Chapter Text
The surface had many things to offer that the Underground had sorely lacked. For the smalltown Snowdin skeletons, an ever-changing community was one of them. Ebbott wasn't the biggest town, but it was growing every day with monsters and humans alike.
Papyrus hummed as he stood on the corner, gloved hand up to shield his sockets from the sun. Sans stood in his shadow to avoid that problem as he tapped away on his phone.
"ANY WORD ON THE MOST 'HAPPENING' PLACES FROM YOUR DEAREST LOVE?" Papyrus asked as he tried to decide where to go next.
"it's just tori," Sans mumbled. Though the day was far chillier than it had been, summer's heat long passed, it was still much warmer than their frost-covered hometown. He ducked his head into the big, fluffy scarf Papyrus had wrapped around his neck before they'd left home. It was such a delight to rib Sans about he and the ex-queen's close relationship.
"YES, THAT IS WHAT I SAID!" Papyrus teased, turning to look at Sans's phone as well. "IF SHE HAS NO SUGGESTIONS, WE CAN ALWAYS FALL BACK TO THE CLASSICS AND VISIT THE CAT CAFE."
"we were just there a few days ago when frisk visited," Sans pointed out, pocketing his phone and shrugging. "i love cats as much as the next skeleton, but we're all outta lint roller."
"THOUGH I QUESTION WHERE YOUR NEWFOUND SENSE OF HYGIENE STEMS FROM, YOU DO HAVE A POINT," Papyrus conceded. He smiled idly remembering the short stay- Frisk was in college now and lived almost six hours away, so their visits were always welcome. Papyrus kept their room in perfect condition for just such occasions.
"oh, hey, al told me the thai place updated their menu a couple weeks ago," Sans said. "we haven't been there in ages, either. might be thai -m for a change of pace."
Papyrus shot him a look for his terrible joke, but it melted quickly into a smile. Eight whole years on the surface and life was still throwing new, exciting things at him almost all of the time. How could he remain annoyed with Sans's puns?
His reply was stopped as a human rounded the corner from one of the buildings. Sans and Papyrus were still on the edge of town, and while runners weren't anything new, this person seemed... distressed.
They stopped once they hit the sidewalk, out of breath, before they saw the skeletons and waved their hand.
Papyrus trotted over at once, eager to fix whatever problem was going on.
"HUMAN! ARE YOU ALRIGHT? YOU ARE NOT DRESSED FOR AUTUMNAL JOGGING," Papyrus asked, coming up to their side. They were wearing jeans and sneakers that were made to look cool, not function well.
"I- phew, one- one sec, I'm out of shape..." they huffed, bent over to catch their breath. "You guys are monsters, yeah?"
"nah, just halloween decor," Sans drawled. Papyrus hadn't seen him come over, but that was usually how Sans moved.
"IGNORE MY BROTHER; WE ARE INDEED MONSTERS!"
"Didn't- wanna call the cops, but there's-" the human sucked in air. "God I need to run more- there's a big monster- in the park. They're hurt, causing a scene," they explained between breaths.
Papyrus gave Sans a worried look before he patted the human's back, taking their hand and helping them sit on the step of the hardware store behind them. "WE WILL INVESTIGATE AT ONCE WHILE YOU REST!"
"But-"
"dude, if you run another step you're gonna look like us," Sans pressed. "park by the school?"
The human nodded, wiping sweat from their brow.
"YOU HAVE DONE YOUR DUTY AS AN UPSTANDING CITIZEN, WE SHALL TAKE IT FROM HERE AND DO OURS," Papyrus reassured.
They had no further words of protest, and the brothers departed with a wave.
"big monster?" Sans questioned as they turned the same corner the human had appeared from. He wrapped his hand around Papyrus's forearm and then they were behind the corner of a different building five blocks away.
"AND WHY ON EARTH WOULD THEY BE HURT?" Papyrus worried. He followed Sans, who remained unphased and perfectly oriented despite the shortcut.
They turned the final corner and stopped dead.
Big monster, indeed.
The playground was vacant, any children and parents staying far away from the sore sight by the swings. Papyrus guessed that many had left, if the retreating figures and cars were anything to go by.
The monster in question was a large white creature that looked to be mostly bird, but partly dragon. She- Papyrus used the most basic of magic to check- almost looked like a mythological griffin... minus the lion. A quadruped bird-beast the size of a Clydesdale and looking much larger because of her fluffed feathers and single outspread wing.
The other hung limp beside her, trailing the ground as she hissed and retreated against the play area. Every talon-step left a smear of darkness on the dark-gray rubber that covered the hard ground. Given the deep red staining the injured wing and the left side of her face, it was easy to place it as blood.
Some well-meaning humans were attempting to calm her, staying well away with their hands up in a gesture of peace. The bird did not seem calmed in the slightest and, in fact, continued to retreat from the humans with hisses and screeches anytime they moved. It looked painful, if the way her legs seemed ready to buckle at any second was an indicator.
"shit," Sans mumbled, the light returning to his sockets as he took in the sight.
"FUCK, EVEN!" Papyrus agreed. His soul filled with unease as he swallowed and looked to his brother. "I'M GOING TO TRY AND HELP, CALL TORIEL AND ASGORE?"
Sans just nodded, still reeling from the horrible event they'd walked into. Papyrus felt the same but spurred his legs to move, taking him across the small strip of grass.
The monster- who was bleeding, which she should not have been able to do- locked her eyes with Papyrus’s. They were strangely similar to Sans's in their inky blackness and white pupils, but they were not sockets.
A clear message was subconsciously screamed at Papyrus's SOUL: stay away. I'm scared. I'll hurt you if I have to.
The volume and intensity nearly brought tears to Papyrus's sockets. Monsters communicated through magic, but he'd never felt such a potent energy before except for the fuzzy, hard-to-remember fight with Flowey. He had to take a second and brace himself before he broke eye contact and addressed the humans.
"FEAR NOT, PARK-GOERS, I WILL TAKE IT FROM HERE," Papyrus said, making the four of them jump and turn to him. The injured creature took the opportunity to disappear into a small, closed-in play area under the structure that she barely fit into.
"Are you sure? Whatever that thing is, it's really unhappy," the closest man said. "It might be dangerous."
"I THINK THAT IS BECAUSE YOU'RE SCARING HER," Papyrus admonished. "I UNDERSTAND YOU ARE TRYING TO HELP, BUT SHE'S VERY HURT AND VERY AFRAID AND YOU ARE ONLY MAKING IT WORSE!"
For a moment, Papyrus thought they'd argue, but the humans mumbled various agreements and backed off. "Be careful, yell if you want us to call the cops."
"THAT WILL NOT BE NECESSARY, BUT THANK YOU," Papyrus quickly dismissed. He dispelled his annoyance at the human's ignorance along with it and turned his attention first to Sans, who was still by the building and talking to somebody on the phone, and then to the monster that was barely visible under the slide. Her bright eyes stood out in the dim lighting.
Papyrus was nothing if not a kind, compassionate monster, and he was great at being a friend! He certainly wasn't nervous to have his abilities put to the test like this. And he double certainly wasn't scared of the big, angry ball of feathers in front of him.
But he did wish there were other monsters here.
"HELLO," Papyrus began, taking a step forward. He was maybe twenty feet from the entrance. "PLEASE DON'T BE AFRAID, NOBODY IS GOING TO HURT YOU!"
She only looked at him. If she were a darker color, it might have been hard to see her. Papyrus took the silence as a success and tried another step.
Her eyes darted to his feet and then back to his face. Papyrus held his hands up halfway and tried to send his own message out to her.
He was a friend. He wanted to help. He didn't want her to be scared.
"I KNOW YOU DON'T WANT TO HURT ANYBODY," he went on, "BECAUSE I FEEL HOW GOOD YOUR SOUL IS, AND PEOPLE WITH GOOD SOULS DO GOOD THINGS!"
His words were followed with a high-pitched whine and softer eyes. He slowly approached, getting only a few feet away before he was met with a low, warbling growl.
"IT'S OKAY, I WANT TO HELP," he said, quieter now that he was closer. He was aware of the humans behind him, keeping their distance but still lingering. "YOU'RE HURT."
The growl wavered and faded. At this distance, Papyrus could see her feathers fall back into place and her tense, ready-to-fight body relax somewhat. She was losing the battle, and the skeleton suspected it might be because of how much blood she had also lost.
"IT'S ALRIGHT, YOU CAN RELAX, I PROMISE I WON'T HURT YOU," Papyrus comforted. He felt better now that he was so close and the humans probably couldn't hear him. He moved forward just a bit before he got down on one knee. "MY NAME IS PAPYRUS. I'M SORRY THOSE HUMANS WERE SCARING YOU, I DON'T THINK THEY KNEW HOW YOU WERE FEELING."
She let out a ragged breath, searching him. Her face was angled and almost moon-shaped, the ears fluffy and pointing upwards and her strange muzzle-beak rounded out by fluffy facial feathers. Those big, dark eyes were full of unplaceable emotion.
"IF YOU LET ME, I CAN HELP HEAL YOUR WOUNDS," Papyrus said slowly. He held his arms out, offering a hug, or comfort, or... anything. "AND FIND SOMEWHERE FOR YOU TO GO WHERE THERE AREN'T SO MANY PEOPLE. DOESN'T THAT SOUND NICE?"
She met his eyes for a few long, intense seconds. Her soul was lost and confused. A raw, wavering coo came from her throat as she staggered forward. By that point, the deep cut above her left eye had stained most of her left face red and she’d shut the eye to keep the blood out. The eye that wasn't closed had tears running from it.
She blinked as she came forward and craned her long neck, whining at the sunlight. Papyrus saw her sharp beak, and her bloody talons, but he wasn't scared.
He knew she'd make the right choice. He held his arms a little wider, smiling as much as his physiology allowed.
"YOU ARE VERY BRAVE, BUT PLEASE LET ME BE BRAVE FOR YOU WHILE YOU ARE HURT. I'M QUITE STRONG! I’LL KEEP YOU SAFE."
If he wanted to, he could reach out and lay his gloved hand on her head. Papyrus just waited as she lowered it and looked up at him.
She wobbled far enough from the darkness to press her face to his chest and collapse beside him. Papyrus let out a relieved breath and gently brought his arms down to hold her- her head, at least. She was very large. She relaxed into the feel of him stroking the feathers along her neck.
Bright white light filled Papyrus's sockets for a second. He only had time to suck in a breath, not even to yelp, before a weight fell against him with the fading of the magic.
A human child, perhaps eleven or twelve years old, shivered in his hold and roughly tried to catch her breath.
Too shocked to process what had just happened, Papyrus brought his hand up to rest over the jagged cut above her left brow. The healing magic came naturally and effortlessly. He stopped the bleeding before patting her head.
She raised it to meet his gaze, the glowing white of her eyes faded now to gray, as a shuddering breath left her lips. She didn't say anything aloud, and the magic of her soul was fading fast, but Papyrus made out its meaning before she passed out.
I'm lost. I’m scared. Please help me.