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On Monday Papyrus was collecting toys for monster children, on Tuesday he was wrapping the toys for delivery, Wednesday and Thursday were volunteering at the soup kitchen, and then Friday was prepping kittens for Santa photos at the animal shelter. You would think that would leave the weekend free, but no. Saturday was the Christmas parade in a nearby town and now on Sunday he was baking cookies. It was infuriating.
"Excellent work, Papyrus!" Tuff, the spider bakery employee spoke. He was a distant cousin of Muffet's and managed her shop expansion. "The only thing left is to box them up and deliver them. Did you need any of our staff to help load them into your car?"
"NO NEED!" the skeleton answered, placing cookies in a box while he wrapped them with a red ribbon. "I HAVE INVESTED IN A SMALL WAGON THAT LETS ME CARRY AROUND MANY ITEMS BOTH IN AND OUT OF BUILDINGS! NO LONGER DO I HAVE TO ARGUE OVER WHAT IS OR ISN'T A PARKING SPOT!"
He may or may not have a history of questionable parking jobs.
The employee finished his business and left with a few boxes and spiders in tow, leaving Papyrus to keep on working through the afternoon. In accordance with Papyrus' stellar record during the Christmas season, he was trusted not only to take care of the building, but his free labor providing donated gifts was a huge plus.
The skeleton continued to pipette frosting on each gingerbread-like cookie. The perfect gingerbread man… with muscles! A Christmas tree shape… with sunglasses! A gingerbread stocking full of… handcrafted, finely pipetted spaghetti!
A soft 'thud' was heard behind him.
Turning around, Papyrus looked at the wall with the decorated shelf covered in holly and baking supplies. Below, at his feet was the beloved character 'Christmas Pug-in-A-Mug' plushie. Its fabric tongue sticking out with a marshmallow on top.
Odd; that was on display before. He looked up and saw a familiar flower pushing a small but heavy canister of baking powder near the ledge.
"FLOWEY! HOW ARE YOU DOING?" he asked, surprised to see his friend.
For a moment, the golden plant hid behind the canister until he realized only Papyrus was in the room. He shuffled back into view, the only way a living flower powered by determination could do. A wiggle and a smile.
"Howdy, Papyrus! I could ask the same for you! You sure have been busy, huh?" He spoke, avoiding the question.
The skeleton beamed. "I HAVE! CHRISTMAS IS A VERY BUSY TIME!" He pointedly looked down at the plushie and back up to his friend. "SO. DO YOU NOT LIKE KRIS-PUGGLES?"
Flowey shook his flower head but kept his standard smile in place. "I heard they are always watching! That seems a bit creepy, doesn't it?"
"OH! BUT THAT'S PART OF THE CHRISTMAS TRADITION! THEY KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR SANTA AND THEY GUARD YOUR BAKING SUPPLIES!" he paused. "NOT TO MENTION ALPHYS ALREADY HAD A CAMERA IN IT, SO IT'S NOTHING NEW!"
The flower quickly shoved the heavy canister of baking powder off the ledge and crushed the plushie below. Snapping plastic and a robotic voice croaked out a broken bark.
"... Whoopsie!"
Papyrus gave a suspicious glance at his friend before reaching down to put the canister back on the shelf. The plushie could not be salvaged. "SO WHAT REALLY BRINGS YOU HERE, FRIEND? YOU USUALLY DON'T COME INSIDE BUILDINGS."
Flowey hesitated.
In truth, he missed Papyrus. It was dumb! It was dumb this holiday took up all his time! It was like this last year, too. If he wasn't at a dumb fund raiser, he was volunteering for another dumb Christmas event, which was then followed by something else stupid, like a pageant! It was always about getting himself out there and making friends and creating memories… but what about him?? He was Papyrus' friend first!
"... Truth is, Papyrus, I just can't celebrate Christmas." He answered, sadly.
".... BUT YOU DID LAST YEAR?"
Put on the sad eyes. "Yeah, but… It's not the same."
"... LIKE IT WAS UNDERGROUND?"
"Yeah." Flowey nodded his head, encouraging his friend in the conversation. "Because at this time… it should really be about the Gyftrot."
Stepping back, Papyrus lifted his gloved hand to his mouth in thought. Had he really forgotten his original holiday spirit?
"WHERE IS GYFTROT NOW?" No one had seen him in the years they were on the surface.
"... Last I heard, the Gyftrot wanders the woods of Ebott…. Still afraid of teenagers…. And no longer supported by the monsters of the town he once roamed…."
He had forgotten about them all this time!
"OH NO...! THAT'S TERRIBLE!" The skeleton quickly turned around and grabbed a box of cookies. "HERE; WE CAN DELIVER THIS TO THEM. AS LONG AS WE WRAP IT, THEY SHOULD LIKE IT!"
"Yeah! One box of cookies should absolutely make up for years of being abandoned!" Flowey quickly followed up, his grin as strong as ever.
Papyrus' characteristic smile dropped slightly. He set the box back down and tried to think. "... WHAT SHOULD WE DO, FLOWEY? THAT'S GOING TO REQUIRE MORE THAN A BOX OF COOKIES TO FIX…"
The golden flower looked at his friend and gave his best confused face. "Golly, I don't know… If I were The Great Papyrus, I know it'd have to be something big to make up for it… and a lot more than just ONE box … but I'm just a flower." He knew that the best way to motivate someone is to make it their idea.
"... YOU'RE RIGHT.... I'M RIGHT! I KNOW WHAT TO DO!"
With his trusty wagon, Papyrus began loading stacks of cookie boxes all together, making sure to get every last box. Fifty-five big boxes and one small one. Using his magic to reinforce the walls of the wagon with bones, he headed out of the bakery and into the forest.
---
The wagon wheels made prominent rivets in the snow as the two friends made their way deep into the Ebott woods. Multiple pines and sleeping bushes were covered in thick snow as the terrain became rocky and the trees more sparse.
"HOW FAR DO YOU THINK THE GYFTROT IS?"
Flowey rolled his eyes. They probably walked fast enough. Well, Papyrus walked. Flowey hitched a ride on the wagon to help 'steady the boxes'. "This looks to be it right here!"
He hopped off and planted himself in the middle of a small clearing. A cave opening covered by a few bushes and shaded by a large evergreen looked like it could house the monster. Did Gyftrot really live here? Who knows. He tugged a ribbon and brought a stack of cookies down to the ground. "Whoopsie!" He smiled.
"CAREFUL, THE GYFTROT NEEDS THE RIBBON INTACT!" Papyrus carefully rewrapped the bow as the cookie crumbs could be heard rolling around in the box.
Together, they unloaded all fifty-six boxes, with some a few cookies lighter than when they started. ".... I FEEL A LITTLE TORN… MANY PEOPLE AND MONSTERS, WHO ARE ALL MY FRIENDS, LOOK FORWARD TO MY EXCELLENT COOKIES EVERY YEAR…"
Flowey glanced at the empty cave. He kind of felt like running away. But Papyrus was his favorite, so he could at least reassure him. "Golly, Papyrus, they must not be very good friends if they don't like you being charitable!" he bobbed his stem up and down for emphasis.
"... " The skeleton hesitated, tapping his gloved fingers together in thought. As if calculating something in his mind, Papyrus went back to the stack of cookie boxes and opened up the smaller box with the tiny red ribbon on top. "I DON'T THINK THE GYFTROT WILL MISS JUST ONE…"
In his hands was a gingerbread cookie in the shape of his own face. The top had two holes with a string making a small tiny necklace, and the word 'kumple' written in green frosting. Frozen in confusion, Flowey held still as Papyrus looped it over his petals but still above the leaves.
"OKAY! NOW WE CAN GO!" Papyrus winked, and his mood cheered up. Grabbing the empty box before placing it in the empty wagon, he made sure not to leave a mess.
The flower stalled before getting over his surprise. ".... Whatever…" and followed behind, making sure to keep the cookie in one piece.
--------------
Papyrus knocked on the dark blue door of the local craft store. From inside, a tabby cat monster with large dark eyes and a striped tail smiled at the visitor.
"Papyrus! I'm so glad you could make it~! Please, come in…" she opened the door further, moving slowly out of the way as she hobbled on a large boot cast.
"OH NO! MUTTI! NO ONE SAID YOU BROKE YOUR LEG!" Papyrus almost dropped the empty wagon handle in shock and quickly hurried inside, making sure to carefully steer around the cat monster.
"Oh, it looks worse than it is. Don't worry, it's not broken." She waved him off as she moved over to the box of decorations, slowly.
"I should have known better than to decorate the tree with shiny tinsel … that was my downfall… as well as the tree's." She laughed, lifting the box and handing it to the skeleton while pivoting on the cast. "But I trust you won't have the same Achilles paw~"
"ONLY A TRADITIONAL PAPYRUS ANKLE, HERE!" He took the first box and placed it in the wagon he had brought inside. Together they loaded up six large boxes of decorations of fake holly and red ribbon into the wagon.
"Okay, well, I made a whole bunch this year. I trust you can take good care of them? I even made a Santa parachute!" She held up some metal poles that had a hammock-shaped fabric Santa. How would that even work?
"IT'S BEAUTIFUL, MUTTI…. WE'LL MAKE SURE IT'S PUT TO GOOD USE. GOODBYE!"
And with that, he turned around with the decorations in tow, far away from the buildings they were intended for.
"...We?"
-----
The decorations were almost heavier than the cookies as Papyrus tread over the same tracks from two days ago. Everytime he rolled over a root or rock, his wagon would jingle bells and trinkets of metal with brittle plastic.
"Howdy, Papyrus!" The yellow flower popped out of the snowy ground and gave his friend a smile. "I thought we agreed to throw away the decorations so the Gyftrot wouldn't have to worry?"
"WE DID." he stopped his cart a few feet from the mouth of the empty cave and dumped it on the forest floor. "BUT MUTTI WORKED SO HARD ON THESE, I FIGURED THE GYFTROT WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THEM NEARBY AND NOT DECORATED ON THEM!"
"..." The flower looked doubtful of his friend, but his goal would be achieved either way. "Okay … but we still have one more thing we need to do…"
-----
"Well hello Mr. Ambassador skeleton!" A bear in a red jacket greeted him from outside. The windows of the bar were the only bright light nearby as snowy clouds rolled in. "Are you reeeeaaadyy to spread the holiday cheer?"
"THAT IS DEFINITELY A THING I AM DOING, YES!" Papyrus wheeled his wagon around to fill with presents. The bottom of the cart still had glittery residue leftover from moving the decorations.
This time, the cart really needed a higher wall of bones to contain all the gifts. Presents of all sizes and shapes were stacked upon each other. Various ribbons and bows tied off shiny paper with cartoon santas and holly. Some gifts made noises as they were moved. Some light, some heavy, all made with love. The bear continued his discussion of modern politics of wrapping paper price inflation.
"These are all going to be delivered downtown, right? Do you need any help?" He dusted off his bear paws and put on a set of ear muffs.
"NO, THANK YOU, I CAN DELIVER THEM WHERE THEY NEED TO GO ON MY OWN. THE RECIPIENT WILL BE VERY HAPPY!"
The bear smiled. "Thaaaat's Christmas!"
The moment the monster turned away, a small flower popped out of the skeleton's scarf. "I thought he'd never shut up!" Politics are boring.
"..... FLOWEY…. ALL THESE GIFTS…. DON'T YOU THINK SOMEONE WILL MISS THEM?"
The soulless flower tsked. "Are you kidding me? These monsters don't even know what they have. I bet nobody even knows they exist…" he hopped down into the pile of gifts and ripped off a few name tags. "I mean, look at this! Reid? Seni? Zewi? I've never even heard of these monsters before! They are just made up names for a made up holiday."
"HMM…" His gloved hand picked up another gift. He couldn't even read the name on this one. G… gas-turd? Were these all joke names?
"Anyway, let's get going, before someone notices." Flowey buried himself in the snow and moved on ahead.
Papyrus knew the monsters downtown were expecting presents but…. They never grew up with Christmas before, so they shouldn't be too disappointed. Nobody even asked him about the cookies, yet! Or the decorations! Did the town even notice all the effort he had put in these last few years?
Did… anyone notice?
His mind wandered as he walked down the cobblestone path and turned into the forest to begin his pilgrimage up to the cave. A few minutes in, however, he was interrupted by a small voice.
"..... Papyrus? …. Where are you going? Downtown is the other way …." A small melodic voice rang out. It was Shyren who had been following close behind. Her teal scales shimmered in the evening light and she wore a small white scarf to keep her warm.
"OH! SHYREN... THIS YEAR I AM DOING THINGS DIFFERENT!" He shifted in the snow and pointed towards the cave. She would understand. "I AM BRINGING GIFTS FOR THE GYFTROT! THEY HAVE BEEN NEGLECTED THESE PAST YEARS AND WE ARE GOING TO REMEDY THAT!"
The fish monster hovered for a few moments before softly batting her large eyes. ".... Can I come, too?"
A warmth returned to get his soul after those moments of doubt. "THAT WOULD BE GREAT! DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING YOU CAN BRING?"
Shyren tooted a few notes, implying she would sing a song. And they continued their descent, discussing kind and thoughtful things to do along the way.
----
By the time the two arrived at the clearing, a small flower peeked out from behind the large pine, only to hide again.
".... You said your friend was here?" Asked Shyren.
"YES…. I THINK HE IS HIDING. HE IS VERY SHY"
The fish nodded sagely, understanding the feeling.
Moving the wagon to the mouth of the cave, Papyrus figured this was the best time to start. A cart full of gifts, a mountain of decorations that were not being used, and a pile of cookies were all ready for their guest of honor. Now they just needed to show up!
"MX. GYFTROT! WE'VE COME TO BRING YOU SOME HOLIDAY GIFTS! ARE YOU SLEEPING?" Papyrus shouted at the cave, politely.
There was no response.
".... Maybe they are also shy…."
"HMM…. OH! MAYBE YOUR SONG WILL DRAW THEM OUT?"
"...Oh … okay…. Can you start me off….?"
"I CAN'T SING!"
"..."
"BUT I CAN WAVE A STICK!" He turned around and picked up one of the metal poles intended for decorations. "ARE YOU READY?"
A small nod of agreement and the song began. With her eyes closed, Shyren tooted a haunting melody. Little music notes and 'toots' rang through the forest and echoed down the cave, enriching those who could hear. Swaying back and forth, their impromptu music session filled a beautiful orchestra of chirps and cheeps, drawing small forest animals nearby, curious at the sound. The sky then began to darken and a rumbling was heard.
".... Is that thunder?" Flowey spoke as he made his way to the top of the gifts and looked over at his friend who was waving a metallic stick. "WH-"
He was so focused on Papyrus' conductive nature, that he failed to notice where the actual rumbling was coming from: the cave.
Bursting through the decorations and cookies, the horns of the Gyftrot monster plowed into the wagon. Lifting their massive head, Papyrus, Flowey, the gifts, and decorations were all launched into the sky, over the forest below. Bundles of tinsel, lights, garland, and boxes of cookies flew into the air and crash landed into the massive pine Flowey had once hid behind. A wave of craft glitter followed.
The wild animals who had come for the musical performance suddenly swarmed the open boxes of cookies and further scattered the decorations through the tree and forest clearing. Shyren quickly sped away to escape the chaos and hid in the bushes behind the cave. The Gyftrot stamped his feet and shook his antlers that were now covered in Christmas decorations. That is exactly what they were trying to avoid!
"OH MX.GYFTROT! THIS IS ALL A BIG MISUNDERSTANDING!" Papyrus shouted from the top of the tree. "THOSE GIFTS ARE FOR YOU! WE WEREN'T TRYING TO MAKE FUN OF YOU, WE PROMISE!"
The monster shook his head and ran up to the tree, clearly upset with being woken up from his hibernation. "Darn kids!! Get out of my yard!!!" Their hooves stomped on the tree, shaking it back and forth where presents fell down like apples.
"GYFTROT, PLEASE! WE JUST WANTED TO GIVE A SPARK OF THE UNDERGROUND HOLIDAY SPIRIT!" another rumble.
This time it WAS thunder!
A crack of lightning shot through the air and connected to the metal pole the skeleton held at the top of the tree. Electricity coursed through the decorations, illuminating the lights and spooking the nearby birds which just caused a general uproar of chaos. Birds flying, lights flashing, people cheering…. Wait.
"It's Santa!!!" Monster children screamed, looking up into the tree where a red wagon full of toys could be seen in the decorated tree.
"NYEH??" The charcoaled skeleton looked down and saw all the town locals gathering below.
"Wow Papyrus!! This Christmas is epic!! That was the most hardcore Santa display ever!!!" Monster kid hopped up and down in excitement. Bunny monsters murmured in agreement around him.
".....Epic??" The Gyftrot turned around, his weight shaking the ground. "Epic is respecting your elders!!"
"... And we appreciate all you do… toot~" the small fish returned with a nearby wrapped gift in her fins.
As if on cue, all nearby monsters began picking up the strewn about gifts and placed them before the large monster. The conglomeration of love and care for the Gyftrot made their soul soar and calmed down the beast before them. ".... Aw… you shouldn't have…" a beastly smile.
Eventually, Papyrus found his way down the tree and the monsters invited him and the Gyftrot to Grillby's for some hot cocoa and peppermint walking sticks. As the townsfolk began heading out of the forest, the skeleton stayed behind to talk to his flower friend.
"...OH GOOD, IT'S STILL HERE!" Reaching into the snow, Papyrus pulled out a large half buried gift. It was only a little bent and the ribbon was slightly charred.
"What is that ugly thing?" Flowey sneered. It looked terribly misshapen.
Papyrus smiled and unwrapped the gift, revealing a slightly damaged red bicycle with a basket up front. "HAPPY GYFTROT DAY, FLOWEY. I HEARD YOU WANTED ONE OF THESE!"
The flower stared without emotion. Not saying anything, he approached the bike and poked it with his leaves as if to test it was real. Looking around, he weaved himself up the spokes and sat on the seat, then moved up to the basket and poked the handlebars with his leaves again. "...huh."
There was a long silence between the two. ".... Aren't you going to go to the grease trap?" Flowey asked, expecting to be left alone again.
Papyrus shook his head.
"NOPE! I'D RATHER SPEND TIME WITH YOU! I'M SURE SANS CAN ENTERTAIN THE TOWN JUST FINE." With that, he mounted the bike and began to pedal along the trail the now demolished wagon once made. "DID YOU GET EVERYTHING YOU WANTED?"
A chilly breeze blew the petals along Flowey's face as the bike sped up on the forest path. His friend is behind him in this new world with some kind of holiday cheer. He didn't answer, but he didn't have to.