby eyed it curiously, unsure how to approach it. He extended his own hand hesitantly. Did he shake his hand like anyone else, what if he got his fingers stuck in the hole in some inexplicably awkward and inconvenient circumstance? Would that be rude? He took Gaster’s hand, tentative to avoid any from of discomfort. “Pleasure to meet you too Dr. Gaster.” He answered, shaking his hand firmly.
He released Gaster’s hand the moment the already slack grip loosened. He was surprised by how gentle the professor’s grip was. You’d expect a firmer handshake from someone with such high social standing. “Dr. Gaster and his two boys are spending some time around Snowdin investigating the core’s effects outside of the Hotlands. He’s been telling me all about them, and how Papyrus would appreciate a buddy while Sans and Gaster are hard at work in the lab.” Grillby’s father told him, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Gaster smiled, nodding in agreement. “Sans is my helper in the lab, and we keep ourselves busy enough, but my dear Papyrus is not quite as scientifically inclined as his brother. I’m sure he would appreciate the company.” He added, bony fingers clicking against the rim of his glass. Grillby glanced over to where the boys sat.
They were talking happily with each other. Now he knew their names. That made things much easier. “That’d be fun, don’t you think Grillby?” He felt his father squeeze his shoulder, and nodded in agreement. He kept watching the two. Spending more time with them. He grew nervous, what would he say? What would they do? He was certain they’d have nothing in common.
He brushed off his father’s hand. “If you’ll excuse me, I have dishes to do.” He said lightly, starting to turn away as he caught a glimpse of Sans getting up and making his way over toward the counter.
“Hey Boss.” He greeted coolly, pulling himself up onto the bar stool and making sure to acknowledge each person in the group. It was friendly enough, but the moment his eyes fell upon Gaster, that friendliness seemed to fade. “I’m gonna take Papyrus back home. It’s getting a bit late for him, and he’s insisting I give him a bed time story.” He radiated calmness as he spoke. His eyes were glowing softly again, a darker blue. It was interesting. Papyrus made a defiant squeak, trying to deny the fact that he wanted a story.
He then turned to look at Grillby. “Compliments to the chef, food here is exceptional, the best I’ve ever tasted.” He declared proudly. He then turned to Gaster, placing a hand on his shoulder and patting it lightly before winking at Grillby. “Leave a good tip, won’t you boss?”
And just like that, he slid off the bar stool, making his way over to Papyrus and taking his hand gently. Papyrus seemed a bit annoyed, but followed his brother out without argument. Grillby watched as they left. Gaster laughed to himself. “I could swear they are inseparable.” He muttered, a hint of disdain in his voice. Grillby turned to look at Gaster for a moment before dismissing himself, returning to the kitchen to clean dishes once again.
So, those were skeletons, huh?