Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“SANS, WAKE UP!!!”

Eye sockets opening wide, Sans bolts awake, breathing heavy. He grasps his chest, choking back the nausea-inducing sensation of his newly acquired second Hope Point fighting for dear life in his soul. 

For a moment, he’s certain he’s in Snowdin, his brother banging on the door about to tell him they are late for patrol and how excited he is to test a new puzzle. 

It’s snowing and he’s at the door, the Whoopee cushion in his hand his only indicator for how bad this time would be. 

Friend, foe, or B r o t h e r  K i l l e r. . . 

“OR FALL DOWN FOR ALL I CARE!!”

Sans blinks, his breathing slowing as reality sinks in. That isn’t Papyrus. It’s Edge. Papyrus would never speak to anyone like that, let alone Sans. Edge... Edge was an asshole. 

Looking around, he notes the differences. His bed is bigger, on a different wall. He has sheets now, and a window. A window with a view of the sunrise... Which if the bright light filtering through the window had anything to say he missed by a good few hours. 

“I’ll be out in a minute.” Sans calls rubbing his hands over his skull. Welp, no time like the present to get dressed. He starts his floor search for a clean survivor. 

“YOU BETTER,” Edge growled through the door. “IF I HAVE TO SEE THE BABY BONES SIT THERE PATHETICALLY WAITING FOR ANOTHER HOUR, I WILL PERSONALLY STRANGLE YOU MYSELF.”

Sans pauses in the middle of pulling a grey hoodie on - grey, red, green, anything but blue - the same damn blue he wore for dozens of timelines. 

“… Paps is waiting?” He asks, muffled by his own clothing. 

“YESSS.” Edge seethed. 

Sliding the hoody all the way down, he takes a shortcut slipping behind said Spiky Sourpuss. 

Edge was… well. Edgy. 

The big lug of a Papyrus was all angles and spikes of death, from his unnecessarily cleated boots that scratched up the floors to the spikes on his leather jacket’s shoulders. 

He was facing away from Sans, probably glaring at Sans’s door, but Sans could only guess what kind of upsetting and custom shirt he had on today. 

Yesterday, Sans had about choked on his favorite cereal spoon at the sight of “Dare to Dust” proudly printed in fading text. 

Adapting his best casual phalange guns, he clears his throat. 

“Then why you keeping him waiting?” Sans asks, enjoying watching the taller skeleton jump.

Shock waning fast, Edge turned and snarled. 

Huh, today the shirt was white and just said “Bone Knife” in black text. Spooky. 

“Worth it.” Sans snickered, shortcutting to the stairs just in time to avoid the bone attack now embedded in the wall. 

Soon, he’d need to actually start patching the walls, but at this point it was a record of how many times he’s spooked Edge and lived to tell the tale. 

Hopping up on the banister, he slides to the bottom of the stairs. Ten out of ten landing.  Or it would have been if he hadn’t nearly stumbled into another Papyrus wannabe. 

Stretch - to his credit - side steps just in time to avoid Sans’ abrupt landing. Blue, standing behind him, wasn’t as lucky. He snatches Sans’ wrist before he can escape, killing his momentum and holding him firmly in place. 

Shit. One, ouch. Two, ouch again, cuz Blue was strong. Three, fuck, cuz Blue was way worse than Stretch. 

“SANS,” Blue began sternly, a disapproving look in his eye lights. Then again, when wasn’t there. 

Blue was... ugh... like a really bad Papyrus wannabe. 

He was both taller and stronger than Sans - a constant of his alternate selves - and was punch packed with #Magic. So much so that any surface level chips or scuffs in his bones revealed the glow of cyan magic itching to escape. Or as humans nicknamed them, freckles. 

Blue was a freckle-monster of death, and would flex it whenever he could in front of Sans. 

Stretch had once said Blue had had a Battle Body™ like his bro did, but with how much Blue practically lived in athletic gear these days, Sans couldn’t imagine Blue having done anything quite as cool as that. 

Blue liked to look “put together and ready for anything”, as he put it. Personally, the biggest gripe Sans has with Blue was that when Blue would say “Put together”, he would then look at him as the counter example. 

Sure, Paps is like that too, but when Papyrus says that stuff, Sans could see his jest and encouragement for him. Papyrus' teasing was always meant as encouragement, even if it was in his own special way. 

Blue uses Sans like a warning, like Sans is a cautionary tale of disappointment… 

“Nah, Dinner” Sans quips outwardly chill, trying to shrug his thoughts away. 

Blue blinks, his grip relaxing in surprise. “DINNER?”

Having studied the arts of “creeping thineself out,” in the college of insomnia, Sans winks casually. “Maybe later. If you take me to a movie first.” 

Blue recoiled instantly, giving Sans just the time he needed to quickly step away from the two. “Actually, can’t keep Paps waiting. Rain check!” 

Around the corner and out of sight he goes. 

“He’s going to corner you eventually,” Stretch chuckles, suddenly walking in step with Sans. 

Sans didn’t jump, but it was a stars near thing as “Freckle-Monster of Death Numero Dos” suddenly leaned over him. 

Adequately nicknamed, Stretch was the tallest Papyrus in the house. Sure, Edge and Mutt weren’t too far behind in the Jurassic height club, but Stretch was something else. Sans guessed his growth was connected to being provided a healthy dose of magic the other two might not have easily had built up in their harsher worlds. 

As the shortest skeleton in the house, Sans would reluctantly crane his cervical vertebrae to look at Stretch, deeming it practice for when Paps would get that tall. 

Stretch was an okay guy… If not admittedly the worst Papyrus. Yeah, he was supposedly smart, sometimes even critiquing Sans’s calculations on his “fix this damn machine” white board downstairs, but he lacked Paps’ spark. 

Stretch overslept, only dressed in hoodies and lounge pants, had no drive, told awful jokes, was maladaptive to change, and seemingly did nothing else besides worshipped the ground his brother walked on. 

Sans would never stop being weirded out by the fact that there was a version of his bro who was as just as lame as him. 

Keeping his grin genuine at his own internal sick burns, he asked, “And you aren’t helping him catch me cuz…?”

“You two are both adults, figured you’d talk it out like one eventually.” Stretch shrugged, the thinly veiled insult hitting home. 

“I’ll get around to picking up that sock eventually? I swear.” Sans jokes nervously, unsure of what Stretch was getting at. 

Stretch didn’t even bother to change his casual tone or the pace as they walked. “You know damn well it’s not about any sock.” 

“And if I don’t…?” Sans replied getting more antsy over the idea of whatever else he’d apparently fucked up. 

Stretch hmm’d as if thoughtful on the matter. “Then…” he spoke, his voice eerily softer than Papyrus’.

“Then?”

Stretch had stopped walking, his eye lights now cold and full of Judgement. “I guess you’ll find out.” 

After another second of looking at Sans like he was an ant on his brother’s shoes, Stretch shrugs, blipping away in an instant. 

Oh. That’s why Paps hates when he ended a conversation like that.

“BROTHER??? ARE YOU DOWN HERE?”

Sweet Angel. 

Blinking his eye lights back into focus, Sans belatedly realized that Stretch had actually managed to spook him rather good. Not enough that his brotherly instincts didn’t register the sound of his favorite monster, though. 

Checking his hands for any telltale jitters, he sighed in relief. Only steady sweaty bones. 

“morn’n br-“

“SANS!!!!” Not even making it halfway into the kitchen, Sans wished the ground farewell as Papyrus lifted him cheerfully into a spin hug attack. 

Tension melting from his bones, Sans could feel himself go as limp as a rag doll in his bro’s arms. The familial magic so close to his… It warmed his skull to his distal phalanges. 

“I’M SURPRISED YOU ARE AWAKE!” Papyrus cheered. “NORMALLY ON THIS -EER, TOTALLYNORMALDAY, YOU SLEEP UNT-“

Being held up by his arm sockets, magic loose, and Papyrus’ soothing screechy tone. A lullaby as old as time….

“SANS!!!!!!”

Startling awake, Sans blinked his sockets tiredly. “Huh?”

Papyrus shakes his head fondly, gently placing Sans back to the ground. Paps was in a long-sleeved red and white striped shirt today, along with one red glove and one white, showing his bro had mad fashion. 

He half expected Paps to be wearing matching running shorts before remembering that “skinny jeans” were all the hype in Paps’ school right now. Knowing he had forgotten to take Paps shopping for them, he could only guess Fox and Mutt were responsible for the new look.

They tended to constantly splurge on gifts for Paps ever since they met him, claiming it was a “Stripe’s honor” to be gifted luxuries from their betters. 

Or, well, that’s what they’d tell Paps. Fuckers always made sure to leave the bill on Sans’ desk, claiming a “bad brother” fee that left his wallet aching. 

As if sensing Sans’ drifting thoughts, Papyrus made the human “throat clear” noise for attention, striking into his “humble” pose. 

“UNBELIEVABLE SANS, YOU ARE TRULY LUCKY TO HAVE A BROTHER AS GREAT AS I LOOKING OUT FOR YOU.”

Hell yeah he was. 

“So true bro,” Sans spoke, beelining for the coffee machine, surprised to see a fresh pot already made. Maybe Fox made a pot recently and forgot? No, no, that couldn’t be right. 

Looking back, his grin somehow grew at Paps proudly displayed a fresh cup of coffee. It was in Papyrus’ “World’s Coolest Dude” mug, which was odd cuz Paps hated coffee and- 

Sans gasped, realization slowly sinking in. 

“.. n.. no Pap. That’s your mug. You are the world’s coolest dude.”

Placing the mug gently in Sans’ hands, Papyrus looked to be nearly rattling with excitement and joy. 

“YES, BOTH OF THOSE THINGS ARE TRUE. BUT SEEING AS EVERY WORLD’S BEST BROTHER MUG I GET YOU SEEMS TO ALWAYS GET DESTROYED IN AN-” his eye lights narrow - “ACCIDENT...”

In Sans’ defense, letting Red and Edge break the mug so often was a great way to keep Papyrus on his throne of world’s best brother. Sure, they did it to piss him off, but little did they know he’d been destroying those mugs for years. 

“I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE DECIDED TO ALLOW YOU ON THIS- TOTALLYNORMALDAY-”

TOTALLYNORMALDAY was Pap’s precious code word for Sans’ birthday. Sans would rather dust than tell him he knew. 

“TO, IN FACT, NOT ONLY USE MY MUG... BUT TO ALSO BE THE WORLD’S second COOLEST DUDE.”

Sans glanced down at the mug in awe. He sipped the coffee his bro had made. It was... so damn bad. 

Papyrus looked expectantly at Sans. 

Suddenly Sans felt twelve again with his tiny seven-year-old bro standing proudly on the smoking stove top, declaring he had made Sans breakfast soup. The milk had been curdled, the shredded wheat burnt, and Paps had tossed pine needles on top for “garnish” because he said he couldn’t find any fruit in the trees around Snowden. 

Smiling fondly, Sans sips the coffee, ignoring the somehow sour unfiltered grounds, reaching up his hand at the same time Papyrus leaned down. 

Years later, the joy in Papyrus’ eye lights remained just as bright, leaving no regret in Sans’ bones as he pats his bro’s skull top fondly. “Good job bro.”

Papyrus, bashfully “NYEH HEH’D” then straightened back up to his 5’8 glory. 

When Papyrus had first shot up like a weed, Sans had forgone head pats thinking his bro would be embarrassed, only for Paps to start leaning down expectantly. Being five inches taller than Sans didn’t seem to deter Paps in the slightest in his tendency to be a cuddle bones. 

Sans snickered into his bad coffee imagining Edge, Mutt and Stretch trying to lean down to Sans’ level. Now if his brother ever caught up to those monsters, he miiiight have to switch to arms pats to save his brother’s spine. 

“SO, WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS TODAY BROTHER?” Papyrus spoke somewhat casually. 

“Hmmm not too much actually,” Sans replied cautiously in case his brother had something in mind. 

“I don’t have a prep shift with Grillbz today otherwise I’d have been up hours ago.” Paps looked happy. “I gotta check in with Alphys to drop off reports though,” Paps looked sad. “-but I could just email,” happy, “I’ve got a laundry shift at the MTT resort,” Sad, “But, uh, I know BP wants hours so I could have him cover.” Happy. 

So Papyrus wanted him to be free today... which would normally be great if he didn’t have to pay the electrician coming out to help rewire the basement after the last “flare up” of the machine that had resulted in Fox and Mutt. 

Shit... he hated being such a bad brother.

“I do gotta do my security job later tonight, and maybe run the stand a bit today, don’t wanna have product go bad.” Which wasn’t exactly a lie at the end. Sure his ‘dogs and ‘cats were monster food and didn’t spoil, but he had learnt the hard way that the human chips he had could go stale if not properly rotated. 

“OH.” Papyrus quickly pulled out his day planner, opened it to a specific page, then proceeded to rip off half a page and throw the rest of the planner in the garbage. 

Guilt, concern, and amusement all fought for control inside him as he watched his brother look decidedly over the paper.

“NO WORRIES TO BE HAD BROTHER. IF POSSIBLE, ALL I ASK IS YOU BE HOME FOR DINNER AND THAT I MAY ACCOMPANY YOU ON YOUR WALK TO THE PARK TODAY.” 

“I.. yeah bro I think I can do that.”

“LOVELY!” Papyrus got up, frantic energy once more getting his bones rattling, “I’LL GO GET READY TO HEAD OUT SOON!!!!” He left the room, only to pop his head back in the door way, “LOVE YOU SANS!!!” 

Oh big guilt. “Love you too Pap...” 

Seemingly satisfied, Papyrus Nyeh’d away. 

At the same time however, a groggy Red rounded the corner looking at Papyrus’ exit with interest. 

Oh. It was his big guilt personified.  

It was like a scene from that dinosaur movie Frisk loved. Red was bigger than him down to the width and strength of his very bones. 

Where Blue was all finely tuned and deadly natural #Magic, Red was a LV brick house, his magic manifesting his physical form into a more durable one with every ounce of LV he had gained. 

Edge technically was also an LV beast, but due to his strict training and fine magical tuning was just less visibly obvious about it. 

In Sans’ opinion though, the sharp teeth and bones should be warning enough that the two brothers could be deadly. Red though… 

Red looked the part of big bad boss monster. Even in his open bathrobe and Flamin’ Hot Cheeto™-print boxers. 

He moved tiredly, like effort was put in each step. 

Sans could hear the “THUMP. THUMP.” movie sound effect of shaking ground clearly in his skull as Red trudged forward. 

“Da’ fuck was all ‘at about?” Red grunted, making his way to the coffee pot. “Nah, wait,” he corrected himself, a giant shark toothed yawn interrupting his own words. “I ‘ont really give a shit,” he grumbled, pulling down his infamous “Blow Me I’m Hot” mug.

Sans had been too busy imagining the Jurassic Park T. Rex roar while Red yawned to really notice what he was doing at first. It wasn’t until Red brought the mug to his teeth that Sans noticed and tried speaking up. “Wait Red I wouldn’-“ 

Red choked.

“Da hell is this shit, ‘nilla!!?!”

Sighing, Sans downs his coffee and carefully puts Papyrus’ mug in the safe zone i.e. sink. This was going to end in a fight.

He could just feel it. Today was going to be his worst birthday yet. 

Chapter Text

In the end it took waaay too long to deescalate the following events. 

They had argued for a hot minute. The argument had only worsened before abruptly ending when Mutt seemingly sleepwalked into the kitchen. He poured the whole remaining coffee pot directly into his open mouth, then filled it with water only to shortcut away, taking the whole thing with him. 

Red and Sans had stared blankly at the empty space Mutt had left behind before briefly looking back at each other, then spitefully decided in unison that enough energy had been wasted. 

Red’s stiff domineering posture loosened only a fraction before he turned away, grumbling his way to the fridge. 

Forcing himself to relax, Sans made for a seat at the kitchen island. Hopping onto the barstool, he angled himself to not be directly facing Red while keeping him within sight. 

After a moment of tense silence, Sans began to actually relax, noticing how Red was now determined to simply ignore Sans’ presence. A pressure relaxed in his rib cage, and he realized just how much his soul had been shaking at the almost full-on encounter. 

Unlike Papyrus, Sans rarely rattled his bones anymore. Not in joy or fear. Instead, when tense, his joint sockets would lock up and he’d find himself frozen. In moments of absolute terror, his very soul would shake. 

Granted, he was confused as to why his soul had declared Red of all things a fear-worthy occasion. Back in the underground maybe once upon a time he had reacted easily, but near the end, only the worst of Frisk’s – no, Chara’s murder rampages had put fear in his soul. 

Sans watched Red bite into and shotgun a monster Monster™ energy drink from the fridge in utter bafflement. 

Even back when Red and Edge had first shown up, only a month into monster-kind’s exit from the underground, Sans’ soul had been steady. 

Edge and Red themselves declared they’d only listen to Sans and his world’s “cowardly rules” if he forced them to. 

Unfortunately for them, this threat had also been directed towards Papyrus, his stripes mostly obscured by his Battle Body™. 

Sans, only two resets removed from Chara’s last genocide and his soul boosted in stress and joy from their recently gained freedom, hadn’t hesitated. 

Long story short, Sans had held both Boss Monsters off while Papyrus had run for the person who he thought could help the most. Frisk, obviously. Because a child was going to do anything about two murderous skeletons. As the stars would have it though, the kid happened to be accompanied by Asgore himself.

At the sight of the approaching King Boss Monster, Sans had seen Red and Edge react with something he’d never seen on them since. Genuine fear. 

This made it all the more hilarious when King Fluffy Buns had gently asked the two of them where they had come from and if they needed help. 

Sans had delighted over the following events with the newly dubbed “Fell” brothers. They ended up having tea with Asgore as discussions of the machine and what to do next had been addressed.

Sans took the responsibility upon himself to remind Asgore whenever the other two seemed low on tea, if only to watch them balk at the sight of the king of the entire underground happily pouring them more. 

Not to mention how ecstatic he was when he found out about Edge’s hatred of puns. Red used different material apparently because every silly pun was met with a seething glare, and with Frisk doing nothing but giggling up a storm in the room, he was more than happy to deliver. A fitting punishment in his opinion. 

Where was he going with this again? Oh yeah. His soul fear. 

If Sans hadn’t been scared of Red and Edge actively trying to kill him, why did Red throwing one of his standard fits elicit that kind of reaction in him?

Moving his skull to rest in his hand, he let himself think back to the fight itself, trying to pinpoint what exactly had gotten him so worked up. 

Red had grabbed Sans’ humerus and had physically turned Sans around, snarling in his face as the argument had begun. “Hey. Don’t ignore me.”

Maybe he just hadn’t expected to be touched? Having lived most his life with only 1 HP, he was used to being extra cautious. Any hostile action, even a hostile touch, could have been a death sentence. Sure, he got that new HP to make his first a little less bonely, but a whopping 2 HP wasn’t exactly Temmie armor.

He remembered not even feeling that defensive about it though. Just tired. “I wasn’t ignoring you Red, was just gonna put Paps’ mug down first.” 

Red had glanced in the sink, his tone menacing. “And what exactly are you doing with the baby bones’ mug.”

Sans had fought the urge to look away, instead narrowing his eye lights. “Papyrus wanted me to borrow it for today. He was just being sweet.”

Red had snorted, “Congrats! On him not figuring out what a disappointmen’ you really are. Fox told everyone about your fuck up.”

His bones had tensed at that, but it hadn’t set him off entirely. “My what?”

Red’s sneer was full of disgust. “You can afford the gold on this big ol’ house, the time for all your side hustles, and drinking at Grillby’s, yet you can’t go school shopping with your own brother?” 

Of course Fox told everyone… 

Red didn’t let up for a second. “Where I came from wasn’t all sunshine and golden flowers like here. Yet at least I made time to actually raise my bro out of stripes before I became a dirt bag.” 

Sans’ bones locked up, tightening as if they could protect the soul inside. He was a dirt bag, is a dirt bag, and Papyrus deserves better, but hearing Red voice his thoughts out loud ached like any physical blow. 

Living with one HP for so long made him resourceful though. If you couldn’t dodge an attack, you could still reflect it back. 

So like a real jerk, a side of himself he hoped Papyrus would never see, he had said, “Well at least my bro still likes me after raising him.”

Red’s response was to growl. It had been deep and low in a way that only magic could bring out in a monster’s voice. “Yeah, well my bro is alive and ten times more functional than you could ever be.”

“How’s his job hunt going then?” Sans had mocked, knowing of Edge’s recent struggle to gain employment. 

Sans had even been thinking of offering the guy help, despite knowing that none of the money earned would be put towards the house’s bills. None of the other skeletons had helped Sans financially. “His world, his problems” they would say. The sudden bitterness he’d felt was foreign in his soul. 

Red had taken a single step towards Sans that had him grateful for locked bones aiding him in standing his ground, when Mutt had casually walked between the two, catching them both off guard. 

Bringing him back to the present. The realization of what actually set him off embarrassing him beyond belief. 

Red had hurt his feelings. Sans apparently cared enough that the harsh words had almost physically hurt him. 

He watched Red stomp his way out of the kitchen, feeling utterly baffled. 

Come to think of it, Stretch’s “big bad bones act” had left him shook too. Something which hadn’t been too much of an issue a few months ago.  And Stretch sure did threaten him then too…

Nope. Not going down that bit of memory lane. 

“OKAY SANS WE’RE READY!!!” 

… We...? Oh. Oh no. Paps please say you didn’t. 

Bolting up from his seat, Sans ran at the fridge and stepped into the foyer with a quick short cut. 

Sure enough, his precious bro stood ready by the door, only now in his varsity track jacket and bright red boots, grinning at Sans with excited sparks in his eye lights. 

A sight to ease and lift his soul. If only Fox and Mutt weren’t directly beside him. 

Fox dressed sharply in his work clothing of pressed slacks, polished dress shoes, pristine white button up and deep violet vest, complete with a glass snowdrop flower in his breast pocket, and backdropped by a lavender pocket square. 

Mutt was dressed in grey jeans, fingerless gloves, checkered vans, his spiked collar, and in three layers of tank tops varying in size and opacity. One bone tight grey, one sheer purple, and topped off with an oversized black one that was more thin shredded strips than shirt. 

They both looked dressed straight out of a business catalog and a Hot Topic ad, respectively. With the exception of course of Mutt sipping water directly out of his stolen coffee pot. 

Papyrus why…??????

Fox was the first to break the silence, dismissing Sans entirely and turning to Papyrus, gently reaching up and grasping his hands. 

“Young Papyrus Dear, We Were Supposed To Promenade At The Park Today And Let The Lesser Monster Gaze Upon Us Enviously.” Fox didn’t turn his gaze to Sans, but he somehow knew Fox would be glaring at him if he did. “The Three Of Us.”

Papyrus, to his credit, only looked mostly suspicious. “OH WAS THAT TODAY???”  

Fox, to his credit, only sounded distressed rather than filled with icy indifference the way Sans expected him to react. “You Had Mutt And I Clear Our Schedules A Month In Advance For This. You Reminded Us Daily.” 

“WHICH MAKES IT EVEN MORE IMPRESSIVE THAT I FORGOT SO QUICKLY DON’T YOU THINK? WHOOPSIE DOOPSIE.” 

Mutt snorted, but quickly tried to disguise it as a cough when Fox turned to glance sharply at his brother. 

“Whoopsie Doopsie Indeed.” 

If Fox hadn’t looked directly at Sans in that moment, he’d have laughed at Fox saying “whoopsie doopsie.” 

Papyrus might not like puns, but he truly was a master at setting people and situations up to be funny. 

“OH DRAT,” Papyrus laments. “I GUESS WE’LL HAVE TO WALK WITH MY HARD WORKING, LAZY BROTHER TO HIS PARK JOB AND ALSO BE SEEN BY HIM AND SEE AS HE WORKS ADAMANTLY TO FEED THE STARVING MASSES.” 

Well as much as he hated it, it looked like this was happening. Forgoing slippers, Sans moseyed for the shoe rack with his crocks. 

“Or we could reschedule?” Mutt chimed in hopefully. His- no, THE coffee pot was gone so he must have put it back. Sans hadn’t noticed him shortcut away, but then again, Mutt was really good at only being seen when he wanted to be. 

“I’M AFRAID THERE IS NO OTHER WAY!!!” Papyrus yelled even louder as if he could drown out Mutt’s common sense. 

“PAPYRUS SERIF.” Fox spoke louder and firmer. 

Papyrus, Mutt, and Sans froze at the Tone. 

One wrong word and Sans would lunge. Take Papyrus somewhere safe, hold off everyone in the house if needed and-

“Come Here For A Moment?” Fox asked, his voice softer than Sans had ever heard it. 

Paps looked at Fox nervously before slightly leaning down to Fox’s level. 

Fox asked Papyrus something so quietly Sans couldn’t even hear it. This made him nervous. 

Papyrus looked up surprised, then nodded slowly, as if shy. 

“Then I’ll Allow It.” Fox said simply, reaching up and patting Papyrus’ skull. 

Papyrus beamed, and Sans’ eye socket twitched. 

“Onward Then,” Fox announced, adjusting his vest. “Mutt Get The Door.”

Mutt easily strived to the door, sparing Sans a glare like Fox’s unneeded attention to Papyrus was his fault. 

Trying his best to look unperturbed, Sans exited the house with Papyrus by his side.

Despite being the “technical” house owner, Sans never kept any of his things in any part of the three-door garage on the side of the house. 

Instead, down the driveway a bit, he had a shed. In shape and size, it was identical to the one from Snowden. Perhaps because it was the one from Snowden. 

Piece by piece, Sans had dismantled the wood and nail to his best ability, then brought it to the surface to rebuild at their new home. He placed it just so behind the tree line so that most folks couldn’t see it driving in. He didn’t want humans thinking this was “where they kept their monster treasure” and breaking in.

After all, it was exactly where Sans kept his monster treasures. 

“Wait here while I grab the cart,” Sans mumbled, hopping off the main road. 

“NEED HELP BROTHER?” Paps called out. 

“Nah, I’m good bro,” Sans yelled back, not wanting Fox or Mutt near his shack of mysteries and secrets. 

“DRAT,” Sans could hear Paps say in the distance. “I WANTED TO PUT MY BIRTHDAY IN THE LOCK COMBO.”

Sans chuckled tiredly, reaching the locked shed door and putting in a number that certainly wasn’t Paps’ birthday. The password had been Papyrus’ birthday for years, but given recent nosey bones in his life, he figured a lil extra secrecy couldn’t hurt. 

Quickly, he ran in and grabbed what he needed. Avoiding even a glance at the rest of his surroundings, he left. Sans put extra care into locking the door, sealing the memories within. 

With a jaunty whistle he rolled out his ‘dog cart. It had been a magic gift from Alphys, and when folded up was more stroller-like than cart. A simple box with wheels and a push handle. 

Pushing his cart back onto the main road, he watched Fox take note of it with an unimpressed glance. Mutt, on the other hand, was looking over his shoulder towards the shed with interest. 

Sans felt like a smug bastard knowing that Mutt’s shortcuts wouldn't stand a chance against his shed. 

“Third Street I Assume?” Fox spoke haughtily, as if this was a daily occurrence between them. 

“That’s fine with me,” Sans replied, surprised Fox would give him and Paps that much of a walk together in the first place. If he didn’t know any better, he’d assume Fox was tolerating him or something.

Papyrus excitedly grasped Sans’ hand tightly in preparation, while Fox simply took Mutt’s offered arm. 

Since even the easiest shortcuts required momentum, they walked. One, two, then three steps as by the fourth Sans and Mutt guided the momentum through the void and back again. 

Hello, Third Street.

From their woodsy property to suburban delight in moments. Shortcuts by Lazy Bones industry. “Trust us, it beats driving by Miles.” 

Snickering at his own thoughts, Sans relaxed at the sensation of Papyrus swinging their arms. He had the feeling his hand belonged to Papyrus until they hit the park. 

Deciding he had enough magic to burn for the day, he let it reach out and push the cart, his other free hand going to his pocket so he could enjoy the day. 

It was a b… pretty day outside. 

Spring could be a hard time for Sans. Flowers blooming, birds singing. It was all sounds and smells that he could remember coming from just past the judgement hall. 

Listening to a car fly by the main road, idle chatter from other folks out and about, and the warmth of sun on his skull. These were surface sounds. 

It made his soul warm. 

Paps must have also been enjoying the day, because he let the silence sit between the two of them. He’d occasionally send a small pulse of magic from his hand to Sans. 

Feeling at ease, he would let the magic reach him only to pulse it back to Papyrus.

It wasn’t a visible thing, and if some human asked him to sum up what it was, he’d probably only be able to describe it as a not really conversation between the two.

Unless you consider, “HAPPY!” “happy you’re happy” “HAPPY?” “ye happy.” “VERY HAPPY.” a conversation. 

Not really words, not really full emotions... Just vibes? Yeah, magic vibes. Magic vibes only. 

Glancing over to Fox and Mutt, he was surprised to see that they weren’t also enjoying the day. 

Fox was stiff in posture, glaring at any human or monster they crossed along the way. Mutt was glaring at Sans, not even trying to hide the fact he was glaring. 

Mutt’s vibes were surely rancid, and Sans didn’t even know what he did to earn it this time. 

SAD? 

Eye lights widening, Sans pulled his hand away from Papyrus’ and reached for the cart as if to steady it. 

“BROTHER ARE YOU ALRIGHT?” Papyrus asked aloud in concern, drawing the attention of the other two. 

“Yeah Pap, just tripped a bit,” Sans lied evenly. 

Papyrus didn’t press him, but seemed a bit less enthusiastic in his stance. 

Entering into the threshold of the park, Sans was quick to give Paps a hug then be on his way to his usual spot. The park wasn’t overly crowded but it still looked like a promising day for sales. 

He pressed the button on the cart’s handle and took a step back as it began to unfold and build itself up. 

Before long, a simple metal cart with magic storage, a mini grill, and a display of chip and drink options were perfectly placed. Sans gave the cart a firm kick, and the blue and yellow umbrella popped out, providing perfect shade. Little blue beads hung down from the ends, swaying in the spring breeze. 

The cart had a rain cloud on it, which made Sans happy beyond belief that Alphys got his sense of humor. 

It’s Raining ‘Cats & ‘Dogs was now open for business.

Chapter Text

From the bottom of his soul, Sans truly believed Mutt and Fox would rather dust than let him have nice things. 

Upon entering his world, the two had been nothing but a pain in his coccyx.

The machine had all but shattered itself with the two of them appearing. It had been the middle of the night and the explosion had shaken the entire house. 

Red, Sans, and Stretch had been on the scene instantly. When the smoke cleared and the two other versions had appeared, Red had only laughed his ass off at Sans’ dismay, while Stretch sighed and went to call Tori and Asgore. 

Leaving Sans to deal with them.

Unlike Red and Edge, they didn’t charge in guns blazing, or instantly assume the worst like Stretch and Blue. Oh no, they had calmly sat down, listened to Sans’ whole explanation with great interest, then declared Sans an absolute moron. 

Fox had presented a list of every step Sans had done wrong and how he should have thought things out better. 

Then upon meeting Papyrus, he had declared Sans an inept guardian as well for not even attempting to secure them properly with a stripes in the home. 

Fox called his home shoddy at best, deemed him ill equipped to handle the machine, and demanded an audience with his betters post haste. 

By the end, Sans wished they had come in guns blazing so he could have smacked them around juuuust a lil bit. 

When Asgore had appeared, they had seemed offended and refused to speak until Tori was also brought into the room.

Kneeling at Tori’s feet, Fox had insisted he take over leading the mission of “fix this cluster fuck” and that Sans be disposed over immediately for his incompetence.

Tori, ever the saint and wonderful woman she is, calmly but politely informed them that was never going to happen. It was Sans’ machine and he knew it best. Tori had looked at him with nothing but faith and affection. 

Fox seemed to take the rejection well. He had even showed polite acceptance of Toriel dubbing them the “Swell brothers”. Swap and Fell… Tori was just as bad at naming things as Asgore it seemed. Sans would even argue that Fox had come across as indifferent and unbothered by the whole exchange. Mutt though... well, let’s just say Sans had been on Mutt’s shit list ever since. Bringing Sans to the petty injustice of today. 

Everything at work had started fine enough.

Sans, bringing out his phone to message BP about covering his MTT shift, relaxed at how eagerly BP jumped on the opportunity.

Apparently, he had a big date coming up with a monster he’d been seeing and wanted to earn enough next check to spoil the guy rotten. It was cute. 

He’d then settle in to his roll of salesman, waving at regular park patrons and even casually tossing jokes out there. 

Smiles first to get a good impression in their minds. Then come lunch time they’d usually double back, hook, line and sinker. 

Normally he’d might even sneak a cheeky nap in while he worked, but with the sight of Papyrus and the Swell brothers in the distance he decided to put a bit more effort in. 

That is, until he noticed folks leaving faster than normal. 

One moment, they’d be lounging on a picnic blanket or tossing a frisbee when all of a sudden, they’d check their phones and abruptly start packing to leave. 

One or two of them would snag a ‘dog on the way out, but most left like their homes were on fire. 

It wasn’t until he realized that the area of “begone humans” seemed to trail from Mutt’s path that Sans pieced together what was going on. 

Mutt was a judge, and every judge knew a smidge of yellow magic. Sans himself liked to use his to keep his phone charged… Mutt, however, was draining the humans’ phone batteries to get them to leave faster. 

If Mutt was intentionally screwing Sans’ business over or just clearing the park for Fox and Papyrus, Sans didn’t know and he certainly didn’t care. 

Grumpily, Sans made a ‘dog for his own brunch and gave it an angry ketchup face, trying to keep his own expression pleasant and carefree. He topped off the angry ketchup face with an equally dumb-looking spiked dog collar and then buried it in relish. Face the wrath of the ‘dog monster. 

Regrettably though, it tasted awesome. 

Not long after Papyrus and the Jerk brothers left, more park patrons came and went, giving Sans just enough business to not fully regret running the stand at all today. 

In his downtime, he had also managed to email Alphys his latest updates on figuring out the stars-damned machine. 

For years, he had kept that damn hunk of junk, not even knowing what it was for, only feeling compelled to keep it safe. Now he wished he had left it the pile of scrap he found it in back in Hotland. 

But noo, he had pulled it all into a wagon, bundled Papyrus next to it and pulled the darn thing all the way to Snowdin. 

Why keep it? Why Snowdin? Heck if his seven-year-old brain had known. 

It’s just what had to be done. 

A few hours later, Sans decided to wrap things up. Counting his till and pocketing the cash earned from the day, Sans shut down his stand with the press of a button. 

Normally, he would step into the box, hold the handle, and use his magic to ride his way home for a post/pre work nap. It was good exercise. 

Papyrus had probably made birthday spaghetti though, so he’d need to save his magic to help keep the food down and process the birthday candles mixed in. 

Sans started his way home, determined to enjoy the last few rays of sun the day had to offer. There were fewer surface sounds in the afternoon, most folks having already left for home for the day. So instead, he focused on the warmth of the sun and breeze on his bones.

His first year on the surface, he’d been told “April showers bring May flowers”. In his experience so far though, it must be raining somewhere else. 

Wind blew warm against his skull and made the budding tree branches sway in a lazy dance. The evening sun beamed through the leaves, leaving splotches of light and shadow on the main park path. Almost like-

“Sans!” 

Pausing his casual stride, Sans glanced over his shoulder. He knew that voice. 

Across the park a familiar no-armed monster came running up, a broad grin on his face, with two other familiar munchkins running behind him. 

“Hey Kid, Cotton, Squeak.” Sans yelled out with a chuckle. “Enjoying the fall weather?”

Kid, the armless lizard monster in question, laughed working his stubby legs hard to close the distance, “It’s spring, Sans!!” 

The mouse monster behind him tugged her striped scarf downwards, out of breath from running but trying to project her small voice. “I think he means-“

“OOF!!!” Kid cried out, faceplanting mere steps away from Sans. 

“Called it,” Cotton huffed catching up. The bunny monster wiped his paws on his overalls as if he had fallen too. 

Sans chuckled, “Sup Goats.”

In unison the stripes glared at Sans and at various volumes yelled, “BAAA!” before bursting into giggles. 

“Darn, rough crowd.” Sans grinned. “Guess you’ll get it when your older... or turn into goats.”

“What does that even mean?” Cotton whined, making Sans grin even brighter. He couldn’t wait for the double whammy of the pun to hit. Maybe he should bug Tori into doing a lesson on baby animals. 

“Sans! Sans!!!” Kid chirped back up, clearly not to be deterred from his line of questioning. “Where have you been dude?! Did you… I don’t know...”

“Die or something?” Squeak piped up before shyly hiding her face in her scarf. 

“YEAH!!” Kid yelled, hyping up her idea before turning to Sans, eyes wide as saucers. “Did you die?!?” 

Welp. Not in this timeline. 

“Yeah,” Sans shrugged, making the kids gasp.  He gave a wink before fighting off another chuckle. “Don’t worry though, I got better.”  

Kid and Squeak looked horrified, but Cotton scoffed at him. Guess having thirteen siblings made Cotton used to teasing. 

“He’s just making that up, he didn’t actually die.” Cotton corrected with an eye roll. Little did he know. 

“Oh, thank Asgore!” Kid exhaled, Squeak reaching out to pat his back. “At first I was like, WOW, but then I was all, OH NO! Cuz I- I just learned about these things called Zombies, but then a part of me was all, NUH UH, cuz you’d be all UHHHHHHR, and-“

“Where have you been Sans?” Squeak interrupted. “Mama says she hasn’t seen you at any of the community nights lately.”

“Big brother Fluff says you got new brothers” Cotton chimed in. “Is that why Papyrus never plays with us anymore?”

Kid gasped, “Are your new brothers why you don’t watch us anymore?!? Are they cooler than us?!? ARE YOU REPLACING US???!”

These kids were a riot. The kind where mobs break windows. 

“I’ve just been busy with work I guess,” Sans replied, scratching the back of his skull. “You haven’t seen Papyrus because, unlike Snowdin, the surface has more than one school. Older kids like Pap get their own.”

“So your new cooler brothers are why you don’t watch us…?” Cotton sighed and looked down, the other two kiddos quickly copying his dramatic stance. 

“I don’t have any new brothers,” Sans corrected wearily. “Paps and I are just looking out for some other skeletons from the ruins. Real hermits, not really social monsters,” he added the last part quickly. 

“Then why don’t you watch us????” Kid pressed with pleading eyes. 

The hard truth was Sans didn’t feel right accepting money from their folks. Most monsters were struggling these days, with the humans having changed the exchange rate of gold faster than the monsters could get the rights to sell it. 

If he was gonna watch these kids, he’d probably do it for free these days. The only problem was finding the time really. 

“I really am just busy,” he shrugged, then blinked as a thought occurred to him. 

Ignoring Kid mumbling, “that never stopped you before…” Sans looked around the park. 

“Speaking of stripe watching, who uh… who is exactly watching you guys?” 

The trio groaned as Sans caught the sight of yet another familiar face headed his way. 

“Ughhhh, my pop has Cream watching us.” Cotton griped, tugging at his ears. 

“Cotton!!! Kid!! Squeak!” The lanky blue bunny monster lectured as he ran up with a huff. “You can’t just run off like that when I’m not looking, I about fainted!!”

“But we saw Sans!!!?!” Kid yelled like that explained everything. 

“Heya Cream,” Sans waved, greeting the resident Nice Cream guy. He had mad respect for anyone who made their business name based around a pun. Cream was a nice guy, who sold Nice Cream. He loved it.

“Sans!” Cream exclaimed, his ears perking right up. “Now aren’t you a sight for sore eyes! All us folk from Snowdin have been wondering where you and Papyrus ran off to.” 

“So I’ve heard,” Sans replied, glancing to the stripes present in emphasis. None of them looked an ounce apologetic. 

“Oh, you know how it is,” Cream laughed. “We small town folk look out for each other. Even if it is on the big ol’ surface.”

Cream looked behind Sans at his folded cart and perked up. “Were you selling today? How was the crowd?”

Vaguely, Sans could see the stripes losing interest in the conversation and sneak further off from Cream. He’d keep a socket on ‘em. 

“Yeah, just snagging a few more hours in. More people out in the warming weather so I bet you’ll get some good sales soon too.”

Cream sighed, “Yeah, probably. I’m still working on getting the whole ‘permit’ thing. Humans seem to be bothered beyond belief by us fuzzy friends handling food.” 

“Oh yeah, human permits are a huge pain.” It’s why he personally never bothered with one. He’d just shortcut his cart with him at the first sign of a narc.

“Better than causing issues with the humans I suppose,” Cream sighed. “They can be pretty scary if they think we’ve broken their rules.” 

Or when they go on genocidal rampages. Though he supposed the survival logic remained solid. Just don’t get caught. 

“That’s the thing about rules and rulers,” Sans shrugged. “As long as you keep a measured step, and a level skull, you don’t usually get a fraction of the weird looks centimeter your way.” 

All he got was a raised fuzzy brow, “A bit heavy handed on those jokes.”

“You know me. Give me an inch and I’ll run for miles.” 

Cream laughed, clearly not anticipating Round Two. “Alright, alright Mr. Funny Bones. I better wrap this up before the kiddos get out of hearing range.” 

Sans grin softened into something slightly more genuine. “It was good seeing you again pal. Let your folks know I said, ‘Sup’.”

Cream shook his head fondly, “You could tell them yourself if you ever stopped by to say hi. They’d love to see you!” 

Sans tried to picture it. Sans and Papyrus sitting at a crowded table, in a loud cheerful room. Happy chatter, good banter, and great food. The Buns were a close and loving family…

The idea of imposing on that just didn’t feel right. He had Papyrus, and that was enough for him.

“I’ll see what can squeeze in,” Sans lied with an intentionally thoughtful look. 

It must have been exactly what Cream wanted to hear as he looked delighted. “It’s all I could ask!” 

Sans watched as Kid faceplanted in the distance, only this time taking Squeak down with him. It was hard to tell but from the looks of it she wasn’t handling the fall well, rubbing at her eyes.

Creams ears twitched in their direction with a sigh. “Welp, duty calls.” He gave Sans one last friendly wave. “I’ll see you around soon Sans! Enjoy the rest of the beautiful day!”

“See yah Cream,” Sans replied watching his fuzzy pal sprint away. 

That had been... Fairly nice. Unexpected but nice enough. He scratched at his manubrium absently, then walked back to his cart.   

He wasn’t sure why but the conversation had left him feeling... rather blue actually? 

Pulling the box behind him once more, he could feel his soul become heavy, as if covered in blue magic. 

The sun felt a bit less warm, and the park was now a bit too empty. Was he… lonely? Huh. 

Nothing a quick hug from Paps couldn’t fix. 

He tugged his cart along, trying to build moment for a quick shortcut. The familiar motions of pulling the cart reminded him of his childhood wagon. 

He closed his sockets as if to stop the memories, but he could only hear Cream telling him what a beautiful day it was repeating in his mind. 

It really was a beautiful day… 

It had been a beautiful waterfall too. 

Shimmering stones atop the cave ceiling had reflected the light from the lanterns below. The mist from this particular waterfall cast a perpetual rainbow as Sans had walked through it. 

He had been surrounded by pretty lights and, in a moment of childlike wonder, imagined if this was what being surrounded by stars and nebulas would be like. 

Papyrus’s sniffle had finally been the reminder to keep moving. Sans didn’t mind soaked clothes and bones, but it surely wasn’t good for Papyrus. 

So, he had continued. His arm bones aching, his left shoe missing, he pulled the cart. 

How many times had he wanted to stop? To rest, or throw a piece of the machine to lighten his load. To hug Papyrus, to comfort Paps, but also maybe just to comfort himself. 

Too many times. 

He had wanted someone, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn’t remember who. 

So instead, he walked until shining mist and flowering river sides became snow and pine. 

He hadn’t had the key to the house yet, but when coming up to the padlocked shed his hands knew the code. He wasn’t sure why he knew, but he was certain the numbers he put in was a birthday. His birthday. 

The feeling was fleeting, and he could feel it slipping away fast, but in that moment he had been certain. Certain that someone had loved him very much. 

Admittedly, outside of Paps, he hasn’t really felt the same since.  Sure, he knew Papyrus loved him, but everything paled to the last bit of comfort that old code had given him. 

Putting in his new lock combination without much thought, Sans stepped inside his shed. 

Putting the cart away, Sans hurried out. Today was not a day to linger on stuff like that. Today was his birthday. A day for Papyrus to feel happy and like the best little brother he was. 

Sans entered the house with a grin that made his soul quiver. 

Why couldn’t his soul get the memo? Happy Sans time. Papyrus was waiting. 

Slipping off his crocks, Sans turned to head towards the kitchen, where sounds of Papyrus’ and Edge’s cooking could be heard. 

“SANS.” 

Stilling his stride, Sans looked back to the front door he had just entered from. 

Blue was there. He looked like he’d just come back from a run, only he wasn’t all grins and star eye lights. “WE NEED TO TALK.” 

Sans shrugged with a casualness he knew irked Blue. “Nah.”

“SANS, THIS IS SERIOUS,” Blue countered taking a step towards Sans. 

“Tell Serious I said hi,” Sans said, turning and taking a step away. He didn’t want to sit through a lecture, he wanted to see Papyrus. Besides, anything and everything Blue wanted to talk to Sans about was serious. From talking about Sans’ nonexistent sleep schedule to a light bulb being out.

Even when Stretch and Blue had showed up and Blue named him a “SOULLESS VILLAIN!!”, his halfhearted apology he had given Sans after had been oh so serious. 

“VANILLA,” Blue tried again, using Red’s preferred nickname for Sans. Vanilla, the most basic and boring flavor. He got it, he was lame. If Blue actually wanted Sans’ attention, he really should have stuck to using his real name. 

Ignoring Blue, Sans kept walking. 

That is... until Blue sighed deeply from behind him. 

“VANILLA. WE WANT CUSTODY OF PAPYRUS."

Chapter Text

Sans couldn’t breathe. He didn’t need to breathe, but the fact he now couldn’t even if he wanted to was terrifying.

Sans slowly turned to look at Blue. “W h a t.”

Blue sighed as if this situation was upsetting to him. “Stretch and I have talked, and we both think it would be best for everyone if you handed over official custody to us.” 

Like hell it would be. “No.”

Not just no. Hell no. Fuck no. What would that even solve?! Nothing. Blue had a Papyrus; he didn’t need Sans’.

Blue made a noise of distress. “VANILLA, EVERYONE CAN SEE YOU’VE BEEN STRUGGLING.”

“You aren’t getting Papyrus,” Sans spoke, sounding calmer than he was. He’d run away if his bones would let him, but he could already feel that tight tension of his body locking up. 

“VANILLA, YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND,” Blue beseeched him. “FOX AND MUTT ARE ALREADY TRYING TO FIND WAYS TO FORCIBLY TAKE CUSTODY. WOULDN’T YOU RATHER YOUNG PAPYRUS BE TAKEN IN BY MONSTERS WITHOUT SUCH HIGH LV.”

So, Fox and Mutt were in on it too? Forcibly take Papyrus??? They couldn’t do that. Sans wouldn’t let it happen. 

Blue took his lack of reply as contemplation and continued, “PAPPY AND I ALREADY ADORE YOUNG PAPYRUS, AND WOULD WELCOME HIM INTO OUR FAMILY WITH OPEN ARMS.”

“And drag him back to your universe the minute the machine is fixed. Back underground without any of his friends,” or me Sans didn’t say. His soul was shaking to the point of pain but he refused to let it show. 

“YOUR FRISK TOLD ALL OF US HOW THEY BROKE THE BARRIER. WE WOULDN’T BE TRAPPED FOR LONG,” Blue countered. “AND ONCE THE MACHINE IS WORKING AND CAN SEND US BACK, THEN WHEN HE’S OLDER - IF HE WISHES - OF COURSE THERE COULD BE VISITATION.” 

Yeah right. Sans couldn’t handle this right now. “Like you’d let me,” he growled. 

Blue looked at him with a soft look that Sans wished wasn’t there. “I WOULD.”

“SANS ARE YOU HOME!!!???” Papyrus called from the kitchen. 

Clarity hit Sans like a truck, and he could feel the tension seep away. He was too pissed to be scared.

“Over. My. Dust. Pal,” Sans seethed. Turning, he took two sharp steps, then shortcut directly into the kitchen. 

Papyrus stood happily by the stove, with Edge next to him supervising. Perhaps he was directly helping if his matching “Leave the chef alone <3” embroidered apron had anything to say about it. 

Papyrus moved to pull Sans into a hug, but Sans hadn’t stopped moving and beat Paps to it. Tightly hugging him, Sans let his brother’s soul soothe his own. 

“BROTHER?” Papyrus asked concern washing over him. “ARE YOU ALRIGHT?”

Not ready to let go yet, Sans nodded, taking just a few more seconds of closeness before letting go. “Y… yeah Pap. Just, uh, missed you after yah left the park.”

Papyrus gave Sans a look that meant he didn’t believe him in the slightest, but wasn’t going to press it. Instead, Paps just hugged tighter, as if he could squeeze Sans’ pain away. 

“FOR STARS’ SAKE,” Edge sighed, taking over watching the sauce on the stove top. “YOUNGER PAPYRUS HAS ONLY BEEN HOME FOR A FEW HOURS.”

Oh yeah, Edge was here. 

Sans eyed the tall skeleton, warily reaching out to tug Papyrus’ phalanges. “All the more reason to catch up and chat.”

Sans had to warn his bro about what the others were planning. Was it everyone? Blue had only mentioned Fox and Mutt, but Sans couldn’t be certain. Did he need to get a lawyer? Go to Grillby? No, this was serious. So, Asgore? If it was a custody battle, then Toriel would be the obvious choice. 

How did legal custody even work? It wasn’t even a monster concept. Or at least not one Sans was familiar with. He’d seen just enough bad TV to know it meant Blue wanted to take Papyrus away. Which was never going to happen. Ever.

Papyrus’ sockets were locked on Sans’ expression, perhaps seeing something behind his forced grin that he couldn’t tuck far enough down. 

“EDGE… PERHAPS I SHOULD STEP AWAY FOR A MOMENT,” Papyrus spoke uncertainly.

Edge furrowed his bone ridge, then motioned to the sauce. “WE’RE COOKING. YOU TWO CAN CHAT LATER.”

Sans felt like a petulant child, yet nonetheless he pressed, “Paps, you wanna chat now, right? Tell me about the park and all that?” 

Papyrus looked torn, turning and giving Edge a pleading pout. 

Edge sighed. “FINE. HE CAN SIT AT THE ISLAND WHILE WE COOK, BUT IF HE’S A DISTRACTION, THEN HE’S GONE.” 

Like Sans was a dog…

Well, it wasn’t ideal, and normally Sans would rather live ten more resets than listen to Edge… but by the stars he didn’t want to leave Papyrus right now. 

Papyrus also seemed placated by the news, picking Sans up by the arm sockets and placing him at the island. Turning to cook, Papyrus began to enthusiastically tell him about his day. 

Apparently, Papyrus had found a caterpillar at the park... saw a couple with a… cute dog… and…

1/2 HP

Sans stood in front of the barrier. A giant red number glowed above it, pulsing in time with the imprisoning magic. 8. Frisk stood at the barrier, tapping at the unseen wall. 7. With every tap, the number would tick down. 6. He didn’t know what would happen when it hit zero - 5 - but he could feel in every inch of his being that it wouldn’t be good. 4.

“Kid, don’t!” Sans yelled, trying to run closer, yet hardly covering any distance. 

They tapped the wall. 3. They tapped the wall. 2. Every tap now sent a wave of heavy magic Sans had to brace against.

They reached to tap once more, but Sans finally reached them, pulling their hand away. “Frisk, no!”

Frisk turned to him, eyes wide and red. Grin twisted and melting. No, no, not Frisk. This wasn’t Frisk. It was Chara. Frisk said this was Chara.

Chara’s smile pulled their face taut as their outstretched hand suddenly changed course. Sans was no longer pulling their hand away from the barrier, but rather fighting to keep their hand away from his skull. 

“s s S a a A n n N S S S,” Chara’s voice hissed out. His bones locked at the worst possible moment as Chara broke free from his grasp. 

He lost.

He couldn’t Flee, couldn’t Fight, couldn’t Act. His bones refused to move as Chara reached out, and tapped him. 

1/1 HP

Chara pulled their hand back, and reached out to tap him once more. 

Clenching his sockets closed, he yelled louder than he ever had before.

And a voice he didn’t recognize yelled back. 

“WAKE UP!!!!”

Sans’ eye sockets widened as he woke with a start. Papyrus? Where was Papyrus?! He hadn’t even meant to fall asleep. 

Eye lights frantic, he felt his soul begin to settle as he noticed Papyrus was right next to him and… And…? Putting something on his skull??

“Uhhh, what you Up to bro?” Sans spoke, trying his best to look up at Papyrus. 

Papyrus froze. “WELL, I WAS PUTTING A LITTLE FESTIVE HAT ON YOUR SKULL, BUT NOW I’M NOT SURE I WANT TO.” 

Sans shrugged tiredly, “Up to you bro, wouldn’t wanna Party away from your plans.” 

Papyrus huffed exaggeratedly, “THE SAME PUN TWICE IS RATHER LAZY, BROTHER.”

“I guess if I use it thrice then I’ll have to look Up more.” 

Papyrus purposefully squatted down and lowered himself to be shorter than Sans in challenge. 

“Aww, don’t be so down Paps, I’ll be the bigger person and stop.” 

Papyrus sighed deeply, fixing his posture back to perfection. “YOU ARE SO LUCKY IT’S YOUR TOTALLYNORMALDAY, BROTHER. OTHERWISE, I’D PROBABLY GO BANANAS AT YOUR LACKLUSTER PUNS.” 

Darn, Sans loved watching Papyrus go bananas. 

Taking in his surroundings once more, Sans noticed he’d been moved from the kitchen to the dining room. Given that no one really liked anyone but their respective brothers (and Papyrus), this particular room rarely got used. 

Normally, the table itself was sensibly decorated with the obligatory fruit bowl and table cloth, while the red-draped curtains remained open to let in natural light and look like “Real estate perfection.” The only personal touch added to the room was a painting of a bone that everyone surprisingly had agreed to. 

A touch of culture, he supposed. 

This evening, the dining room had become filled to the brim with multicolor balloons and streamers. The long table had been set as if for fine dining, with a giant crystal bowl of heaping spaghetti in the center. Smaller serving bowls held what looked to be various mixed salads, and covered bowls of fresh bread adorned the table’s ends. 

Looking down, Sans realized he was seated at the head of the table. Papyrus had also put a sash on him that read, “Birthday Bitch BROTHER.”

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SANS!” Papyrus joyfully exclaimed. 

Sans’ smile softened as he rubbed his phalanges along the sash. “Thank you, Papyrus.” 

Papyrus proudly struck a pose. “THINK NOTHING OF IT BROTHER, FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, CAN DO ANYTHING I SET MY MIND TO.” He paused. “WITH SUPERVISION AND HELP FROM OTHER SKELETONS WHO KNOW HOW TO COOK AND WHERE TO GET GOOD BALLOONS.” 

Sans’ eye sockets widened in surprise at Papyrus’ admission. “Paps I always love your cooking, and we’ve had balloons before.” 

Papyrus looked away, an orange glow coating his cheek bones. “I S- SIMPLY WANTED TO TRY A NEW RECIPE, AND I WANTED FLOATING BALLOONS FOR YOU THIS YEAR, BUT DIDN’T THINK MY MAGIC COULD HOLD THEM ALL UP THE WHOLE TIME SO… I… I ASKED FOR HELP.” 

Sans was both in awe of how his brother had reached out for help, for him, and mortified over the fact that skeletons who hate him had helped Papyrus set this all up. 

Looking over at the other place settings, Sans could feel dread building in his rib cage. 

Papyrus, ever perceptive, followed his gaze. “I ALSO ASKED THEM TO STEP AWAY FOR A BIT SO I COULD TELL YOU HAPPY BIRTHDAY FIRST.” Papyrus looked hesitant. “I MAY HAVE LIED JUST A LITTLE BECAUSE I ALSO WANTED TO ASK… IF YOU ARE OKAY???” 

Sans suddenly felt small, but Papyrus was a safe place and he hated having worried his brother this much. So, sucking up his courage, Sans spoke. “I’m not really doin’ great today bro. I learned that…” That Blue was a brother stealing jerkwad. Though he wasn’t sure how to bring that up yet… “Well let’s just say today’s been a bit much.” 

Papyrus nodded understandingly, not pressing for elaboration. Papyrus had never asked Sans why he had such low HP. He had only ever asked for Sans to tell him when he wasn’t okay. He understood how big it was for Sans to even admit to that much. 

“I’M SORRY SANS… IS… ARE YOU STILL AT TWO?” Papyrus asked cautiously.

Checking himself briefly, Sans winced, and shook his head. His second Hope Point hadn’t survived the day. 

Papyrus hugged Sans. “HEALING ISNT LINEAR BROTHER, EVERYTHING WILL BE BETTER BEFORE YOU KNOW IT.”

Not if they take you away… 

Sans hugged Papyrus back and used his brother’s love to try and fight off his fear. “You’re right.”

“OF COURSE I AM. I’M THE GREAT PAPYRUS.” 

His bro was better than great. He was awesome. 

Papyrus looked away from Sans uncertainly to the living room. “INITIALLY I WANTED A BIG FAMILY CELEBRATION, BUT I CAN HAVE THEM WAIT OUTSIDE IF YOU’D RATHER…”

As nice as that sounded, Sans had already worried Papyrus enough. He could tolerate the company if it was for Paps. “Nah, they can be here, it’s chill.” 

Papyrus’ eye lights sparkled as he went to fetch the rest of the bone bastards. 

One by one they filtered in, while Sans did his best to pretend he was dozing off again as they seated. Miraculously, he was wide awake again as they all started dishing up. 

The food was surprisingly delicious. Not an ounce of candle wax to be found. 

Papyrus carried conversation across the table, happily chatting with each skeleton, making them all preen with pride. Sans, on the other hand, could tell Papyrus was looking for something as he talked, trying to deduce if they were a part of Sans’ bad day. 

His bro was just beyond filled with love like that. 

Sans remained quiet, inwardly torn between praising Paps or making a plan to deal with the aforementioned Bone Bastards. The confirmation that he had indeed lost his Hope Point of progress making him crave another nap. 

Stars, he still had his security job tonight…

Eventually, dinner came to an end, with Stretch and Mutt collecting dishes and putting away leftovers. Sans was gently pushed back into his seat by Papyrus when he went to stand to help. 

“NOPE, I HAVE ONE LAST SURPRISE FOR YOU BROTHER!” Papyrus exclaimed, his bones rattling in excitement. 

It was then that Stretch entered, carefully placing a cake onto the table. 

The cake was blue, with a smear of frosting added to the top, covering previous words. It was an “It’s a boy!” cake changed to “It’s a SANS!” which normally would be hilarious if Papyrus hadn’t turned to glare at Stretch. 

Apparently, Stretch had been on cake duty. 

He shrugged, looking a bit too proud of himself as he sat back down. If he wasn’t planning on stealing Papyrus, Sans might’ve actually high five’d him. He unironically loved the cake. 

Sighing, Papyrus looked, assessing the cake. “IT’LL HAVE TO DO.” Carefully, Papyrus placed two candles shaped like a 2 onto the cake. “PERFECT.”

He looked expectantly around the room. “NOW, WHO KNOWS FIRE MAGIC?” 

An awkward silence filled the air. 

Fox looked startled, “Eight Boss Monsters In A Room And Not One Of Us Knows Fire Magic?” 

Blue turned to Stretch, who shrugged, “I normally use a lighter and you tossed it yesterday.”

Red shook his head as Edge looked expectantly at him. “Nope, not unless yah count blasters.”

Mutt sighed. Purposefully not looking in Fox’s direction as he moved to stand, “I’ve got some matches in my coat upstairs.”

Papyrus quickly jumped up, “I CAN GRAB THEM!!!”

Mutt looked ready to argue but Paps was already running out of sight and up the stairs. 

Which left Sans to the awkward silence from hell. Everyone looked at him. 

Stretch was the first to break the silence, awkwardly gesturing to the cake. “It sure was nice of lil’ bones to only put double digits on your cake,” Stretch teased, fiddling with a sucker in his mouth. 

“Or to give ya a cake at all,” Red sneered, likely just as irritated as the rest for even having to be here. “Think you’d get tired of ‘em by now.”

Sans resisted the urge to roll his eye lights, forcing his grin to remain for the same reason the others had even bothered showing up at all: humoring Papyrus’ plans for a pleasant dinner. 

“They Do Get A Bit Tiresome After A While,” Fox spoke curtly, and in a level of asshole he hadn’t known his own voice to be capable of, added “With How Little You Do These Days I’m Surprised He Bothered.”

Vaguely, Sans could hear Blue reply, but becoming lost in thought, he couldn’t help but agree with Fox. His brother’s efforts should have been put more into his schoolwork and yet he had planned this whole thing.

Was Sans not making enough money justification for Fox’s and Blue’s plan to steal Paps? Admittedly, between his current jobs and working on the machine, he wasn’t sure he could handle another job even if he had time. No matter what he did these days, he still found himself falling short.

Maybe this was why he was failing Papyrus. Looking around the room, Sans couldn’t shake the weight of unimpressed monsters who also didn’t think he deserved Papyrus. 

As Papyrus triumphantly reentered the room, matchbook in hand, Sans forced himself to relax despite feeling his single remaining hope point fighting for dear life. 

This would not dust him. His last HP had never been his to lose. 

Papyrus beamed delightedly at Sans passing the matches to an eager-to-help Blue.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BROTHER!” Papyrus exclaimed.

Blue lit the candles, also outwardly basking in Paps’ delight. He was probably already imagining stealing Papyrus far away…

“HOW OLD ARE YOU TURNING THIS YEAR VA- I MEAN SANS,” Blue asked, more than likely just asking to kindly help his bro fill the silence. 

Sans stared at him for a bit too long, trying to convey how much he still disliked him right now before shrugging. Keeping his smile up for Papyrus, he eventually answered, “Like it says on the cake, 22.” 

There was a weird pause that Sans didn’t bother interpreting as he blew out the candles, making his birthday wish. 

That anyone who tries to take his family away from him… B u R n S  i N  H E L L. 

Papyrus clapped happily, and Sans smiled at his bro’s delight. 

“Like… 220, right?” Red asked, causing Sans to finally take note of the others.

Everyone was staring at Sans with mixed expressions of disbelief and horror. Blue’s hands had flown up to cover his gasp. Stretch had dropped his sucker. Fox had lost his eye lights. Mutt looked startled beyond belief. Edge looked visibly nauseous.

Red looked increasingly desperate. He pressed further, “Or 122, or 222, right?”

Sans shared a look with Papyrus of utter confusion. “No… twenty-two. Five years older than Paps.” 

Fox was the next one to break the silence, his voice louder than Sans had ever heard him be. Fox stood up, pointing at Papyrus frantically, “WHO RAISED YOU?!?!” 

Papyrus blinked his sockets in open offense, “SANS.” 

Stretch cut in seeming to get Fox’s train of thought, “Then who raised Sans?”

Papyrus looked slightly less certain, “… ALSO SANS???” Papyrus turned to Sans. Paps’ clever mind caught up to the others’ disbelief. “I ONLY HAVE MEMORIES OF SANS RAISING ME, WHY IS THIS SHOCKING?”

Uncomfortable, Sans finally spoke up, tired of being spoken about as if not present. “I thought it was a constant that every Sans raised their Papyrus.”

“Yeah,” Red growled growing irritation in his tone. “When I was two hundred years old, I raised him. Not what, five?!?!”

Actually, seven, but that was none of Red’s business. Also, wat. Red was old as hell. “You’re two hundred something years old?!” Sans asked incredulously. 

“Try nearly four hundred, kid,” Red spoke, tone low and angry. 

Asgore’s beard, Red was older than hell. 

Sans glanced over to the others to see if this surprised any of them, only for Fox to speak up. “Sans, I’m Three Hundred And Twenty Eight And Still Not Elderly. Skeleton Monster Life Spans Are Quite Long.” 

“I’m two twenty-six,” Stretch chimed in, as if to help Fox’s cause.

“TWO HUNDRED SIXTY-FOUR,” Blue added cautiously. 

“Eighty-Eight.” Mutt muttered, looking the most uncomfortable. 

“YOU’RE A JUDGE.” Edge spoke breaking the pattern. “YOU’RE YOUR UNDERGROUND’S JUDGE. IT’S WHY YOU HAVE DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE KING. IT’S WHY YOU WERE DEEMED RESPONSIBLE ENOUGH TO PERSONALLY HANDLE THIS WHOLE SITUATION. HOW LONG?”

“How long what?” Stars was Sans hella uncomfortable now. Everyone seemed to be freaking out. 

“SANS, HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN THE JUDGE?” Edge pressed, his hand clenched tight on the table’s edge leaving gouges in the wood. Barely contained anger was clear in his tone. 

“I don’t know. Twelve years? It’s not like I kept the best track...” Sans trailed off, freezing as he saw Edge slowly stand up and release the table. 

“YOU WERE TEN.” Edge spoke calmly. Too calmly. 

“I guess the old guy just stopped showing up, so uh... Asgore said he searched the underground for the next best person and uhh… The magic chose me?” Sans spoke, not understanding how this topic came up at all. 

“I SEE.” Edge said, eye lights empty as he carefully pushed his chair in and began to leave. 

Red suddenly looked panicked, sweat beading on his skull. “Where you goin’ bro…”

Edge was out of sight but his next words rang clear as day, “I’M GOING TO FUCKING KILL ASGORE!!!”

Sans and Papyrus both jumped at the sound of the front door slamming from across the house. Everyone who remained glanced to Red, who sighed and grumbled something undecipherable. 

“RED-,” Blue urgently began, only to be cut off.

“I’ll handle it. No dusting, yeah yeah yeah.” Red replied, getting up from the table. “You can handle this,” Red said gesturing to Sans, “while I’m gone.”

Handle this. Sans was a THIS now. Nope. Bullshit levels have hit maximum. Containment breach of repressed emotions eminent. 

“SANS ISN’T A THIS,” Papyrus said evenly. 

Blue reaches across the table “PAPYRUS SWEETHEART, NOW IS NOT THE TI-“

“Yeah, that’s a hard no.” Sans spoke cutting Blue off and getting up himself. “You aren’t going to shut down my bro in front of me the same damn day you threatened to take him away from me.” 

Blue’s eye lights went out again while Papyrus froze. Fox and Mutt both looked at Sans in shock while Red stopped, already halfway out the doorway. Red looked over at Blue, seething. 

“You. what.” Red’s voice was lower than Sans had ever heard. He could hear Papyrus’ bones start to rattle and certainly not from joy. 

Blue was frantic, “LOOK, SANS I DIDN’T KNOW! I NEVER SHOULD HAVE SAID THAT!”

“You’re darn right you shouldn’t have!” Sans growled. “Each and every one of you have made it very, very clear that you despise me down to my very soul.” 

“Look Sans-“ Stretch tried to interject, but it was too late. The dam of emotions had broken and he wasn’t sure he could stop if he tried. 

“No. For once I’M going to talk and you will listen,” He snapped in Stretch’s direction. 

When Sans saw no further objections from the room, the words spilled directly from his soul, “There isn’t a single day that goes by where one of you hasn’t made a point of telling me what a bad brother I am.” 

He spoke with his hands, gesturing to himself and others as he spoke. “I am constantly reminded by each of you that I am not strong enough or capable enough or smart enough to fix this mess we’re in, and I don’t need those reminders because trust me, I know. I know that I’m not good enough for Papyrus. I know I’m a failure at everything I do! Stars, I can’t even keep more than one HP to my name!” His eye lights flicked and the unfamiliar soul-deep negativity reared its head. “I wake up each and every morning dreading interacting with any of you.”

Skeleton monsters didn’t need to breathe, but he took a deep breath anyways trying to ground himself. Hope. Love. Compassion. No matter how much he wished he was made of stronger stuff, it’s who he was. Hating someone was just physically impossible for most monsters. 

He wasn’t even mad because he hated them. He wished he could at this point, but he just wasn’t made with it in him. 

He knew why he was upset. So, he might as well tell them.

“But at the end of the day I’d do anything to keep my brother happy,” he said at last.  

“And even though I’ve failed him so many times, Papyrus still loves me. He is the reason I can keep getting up every morning, and I believe him when he says that he wants me in his life. So, I don’t plan on leaving my bro behind until my bones are dust on the ground, and as long as you live here, I will never let any of you hurt or take Papyrus away from what makes him happy. Ever.” 

His last Hope Point, the thing he fought for and kept inside him, was where his anger came from. As long as a monster knew love, they could go on. Pap knew this, and even though it was Sans’ job to look after his brother, Papyrus always looked out for him too. 

At some point, cyan magic had built up in his eye sockets, and Sans could now feel the magic tears threatening to fall down his skull. “Because Papyrus is much too cool for any of you.” Sans quickly finished, his voice no longer firm and angry. More like weak and wobbly. 

Like hell was he going to cry in front of these jerks, though. 

These mix of emotions though… yeah, he was at his limit. He… he was done. 

Refusing to even look at any of them, Sans gave into the childish urge. Fully turning his back to them all, Sans pressed his skull against Papyrus’ shirt. 

His younger brother quickly wrapped his arms around Sans and picked him up. Sans didn’t bother looking at the room again as Papyrus’ soul reached out for his with soothing waves of magic that sang, “I’m here” “it’ll be okay” “ignore the idiots” 

Vaguely, Sans could hear Papyrus say something addressed to the room, but a wave of exhaustion and apathy was hitting Sans hard. 

Next thing he knew, Papyrus had carried Sans into his room and placed him on his unmade bed. “I… still got work bro..” he mumbled tiredly. 

“YES, AND UNFORTUNATELY I’VE GOT SCHOOL IN THE MORNING SO I CAN’T STAY WITH YOU OR YOUR ALARM WILL WAKE ME UP.” Papyrus sighed, pressing buttons on Sans’ alarm clock. “SO INSTEAD, YOU’LL TAKE ANOTHER NAP BEFORE YOUR SHIFT AND I’LL BE IN MY ROOM IF YOU NEED ME.” 

Papyrus stilled and looked up at Sans’ orange magic in the edges of his eye sockets too, “AND YOU WILL COME GET ME IF YOU NEED ME BROTHER, OR ELSE I’LL… I WILL… I’LL CRY FOREVER.”

“I… I’ll try, bro.” 

Setting the clock down, Papyrus patted Sans’ skull. Once, twice, and a third time as if making sure Sans was still there.  “I LOVE YOU DEARLY, SANS, AND I PROMISE YOU ON MY SOUL, THINGS ARE GOING TO BE BETTER. SO… SO PLEASE DON’T GIVE UP HOPE.” 

Heh, little did Papyrus know he was Sans’ Hope. 

Papyrus unraveled Sans’ blanket and swiftly wrapped it around his physically exhausted brother. Sans was already mostly out by the time Papyrus moved to leave. 

“T… Tomorrow Will Be Better Sans. I… I Promise…” Papyrus, or perhaps dream Papyrus whispered to Sans. 

It sounded too good to be true, but because Papyrus was the one to say so, Sans believed him. 

Chapter Text

——— Stretch

“IF SANS’ AGE IS THE ONLY REASON YOU FEEL BAD RIGHT NOW, I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED IN ALL OF YOU,” his younger, happier self had stated boldly. 

Stretch didn’t need to be a judge to feel the weight of everyone’s collective sins against Sans, who had apparently ditched his stripes way too soon. They really screwed this one up.

Sans was a kid huh? That… made so much sense that he probably deserved moron of the year. 

Of course Sans was a kid. Not a baby bones certainly, but young enough that he should have at least noticed. Sans was short as hell, for one. He barely had half of Blue’s bone mass and magic density, despite being a variant of Blue. Maybe if he had actually taken in these factors instead of acting rashly, this whole situation never would have happened.

Upon entering this world, he had mistakenly deduced Sans as a threat. He had checked Sans instantly. He had seen the whole “The easiest enemy. Can only do 1 damage,” bullshit as a trick. After all, it was one of his favorite tricks to do. 

As the Judge of his underground, you get some fun perks. Seeing monsters’ stats? Sure cool as heck. Hiding your own stats entirely? Closer, but very suspicious in battle. Changing it to look like you’re not a threat to begin with in a battle? Gotcha. 

Monsters were after all, made of Creativity, Dreams, and Wonder. Make the fight seem boring and predictable and they’d probably lose all interest. 

He’d been chill with this Sans being a liar. Not bothered at all. He was completely okay seeing a smaller, more apathetic version of the skeleton who raised him. A version of his bro who lied to everyone. Even to his own younger Papyrus…

Nah, actually, he’d flipped the hell out. 

Stretch admittedly… Might have projected a bit too hard on Sans and had done the only thing that had made sense upon meeting the kid. 

He had let Blue do his protective brother routine, letting him go full Karen-mode on Sans. Blue had assumed the machine bringing them to this world was just a truly terrible attempt at kidnapping Stretch. 

Yeah, kidnapping the 226-year-old. Stretch hasn’t been in stripes for over a century and Blue apparently still thought folks might be out to get him. It had actually been a bit funny to watch the yelling match between the two. 

Stretch had been so fascinated that Blue’s “quirk” hadn’t flared up that he belatedly realized why. 

Blue saw Sans as… well, Blue. Despite all the fuss and dramatics, Blue was relaxed. His guard must have down because he subconsciously recognized that the other doubles were as harmless as them. 

Which meant that if Blue’s “quirk” wasn’t looking out for him, it would be up to Stretch to deal with any and all potential threats to Blue. 

The next day or so later when he finally had gotten Sans alone, Stretch had done what anyone who was a threat to his bro had coming. 

He had pinned Sans with a bone attack, and threatened in no uncertain terms that if any harm came to his brother, he would rip Sans’ soul right out of him. 

Which was probably the most fucked up thing you could say to a monster. An adolescent monster. Which he hadn’t known at the time but… uh… He… yeah, he deserved all of younger him’s ire. 

Hell, he was pissed at himself just thinking about it. 

To think that Sans actually only had one HP… and he could have… They should have been so much more careful. He should have… what if he had…

The mix of emotions rattling around in his own soul was a bit much to process any more at the moment. So, taking a break from his own emotions, Stretch let himself take in everyone else’s reactions instead.

One glance toward Mutt confirmed that the echo candy he’d seen Mutt pop into his mouth just before dinner was certainly hitting him at the worst time. 

The skeleton’s eye lights were wide and mildly confused, as if processing things on a delay. The furrow between his sockets, though, clearly indicated a mix of conflict that Stretch was certain spelled trouble for the dog treat stash later. 

Which… uh… no.

He felt bad for the guy but not “yeah come steal my smokes” bad. Especially now he knew how young Mutt was too. Seriously, was he the only Papyrus over a hundred in this house?

Sighing, Stretch scratched his skull and looked away from the conflicted space case. Whatever reaction Mutt was having, he was sure he’d hear all about it soon enough from the kid. 

He wasn’t sure why Mutt had deemed Stretch the only tolerable skeleton outside of Fox, but he was glad he hadn’t apparently traumatized both of the unexpected kiddos. 

Speaking of Mutt’s counterpart though… It wasn’t often Fox would be surprised enough to openly broadcast his emotions like this. He must have been pretty damn rattled because his expression, which was normally inscrutable, was the embodiment of open focus.

Fox had eyes only for Papyrus, and had his hand gripped tight to his own chest, perhaps actually experiencing emotions. Which… wow. Stretch wasn’t previously sure if Fox had those. 

Fox seemed to take Papyrus’ chastising to the soul, so yeah, good for him. Stretch took note but quickly averted his gaze, since looking at Fox was an overall uncomfortable sensation. 

Seeing his brother’s skull with scars and dead eye lights would never stop being awful. Fox had tells and mannerisms so similar to his bro’s that Stretch thanked his lucky stars daily that his universe had been kind to Blue.

Well. Kinder than whatever the hell made Fox into… Fox, and not Blue. 

Looking at Red was probably a safer bet, actually. An interesting one, to say the least. Red was, after all, just a beefed-up, angry, crass Blue. He’d seen Blue angry plenty of times in his life, and he loved Blue dearly, but teasing his bro with riddles until he squeaked was the highlight of his days. 

Blue liked to pretend he didn’t get angry, so it was all the more hilarious when he did. Red, however, made no illusions that he wasn’t built like a truck and could get angry like it was his job. He’d yell and say things in Blue’s voice that he’d never dreamed he’d hear the actual Blue say. Truth be told, he knew Blue tried to steer Stretch away from Red because of that fact. 

Red was quiet now, though. Still and solid like a concrete wave breaker in the ocean. 

They all watched Papyrus leave the room in silence, no words able to fix the moment.

Red finally moved. A deep sigh was visible from the movement of his shoulders. “I’m goin t’ go with Edge to see if we can sort dis shit out.”

When he turned, his eye lights were brimstone and fire. 

“YOU,” Red snarled turning to face Blue, “ARE GOIN TO FIX THIS BEFORE I GET BACK.”

Yeah, no one talked to Blue like that. Stretch moved to- well he wasn’t sure yet - do something, probably - when familiar bones gently touched his and…

He looked at his brother’s skull and winced. Oh, Blue… 

——— Blue 

Sans had looked so small and Blue was the monster who had caused that fear in his eye lights. 

Papy was a real gentle-bones trying to defend him, but he was more than capable of accepting the consequences of his own… failures. 

As a rule of distal phalanx, Blue usually never failed. He simply made questionable decisions that led to opportunities to better himself and reach success sooner. 

In this particular instance, he had not just failed, but he also fucked up really bad. And he was oh so really, really, really sorry. Oh gosh he needed to tell Sans how sorry he was. For not actually being magnificent when it really counted. 

Magic was building at the corner of his sockets, and he’d cry if he kept that train of thought, and it would worry Papy and, and this couldn’t be about him right now. 

He’d been selfish enough about this entire situation. This had all been because he was so selfish… 

Blue had mistakenly assumed Sans had been like him… He’d been in his 30’s and studying in Hotland when he heard his father had taken what would be his last boat trip with his youngest son in his arms.

No one had known how long his father had been on the verge of falling down, only that he’d been distant. No one had seen the signs: the isolating, the longer boat trips, the lack of spark. Even Blue had been clueless of his Father’s decreasing HP.

Everyone had asked Blue if he had known. He should have known. His father had even told him it was the number one cause of death for their kind. Something about living longer than most monsters having emotional tolls. 

In Blue’s professional opinion, his father hadn’t been that old! Sure, he had fought in the war, but his father was always smiling and joking… Even when his mother went, his father had said it was alright, that she had wanted Papy enough that his birth was still a day of love. That her HP lived in their children. 

His father had seemed so hopeful, and yet…  Papy was still found alone in a dusty boat drifting down the river. 

Blue had dropped everything to come home for Papy. No amount of advanced education or rebellion was ever worth more than his brother not being alone. 

Stretch… Papyrus, his Papyrus had been, well, a stretchy happy baby bones of joy. And suddenly, Blue had gone from carefree rebellious older brother - not even a full adult by skeletal standards himself - to Stretch’s only guardian. 

And he had been scared. Not that he had let it show. He was really good at acting, and improv had always been his favorite part of acting. So, he took the role of older, responsible, and best brother. After all, there was no way anything less than the best would be anywhere close to what Stretch deserved. He had to be… Magnificent.

And he had done his best. His nights were filled with parenting, health, and life advice books, and his days were filled with making Papy as happy as he could. 

Especially considering it was just him. Sure, it was physically impossible to not be near other monsters living in the capital, but everyone had their own problems, and Blue could never bring himself to bother them. 

It wasn’t until they made the move to Snowden years later, and their dramatic introduction to Muffet, that Blue had even gotten an occasional babysitter. 

Parenting was hard. Parenting while also trying to be a brother and not replace your dead father’s memory some days felt impossible. 

All this time later, even with Papy grown and capable of being his own monster, Blue could tell he’d never stop looking out for Stretch. Not until he was dust and stars. 

Blue had thought that if Sans had been struggling to raise Papyrus to seventeen, then he was in for a world of surprise when the journey didn’t end with the stripes, let alone the seemingly arbitrary, human-defined eighteen. 

Skeletons lived longer than a lot of other boss monsters, so much so that they encouraged young bones to explore and enjoy youth to its upmost. 

There was always more to learn, sure, but cultivating your magic and stats in your first century was so important for a young skeleton’s health. So much so it was encouraged for guardians to keep youths in stripes for as long as you could for the first century. 

Granted, most young skeletons tried to ditch them around whatever time their monster peers did. No one wants to wait decades to join their friends in adulthood. 

It could be incredibly problematic to do so though, for numerous reasons. A big factor was that most skeletons didn’t have enough excess magic to hit full sexual maturity until their sixties at the earliest, so dating was incredibly off the table before then.

The other big issue was the fact that skeletons were the result of relations between Boss Monsters and Mages before the war, which meant that although their physical forms were more solid than most monsters, the core of magic that made them who they were was slow to develop. If not nurtured with strong magic and not shown the core traits a monster needed to grow, a young skeleton monster might grow up to have… quirks, to put it nicely.

Blue had been one of those rebellious youths, removing his stripes around the age of twenty-five, much to his father’s distress. He had wanted to go live on his own and experience the big capital of New Home to its fullest. He’d been so eager to be his own monster. No matter the cost…

Papy, the sweetheart, was thankfully the opposite. He cried at the idea of adulthood when Blue had gifted him his first solid color shirt. Blue had been confused as hell until Stretch admitted he thought Blue was kicking him out. Stretch had said he couldn’t imagine a life without his older brother by his side.

Needless to say, that earned Stretch another week of stripes and the reassurance that Blue would never kick him out, and always be his brother. 

The point was… Raising a Papyrus is no joke. It could be hard, and frustrating, and you’d never get awards for it. It’s a lifelong commitment, and Blue had thought it was one Sans had no desire to embrace with all he had. He thought offering to raise Papyrus was a mercy on Sans - a way out for a skeleton who wasn’t ready to handle the responsibility.

What a fool Blue had been. Turns out, Sans was probably stronger than Blue thought himself capable of.

“I’M NOT SURE SANS WILL WANT TO SEE ME RIGHT AWAY…” Blue admitted solemnly. “BUT I CAN START PLANNING ON A WAY TO EXPLAIN THIS TO HIM AS GENTLY AS WE CAN.”

“Leave Explaining To Me,” Fox spoke up, his skull back to being stoic, a completely blank canvas once more. “He’ll Be Too Upset To Want To Talk To You At All. Mutt And I Can Handle Damage Control. You May Start Drafting Your Apology.” 

Irked, Blue’s gaze was sharp, “YOU KNOW I TOLD HIM YOU HAD SIMILAR PLANS TO MINE, FOX. HE MIGHT NOT WANT TO TALK TO YOU EITHER.”

Fox looked unbothered, summoning a bone attack for no good reason other than to add it to his look, leaning against it like a cane. “Is That What You Assumed My Plan Was? Hm.” Fox’s eye lights lingered on his phalanges before flicking to Blue. “Though Sans’ Age Is A Shock Even To Me, Is It A Surprise To Anyone That I’ve Already Formulated A Plan?” 

Blue sighed, too mentally drained from his failure to really argue against Fox. Blue had nothing figured out yet and here was Fox only moments after disaster with a plan to save the day. Because of course he did. 

——— Fox 

Fox had no goddamn plan to speak of. And at this rate, even if he did, with how this evening had gone, he was certain it would be ripped to shreds by sunrise. 

“I don’t care whose plan you use; I just want this shit handled by the time I get back,” his barbaric counterpart - Red in specific - grunted. “Capiche?”

“Crystal.” Fox replied with a roll of his eye lights. 

Red, like the charging bull he was, gave no other warning before he left, stomping away.

Leaving Fox in the mayhem. The lower right of his femur ached something fierce. Turning, he put more weight onto the summoned bone for support, hoping his pivot appeared more like swagger than weakness. 

“As I Said Before, Mutt And I Will Handle First Contact.” And the sooner he got Sans on the same page, or at least an adjacent enough one, the sooner he could start parsing through the shreds of ‘what even was his life at the moment’. 

“Cuz Mutt looks ready for anything huh?” Stretch chimed in, drawing attention back once again to his drug-addled brother. 

And Whose Fault Is That, Fox barely resisted sneering. 

Stretch wasn’t fully to blame for his brother’s habit, but the walking chimney certainly didn’t discourage it. 

Fox was well aware of what they must all be thinking now: either that Fox had zero control of Mutt, or that he was unaware of his sub-century brother’s love of echo flower. They surely must be thinking that he hadn’t tried to get his brother to use alternative coping mechanisms. 

They probably assume that Fox is a bad brother. Well, then. 

These “Swap” brothers could think whatever they like. Those buffoons were ignorant of the costs of a savage world, and frankly not worth a single ounce of his effort. 

They never had reason to doubt love and trust. Their softer, and quite frankly unrealistic worlds left them unguarded and overly accepting. By now, Fox had more than figured out that the majority of them were privileged beyond repair, them having known their brothers since birth. 

He certainly didn’t get such a luxury. No, life was much too cruel for that. Instead, he had to follow reports of a, “Food stealing, dumpster diving mutt” in backwoods Snowden. He spent days hunting this Mutt like a wild animal, patella-deep in snow following three-day-old tracks, and to find what at the end of this tedious goose chase? A child. A skeleton child that cemented proof in his mind that he hadn’t known his dusted father. At. Fucking. All. 

They were lucky his Papyrus wore clothing these days and they wanted to judge him? No one could understand having been oh so utterly failed by life more than his brother. Feral and snarling in a dumpster and his only guardian and chance at a proper life was Fox? 

He certainly hadn’t felt made out of any ounce of ingenuity when he had retrieved Mutt at the cost of his newfound brother clamping his jaw into his femur, fracturing the bone. Not that that was his worst injury by far, but certainly one of the most preventable.

Nor had he felt his supposed wisdom, as he dealt with Mutt constantly trying to dust him altogether during their first few weeks. If he hadn’t already been accustomed to living in constant paranoia, Mutt might’ve actually done so.

He honestly blamed the curiosity part of a monster’s soul contents for most of his life’s impulses. Fox had never been able to leave well enough alone, not even when it took the form of a hissing, spitting child. Captain of the Royal guard, brother of a feral, illiterate ingrate. Life really was just like that in his world. 

Before, he was certain that Sans was both insanely stupid and lucky in his privilege of getting to raise a domesticated Papyrus, but now, his world was shaken. 

Papyrus wasn’t tame because he hadn’t necessarily not been a dumpster diving mutt, but because there had been a slightly older, less feral pup in the dumpster with him, teaching him to act civilized. 

Or, well, this metaphor really was getting away from him... 

The fact of the matter was that this was not the first time life had thrown inadequately raised skeletons his way, but it would be the last if he got any say in the matter. This world apparently was capable of cruelty and unfairness, and it simply disguised itself in a different font. He could work with that.

Fox had been stressing for the past month or so on how to enact his plans precisely as to not alert the others. Within a week of first arriving, he had known what would need to be done to ensure the most optimal outcome for his and his own brother’s sake. 

He had no plans to leave this malleable world. When discovering the brilliant striped gem that was this world’s version of Mutt, he had been all the more certain of it. In his stress and delirium, he hadn’t properly assessed the factors he was previously sure of. 

Arrogance had led him to believe that Sans had been a possible adversary not to be taken lightly. He had been so worried that this world’s Sans held an inch of the LV and cunning Fox had flowing inside him with each breath that he hadn’t given him a chance. 

Now that he knew the truth… That he had failed to notice that Sans was simply yet another misguided stray, his plans… well…

Well… Actually. 

As a matter of fact, now that he thought about it, it really changed his plans quite little.

With some minor adjustments… If anything, it might actually make things a bit easier.

Instead of taking one new skeletal charge under his wing…

“UM… FOX??” Blue asked uncertainly, gaining his attention. 

Oh, yes, Stretch had insulted his brother. That’s right.

Fox lingered his empty eye sockets in Stretch’s direction only a second longer than necessary before turning to address Blue, “Do Your Part In Apologizing To Sans, And If You Wish To Discuss Future Plans Of Action, They Can Be Handled Later.”

Preferably never, but Fox could be reasonable and generous when he wanted to be. 

“Mutt,” he spoke curtly, loud enough to gain his brother’s attention quickly. Without waiting for a response, he began to leave for his brother’s room, wondering if perhaps any stores were open this late. “Follow,” he commanded.

Even when higher than Queen Toriel’s throne, Mutt reacted instantly to the order.

Like the well-trained hound he was. 

——— Mutt

Mutt was going to kill Stretch. “Hardly any Echo in ‘em” his Coccyx. 

That whole pompous dinner, he had been waiting for the candy to kick in. It got to the point that he’d nudged Stretch under the table complaining, and he had replied absentmindedly by handing him three more. 

The fucker absolutely had to have known exactly what he was doing. 

Mutt liked echo cuz it kept him calm and reasonable when the world around him went Hee Hee for Temmie Flakes crazy. 

Changing worlds hasn’t exactly been an easy transition here. It was an odd experience walking outside, knowing he had enough LV in his bones to dust half the monster population without breaking a sweat. And yeah, maybe his LV urged him to do it too.

But for reasons beyond his understanding, even after being shown blatant disrespect, and being more stressed than ever before, his lord hadn’t given the order. 

He hated this world. He hated this house, and he hated how he was currently walking but couldn’t feel his legs moving.

Fox was clearly distracted, his clever mind whirring from… From whatever the fuck that clusterfuck had been. It made him both tired and angry in the same slurred-together thought. 

This whole day was awful, with his lord using his limited days off from his current job just to cater to the whims of the perfect Papyrus. Taking him to the park, driving him to multiple stores to get the perfect balloons. Placing streamers up in the stupidly high ceiling of the dining room. 

Anything for the perfect one. A version of Mutt unscarred and shining. Yet oh so clueless. 

So what if this version of him was in stripes? Didn’t he have working eye lights? Could he not see the stress his spontaneous nature caused Fox, how his vulnerability and unsupervised goings made his lord hyper vigilant. 

Not once since they arrived in this world had he seen Fox relax. He hadn’t seen Fox grin or issue challenges to lesser monsters. Fox hadn’t even had a chance to worry about himself and find this world’s equivalent of Doc Dyne to look into his chronic pain. 

It was all this world’s Sans’ fault really. Or… He had thought it was… and now… 

Now he really wished he was sober enough to know what he thought now. 

Fox guided him to his room, motioning Mutt to step inside instead of joining him. 

“Sober Up Mutt. You Will Be Needed In The Morning,” Fox said bluntly, yet hesitating in his departure. 

That was the other thing he hated about this world. His lord had been treating him differently ever since they had been taken from home.

Fox wasn’t like his other counterparts. He had never doted on Mutt, never went out of his way to show affection or say an “I love you”. Even Red, who was from a world just as harsh as theirs, would praise and soften around Edge. Red called Edge “Bro.”

This world’s Queen Toriel had been the first to ever directly address his and Fox’s relationship; when she dubbed them the “Swell brothers.”

Mutt wasn’t Fox’s brother. He was his servant, his poorly made investment. He owed his lord everything while having nothing to give but his absolute devotion. And this world called them brothers? Made Fox doubt himself and his position above Mutt? It was the worst kind of anti-joke. 

What did Fox call his brother? Nothing, because he didn’t have a brother. He only had a Mutt instead. 

“Good Night, Mutt,” his lord spoke, as if uncertain. Uncertainty wasn’t Fox. Fox was mind games, deceit-filled tricks, grueling training, and hard-earned praise. 

So Mutt shut his door without reply. Granting his lord the Mercy to not lower himself any further. 

Flopping onto his mattress, Mutt stared at the ceiling, determined to make processing any of tonight’s revelations tomorrow Mutt’s problem. 

For now, he was content to be stoned and alone. 

——— Edge 

It took Red ten whole wasted minutes to join him in the car. 

Ten whole minutes of Edge as still as can be, his hands firmly on the steering wheel and his soul roaring inside his chest, burning with determination and consoling his fear. 

To be courageous was not to be without fear. It was to face your fear and bitch slap it into submission. 

The passionate inferno of rage in his soul burned bright. 

Too long had he been complacent in this world’s ways. His world was the “worst” and most “savage” of the lot. Full of EXP hungry monsters and wrong in every conceivable way. 

His Asgore was a tyrant. He ruled with an iron fist and dusted anyone who dared question his authority. His rule was certain and indisputable. 

This world was “correct” and “kind”. This was the “safe” and “good” place to be. Their Asgore was beloved by all who met him, and supposedly a pacifist to boot. 

And yet. If this world was so good, and his was so bad, how was it that they fucked up so badly? His tyrannic, murderous, and vicious king was hated and loathed by all, sure, but he had rules. Rules enforced by his royal guards, the most trustworthy and bloodthirsty he could find. 

The most noteworthy of them being, “YOU DON’T FUCK WITH STRIPES.” 

Sure, there were ignorant stupid fucking idiots who might try to hunt for stripes for easy EXP, but most, if not all, knew that anyone moronic enough to try would be smears in the concrete by morning. 

More often than not, they were publicly executed by the king himself. If they didn’t receive such an honor, then Undyne the executioner would gladly take up arms. 

It was, unfortunately, a necessity to keep them all in line, or else they’d have dusted each other into extinction years ago. 

This world though... This “KINDER” and “SOFTER” Asgore was apparently nothing more than a bumbling fool. 

Perhaps it was truly different in this world, but Edge was fed up with nuance. Being the Judge of the underground was an unceasing duty, one he had watched his brother carry out. It was no easy feat to be summoned to uphold justice by judging monsters down to their very soul. 

The weight of being unable to rest until final judgement of the accused’s sins had been served… He had seen how it wounded Red, the pain his brother carried in his soul for every sin cleansed. No one had witnessed more executions than his brother. Too unworthy to kill the accused himself, but too valuable to the king to be replaced. 

Despite the horrors of the job, monsters who wished for the king’s favor would target the Judge. They’d stupidly assume that by killing his brother, they would gain his title. It’s why Red had avoided home while Edge was small. Growing up, Edge had scarcely been aware he even had an elder brother while he lived with him. It wasn’t until he had been dealt with that Edge became Red’s problem instead. 

Edge had grown up watching Red be hunted like a hound and haunted by his burden. It was why he had known he needed to grow into the great and terrible monster he was now. 

No other monster could compare, and no other monster dared touch a single soul under his protection. 

Edge had tried to be indifferent to Sans’ existence. After all, this world’s royalty had made it very clear that he and his brother were simply too violent for most to handle. Like none of their violence was justified. As if being abducted from one’s very world, from one’s own home, was a silly, frivolous thing to be outraged over. 

He hadn’t even been bothered by the fact Sans had defended against their initial attacks, though he most certainly would be looking into how a baby bones from a peaceful world had learned to dodge that well. 

Edge had given it his all to not care about how the young Papyrus would run himself to exhaustion in an all too familiar façade for his brother. He had tried not to intervene in the life of the sleep-deprived older brother who frightfully resembled his own, only in miniature stature. 

And yet. He would bend, offering help to the overwhelmed youth who had looked truly lost in the kitchen. He would choose Mercy when any other monster who dared startle him before would be as good as dust beneath his boots. 

He had thought these allowances were fine, that he could remain fully uninvolved because this world was the better one. This world was the safer one where the biggest issues children feared were bad grades, and the biggest danger to this world’s resident brothers was himself. 

Tonight had thrown all this out the fucking window. 

This was not Edge’s world, but he was a skeleton of standards and capable of truly horrendous things. As the captain of his own Majesty's royal guard, he had never known his path so clearly. 

This world’s Asgore had taken advantage of a skeleton who by all means should still be in stripes, and Edge…

Oh, Edge was going to make him pay for that. 

——— Red 

Edge seriously needed to chill THE FUCK out. 

Sure, they were on their way to give Asgore the old one, two “wake the fuck up” but even he knew trying to dust the king of all monsters was a dumb ass plan.

The monsters here were “nicer” sure, but he was pretty damn certain those human souls they used to break the barrier didn’t just spawn into existence. 

You didn’t just accidentally kill six humans now, did you? 

So, they were gonna have a nice lil’ chat with the old goat, but dust him? More than likely not. 

He understood why the big boss was so angry given his own history with stripes, but Red knew that once Edge calmed down, things would go much smoother. 

Back home, he might have kept his head down and let Big Boss sort his own emotional shit out. But uhh… unfortunately the mandatory therapy shit that Frisk kid pushed this world’s Asgore for had actually been helping them out a lot.

“We can’t actually dust him yah know,” he spoke up as Edge drove them down the empty night streets. 

“NO.” Edge replied sharply. “DON’T BOTHER ME, OR SPEAK SENSE TO ME RIGHT NOW.”

Ah, so at least his bro knew he was being dumb. Cool. Great even. It meant they were just gonna sit here in angry silence and Red would actually have to process how the fuck to handle this mess. Yeah. Just… uh…  just great. 

“ . . . “

Nah, they needed music or some shit. He began flipping through radio stations at low volume before he settled on one of his bro’s newest favorites. 

He turned that shit up. 

They were halfway through the opening of Bohemian Rhapsody when his bro’s stiff posture began to relax. Yeah, that’s right bitch, who knew how to calm a Papyrus? This guy. 

By the time they had hit freeway, they were delightfully speeding, and Big Boss was singing while Red broke out his old air guitar. It was a bit rusty, but the grin on Edge’s face made him positive his brother might have joined if not for actively driving. 

“-ANY WAY THE WIND BLOWS…”

Red was about to lose his mind when Crazy Train, another one of their new favorites, came on next on the radio, but Edge turned the volume down and sighed. 

“SANS, DO YOU THINK I’M STUPID?” 

Oh shit. This was one of the vulnerability moments he’d been warned about. He had this. 

“I mean, no more than anyone else boss.”

Fuck’n nailed it. 

Edge glared at the road, sending a halfhearted swipe in Red’s chuckling direction. “I’M TALKING ABOUT IN REGARDS TO LITTLE YOU. HOW DID SOMETHING NOW SO SEEMINGLY OBVIOUS ESCAPE MY NOTICE?” 

“Well for starters, ‘nilla ain’t me,” Red grumbled. It was the understatement of the year if he was being real. The argument from this morning was just more evidence. 

Where Red was from, bringing family up in a simple verbal exchange was begging for a brawl. Little Vanilla had no way of knowing Red and Edge were on the best terms they’d been on in decades, but the insinuation that Boss hated him had still hit too close to home. 

Cuz oh boy did he and Big Boss fight through the years together. Even back when Big Boss was known as Lil’ Boss. 

“I HATE YOU, I DON’T KNOW WHY YOU’RE EVEN HERE!”

“I LIKED MY OLD CLOTHES BETTER, I DON’T WANT NEW ONES!”

Sad, confused eye lights and a skeleton way too small to be in solid colors. “WHY CAN’T I GO TO SCHOOL ANYMORE??” 

 .

Don’t. 

 .

“Because Pops was worth a lot of EXP, kid…”

. . . 

The past was better left in the past. No point in thinking about way back then, actually. 

“Secondly,” Red continued his previous train of thought, “Everyone avoids us like the plague, Boss. We only found out our house arrest was lifted two months back when our out-of-bounds snowball fi- training, didn’ instantly alert the royal guards. They don’ tell us shit, so they can’t be mad when we know next to nothin’.” 

Edge thought on this. “WELL, I AM MAD WHEN WE KNOW NEXT TO NOTHING. WE COULD HAVE HANDLED THIS SITUATION SO MUCH SOONER.” 

Red scoffed, “Okay. But what difference would knowing have actually made?”

Slowing for a stop light, Edge turned to give Red the single bone brow raise, “WE COULD HAVE BEAT UP WHIMPY ASGORE SOONER???”

“And then what?” Red huffed, looking away from Edge and outside the side window, “Take charge and responsibility for them? Teach ‘em how to be real big bones?? Play house and play nice, all for some lil’ shits who want to toss us back in a world that wants to kill us?”

Edge was quite for a minute. “DON’T PRETEND IT DOESN’T BOTHER YOU TOO, BROTHER.”

Pretend that what doesn’t bother him?

The fact that once again he found himself the oldest skeleton around when the world had thrown more baby bones in the trash?

The fact that even when he’s been actively trying to change to fit into this stupidly naïve bullshit world, he’s still too rough and too broken to be allowed to stay?

How about the fact that he thought he and Vanilla were on the same page about being bullshit dirtbags, but apparently Sans was just a kid trying his best, and Red remained the worst guardian in the room. 

Yeah, he had resented Vanilla for looking apathetic and was hoping a blunt call out might remind the guy to put effort in, but instead he’d been rubbing habanero in the fucking wound. 

“It doesn’t bother me, Boss,” he lied. 

Edge snorted, “SIGH. OF COURSE YOU’D SAY THAT IT DOESN’T-…” he drummed his phalanges on the steering wheel. “WELL, IT BOTHERS ME A LOT… AND I THINK IT WOULD DO US BEST TO REMEMBER WHAT DOCTOR GRIZZLY WOULD TELL US-“

Oh this son of a bitch, “don’t bring the doc into this bro, it’s un-bear-able to think of-“

“THAT WE AREN’T BAD MONSTERS.” Edge countered like a blade, not even slowed down by Red’s hilarious pun. “JUST MONSTERS WHO HAVE DONE VERY BAD THINGS… MONSTERS WHO WERE TAUGHT TO HURT.”

“Aren’t we on our way to hurt someone right now?” Red asked. 

“YES, BUT THIS ONE DESERVES IT. THE POINT IS!!! WE OBVIOUSLY CAUSED ISSUES WITH MINIMAL EFFORT; IMAGINE HOW GREAT OF AN IMPACT WE COULD HAVE FOR THE BETTER WITH EFFORT!”

“Ah nah bro plz don’t say-“

“SANS I WANT TO HELP THE BABY BONES.” Edge declared, unaware of the pit it caused in Red’s nonexistent gut. “BOTH OF THEM.”  

Oh, stars he said it. Of course, his bro would say it… Yeah, he was snitching about this to the doc next session. 

“They ain’t going to accept our change of heart right away.” Red warned.

“I KNOW.”

“And we’ll probably have ta apologize for shit we don’ remember say’n.”

“I’M AWARE.”

His last-ditch effort, “You’ll probably get attached to them.” 

“. . . I Shall Risk It.” Edge admitted softly. 

Well, damn it. “Alright alright, have it your way. Not that you need my blessin’ or some shit for this, you kinda just do as you want anyways.”

“OBVIOUSLY.” 

Red put his skull in his hands. He was too old for this shit… This was going to go so badly. Red was no soft, comforting guardian. His very existence was offensive as shit in this world. 

There was no way it would go well… Ugh. But hell if Boss didn’t look determined as fuck to try. So… fuck. Guess they were really gonna do this. 

Edge never really got to be a stripes, and Red never really properly raised one. Not the friendly correct way at least… Boss wanted to give it a go though… so… 

Fuck it. Maybe these old bones could learn one more trick. 

——— Papyrus

Papyrus sat on his race car bed., discarded day planner retrieved from the garbage and now ruefully in his grasp. 

Staring at the opened half-torn page, he sighed deeply. 

Operation: BROTHERS PLURAL had been a bust. A disaster even. 

He didn’t know how he had mucked things up so much. Or, well… it was fairly obvious now. 

He had been so caught up in the notion of a big happy family coming together at last, he had forgotten the most important thing. The family he had. 

If he didn’t already know Sans would fight him on it, he’d beg his brother to take the full night off. Tomorrow he’d call out of school for the day, as it would technically be a family emergency. 

He’d let Sans have a lazy day and they could watch movies… maybe then he could show Sans the movie that was to blame for this whole mess…

Really, that animated surfing movie with the little blue space monster, finding home amongst humans was to blame. 

His new surface school had hosted a movie night on the track field. In the beginning, most of his fellow students chatted over the first bit, more excited to be hanging out than watching. It was only when Papyrus admitted to not having seen most surface movies, let alone this one, that they all got quiet. 

Someone requested to the overseeing staff that they restart the movie, and they did. Only this time, everyone watched alongside Papyrus, passing him snacks and the screen nostalgic glances. 

By the end, The Great Popular Papyrus was nearly brought to tears, for he had learned ohana meant family, family meant no one got left behind, and some other line he had forgotten. 

Sans was the only family Papyrus had ever known. His earliest memories were of Sans, smiling and playing with his hands, and teasing Papyrus for having hands, as nonsensical as that sounds now. It was absurd and silly and had made him laugh. 

That was his brother after all, always looking for ways to bring laughter and joy to others. Always looking out for those in need, whether that meant providing them a home and food or just making sure Papyrus specifically always felt loved and encouraged. 

Papyrus was the way he was now because Sans had always encouraged him to be his truest self. To hope, to love, and to be an absolute nuisance whenever possible. 

It made him realize how selfish he’d been. Sans had taught him so much, and somehow Papyrus had no clue how else to help his brother. Sans was a gentle misunderstood monster, beloved by so many, yet truly distant from all but Papyrus. 

Papyrus had concluded that Sans needed an evil blue monster from outer space, but would probably have to settle for a dog. 

Then Red and Edge had shown up, and oh boy were they angry and violent and loud and just like in the movie!!! 

Blue and Stretch showing up was just icing on the cake! Mutt and Fox the cherry on top! 

Everyone had been so friendly to him, and he had been so overwhelmed with attention that he hadn’t even stopped to ask himself if these monsters were even worthy of Sans.

It was all quite troublesome and made his skull hurt. He wished he could ask Sans how to handle it… but he wasn’t a baby bones anymore, and Sans needed Papyrus to be there for him for once. 

He was positive he could do that. After all, tonight had proven something he had always suspected in his soul but couldn’t ever allow himself to think. 

If he didn’t look out for Sans… who would? 

——— ?????

Things were just getting depressing down here.

The latest population count came out in the paper the other day. His first instinct was to hide the damn thing from his brother, only for the tall bitch to grab the paper from behind him.

“Y’ah know maybe we should just skip right to the word search, skip the boring st-“

“I didn’t think it could get any worse…” was all he said.

Chapter Text

Undertale Brothers

Papyrus

Age: 17

Occupation: High school student

Soul traits: Hope, Compassion, Love

Sans’ phone contact: Best Bro <3 

Song inspiration: All Star - Smash Mouth. (Grabbing life by the bones, Papyrus makes the most of every chance he gets!)

Fun Fact: Papyrus is on his school’s track team! He initially intended to try out for every sport he could, but Sans encouraged his interest in track because it was a no contact sport. Papyrus’s favorite part of the sport is warm-up laps, because he likes keeping pace with his team and hearing the “Tea”.  

Sans

Age: 22

Occupation: MTT Housekeeping, Security Guard, ‘dog Salesman, Grillby’s Dishwasher/Prep Cook

Soul traits: Hope, Compassion, Love 

Sans’ phone contact: Sans S 

Song inspiration: Say I’m Not Sorry – SOCKiTTOME. (Sans has always been unapologetically himself for better or worse. Now that he’s stood his ground, he’s not going to be easily swayed to change)

Fun Fact: Sans and Papyrus are the only skeletons in the house to have been in a time loop (Not that Papyrus remembers). None of the others have had a human child fall in their underground as of the time frame they were taken from their worlds. The idea of warning them about their own possible time loops to come hasn’t even crossed his mind.

Swapfell Brothers

Mutt

Age: 88

Soul traits: Wisdom, Ingenuity, Curiosity 

Occupation: Florist

Sans’ phone contact: Bork Bork

Song inspiration: Rx (Medicate) -Theory of a Deadman. (Apathy + Angst = Mutt running from the found family trope)

Fun Fact: Mutt’s golden fang is from when he broke his tooth biting Fox’s Femur. He thinks it was made gold to be a reminder of where he came from. In actuality, Fox wanted it to be a sign of their collective wealth and status to other monsters.

Fox

Age: 328

Occupation: Funeral Home Attendant

Soul traits: Wisdom, Ingenuity, Curiosity

Sans’ phone contact: What The Fox Say

Song inspiration: Fox Hunt - Sierra Ferrell. (Is he the hunter or the hunted?)

Fun Fact: Fox enlisted in the Royal Guard of his world as soon as he was eligible to do so. He devoted his service to his world’s Queen Toriel with little desires of his own until Mutt came into the picture. He worried his divided attention would anger the queen, but she was oddly supportive of Fox taking Mutt in. Not knowing what she plans to gain from the situation keeps him up at night.

Underswap Brothers

Stretch

Age: 226

Occupation: Cyber Security

Soul traits: Dreams, Creativity, Wonder

Sans’ phone contact: Stretch 

Song inspiration: My Ordinary Life - The Living Tombstone. (A lazy fun beat going it's own way. That’s 100% Stretch)

Fun Fact: Stretch was the one to introduce Blue to their world’s Muffet. As a kid, Stretch would go to Muffet’s every day after school and dine and dash. It wasn’t until his collective bill hit triple digits that Muffet demanded to meet his guardian. Muffet and Blue became fast friends, while Stretch got a  excuse to go to Muffet's more often. Stretch claims it was all planned to this day.

Blue

Age: 264

Occupation: Cake decorator, Morning shift Baker

Soul traits: Dreams, Creativity, Wonder

Sans’ phone contact: Bleh

Song inspiration: Ninja Archer - Luke Cyrus. (Blue certainly is the hero in his imagination, but he always has good intentions. A little cringe, but he has fun and means well )

Fun Fact: When first meeting his world’s Alphys, Blue had intended to ask to join her anime club. However, when she approached him, he panicked and asked to join the Royal Guard instead. He’s been on the run from her tutelage ever since.

Underfell Brothers

Edge

Age: 199

Occupation: Unemployed

Soul traits: Determination, Courage, Passion

Sans’ phone contact: Lamb Sauce 

Song inspiration: Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen. (Dramatic and a bit much for some. Edge loves this song and I love it for him <3)

Fun Fact: Edge was just as bad at cooking as Papyrus when he first entered the current world. He realized he was a bad cook by noticing that Sans’ reaction to Papyrus’ bad cooking was very similar to Red’s reaction to his. He asked Stretch point-blank if his food was bad, and Stretch told him the truth. His YouTube history has been filled with cooking tutorials ever since.

Red

Age: 399

Occupation: Mechanic

Soul traits: Determination, Courage, Passion

Sans’ phone contact: Tyrannosaurus Red

Song inspiration: Brittle Bones Nicky – Rare Americans. (A song as rough as Red’s own life, though if you ask him his bones are stronger for it)

Fun Fact: Red only agreed to go to therapy if the therapist was a monster, hoping no monster would have gotten their surface credentials yet. Dr Grizzly is the reason Red doesn’t wear his collar anymore. The huge breakthrough for the brothers was when she had Red put the collar on Edge instead.

Chapter Text

Sans was standing in the true lab. It was one of the timelines where he had never let Frisk out of his sight. He’d followed them from afar before, but he’d never been quick enough to intervene when the kid changed their mind about the whole mercy thing. When Chara took over. 

So this time he’d stayed with them. From Snowdin’s door forward, he decided he’d walk with ‘em. Cracking jokes and keeping Frisk company, he was certain nothing bad would happen. And it seemed to be working…? 

Frisk hadn’t even tried to Fight a single monster yet, and with every dustless encounter, a heavy weight lifted off of Sans’ soul. 

No one had died. Yet. Or maybe this time nobody would. Either way… what would it hurt to be careful?  He just had to be certain… so, following Frisk around Alphys’ dark creepy lab it was. 

He was sure the kid was running around and playing with the amalgamations, yet Sans had somehow lost track of ‘em. Slippery lil’ thing.

Even in slippers, his footsteps echoed on the cold tile. He swore the cooling system must have been on overdrive again due to the low hanging fog that grew as he walked.

“Kid? Come on out, we uh, gotta get back to Alph.”

…But nobody came.

The hallway seemed longer than before, feeling endless and imposing. He could hear Frisk’s laughter suddenly echoing from somewhere down the hall. Creepy and comforting all at once. 

“Kiddo? Come on, don’t leave me out of a joke! Where’s the pun in that?” He called out with a chuckle of his own. 

Frisk’s laughter stopped, and instead he could hear a tinny sharp sound, slowly increase in volume. It was the labs old intercom system firing up with crackling static. Maybe Alphys had gotten tired of Frisk running around her lab and was gonna ask them to hurry back?

Only the static kept playing, on and on and on. No announcement to be heard. 

Sans had to blink his eye lights back when he realized they’d gone out. Nope. Nope nope nope. This was straight out of those awful human movies full of bad intent and negative emotions. Nope.

He tried to shortcut away, only to feel a thin spindly hand reach out and touch his shoulder.

NOPE.

Sheer panic had him forgoing his magic entirely as he began to run, the static growing louder and louder. The fluorescent lights above him began to flicker on and off. Short choppy sounds started to break through the static, but he paid no mind as he ran.

S- St———-ONT—ove—-ait—-us———-oon——-

The fractured message cut off as the lab alarm came roaring to life.

WARNING. WARNING. SYSTEM FAILURE. WARNING. WARN-

The alarm system blared louder, and louder, and- and he knew that sound.

The lights around him flicked off entirely, and the ground slipped from beneath him as he jerked into sudden awareness. 

It was just the sound of his alarm.

Grumbling in discontent, Sans awoke in a bundle of blankets that could only be the result of a Papyrus cocoon. Wiggling an arm free, he blindly reached his hand about until he found the alarm, silencing the screeching beast with a hefty smack. 

With a skill that only generations of love-filled puzzle- and trap-making could give, Sans escaped Paps’ blanket trap in record time.

Once free, he rubbed his sockets with a soul deep sigh. Losing base HP had a way of aching something fierce. He was sore and wanted nothing more than to crawl back into a blanket cocoon.

Yet money had to come from somewhere.

He quickly dressed in his security guard uniform. It was nothing too intricate: just the button up shirt that was too dang big for him with “security” embroidered right above where his name tag would go, and some simple slacks. He had to roll the sleeves up and tuck the rest of the shirt into his pants, but it still got the job done.

Sans went to leave his bedroom, only to catch his reflection in the wall mirror in a moment of hesitation. Slowly, his resting grin began to falter and he regarded himself uncertainly as the events of the previous day replayed in his mind. 

He had no idea how he was going to face anyone after yesterday. Sans wasn’t sure he had ever lost it on anyone like that. Even when facing murder children, he had kept it professional, like a pest removal service.

He’d never just… ugh… it was so embarrassing.

Cyan magic began to coat his cheek bones, and he tried to shake the expression away. 

No. He had nothing to worry about. He had stood his ground, and now they knew Sans meant business. This was his world, his rules, his bro. 

Life would go on as normal, he’d fix that dumb machine, and until then everyone could just go back to wanting nothing to do with each other. 

Relaxing at the thought, Sans schooled his expression back into a casual grin. “What am I even stressing over, not like they usually want anything to do with me anyway.” 

He gave his reflection a cheeky wink of the eye socket and declared himself ready to face the day. 

Carefully, Sans began to open his bedroom door, only to stop at the sight of… something blocking his path. What the-?

As gently and quietly as he could, he shut his door, walked to his bed, then shortcut to the hallway outside his room.

Uhhh… what the hell was he supposed to make of this?

Sitting in a kitchen chair, stationed right outside his door, was Fox. His sockets were closed and he seemed to be in a deep sleep, with some sort of white shopping bag in his grasp.

Well. This was weird and uncomfortable for so many reasons that Sans wasn’t sure where to start. So instead, he focused on the bag dangling in Fox’s loose grip.

Carefully leaning over, Sans could barely make out a bit of striped fabric peeking over the top of the bag. He snorted. So, another gift for Papyrus, huh? Probably trying to win Paps’ favor back after last night.

Jokes on Fox, blue and yellow weren’t either of Papyrus’s preferred colors.

Looking up at Fox, Sans debating messing with him in some sort of way. It would only be some fast-track karma, he tried to justify to himself.

Fox was roughly Blue’s size and shape, only with scuffs and visible scars on any bit of exposed bone Sans had seen on the guy. It was pretty clear even without seeing his LV that the guy had been through some pretty nasty fights. 

Which made it all the more jarring that Fox’s guard was currently entirely down. Fox must have been pretty damn tired to pass out while doing… Well, whatever the hell this was outside his room. He was certain any abrupt awakening would probably end in similar results to spooking Edge: bone attack to the face.

He’d have to be incredibly careful.

Performing the most careful and intricate setup he could, he left Fox’s slumbering form with a feeling of satisfaction.

Justice in the making.

He shortcut past the stairs and walked the rest of the way to the kitchen. The house was quiet and peaceful this late at night. It was easy to pretend he had the place to himself and Pap, like the good old days. 

His first pre-work priority was giving the coffee pot a very thorough wash before use. Monsters don’t have mouth bacteria the way humans do to have cooties, but Mutt as an individual was probably crawling with ‘em.

Oh wait. That gave him an idea.

Sans had just finished topping off a travel thermos with The Bean Juice of Life™ when he heard the front door begin to open a few rooms over.

He glanced at the stovetop clock and narrowed his eye lights. It was still very much the middle of the night.

Sans set his coffee down, feeling creeping suspicion. He tried to listen for distinguishing voices before remembering that they all have roughly the same voices, just in varying volumes and intonations. If they were whispering, it could genuinely be anyone.

So instead, he shrugged, flipping the kitchen light off so no one would think he was in here. Leisurely, he made his way to Blue’s food cabinet, grabbing exactly what he needed for Revenge Prank Two: Return of The Revenge.

There was a small chance that this would hit someone else besides Mutt, but Papyrus was safe regardless, so it would be a win either way.

He stared at the selection of taco hot sauce bottles with no real criteria in mind. Not wanting to waste too much time on this, he settled with just grabbing a bottle labeled, “The Last Xperience” with an indifferent shrug.

After violating the sanctity of the coffee pot’s brew system, Sans grabbed his coffee and slipped his way out of the house without any further issue.

The night was quiet and peaceful, the stars shining brightly and free of any possible light pollution. It would have been a great night to break his telescope out… now that would have been a great way to spend his birthday night.

Maybe by next year it’d just be him and Paps again. They could go camping somewhere fancy with a big lake or something. Star gaze and roast marshmallows like in the camping gear advertisements he’d seen in the waterfall dump.

The thought was peaceful, and he carried it with him as he walked. The majority of the stars disappeared with the quick step of a shortcut. The bright city lights around his job’s building left only helicopters and satellites visible in the sky. Welp. 

Work time.

His security job wasn’t really much to look at. Just a big ol’ warehouse used to hold shipment crates on constant rotation. During the day, the place had an influx of trucks being loaded and off loaded. During the night, they had Ebbot Barrier Security watching the place. 

Last he heard, the humans running the company were looking into rebranding, but Sans personally found it funny enough to apply as soon as he saw the name. 

He waved to the perimeter security guard, intentionally having shortcut into an area he could have possibly entered from normally. The last thing he needed to do was give poor Gertrude a heart attack.

The old human woman waved back with a friendly enough smile that made Sans wished the gal worked internal security instead. He’d trade his shift partner for Gertrude any day of the week.

Sans went through the motions. Get inside, clock in, get to the security office and hope he’d arrive before…

“Heartless monster,” Michael, his security partner, greeted without looking away from his sudoku puzzle.

“Soulless human,” Sans rebutted, making his way over to the main camera monitors.

Sans was a nice monster, the kind of guy who tried to give humankind the benefit of the doubt about not being complete assholes.

Michael was a horrible human, the kind of anti-monster hate-speech spreader that made it very hard for Sans to continue being a nice monster. Sans itched to Check the guy, but held back due to being unsure what he’d even do if the guy had high LV. 

“Too busy hiding under children's beds to show up to work on time, huh bud?” Michael grumbled. He was a middle-aged man with crow’s feet and salt and pepper hair. He looked like some kind of ex-military guy you’d see in explosion movies. 

“Nah, too busy helping convert humans to clean energy so they stop killing the planet,” he replied, slumping into his chair.

Michael’s response was to flip him the bird.

Sans gave him a thumbs up, pointedly turning his desk chair’s back to the guy.

Michael scoffed something about Sans getting what he deserves some day before going to go make his rounds. Which thankfully left Sans alone in the office.

When the door clicked shut at his exit, Sans let his scapula sink. There was something wrong with that human. If he hated Sans and monsters so much, why didn’t he just ignore Sans? Why’d the guy get himself so worked up, only to keep working with him. Dude was weird. 

He also smelt like musty peanuts.

Sans watched the unchanging screens with little to no interest, thoughts drifting from time to time to the machine. He passed a lot of his time at work either researching how parts of the machine could theoretically function, or further self-study in whatever subjects suited his fancy. A lot of what he knew about the machine had been purely based on trial and error, trying to make sense of the onboard operating system.

He hadn’t even gotten the damn thing to get past the booting process, but he swore that he was close to some kind of breakthrough. That is, if he was correct about it being stuck in a boot loop, and if the goal of getting to interface with it was considered a “breakthrough”. He wished with all his soul that it had some sort of Safe Mode, but given that it was a one-of-a-kind pain-in-the-coccyx machine, there weren’t exactly instruction manuals lying around.

He made a mental note to look up what a “boot loop” was.

Being self-taught, he kind of just picked up the technical jargon as he went. He tended to only look into progressing knowledge like that in subjects he actually cared about. Ask him about basic biology, geography, English, or history and he’d be lost as hell, but software engineering, multivariable calculus, astronomy and quantum physics? That was his stuff right there.

His attention somewhat returning to the job at hand, he’d occasionally get up and mindlessly do his rounds, whistling to himself.

He was a good few hours past his birthday and near the end of his shift thinking about a possible error in the machine’s wiring, when he felt his phone vibrate.

Ah, Paps was probably up by now. He pulled out his phone with a yawn.

Best Bro <3: GOOD MORNING BROTHER. I HOPE WORK IS GOING WELL. C:

Best Bro <3: WHY IS FOX OUTSIDE YOUR DOOR IN THE HALLWAY???

Best Bro <3: NO WAIT. 

Best Bro <3: I SEE THE BANANA PEEL. 0-0

Best Bro <3: EXCELLENT TRAP BROTHER!!!

Sitting up in his seat with a jolt, Sans went to quickly reply, but his bro had already responded again.

Best Bro <3: I DID NOT SEE THE MARBLES ON THE SECOND STEP DOWN THE STAIRS THOUGH! 

He winced.

Best Bro <3: OR THE SKATEBOARD ON THE BOTTOM!!! *O*

Sans S: shit, are you okay bro?!

A moment later, Papyrus replied.

Best Bro <3: I AM PERFECTLY ALRIGHT BROTHER! MY SCREAMS OF PERIL AWOKE BOTH RED AND FOX! 

Best Bro <3: THE NEXT THING I KNEW I WAS BACK ON TOP OF THE STAIRS WITH THEM FUSSING OVER ME BEFORE I COULD EVEN HIT THE LEGO PILE. :C

Sighing in relief, Sans, for once in his life, was grateful for Red. He must have shortcut Papyrus to safety while perhaps Fox yelled for Mutt or something. He wasn’t sure if Fox could shortcut or not, but given that Blue couldn’t, it was a safe guess.

Sans S: glad your alright. they weren’t mad at u were they?

Best Bro <3: NO. :T

Best Bro <3: AND IT’S “YOU’RE”, BTW :/

Best Bro <3: BUT I WAS INCREDIBLY SAD I DID NOT GET TO SEE THE CONCLUSION OF YOUR FIRST TRAP  ;~;

Best Bro <3: SO I PUSHED THEM BOTH DOWN THE STAIRS :D

Best Bro <3: YOUR TRAP WORKED BEAUTIFULLY BROTHER!!! I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!! o(≥u≤)o

Snorting, Sans’ hand flew to his teeth as he tried to imagine the look on Fox’s AND Red’s face as his “innocent” lil’ bro pushed them down the stairs.

Sans S: nah I’m proud of you pap. they mad now?

Best Bro <3: NO AGAIN >_>

Best Bro <3: THEY ARE TRYING TO TELL ME A GOOD SKELETON DOESN’T PUSH HIS ELDERS DOWN THE STAIRS 

Best Bro <3: I TOLD THEM THEY WERE OBVIOUSLY CORRECT BECAUSE THEY GOT PUSHED BY A GREAT ONE :D

Smiling, Sans moved to reply again when another line of messages began blowing up his phone, startling him. Fumbling to catch his phone, the screen locked, causing him to back out of Papyrus’s messages.

1 new message from (Lamb Sauce)

1 new message from (Bork Bork)

1 new message from (Bleh)

5+ new messages from (Best Bro <3)

Oh wow. He was uh… popular today… probably because of… yesterday? Yikes… Well, he might as well get this over with. Sighing, Sans decided to reply to Edge first. 

Lamb Sauce: WHERE ARE YOU?

Sans S: i’m at work rn

The reply was instant.

Lamb Sauce: WHY ARE YOU SELLING HOT DOGS AT SIX FIFTEEN IN THE AM

Despite himself, Sans chuckled at that.

Sans S: nah my other job

Lamb Sauce: WHAT OTHER JOB?

Lamb Sauce: I WAS NOT AWARE YOU HAD MORE THAN ONE

Lamb Sauce: WHY DO YOU NEED TWO JOBS SANS? 

Sans scoffed, reading the last message twice. Two jobs? The luxury that would be.

Sans S: money.

Lamb Sauce: ASGORE GIVES YOU MONEY. 

Sans S: no he doesn’t?

Lamb Sauce: DON’T WORRY. HE WILL. 

Sans S: uhhh wtf

Sans S: … Edge?

Sans stared in horror at his screen, wondering if a reply would come. It didn’t. Edge wasn’t serious about what he said about wanting to kill Asgore last night… was he?

Uneasily, he glanced at the cameras again before moving on and replying to Mutt next.

Bork Bork: control ur brother

Sans S: no

Bork Bork: why did u threaten Fox

Sans S: I didn’t

Bork Bork: u tried to injure him with a trap

Sans S: not really

Sans S: I figured he’d be annoyed by it at worst

Bork Bork: u told Papyrus to push him down the stairs 

Sans S: nah that was all pap

Sans S: I am proud of him tho <3

After another minute of no reply Sans gave up on that conversation. Yeah, screw you too buddy.

Sighing, he stared at his phone for a hard minute before reluctantly opening the next. He decided to get Blue out of the way as well.

Bleh: CAN WE TALK?

Sans S: Unless you’re going to apologize and admit you’re a stupid brother stealing jerkwad I don’t want to hear it. 

His phone was silent again, with about two solid minutes passing. Sans was about to go back to catch up on Papyrus’ texts when Blue finally responded.

Bleh: I AM A STUPID BROTHER STEALING JERKWAD AND I’M SO VERY VERY SORRY SANS.

Sans blinked in surprise. Blue must have pre-typed his messages as they were suddenly flying in all at once.

Bleh: YOU ARE RIGHT AND NOT ONLY DID I OVERSTEP MY BOUNDS AND TRY TO INSERT MYSELF INTO A SITUATION THAT I DIDN’T FULLY UNDERSTAND BUT WORST OF ALL I NEVER EVEN FULLY TRIED TO UNDERSTAND YOUR SITUATION. I WANTED TO TELL YOU THIS IN PERSON BUT I HAVE BEEN INFORMED YOU ARE OUT AND I NEEDED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT I WILL BE ON YOUR SIDE FOR UPCOMING EVENTS AND WHATEVER YOU DECIDE TO DO GOING FORWARD

Bleh: I AM SO VERY VERY SORRY SANS AND I PROMISE THAT NO ONE IN THIS HOUSE IS GOING TO TRY AND SEPARATE YOU FROM YOUR BROTHER. 

Bleh: ITS ALSO ALRIGHT IF YOU DON’T TRUST OR FORGIVE ME YET, I UNDERSTAND HOW THIS MUST ALL SOUND. I HAVE BEEN AWFUL, AND CRUEL AND HELD YOU TO A STANDARD THAT WAS IMPOSSIBLY TOO HIGH FOR ANYONE OF REALISTIC PROPORTIONS TO ACHIEVE. I WOULDN’T FORGIVE ME YET EITHER. I CAN ONLY HOPE THAT YOU AREN’T TOO DISGUSTED IN MY ACTIONS TO THROW OUT ANY CHANCES WE HAVE AT RECONCILIATION. 

Holy shit. And Sans thought Paps could send text walls. It took him a good minute to read through the texts, and even then, he had no idea how to reply. Well… so much for nothing coming of his outburst yesterday. 

Was Blue messing with him? No way any of that was real. On the odd chance it was real, what would he even say to that?

Yeah bud, you pushed me to a breaking point I wasn’t aware I had but we can be chill? I don’t forgive you but I’d be happy to work towards it? Life didn’t work like that… No matter how much the little Papyrus in his head argued it should.

Sans typed out several possible responses, deleting each in succession, before huffing in frustration and just sending:

Sans S: neat.

before he could change his mind.

. . . 

Neat?!? Of all the possible responses, he sent neat?!

Sans could see Blue start typing and quickly blocked the number, changing the chat to Papyrus’ instead.

His skull thunked against the security monitor desk. He took a moment to calm his soul before jumping back into Papyrus’ messages.

Best Bro <3: NOW STRETCH IS YELLING IN THE KITCHEN FOR SOME REASON ???

Best Bro <3: GROSS! HE JUST DRANK THE REST OF THE MILK DIRECTLY OUT OF THE GALLON 

Best Bro <3: I WANTED CEREAL D:

Best Bro <3: AS PROUD AS I AM OF YOUR SECOND TRAP WORKING I AM AFRAID IT HAS BACKFIRED AS NOW RED IS INCREDIBLY INTERESTED IN TRYING THE SPICY COFFEE

Best Bro <3: RED IS NOW ALSO CRYING xD

Best Bro <3: FOX WANTS TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE :/

Best Bro <3: I FINALLY GOT TO USE THE WEATHER BOY MEME YOU SHOWED ME!  :D!!!

Best Bro <3: BLUE… HE DRANK THE COFFEE WITHOUT A SINGLE WINCE BROTHER.

Best Bro <3: I’VE UNDERESTIMATED HIM FOR THE FIRST AND LAST TIME. .__.

Best Bro <3: APPARENTLY THEY WANT TO TALK BUT UNLESS IT’S AN APOLOGY FOR THEIR ATROCIOUS BEHAVIOR TOWARDS YOU I. DON’T. WANT. TO. HEAR. IT. :P

Best Bro <3: OH.

Sans S: oh what?

Sans S: bro you’re making me nervous, u good?

Radio silence. Paps was okay… Right? After far too long in his opinion, his phone buzzed once more.

Best Bro <3: I AM ALRIGHT BROTHER I WAS JUST NOT EXPECTING… WOWZA I’M NOT SURE HOW TO REACT AT ALL. OR IF I EVEN WANT TO HEAR THEM OUT.

Best Bro <3: WILL YOU BE HOME BEFORE I LEAVE FOR SCHOOL?

Sans could feel himself start to sweat as he nervously glanced at the clock.

Sans S: even with a shortcut I might just miss yah

Best Bro <3: DAMN IT

Sans sat up straighter. Paps never cussed if he could avoid it. Something about saving his swears for when he really needed them.

Sans S: you’re making me nervous bro are you okay? Do I need to leave early?

Best Bro <3: NO NEED TO WORRY BROTHER!! THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS IN NO MORTAL DANGER AND HAS COMPLETE CONTROL OF THE SITUATION (0.0;)d

Best Bro <3: NOW. IF YOU NEEDED TO HAVE SOMEONE OTHER THAN MYSELF REPRESENT YOUR CHARACTER WHO WOULD IT BE? <_<;

Sans would be eternally grateful that his brother was horrible at keeping secrets.

Represent him? Like in a trial? Was this the custody thing?!? Fuck he should have known he couldn’t trust them. 

Gathering his things quickly into his phone storage, Sans wished his last few shifts’ hours goodbye. Something was wrong and it looked like he had to go home.

He replied quickly with his go-to emergency contact for years.

Sans S: Call Grillby

Sans S: I’ll be home soon, leaving rn

Closing his phone, Sans bolted for the door.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Michael yells after him as Sans scurries down the hall.

Sweat already running down his skull and being no skilled runner, he still found he did have the breath to yell, “Your mom’s!” as he went to clock out.

At the front desk, Sans luckily saw his boss coming back from counting shipment inventory. Giving a quick explanation of a family emergency with his lil’ bro, he got the green light to head out that he didn’t need but appreciated.

It was the most cardio he’d had in resets and he was fairly out of breath by the time he waved to Gertrude. The older woman looked concerned, but returned the wave as Sans tried to book it out of her line of sight.

He overshot his shortcut, stumbling in the backyard of the house and faceplanting unceremoniously in the grass. His magic reserves felt nearly depleted. He desperately craved a nap. And a sandwich.

Sans lay there for a moment, willing his soul to calm and his breath to catch up. A part of him was screaming he wasn’t ready for this, the other part of him knew that for, Papyrus he’d have to be.

Okay… he had this. He just had to. Get up.

Get… up…

——— Stretch

Stars was that a mood.

Stretch watched out the backyard slider doors as Sans lay face down in the grass after having fallen victim to gravity.

Mentally, Stretch braced himself for Sans to get up and charge his way towards the house, only to watch as he, uh… just lay there.

Which, once again, mood. 

Stretch hadn’t slept at all last night. After everyone had parted ways, his brother included, Stretch had been left alone with his guilt and an overactive imagination. Too many things weren’t adding up.

Even if Sans considered himself grown, why hadn’t the other monsters of Snowdin perhaps informed Sans otherwise? Surely someone else had noticed Sans was far too young to be working, or even out of stripes? Did they all have some sort of hush pact? If so, how deep did the rabbit hole go??

Sans also didn’t act young in the slightest. Papyrus had the youthful energy expected of a skeleton in stripes, yet Sans carried himself with the maturity of a much older skeleton.

Had something happened to make him that way? Had they made him that way? As much as he tried to recall, he couldn’t scrape together many details of his initial interactions with Sans besides his own fears and aggressive threats. What if Sans had been a normal stripes before all of this?

Moreover, if Sans was a child, how had he built a machine capable of bridging the gap between universes to pull everyone into a singular reality??? He had seen the machine and looked it over a few times himself, and it truly was a beast of the highest caliber.

His thoughts had ticked and whirred like the very metal monstrosity that left him boggled as he lay in bed that night. Before he was even aware of his own actions, he had flipped on the lamp by his bedside, lit a smoke, and pulled out his sketchbook.

With each stroke of graphite on paper, he had let the confusion, guilt, and conflict leave his soul and spill onto the page.

Rusted gears turning in a lake of oil, skeletal hands growing from Snowdin pines, and silhouettes of giants looming over a lone boat left adrift in the water. 

He had lost himself completely to the motions of it, the images in his mind coming together to create a rather somber visual. By the time he had finished enough of the shading to feel the satisfaction of a complete image, he had noticed sunlight peeking through the blinds. 

Grumbling a curse or two, he had rubbed his phalanges at his sockets tiredly, admitting defeat. Coffee. He had been certain it was the first step to the now uncertain day. 

Stretch had been jostled to full alertness as sudden yells of various volumes could be heard down the hall. Deciding to avoid the drama of whatever was in the hall, he had taken a shortcut directly to the kitchen.

Luckily -or well, unluckily as it turned out- the coffee pot had already been set up to brew, so he had pressed the button and let the lil’ machine do its thing. Blue had entered not long after, fresh from his morning run, only…

“Umm… no offense bro but you kinda look like shit.” 

Blue had paused where he had been filling up his water bottle to give Stretch an amused look. “THANKS PAPY… I’M GOING FOR A DISTINGUISHED EXHAUSTED!” Blue ran a hand over his skull as if to wipe away his tired but… yeah, he still looked rough. 

Blue’s lower socket seemed shadowed, and his face lacked its cyan glow to it, looking more like the skull chips he actually had rather than cute freckles. Most noticeable of all was the lack of pep in his bro’s step. Even with a tired smile, there was no real energy to back it up. 

“Couldn’t sleep either?” Stretch had asked, feeling like he’d probably be saying this a lot. 

Blue’s forced smile slowly dropped, his gaze turning away as he’d sighed. “NO… NOT REALLY. I STAYED UP WRITING AN APOLOGY LETTER SANS COULD READ AT HIS EARLIEST CONVENIENCE IN CASE HE DIDN’T WANT TO TALK… I THOUGHT I MIGHT LEAVE IT BY HIS DOOR LAST NIGHT BUT FOX ACCUSED ME OF ‘SKULKING LIKE SOME SORT OF VAGABOND’ AND DECIDED TO GUARD SANS’ DOOR.” Blue shook his head in disbelief. “EVEN I’M NOT THAT SOCIALLY DENSE TO GO CHARGING INTO SOMEONE’S ROOM AFTER THAT.”

Stretch grabbed his, ‘very honey, much bees’ mug from the cupboard with an amused glance. “Did he really stay there all night?” 

Blue hummed thoughtfully, “I THINK SO. HE WAS STILL THERE GLARING DAGGERS AT ME WHEN I LEFT FOR MY RUN. I DIDN’T SEE HIM WHERE MY RUN PATH CROSSES HIS EITHER, SO I THINK HE MIGHT HAVE EVEN BROKEN HIS ROUTINE JUST TO GUARD SANS.”

Stretch scoffed, pouring his coffee into his mug. “Talk about paranoid.” 

“HE PROBABLY HAS HIS REASONS FOR BEING LIKE THAT,” Blue said, looking more defeated than truly sympathetic. “DID U SEE THE TEXTS FROM THE FELL BROTHERS?” 

Now that had gotten his interest. “No, why?” Pulling out his phone from his inventory, Stretch’s eye lights had widened. “Edge made a group chat?” 

Blue had replied with a nod, “EVERYONE’S NUMBER BUT SANS’ AND YOUNG PAPYRUS’… IT ONLY HAS ONE MESSAGE SO FAR.” 

“I see,” Stretch mumbled, reading said message with hesitance. “House meeting when Sans gets home?” Yeesh, poor kid couldn’t catch a break.  “I thought we weren’t gonna corner him. Let Fox break the ice or something.”

“I DON’T CLAIM TO UNDERSTAND WHAT GOES ON IN THE MIND’S OF THE FELL BROTHERS, BUT AT LEAST THEY SEEM TO HAVE SOME SORT OF PLAN THEY DEEM WORTH SHARING.”

“Don’t trust whatever Fox is up to?” 

“NOT REALLY.” Blue had started fiddling with his water bottle, “AS LONG AS IT DOESN’T HURT SANS I’M GLAD FOR A CHANCE TO CLEAR THE AIR… I JUST HOPE I’LL BE ABLE TO SAY THE THINGS THAT NEED TO BE SAID ON MY PART…”

Stretch had grabbed his coffee mug, moving to the kitchen island to sit. “Well, if you’re nervous, make another script just in case? If anything happens, you at least know your questions will be asked and your opinions will be out there.”

Blue had looked at him, pausing his fidgeting as he gave Stretch a wry yet fond look. “THAT WASN’T VERY SUBTLE.”

Stretch shrugged, “Eh, not really a subtle guy. I love yah bro, and I don’t mind helping.” Honestly it was rare he got a chance to help Blue with anything, so he didn’t mind in the slightest. 

Stretch leaned down expectantly, only for Blue to chuckle and pat Stretch’s skull. “OKAY PAPY, I’LL GO MAKE A SCRIPT THEN.” Blue quickly pressed his teeth to Stretch’s skull top with a loud “MUAH!” causing Stretch to playfully bat his bro away. 

“SAVE A CUP FOR ME!” Blue had yelled, hurrying out of the room. 

Stretch had shaken his skull in amusement. Then, as if the very stars above desired for this moment to be the perfect time to pay him back for every ill deed of his life, he had drunk the coffee. 

Pain. The burning of a thousand suns. 

Shuddering, Stretch blinked back into the present.

Glancing down at the two papers currently in his hands, Stretch sighed. Blue had filled the first page top to bottom with densely packed words, the second had two incomplete sentences in his own writing. He felt woefully unprepared for this, yet nonetheless he put the papers in his inventory and stepped outside.

Stretch’s flip flops were the only sound as he made his way in front of Sans. When the noise garnered no reaction, he squatted down. 

“Hey Sans,” he greeted. 

Sans grumbled something that could have been anything from “fuck off” to “drop dead”.

“What is the end of everything?” 

No reply. It’s chill, he had this. Stretch paused. . . “The letter G.” 

Sans tensed but otherwise didn’t react, so Stretch tried again, clearing his nonexistent throat, “What’s orange and smells like blue paint?” Stretch scratched his cheek bone nervously, “Orange paint.” 

When Sans’ shoulders began to shake, Stretch panicked for half a second before he realized: Sans was chuckling. A weight lifted from his soul. 

Stretch reached out, offering his hand towards Sans, “It’s attached to your wrist and can make a fist?”

Sans looked up at Stretch, his eye lights uncertain. Stretch gave Sans a minute to decide, then tried to not feel too hurt as Sans rejected his offered hand, getting up on his own. 

“Thanks for the joke.” Sans said, dusting off his pants and moving his hands to his pockets. 

Stretch looks at Sans’ uniform suspiciously. Now that didn’t look like what you wore to sell hot dogs. He felt Sans looking at him though, untrusting and wary, and decided not to push his luck by asking. He looked away with another shrug, pretending to feel more casually unbothered than he was.

Seeing Sans relax at his indifference was… Well, it felt like an olive branch of sorts. Except maybe… Less of a full branch and just a handful of olives, but he’d take what he could. “No problem.”

“So… what am I about to walk into in there?” Sans asked, walking to the house in his own lazy stroll.

Stretch followed, keeping a respectful distance to not crowd him. “Do you really wanna know?” he asked, thinking on the chaotic events that had followed his drinking of the coffee from hell with a wince.

Sans’ unimpressed “hmm” had Stretch fighting off a chuckle of his own. Especially when Sans said, “wouldn’t have asked otherwise.” 

What a sassy kid. 

Stretch picked up his walking pace to get to the door first, opening the slider for Sans to walk through. “Well alright, for starters,” Stretch drawled, figuring ripping the metaphorical band aid off this fact would be for the best. “Your king is tied up in the living room.” 

Chapter Text

An embarrassing failure of epic proportions is what an average monster might have called this. Luckily for him, Edge was no average monster, so it was only mildly humiliating at best. 

“I’m so sorry to bother, but I could also break out of this type of knot too,” the fair-haired king spoke softly, showing Edge the broken remains of his effort. “Would you like to try again? Or perhaps you’d like a hint?”

Edge resisted the urge to scream into his hands while Asgore calmly adjusted how he was sat. “Here, don’t give up yet!” The king’s eyes seemed to sparkle with good humor and encouragement. “Though I am uncertain as to what purpose my capture serves, I am certain that, with enough effort, you could manage to properly capture me!” 

Actually no. This was bad. Just awful. A glance at his brother showed he was just as lost as what to do. Red looked ready to claw at his own sockets. 

Asgore glanced between the two of them, the huge King Boss Monster blinking innocently like a new born kitten. “If you both truly need a break, perhaps I could attempt to tie myself?”

Red snapped first. “Stars, yah can’t even make this shit up,” he muttered. “I change my mind boss. Our lives be damned, can we actually just smack the shit outta him?” 

Edge considered the question seriously. Unfortunately, if Asgore killed them in retaliation, they’d be unable to get answers and take care of the youngest from hell. So, regrettably, they had to persevere. 

Instead of answering Red, Edge made a point of tossing yet another coil of rope at the king. “KNOCK YOURSELF OUT.” Edge spoke dryly, hoping that the king would somehow find a way to do so. 

The king didn’t even have the audacity to act distressed as he hmm’d appreciatively, and began to wrap himself up like a Giftmas package. Bow and all. 

Edge turned his skull pointedly away from the sight of Asgore sitting as happy and smug as a teacher’s pet. The disgrace of it all. 

From showing up at Asgore’s only to find the front door unlocked, all the way down to the little crown nightcap that still rested on the king’s head, Edge was bothered. This was NOT kingly behavior, yet here the man was. Smiling. 

It had at least brought some comfort to his soul that this horrendous sight also had unnerved Fox and Mutt while Edge had explained his plan to them. 

“Did You Have To Kidnap Their King?” Fox had sighed, his Sea Tea already working to fade the bruises on his bones. The fact that young Papyrus had finally shown his cunning wasn’t a surprise to Edge, but the collateral of Fox and Red’s egos in the wake of the attack surely was worth noting. 

Out of all his variants, it was plainly evident that young Papyrus resembled Edge the most. How anyone else didn’t see this coming was beyond him. 

The Sea Tea could mend Fox’s bruised bones, but Edge had a feeling his pride would remain discolored. 

Good. They would need to toss pride aside for the upcoming endeavor. 

Out of his work uniform, Fox was dressed down in a backless grey tank top with black joggers. He wore fingerless gloves with some sort of purple flower embroidered on it. Edge himself would admire the fashion of it all if it wasn’t for the sheer amount of spine visible. Truly obscene. Now if the tank top had a full back with some custom slogans on it, now that might actually have been tasteful. 

Edge prided himself on his choice of tank top that read, “Try It” with a cheese grater image below it. Encouragement, threat, and genuinely well-designed logo all bundled up in a lovely package. He wasn’t sure what Red didn’t get about his fashion of the day. It was genius. As always.

Edge’s arms were also covered in a multitude of delightful bracelets. Strictly for training, of course, as being stealthy with noisy accessories against bone should be an easy feat for one as great and terrible as him.

“Can you call it kidnapping if he yelled for shotgun and lectured us on the necessity of seatbelts?” Red had groaned, downing his own Sea Tea with obvious distaste. 

Red was actually fully dressed today. That was the only notable state of his brother’s appearance today. Was he glad that Red had worn a T-shirt that had exposed his wounds to Edge this morning? Yes. He’d be pissed if Red hid that kind of thing from him. Was he worried about him, or even interested in his brother’s fashion sense? No, not really.

Edge had held no worry for Red’s state of being. Barely any of his brothers HP had been lost. Edge had done much worse to Red in his own youth than a simple push down the stairs could accomplish, after all.  

Presently sighing, Edge glanced at the assembled skeletons with an odd fluttery feeling in in his ribcage. He flexed his clawed phalanges, relaxed, then flexed them again. 

It was time.

Asgore was captured. The fire elemental was on his way, and his brother was present. The Swell brothers sat straight-backed and punctual to his right, and the Swap brothers- 

“WHERE DID THE SWAPS GO?” Edge asked, sitting straighter. The abrupt change to his plans made him itch to break something. 

Red shrugged, “Stretch went out back for a smoke, and Blue ran upstairs mumbling’ somethin’ ‘bout needin’ to use the bathroom.”

Edge stared. “WE’RE SKELETON MONSTERS. WE DON’T DO THAT.”

Red threw up his hands in mock exasperation, “Yeah, but with how this week has gone I wouldn’t question it if he did.” Scoffing, Red turned back to look out the front window. 

Asgore unhelpfully chimed in, “A few of the first Skeleton monsters used to have the capability to pass waste. The initial food intake of the hybrids was a lot less magic food focused.” 

“Fascinating.” Fox spoke in such a way that Edge couldn’t tell if it was genuine or mocking. 

“DON’T ENCOURAGE THE PRISONER,” Edge reprimanded regardless. 

“Then You Can Gag Him So He Stops Speaking If It’s Such A Problem For You,” Fox snipped with a shrug. 

Edge hmmm’d at the good idea when the “EH-HEM” sound from his right made his shoulders slump.

Young Papyrus glared from where he sat, his arms crossed. “AS A PROMISED FUTURE MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD, I’D LIKE TO REMIND YOU ALL OF HOW THIN THE ICE YOU ARE SKATING ON IS.”

“Gonna push us down more stairs kid?” Red asks warily. 

“PERHAPS,” Papyrus shrugs. “YOU DID TORMENT MY BROTHER.” There’s a noticeable pause before, “AND KIDNAP KING ASGORE.” 

Asgore looked disgustingly touched to be included, even as an afterthought. 

“YOU ARE UPSET BECAUSE OF HOW WE TREATED YOUR BROTHER,” Edge pressed on. “AS PREVIOUSLY STATED, WE ARE SEARCHING FOR WAYS TO RECTIFY THIS.”

Pulling out his ‘Communication for Evil Geniuses’ manual - that he was certain was a normal communication for dummies book Dr. Grizzly had made a custom sleeve for - Edge read the first passage he saw from page 4.

“AN OPEN MINDSET AND A LEVEL OF VULNERABILITY CAN GO A LONG WAY IN A POSITIVE INTERACTION.” Edge closed the book while Papyrus blinked.

“HOW IS TYING UP THE KING AN OPEN MINDSET, EDGE?” Papyrus asked, openly gaping. 

Oops that page was useless. Edge opened his book to page 7, hoping this one would have something more useful. “MISUNDERSTANDING IS THE MAIN CAUSE OF DEATH IN ANY HEALTHY COMMUNICATION. WHEN A MISUNDERSTANDING OCCURS, OFTEN TRYING TO FIND THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM CAN BE THE START TO CONFLICT RESOLUTION.”

Ah much better. Edge closed the book, using it to point at Asgore. “I GIVE YOU THE SOURCE OF ALL THESE ISSUES.”

“What are the next steps to conflict resolution?” Red piped up, looking curiously at the book.

“NO IDEA I HAVEN’T READ THAT FAR,” Edge spoke, tossing the book over his shoulder into the hallway. Honestly, over half of it was rubbish anyways. Edge mostly just flipped through it this morning when he realized he’d have to get the others on board with his plan; OPERATION: WHAT’S GOING ON. 

Dr. Grizzly was a miracle worker, but stars were her book recommendations dry. Not a single picture, and he hadn’t a clue why she kept recommending these boring texts. At this point, it was starting to become a collection, really.

“WELL NOW I’M JUST CONFUSED,” Papyrus grumbled, for once displeasure in his expression as he crossed his arms grumpily. 

Red looked at Papyrus, then Edge, then chuckled as he shook his skull fondly. Edge raised a bone brow, only to look at Papyrus, then himself. In a moment of rare self-awareness, Edge slowly uncrossed his arms and fixed his expression to something more neutral compared to younger Papyrus’s frown. 

Perhaps his cheek bones dusted red, perhaps not. Honestly, of course he looked like an alternate universe version of himself. Red was simply being- Ugh!!!

“We Have Questions For Sans And Those Directly Involved In His Life, So That We May Better Understand Him.” Fox chimed in, directly addressing Papyrus. “We Wish To Make Things As Easy And Helpful To Your Brother As We Can, But To Do That We All Need To Be Of One Understanding. Asgore Is Here To Help With That.” 

Asgore raises his arm bashfully, adjusting his crown, seemingly unaware of the rope he effortlessly snapped in the process. “Well, you could have led with that. Sans is a wonderful skeleton and I’d be happy to help him in any way possible.”

Edge stared at the king with open disgust. Fucking really?

“Better late than never, huh?” Mutt mumbled from across the room. He was also wearing clothes. Good for him.

“Personally, I Prefer Being Punctual,” Fox bantered back with the tug of a faint smirk on his teeth. 

Edge rolled his eye lights at the display. For the sake of posterity, he pulled out yet another bundle of rope from his inventory and began tying Asgore back up. 

Admittedly, knowing the oaf would just break whatever effort he put into it, he made a simple shoelace knot and called it good enough. 

They sat in awkward, tense silence. When there was a knock at the door, Edge practically jumped to move and answer it, only for Mutt to shortcut away at Fox’s order. 

Shortly after Mutt walked back into the room, this world’s Grillby followed behind him. 

Grillby was slightly shorter than the one Edge was familiar with in his world, though not by much. He was still probably at least six foot, and he certainly didn’t lack in build. The fire elemental was a steady healthy flame, with enough mass to his fire that he looked well built. His arms in particular seemed thick with magic, yet not a single flame wisped outwards. 

Edge didn’t know much about elementals, except that the more solid the form, the more control they had over their magic, and the more mass they had, the stronger their magic. This elemental… Now Edge refused to believe this monster had no LV with a form like that.

One glance towards Red proved that as his brother gave him a slight nod. Red’s hands moved subtly as he signed, “Boss Monster.” 

Edge signed, “NO SHIT.”

Grillby signed, “Papyrus.” Making both Red and Edge jump as the fire elemental made his way to their youngest. Their Grillby didn’t know sign language as far as they were aware… And if he did… They had a lot of explaining to do.

Fox stood, only for Papyrus to brush past him with a loud, “GRILLBY!” as he happily embraced the large fire elemental. 

The well-dressed elemental returned the hug with ease before stepping back to sign, “Where is Sans?”

Papyrus wrung his hand bones nervously and spoke aloud, “ON HIS WAY, HE SHOULD BE HERE ANY MOMENT NOW.” 

Grillby raised his hands to sign a reply when the familiar form of Stretch walked into the room, with Sans trailing behind him. 

“Hey guys, I found a skeleton in the yard,” Stretch joked flopping sideways into the living room recliner. “Think we can keep him?”

Sans gave Stretch an offended look but otherwise didn’t reply. 

Ugh. They’d have to work on that. Sans was always quiet in his responses with them. Sometimes giving a simple “fuck off” could be freeing to the soul, and stars know they deserve it. Well, that was a future problem. For now.

“FINALLY,” Edge huffed, repressing a sigh of relief. “WE CAN BEGIN.” 

——— Sans

Soul tight in his chest, Sans looked around the room apprehensively. All of his household was here. Kinda. 

Edge stood in the center of the room like the ringleader of the most dysfunctional circus alive. Red was sitting backwards in a dining chair he’d dragged out to the living room, apparently snoring, with his skull pressed into the wood of the back of the chair.

Fox was on the living room couch, his legs crossed. His eye lights were following the sight of Edge backhanding Red’s skull. Fox tsk’d in disapproval. When his gaze caught Sans’, he swore the lights grew slightly bigger in focus.

Repressing a shiver, Sans glanced at the indifferent form of a bored Mutt in sweats and a tank top looking out the window. Now that was more like it. 

Stretch was still sprawled across the recliner like the king of comfy town, and Sans briefly made note that Blue was missing altogether. 

Finally, FINALLY he was able to set his gaze on what really mattered. 

Taking only a single step, Sans shortcut across the living room directly to Papyrus, who almost expectantly lifted Sans into the air in a tight hug. 

“HONESTLY BROTHER, I WAS JUST ACROSS THE ROOM, THAT WAS SUCH A WASTE OF MAGIC!” Papyrus sniffed, his sockets showing small drops of orange magic threatening to spill. 

Sans instantly sent a wave of calming intent in his brother’s direction. 

It’s okay. We’re okay. Don’t stress it. 

“Hey cut me some slack, I ran today bro,” Sans chuckled as Pap began to place him back down, only for Papyrus to freeze then excitedly pull Sans back in for a full hug spin attack. 

“YOU RAN?!? I’M SO PROUD OF YOU BROTHER!!!” Papyrus praised loudly once he brought Sans back to the ground. 

A crackling rumble of a chuckle from his right had Sans peeking up even more as he glanced to the side. “Ah, Sup Grillbz?”

Grillby bowed his head slightly in greeting, his presence warm and welcoming as always. He swiftly signed, “It’s good to see you Sans. I came as soon as I could when Papyrus said it was an emergency.”

Guilt was a sharp knife in his side, causing Sans to hurriedly say, “Please say you didn’t close early just to rush here.”

Grillby shook his head, a pleased flicker of yellow in his flame as he signed, “I have Fuku watching the bar, but if needed to, I would have.” 

“Fuku is old enough to run the bar now?” Asgore spoke up, gaining Sans attention. “That’s just delightful!” 

Grillby’s top flames sparked in pride. He reached in his vest pocket, pulling something from his fire wallet. 

Asgore gasped in joy, “Oh, and you have photos!”

Sans took in Asgore’s barely tied form and felt a weight lift even more off his shoulders. Dang, and here he was worried for a sec. King fluffy buns seemed great. Knowing the guy, he was probably happy for the company actually. 

“Heya Asgore,” Sans waved. “Woulda greeted you earlier but you seemed a little tied up.” 

Asgore’s cheer seemed to extinguish from his eyes for half a second at Sans’ joke, but he pushed past it, smiling genuinely. “It’s good to see you too Sans. How have you been-“

“NO. NOPE. THAT’S ENOUGH… WHATEVER ALL THAT WAS,” Edge cut in abruptly, gesturing to the local monster group. 

Papyrus furrowed his bone ridge. “EXCHANGING PLEASANTRIES?”

“YES, THAT. ENOUGH OF THAT. WE’RE HERE FOR A REASON.” Edge spoke, his foot beginning to tap irritably. 

Sans could feel the stress sink into his bones.

Asgore seemed abashed. “Oh yes that is right. My apologies. Apparently, we’re here to help you in some sort of way.” 

Sans blinked. “… Help… me?”

Edge gestured for Sans to take a seat in another dining chair that had been brought to the living room. Stiffly, Sans sat, belatedly realizing that from this position he was almost staged before all of them. 

Fox moved first, placing a familiar bag in front of Sans. “We are all here to talk about this.”

Glancing down at the same bag from this morning, irritation briefly flashed through his soul. Really? Fox couldn’t have just left the bill on his desk? He wanted to publicly shame him or something? 

It was a new low, even for Fox. Stars he was so, they couldn’t just… Fuck it. He didn’t care. 

Sighing, he decided to get this stupid ego fest over with, reaching into the bag in search of a price tag.

It was a beautifully knit blue and yellow striped scarf, and he hoped Papyrus would burn it. After trailing his hands along the fabric in search of a tag and finding nothing, he finally gave up. 

When he looked up, everyone was watching him with various complicated expressions. He couldn’t bring himself to look towards Grillby. 

“Alright, I give,” Sans spoke tiredly to Fox. “Paps probably isn’t going to ever wear it, but how much do I owe you?”

Fox, who had been watching him intensely, blinked owlishly. “Hm?”

Guy was publicly outing him as a bad bro and couldn’t even listen up? Sheesh. “How much do I owe you for Papyrus’ new scarf?”

“Oh,” Fox voiced, more in understanding than surprise. “Dear Stars No, That’s Not For Papyrus.”

… uh… huh…?

Fox twitched his fingers as if restless, but stayed focused on Sans as he had been since Sans entered the room. It was very… weird. 

“I Don’t Expect You To Wear It Anytime Soon, But That Is For You,” Fox said simply. “We Are All Hear Today To See What It Would Take To Get You Back Into Those.”

what. 

Edge quickly jumped in, “OR FIND OUT WHY YOU LEFT STRIPES SO SOON, AND WHY YOU HAVE BEEN NEGLECTED SO.” 

What. 

Stretch chimed up, reading from a piece of paper, “And to apologize for not knowing, and to make sure we can give you the support you need going forward.”

WHAT!?

“And to make sure that these guys haven’t been taking advantage of yah,” Red added, jerking his distal phalanx in Asgore and Grillby’s direction. 

“What the hell are you all talking about,” Sans snapped at last, his soul feeling as if it wanted to jump and run away from his ribcage entirely. 

Stretch had sat up straighter from his previous sprawl, scratching as his cervical spine. “Guys I think we need to back up a bit…” sighing, he paused to think, before continuing. “You know how you found out that the rest of us are all really old compared to you?” 

“Yeah…” 

Stretch seemed to sweat a bit as he wiped at his skull. “Okay so like… It’s kind of the opposite. We’re not super old, more like-”

“You’re practically still an infant in comparison,” Mutt spoke up, getting a sharp look from Fox. 

Sans just… Stars… what. No. That was… just… what the fuck were they going on about. Sure them being old was a shock but… there was no way in hell that. 

“I’m not a stripes.” Sans found himself saying before he was even aware of it. 

Fox spoke gently in a voice Sans had only ever heard him use for Papyrus, “While You Certainly Aren’t An Infant… Yes, You Should Still Be In Stripes, Sans.” Taking in Sans expression Fox gestures to Asgore and Grillby, “If You Don’t Believe Us, Ask Them.”

Turning his skull, Sans looked to the pair. 

Sans didn’t need to ask. He didn’t need to stare hard to find the truth of it all. He didn’t need to look back on every interaction to find the truth. He only had to look. 

Asgore’s softhearted smile was gone, a somber frown now upon his face. Grillby on the other hand… his flame burned more maroon than orange, and his hand seemed clenched in a fist. 

Though most damning of all? Their magic reached to him. So, he took the offer, and Checked them. 

Chapter Text

——- Grillby 

“Are you sure about this, spark?” The elemental recruiter had quipped down to him. 

Spark. Goodness, could the older soldier be any more condescending? Grillby was much more than just a flicker in the kindling. 

He could manifest a humanoid form, torso, legs, arms and face. That was more than enough to fight. The water elemental before him in line had slithered rather than walked and still had been approved. 

If Grillby was rejected just because his flames wavered in shape or were too thin in solidity, he would call bias against his fellow flamesman. He understood the need to ensure their own survival, but never at the cost of potentially saving hundreds. 

All of the elementals were given this opportunity. With the Mages’ advancement becoming more brutal since The Rush of the White Rivers, elemental monsters remained one of the few left that could properly absorb and counter a large blast radius. Though the cost of achieving such a feat… For the sake of the other monsters fighting, it was one he was willing to risk. 

Grillby nodded his certainty. He could voice to some extent, but there was something about allowing that much air into him to project sound that felt uncomfortable. His older brother had said he would teach Grillby a trick to it when he returned from his last mission… his last… 

Wasting no more time, Grillby removed his striped bandana from around his neck, and gave it to the towering flamesman. 

The older elemental took it with a somber reverence that Grillby hadn’t comprehended at the time. He had never seen such a large elemental’s flames waver in such a way before. “Alright then, soldier.” 

Soldier. Not spark this time. Despite everything, it hadn’t felt like a win. Not in the slightest. 

The early days of training his magic had been rough and brutal. Commander Gerson himself would stop by some days to give pointers. To teach them to shield their souls from the mages’ cruelty. 

They had been stuck in training so long Grillby had feared they’d never see combat. 

Then King Gorwill had stormed the Towers of Seven. 

The King asked monsters to shield their souls, to think not of the mages’ training grounds or their youth trapped inside the rubble. They were encouraged to believe that this would be it, the final strike that would force the mages to leave monsterkind alone. He promised that, after all they had lost, this singular act of cruelty would bring peace. 

Prince Asgore, though, had denounced his father’s judgment and warned them to prepare for retaliation. He was regrettably correct. 

The mages had pushed into monster cities with an unbridled rage they had never seen before, or ever would again. Not even stripes were spared from their war path. 

The regulations on who could join the ranks changed. The late Queen’s last ruling of stripes being unable to enlist held strong. However, allowing other young monsters of the longer-lived races, not just the elementals, to willingly remove their stripes for recruitment was deemed legal. 

He saw the battlefield a lot after that. They mostly tasked him with retrieving the wounded or sending messages between generals, but he always knew his true purpose if needed. Absorb the magic. Keep them safe. No one ever asked it of him, but he had been ready. 

It was on the battlefield where he had met someone. Someone so important to him that the pain of forgetting their face burned him. 

They had left their stripes to fight like he had. They would often run the battlefield with him, would bunk beside him, and had taught him to speak in hands. 

He couldn’t remember their voice, and yet he remembered clear as day the moment they had been walking side by side to the healer’s tent. 

“None of the other monsters like that we’re here,” Grillby had signed. 

His companion had signed back, flashes of black and white all that remained of him in Grillby’s memory. “Who cares,” he somehow knew the blur had signed. He could only remember the determination of the words signed by his long-forgotten friend.

“It’s our choice.”

——— Sans 

ASGORE ATK 80 DEF 80 

Wishes he had done more.

GRILLBY ATK 90 DEF 20

Respects the old ways. 

What the hell was that supposed to mean? A sinking sensation left Sans feeling like he was falling into the sky. Sans didn’t want to hear any more of this, this… this nonsense. 

He… he had… he’d always known he gave up his childhood to raise Papyrus. Maybe not on a conscious level, but enough to know that while it was Papyrus’ job to play with puzzles and go to school, it was his job to provide food and shelter for them both. 

He’d been okay with this. He was still okay with this. From the moment it was just them, he’d accepted this fate. He’d have done anything to make sure his bro grew up right. He had put in the work. Fifteen years of it. 

From the very beginning he gave his all: from being seven, pulling his two-year-old bro through Waterfall; to being nineteen, watching his fourteen-year-old brother die again and again before his eyes in the seemingly endless time loop; to being twenty, yet oh so tired, seeing the sun rise with his bro for the first time in his life; to being twenty-one, finally doing something for himself by fiddling with that stupid machine, hoping he could find whatever it was he lost, and instead finding judgmental asshole variants. 

After everything he endured, he wasn’t even sure if it mattered all that much. After all, Sans had spent so much of his life out of stripes by this point that he could barely remember what being in them had been like. And now? Some ancient ass skeletons weren’t just satisfied with making his life hell, but also wanted to throw him in stripes and take control of his life away from him? 

Yeah, no. Hell no. 

“I’m unsure of how your worlds govern,” Asgore spoke up, addressing the room and breaking the tense silence. “But I feel as if I should explain ours.”

“It is to my understanding that you all were born to life underground, but a lot of our laws were made from our days on the surface, and most of them remain unchanged,” Asgore started explaining slowly. When he saw no objections to his impromptu history lesson, he continued with more certainty in his tone. 

“It is a known fact among my people that Toriel and I, as the Reigning Boss Monsters, are different from most other Boss Monster types. One of the reasons for this is that we…” the king chuckled humorlessly, “Well. We’ve been around for a very long time.”  

“The reason for this actually isn’t because of the type of monster we are. At least, not fully. We were born standard Boss Monsters. What makes us special is the Monsters we serve. Our extra strength, our extended lives, they are given to us by our people. More specifically, the other regional Boss Monsters.

“They give bits of their magic to us hoping that we use it to protect, guide, and decide the best we can for our people as a whole… Though the transaction isn’t merely one sided. Since they lend their strength to us, we take great care to consider their input with regards to their regions’ needs, and the needs of the people they protect.

“Boss Monster types instinctively gravitate to protecting Standard Monster types, so back before the war, when we had our own land and miles between us all, it made sense to give them near full control of their local regions. We would show them respect in their individual rulings and cautionary choices.”

Asgore paused, taking a moment to look at them all. As he opened his mouth to speak, Fox interjected, “And This Type Of Territorial Behavior Continued In Your Underground?” he asked curiously. “Our Queen’s Rule Was Much Too Strict For Such A System To Be In Place.”

“I think Queen Tori - er, my Queen Toriel - had something similar going on, actually,” Stretch chimed in. “Back in Snowdin, Muffet was constantly checking in on folks. Her favorite joke was about Blue letting her retire. I always thought she meant retire from her bar for some reason.”

“ALL I’M HEARING IS THAT HE IS CLAIMING HE HAS NO ACCOUNTABILITY FOR SANS BEING OUT OF STRIPES,” Edge growled irritably. “WHICH ISN’T TRUE.”

Red nodded along, “even if that was true, there’s the other shit yah wanted to bring up.”

“WE’RE GETTING THERE.”

Sans sat, present and processing their words, yet also feeling miles away while the room momentarily dissolved into background chatter. Something something, Asgore wasn’t done talking, something something, hushed Swell brother conversation. Something something where was Blue?

He was mad. He was exhausted. He needed a nap so stars damn badly. 

The groan, creak, thud, of another dining chair being dropped right next to his had Sans focusing back to his surroundings. He glared sharply at Stretch, who had oh-so-delicately placed it, only for said skeleton to put his hands up in mock surrender, gesturing for someone beside him to take the newly available seat. 

Oh. 

Papyrus slid into the open chair and quickly moved to hold Sans’ hand. 

Oh… okay. Yeah, that was admittedly better. 

Papyrus leaned over, whispering to Sans, “I’m Not Fully Sure I Comprehend The Overall Gist Of What’s Going On… Are They Saying That It’s King Fluffy Boy’s Fault That They Are So Old?”

“Nah. They’re saying Asgore is blaming Grillby about us, or well me, being out of stripes younger than they’d like,” Sans corrected apathetically. He used Paps’ close proximity to lean his skull against his bro. 

Papyrus leaned into the contact, humming thoughtfully. “Sans, How Come I’ve Never Seen You In Stripes? Have You Ever Worn Them?”

“Huh? Yeah, of course I did,” Sans forced a soft chuckle. “I wore them back when I was a baby bones.” 

“Why Did You Stop Wearing Them?” Papyrus asked, a bit of a different tone to his voice that Sans couldn’t place. 

Why? Well… it’s not like he didn’t exactly remember. 

Actually, he remembered the day pretty clearly, all things considered. It had been a week into their stay in Snowdin, and Sans had already begun to see the issues with living in a shed. 

The machine took up way too much room, and snow kept getting inside. The cold didn’t really bother skeleton monsters much, but the wet damp clothes that came with it were beginning to make his bones itch.

There was also the issue of food. They had already gone through all the food he’d originally found in their old place. He had just split the last bag of chisps they had for dinner the previous night. 

Looking up at the big, oddly familiar house, he’d been certain there was more food inside. He just had to find a way in. He had thought of breaking a window, but realized he’d have no idea how to fix it if he did. 

Looking at the goods in the general store, he had stared at the prices of a cinnamon bunny in a bit of a daze. Everything had felt stupidly expensive, and his two whole gold burned in his pocket.

So, he had approached the counter. At the general store, the inn, the library, the ice farmers, the barber, and any other business he could find. He’d ask for a job at each of them, only to get the same reaction: looks of blatant sorrow and asking him to go to see Grillby. 

So, after stopping by home sweet shed to make sure Papyrus was still alright, he had made his way outside of Grillby’s. 

He’d tried to go in, only for some monsters exiting to tell him that it was a bar and not really a place for stripes. Hope sinking at hearing that, he really held on to the idea that this Grillby, whoever he was, would make an exception to that rule and give him a job.

So, he waited outside. He waited, and waited. He’d felt bad leaving Papyrus alone for that long, but he knew he couldn’t go back empty-handed again. Papyrus was hungry.

Eventually the magic crystal lamps began to dim, signifying to the town it was rest time. Monsters began to leave the bar one by one, Sans uncertainly waiting for one to appear more Grillby than the others. 

It wasn’t until his leg bones started aching from standing that he saw a tall fire elemental leave the building, keys in hand, starting to lock the door behind him. 

Sans moved, kicking the buildup of snow off his feet as he shuffled forward. “Hey, are you Grillby?”

The elemental had jumped, his flames briefly sparking as he had taken in Sans’ appearance. A skeleton monster who was just under four feet in white and blue stripes. The guy had nodded, but his hands had also started moving to sign “Yes, that is me, young one.”

Sans had felt a weight lift from his small soul in relief at the gesture. This monster spoke in hands! Something about that fact had made him feel relieved, nearly safe. 

Moving his hands to speak alongside his voice, he gave his best pitch to Grillby. “Heya, I’m Sans. Sans the skeleton. I’m new to town and I’d really like a job if you’re hiring. I can start as soon as you need me, and I’m a fast learner too.”

Grillby’s body had changed to a purply maroon, and the flames on his head had dimmed in response. 

All he had been able to think was, ‘oh no. not again.’

Grillby had approached him cautiously while signing. “I’m sorry young one. I do not hire stripes. If you come inside, I could get you a warm meal though.”

A warm meal would feed him and Papyrus for a night. A job would leave them set for days. He needed a job, not pity. 

“Are you sure you don’t hire stripes? I really need this job, and you’re kinda the last guy in town,” Sans had nearly pleaded. 

Grillby had nodded firmly, signing, “I am most certain. Please, come inside and I can take care of-“

Slipping off his striped shirt, Sans had balled it up and thrown it at Grillby, stopping his hands from moving. 

“There!” He had yelled, exasperatedly at his own desperation. He had stepped forward, “No More Stripes! Can I have the job now!? Please?” He was on the verge of crying if he was being honest with himself, but from rage or fear he couldn’t remember.

Looking back, Sans can only think of how Grillby must have been mortified. His flame had gone an icy blue, something Sans had never seen since. He had looked down at the shirt in his hands and then did something Sans now understood was twice as rare. 

“Put this back on,” Grillby had spoken. 

Sans had shaken his head defiantly, “No. You said you don’t hire stripes. I’m not a stripes anymore. Hire me. Please.” 

An even softer crackle of spoken flame, “Please, put the stripes back on.” 

“No.” 

“I… can’t make you...”

“That’s right, you can’t,” Sans had replied sternly, feeling emboldened by Grillby’s sudden meekness. “So, you might as well give me the job. I’ll take food too if you’re that desperate to feed me, but I’d rather a job. If you don’t give me one, I can walk back to Waterfall and ask there. I’ll keep the stripes off there too if it gives me a better chance.”

Grillby had watched Sans, flame still low but flickering like a tremble. “You walked all the way from Waterfall?” He had signed again returning to his verbal silence. 

“From New Home. I walked all the way here from the capital.” Sans had let Grillby take that in for only a moment.

“… why?” Grillby had finally signed. 

Sans shrugged. “Felt right. Now, are you going to hire me, or am I walking to Waterfall?” He had really hoped he wouldn’t have to go to Waterfall. It was pretty, but he was so tired of being damp. 

Grillby had stared at him, and Sans had met that gaze. Slowly he signed, “Alright,” and Sans could finally breath. 

Grillby had turned around and unlocked his door once more, holding it open with his hip as he had signed, “But only if you come in and let me feed you.”

“Done.” Sans had chirped cheerily. “Just leave it unlocked while I grab something and I’ll be right back!”

He had run to get Papyrus of course. His younger brother had been wide-eyed and hid behind Sans the whole way. 

Grillby, true to his word, had fed them, surprised but not perturbed by the addition of Papyrus. He had wearily asked if Papyrus would remain in stripes too. Sans, of course, had looked at Grillby like he was stupid.

“Of course he will, he’s a baby bones.”

And if Grillby looked ever so haunted in his expression… Sans couldn’t recall. 

Stars... he hadn’t thought of that day in quite some time. Why would he? It had been lucky though that Grillby had had the key to his house. When he asked Grillby how he had come across it, he hadn’t seemed to recall why or how. 

Currently, Sans glanced around the room, counting just how many eye lights had turned to his direction. 

How rude. Weren’t they ever taught not to stare?

Wait. Wasn’t he supposed to answer something?

“Oh, you know…” Sans tried deflecting with a shrug, struggling to recall what the exact question had been.

Papyrus, bless his heart, looked incredulous, “NO, I DON’T KNOW WHY YOU LEFT STRIPES.” 

Oh yeah.

“Couldn’t get a job in stripes,” he replied casually, rubbing at his tired sockets.

“You... couldn’t get a job?? You removed them just to get a job?” Red slowly spoke, as if utterly baffled.

“It was his choice…” Grillby signed.

“I DON’T CARE WHOSE CHOICE IT WAS, HE WAS JUST A CHILD,” Edge snapped with a harsh glare. 

“And that child decided we failed him!” the elemental defended.

“AT WHAT COST- “

“Silence.” Asgore spoke curt and harshly, indeed silencing the room. Despite being tied up, the king suddenly felt looming with a single spoken word. 

Edge narrowed his sockets. “YOU SHOW YOUR TRUE FACE AT LAST.”

Asgore remained more stoic in expression than Sans had ever seen. He had seen glimpses of this Asgore. Back when they first came down the mountain and the human policeman had briefly aimed a gun towards him in fright, he saw it, but it had been gone in the blink of an eye, leaving only a softer calming presence behind instead. 

Asgore was widely known for being a pushover… But Sans supposed the guy wasn’t chosen as the king for nothing. 

Asgore addressed the room, “I did not know the severity of this problem before I came here today. I started trying to explain this with a history lesson, but now I see that in order to avoid more conflict, there is no time.”

“Back during the war- “

“I thought you said there wasn’t any- “

“Back during the war, when my mother, Queen Astira, had seen my father losing himself to his increasing LV, she knew it was only a matter of time before stripes would begin to be drafted into the war.

“In order to protect them, she declared not only that stripes were prohibited from ever joining the war, but that the choice to remove them prematurely belonged to the stripes themselves, though only under the strictest of conditions. The stripe’s entire adult family must have perished, they must be of old enough age to sustain themselves, and they must deem no willing adult monster present to be capable of guardianship.”

Holy shit. 

Asgore breathed deeply, a long sigh escaping him. He turned to face Sans, “Sans.” Being addressed directly by this Asgore made Sans nearly jump out of his seat. “I am sorry to reinforce this information even further, but if we are going by age alone, you are still in fact an adolescent skeleton. I… I have been aware of this since we first met.”

It felt like they kept hitting the bent nail with a hammer… He was getting it. It just. Was a lot, and yet underwhelming in the same moment.

“And your first thought was to give the kid the most dangerous job in the underground?” Red growled, yikes, actually growled aloud. 

Asgore glared, “Of course not. I gave him an outdated job with no real possibility of harm.”

This caused Sans to blink.

In that moment, he could practically feel Chara running at him, knife in hand, going for his skull. The feeling of Justice magic coursing through him as he saw his friends all dust in front of him while only his patience told him to wait. Observe. Judge.

“Our underground hadn’t had need of a judge in centuries. I couldn’t even remember the monster who had the position last.” Asgore huffed. 

“You said you found me because you were looking for a new Judge,” Sans asked, trying to shift his attention back to this timeline. 

“I…” Asgore stared at the rope binding him. “I lied. I was following reports from the Royal Guard of an underage monster out of stripes.” Asgore’s guilt practically wafted from the guy. “When Grillby explained the situation to me, that you had deemed all of Snowdin unfit to raise you by removing your stripes in front of their guardian Boss Monster, I…” 

Sans looked to Grillby, surprised to find the elemental still facing him directly. He’d say Grillby’s fire was controlled, and he’d even looked calm and collected if Sans didn’t know any better.

Sans looked at his hands. 

Grillby’s hands were always a dead giveaway. Not formed in great detail in a vain attempt at trying to hide his own tells, yet the flames flickered in color. A slight haze of green wafted from his base orange. Grillby was nervous and he was looking at Sans… was he worried? About what Sans thought or what was going on, Sans wasn’t sure. 

He only knew that worry didn’t suit Grillbz.

Asgore’s gaze fell downward once more. “I was selfishly caught in my own grief as a previous father and wished to keep an eye on you myself. Giving you the status as my judge was as good an excuse as any to check in on you.” 

The king turned to face Red, “In our underground the judge position would only really become relevant in situations of catastrophic destruction. Crime, violence and murder don’t come easily or naturally to my people. It goes against our very souls… only high amounts of LV in a time of war could cause such atrocious behavior. We have been generations removed from such barbaric acts. Retrieving the human souls to escape was hard enough for my people…” 

And yet Sans had seen it all. All thanks to a single human child.

Sans felt sick. He had Judged. He had fought, bled and died again and again for an… an excuse of a job? Apparently, it was comedy night at the MTT resort and he was on stage, only this time the walking joke WAS him. Of course it was.

Papyrus squeezed his hand, and Sans let the touch continue to ground him. He had to calm down. No one remembered the stupid time loop but him and Frisk anyways… Asgore couldn’t have known. Sans was just overreacting. He had to be.

People were talking again. They were talking and he needed to focus back. It felt like everyone was looking at him, either outright staring or glancing every few moments. 

Everyone but Mutt. 

He focused on Mutt. 

Mutt was still looking out that window. Sans couldn’t tell if he was listening to conversation or not, but his gaze was pointedly away from the rest of them. The only thing that showed he was even moving at all was his phalanges tapping on the back of the couch he was sat on. He was tapping some kind of pattern. Slow and rhythmic.

Sans watched the pattern. 1. 2. 3. 1. 2. 1. 2. 1. 2. 3. 1. 2… 

He counted the pattern, and felt his brother’s bones in his hand. Before he knew it he also found himself aware of conversation once more. 

Fox, Red and Edge were now talking in hushed voices with the King and Grillby, but what immediately caught his attention was his brother speaking. 

“SO, WHAT AGE DOES A SKELETON LEAVE STRIPES?” Papyrus was asking. 

“One hundred is the goal,” Stretch answered again, looking at his paper. “Though skeletons can care for themselves earlier than this, it’s to make sure they’re as fully developed and functional as possible.”

“DOES THAT MAKE ME A BABY BONES THEN? A GENUINE BABY?” Papyrus asked, outwardly scandalized. “AND IF ONE HUNDRED IS THE OFFICIAL AGE, WHY IS MUTT, WHO IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, IS EIGHTY-EIGHT, NOT IN STRIPES?”

Stretch chuckled. “Nah you aren’t an actual infant. Skeletons we uh… age like how someone with bad stamina runs. We start off pretty fast, but for one reason or another we slow down. Our souls catch their breath and kinda just start to walk the rest of the way.” He gave Paps a fond look, “You are definitely a kid though.”

Ignoring Paps’ “NYEH!” of displeasure, Stretch turned to Mutt, a frown on his face. Mutt turned away from the window and blinked passively at Stretch, “As for Mutt not being in stripes either… I’m not really sure.”

Edge, breaking off from the other hushed conversation, answered while walking across the room. “IT’S BECAUSE OF HIS LV.” 

Surprisingly, Edge chose to sit next to Mutt, entirely ignoring the way Mutt openly glared at him. Edge crossed his legs, casually leaning back, openly unbothered. “AT LEAST THAT WOULD BE THE CASE IN MY WORLD. IF A MONSTER IN STRIPES HAS PASSED A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF LV, THEY AREN’T ALLOWED TO WEAR THEM ANYMORE.” 

Stretch looked horrified, “Stripes shouldn’t be getting LV.”

Edge looked confused, “THAT’S BASICALLY WHAT I JUST SAID.”

“That is not how I meant- “

Edge shushed Stretch, who in return glared at him as well. “THEY ARE WRAPPING THINGS UP OVER THERE. ANY MOMENT NOW, I THINK WE SHOULD HAVE OUR VERDICT.”

“Verdict on…?” Sans asked, wondering just how much conversation he’d missed while processing everything. 

“ON HOW WE HANDLE THIS SITUATION AS FAIRLY TO YOU BOTH AS POSSIBLE,” Edge replied, not missing a beat.

“What’s there to handle?” Sans rebutted. “So, now I know Paps and I are young, but from what I heard I’m legally allowed to be out of stripes. There isn’t really much this actually changes.”

“I think this gave my lord more than enough to work with actually,” Mutt spoke up gaining the collective’s attention. Mutt was now watching Fox speak in fast rapid hands, his back obscuring most of what he was saying to Grillby. 

“HOW SO…?” Papyrus asked cautiously. 

A sigh left Mutt as a look of either disinterest or defeat crossed his skull. Regardless he still replied. “The requirements Queen Astira established. Fox is making a case that they aren’t being met.” 

“OH?” Edge asked, less in a curious way and more of a ‘I know this but I wanna hear you say it’ way. Sans wouldn’t blame Mutt if he stopped talking now if it wasn’t for him desperately wanting to know more as well.

“For starters,” Mutt continued, apparently stepping up to the challenge. “Your entire adult family has to be dead. Fox could easily be trying to make a case that, seeing as we are all kinda the same people, we could be categorized as family.”

“FAMILY HAS TO LIKE EACH OTHER MUTT,” Papyrus corrected dejectedly. 

“NOT NECESSARILY.” Edge chimed in unhelpfully. 

“We don’t dislike you,” Stretch corrected evenly. “Not all of us at least…”

Mutt shrugged, “That’s just the possible first argument. He could also easily be arguing over if you are actually capable of providing for yourself.”

“Excuse you?” Sans sat up at that one, his turn to glare at Mutt. 

Mutt didn’t falter, “You’re at one HP Sans. You work multiple jobs, and never sleep unless it’s in the middle of a conversation. You’re trying to work on a machine to send us back when I’m not even certain you received a degree of general education. Your stats betray you as the weakest monster of your underground.”

Sans could feel that ugly pitch emotion burn low in his soul. “I’ve raised Papyrus just fine despite all of that though.”

“PAPYRUS IS DOING GREAT,” Edge easily agreed. “MUTT WAS TALKING ABOUT YOUR WELL BEING.” 

Sans opened his mouth to reply with, with, he wasn’t quite sure, but Mutt continued preemptively cutting him off. “Lastly, you have to truly believe that none of us are capable of being competent guardians.”

“You’re not.”

Mutt scoffed in an almost humorless chuckle, “If I know my lord, he is arguing that there should be proof behind such a bold claim.” 

“YOU WERE ALL GIVEN A CHANCE.” Papyrus shook his head in disbelief. “WHY SHOULD I EXPECT YOU TO BEHAVE ANY DIFFERENTLY TO MY BROTHER?” 

Sans turned to Paps in shock. His bro was usually all about second chances. To see him this guarded and wary… It made Papyrus look a lot more like Stretch than Sans cared for. 

Ironically though, it was Stretch who spoke next. “I’ll be the first to admit we botched any chance of a good first impression we had. There’s no excuse for it other than just being monsters of questionable integrity.” 

Stretch looked down at his paper. Not reading it this time, just seeming to take it in. “Though I think if Blue were here… he’d argued that anyone could change for the better. Could be better if they truly wanted to be.” 

He looked at Papyrus, then at Sans an almost nervous uncertainty to his voice. “I think… I really do want to change for the better here. You both deserve a lot better than what we’ve shown so far, and I’d like a chance to prove that I’m capable.”

For a second Sans thought he heard a faint sniffle come from the stairwell, but brushed it off entirely as he took in the sight of Stretch. The big guy looked entirely genuine. A small part of Sans longed to believe all of that shit too. He wasn’t sure how to reply, but thankfully, Paps, like the cool guy he was, knew exactly what to say. 

“THAT WAS LOVELY STRETCH… BUT I THINK I’D LIKE TO SEE YOU PROVE IT.” 

Chapter Text

Time to get from Sans’ house to the nearest city: ~45 minutes by motorized vehicle (with light traffic)

Time to get from Sans’ house to Asgore’s house: ~1 hour and 15 minutes by motorized vehicle (with light traffic)

April 1st, 12:00 AM: Sans’ birthday. 

9:45 AM: Sans gets up and has some of his usual interactions with his housemates and Papyrus. 

10:00 AM: Sans fights with Red.

10:10 AM: Sans walks to the park with Papyrus and the Swell brothers. 

10:45 AM: Sans sets up It’s Raining ‘Cats & ‘Dogs. Papyrus and the Swell brothers are hanging out nearby: sitting on a bench, catching bugs, and/or generally walking around according to Papyrus’ whims.

10:45 AM – 12:00 PM: Sans runs the cart. During the lunch rush, he notices that customers are being warded off by Mutt.

1:00 PM: Papyrus and Swell brothers leave the park to go shopping for supplies for the surprise birthday party.

2:15 PM: Papyrus and Swell brothers return home with the supplies for the party that Papyrus has deemed perfect.

3:30 PM: Sans finishes selling ‘dogs for the day, then runs into some old friends.

3:45 PM: Edge offers to help Papyrus with cooking.

4:00 PM: Sans makes it home, puts the cart away, and heads inside.

4:02 PM: Sans has an impromptu custody battle with Blue, then heads to the kitchen.

4:05 PM: Sans chats with Papyrus and Edge and tries to stay awake while Papy talks about his day.

4:10 PM: Sans falls asleep while Edge and Papyrus cook. He has a bad time.

5:55 PM: Mutt takes an echo candy.

6:00 PM: Sans wakes up, has a soul-to-soul with Papy, then everyone else slowly comes back inside.

6:15 PM: Dinner!

6:30 PM: Mutt takes three more echo candies.

7:00 PM: The first echo candy begins to kick in. The rest follow suit not long after.

7:15 PM: Cake and big reveal! (and the awkward aftermath :P)

7:30 PM: “I’M GOING TO FUCKING KILL ASGORE!!!”

7:35 PM: Edge stomps around angrily before getting to the car and trying not to explode from emotions.

7:35 PM – 7:45 PM: Red listens to Sans’ rant, takes some time to digest what all happened, then chastises Blue and Fox before heading out.

7:45 PM: Red meets Edge at their car to start driving to Asgore’s.

7:45 PM – 8:00 PM: Papyrus brings Sans up to his room and takes care of his big bro. After a bit, Sans drifts off to take another nap.

8:00 PM: Blue starts writing his apology letter. He has no idea how many drafts it’ll take before he’s happy with it.

8:10 PM: Fox puts Mutt down. Just to sleep for the night, jeez. Fox then leaves on his motorcycle to go late night shopping for striped clothing.

8:30 PM: Papyrus goes to sleep. He has a good time. He dreams of delicious, ambiguous pasta noodles. … Okay yes they’re spaghetti noodles get off my-

9:00 PM: Red and Edge arrive at Asgore’s.

9:30 PM: Stretch becomes very introspective. He begins to sketch.

9:40 PM: Red and Edge finally get Asgore ‘tied up’ and in the car. Despite the fact that the front door was unlocked and Asgore put up effectively no resistance to getting tied up, his insistence on them doing it properly took an inordinate amount of time. He almost insisted that they leave a ransom note behind before going in the car, but decided against it. He did, however, insist on shotgun.

10:00 PM: Fox returns home.

10:25 PM: Blue attempts to leave his apology letter after lamenting how it took 52 drafts to come up with something that felt sufficiently… Apologetic. He made sure to recycle the other 51 unused drafts. Fox saw him with the letter and got into an argument with him, resulting in Fox guarding Sans’ door with his purchase in hand.

10:30 PM: Blue goes out for a night run to try and exhaust himself for the night.

10:50 PM: Blue returns, unsuccessful in his original endeavor, but with beautiful photos of the stars.

10:51 PM: Blue cannot bring himself to go inside, the sins of the previous incidents crawling on his back. He’s also still restless. This is fine.

10:55 PM: Blue goes out for a night drive on his own distinct motorcycle, not to be confused with Fox’s very different and very expensive motorcycle. He is almost ran off the road by Edge’s erratic driving.

11:00 PM: Edge and Red return with Asgore.

11:30 PM: Red teleports to bed, and Edge stands guard in the living room over snoring Asgore. Asgore sleeps better than he has in a long time, knowing that he has a companion nearby. What a loser.

11:50 PM: Stretch gives up on any hope of sleeping and details his sketch.

April 2nd, 12:00 AM: Fox falls asleep. Good night, mister bone man.

1:00 AM: Sans wakes up. 

1:05 AM – 1:20 AM: Sans sets up the booby traps on the stairs and laces the coffee machine.

1:10 AM: Blue comes back from his drive after realizing that his bakery prep shift was coming up and that he didn’t have his uniform. He sneaks inside to get it and saw Edge with Asgore. Edge tried to explain the situation in a hushed voice, but Blue got the hell out and went to work before Edge could defend himself.

1:30 AM: Sans leaves for work

1:30 AM: Michael arrives at work, annoyingly punctual.

1:35 AM: Sans arrives to work, upset that Michael got there first. 

4:30 AM: Papyrus wakes up, having gotten precisely the amount of sleep recommended by 9 out of 10 doctors.

4:30 AM – 6:00 AM: Papyrus hypes himself up for the day and does his bone care routine with his MTT-brand oils and lotions.

4:50 AM: Blue comes back from his prep shift. Avoiding Edge and Asgore at all costs, he climbs into his room on the second story. Finally worn out, he goes to sleep. He has a time.

5:50 AM: Blue wakes up out of habit, severely lacking the amount of sleep recommended by 9 out of 10 doctors. Paradoxically tired and restless, he resigns himself to going on his normal morning jog. He lets himself fall unceremoniously out the window face first, then immediately picks himself up and starts running.

6:05 AM: Papyrus sends his first good morning text. Very soon, chaos ensues.

6:07 AM: Papyrus successfully avoids the banana peel. 🎉

6:08 AM: Papyrus does not avoid the rest of the traps along the stairs. :c

6:10 AM: Stretch leaves his room, perturbed by the sound of skeletons being pushed down the stairs.

6:13 AM: Blue returns from his second run. His bones feel thoroughly worn. He has a conversation with Stretch.

6:15 AM: Edge messages Sans. Sans is, indeed, not selling ‘dogs at six fifteen in the am.

6:20 AM: Pain. The burning of a thousand suns.

6:45 AM: Sans leaves work early, landing in the backyard like Monster Kid mere inches from where Blue made a decent mudprint nearly an hour ago.

6:50 AM: Blue goes to hide in the stairwell to both avoid Asgore and to eavesdrop on the conversations that would follow.

7:00 AM: Sans is shown the way to his king, tied up in the living room.

7:45 AM: Sans finds out who the striped scarf is really for.

9:00 AM: Sans issues his challenge to Stretch.

Chapter Text

“SANS.” 

A quick double knock on his door had Sans bolting awake, his hand flying to his upper rib cage, as if to defend the beating soul inside.

For a brief moment, he’s certain he’s in Snowdin, his brother banging on the door about to tell him they’re late for patrol and how excited he is to test a new puzzle. 

It’s snowing, and he’s at the door.

The Whoopee cushion in his hand was his only indicator for how bad this time would be. 

Friend, foe, or b r o t h e r- 

Wait. That sounded nothing like Papyrus. 

Blinking his sockets, Sans felt his soul calm, tension easing from his locked bones… Only to be replaced with deep burning irritation. 

“FIVE MINUTE EDGE WARNING SANS,” Blue called through the wooden door, his footsteps on the other side casually departing. 

Yep. Riiiiiight. This had been his life now for the past two months. 

Yay…

Letting his head thump back down to his pillow, Sans stared at the ceiling, contemplating his new personal hell. 

Outside his bedroom window, he could hear the wind picking up, signaling the start of that long storm last night’s news had promised would take over the day.

Closing his eyes, Sans listened, only for the storm in his mind to echoing in his skull to be louder than the wind. 

Two months ago, a day after his twenty-second birthday Asgore, Sans’ last shining hope against multiversal stupidity, had gone from the coolest hardcore monster Sans had seen in a hot minute…

To the pushover he had always known and kinda expected. What was the great change? 

Well, Asgore was apparently a mama’s boy, who would die on the hill of upholding his mother’s last royal decree. Though the removal or return of his stripes would remain Sans’ choice, Asgore had actually agreed to give the bone bastards a chance.

Stars damn the king. 

Rolling out of bed, Sans walked to his dresser for fresh clothes. Yeah. Not floor. Dresser. 

Opening a drawer, he stared in blatant disgust at the neatly folded and color-coded outfits inside. Without even checking, he knew that every tag on every piece of clothing had his name written inside. 

Sans wasn’t into human religion. But Jesus Christ. 

Not even his socks were spared from the carnage. How the hell someone had managed to sort and match his all-white socks that were only slightly different in length and texture and brand? He hadn’t the slightest. 

But when he found out which bone bastard kept folding his laundry, there would be hell to pay. 

Ignoring his now abundant selection of striped shirts, Sans skipped right to the bottom drawer, casually throwing shirts to the floor as he went. 

Holding up a pristine white shirt, Sans sighed. Not even his shirt stains had survived… Hell, this thing might even be whiter than his bones at this rate. 

Dejectedly, he dressed in the garb of champions. Grey shorts, white shirt, and pink house slippers. He’d been contemplating a black jacket when his five-minute warning was suddenly up. 

“SANS!!!” Edge yelled, kicking Sans’ door open. 

Thank the stars he was used to Papyrus kicking his door down underground. It made him invest in good sturdy doors up here…

Edge was in bright red leather pants today with a black shirt reading “FEAR MY BONES”, and a Red slung over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, which honestly completed the look. 

“OH. YOU’RE AWAKE.” Edge spoke delightedly. Hefting Red’s giant form onto the ground like he weighed nothing, Edge looked between Red and Sans in comparison. 

Sans: fun-sized, dressed, upsettingly awake, and irritated.

Red: large as shit, in grey boxers and a sleep crumbled shirt with a half-dressed human on a motorcycle, half asleep and irritated. 

Edge sighed. “BEAT AGAIN BY SANS BROTHER, WHAT HAVE YOU TO SAY FOR YOURSELF?”

Red yawned his sharp teeth gaping wide, “that ‘nilla’s cheatin’ and I’m not sure why you keep gettin’ me up at this ungodly hour…”

Edge scoffed dismissively. “THE OVERCAST JUST MAKES IT LOOK DARKER. THE HOUR IS HARDLY UNREASONABLE.”

“Is it really cheating if I don’t want to be playing?” Sans asked, feeling how Red looked. 

“Is it hurting yah?” Red asked. 

“Mentally.”

“Just that? Then yer fine,” Red had the audacity to chuckle. 

“BROTHER, PLAY NICE,” Edge warned, lightly smacking his brother over the skull.

“Fucking Ouch?!” Red growled, genuine enough that he was either a great actor or Edge’s smack, gentle as it was, did hella damage. “What!? This is nice!”

“REMEMBER, GENTLE WORDS FOR-“

“Gentle souls, yeah yeah. You’ve been goin on about it for weeks.”

“WELL IT’S STILL A GOOD THING TO-“

That’s the part where Sans decided he was done listening.

Walking right past the distracted skeletons, he decided to make his way downstairs, away from the “Bad Guys with Souls of Gold” schtick Edge seemed to be on these days. 

Really, he’d take the bone attacks over bad gentle parenting techniques any day. At least the bone attacks felt honest. 

Besides, if they really wanted to seek him out again, it’s not like he could really go anywhere…

Sans was halfway to the kitchen when he heard Fox call out from his- ugh, THE first-floor office space. 

“Sans Could You Come Here For A Moment?” Fox called out, somehow aware Sans had just entered hearing range. He contemplated pretending he hadn’t heard at all, until, “It Involves Papyrus, Sans.”

Damn this guy. 

Not risking the possible deceit, Sans shuffled his way dejectedly to his old office. 

It was a simple work space with a desk, a few filing cabinets, a computer, and Sans’ pet rock sitting on a larger rock under a heat lamp. It had even been fairly organized by Sans’ standards last he had seen it. 

So of course, Fox had added a murder board-esque cork board with numerous ‘official documents’ pinned in place, files sprawled open and papers scattered all over the desk and floor. 

Fox was dressed up for business again, sitting at the desk, one hand on a tea cup and the other sprawled over his skull in what appeared to be exasperation.

“Sup?” Sans asked, only taking slight pleasure in the overwhelmed glint in Fox’s eye lights. “You said this involves Papyrus?”

“Technically It Involves All Of Us,” Fox sighed, rubbing at his face. “I Was Going Over The Previous Billing Statements So I Could Estimate The Collective Total Of Our Living Expenses And While Looking For The Monthly Mortgage I Found This Folder.”

Sans looked at the folder. “The one labeled ‘mortgage and bill systems’ would be the place to find that kind of information.”

“Indeed!” Fox easily agreed. “So, Explain To Me Why When I Open It-” Fox spoke in a false chipper tone that bordered on straight mania. 

“THESE POP OUT?!” Fox spoke, not quite yelling but certainly losing his measured control over his own volume. 

Sans watched with mild interest as multicolored pieces of paper exploded forth from the folder flapping into the air and joined the other collection of similar papers already scattered on the floor. Fox held up a single paper he had caught that held the simple three letters that all the papers had. 

I O U

“None Of These Are In Your Handwriting, Sans.” Fox said with narrowed eye lights. 

Sans blinked innocently, “Oh yeah, I never give out IOU’s. It’s just bad business.” 

Fox leaned closer, “Who Has Been Giving You All Of These Favors, Sans?”

“Oh gee,” Sans rocked from his heels to his toes casually. “I wish I knew, but I’m just a dumb kid without any understanding of finances. I gotta leave all this official paperwork and bills to the adults.”

“There Is No Paperwork Or Bills In Your Paperwork And Bills Files Sans!” Fox screeched. 

“Darn it,” Sans snapped his finger bones. “I guess the filing system was set up by someone specifically in a way where only they understood it. What a shame that person is banned from doing Jack and/or Shit these days.” Sans tapped his jaw bone thoughtfully. “If only someone would let him have control over his own finances again…”

Fox gave him a long stoic look, only to sigh mere moments later. “I Guess We’ll Have To Start Documenting From Scratch After We Process The Newest Payments.” 

“Are you really that invested in handling the house finances?” 

Fox’s gaze didn’t waver, but his expression shifted ever so slightly as he asked, “Is handling your own finances really that important to you? Carrying the burden of six other fully grown skeletons using up the water, electricity, the monthly expense for this place, creating garbage, and whatever individual expenses we add to the total… You really like all of that stress?” 

He didn’t. He hadn’t? He- Stars it hadn’t been a matter of liking it, it was a matter of that’s just how he had always done things. 

“Would Letting You Do This Make You Happy?” Fox asked, really hitting his point home. 

No. “Yeah.”

Fox frowned. “If I Truly Believed That, I’d Return This Mess Instantly,” he gestured to the colorful IOU’s scattered everywhere. “Now If You Will Excuse Me, I Have Official Documents To Scrounge For.” 

Fox was dismissing him. As if he was Mutt and would just listen. He felt tempted to pull up a chair out of spite to remain put, but… Something in his soul told him Fox would just let Sans sit there and continue working, while Sans would be left bored and unhappy with his own stubbornness. 

Sans had never felt like a prideful monster, but every day was an ego check with these guys around. Sure, they had alleviated his burdens, but at what cost? 

He remembered sitting in that stupid chair, Papyrus’ hand in his as the new laws of his life were made. 

Sans was excepted, not only to forgive and forget, but to give the monsters living with him a clean slate. A ‘chance to be better.’

Asgore gave all of his alternates a year to try and convince Sans to return to stripes. If they couldn’t meet this deadline, they were to drop it entirely and leave Sans and Papyrus in peace. Sans had liked the sound of that last part, but hated Asgore’s words that followed. 

“In this trial period of a year you will be considered, by all legal purposes and within reason, to be Sans’ and Papyrus' temporary active guardians.”

… 

Papyrus had held out his phone, making a big display of motioning to his speed dial for Toriel. 

“BUT- they will be closely monitored by all of monster kind with monthly surprise check ins to ensure safety!!” Asgore quickly added, a nervous lilt to his tone. 

Papyrus had narrowed his sockets, but slowly put the phone down. 

“The goal is that, by alleviating Sans of all the adult responsibilities he took on in his independence, perhaps in the process you all shall be able to prove you are fit providers.” 

Which essentially boiled down to everyone in the household agreeing to their contribution amounts and what they would do to “help” Sans going forward. 

Fox had obviously taken it upon himself to manage house finances and pitch the most money towards the bills. 

How generous…

Grabbing a yogurt from the kitchen, Sans heard a quick shout echo from the house and peered down the hall curiously. Shoving a spoon in his mouth, he followed the sounds of continued shouting down to the basement. 

“It’s not that bad I think?” Mutt casually drawled. He was dressed in a lab coat, and when Sans caught sight of the skeleton, he appeared to be warily glancing at the machine. 

Stretch, also coated up, was holding his right hand gently while he glared at the machine. “This thing has both electric circuitry and magic conduits embedded into the steel itself, and some of it seems to get interlaced. It’s pretty damn bad.”

“Shouldn’t we have noticed that sooner?” Mutt asked.

Stretch shook his head, “Maybe if we were looking to see if it had built-in defenses, which again… why?! It was dormant through the initial testing process-” Stretch paused, noticing Sans. “Oh, heya kid.”

Sans socket twitched slightly at the nickname.  “What happened?” He asked Mutt instead, stepping closer to see if the idiots had broken his totallynotbroken machine.

Mutt snorted slightly, looking amused as Stretch blocked Sans from getting closer to the metal monstrosity. “Machine bit Stretch.” 

Sans paused. “It… Bit him?”

Stretch showed his slightly scorched hand bones to Sans as if in warning, “Yep, so you might wanna give it space for a moment.”

Instead, Sans pushed past Stretch incredulously, looking the machine over. “How the hell did you manage to do that?!”

Mutt shrugged, “Stretch was trying to stop the thing from restarting itself or something while I was checking out the internals. He said he thought he saw a black wire near where I was slip loose, I let him take a look, and he got zapped which triggered a magic burst and melted a few wires.”

Stretch nodded, “So yeah, it basically bit me. There’s no way that magic surge should have been triggered unless it was somehow dependent or interlinked with the other electric circuitry… Which makes the whole damn thing ten times more complicated, because who the hell even knows how magic and electricity interact outside of The Core, which means a whole host of other issues could be occurring that we didn’t even think of.” 

Sighing, Stretch shook his head. “I’m just glad it got me and not you or Mutt.”

“Masochist,” Mutt rolled his eye lights. “With my LV I have more base HP than either of you could dream of. I would have been fine.”

“With your LV, you’re lucky you don’t live in a psych ward,” Stretch tossed back disapprovingly. 

Mutt predictably flipped him off. 

Stretch predictably tried to hide Mutt’s hand gesture with a nearby clipboard from Sans.

Sans predictably set down his yogurt and ignored both of them, trying to see the damage done to his machine.

Mutt had been the one to bring up the idea that Sans had to allow them to help with the project.  He had told Asgore that it was only fair that they work on it to take more pressure off of Sans.

Which meant these fuckers had taken away not only his jobs, but his biggest hobby. 

Oh yeah, his jobs.  He’d almost forgotten to still be upset by that too.

As of two months ago, Sans had also been temporarily suspended from working any and all monster-ran jobs for his yearlong trial.

Which had left Sans with only his security gig left. That is… Until Asgore had contacted the head of the Ebbot Barrier Security. He had claimed that Sans was ill with a monster-specific disease and had said that if they were willing to consider Sans’ employment on hold until his recovery, Asgore would love to invest in doing business with their company. 

It was so mortifying Sans would have preferred just quitting. 

Sans let out a sharp, unneeded breath looking at the incredibly melted wires of his machine, and had to remind himself that their help was supposed to be a good thing. The sooner they could control this thing, the sooner they could leave and life could be normal again. 

“It’s never shocked me before… I could start on the rewiring,” Sans spoke, seeing a simple enough task to start. 

“I’d rather not risk it,” Stretch said, shaking his head. “Not until we know what specifically set off the surge.”

“That could take ages,” Sans rebutted, wanting to at least work on this one thing. 

“Then yah probably should let us get started on it,” Mutt shrugged, rolling up his lab coat sleeves. “Besides, isn’t it an activity day with Edge or something?”

Oh stars. 

Another thing these numbskulls had actually made a thing: mandatory activities with each of them as a chance to prove themselves as worthy guardians. 

It was just as awkward and bad as it sounded. Just last week his “activity” with Red had been a movie day, which normally would have been great. A soft couch, good snacks and a nice movie to nap through?

Heaven. 

Only, Red’s movie tastes were… Well. Violent, gory slashers. Sans was fairly certain he had fainted at the first knife pulled out by the murderous villain. 

The movie had ended and he had come to, blinking and looking around in a panic, only for Red to wake up with a jaw popping yawn himself. 

“A bit of a snooze fest, yeah?” Red had grinned. “Don’t worry; the next three are a lot more realistic.”

Shivering, Sans shook off the memory. Stars he hated horror movies. Red was lucky Sans wasn’t the kind of monster to take damage from movie intent, otherwise he’d have been dusted on that couch.

“Nah that’s tomorrow,” Stretch replied to Mutt, also rolling up his coat sleeves. “Today he’s with Blue.”

Oh, stars but for other reasons. Er, not any specific ones really. Just… Stars. 

Things were always so darn awkward with Blue. 

“Great,” Sans muttered, grabbing his yogurt a bit too roughly, crinkling the cup. “Can’t wait.”

—— Blue. 

The sounds of the dining room clock ticking away blended perfectly with the sound of rain from outside. 

Unlike his brother, who had taken refuge from the soft thunder sounds in the basement, Blue was more than content to listen to it rumble in the distance and tap at the glass outside. 

Blue had parchment lain over the end of the kitchen table with multiple paints and brushes across the table for his activity today.

He’d been so excited at the idea of some one-on-one time with Sans today, but upon seeing Sans’ face as he had shuffled his way into the dining room, Blue was certain today would not be the day things started looked up. 

He’d explained the point of his craft project and pointed out the materials eagerly hoping that perhaps Sans would be excited by the craft idea. After all, Blue used to do things like this for Stretch all the time, and it had been a big hit for him at this age. 

Regrettably, looking at Sans’ distant expression, Blue could only see irritation and disinterest. So instead, they worked in silence. 

Two months in and Blue still wasn’t sure what they were doing wrong. He knew that things hadn’t worked out quite the way Sans wanted, but he really had been trying to make the most of it. 

He’d made a habit of warning Sans about the Fell brothers’ shenanigans, bringing home treats from the bakery, doing low energy activities to not wear out the easily exhausted monster. Stars, he had even pulled Papyrus aside, asking for advice on how to better help going forward. 

But most of it was for naught. Papyrus had even admitted nothing was going to change until Sans wanted it to. That, as nice as it was that Blue wanted to make things better, trust had been broken and it wasn’t ideal for any of them. 

Thunder rolled from outside, causing Blue and Sans both to look out the window in a moment of brief awe. 

“IT’S A NICE SOUND,” Blue commented hopefully. “PAPY THINKS IT SOUNDS LIKE A CAVE IN, BUT I PERSONALLY LIKE THE WAY THE STORMS GREET THE EARTH.”

Sans shrugged, “It’s okay.”

Giving Blue absolutely nothing to work with. 

This was... Awkward. Awkward and uncomfortable, but stars damn it, Blue wasn’t going to stop trying. Not after everything that had happened. 

It had been overwhelming having the monster KING of this world in their home. Blue had never met his world’s king, but he’d heard amazing things about what he’d been like before he’d gone missing. 

This world’s Asgore was probably just as delightful, he was sure. Next time he had a chance he was certain he’d be brave enough to say hello. Yep. Next time. For sure.

. . . 

Moving his thoughts quickly along, Blue painted while thinking over all that had occurred during Sans makeshift trial. Hearing the aftermath of everyone siding against Sans’ wishes left him feeling… conflicted.

On one hand, Blue had committed to supporting Sans no matter what. Sans needed someone in his corner who could help support and nurture him. Someone who could show him that his opinions, thoughts and dreams were valid and heard. 

On the other hand, Blue knew Sans would probably rather walk in traffic blindfolded than trust a single one of them. 

Monsters were creatures made of magic and abstract concepts. How were they expected to properly help Sans grow into the best monster he could be while he remained unwilling to be helped and distrusting of them?

The new rules set by Asgore ideally gave them a chance to prove themselves to Sans. Only Sans remained stubborn… Perhaps rightfully so…

Sighing, Blue looked up from the coffee cup he’d been painting and took in the sight of Sans. 

Sans was painting his own mug half-heartedly with grey paint. No pictures or anything, just making sure every inch was methodically covered. 

Blue had thought of this activity when he realized him and Sans were the only ones without mugs in the house: Sans didn’t have one because his had broken, and Blue didn’t have one either because he normally just stole Papys’ bee mug to save dishes. 

Glancing down at his own mug, Blue fought off a wistful sigh. His own mug was currently his depiction of what he thought the inside of a wishing star looked like. Orange and yellow and white streaking across the mug with faint blues and purples swirling around the edges. 

In the “blinding white” part of the mug he had written SANS in black, and in his best handwriting. Erm… maybe he had gotten a bit too excited…

Maybe Sans hadn’t heard the part where they were making the mugs for each other? Or maybe that’s just how Sans felt about him? Or maybe grey was just how Sans saw the world? He wore a lot of grey… That would be just so... Sad. 

“SANS?” Blue asked, putting the paint brush down carefully. 

“hm?” Sans replied, half paying attention as he continued running the brush over the same spot.

Blue considered his next words carefully before sighing and asking. “DO… DO YOU THINK THAT YOU WILL EVER GIVE US… WHICH IS TO SAY…” Blue glanced down at the precious wish he put on his mug. “DO YOU WANT THIS TO WORK?” 

Sans chuckled, but the sound resonated no joy. No hope. Just emptiness. 

Sans got up abruptly, tossing his brush into the coffee cup so hard that Blue watched the cup chip. 

“Nope.”

Blue watched as Sans left the room, acceptance slowly starting to settle in his soul. Papyrus was right. This wasn’t going to work. 

Not until something drastic changed. 

Looking out the window, its red curtains tied off to the side, Blue watched as rain pitter pattered down the glass and on the vibrant green leaves of the bushes outside. That familiar foreboding anxiety creeping in his rib cage as thunder sounded again in the distance. 

Reaching across the table, Blue picked up the still wet grey mug and looked at its chipped edge. 

He just hoped that nothing bad would be the catalyst for such change. 

Chapter Text

At least this activity was going to be out of this stars-forsaken house.

Sans slammed the car door behind him to silence Blue’s overprotective babble, causing Edge to twitch from the driver seat but otherwise not comment. Regrettably, the retaliation for Sans’ mistreatment of Edge’s 1968 Camaro took the form of Edge rolling the window down on his side of the car, giving Blue an in. 

Blue quickly scurried to the window to continue his frantic words. “-AND DONT TALK TO STRANGERS, OR GET IN ANY WEIRD CARS, AND ABSOLUTELY DON’T ACCEPT CANDY FROM SAID STRANGERS!” 

Edge looked affronted, “OH COME NOW, SANS IS HARDLY THAT CLUELESS.”

Actually, a weird stranger’s car sounded delightful right now. Even preferable. … Wow, he really just thought that. 

The truth of it all, was, well, stars he just didn’t feel good. The sheer amount of negativity in the air, the house, heck in his soul lately was just draining. 

Sans had never been sick before. Frankly, he wasn’t sure if colds were a thing for skeleton monsters, but eh… He wasn’t stupid. He knew that holding onto his anger and frustration for this long was just physically bad for him. 

Hope, compassion, and love didn’t really mix well with frustration, despair, and resentment, now did it? It made his nonexistent stomach roll over and his bones feel gross. 

He’d call up Alphys and ask about the long-term effects of something like this, but last he checked, her and ‘dyne were on some sort of group vacation with Frisk and Tori. 

So, for now he’d just need to rely on good ol’ Dr. Serif, and in his own unprofessional opinion, Sans needed a good time out with good folks, stat. 

“JUST BE SAFE, SANS!” Blue cried out as Edge rolled the window back up, petting his steering wheel fondly.

Just not from these people. 

Edge was about halfway down the driveway and picking up speed when Mutt suddenly shortcut his way into the back seat with a mischievous, “Boo,” directed towards Edge. 

Edge, to his credit, managed to only jerk the wheel slightly at Mutt’s sudden appearance. He glared in the mirror at Mutt who, freakishly enough, looked… happy?

“NO.” Edge stated firmly. “THIS IS MY ACTIVITY. TELL THAT MEDDLESOME FOX TO STAY IN HIS LANE.”

An ironic choice of words, all things considered. Sans tugged his seat belt to make sure it was working juuust in case. 

“And if I said I was here because I wanted to be?” Mutt asked, lounging sideways on the back seats, earning him an even darker glare from Edge.

“THEN YOU WOULD OBVIOUSLY BE LYING. ON PRINCIPLE, YOU HATE ALL SANS- ALL SANS’- ALL SANS’S? FUCK’S SAKE, YOU HATE EACH AND EVERY SANS, AND ONLY FIND JOY IN TORMENTING YOUR OWN VARIANTS.” 

Mutt shook his skull, “Nah. I don’t hate my Lord, I ain’t a fan of the babiest bones, and I think I’m indifferent of this guy now.” He jerked his distal phalanx towards Sans on that last part. 

This… was honestly the most opinions and emotion Sans had ever seen or heard from Mutt. Were… were Edge and Mutt friends? Probably not, but like, it looked like Mutt at least liked Edge…??? Strange. 

Also, hold up. “Why don’t you like Papyrus?” Sans asked, offended. “Everyone likes Papyrus! He’s the coolest guy.”

“Yeah, ‘xactly,” Mutt deadpanned, despite that explaining actual nothing. “Anyways,” he spoke, more emotion creeping back in as he talked. “Where you takin’ us, Edge lord?” 

“I AM TAKING SANS ON A NICE, SOOTHING CAR RIDE, THEN POSSIBLY GOING TO LOOK AROUND AN ANTIQUE CAR SHOW.” 

Mutt blinked. “That sounds lame as shit. Yah should take us to the mall.”

“YOU’RE LAME AS SHIT!!!” Edge shouted back, causing Mutt to burst into laughter. 

Holy shit did Mutt sound like Papyrus when he laughed. Well, he is a Papyrus, but- he acts so different they might as well be different people. Well, they are different people, but… Ugh.

After a moment of grumbling and forced steady breathing, Edge glanced away from the road again at Mutt, as if offended that he was still here. “SHOULDN'T YOU BE IN YOUR ROOM CONSUMING UNGODLY AMOUNTS OF ECHO FLOWER?”

Mutt sighed dreamily slumping against the seat. “I really should. If only a certain walking Edge lord hadn’t reported my stash to Fox like a snitch and a bitch.” 

“THAT WAS PROBABLY STRETCH WHO DID THAT, YOU SHOULD GO TORMENT HIM.” 

“Can’t, he left hours before y’all with the baby bones. Some kind of event and chat or somethin’. Won’t give yah more detail than that unless yah pay me.”

Sans couldn’t help but speak up in his best mock drawl, “Mutt, Edge don’ got no money.”

Mutt pretended to look shocked, then waggled his bone brow, “Well damn, guess I’ll have to play sugar daddy. Need me to get yah something nice from the mall, Edge?” 

“DON’T ENCOURAGE HIM SANS, AND MUTT!!! DON’T YOU EVER SAY THAT SHIT TO ME AGAIN.” 

“Sure thing, princess.”

“OR THAT!!!”

Mutt snickered away, and Sans closed his eyes at the feeling of pressure lessening from his soul just a bit. 

“Up ahead’s the turn for the mall, by the way.” 

“WE ARE NOT GOING TO THE MALL.”

“Let’s put that to a vote. Good ol’ human democracy style.” Mutt spoke, swaying in a side-to-side shimmy. “Sans, you vote mall, show, or third party?”

Wow, so this was human democracy. Both choices sucked, and voting third party wouldn’t help decide between the other two. That was fairly dark, given, uh, the American government, but Mutt was grinning like he’d just said the funniest shit in the world. 

Glancing between the two, Sans slowly realized that they were serious about him being the tie breaker. “Uh… isn’t the car show at the mall?”

Edge opened his jaw, then shut it, a red glow flushing over his skull as he scowled. “AH. ERM, NOW THAT I THINK ON IT, YES. ANOTHER DECISIVE WIN FOR THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE PAP- EDGE.”

Mutt rolled his eye lights, “I’ve got the most LV and money, plus a free ride to the mall… Pretty sure it’s a win for my lord.”

“FOX ISNT HERE?! ALSO, LV ISN’T A BRAGGING POINT IN THIS WORLD.”

“All my wins are his. Also, to your also, yuh huh.”  

“NYEEEEH!!!!!” 

Sans chuckled at how red Edge’s skull got, only to pause. 

Wait. He had to remind himself that he didn’t like these guys. 

They were self-absorbed pricks. So what if they had great banter, or Mutt for once seemed to be in a great mood. That shouldn’t affect him at all. 

Slowly, that heavy feeling sunk back into Sans’ chest as he watched the two of them continue to bicker, but feeling oh so distant from it. 

Genuinely why did any of this matter again? Okay, sure, they were funny. So what? Anyone could be. Stars, even his temporarily ex-coworker Michael could make a laughable joke. Albeit a horribly racist one or something, but still technically a joke. 

Regardless, he couldn’t let himself forget that he was only in this mess because of those bone bastards. 

He’d survived too much to be treated like the kid they all believed him to be, and yet here he was. In Edge’s car, where he had to argue that he didn’t need a fucking booster seat to ride in it. 

The background chatter between Mutt and Edge seemed to have stopped, but Sans couldn’t bring himself to care. Closing his sockets, Sans decided he wanted to try and nap the heavy feeling away in his soul. 

He couldn’t let them get to him. He had to stay angry. Because if he wasn’t… 

Then what? 

——— Stretch 

Stretch could practically see the guilt wafting from Papyrus’ soul as the kid looked dejectedly down at the ice cream in his hand.

They were sitting on the outdoor bleachers of Papyrus’ school as multiple families ran around greeting their kids. It made Stretch’s soul feel all wobbly when he looked back to Papyrus. 

“Why didn’t you want to tell Sans you had a track meet today?” Stretch hesitantly asked. “I’m sure he would have loved to come.”

Papyrus stared at the strawberry ice cream like it held all the answers to the universe.

“. . .”

“Or, I guess,” Stretch tried again. “Why did you agree to let me come with when I saw you heading out this morning?”

Papyrus sighed, looking up at Stretch as if solving some sort of complicated puzzle in his mind. “SANS ISN’T OKAY, IS HE?” 

Stretch could feel the certainty of the words. It wasn’t a question, just confirmation. “No. He isn’t.” 

Papyrus sighed while saying, “SIGH…” 

A spoken sigh while sighing? Damn, younger him was onto something that would be objectively hysterical if the conversation wasn’t so serious. 

“IT’S BECAUSE WE NEED TO TALK.” Papyrus fixed Stretch with a stern look. 

“I’M STILL VERY DISAPPOINTED IN ALL OF YOU… AND I DON’T REALLY TRUST YOU ALL THAT MUCH,” he continued. “BUT I HAVE TO SAY THAT YOU ALL, DESPITE BEING POSITIVELY DREADFUL PEOPLE, GENUINELY SEEM TO WANT TO HELP MY BROTHER.” Papyrus looked him over warily. 

“I WAS INCREDIBLY WORRIED ABOUT MY BROTHER BEFORE, AND TRUTHFULLY, I DO THINK YOU ALL BEING HERE HAS MADE HIM WORSE. MORE-CLOSED-OFF-THAN-I’VE-EVER-SEEN-HIM LEVELS OF WORSE.”

“I’m waiting for another but,” Stretch added with a strained smile. 

“NOPE. JUST WANTED TO REALLY LET YOU KNOW WHERE YOU ARE AT RIGHT NOW ON THE BADNESS SCALE. MOSTLY RED WITH A SINGLE SMEAR OF BLUE.”

Stretch was confused. “Is that a reference to some-“

“UNIMPORTANT!” Papyrus cut Stretch off firmly, looking up at the larger skeleton with fierce determination. “THE POINT IS I DON’T LIKE BEING UPSET, AND THIS HAS BEEN STAGNANT FOR SO LONG THAT ACTION NEEDS TO BE HAD. I DON’T WANT TO DISLIKE YOU ANYMORE.”

Stretch could feel hope growing in his soul. “Really?”

Papyrus nodded sagely. “BEING MAD AT YOU HAS BEEN STINKY AND EXHAUSTING. I’D MUCH RATHER TRAIN YOU.”

Oh no. Oh stars no. If this kid was anything like Blue, Stretch could see an upsetting amount of running in his future. “… Train me?”

Papyrus nodded evenly. “CARING FOR AND LOVING A SANS IS A WONDERFUL AND JOY FILLED EXPERIENCE, BUT APPARENTLY THEY ARE NOT SKILLS THAT COME NATURALLY TO SOME.” 

Stretch opened his jaw but found himself speechless. Papyrus… he knew Stretch also had a Sans he looked after, right? Blue was just a different kind of Sans than Sans. His Sans, not Sans Sans, or well, Papyrus’ Sans. Blue had been different than Sans in other, more difficult ways. Stretch was well versed in Sans care via Sans- er, Blue. Not Sans but his Sans, Stretch’s Sans. Although, given the custody situation, Papyrus’ Sans was all their Sa- 

Damn it. Now Sans didn't feel like a name or a word cuz he thought it so much. 

Papyrus nodded, taking Stretch’s sudden silence as awe. “IT IS TRUE, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE CHOSEN TO TAKE YOU UNDER MY WING. YOU MAY HAVE THE YEARS OF ONE WHO HAS LIVED A LONG LIFE, BUT I HAVE THE RAW AND NATURAL TALENT OF A CHAMPION WHEN IT COMES TO BEING LOVED BY OTHERS.” 

Stars, what was happening?! Was everything moving in slow motion or was Papyrus purposefully moving slowly to stand and strike a pose, his hand with his ice cream held high!?

“I INVITED YOU HERE TODAY TO SHOW YOU MY PROWESS IN BEING A LOVABLE AND COOL DUDE. WERE YOU NOT IMPRESSED?!?! COULD YOU NOT HEAR MY LOVING AND ADORING FANS CHEER MY NAME WITH THE ENTHUSIASM OF THE MUSES OF OLD BEARING WITNESS TO THE AGE OF GREATNESS?!?”

Uh, well… the other teens on the track team had cheered Papyrus’ (and his old name) fairly loudly when Paps ran, but they’d done that for the whole team?? So…

“… yeah?”

Papyrus must have been moving slowly before, because the speed with which he moved back to face Stretch was startling. 

“GOOD.” Papyrus spoke plainly. “THEN YOU SEE HOW FAR WE HAVE TO GO BEFORE YOU OR ANY OF THE OTHERS ARE WORTHY OF MY BROTHER.”

Getting up from the bleachers, Papyrus handed Stretch his ice cream then took advantage of Stretch being sat down to pat Stretch on the skull. 

“THANK GOODNESS WE HAD THIS TALK! NOW, COME ALONG AND DRIVE US HOME. THE SOCCER TEAM WILL BE FILING IN SOON FOR A GAME AND THE GIRLS ON MY TEAM SAYS THEY ARE OFFICIALLY THE WORST. I AM NOT SURE WHAT THEY ARE THE WORST AT, BUT WE HAVE TOO MUCH ON OUR PLATES NOW TO HELP THEM BECOME BETTER.” 

And with that, Papyrus began to leave, not even bothering to look behind for Stretch to follow. 

Stretch looked at Papyrus, who jauntily walked with a pep in his step away to the parking lot, then back at the half-melted ice cream in his hand. 

Damn. 

Stretch shook his head, as certainty entered his mind that Papyrus wasn’t just a younger version of him. He was certain that, at that age, he hadn’t been such a cool lil’ dude. 

This ‘training’ coming up was probably going to be a skullache, but at least now he had a feeling that maybe, just maybe… Everything was going to be okay. 

——— Sans 

Nothing was okay. Because he was Sans The Fucking Skeleton and things could never go his way. 

He had dreamed of the judgement hall. Or more specifically, dreamed of his first Judgement hall. Because of course he did. 

Tall white columns were bathed in golden light from the ornate tall windows, a mere mockery of what he had recently learned that sunlight felt like. A day ago, they had all made it to the surface. It had to have been a day ago. And yet, something had gone so fucking wrong. 

Papyrus was dead. Everyone was dead. Why had this happened? Frisk had been everyone’s friend just a day ago. Then everything had just… RESET. 

Sans had stared at the orange and yellow tiling on the floor. Justice and bravery, huh? 

There was no Justice yet, and Sans hadn’t held a shred of Bravery to move until he could hear the yelling from down the hall stop. He hadn’t wanted to believe it. 

“This isn’t you, Frisk.” Sans had said to the kid when they finally entered the room. Dust fell from them as they walked, and Sans had fought off a wave of nausea. How many monsters did they have casually coated on their skin? How many souls were lost?

All Sans had been able to think is how he had no idea how he could figure out whose dust was whose to properly lay them to rest. There was no way he knew everyone well enough to know where to put their dust even if he could identify their remains. 

The kid had turned and looked at Sans curiously. They had forgotten about him. He hadn’t known how to keep his cool yet. Only that he had observed and bore witness to every sin that he could. And now was the time, to Judge. 

“I think you know how bad this looks, kid,” he had said as they simply stared at him with curious red eyes. “And I don’t know why you did it, but-”

“I wanted to.” The kid spoke, silencing him. 

Sans’ head had tilted down, his sockets empty and his soul still. “W H A T. Did you just say, kid?”

Frisk- no. Chara grinned at him. “I said I wanted to.” Slowly, Chara lifted their hand, showing a dust smeared blade with a spine-crawling grin. “It was something new, and fun. It’s only fair, right?” 

Sans had been able to move when this had happened. He knew he should be able to move. But instead, his bones were locked, and Chara slowly but surely made their way to Sans, their shoes echoing in the judgment hall. 

“It’s only fair, isn’t it Sans?” 

Why did they keep saying that? How was any of this fair? He couldn’t move. 

They were right there in front of him, knife slowly being raised to his chest. 

“This isn’t Justice.” He said in the dream. The memory. His Hell. 

“No.” Chara agreed. “It’s Determination.”

The knife had plunged down into his chest, and Sans awoke with a loud gasp, reaching out for it while frantically glancing around. 

“SANS?!” Edge spoke, startled, from the driver’s seat, his hand now firmly grasped in Sans’ own shaking bones. 

“Well, that’s a helluva way to wake up,” Mutt chimed in, eye lights wide. “Could you uh, put that thing away?”

Breathing steadying, Sans slowly became more aware. It seemed like Edge must have parked somewhere, because the scenery wasn’t flying by anymore. The mall? Yeah, this was probably the mall…

“. . .”

Then he became too damn aware as he spotted the blaster he summoned and had pointed directly at Edge’s skull. 

“Oh fuck.” Quickly, Sans dismissed the blaster and released Edge’s hand. “I’m uh, yeah, my bad about that,” Sans muttered. 

“I THINK ‘OH FUCK’ FITS WHAT JUST HAPPENED PERFECTLY.” Edge muttered, looking at his hand in utter bafflement. “… ARE YOU ALRIGHT?”

No. No he really really really wasn’t okay. 

“Yeah, just uh, got spooked.” Sans said with an awkward chuckle. 

“RIGHT.” Edge replied cautiously. 

Mutt didn’t say anything, but he had gone quiet. 

They were both staring at him. 

“Welp. Time to go look at cars or something,” Sans said, quickly exiting the car and shortcutting a good few feet away from the vehicle. 

The sounds of Edge squawking and exiting the car soon followed, along with a softer door close. 

He wasn’t sure why, but he was certain Mutt was still staring at him. He felt watched. Judged. 

Sans was the stars-damned judge of this world, Mutt could shove it with the distant observer shtick. 

Pushing through the crowded parking lot, Sans could see the lineup for the car show on the far-right side of the parking lot. Humans and a few monsters were all gathered around the shiny metal beasts, but Sans beelined for the mall building. 

The normally vast and impressive view of the clear horizon had suddenly felt overwhelming, as if blue magic would flip his gravity and he’d be swallowed up by the open sky. 

Pushing his way inside the building, Sans felt himself bump into the solid mass of a human. Confirmed human by the overwhelmingly negative intent circling around him, as in response to being knocked into, the guy flung his arm out to blindly swat at Sans. 

“Watch it!!”

Pure instinct had Sans leaping back, avoiding contact by mere inches. Panic spiked in Sans, but before he could fall back on his coccyx, he was being caught and held against an unfamiliar rib cage. 

Sans braced himself against whichever of his companions had caught him, “My bad g-“ 

“Oh, you’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” the human scoffed in an all too familiar response. 

No fucking way. 

He was out of uniform and with several other large intimidating humans, but there was no mistaking the musty peanut smell of Michael. 

“Last I heard, you were dying with some kind of disease, and yet here you are. Absolutely fine and charging at strangers in the mall.” Michael chuckled darkly. “Oh, work is going to love this you dust ball.”

Annoyance slowly cut its way through Sans’ previous panic as he processed Michael’s words. Wow. Stars, this guy wasn’t just a racist, he was also King Jerkwad. 

Sans was still trying to find the words to reply to the guy when a low tone that edged into a dangerous growl vibrated from the rib cage he had been supported against. 

Looking up, Sans’ eye lights went wide at the sight of Mutt glowering in Michael’s direction. Or more specifically, staring at Michael’s chest, so presumably, the guy’s soul. From this close, Sans could feel Mutt’s magic slowly building. 

“The fuck you just call him?” Mutt truly growled like one of the Snowdin hounds. 

Ruh Roh. 

Sans Checked Mutt as swiftly as he could, hoping his instincts of where this could be going were wrong. 

They weren’t.

MUTT LV 14 ATK 60 DEF 10

He wonders how much EXP a human is worth. 

Chapter Text

At first it had been just as good as anything else. 

Job wanted: Funeral Attendant. A monster new hire was preferred, but if the applicant had proper knowledge on monster funerals and customs, exceptions could be made. 

If he was being honest, Fox had next to no knowledge on this world’s bizarre customs or funeral rites. In his own world, he was fairly certain that, if the dust could be recovered, it would be sent to the families either out of respect or as a threat, and that was it. 

Luckily for him, no human had dared question if a monster would or wouldn’t have the knowledge due to his species alone fitting their requirements. Granted, his subspecies of monster had gained him a few chuckles and additional rules for his new position. 

He was to help with the preparation for human funerals: securing floral arrangements, itinerary creation, helping tend the grounds, guiding the other staff in the minutiae of any monster funerals, and most importantly, not be seen by any mourning clients. 

Apparently, a skeleton could be seen as “triggering” to a mourning human. Fine by him, really. The most disturbing thought of the whole ordeal to him would have been having to provide “comforting condolences” to humans. Truly, the added rule was more of a boon than a burden. 

The first few weeks of his job had been underwhelming and predictable. His new boss, a middle-aged woman named Kathy, had been polite enough. She had copper hair streaked with silver and brown eyes that crinkled when she grinned. 

She, like his brother, had a dark, dry sense of humor that was both occasionally charming and primarily repugnant. 

“I’m glad we were able to hire you around here,” She had said just recently. “You do good work and certainly help keep things organized. I have to admit, I might have been a bit eager to hire you on sight for aesthetic reasons, but you have more than proved your worth here.”

Pride had glowed in his soul and he had preened at the words. Of course he had surpassed her expectations. Not only had she set the bar fairly low, but he was also the Glorious and Maleficent Fox. If he put enough effort in, and he usually did, success would always follow. 

With a small yet genuine smile, Ms. Kathy had spoken in a mischievous tone. “Besides, it was getting bonely down here all on my lonesome. If I’d known a skeleton was the answer, ‘might have dug one up ages ago.” 

Ah. Ugh. Bad. 

“Must You, Miss?” He had sneered, unable to hide his obvious distain for her faulty humor. 

Kathy had laughed openly with more joy and light to her that a woman of her status and position should carry. She was the keeper of human souls in their last days as they faded, and yet she remained so… cheerful? It was an oddity. 

“Oh ‘shaw,” she said happily in that oddly accented tone of hers. “It’s been a coon’s age since I had someone who actually enjoyed my dark humor. I didn’t think that would be your line.”

“The Pun, Ma’am,” he most certainly hadn’t whined. 

She had responded with another round of chuckles and the shake of her head. “Oh but of course, hush my mouth.” 

She was truly another breed of human. Everything Fox had assumed of humans she certainly loved to challenge. Even the things she tried to teach him of humanity. 

“It’s closed casket this next funeral, so we gotta put extra effort into making sure the young man’s well taken care of,” she had told him once, while properly adjusting the outfit of the corpse. 

From what he saw of the body, Fox could certainly tell why humans wouldn’t want to gaze upon it. What he hadn’t understood was the tenderness or logic in her words. 

“You Just Said It Was Closed Casket, Ma’am. Doesn’t That Contradict What You Just Said? No One Will See The Body,” he had asked, watching as she carefully straightened the tie, and smoothed a tilted button. 

“We get to see him, Fox, and though we just met, I think this gentleman would appreciate looking his Sunday best for his last family gathering.” 

That was something else he didn’t understand. She addressed the corpses like they were still there. Sure, human souls lingered after death, faint and barely there, but Fox had never seen them last long. Normally they’d fade sometime between arrival to the end of the service from what he’d seen. 

Looking briefly to the sight he knew Kathy couldn’t see, the corpse’s detached soul was already mostly faded. The faintest hint of orange to the hue hinting to what the body had once been. 

If he hadn’t already found out that Kathy couldn’t see the soul remnants, Fox would guess this is why she addresses them so.

Monster souls certainly didn’t overstay their welcome in such a way. He would know, having slayed enough of his own kind to have first-hand experience. 

He wanted to tell Kathy she needed to interact with the living more. Instead, he opted for a more respectful response. 

“Why Is This Funeral So Different From The Rest?” He had asked, changing the topic completely. “We Have Had Closed Casket Before, But There Are So Many Extra Steps And Procedures To This Funeral.” 

Gently, Kathy had closed the casket, bringing a carefully folded, vaguely familiar cloth over. “He was a soldier, Fox. Folks wish to honor that.”

Fox’s spine straightened at that. 

A soldier. 

He looked the casket over with a… different feeling in his soul. 

Fox was a soldier. Captain of the Royal Guard, prized hound of his Queen Toriel. 

He had looked at his personal copy of the itinerary in his grasp. The number of seats he had to place, the events to follow.

No one would ever do any of these things for Fox. No one other than his brother would attend. No no… there would be no funeral for Fox back in his world. He’d never seen a soldier get one. Only people more than eager to spit in a fallen guard’s dust. 

“Would You…” he had found himself saying, “Would You Tell Me More About Today’s Arrangements And Purpose?” 

And, with a curious glint in her eyes, she had. 

It’s how Fox found himself risking the sanctity of the most important rule. He had wanted to – no - needed to see. 

Standing from afar, flexing every inch of skill he had picked up from years of spying for his Queen, he had watched. From the beginning of the service, to the teary-eyed speeches, to the prayers, Taps playing loudly in the graveyard, the gun shots, the flag folding and the flowers in the ground. 

He had never stayed for the actual funeral service before. He had only ever returned to work afterward for the clean-up. His soul ached by the end, causing Fox to numbly reach up to his socket in a horrifying mix of awe and terror. His hands came back damp with his own purple magic, and he hadn’t even known why or when he started crying. 

Once everyone was gone, Fox had made his own way to the grave. Looking just above the tombstone, he spoke aloud to the faintest outline of the detached soul. 

“So, You Made It Through The Service, Did You?” Fox asked casually, grateful that the graveyard has long since emptied. “Well, Congrats Are In Order, Soldier. You Are The First Soul To Do So Since I Have Arrived Here. Top Marks.”

The soul somehow remained, unresponsive yet still holding on to this reality. The wind blew across the graveyard, and Fox could feel the spring air on his bones and smell the scent of freshly cut flowers on the breeze. 

“It only makes sense that an orange soul would be the first…” Fox had whispered. “I… I am unsure if I would be Brave enough to endure all of that…” even without a proper throat, Fox nearly choked on his next words, “that grief.” 

Standing as straight and proper as if he were standing before his Queen, he cleared his skull. Mentally, he listed every bone in his body in alphabetical order to keep from rattling, a trick he’d picked up ages ago. 

When the calm finally felt genuine, he spoke again, “You are very brave, and should be very proud. To be a soldier of great skill and yet remain so loved… to let yourself be loved.” 

Thank the stars he didn’t need to breathe. It felt like he hadn’t taken a breath in the past hour. 

“I didn’t think it could be done,” he finished in his opinion, rather lamely. Just as he had seen from the human soldier at the funeral, Fox saluted the soul. “Damn Good Work, Soldier. Rest Well.”

The soul pulsed orange, giving Fox a glimpse at the vivid orange it once burned, then faded away from even his sight. 

Grasping at his ribcage, Fox had felt his own cold soul pulse with emotion. 

He felt… He felt. 

He Felt. 

Fox ran. Running as if the Queen’s fire magic was on his calcaneus, Fox ran back into the funeral home and into the employee bathroom, locking the door with trembling hands. 

He’d never been in this room, he had no need, but he knew there was a mirror- Ah yes!

Gripping the edges of the sink, Fox stared at his reflection, his eye lights mere pinpricks in his sockets. Wasting no more time, he had Checked himself. 

He had felt. He had felt and now his LV had gone down.

Fuck. 

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. FUCK. 

He had tried to excuse it. That it was only one point loss of LV, that surely his Queen wouldn’t notice one missing point. That he still had more than plenty to excuse this behavior that- Maybe it was a trick of the mind. Maybe he’d always been at this LV, and just forgot? 

Fox wasn’t a good Monster. 

He had lied and hurt and killed, and most of all had felt none of it. He’d felt nothing by design. Caring was an easily exploitable weakness. Fuck, he had never wanted to feel this. To feel anything. No matter how much the feelings had always sat just beneath the surface. 

Fear. Regret. Grief. FEAR. 

One step out of line and it was his head. Or worse, Mutt’s. The single shred of actual emotion that he had kept through it all had been reserved for his brother. Just his brother. 

It was kill or be killed. Hunt or be hunted, and Fox had never wanted to be hunted again. Not since his father had dragged him to Snowdin and volunteered him to help train the canine unit. 

Fox had tried to be smart and keep his LV low to reap the benefit of being a stripes, he really had. Yet his father, The Hands Of Death, only saw weakness. 

“You need to be smart, Sans,” he had snarled, holding the squirming Fox by his shirt collar. “You aren’t seeing the bigger picture.”

“THE STRIPES KEEP ME SAFE-” Fox had yelled, clawing helplessly at his father’s grasp. 

“And they won’t be there forever, will they, Sans?” His father had sneered. “You stay complacently naive and expect the rest of the world to stay the same. I am a man of a thousand enemies, boy. You think they won’t target you just because you’re a child?”

His father threw Fox to the frozen ground, uncaring of the way his eye socket cracked along with the ice upon impact. Half his Hit Points gone already and his father hadn’t even tried. 

“You refuse to fight,” His father spat. “So you will learn to run. You will run until that coward soul of yours can run no more.”

“THEN WILL THEY STOP?” He had pleaded, his small hands scrambling to find grip enough to pick himself back up. 

His father’s sockets were shadowed and devoid of light. He walked with a shepherd’s crook that he only used now to lift Fox’s gaze from his blurred icy reflection to meet his own. 

“Then you will fight or die. For that is the rule of the world. Kill or be kill. Hunt or hunted.” He moved his crook away, his empty expression now meaner and colder than any other. “The guard won’t stop until they come back with your dust, or you come back with one of theirs.”

“I HATE YOU,” he’d snarled. 

“Get familiar with hatred, it will serve you much better than any other,” His father said, turning his back to Fox. “Come back victorious; my son or not at all.” 

A sharp howl had pierced through the artificial night, and Fox’s eye lights were mere specks. 

“Time’s up.”

He ran. Fox had ran and hid, then ran some more. On day three, he had been cornered. 

Rather than run across the entire Snowdin woods blindly, Fox had been mapping as he ran. A fallen tree, a raised root, ice patches, and rock formations. All possible hazards now made advantageous.

He knew his foes now. The fastest, the most reckless, the most dangerous. He guided the pack, separated them, then just in time he had jumped sideways to dodge a single set of snapping jaws, avoiding the ice patch, unlike the unlucky hound who slid and fell directly into the sharpened branch of the fallen tree. 

They had dusted shortly after. Newly gained EXP left Fox numb and cold. He hadn’t felt victorious in that moment. He had felt sullied. He had LV now. Not a lot, but too much LV to play stripes any longer. 

He hadn’t returned home. Instead, he’d gone straight to the capital. Ready to enlist and train in the Royal Guard. 

Hunt. He became ruthless. It gained him attention. A reputation. He hurt and killed for that safety. That peace of mind. 

Don’t run. He stood his ground. Loyalty was something given to himself and no other. The Queen saw that, and approved. She claimed to understand him. 

Be smart. Everyone hated guards. They were the executioners of the Queen. He was hated on sight, the mere concept striking fear into their souls, and he could accept that. No one could seek revenge if he gained his LV through orders. 

Anything to protect his coward soul. Fox knew though that he could find solace in doing evil in the name of someone else, though. He could justify it that way. It was better than living in fear of having to take responsibility of his own possible evil. 

Then slowly, with each bit of EXP gained, he hadn’t needed to even think to follow those rules. He just did. His LV soared and grew closer and closer to the limits. It had only ever stagnated when he had found his Mutt. 

He had never been given the option to spare Mutt from the choice of staying in stripes or gaining LV, his brother already having been found with a decent amount. So instead, he continued his path, teaching Mutt the rules and lessons he had lived by. 

Teaching Mutt to become a soulless soldier… 

He… Fox wasn’t naive… He had always wondered why the Queen had welcomed the idea of Fox taking in Mutt. It wasn’t until recently that he had pieced it together by observing the others.

Fox was a variant of Sans, yes, but he was a Swap variant, closer in nature to Edge, Papyrus and Blue in personality. Which meant Mutt was more like Sans, Red, and Stretch… A lot like them. And if there was something those three had in common, it was that they lied to their brothers.

They lied a lot. 

Stretch hid his protective aggression from Blue, Sans hid his burdens from Papyrus, and Red loudly displayed his surface flaws as if they would shield Edge from his true vulnerability.  

Fox was ashamed to say he hadn’t pieced it together until he had heard the term. The other thing those three had in common. 

The Judge. 

Queen Toriel’s interest, his brother’s secrecy, his own failures. His little brother was to be, if he wasn’t already, the Judge of his underground. Mutt wasn’t even one-hundred yet.

Fox was many things. Glorious, Maleficent, Cunning, Killer, Soldier, Coward, Brother.  

Staring in the bathroom mirror he had let the dread fill his soul, and his bones to rattle. He was so fucked. 

His brother was the Judge of his underground, and Fox had lost the LV he needed to keep him safe. 

He had spent an hour like that. He gave himself an hour as he let himself feel the fear in his soul. 

“Never Again,” he had hissed at his reflection. “You Had Your Moment Of Weakness. Appreciation For A Fellow Soldier. Now Never Again.” 

… 

That had been two months ago. Fox had witnessed ten funerals and had lost six LV since. 

A fireman lost on the job, a sickly mother, a young couple that were victims of a hit and run, an elder with no family… He could name each and every one, and recall every detail of every funeral.

He’d gone soft, and now because of it, he would have to run.

Fox sat in Sans’ office with his head in his hands. The plan had always been to avoid going back. Now he knew going back would be disastrous at best. 

Not only had he sworn to take care of this world’s variants, but his own brother’s safety would be entirely compromised. That was something he would never risk… well…

Maybe he had once been that kind of monster. He… That monster was to be left in his underground. Fox would make it so. 

Returning wasn’t an option. 

He couldn’t just rely on the hope no one would notice that he had Mutt tampering with their progress on the machine. Sneakily cut wires and ‘accidentally’ shattering the touchscreen display weren’t going to hold them off forever. Something needed to be done. 

Something more permanent…

“FOX!!!!!” 

Fox barely hid his almost jump as a slight twitch of movement as Blue of all people came running into the room. 

Sighing, Fox carefully pulled any and all emotion from his expression. “There Is No Need To Yell At Such A Volume. What Is It? Did That Napstaton DVD From Your Inventory Finally Snap From Abuse?” 

Blues gaze hardened, but he continued his frantic words with little to no hesitance. “I JUST GOT A CALL FROM EDGE. SANS AND MUTT ARE GONE.”

Chapter Text

“MUTT, STAND DOWN,” Edge ordered, like he had any damn say over anything Mutt did. 

The idea that Edge thought he was dumb enough to just start shit right here was nearly painful. Of course Mutt wasn’t going to fight this human while he was surrounded by his pack of other disgusting filth. He could practically feel the sin crawling all over them from where he was standing.

Since arriving in this world, Mutt had made a habit of Checking every human he came across. Sure, he’d only recently become a judge before arriving to this universe, but he was determined to master the perks that came with it before reporting the change to his lord.

He’d seen plenty of humans at his day job, subtly Checking them, or messing with their electronics with the yellow magic he recently gained. Draining or charging electronics was almost becoming a hobby of his now. Watching humans and monsters alike scramble to find a power outlet was hilarious. 

Checking more subtly was simple too. So simple that when he saw that prick of a human almost dust Sans - his lord’s latest investment that Mutt was trusted to guard - fuck yeah he Checked the bastard. 

Mutt had yet to meet a human with LV. And yet, somehow not just one fell upon his path, but four. 

HENRY LV 2

Didn’t know monsters could look so human.

A coward.

JACK LV 3

Any excuse to let some anger out.

A future LV junkie.

CARTER LV 2

Doesn’t know if he’ll follow along again or not.

A newb. 

MICHAEL LV 5

Wouldn't mind adding Sans to his Dust jar.

And a real piece of work all right. Only real sickos kept trophies. 

This guy had either taken out one hell of an impressive monster to get that LV, or a bunch of lesser monsters. Looking at some of the lackeys’ reactions, he’d bet on the later. Probably the less humanoid looking or those incapable of speaking English. 

Monsters like Muffet’s spiders, Lesser Dog, and Greater Dog. Monsters he spoke for. 

Fox hated Snowdin, and had left Mutt to do check ins on the Snowdin residents back in his universe. Even if they weren’t his monsters to keep in line here, Mutt’s jaw twitched in an almost-snarl at the idea of someone fucking with them. 

His teeth ached to snap a bite on the guy’s arm: a wholly impractical but satisfying way to break bones. His lord scolded Mutt for such gruesome attacks, but he wasn’t called Mutt for nothing. 

He was the Mutt from Hell, and yeah motherfucker he bites. 

Regrettably for him and luckily for this guy though, he wasn’t a complete idiot. Mutt knew himself well enough to know that if he let himself get worked up too much, he was going to lose himself to the anger. 

He had no clue if it was his LV, his newly acquired Judge drive to serve Justice, or just the overflowing ache of magic in his bones that could mean another damn growth spurt, but he felt like an emotional ticking time bomb that could really use some hell’s damned echo about now. 

Mutt had to remain controlled. Calm. Rational even. He could do that. Just needed to focus on priorities. 

Keeping his arm firmly on Sans so he could shortcut him away quicker if needed, Mutt helped Sans to his feet, then placed Sans behind himself and Edge. 

There we go, gotta keep the puppy all tucked away. Can’t get too mad if his priority is protecting a pup, now can he? 

Was he also multitasking by memorizing every detail about the scum to track them down later and enact some real Justice? Yea. No shit. But like, again, priorities. 

He had a Sans to keep an eye on now. 

A Sans who could also apparently summon a blaster - a trick Mutt was still perfecting - in his sleep… Why was Fox so adamant Sans needed protecting again? 

Edge gave him a long look, before sighing loudly and turning his eye lights cynically down to their human offenders. “THOUGH YOUR STUNNED SILENCE IS TO BE EXPECTED IN ENCOUNTERING MONSTERS OF SUCH HIGH ESTEEM, IT IS, ADMITTEDLY, A PISS POOR EXCUSE FOR THE MUCH-NEEDED APOLOGY.”

“The hell we need to apologize for?!” The angry human Jack spoke, flanking Michael’s side. “Your guy ran into us!”

“AND I’M SURE HE IS EVER SO SORRY FOR GOING THROUGH AN ENTRANCE AND RUNNING INTO A GROUP OF HUMANS EXITING THROUGH THE DOOR CLEARLY LABLED ENTRANCE, NOT EXIT.”

Edge took a step forward, also placing Mutt behind him, leaving his hand firmly on Mutt’s shoulder. 

Wait, was Edge also treating him like a kid? He should know Mutt had too much LV for that crap. 

Distracting himself from getting irritated at the gesture, Mutt instead focused on how the height difference between Edge and these humans was staggering. Mutt had yet to pass 6 foot, but he could probably deal with another growth spurt or two if it meant he’d get even closer to Edge’s 6’5.

Screw Stretch’s 6’9 though. That guy was just too damn tall. Didn’t matter how nice the number was. 

“You think you’re real smart huh?” Michael sneered, trying to look past Edge at Sans. 

“SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW HOW TO READ,” Edge countered, shifting along with Mutt to block off any view of Sans. “THOUGH, I AM NOT ABLIST, SO I SHALL GLADLY POINT YOU TOWARDS THE CORRECT DOOR, AS WELL AS PASS ON SOME NEW AND EXCITING KNOWLEDGE.”

Oh hell. Mutt was all for giving assholes a piece of one’s mind, but people were starting to gather. His soul ached at the lack of Wisdom being used here. 

Edge continued, lightly squeezing Mutt’s shoulders twice as he spoke, emphasizing certain words. “NOT TRYING TO ADD MORE HEAT TO THIS CONVERSATION, BUT THE WORD ‘DUST’ IN REGARDS TO MONSTERS REFERS TO THE MAGICAL RESIDUE OF OUR REMAINS WHEN WE DIE.”

Mutt would call Edge clever if he wasn’t purposefully antagonizing a group of EXP hungry humans. He also didn’t have a way to show he got Edge’s message, so he really did hope he understood what Edge was trying to convey. 

Edge leaned down to leer at Michael, “YOU HUMANS ARE PROBABLY MORE FAMILIAR WITH THE DEFINITION OF DUST IN REFERENCE TO YOUR DEAD SKIN FLAKES, SAND IN A DESERT, AND YO MOMMA’S DUSTY. OLD. COOCHIE.” 

Pain twinged sharply in Mutt’s skull, and he glared at the smug expression on Edge’s skull. Edge must have had a lot of experience with pissing the wrong people off and shortcutting away with Red. He crossed his arms trust-fall-style and let himself fall backwards towards Mutt as Michael turned red and swung his fist towards the taller monster. 

Stealing his momentum, Mutt held tight to Edge and Sans and shortcut the three of them across the mall. 

That whole maneuver was stupid. It was stupid and Edge should’ve known that. Mutt certainly did, and his reward for pulling it off was the splitting headache he got. Maybe if their escape was more complex, or had any thought put in at all, it wouldn’t hurt this bad.

The three of them stumbled backwards, nearly falling into a display stand of anime merch. Sans seemed to steady himself just fine, but Mutt found himself bracing Edge as the older skeleton continued to fall back against him. 

“What the heck was that?!?” Sans snapped, looking around in a panic. 

“WORRY NOT, SANS,” Edge answered, piping back up with an energy to him that Mutt had only seen from the youngest. “THOUGH WE RETREATED, YOUR ENDURANCE FOR SIMPLY TOLERATING THE PRESENCE OF THAT DREADFUL HUMAN SHOULD CANCLE OUT ANY COWARDICE.” 

“What the heck are you talking about?!!” Sans asked, exasperated. 

Mutt stood himself up straight, looked at Sans, and shrugged.

Who the fuck really knew what the Fell brothers were ever on about. Mutt was more perplexed about how neither Sans nor Edge showed any pain themselves from going against a core trait. 

Stupidity like that tended to hurt like a bitch. 

Then again, Sans did look fairly exhausted as he calmed enough to warily take in their new surroundings. Maybe long-term pain for going against his soul’s being? Nothing Wise, Curious, or Inventive about denying his lord’s care, after all. 

Oddly enough, Mutt’s skullache doubled. 

“… Where are we?” Sans finally asked as his eye lights took in the black fishnets and band T-shirts hanging on the wall behind them. 

“HOT TOPIC” / “Hot topic.” Mutt and Edge answered together.

Sans stared incredulously. “That goth anime store?” 

Mutt felt mildly offended. Excuse you kid. Hot Topic was THE goth anime store. Well… there was also Spencer’s…

“IT WAS THE ONLY STORE I KNEW MUTT WOULD CONFIDENTLY KNOW THE LOCATION OF IN THE MALL.” 

Once again, very much not true. He also knew Spencer’s AND Barnes & Noble. 

Mutt was a ruthless weapon to be used, AND a monster of culture, after all. 

Sans leaned against a clothing rack looking like he wanted to scatter his dust all over the merchandise. Clearly, the kid was starting to lose his cool faster than Mutt had anticipated. 

Which honestly? Good. They were getting nowhere with this ‘give us a chance’ ‘no I hate you all on principle’ bullshit. 

Yeah yeah, they were horrible people. Nothing new really, but they were horrible people who had no idea where to start or what direction to go to make shit better. 

It was time for something to happen. Something bad? Yeah probably, but it really wasn’t his job to care about those kind of details. Well, it wasn’t really his job to care at all. 

Caring was pointless. Fox had taught him that. 

Fox was the only reason he continued to put up with this whole situation. He was why Mutt worked with Stretch daily on the damn machine, only to break it further when the guy wasn’t looking. For Fox he would remain in this awful world, and for Fox he would be the first to make actual dog damned progress with Sans. 

He had three goals today. Keep Sans safe, keep his cool, and make some damn progress with this kid. 

No matter what it took, Mutt wasn’t coming home without results.

His gaze caught the sight of a perfectly shredded pair of jeans, some fingerless gloves that looked both soft and functional nearby, and a studded leather jacket that screamed “I don’t respect my parents”. 

Okay, so maybe he could also leave with a new outfit or two. As he recently learned is a saying, silver linings and all that. Why couldn’t that silver lining take the form of a pocket chain or two?

——- Sans 

It was like his nightmare refused to end. 

Seeing Michael ever was always a day ruiner, but seeing him right after trying to escape memories of the past while also having to dodge a human attack for the first time since a bad timeline? 

Sans’ skull felt like he’d tossed a marble in there and spun around really fast. 

He had been damn near certain Mutt was going to try and kill Michael. Just the thought of it had made him freeze. Sure, he would occasionally daydream about him tripping over a cable, but he wasn’t exactly the kind of monster to wish death upon him, no matter how racist he was.

Not only that, but humans died so much more messily than monsters, and for a brief spine chilling second, he had been certain he was going to feel the upsettingly warm blood splatter of a dead human again. Not to mention the fact that their bodies just… Stayed there… Vacant, soulless husks.

Then of course Edge happened, leaving Sans horrified for a different reason all together. Of course Edge wouldn’t fully back down from a fight. He wasn’t sure if the Fell brothers could. 

Then there was their stupid exit. 

Casual magic in front of humans wasn’t illegal per-say, but it certainly wasn’t encouraged, and doing it in front of Anti-Monster assholes? Crazy. With his luck, there would be fear mongering propaganda about monsters teleporting their way into banks and homes by tomorrow morning. 

And now? Now the two were casually looking through items in the store like none of it had happened. Like none of that could have been really, really bad. Like they weren’t afraid of how quickly a bunch of humans could kill their kind compared to just one possessed human child. 

He could feel that just recently discovered breaking point of his approaching again. Worst of all, Sans could tell the other monsters picked up on it too. Edge nudged Mutt towards Sans, only for them to share a look, then proceed to exit the store. Sans felt like he was expected to follow, and did so numbly. 

For the first time ever, three skeletons found themselves in a mall public bathroom, Mutt casually locking the door behind them with a flick of blue magic on the lock. 

They waited silently for Sans, which just irked him further. Did he have to spell this out for them?! After a steadying breath, the words spewed from his soul, uncontrollable.

“ARE YOU TRYING TO GET US ALL KILLED?!?” He yelled. Y e l l e d. His voice hit a range too high to be Blue’s but twice as loud, causing the other two to jolt in surprise. 

Yeah, he got that they had never had a human in their underground, that they never had to live through watching a human CHILD slaughter their people like it was as easy as jump rope, but could they get a fricken clue. 

“We are in a mall surrounded by humans and you go provoking the most easily triggered human I know! You used magic in front of them, and not just some parlor trick but OUR magic, the kind that most monsters can’t even do!” Running his hands over his face, Sans felt his soul shudder. 

Dust was falling off the kid and all he could think-

Shaking off the memory, Sans continued, “I don’t know how to be any clearer on what a horrible, stupid, and just all-around bad idea that was. We’re going to be lucky if the worst he does is try to get me officially fired.”

Mutt replied sharply, catching Sans by surprise but adding the fuel to his already dimming fire to keep him angry. “That guy had five LV. He’s lucky he got to walk away at all with how the laws of your world work. Murder being illegal and all that.”

Stars. Damn. It.

He hadn’t wanted to know if Michael had LV. He had always gotten that vibe but now he knew and now- fuck and now, he wasn’t sure how to begin actually handling that. 

“It doesn’t matter if the laws of this world says he’s in the wrong or not, a human with any LV is too dangerous to go provoking!” Sans snipped back. 

Mutt scoffed. “I have plenty of LV to fight a human with fucking five. Even Edge Lord could handle the human.”

Edge remained suspiciously quiet and Sans couldn’t seem to stop talking. 

“A human at five LV is just as deadly as a monster at stars damn twenty! Maybe more!” Sans threw his hands up in frustration. 

“No matter how much you think you are safe from them, they are just too damn determined! Humans don’t even need more than one LV to harm us! They could go from one LV to killing someone as strong as the Queen! LV just shows how willing they’d be to do it, but they always can, Mutt!

Sans was starting to lose control of his unnecessary breath. “Humanity can be wonderful and amazing love filled beings, but their Level Of Violence doesn’t mean shit when it comes to how helpless we are to them! All you can do to defend yourself is slap a grin on your face, try and be their bud, or just pray that they don’t randomly decide they want to do it again!” 

“AGAIN?” 

Sans eye lights went small and his jaw clicked shut. 

Edge took a careful step towards Sans but froze in place as Sans took two back. “SANS. YOU SAID ‘AGAIN’. DID… DID A HUMAN HARM YOU?”

“If a human harmed him, he’d be dust on the ground,” Mutt spoke, looking at Sans. He was certainly Checking him to confirm his single HP. 

Edge remained determined. “HIS CURRENT HP DOESN’T MATTER. HP CAN FLUCTUATE FROM MORE THAN JUST GAINING LV… SO I REPEAT, SANS, DID A HUMAN HARM YOU?”

Yes. No. The answer was fucking both. Sans had been unmade into dust and remade more times than he cares to count. He shouldn’t remember what dying felt like, and yet he relived it every time he shut his eyes. 

“No.” He answered tiredly. Because, at least for this timeline, it was the truth. 

Edge’s jaw clicked and there was something heavy in his gaze. Faster than Sans thought him capable, Edge reached out and grabbed Mutt by the wrist just in time before Mutt turned to leave. 

“DONT.” Edge said evenly to Mutt. 

“Put the pieces together, Edge,” Mutt growled. “Sans is clearly hiding the full truth, and a human who knows him is wandering around with LV, while Sans looks scared as shit.” 

“YOU ARE JUST ANGRY. CALM FIRST, THEN ACT. YOU ARE NORMALLY SMARTER THAN THIS,” Edge countered firmly. 

Snarling, Mutt wrenched his wrist from Edge’s grasp. “Fucking hypocrite.” Flicking his other hand upwards, Mutt unlocked the bathroom door then stormed outside. 

Leaving Sans with Edge. 

Edge looked at the door a moment before sighing deeply. “I AM, AREN'T I?” 

Sans wasn’t sure what to say to that, but luckily it seemed the question wasn’t meant for him as he saw Edge turn to face him directly. 

To Sans’ eternal surprise, Edge kneeled down to one knee on the public bathroom floor without hesitance, now hunched to be eye level with Sans. 

“I’M SORRY.” Edge spoke plainly. “FOR ASSUMING I KNEW HOW TO RESPOND TO THE THREAT, AND ON A GRANDER SCALE, FOR ASSUMING I KNEW HOW TO RESPOND TO YOU.” 

Something else hurt in Sans’ soul at the words. A dull throb of… something. He wasn’t quite sure. He was angry and tired and so damn tired of being angry. 

Edge looked the most distinct of the Papyrus’s, all sharp and what not, but something in the guy looked softer in the moment. He could practically see just an older tired Papyrus in him, and that was just… not okay.

Papyrus was never supposed to look this worn. 

“We… Should go get Mutt.” Sans spoke slowly when he realized Edge was waiting for a reply. “Before he does something stupid.” 

Edge nodded in agreement. “WE SHOULD. HE SEEMS TO BE IN A RATHER REACTIVE MOOD TODAY.”

Sans snorted tiredly as the crash from his heightened stress began to hit him. “You’re one to talk.” 

“AT HIS AGE, I WAS ACTUALLY WORSE,” Edge admitted with shocking ease. “I’D HAVE TO THROW BONE ATTACKS AT TARGETS TO THE POINT OF EXHAUSTION TO KEEP A LEVEL SKULL AND A CLEAR MIND.”

Sans attempted some weak humor at the odd confession, “Is this a, I’ll get it when I’m older kind of thing? Cuz I think I’d rather not.” 

Edge funnily enough, looks mildly embarrassed. A dusty red coated his cheek bones as he spoke. “YOU ARE MANY YEARS AWAY FROM ANY BEHAVIOR LIKE THAT, AND FRANKLY I DO NOT ENVY THE TALKS FOX WILL HAVE TO GO OVER WITH MUTT ABOUT MAGICAL REGULATION ANY TIME SOON.” 

This was starting to sound uncomfortably close to a puberty thing… Wait. WAIT. Oh stars. This most likely was a puberty thing. 

Monsters didn’t have chemical brain reactions or hormones, just soul fluctuations and magical responses. Was Mutt acting out cuz of magic imbalance?? Did getting closer to one hundred make your magic go wonky like Sans had seen other young adult monsters go through? Was that a normal ancient skeleton thing or like a messed up skeleton kind of thing? 

Sans had just always figured skeleton monsters were lucky to not have to deal with that shit. His magic never lost its chill and it was awesome in the fact that it hadn’t ever swayed him emotionally before. Papyrus had asked him around thirteen why his friends were plagued by their own magic and he wasn’t.

Sans had just high five’d him and told him skeletons were built different.

But uh, yeah no, baby bones did probably come from somewhere, so puberty was expected at some point…

Great. Now he now had questions he wasn’t sure he wanted answers to. 

Coughing lightly, Edge stood up, “MOVING ON FROM THAT TOPIC ENTIRELY, LET’S FIND THE MUTT AND GO HOME. THIS TRIP WAS VERY POORLY PLANNED.”

Sans stopped his spiraling thoughts of future him problems and furrowed his bone brow at Edge’s words. “We just got here. You didn’t even get to see the cars you wanted to check out.” 

It was one long ass drive here and back just to have a meltdown, discover skeletons aren’t immune to puberty, then leave. 

Edge held the door open for Sans while they left the bathroom. “YES, WELL, IT’S JUST OCCURRED TO ME THAT I NEVER ASKED YOU IF YOU WANTED TO BE HERE AT ALL.” Hurrying back to the crowded walk area, Edge scanned the area unsuccessfully for Mutt. “I DON’T EVEN KNOW IF YOU LIKE CARS LIKE RED DOES.” 

“I don’t, really.” Sans confessed, a weird balm of emotion coating his soul. This didn’t feel like vulnerability, and Edge didn’t look at him with distain. Only surprise and something just close enough to compassion that Sans found himself comfortable enough to say, “Paps would have loved this though.”

Edge hummed, then thoughtfully responded, “I SHALL KEEP THAT IN MIND THEN. FOR NOW, LET’S GATHER OUR ANGRY, ANGST-RIDDEN MUTT, AND BE ON OUR WAY.” 

——- Michael 

Never a-fucking-gain. That little shit had pushed his luck for the last fucking time. So what if he seemed to guard himself with two bone giants.

Monsters always ended up the same. Dust beneath his boots. 

Let’s be real here. He was curious to see what would happen if a monster could survive more than one hit. Would they dust only directly where struck, or did the dusting happen only at the end, when he did the final hit?

He’d been itching to get that answer ever since he’d come into work one day to see the skeleton monster snoozing on the job. 

Most people who knew how easy it was to kill a monster would probably wrongly think that there would be no need to thin their crowds. Those folks were goddamn fools.

Michael’s theory on the whole mess was that monsters were simply glass cannons. Easy to break, but devastatingly powerful in their attacks. That’s why he’d never let them get a hit in. Why else would they have been sealed away to begin with. These… Things were dangerous.

And damn if the short stack hadn’t proved him right. Sans had goddamn disappeared right in front of his eyes. Not dusted, just vanished. Like fucking Houdini.

Solid proof that those freaks from the mountain were hiding just how powerful they could be. 

“Split up and find those things!” he snapped at his buds. “I think a car trip is in order.”

Jackie, his best friend since high school, grinned with a “yessir” and slipped away with excitement. Good man. Never one to run away from a challenge. 

“They could be anywhere…” Henry, his sister’s wimpy bitch of a husband complained. “These ain’t just some spiders, Michael.”

“The more reason we have to make sure they aren’t up to no good then, huh Hen?” Michael replied, while also doubling down a glare at Carter - the weakest link of them all. “Now hop to it or call a cab. I’m not leaving until I know all those folks here are safe from these monsters.” 

So they did. Two of his boys in the mall, Michael towards the car show and Jack circling the exits. He’d been scanning his eyes over the gathered crowds when he finally caught sight of bone. 

It wasn’t the one he wanted, but he wasn’t going to complain that one seemed to find his way directly to him. 

The goth purple one. Not too small, not too tall but just right stood before him making him feel like he was goddamn Goldilocks. 

Michael raised his hand and waved big and friendly like, both signaling to Jack in the distance and looking to piss this monster off. 

It was a first to be certain, almost every monster he’d seen so far seemed naively innocent and kind. At least this one was showing his true colors. It snarled viciously. 

Nodding his head towards the freak, he gestured for him to follow him through the crowd. Daring him to try shit. 

The monster glared but followed Michael through the car show. Jackie was circling around. It was too damn easy. 

Sure as shit, the minute they were far away enough from the crowd the edgy monster was suddenly in front of him, a spark of yellow glowing in a socket as he swung what looked to be a bone at Michael. 

He was surprised the monster attacked first, but truthfully he was too damn excited to register the pain of it burning in his shoulder as the bone knocked his ass to the ground and sizzled out of existence. 

He was right. He was validated. These fucking MONSTERS were threats. 

“I wouldn’t be grinning if I was you,” the skeleton growled, a new bone conjuring in his hand, only smaller and sharpened at the tip. “The only thing you have to look forward to is one hell of a bad time.”

“I think,” Michael grinned wickedly, “You and I will have a great time here.” 

At his words the monster tensed, his hand flying to his head as if in pain before Jack even swung a golf club across its skull. 

It dropped, but to Michael’s delight, didn’t dust. A gnarly crack looked to have formed on its lower jaw near its sharpened canine but overall, it held its shape. 

Michael whistled lowly, “Damn Jackie, where’d you even pick that club up at?” 

Jackie smirked, “Got it after that pathetic fairy looking monster last time. Figured you wouldn’t mind me keeping it in yer trunk if it was for the cause.” 

Michael laughed, “Well points to you, I didn’t even know you kept it there. After this I think you’ve earn the right to keep it there.”

“Shoot, might actually pick up golfing, Mikey, that was fun as hell.”

Michael rolled his eyes. “Help me get this thing in the car and maybe after we deal with him I can lend you some of my clubs. Haven’t golfed in a hot minute but it could be fun.” 

Jack helped Michael lift the surprisingly light monster and move it to the nearby car. “Yah got the zip ties?” 

“Pft, yeah man, I ain’t no amateur.” 

“Should we go call the other two?” Jack asked, a glint in his eyes letting Michael know they were on the same damn page. 

“Hell no, we’ll text ‘em later that we chased him in the car but it was a bust. Don’t trust those two as far as I could throw ‘em.” Michael spat. 

Together they threw the monster in the back seat with a satisfying thud of its skull against the opposing door.

Still not dust. This was gonna be great. 

They were five minutes into driving down the highway when an unexpected voice and a familiar grinning skeleton chimed in from the back.

“Hey guys, you got any candy back here?”

Chapter Text

It was sheer dumb luck that had Sans and Edge in the right place at the right time to see the two humans dragging Mutt into their car. 

They ran for it. Edge ran to try and catch up to them, but Sans only ran to build enough speed to shortcut across the parking lot right next to the bastards. Mutt had been limp and unresponsive, but all Sans could see was a red scarf laying on dust-covered snow. 

As they began revving their engine, Sans shortcut to the driver-side door, only for the assholes to then peel away, tearing through the parking lot and leaving behind a trail of burnt rubber. Edge looked at Sans with wide eye lights. “SANS-“

But whether he was encouraging Sans or trying to stop him, he didn’t bother to find out. Shortcutting to a moving target was always a bitch, and he couldn’t afford to miss his target. 

So, naturally, the first attempt failed. The car swerved out of the parking lot sharply, and Sans was flung towards the concrete of a divider by his own momentum. 

Knowing he had moments to act, he summoned a blaster twice his size into existence, depleting most of his magic. Sans grabbed onto it to steady himself, gliding to a halt just before it vanished. While impressive and powerful, he could never get them to last very long.

Son of a bitch. 

Wasting no more time, he ‘cut once more to close the gap, just missing the loud rumble of an angry engine in the distance. 

Screw his own magic secrecy at this moment, there was doubt in his mind that Mutt was as good as dust if he didn’t act now. 

Sans ‘cut onto the roof of another moving car as it turned onto the main road, cursing his crocs’ lack of grip on the smooth, moving surface. The car beneath him began veering left and right, nearly throwing him off. Sans quickly ‘cut to another car that was moving less erratically, nearly slipping off again from the unfamiliar movement. 

Gravity magic save his coccyx if this went bad.

He’d never shortcut while in a car, let alone on top of one. Hell, he never tried doing any of this to any kind of moving target before. His skillset was in avoiding rapid movement, not riding it. If he miraculously managed to get in Michael’s car, then Sans was certain shortcutting to a stationary space out of it was going to be- 

Well, he’d worry about that after getting Mutt. 

Keeping his gaze forward at the red car he recognized from it being parked at his workplace, Sans jumped between two more cars in quick bursts before feeling a shaky confidence in his newly acquired skill: car hopscotch. 

Or, well, as confident as he could be. If the humans made it to the highway, Sans was toast. 

Speaking of which, they were turning for the stars damned entrance ramp and picking up speed, and the car he was on was slowing for a turn in the opposite direction. 

Soul pounding in his chest, Sans purposefully imagined a giant knife being flung towards him while he threw himself with blue magic from the car he stood on. 

Falling through the void for the briefest moment, he fell into the backseat of the car where Mutt lay unconscious. Sans’ soul thudded loudly in his chest, and sweat beaded on his skull from the exertion. 

Never again. Never ever ever. 

Michael and his buddy seemed too caught up in fiddling with the loud radio to notice Sans on the back floor of the car. They looked to be talking about golf, of all things. 

Sans had never been more grateful and pissed at the same time for being small. The good news was that, as long as no one turned around, he was tucked away perfectly out of eyesight. The bad news was that, since he was so short, he couldn’t see out the stupid windows from his angle to properly shortcut himself and Mutt away. 

He’d be blind jumping, carrying Mutt, and at whatever velocity the car was currently travelling at. 

Was it too late to go back to the time loop? Cuz at this rate, fighting Chara sounded so much easier that what he was gonna have to pull off here. 

Seeing Mutt’s hand dangling over the seat near his face, Sans reached out and held it in his own, their phalanges sliding together. Mutt’s magic didn’t actively react to him, but he could still feel it humming against his own. Proof that Mutt was still alive. Meaning he was just knocked out, and thankfully not slowly falling down.

Good. If he was going to accidentally dust himself on the highways, taking Mutt down with him was a good enough punishment for Mutt getting them into this mess. 

He kept imagining shortcutting them off the side of the highway, only be sent flying at the same speed as the car into a dusty splat. 

Stars. He was in actual danger right now, huh? Mutt was gonna owe him big time for this.

Well, there was only one way to make progress here. Giving Mutt’s hand one last self-reassuring squeeze, Sans slowly moved. Getting up, he sat on the edge of the middle back seat, careful to not lean too far back on Mutt. 

Plastering a cocky, fake-as-fuck grin on his face, Sans eye lights frantically darted around, looking out the windows for a place to shortcut. 

Briefly, his mind drifts to Blue’s warning to not get in any stranger’s cars. Welp, too bad. Time to embrace that mentality. Seeing an old, mostly empty pickup truck with non-tinted windows going for the exit ramp, Sans firmly grasped onto Mutt. 

Making the human throat clearing noise as a courtesy and to get the assholes to stop talking about golf- like seriously why?!- Sans grin became just a bit genuine as he quipped, “Hey guys, you got any candy back here?”

Just like when Mutt scared Edge, Michael jerked the wheel at the surprise. “Shit!!?”

Unlike Edge though, Michael seemed to lose control over the car entirely. 

Panic squeezed Sans’ soul as he pulled Mutt close to him just in time as the car crashed into the side of a semi-truck and F L I P P E D.

——— Mutt

Mutt had been expecting to wake up in some sort of dusty old farm basement tied up against a wall. Or perhaps tied up on a makeshift operating table with a bunch of humans leering over him with LV hungry eyes. 

Just him, and a bunch of murderous humans who wouldn’t know how fast he could shortcut or that they had just taken him to their base of operations. 

Losing half of his HP in one hit had sucked, sure, but the most painful part of the whole thing was letting that human poorly guide him into that trap. 

Currently, his jaw hurt like a bitch, and he was more than ready to take out his frustration on some human scum. 

Only… when his sockets finally blinked to life, and he could hear the idle chatter in the background, Mutt realized his plan hadn’t exactly gone the way it should have. 

Slowly, Mutt took in the sight before him with open confusion.

The distinct smell of coffee hit him first, then the clinking sounds of dishes and eating utensils. 

An elderly human man in red suspenders, a baseball cap, and thick coke bottle glasses was eagerly leaning across the booth table he sat at. “Knock knock.” 

Is this hell?

Sans from beside him leaned just as eagerly over the table, open glee across his face. “Who’s there?”

The wrinkly human’s eye somehow twinkled in mirth without the use of magic. “Iva.”

“Iva who?”

“Iva sore hand from knocking, can you let me in?” 

Sans took in the joke seriously at first, then began chuckling and shaking his finger, causing the old man to join in conspiratorially. 

Seriously, what was going on? Glancing down at the table, Mutt could see plates of pancakes laid out in front of himself and the old man. Sans had a plate of fries absolutely coated in ketchup. 

“Knock knock,” the old man said again, making Mutt wonder how long these two had been at this. 

“Wh- Who’s there?” Sans asked, clearly not over the last joke. 

“Avenue.”

Sans’ eye lights seemed to grow a bit fuzzy in interest as he eagerly asked. “Avenue who?”

“Avenue heard this joke before?” The man finished with little jazz hand fingers. 

Sans cackled embarrassingly loudly. “No! I- oh stars that was awesome- no I haven’t!” 

The old guy smiled delightedly at Sans before noticing Mutt and offering him a smile too. “Oh, would you look at that, your brother seems to be awake. Hope you like hotcakes, young man! We weren’t exactly sure what to you get you.”

Noticing the other booths and the 50’s aesthetic, Mutt could only use his limited human pop culture knowledge to piece together they were in some sort of roadside diner. 

Sans peered over at Mutt, wiping cyan tears of laughter from his sockets. “We got lucky Keneth is a cool guy. He ran away himself a few times as a kid, and was more than happy to help us find our way back home.” 

Ran away? Brother? Okay, so Sans has been lying out his coccyx, but what exactly was the story here?

Keneth fixed Mutt with a stern look, “Now I get things might not feel perfect at home at the moment cuz of your bad grades, but Sans here assured me you’ve got family that loves yah, three square meals a day, and obviously a little brother who loves you enough to follow you to make sure you made it back home safely.”

Bad grades? Mutt had never gone to school, but if the test sheets and books Fox had given him were anything to go off of, he sure as hell wouldn’t have had bad grades. 

Sans put a hand to his chest, “Again, I’m sorry we hid in your truck, Keneth, I just wanted to make sure my bro here was okay.”

Keneth smiled softly at Sans, “You kids can call me Kenny, most folks do. I’ve been told it ain’t considered disrespectful now like it was in my day, and frankly I’m just not a fan of ‘Keneth’.” 

“You’re a great guy, Kenny,” Sans grinned. 

So of course, Mutt had to double Check that. 

Keneth  KENNY

A rare, pure soul of kindness. He’s lonely since his wife passed. 

Well, no shit. No LV and a green soul…

Kenny nodded seriously as he added more syrup to his pancakes. “I’m just glad you boys had enough common sense to wait until I pulled over for gas to let me know you were back there. Finding two unexpected skeletons in the back of your car on a high-speed road is the quickest way to cause an accident.”

Sans looked to be hiding a grimace by eating a fry. “Uh… yeah, we definitely knew better.”

“You boys didn’t happen to see that nasty side collision earlier, did you?” Kenny spoke, a frown on his face. 

Side collision? What exactly had Sans done?

“Nah, slept right through it.” Sans lied so smoothly Mutt would have believed him if it wasn’t for the nervous twitch of his fingers. 

Kenny frowned harder. “Good. It wasn’t a pretty sight even from my rear-view mirrors. I’ll be watching the news and pray’n for the poor folks involved.” 

Mutt slowly realized Kenny was expecting a reaction from him as well and slowly sat up more in the booth. “Uh… tragic. Heart breaking, really. Glad my… umm… bro… didn’t see anything?”

Kenny gave Mutt a sympathetic smile. “You can just say you slept through it too, no need to try to sound cool on my account.” Kenny reached across and had the audacity to pat Mutt’s hand as he began to get up. 

“I’m gonna go see if my phone gets signal, seeing how you boys are outta service range. I’ll be right back.”

Mutt eyed the human warily as he pulled out a cane to aid him with a limp in his step as he walked away from the booth. 

Sans looked to Mutt with a shrug. “He said he’s had a limp since he took a bullet in ‘Nam, wherever that is. Doesn’t seem to affect his driving though, so I didn’t really notice until he stopped driving.”

“What happened,” Mutt asked uncertainly. 

Sans reached out idly and started pouring an obscene amount of some kind of syrup over Mutt’s pancakes. “You were attacked and kidnapped by my crazy coworker. I saved your coccyx, hid us in a truck and now we’re lost.”

Mutt pulled out his phone and winced upon realizing they really didn’t have any signal. “I wanted to get captured,” he spoke casually, reading the texts his lord had sent while he was unconscious. 

Mi’ Lord: Are You Safe?

Mi’ Lord: Sans Left His Phone At Home, But I Know You Always Carry Yours On You. Respond When You Can. 

Mi’ Lord: Do You Know Your Location?

Mi’ Lord: I’m Assuming This Was A Stupid Plan And A Human Didn’t Actually Manage To Best You. 

Mi’ Lord: You Are Supposed To Listen To Your Soul When It Warns You Of Your Own Stupidity. Not Ignore It.

Mi’ Lord: I Am Leaving The House With Blue To Search For You Now. Stay With Sans And Wait For Us In A Safe Location. 

Mi’ Lord: Do NOT Attack Any Humans Unless It Is In Self Defense.

Mi’ Lord: That Is An Order Mutt. You Will Be Punished Severely If You Break It.

Mi’ Lord: We Found The Vehicle Of Your Abductors. They Were Sent To The Hospital In Critical Condition. 

Mi’ Lord: Traces Of Monster Dust Was Found In The Car, But Not Enough To Have Been All Of You And Sans. 

Mi’ Lord: You Must Have Escaped. Call As Soon As Possible. 

Mi’ Lord: Please. 

These looked like they were sent hours ago. Looking outside the window, Mutt could see the sun hanging low over some corn fields off the highway. 

Corn fields. Not trees. Ebbot was known for its trees, not rolling fields. Where the hell where they? 

“What do you mean you wanted to get kidnapped?” Sans pressed glaring at Mutt. The syrup mountain grew aggressively on the pancakes. 

Mutt took his fork and used it to tilt the bottle up to stop the flow of viscous liquid Sans was continuing to pour over his food. 

“Captured, not kidnapped.” He corrected. “The main human’s stats said he keeps a jar of all the monsters he’s dusted. I figured he’d keep it wherever his buddies and him had been dusting monsters. Somewhere discreet enough where I could’ve taken care of ‘em.”

Sans seemed to go through a whirlwind of emotions before settling into a look of plain exhaustion. “Mutt, you can’t try to kill humans.” 

“Doesn’t seem to stop them from trying to dust us.” 

“I know.” Sans replied tiredly. “But you almost died today.” 

Mutt scoffed, “I didn’t dust.”

“One more hit and you would have.” Sans replied evenly. “Do you know what Fox would have done if Michael had killed you? What Fox is probably going through right now looking for you?” Sans chuckled emotionlessly. “Stars willing Stretch and Blue are keeping him away from that hospital.”

“You saw the texts.” Mutt acknowledged. 

The final message from Fox of ‘Please.’ replayed in Mutt’s mind. Fox didn’t usually waste words on unnecessary things, but Fox being worried about him just didn’t feel right. 

Fox had sent him to do much more dangerous things in the past. He had sent Mutt on longer missions. Surely, he wasn’t actually worried? 

Sans nodded with a shrug, “You don’t have a lock on your phone.”

“Touch screen is hard enough without skin.”

“Get a monster phone.”

“Nah.” 

“You boys good?” Kenny spoke up, reappearing and startling both the skeletons.

“Uh, yeah, just peachy.” Sans replied quickly as the old man sat back down. “Any service?” 

Kenny nodded, handing Sans an old flip phone. “I got a few bars by the dumpster. It’s not a great signal, but it should get a call through.”

Sans smiled warmly at the human and moved to get up. “Thanks again, Kenny.”

Kenny waved him off. “Just call your folks. I’m sure they’re worried.”

Sans scurried away with the phone, leaving Mutt and the older human alone. Mutt tensed, watching the guy wearily as he turned to look at him. 

“It wasn’t grades, was it son?” Keneth asked, his face sinking back into a frown. 

Mutt blinked. “Umm.”

“My little brother would cover for me all the time when we were kids.” Kenny spoke softly. “Whenever my temper would get the best of me, or I’d fight with our old man. He’d even enlisted after I did to try and keep me safe in ‘Nam,” The human shook his head sadly. “I can recognize a protective sibling anywhere.”

Well, the human was kinda right. Sans was very protective over his brother. Mutt just wasn’t Sans’ real brother.  

“I think he’s more pissed at me than anything,” Mutt admitted, rubbing at his newly acquired crack. 

Kenny half smiled, “Both can be true. He wouldn’t get mad at you if he didn’t care.” 

“Then I’ve got a whole lot of people who must care a lot about me,” Mutt muttered, thinking on how many people he’s pissed off before. Absentmindedly, Mutt cut off a piece of pancake and ate it. 

Holy. Shit. 

Mutt descended on the perfectly overly sweet pancakes with ravenous delight. 

Kenny chuckled something about growing teenagers, but Mutt was a bit distracted by literal Heaven on his plate. 

“So, what really had you in the back of my truck?” Kenny eventually asked, after Mutt made the food disappear. 

Hunger sated and jaw aching a little less, Mutt decided to answer truthfully. He owed it to Kenny for introducing his new favorite food to him. 

“I lost my cool and did something that felt like a good idea at the time, but looking back might have just been dumb,” Mutt admitted, trying to collect more syrup on his fork. 

Would it be rude to just lick the plate? Probably, but hell was he tempted. 

“Still a bit vague on the details,” Kenny noted.

“As honest of an answer as you’re getting from me,” Mutt answered again truthfully. 

“Fair enough,” Kenny replied. A moment more of silence passed, only to be broken by Kenny again. “You lose your temper often?”

“More than most the people I live with,” Mutt shrugged. 

Kenny nodded like he expected as much. “Wanna know a trick for how to deal with that?” 

Mutt looked the human over thoughtfully. Elders were rare in his underground. You didn’t get to live to an old age unless you had some serious wisdom and cunning to you. 

“You know what, old man,” Mutt conceded curiously. “Why not?” 

——— Sans 

The phone only ringed twice before Blue answered with a tiredly soft, “This Is Blue Serif Speaking.”

“Hey Blue, it’s-“

“SANS?!?”

“Yeah, it’s me. So, I got Mutt, but we’re a bit lost and-“

Distantly, he could hear Blue yelling for Edge and Fox. “SANS, WHERE ARE YOU?!?”

“Well, that’s the thing about being lost-“

“SANS!!??” Edge now spoke, seemingly having ripped the phone away from Blue. “IS MUTT WITH YOU?!? WHERE ARE YOU?!?”

“Well, that comes back to that thing about being lost,” Sans repeated, hearing Fox in the background now demanding Sans be put on speaker. 

“HE SAYS HE’S LOST,” Edge placated Fox’s demanding tone.

“AND THAT HE HAS MUTT,” Blue chimed in. 

“Is Mutt Alright?” Sans could hear Fox clearly say, as the phone must have indeed been put on speaker.

“Yeah, he’s okay,” Sans answered quickly, understanding Fox’s fear all too well. If this had been Papyrus, Sans would have been losing his mind. “Mutt is down some HP and has a new crack in his jaw, but he’s okay.”

“ARE YOU ALRIGHT?” Blue asked, concern broadcasting even over the staticky phone call. 

Well, his magic reserves were basically depleted, and he was now desperately hoping he didn’t have more human deaths on his hands, but other than that? He was fine enough. 

“I’m okay,” Sans lied. “You guys didn’t tell Papyrus about this, did you?”

There was some hesitance over the phone, but Edge eventually spoke up, “STRETCH AND PAPYRUS HAVE BEEN OUT ALL DAY. APPARENTLY, THEY STOPPED BY HOME EARLIER FOR YOUNG PAPYRUS TO GRAB THINGS, SAYING THEY’D BE STARTING SOME KIND OF TRAINING AT THE PARK.”

Blue chimed in, “I ASKED STRETCH TO KEEP HIM BUSY UNTIL WE KNEW WHERE YOU WERE OR COULD FIGURE OUT HOW TO TELL HIM. WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO BREAK THE NEWS WHEN YOU CALLED.”

Sans could feel calm spread over his soul. “I can tell Paps when I get home, I don’t want him worrying while I’m not there.” 

“Why Didn’t You Call Us On Mutt’s Phone?” Fox asked instead of replying to Sans’ request. 

“No service with his cell provider, I’m borrowing a phone right now. I didn’t think to check Mutt’s phone until we hit this dead zone.” 

“WHOSE PHONE ARE YOU USING?” Edge asked curiously. 

“Just a kind human. He offered to help drive us back but I kinda wanna keep our place off human radar. Especially since we might have just kicked a monster racist beehive for all we know.” 

“Smart. Edge Updated Us On What Happened At The Mall,” Fox commented. “Are There Any Street Signs Or Buildings You Could Use To Identify Where You Are?”

Looking around, Sans listed off the highway number, the diner name and described the cornfield across the highway. 

Apparently, it was enough for Fox to work with, because he gave Sans an estimated arrival time and informed him that Edge and Blue would be leaving shortly to get them. Sans was about to ask if Fox would be joining them when the signal dropped.

Cursing softly, Sans contemplated calling back to check only to sigh. He… Yeah, he probably didn’t wanna know. 

Walking back to the diner, Sans was surprised to see Kenny handing some sort of card to Mutt who pocketed it with a nod. 

Sitting back down, Sans gave Mutt a curious look only for him to shrug. 

Kenny looked between the two of them, a contemplative look on his face, before finding the words. “Knock knock.”

——— Fox

“Who’s there?!”

Fox was tempted to ignore the question entirely, but not wanting to alert any nurses or doctors to his presence he replied, “Oh, I’m Just Going Over Your Chart.” 

The steady beep of two heart monitors filled the otherwise silent room. The air smelled of disinfectants, and a feeling of helplessness encased the hospital like a dome. 

It had been so easy to lie to Edge and Blue, saying he was headed home while he had beelined for the hospital. It had been a piece of cake to sneak his way into the hospital room. So damn easy to make sure the cameras would be turned off. 

Standing in the hospital room of the two humans who had harmed his brother and kidnapped Sans, Fox barely contained himself from shaking. In anger. In anticipation. In glee. 

He was spoiled for choice, really. He could change the man’s medical chart and blame a newbie nurse, he could unplug the oxygen on the machines. Hell, he could press on their chests with Blue magic until their rib cages caved in. 

Instead, he approached the conscious one who spoke to him, his face covered in bandages as he weakly tried to remove them to see. 

“I Can Remove Those For You,” Fox said clinically, gently placing his hands on the human’s head. 

“Thank you,” The human spoke, relaxing into his grasp. 

“No.” Fox corrected. “Thank You.”

The human shifted slightly in anxiety when he realized Fox’s hands weren’t moving. “For what?”

“For Reminding Me, Exactly, What I Am.”

“What are yo-“

With a silencing crack, Fox snapped the human’s neck watching their body twitch, then slowly go slack. 

Fox stared at the body with empty sockets. He was about to turn to kill the other one when the dead body spoke again. Soft and feminine. 

“I know what you are, Sans.”

Sockets going wide, Fox tried to lunge back as the dead human body suddenly lurched towards him, grabbing him by the neck instead. 

Suddenly, there was no human at all, but his brother, his neck broken and sockets empty as he held Fox firmly in place. 

Mutt’s neck was bent wrong, and yet his Queen spoke clear as day from his mouth as she addressed him. Her voice overlayed with Mutt’s as she spoke to him. Seeing him. Squeezing firmly around his throat. 

“You Are Weak.”

SNAP.

“FOX?”

Being forced into awareness with a jolt, Fox looked to see Blue shaking him awake. “What Is It?” He spoke sharply, trying to mask his lingering fear from the dream as annoyance from an abrupt awakening. 

Blue looked anything but offended as he instead smiled encouragingly. “YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE TO MAKE ROOM IN THE BACK FOR SANS AND MUTT.”

Fox blinked slowly, then with a start realized they had arrived at the diner. 

Unbuckling, he practically threw himself from the car, looking around frantically. The sun had set not long ago by the looks of it, but the neon diner sign was more than enough to highlight the image of Sans and Mutt exiting the building and walking towards the car, an elderly human not far behind them. 

Edge was already outside of the car walking towards them, but Fox ran past him faster than Edge could blink. 

Mutt’s eye lights went wide in absolute shock as Fox threw himself towards his brother, hugging him close to his chest as if it would prevent Mutt from being so stupid ever again. 

Mutt stumbled backwards, then slumped to his knees to better accommodate Fox’s height. 

“Fox?” Mutt asked, almost in disbelief. 

“Don’t You Fucking EVER Act On Your Stars Damn Own Again, Damn It. You Are MY Mutt And I Will Be Damned If I See You Get Dusted By Being So- So-“

“Stupid?” Mutt asked softly. 

“Careless.” Fox corrected tersely. “You Are Not Allowed To Make Me This Worried Ever Again.”

“Worried?” Mutt asked, seemingly at a loss of what to say. 

“YES. WORRIED.” Edge chimed in, approaching Sans with a determined gait. 

Sans visibly sweated. “So um… I don’t suppose you wanna hear my newest knock knock jokes?” 

Edge stared hard at Sans before his shoulders dropped in defeat “PER… PERHAPS LATER.” Sighing, Edge pulled out his phone, sending a quick text off before looking up at Sans. “FOR NOW, WE ARE GOING HOME.”

And then Edge picked up Sans like a wet kitten and began to carry him to the car. Sans opened his mouth to speak when, “I LOOKED FOR YOU FOR HOURS, SANS SERIF. DENY ME THIS AND I’LL BE TELLING PAPYRUS YOU WERE JUMPING OFF HIGHWAY BRIDGES WHEN I LOST SIGHT OF YOU AND MUTT. 

Sans shut his mouth. 

“I’M SORRY HE WAS WHAT?!” Blue squeaked as he followed after Edge. 

Sighing Fox slowly regained his composure enough to glance at the elderly human present. Letting go of Mutt, Fox did something he never thought himself capable.

“Thank You,” he told the human. 

The elderly man smiled. “Genuinely, I’m just glad I could be of assistance.”

Deeming the human’s words honest, Fox took in the man’s age and swore to himself to attend this human’s funeral when the time came. 

Chapter Text

Looking down at his phone, Red felt relief pour over his soul like a soothing wave of green magic.

Boss: WE FOUND THEM. ON OUR WAY TO GET THEM RN.

“Oh, thank fuck…” Red muttered, running his thumb bone over the screen. The way he had nearly ditched this appointment all together if it hadn’t been for Edge assuring him that they had it covered multiple times. 

Edge had gone as far as asking the Doc if she could move to an evening session so Red could help look for Sans and Mutt for a few hours. 

Red had just been debating getting up and leaving two minutes in when the message had come in. 

“Good news?” The monster in front of him asked. She was a fairly standard bear monster, easily 7 feet tall with soft brown fur. She was dressed in a white blouse with little purple flowers and dark blue slacks. Not to mention a pair of round reading glasses perched just so on her snout. 

“You could say that, Doc,” Red sighed, shoving his phone back in his coat pocket. 

“I’m guessing it was about Sans?” Dr. Grizzly asked, a look of knowing in her honey gold eyes.

Red huffed and leaned his head back on the couch he was sat upon, “Yeah they found the kid.” Reaching up, he rubbed a hand over his face tiredly. “All this Sans stress is probably karma come back to kick my ass for all the grief I gave Edge back when I was at one HP.”

“That was a long time ago. Do you think karma can carry over from that long ago?” 

“Doc, I got a back log of bad karma that probably goes back decades.” 

“And you think your depression is in the bad karma category?

Red couldn’t hold in another sigh as he thought it over. Edge had been around Mutt’s age when Red had started losing any and all determination, passion and courage to his name. 

It hadn’t been anything big at the time; he was constantly fluctuating in his Hit Points. Maybe it was just ruling one execution too many at the time. Something dumb like that. 

He’d come back from the execution of some brave dumb father coward who had been hiding resources from the crown. The monster had looked him dead in the sockets and had begged for Mercy. In Red’s book, the guy wasn’t guilty. He had hardly any LV and a huge family to protect, but under the laws made by his fucking Majesty, he had been sentenced. 

“HELP ME, DAMN IT!!!! They need me!! I can’t go, they need m-“

Undyne had kept her axe sharp and her blows accurate. The cold-hearted bitch didn’t even let him finish his last words, she had just- … The guy was dust in seconds.

… yeah, dumb. 

He had gone home, ready to sleep. Sleep for as long as his damn bones could, only for Edge to excitedly tell him he had finally made it in the Royal Guard. He was to report to Undyne and learn from the… the best. 

Red couldn’t even manage a congrats. He’d just… Just gone to bed. Edge had- well to put it nicely- destroyed over half of their house with the bitch fit he’d thrown. 

Red hadn’t cared. Or maybe he was just tired of caring too damn much. He was exhausted and he had just lost the energy to pretend like anything mattered. 

Nothing really mattered at all for a while. He’d get up, do his job, then sleep. Get up, answer the summons then sleep. Maybe he’d get up to drink somewhere in there, but he couldn’t really remember much from that stretch of time.

The most he could really recall with clarity is that Edge would come home screaming at him, mad and scared as hell over his state. 

Red didn’t blame him. He was practically falling down in the slowest, shittiest way possible. Like… What kind of big brother did that kind of shit? He was supposed to take care of Edge, not throw him to the wolves.

At the time, his thoughts had wildly fluctuated between being certain Edge was capable enough that he didn’t need him anymore, and hating himself for not getting up and taking care of his bro. 

It took Edge coming home with a freshly cracked eye socket, missing nearly all of his HP, and trailing dust on the carpet for Red to get his skull out of his pelvis. 

Undyne had apparently offered to let Edge use her executioner axe, and when Edge refused, she had made him.

Edge had verbally excused Red from his responsibility of looking after him, and Red’s soul had about shattered. Looking at Little- now Big- Boss’s expression, Red could tell Edge had lost that last shred of innocence they both hadn’t known he had left. 

Even though that was over a century ago, he couldn’t forget that look. He couldn’t forgive himself. 

“Yeah ‘doc,” Red grunted out, nearly choking on the memory of the hatred in Edge's eye lights that day. “I do.” 

Red waited for the therapist to give the ol’ ‘sorry you feel that way’, but instead she just nodded. Accepting what he had said, then simply adding, “and your current situation with Sans is bringing these old feelings to the front?”

Anyone else, Red would have responded with a joke. Laugh over it, and not even touch that question with a ten-foot pole. 

This was the Doc though. The monster who showed him that his relationship with Edge wasn’t a complete loss. That they had things in common. Like enjoying sick ass guitar riffs and an appreciation for anarchy. 

How could he not answer? “It’s like with Edge all over again.” He admitted, rubbing at his skull. “He hates me, but when he’s not directly next to me all I can think of his how vulnerable the kid is.”

“Edge doesn’t hate you, Red, he asked me to remind you that if it came up.” The doc added as easy as breathing. 

“Yeah yeah…” Red grumbled before sitting up, pointing to the invisible point he was trying to make. “Sans does, though. I can’t imagine a universe where he doesn’t.”

“And why do you feel so certain of that?” She asked this time, rather than correct him of the assumption. She liked to trip him up like this, the clever bitch. Make him talk more to know what he kept in his skull rather than waste time trying to comfort. It was devious that it worked so well. 

“Well… Cuz, I’d hate me.” Red supplied simply. “It’s bullshit is what it is. It’s bullshit and it’s unfair.” Leaning forward, Red put his skull in one of his hands and spoke in a way he knew he wouldn’t have in a group appointment. “Sans did the whole adult thing on speed run, and everyone wants to try and fix it despite that being the most hypocritical thing we could be doin’.”

“Why we doin’ this shit?” He asked rhetorically. “Dah fuck if I know! Guilt maybe? For my bro I’m certain it’s gotta be some sort of justice or healing thing- yah should really go over that with him in yer one on ones-, But the rest of us?”  Red scoffed. “It’s gotta be cuz it just ain’t fuck’n fair, Doc.” 

His foot began to tap impatiently as he spoke, a ‘nervous habit’ that he used to think was a ‘bullshit tolerance’ meter before therapy. The more fidgety he was, the closer he was to snapping. 

“No one is talking about it, but it’s not really fair what any of us had to go through. I don’t know their stories but fuck if I don’t know what it’s like, Doc. Us Sans’ had to sink or swim, and yah know what? The Papyrus’ were hardly spared no matter how hard we all tried.”

Red held out two hands like scales, lifting one higher than the other, “Other monster sub-races are helpless in their adolescence, too small and weak to do shit. Others help ‘em because they’d dust otherwise.”

Red slowly dragged his left hand lower and into a fist, his mind wandering while he watched his own hand fall. “But us skeletons? Nah, we get too smart too fast. Doesn’t matter if we still have ten years to go or a thousand. The minute we prove we can walk, talk, work and survive a fight, that’s all they need to know. Fully grown. Now hurry up and get with the fuckin’ program or be left behind to dust. Doesn’t matter if your soul ain’t done forming or you might be socially left behind.”

It wasn’t fuckin fair. For any of them.

Red had been angry enough about how his brother had been raised, but looking at everyone else struggle with Sans lately had really drove it home. 

None of them were ready for this shit. Red hadn’t been ready for Edge when he was in his two hundreds, three hundreds or even now. None of them had even been raised right so who the hell were they to think they knew how to properly help Sans? 

He knew giving in to Edge about the Sans thing would be a slippery slope, but fuck he hadn’t expected it would be this bad. He’d never tell any of those bastards, but damn if he wasn’t feeling… Things. 

“You mentioned before that you were impressed with the accomplishments of the others for their ages,” Doctor Grizzly spoke up, causing Red to look up from his clenched fist curiously.

How this woman could guess his train of thought, he had no clue. “Do you think that line of thinking has had you feeling more or less sympathetic to their individual plights? You’ve said before that respect was a big thing in your underground.”  

Seriously? What. A. Woman.

Communication who? This gal could practically read his mind. Damn, it would be so nice to have someone just get him without all the standard talking BS. 

Pity she was married. He was a man-whore, sure, but not usually a homewreckin one. Not usually.

“It’s not that I respect ‘em really. -Er I mean, I don’t feel like I lack respect, it’s more just, we all got the short stick in life just by bein’ born the way we are.” Red thought for a moment. “It’s more like, because I empathize with ‘em, I tolerate them more than most.” 

“Which is nearly identical to how you described ‘respect’ in your underground,” she noted with a toothy grin. 

Red chuckled, amused by her weak attempt at sass, “Aight, you got me there. Maybe I like ‘em just enough to possibly respect the idea of respecting ‘em.” 

Or hell, maybe he even actually liked some of them, but he planned on taking that to the grave. 

Mutt was a funny kid who had some dark jokes that could even make Red’s eye lights go wide. He didn’t seem to want to talk much when he knew Red or Blue was around, but the things he’d overheard the guy say to Stretch or Edge was gold. 

Fox was a snarky bitch, but Red could appreciate the fact the guy put his whole spine into whatever he was doing. It was hilarious though, watching him try to keep his cool all the time. 

Red had seen enough of his bro and knew himself enough to understand that Fox probably had one hell of a personality under his ‘empty sockets’ BS. It made Red wonder what the guy was really like under it all. 

Stretch on the other hand was absolutely shameless in his openness. A complete Brother’s boy through and through. Blue must have spoiled the hell out of Stretch with how much the guy would trail after his brother. 

Edge had yelled at Stretch for being such an embarrassment the first time they saw Stretch drop himself onto Blue’s shoulders and hang off like a cape. 

Red, that early on in knowing the Swap Bros, had been curious as hell how Blue was any kind of version of himself. Until he saw Blue sigh and EASILY lift Stretch up like he wasn’t a grown bean pole of a monster. 

Blue was strong as fuck. And not just physically. Red had never seen someone fail as hard as Blue had with Sans, and yet Blue was right up there with Edge in trying to do right by their youngest. It was both admirable and mildly pathetic to watch. 

If Stretch was used to being babied, then by hell was Blue a damn mother hen. He seemed to fuss over the youngest and Stretch constantly. Though… Something in Red’s soul irked him in a way that made him certain Blue was hiding something. 

What exactly? He didn’t really care to figure out until recently. What was Mr. ‘cOoL aNd DeTeRmInEd CuZ i RaIsEd A bRo WhO aCtUaLlY lOvEs Me’ trying to hide beneath those star eye lights?

Red had noticed, that despite having the loudest opinions possible, the guy was an absolute ghost when all the big decisions were being made. Things just weren’t adding up.

If he was looking for honest company, Red much rather preferred being around the younger cheery bones than Blue. Which was really saying something considering Red, Uhh… admittedly, avoided Papyrus early on.

Papyrus was a ray of sunshine. Red in comparison was an overgrown sewer rat, gnawing on a condom wrapper while on his throne of expired Twinkies. Sans had done something right when raising the spunky lil guy, and Red didn’t want to get in the way unless it was obvious something needed said. 

It wasn’t until Papyrus pushed him down the stairs that Red really saw the potential Edge in the kid. Papyrus was just as viscously protective over Sans and Sans was him. It was adorable, and made Red stupidly nostalgic of Edge’s sub century years. 

Then there was Sans… Hell, it scared him how much Sans was like him. Surprise surprise, a kid version of him was like him. But fuck, actually seeing it was something else entirely. 

Sans, even this young, somehow seemed to have gone through enough to know what it meant to be Red, and hell. Sans deserved so much better than to know what it meant to be Red. 

The scratch of pencil on paper drew Red from his thoughts, making him glance over at the Doc. 

Looking down at her notes the bear monster seemed to circle three different things, smiling to herself on the third as she saw Red trying to peek at the board. 

“You’ve said several things so far in passing I thought you might want to get more into, I’m just marking them in case you want to revisit anything from this session.” She explained, easing his nerves. 

“Ah, yeah. Guess that makes sense,” he mumbled, scratching his nasal ridge. “Anything, uh… you think I should revisit now? Just um… get the shit outta the way?” 

Her eyes were kind, and yeah it might be rude as hell, but Red found comfort in his ability to Check her sneakily. 

No LV, plenty of HP, but most importantly the words that never failed to ease his soul. 

Dr. Grizzly wants to help those bearly getting by. 

Like damn. She had a pun baked into her soul. You didn’t get better than that. He didn’t think he had a thing for kind older ladies but hey, life happens. 

“There isn’t a should, really.” She said thoughtfully. “It’s your time to use as you see fit. You’ve said before, it’s just nice to get things said out loud.” 

Red huffed in a very mature pout, “Yeah well, the help about what to talk about is nice. I’ve got a lot going on up in here, Doc.” He knocked on his skull for good measure.

She chuckled low and growly, “Alright then. Tell me more about why you think you’d hate you, if you were Sans.”

Red grinned, “Easy, cuz we’re hypocritical dicks. Sans is basically just a lil me, and if I suddenly lost all control of my life, I’d want to sleep for days or lash out at someone too.”

“Like you did when you first came to this universe?” 

“Yeah, like that!”

“Then can I pose a question?” She asked sweetly.

Oh no. Red could feel a valid point coming. “… yea?”

“If you and Sans are so similar, when you first arrived in this universe, how would you have reacted if he had said that he understood you perfectly because he is you?”

Oof. Well…

“… like a champ, doc.” He poorly lied. 

To her credit, her expression remained neutral. “Oh?” She questioned, while patiently waiting for his real response. 

A hiss of an exhale escaped him as he slumped into himself, finding comfort in the fluff of his jacket hood. Good sensory shit or something. “Yeah. Like the champion of fucking hypocrites.” Red grumbled, “See!? Even when I think I’m doin better I’m still a fuck’n dick, Doc!” 

“Personally, even though I probably shouldn’t say this, I don’t think you are a dick Mr. Serif. You are simply learning. The fact that you actively wish to change and have been putting in effort as of late already puts you leagues above your own perceived image of yourself.” 

Red sat with that for a moment, before shaking his skull with a sigh.

He gave Dr. Grizzly a wry, soul empty grin. “Any other things on that clipboard we could go back to Doc? I think this one ain’t really my speed right now.”

“The others you live with?” She moved on with the new topic, no hesitation on her part. As if he hadn’t just run from that conversation. Like an absolute weenie.

“Not much more to say,” Red answered feeling tiredness creep into his bones. “I guess, to sum it all up… They make me feel old as shit.”

“You say there’s not much to say then lead with an interesting statement like that.” 

“What!? I AM old. There’s not much to that one, Doc, I swear!”

The world’s most unimpressed bear monster sat before him. 

Red caved, “Okay so like, your connecting the dots ass might actually like this, but big fuck’n surprise, this is also about Sans.”

She gestured to Red, “The floor is yours.”

“Okay so, I’ve been thinkin’ about what we’ve all been doin’ wrong with Sans and the biggest thing is that it hasn’t been a coordinated attack. Everyone is acting like a bunch of spoiled brats all fighting over a toy, and I’m sitting over here like, this kid’s gonna hate us regardless guys, but playin tug o’ war is gonna make him fuckin’ lose it. But nah, they’re all caught up in their own ‘I know what I’m doing’ bullshit.”

Sighing Red rubs at his skull, “It all just reminds me of these dick neighbors Edge and I used to have when he was sub-century. They’d be up howling and barking at shut-the-fuck-up o’clock yah know? And me? I could sleep through a cave in and be fine, but Edge started losing sleep and getting VERY cranky cuz of it. Lil shit snapped at me like it was his job.”

“So, me bein’ the considerate bro I am, I take care of- no I didn’t dust ‘em, just fucked ‘em up pretty good, and then boom! No more barkin’ and Edge can actually sleep.”

Red paused dramatically, “Next thing I know I got folks coming up to me in the streets thanking me for dealing with the Dog’s that had been keepin’ up the whole neighborhood.”

Dr. Grizzly hummed appreciatively. “Seems like more people were bothered than they let on. Based on what you’ve shared, Thank You’s seem rather rare in your universe.”

“Yeah, cuz they are.” Red agreed. “The point is, it was apparently a big annoying problem everyone shared, but you know who finally had to step in to fix it?” Red huffed and crossed his arms. “Fuckin’ me. The one guy in town who wasn’t actually bothered by any of it.” 

“So, everyone failing to connect with Sans on a united front… is starting to feel like a problem you have to fix?” Doctor Grizzly asked uncertainly. 

“Doc if I don’t fix it who the fuck will?” Red answered. She began scribbling more notes on her clipboard at that, and Red let himself continue his rambling not to get too worried over it. 

“I’m the oldest one in the house, and maybe they don’t expect much of me cuz they think I’m some kind of, senile bag of bones over here, but in a world like mine, you had to be determined to survive. Gotta be willing to toss ego to the side and actually step up when it matters.”

“So…” she began. “You have a plan on how to fix your current home situation and bring everyone together?”

Red barked out a startled laugh, “Oh fuck no. I mean, do I look like the therapist doll? No offense but this is why I agreed to a one-on-one session in the first place. I wanna know what YOU think I should do to fix this trash heap.” 

Dr Grizzly stared, open and incredulous. 

Okay yeah so, he totally deserved that but, like, he had good reason. From the continued silence he could tell she was waiting for the reason too. 

“Okay so here’s the thing Doc,” Red sheepishly began. “We all decided what areas to help out in with the Sans thing.”

Dr. grizzly nodded along. “I remember this. You volunteered to help out with Sans’ health if I’m recalling correctly.”

Oh okay, thank hell she was getting this. “I did!” Red said perking up. “Only the biggest hang up I’ve been havin’ is Sans only wants to be seen by his doctor Alphys and she’s on vacation right now, so physical checkups to check on his soul and magic growth are off the table until she gets back.” 

“So, you concluded you wanted to work on his mental health, by trying to fix the whole houses mental health then?” Dr. Grizzly frowned. 

Well, when she says it like that it sounded crazy, but hey it was his first plan in a long time. He was rusty. 

“Got it in one doc!” Red congratulated nervously. “I mean, we’re clearly in over our heads and I figured you’d know at least some way to start fixing this.” 

The doc set down her clip board, and adjusted her glasses. “Red. I’m afraid I’m not accepting new clients right now, let alone six of them. I’m not sure I could personally handle taking in an entire household as my patients.” 

Red pushed with something dangerously close to hope in his soul. “But you at least know of some place or someone who could though right? You’re THE Doctor Grizzly, hot shot among the monsters of this world, and certified Bad Ass therapist.”

She raised a furry brow. 

“Okay well diagnosed hot shot, and certified bad ass by me,” he admitted. “But come on doc, I ain’t above begging here.”

Doctor Grizzly sighed. “Red… It’s not like I know off the top of my head a cure all for your exact situation...”

Red tried not to let the reality of it sting. 

“…but,” she began slowly, a contemplative look growing on her face. “I… I’d have to make a call to an old friend… but I may actually know someone who could help.” 

His delusional confidence in this woman returned tenfold. Fuck. Yes. That’s his gal, or well, Mr. Grizzly’s gal, but when she was helping him win at life like this, he hoped that the old bear could deal with her being his gal too. 

Red leaned forward. “Doc, I’m a desperate man and I don’t say this lightly, but Please.” 

“Well, there’s no need for something as drastic as a please,” she teased. “If I can help, you know I will, and the more I think on it, if you are looking for advice, not doctor’s orders, but simple off the books advice… well...”

At her next words Red couldn’t help but join her in the small, yet hopeful smile she made.

“How do you think Sans feels about camping?”

Chapter Text

It looked like it was going to be another restless yet interesting night.

Stretch watched Blue shut the door behind him as he left the room. Stretch stared at the door, letting himself process the events of the day. A weight both lifted from and added to his soul.

Today had been… interesting alright. It had been the day after Sans’ and Mutt’s unexpected kidnapping, and you’d think that would mean the household would have discussed the events in the aftermath to get some closure about the whole thing.

Instead, it had been the most awkwardly silent Saturday yet.

Mutt had been avoiding Fox like the plague. Outwardly, it looked like Fox had been handling that well, but maybe Stretch just wasn’t as good at reading Fox as he thought. Halfway into the day, Fox had admitted defeat and abruptly left the house on his motorcycle, leaving Mutt to be moping listlessly in the living room, watching TV.

Edge had spent most of the day cleaning the entire house, glaring at anyone who got in his war path against dirt. Stretch had asked if it was a stress thing, only for him to admit it was a “LEAVE ME ALONE I’M THINKING” thing.

Personally, Stretch didn’t get how any version of himself could like cleaning, but eh. To each their own.

No one had seen Red at all today except for Blue, claiming he saw him leaving the house early as hell during his morning jog. Their eldest had been suspiciously absent throughout the day. 

Then there was the youngest bones… Papyrus and Sans had… well…

True to his word, that afternoon Sans had told Papyrus about yesterday’s events in the office room, while Stretch had been with Blue in the kitchen. His bro had been making Cinnamon Bunnies to help Stretch recover his magic and sooth his sore bones. Papyrus’ park training had had a not so surprising amount of cardio and bone attacks, and Stretch had really been feeling its aftermath.

So, the Swap brothers hadn’t really meant to eavesdrop on the conversation, but…

“I THINK HE’S TAKING IT FAIRLY WELL,” Blue had said, leaning towards the hall for a chance to hear Sans and Papyrus better.

“He hasn’t said anything yet,” Stretch corrected, also leaning closer to the hallway to hear better.

“WOULD YOU BE MAD IF I-“

“Oh yeah, livid,” Stretch replied with ease. “You’re like my favorite monster ever, you carelessly risking your life would piss me off a lot.”

Blue had looked at him warily, “WHY DID THAT SOUND LIKE A THREAT?”

Stretch shrugged, “More like a warning, now shh.”

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME SANS?!?”

Both Blue and Stretch had jumped in surprise as Papyrus’ yell sounded near identical to Edge’s yells, only distinctly more distressed. 

Papyrus’ voice had continued from down the hall, “I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU DON’T LIKE THE OTHERS, BROTHER, BUT DO YOU TRULY DISLIKE ME ENOUGH TO HAVE THE OTHERS KEEP ME IN THE DARK WHEN MY OWN BROTHER WAS POSSIBLY IN DANGER?!?!”

Sans must have said something quietly because there was a distinct pause before Papyrus had continued. 

“SANS CAN YOU NOT SEE HOW THIS IS SO MUCH WORSE THAN IF I HAD BEEN A LITTLE WORRIED? HOW CAN I NOT ALWAYS BE WORRIED NOW IF I KNOW THAT YOU WOULDN'T EVEN TELL ME IF YOU WERE IN DANGER OR NEED HELP! YOU COULD BE DUSTING IN THE HOSPITAL AND YOU’D ASK THEM TO TELL ME IT’S JUST A SCRATCH, WOULDN'T YOU?!” 

It had been enough of a reaction that it made Stretch wonder if this wasn’t the first time Sans had tried to spare Papyrus’ feelings, only to come clean in the aftermath. 

“I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH SANS, BUT I AM VERY UPSET WITH YOU RIGHT NOW. THIS IS ME REQUESTING SPACE UNTIL I CAN THINK OF TERMS IN WHICH WE CAN BARTER FORGIVENESS. MOVE ASIDE SO I CAN STORM AWAY.”

Another distinct pause where Sans must have softly spoken.

“I SAID LATER, BROTHER. I- I JUST NEED TIME TO PROCESS. SO PLEASE MOVE.” 

They could hear Papyrus storm his way upstairs, and there had only been enough time for Stretch and Blue to share a brief look of surprise, before they saw Sans begin to enter the hall and darted back into the kitchen. 

Stretch had short cut to be sitting at the kitchen island, quickly laying his skull against his crossed arms on the counter, while Blue quickly went to whisking his already mixed ingredients together. 

Sans had entered the kitchen not long after, looking worn and soul heavy. 

“Hey Stretch?” Sans had asked, directly addressing him. 

Stretch had fought of the urge to flinch, thinking they had been caught. Lifting his skull up he glanced at Sans in what he hoped looked more sleepy than guilty. He even added a lil yawn beforehand, “Yeah bud?” 

Sans shoved his hands in his grey hoodie, “Could our activity be going to Grillbz for lunch?” For a moment it looked as if Sans would say more, but he seemed to give up, as his shoulders dropped, and he settled for looking at Stretch expectantly. 

Stretch had just barely resisted the urge to glance at Blue. “Uh, sure thing. I don’t have a car, so unless yah wanna take my side car while I drive Blue’s bike, we’ll have to short cut there.” 

Sans shrugged, looking back towards the hall. “I can get us there since I’m pretty sure you haven’t been. You good to get us back?”

“Sure thing kiddo, just let me go grab my wallet.”

Sans didn’t even glare at him for the use of kiddo. “‘kay, I’ll be by the door.”

Sans had left and Stretch turned to Blue desperately. “The hell was that?!”

Blue gave Stretch a pitying look. “HE JUST HAD A FIGHT WITH HIS BROTHER. I THINK JUNK FOOD IS ALLOWED.”

Stretch had shaken his skull, “I’m not arguing that, but why me?”

Blue rolled his eye lights and began covering the now formed dough with a cloth. “IF I HAD TO GUESS, IT’S BECAUSE YOU ARE CONVENIENTLY HERE, AND IN SANS’ MIND, YOU ARE INDIFFERENT TO YESTERDAY’S GOINGS ON.”

He blinked, “I’m not though. I think him and Mutt were dumb as hell.”

Moving away from the dough, Blue put his hands on his ilium. “WELL, DON’T TELL HIM THAT. TAKE SANS OUT FOR GREASY JUNK, IF HE WANTS TO TALK ABOUT IT LET HIM, AND IF HE DOESN’T, DON’T. IT’S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE, BROTHER.”

Stretch had sighed, getting up to get ready, “Yeah cuz that would be a lot easier.” 

So, Stretch had taken Sans out, and had gotten his first glance on the infamous Grillby’s™. 

It had reminded him so much of his Muffet’s that his soul had begun to ache. Sans had been greeted at the door by almost every monster present. Stretch had watched the warmth of the place seem to spark some life back into Sans, even while he politely refused any company or conversation past simple greetings.

Stretch had desperately wanted to ask if that was normal, for Sans to be received warmly by folks and still refuse their company. If the way everyone eyed Stretch warily for even being with Sans meant anything, they all seemed to care a lot for the kid. 

The behavior was like looking in a dark mirror. Stretch knew why he kept everyone at arm’s length, for Blue of course, but Sans and Papyrus didn’t seem to have the same quirk Blue had with people. He had no clue why Sans might do something similar.

Stretch had hoped he was just reading too far into a bad day, and it wasn’t that serious. 

Grillby himself didn’t seem to be working, but his daughter, a green fire elemental, welcomed them both warmly while she took their orders. 

Remembering Blue’s advice, Stretch had let things sit in silence between him and Sans. To talk, or not to talk… It felt awkward saying nothing, but when Sans seemed to pick up on the fact Stretch wasn’t going to say much past, “It’s on me,” Sans actually looked to relax. Not exactly happy, but not an anxious wreck. 

Progress? Eh. Maybe he was too hopeful. 

They ate, they didn’t talk, and Stretch took them back home. They had shortcut to just down the driveway, and Stretch had been about to casually comment on how a lil walk after a good meal felt right when he noticed how Sans looked. 

The kid looked at the house with such reluctant dread that Stretch could feel guilt slap him like a dead fish. They had done that. No one should ever have to dread going home, and yet here they were. 

The painting had formed itself in his mind. A lone skeleton facing a giant door. The wood of the door hyper-realistic to balance out the surrealism of the height differences. The very canvas scratched, dented and chipped to make it look like the door’s paint was slowly peeling away. 

Reluctantly, he had pried himself from his thoughts when they actually reached the front door. Perfect, not dented like the one he had itched to paint. 

“You uh,” Stretch had spoken up, surprising Sans. “Wanna watch a movie with me and maybe Blue? Nothing scary like Red’s stuff, just some good ol’ Monty Python.” 

Sans had looked at him weird for a moment before shaking his head. “Nah. I think I’m gonna lay down for a bit.”

“Okay,” Stretch had easily accepted. “Well, you know where to find us if yah need anything.”

“Yep.” 

Then he had watched Sans leave for upstairs, ugly guilt coming back up to gnaw at his bones like a feral Temmie. 

“Well, that sounded awkward as shit,” Mutt had chimed in from the living room, confirming Stretch’s secret opinion that maybe they all were just nosey bastards. 

Stretch had then proceeded to short cut his way to the living room, collapse next to Mutt on the couch, call him a punk, and then force him to watch Monty Python since he was determined to sulk next to the TV. 

Blue would eventually join them, with Cinnamon Bunnies, claiming he’d also dropped some off with the younger skeletons. Mutt had moved to ditch, only for Stretch to hold him in place by the back of his hoodie.

“Skeletons with cracked jaws stay for healing magic treats, no matter how cringe they think they are.” 

“It doesn’t even hurt anymore,” Mutt had complained. 

“GOOD FOR YOU,” Blue had chided. “DIDN’T ASK, BUT THAT'S GREAT NEWS! THAT MEANS THE HEALING MAGIC CAN FOCUS ON MAKING SURE YOU DON’T LOSE A TOOTH FROM EITHER SIDE OF THAT CRACK.” 

Mutt had turned to Stretch, “If I do lose a another tooth, I want another gold one, but more like Red’s.” 

“AS LONG AS YOU DON’T PLAN ON TAKING RED’S GOLD TOOTH, I’M SURE THAT WOULD BE FINE.” Blue had yawned tiredly. 

Mutt had looked at Blue in disbelief, before reluctantly accepting his sweet treat. 

The three of them had stayed like that until Edge had gotten bored and joined them, then eventually the front door had opened. Fox entered the room not long after, causing Stretch to hold on to Mutt’s hoodie again just in case the kid bolted.

Surprisingly, though, Fox had beelined for Edge. “Where Is Your Brother, Edge?”

Edge looked just as startled by being addressed as everyone else was at Fox speaking to him. “I DON’T KNOW. WORK MAYBE? OUT BUYING CAR PARTS FOR HIS PET PROJECT? DRINKING HIMSELF STUPID AT SOME DIVE BAR WITH AUTHENTIC ATMOSPHERE- WHATEVER THE FUCK THAT MEANS- TAKE YOUR PICK.”

Fox’s expression seemed just a bit too put together as he replied, “I See,” with clear distaste.

Edge had grabbed the remote, pausing the movie, and raised a bone brow at Fox, “WHY? WHAT DID HE DO?”

Ignoring Edge, Fox turned to Blue with focused eye lights, “Blue, Check Your Work App To See When Your Next Shift At The Bun’s Bakery Is.”

Blue had shifted awkwardly, pulling out his phone. “IT SHOULD BE NEXT MONDAY MORNING.”

Fox narrowed his gaze, “Yes But Is It?” He glanced at Mutt briefly adding, “Mutt, Check Your Schedule For The Florist’s As Well.”

Sensing the theme, Stretch had been tempted to pull out his own phone, but his cyber security was more freelance work than anything, and he’d already put a good chunk of it on the back burner to focus on fixing the machine. It seemed like Mutt would find a new problem every time they even looked at the thing weird. 

Blue abruptly had stood in shock. “IT SAYS MY NEXT SHIFT IS IN THREE MONTHS?!?” 

Mutt dutifully having pulled out his phone to check too, looked up to glare at Edge, “Same.”

Edge had crossed his arms, “WELL THAT SEEMS LIKE A POOR FINANCIAL DECISION.” 

Fox had taken a steady step closer to Edge, a taste of sharp magic in the air. “Incredibly. So Would You Be Willing To Explain To Me Why, When I Left To Pick Up Some Extra Hours At Work, My Boss Told Me That My Older, Gold Toothed, Brother Had Stopped By And Explained Everything, And She Told Me To Enjoy My Vacation?” 

Edge blinked his sockets owlishly, “I HONESTLY HAVE NO GOD DAMN CLUE.”

Sighing, Fox had run his hands down his face. “Lovely. Just Lovely.” Fox had then proceeded to leave the room, returning shortly with one of Red’s shirts, tossing it at Mutt. “Catch.” 

Mutt grabbed the shirt before it could hit him, then had glared offended at the object. “I don’t need this. We live with the guy. I’d know the stink of his magic anywhere.”

Fox waved a hand dismissively, “Then Go Fetch.” 

Rolling his eyes, Mutt short cut away, taking the shirt and his remaining cinnamon bunny with him. 

Blue had looked at Fox in utter shock, “YOU’RE JUST LETTING HIM GO OUT ON HIS OWN AFTER YESTERDAY?”

Fox had crossed his arms, “Yes.”

Edge had looked thoughtful, “CAN HE ACTUALLY TRACK VIA MAGICAL SIGNATURE?”

“So He Claims.”

“Wanna watch Monty Python?” Stretch had asked, moving over to make more room for Fox on the couch so he wouldn’t have to sit as close to Stretch as Mutt had. 

Fox had stared at Stretch with empty sockets before he sighed and came over to sit down, “I Suppose.” 

About fifteen or so minutes later, Stretch was reaching over to pause the movie when Mutt had reappeared with Red in the middle of the living room. Red’s arms had been filled to the brim with junk. Fishing poles, lawn chairs, life vests, tiki torches and sunglasses. 

“Oi, I wasn’t done paying for this crap!” Red spoke, swatting at Mutt who easily dodged his swings. 

Fox had quickly stood glaring at Red, “It Will Be A Miracle If We Can Pay For Any Luxuries With Us All Being Out Of Work For Three Months.” 

Edge had also taken the cue to stand and narrow his gaze at Red with a surprising ferocity. “BROTHER.” Edge steadily spoke, “WHAT DID YOU DO?” 

Red had looked at Edge, then had looked at the rest of the room, magical sweat beginning to bead on his skull. “Okay, so uh… I know this looks bad, but I really do have a plan. A plan to fix the Sans thing, and it won’t kill us financially or anything. It’s one hell of a Hail Mary, but I think it might actually fuck’n work.” 

And thus, they had all been brought up to speed on Red’s surprisingly optimistic Hail Mary. 

“Camping, huh?” Stretch had spoken after Blue and him had retreated to Stretch's room to talk. 

“THREE MONTHS OF CAMPING,” Blue corrected. “SANS BARELY WANTS TO BE AROUND ANY OF US FOR A FEW HOURS, AND RED THINKS THREE MONTHS OF CLOSE PROXIMITY IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE IS A GOOD IDEA?”

“Three months at a summer camp,” Stretch corrected, thinking on all the valid points Red had unfortunately made. “A summer camp that’s currently unoccupied except for the owner, who comes recommended from the Fell’s sweetheart of a therapist. It’s not like we’re asking Sans to share a tent with all of us.” 

Blue had looked skeptically down at the brochure Red had given them. “CAMP HONEY HIVE… IT EVEN SOUNDS LIKE A LOVELY PLACE…” Frowning, Blue placed the brochure down on Stretch’s nightstand. “YOU KNOW, WHEN I SAID THIS HOUSEHOLD NEEDED COUNSELING, I DIDN’T MEAN A CAMP COUNSELOR.” 

Stretch had shrugged, sitting on his bed, “At this point, I think we’re too desperate to be picky. We get the full camp experience, and all we have to do is help maintain the grounds and help Counselor Honey remodel a few cabins? Sign me up.”

“WE KNOW NEXT TO NOTHING ABOUT THIS COUNSELOR HONEY, EXCEPT SHE’S SUPPOSEDLY GOING TO HELP SANS TRUST US SOMEHOW.”

Stretch couldn’t help himself, “If this Honey comes recommended from Dr. Grizzly, I’m sure she’s a Beary reliable monster.” 

“I SOMEHOW HATE YOUR PUNS MORE THAN YOUR RIDDLES.” 

“What kind of singers does a forest have?”

“DON’T-“

“Bear-itones.”

Blue had groaned, covering his face. “I AM SO DISTRESSED.”

“Come on Bro,” Stretch had pressed, “What has the Magnificent Sans so reluctant about an opportunity to be great?”

It hadn’t been like his bro to be this… pessimistic. Stretch wasn’t a fan of how often Blue seemed to be losing hope over this. 

Blue looked over at Stretch as if trying to find the words, “I… I Guess This Just Feels Like My Last Chance.” Blue admitted solemnly. “No Matter How Sorry I Am, Or How Much Space I Try To Give Him, I’ve Still Been Too Much.” 

Blue had looked down at his hands, and whispered softly, “I’m either all or nothing, Papyrus. How can I help anyone like this?” 

Well… That just wasn’t true. Blue had his quirks, and his ups and downs, but no one cared half as much as Blue did, about, well, everything. Sure, his bro was still working on the whole interacting with others front but that didn’t mean he wasn’t great. 

Just… different. And screw anyone who thought being different made you any less capable. 

Frowning, Stretch gestured for Blue to sit next to him, “Now… that doesn’t sound like my cool big bro at all.”

“I KNOW,” Blue agreed, attempting a tired smile. Sitting next to Stretch, he patted his arm, “I’M SORRY PAPY.”

Stretch shook his skull, “No sorry needed, Sans, I…” he had paused gathering his thoughts. “It takes a lot out of a guy being as cool as you are, bro, it’s okay to need time to recharge every now and then.” 

Blue’s smile had seemed a twitch more genuine, “PERHAPS I NEED COOL DUDE LESSONS FROM OUR RESIDENT YOUNGEST, TOO.”

Stretch had given Blue a side hug, “Nah, you’re perfect as you are. Truly magnificent.” 

“QUIRKS AND ALL?” Blue asked ruefully. 

“Quirks and all,” Stretch had confirmed solidly. 

Blue had looked at him, then slowly began to nod to himself. “YOU… YOU ARE RIGHT. I… I AM GREAT, AND I CANNOT GIVE UP.”

Abruptly standing, Blue had struck a pose for the first time in what felt like ages. He had spoken slowly, gaining more genuine confidence as he went, “IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW MANY TRIES IT TAKES! OR IF SANS EVER FORGIVES ME! WHAT IS IMPORTANT IS THAT BY THE TIME THE YEAR IS UP, EVERYONE’S LIVES WILL HAVE BEEN CHANGED FOR THE BETTER.”

“And why do you believe that bro?” Stretch grinned eagerly, feeding Blue’s growing hype. 

Blue had returned Stretch’s grin, his eye lights shining with excited magic. “BECAUSE I’M THE GREAT AND MAGNIFICENT SANS, AND I BELIEVE IN MAKING DREAMS COME TRUE! I SHALL SHOOT FOR THE STARS AND SHINE TWICE AS BRIGHT!” 

“Fuck yeah you do,” Stretch had eagerly agreed. 

“MWEH HEH HEH!” Blue had joyfully laughed, already looking twice as good as before. “THANK YOU PAPY, I REALLY NEEDED THAT.”

“Eh,” Stretch shrugged. “It’s what lil bros are for. Sometimes I gotta return the favor, just a lil bit, and look out for you too.” 

Quickly closing the distance, Blue had pressed his teeth to the top of Stretch's skull with a loud, “MUAH!” and jogged for the door. “I’M GOING TO START A PACKING LIST THEN SHARE IT WITH EVERYONE!”

Stretch had loved the enthusiasm but added just a touch of reality back by adding, “Trust me, I’m for Red’s plan too, but we don’t know if Sans is gonna agree to this yet.” 

“I KNOW.” Blue nodded, opening the door. “I JUST… I’M CHOOSING TO BELIEVE THAT THIS IS GOING TO GO WELL. SO, YOU KNOW WHAT? I THINK I SHALL CONTINUE THIS POSITIVE THINKING BY JUST STARTING OFF THE BAT WITH SOME PACKING!”

“Well, that sounds like you’re gonna be busy tonight.” Stretch had grinned. “I guess goodnight then bro.” 

“GOOD NIGHT PAPY!” Blue had yelled cheerfully, carefully shutting the door on his way out of Stretch's room. 

And then… Well he supposed that’s how the entire day had gone. Interesting, but… kind of a lot. 

Flipping back into his bed, Stretch stared at his ceiling tiredly for a moment, before shutting his eyes. 

“STRETCH?” 

“Umhmm…” 

“I HAD NO IDEA BLUE WAS CAPABLE OF BEING COOL,” Papyrus admitted genuinely.

“He’s always been cool.”

. . .

Wait. 

Papyrus?!?

Bolting up, Stretch looked around his room frantically, seeing no one. What the fuck? Wait… the voice had sounded like it had come from…

Slowly… hesitantly… Stretch bent down and looked underneath his bed. 

“Papyrus… What are you doing under my bed?” Stretch asked, slowly taking in the sight of Papyrus squished against the floor under his bed. 

“WELL…” Papyrus began. “I WAS GOING TO AMBUSH YOU FOR SOME MORE TRAINING, AND TOTALLY WASN’T HIDING FROM MY BROTHER, BUT I MAY HAVE GOTTEN STUCK.” 

Sighing, Stretch got off his bed, and began to lift his bed up with the assistance of some gravity magic. “Why didn’t you say anything?” he asked, offering Papyrus a hand up. 

“YOU WERE TALKING TO BLUE ABOUT SOMETHING THAT SOUNDED IMPORTANT, AND THEN YOU WERE TALKING TO BLUE ABOUT SOMETHING EVEN MORE IMPORTANT AND I JUST DIDN’T WANT TO INTERRUPT.” Papyrus confessed, getting up then helping Stretch put his bed back down. 

It was no longer a theory. Everyone in this house were complete nosey bones. 

“I HAVE QUESTIONS,” Papyrus admitted bluntly. 

“I’m not answering anything about Blue that’s not mine to tell,” Stretch began defensively. 

Papyrus waved his hands frantically, “NO NO, NOT ABOUT ANY OF THAT LAST BIT I SWEAR!” Papyrus at least had the decency to look thoroughly guilty as he said that. “I MOSTLY JUST WANTED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS CAMP IDEA YOU SAID RED HAD.”

“Yeah?” Stretch asked, skeptically eyeing Papyrus. “You think Sans will go for it?”

“NOT REALLY,” Papyrus said bluntly, minorly crushing Stretch's hopes. “BUT YOU SAID SOMETHING EARLIER THAT REALLY GOT ME THINKING… “

“About lil bros returning the favor?” Stretch asked just as bluntly.

“WHAT?!? NO!! OF COURSE NOT! PFT, THE IDEA OF- NO!” Papyrus very badly lied. 

“Sorry, silly assumption of my part.” Stretch said, barely holding back a fond grin. “We can skip that, so what were you thinking?”

Papyrus quickly regained his composure, “OH YEAH, SO, UM… SANS ISN’T GOING TO GO ALONG WITH RED’S PLAN WILLINGLY… BUT… EVEN THOUGH I AM STILL UPSET WITH MY BROTHER… DEPENDING ON WHAT DETAILS OF THE PLAN YOU SHARE WITH ME, AND WHAT THAT BROCHURE HAS TO SAY…”

Papyrus sighed, but his following words had Stretch feeling almost like a true optimist. 

“I THINK I CAN HELP.”

——— Sans 

It wasn’t that him and Papyrus hadn’t fought before. 

It was more the fact that after seeing his brother die a few hundred times, real arguments just didn’t sit right in Sans’ soul. 

Sure, Paps was justified in his feelings, but Sans hated that those feelings were negative ones about him. Everything he did was for Papyrus, and if Papyrus took himself out of that equation… Then who did Sans have left? 

Even going to Grillby’s hadn’t managed to cheer him up after his argument- scolding? - with Papyrus. 

Stretch not getting into his business about it had been surprisingly nice, but otherwise Sans just couldn’t shake the Bleh clinging to his soul. 

It was fine, right? Paps rarely stayed mad for long. They’d be best bros again by breakfast. It was totally normal to be upset after disappointing your younger brother, right? Irrational thoughts of Papyrus running away and getting murdered by some random human the minute he was out of sight was completely normal and absolutely nothing to worry about, right? 

… Stars maybe he did need therapy. If only they wouldn’t lock him up in a loony bin the minute he brought up the time loops… 

“SANS?” 

A knock at his door had Sans pausing in his current project of pacing a path into the carpet. Reluctantly, Sans moved to the door, trying not to give himself false hope. 

It could just be Edge, he told himself as he slowly opened his door. 

It wasn’t Edge, and Sans certainly did need some kind of therapy if the instant relief at seeing Papyrus was okay had anything to say about it. 

Papyrus stood outside Sans’ door, his arms crossed and a stern look upon his face. “SANS,” he stated.

“Papyrus…?” Sans asked uncertainly. 

Papyrus leaned towards Sans, a determined expression on his skull.

“I’VE COME TO NEGOTIATE.”

Thank the fucking Stars. 

Chapter Text

Between Sans, Papyrus, and all the extra crap that couldn’t fit in the trunk, the back of Edge’s convertible was packed to the brim, but they had made do. 

Sans currently had his telescope case tucked between his legs to make sure it didn’t jostle around too much or get taken out by someone he didn’t trust. 

Trees whizzed past them while they drove up the winding mountain side. The evergreen trees here were as tall as the ones on Ebbot Mountain, giving testament to just how old the forests were. 

Camp Honey Hive wasn’t exactly far from Ebbot, but it was up one of the neighboring mountains, along with a collection of small lakes and a few other campgrounds. 

Edge led their little caravan in his car, with Red riding shotgun and Sans and his bro squeezed in the back. Mutt drove close behind in Fox’s car, crammed with enough stuff that they couldn’t fit another skeleton in their if they tried. Blue and Fox took up the rear on their respective motorcycles, with Stretch lounging in Blue’s sidecar.

Red tapped the foldout map in his hands while he continued to hype up the camp to Edge. 

“Apparently the Doc even worked at the camp while she was waiting for her credentials to be approved for surface use,” Red said for what Sans felt like was the third time. “Since they aren’t running the usual camp season with kids, we got the whole place just for us.” 

Edge tapped at the steering wheel, his gaze fixed on the road. “WHICH YOU MUST ADMIT IS A BIT ODD. SUMMER IS WHEN A SUMMER CAMP IS SUPPOSED TO MAKE THE MAJORITY OF ITS MONEY. SURELY REMODELS COULD HAVE WAITED UNTIL AFTER THE BUSY SEASON?” 

Red shrugged, adjusting the map in his lap, “Maybe the cabins are just that old? I don’t know shit about running a summer camp, so she probably has her reasons.” 

Papyrus piped up from where he had been fiddling with a worn and faded Rubik’s cube, “IT MUST BE HARD BEING A MONSTER RUNNING A CAMP COMPETING WITH THE HUMAN ONES.” 

“DEPENDS ON WHAT SUBTYPE THEY ARE,” Edge scoffed. “HUMANS SEEM TO BE A LOT MORE ACCEPTING OF THE ‘CUTER’ LOOKING OF OUR KIND.”

Papyrus nodded seriously, “WE’RE LUCKY SKELETONS ARE ADORABLE BY DEFAULT.”

An abrupt laugh escaped Edge at the words, but he looked to soften nonetheless, “NYEH HEH, RIGHT YOU ARE.” 

Sans wasn’t sure if Paps truly had never had a negative reaction from humans, if Paps never took it personally, or if Sans was just that good at screening most folks who met his bro. 

He could still remember walking through Pap’s surface school during “parent” orientation with Tori. She had been there to give all teachers and parents a brief lesson on adolescent monsters. 

Sans had been there as a monster on a mission. He proudly walked around with a, “hi i’m a skeleton monster. ask me about my bro.” sign. 

He had introduced himself to every teacher and willing parent in that building to get their vibes and Check them. Luckily, he hadn’t seen any LV from anyone, but he had gotten the standard awkward questions out of the way so Paps wouldn’t have to. 

Yes, they ate. Yes, they could eat human foods, but magic food was much preferred. No Papyrus wouldn’t be using magic in school. No, they didn’t need to use the restroom. Yes, they could get tired, and even sleep. No, you couldn’t ask about the soul stuff. Yes, asking to see a monster’s soul is rude. Yes, skeletons can feel textures. Yes, they could feel emotions. No, they weren’t once dead humans. No, the bone structures weren’t exact replicas of a human skeleton… Just look at the skulls, man… No, you can’t touch bones without asking. Yes, just like you can’t touch anyone without asking. 

Honestly the line of questioning went on for ages. It was worth it though when Papyrus had started school and had gushed about how welcoming all the human teachers had been. 

Sans had always wondered about the factor he hadn’t been able to control… the other students. The idea of Papyrus alone in a building full of human teenagers had scared the hell out of him. 

Actually, it still scared him. It was just one of those things he’d never have full control over, and had to trust the systems Asgore and Tori had put in place for the young monsters’ protection…

“BROTHER?” Papyrus spoke abruptly, snapping Sans from his thoughts.

“Yeah Pap?”

“YOU WOULDN'T HAPPEN TO BE SPIRALING DOWN AN UPSETTING SAD THOUGHT HOLE BEFORE THIS AUTHENTIC EXCITING CAMP VACATION YOU PROMISED ME HAS EVEN BEGUN, ARE YOU?”

“uhhh, no?”

“OH GOODIE!” Papyrus grinned victoriously, “BECAUSE I’M VERY EXCITED TO SHARE THIS EXPERIENCE WITH YOU!” 

“Heh, me too bro…” Sans only partially lied. 

He was really excited to be on a vacation with Papyrus. Ever since he had seen a camping advertisement in the waterfall dump, he had held tight to the idea that he and his bro could set up a tent, roast some marshmallows, and look at the stars under an open sky. 

It was the everything else that came with it that made him nervous. 

After the whole Michael and Mutt fiasco, Sans had concluded that he couldn’t rightfully say he was angry at them anymore. He had risked his own soul with reckless abandon to make sure Mutt wouldn’t be dusted. 

In the direct aftermath, he’d been angry as hell. It had burned bright inside of him until realization had hit like a brick. He had been angry for the same reason he had been hurt by Red on the morning of his birthday all those days ago. Even though he really really shouldn’t, despite it all, he still cared. 

He cared because he didn’t hate Mutt. He didn’t hate any of them. Yeah, he’d known that from the beginning, but the reminder of it had been the death of the smoldering rage in his soul. Because who was he kidding? 

He was no harbinger of righteous fury. Stars he couldn’t even say he was a true Judge anymore. He was just Sans. Brother to Papyrus, friend of a few good folks, teller of a few good jokes. He didn’t want to be angry anymore. He couldn’t. 

His initial anger had been from them being dicks, but even then, it was only when they had threatened to take away Papyrus that he had truly lost it on them. 

Sans had spoken his mind, and yeah, the morning after pulled a good prank or two, but even then, he’d been more embarrassed of his emotional exposure than furious. All the anger that came after… it was because of the stupid age thing. 

He’d felt like he had been losing control over every single aspect of his life, and he was expected to be glad for it. Anger had come easy for the first time in a long time, and it had felt good to at least have control over his emotional state. 

But of course, good things never lasted. Seeing Mutt passed out in the back of that car and then the car flipping and knowing that if he messed up that jump it wouldn’t just be his life in his hands… It had been a lot. Enough to wake him up to the factor that no one had been exceptionally awful to him, just their usual incompetent and incapable-of-healthy-communication selves. 

To them, he was a child. A young monster in need of guardianship and protection. To him… Now that’s where things got interesting. If he wasn’t angry with them anymore, what came next? 

Who were these monsters to him, since he actually seemed to care about them to some degree? He didn’t know. They were him and Papyrus, but versions who have lived so much longer, yet had paradoxically lived through so much less. 

They hadn’t lived through genocides, and certainly not time loops either, but had apparently lived long enough to experience the horrifying mystery of skeleton puberty. They claimed to know how skeletons grew and had knowledge he could gain, but they were ignorant in so many more ways. 

None of them knew what it was like to lose a brother, and yet they were casually trying to gain more by trying to get Sans back in stripes? 

Him. In stripes. The mere concept was fucking boggling. How would he get anything done? He had been getting bored enough without his jobs or the machine to work on. What would he even do with his day? Would they try to put him through a human school like Papyrus? Now that would be true hell. 

Letting his skull rest against his seatbelt, Sans continued to watch the trees go by. Slowly, his gaze shifted to look at his own reflection in the window instead. It stared back uncertainly. 

A kid, huh? 

He guessed he and Frisk had yet another thing in common. Just two fucked up kids who in another timeline… had killed each other more times than he cared to count. 

Looking away from his reflection, Sans decided to close his sockets. He knew they were close to their destination, but maybe a quick nap wouldn’t hurt…

“O.M.G. IS THAT A WATER SLIDE?!?!” Papyrus yelled.

Or he could look at that.

Blinking his tired sockets open, Sans’ eye lights went wide as he indeed looked to see them driving past a lake, which did in fact have what looked to be a series of slides that went directly into the lake. 

There also appeared to be some sort of water bounce house and a dock full of jet skis. Groups of people already seemed to be swimming with a few others on jet skis circling around. 

Papyrus was nearly rattling with excitement. “PLEASE TELL ME THAT ONE IS OUR CAMP!!!”

“Nah,” Red chimed in, looking up from his map. “That’s Camp Wild Rapids. Ours is gonna be right turn, not a left.” 

Sans nudged Papyrus as, on the right side, people raced horses in bright fun colors in a large clearing. 

“OH MY GOD. IS THAT ONE OUR CAMP?!?! WILL THE GREAT PAPYRUS FINALLY BE ABLE TO RIDE A NOBLE STEED!!!!”

“Nope again,” Red corrected as they dropped past the sign. “That’s Camp Wicker Whip. I think that’s like, a cowboy camp.” 

Papyrus sighed dramatically, laying his skull on his window, “WHAT DO THE COW BOYS HAVE THAT THE BONE BOYS LACK?”

Red snorted, “Cows.” 

“SKIN,” Edge added unhelpfully, causing Red to chuckle. 

“What’s Camp Honey Hive known for again?” Sans asked, hoping to keep Paps excited for the camp they were going to. 

“HIKING TRAILS, CRAFTING, GROUP BONDING, AND ANIMAL CONSERVATION LESSONS. THEY ALSO HAVE A PRIVATE LAKE USED FOR CANOEING, AND SWIMMING, BUT IT’S NOT AS LARGE AS THE OTHERS.” Edge listed, dutifully. “PLENTY TO LOOK FORWARD TO.” 

“NYEH…” Paps still slightly pouted. Apparently, it was really hard to beat horses. 

Red spoke up again, “Turn the signal on early for the others, our turn is up here!” 

Edge did so while Sans caught sight of a wooden sign that made his soul drop. 

WELCOME TO CAMP HONEY HIVE HELL

The car made its turn and Sans wished smooth concrete goodbye as they were suddenly bumping along a dirt and gravel road. 

“Oh, Blue and Fox are gonna love this on their bikes,” Red snickered as the car bumped along.

“I CAN’T SAY I’M A FAN OF THIS EITHER,” Edge grumbled as his car hit a particularly nasty bump in the road. 

The trees outside Sans’ window suddenly went from healthy towering giants to burned branchless logs in the ground. “Oh wow.” Sans said before he could help himself. “Looks like there was a wildfire through here.”

Papyrus leaned over to Sans’ window with wide eye lights. “SPOOKY.” 

It wasn’t really, but Sans could see how it could be spooky. Maybe if it was a bit darker, add some low hanging fog, and a knife wielding child and boom. Nightmare fuel. 

Sans watched as a crow landed on a nearby tree and cawed ominously at the car as they slowly drove past.

Red began to sweat nervously as he set down his map, “It should be straight ahead.”

Edge’s tone shifted, which his eyes remained fixed in the road. “BROTHER, WHAT EXACTLY HAVE YOU GOTTEN US INTO?”

“Oh, look the trees are back!” Red pointed out frantically as the patch of burnt trees came to an abrupt end. The trees seemed more tightly packed together now after having seen all the space between the burnt ones. 

The ground foliage was thick and anxiety spiked through Sans at the idea that anything could be in there watching him. Like Alphys’ creepy little cameras… 

Papyrus gasped suddenly, as he pointed out a large arch with a ‘Welcome!’ sign and distant cabins beginning to appear. 

Another sign pointed them towards parking, and Edge quickly turned to park the car. The parking lot was huge, even with a sign designating spaces for bus unloading. 

Only they were the only ones there. 

Edge narrowed his gaze outside then finally turned the keys and turned to look at Sans and Papyrus. “ON THE OFF CHANCE MY BROTHER HAS LED US INTO A DEATH TRAP, WHAT DO WE DO?”

Papyrus excitedly raised his hand, “FORM ATTACK POSITION ALPHA AND MAKE MY BROTHER AND KING PROUD!” 

Sans gave Papyrus a rare yet deserved ‘what the heck’ look as he said, “Grab Papyrus and leave Red to fix the mess he created.”

“Fair,” Red admitted with a shrug.

Edge looked between the two and nodded. “BOTH ANSWERS ARE ACCEPTABLE. NOW LET’S GO MEET THE OTHERS.”

Getting out of the car, Sans held his telescope close while Red piled up their bags onto his arms like it was nothing. 

Pretty soon Mutt was pulling up alongside their car and Fox, Blue and Stretch were parking beside him. 

“I GOTTA SAY, THOSE BURNT TREES HAD ME WORRIED FOR A SEC,” Blue spoke, turning off his bike. 

“It was the hell sign for me,” Stretch said, looking around. 

Well at least now Sans knew he hadn’t been seeing things. “I thought it was just me,” he admitted.

Mutt unlocked the back of Fox’s car and began passing bags to Stretch, who passed them all to Blue in a growing pile in his arms. 

Fox hopped off his own bike looking around with narrowed eye lights. “I Was Aware It Would Be Just Us, But The Isolation Seems A Bit…”

“SPOOKY?” Papyrus suggested. 

Fox shrugged taking a bag only to toss it onto the growing pile in Blue’s arms. “Off Putting At Best.” 

“HEY!” Blue shouted, realizing he was being buried.

“Don’t worry bro, I’ll guide yah,” Stretch spoke, placing a hand on his bro’s back. 

“HOW DO WE KNOW WHERE TO GO?” Papyrus asked, nervously reaching out to hold Sans’ hand. 

Edge shielded his sockets from the sun and looked around before pointing, “THERE IS A PAPER ON THE INFORMATION BOARD. IT DOESN’T LOOK WEATHERED, SO PERHAPS IT’S RECENT.” 

Keeping close, the group warily made their way to the paper, with Fox reaching it first and deftly snatching it up. “It Appears To Be From Councilor Honey. I Shall Read It For The Group.” 

A moment of silence passed. 

“OUT LOUD.” Edge requested dryly. 

Fox rolled his eye lights. “But Of Course.” Making that dramatic throat clear noise everyone was fond of, he began. 

“Dear Serif Family. Welcome To Camp Honey Hive. If You Are Reading This, It Means You Just Missed Me, And I Am Out Chopping Wood For Our First Night Bonfire. The Signs Should Guide You To The Main Pavilion, Where I Shall Meet You Shortly. There We Can All Get Acquainted, Have A Nice Meal To Tide Us Over Until Supper, And I Can Show You To Your Cabins. I Look Forward To Meeting You All. Yours Truly, Camp Councilor Honey.” 

Fox hmm’d appreciatively. “At Least She Seems To Keep To A Schedule.” 

“Serif family, eh?” Stretch asked raising a bone brow at Red. 

Red shrugged, “It’s that or we tell her the truth. Figured we didn’ wanna go down that particular rabbit hole.” 

“Fair enough. Cousins?”

“Didn’t specify.”  

Together, they followed the signage out of the parking lot onto a short path through some trees and into another clearing. 

There, three paths branched out: the left towards what appeared to be a huge fire pit surrounded by benches, the right towards a singular large cabin with bulletin boards and benches, and more paths surrounding it, and in the center a giant wood and glass geodesic dome that Sans could only guess was the “pavilion”. 

“I’m guessing that Bee the Honey Hive?” Sans asked, causing several groans and chuckles to echo amongst the group. 

Stretch pretended to swat at Sans, clearly missing, “Now Sans, we promised to Beehive ourselves on this trip.” 

“Maybe you did, but I’m just Winging it.” Sans countered back. 

“Wasp the matter with you two?” Red faux scolded with a grin. “Can’t you see we have pun haters in the group.” 

“Damn that Stings,” even Mutt chimed in right in time. 

“BROTHER!” “DAMN IT RED!” “PAPY MUST YOU?!“, “MUTT, PLEASE DESIST!” 

It was like watching a beautiful explosion of outrage go off that Sans didn’t know was possible. Red laughed, clearly pleased, and Stretch was chuckling with a shake of his head. Mutt appeared contemplative while Sans allowed himself a bit of a wry smile. 

He didn’t hate these guys, and celebrating a pun victory should be allowed… Even if he still felt he wasn’t fully ready to enjoy it yet. 

Reaching the pavilion, Sans and the others stopped just outside of it to admire the architecture. 

The outer doors were open and huge, but Sans could see a smaller entrance probably used while the pavilion would be closed shut during poor weather. 

“I’ve never seen a building like this,” Stretch spoke up in open wonder. 

Fox surprisingly spoke up as well, “I’ve Heard Geodesic Structures Like This Are Popularly Used To Make Cheap Tents Or Small Buildings, But This Seems Rather Grand And Pricey In Construction To Be Just For A Summer Camp.” 

Stepping inside the dome, there looked to be cushioned benches, a small stage, wicker chairs, a juice - perhaps not juice - bar, book shelves, potted plants and tables a plenty scattered about. 

“This had to have been a rich kid camp, right?” Red asked as they gathered in the center of the hive. 

“Actually no!” A chipper female voice spoke up from behind them startling the entire group. 

The group turned, all in various states of defensiveness. Sans felt his sockets go wide and was surprised enough that he allowed Edge to move him protectively behind the rest of them. 

A human woman, mid to late twenties stood before them. Red curly hair, heavily freckled skin, and a gleaming smile. She had on green shorts, a green boonie hat, and a yellow shirt that had the camp’s logo in dark orange.

Her most notable accessory though, was the axe she held in her right hand, making Sans’ soul nearly jump from his rib cage. 

Oh stars no. Please don’t say…

Setting the axe against a wall of the pavilion, the human woman wiped her hands off on her shorts and approached the group confidently. “This building was actually built back in the eighties by my grandfather in an attempt to keep up with the rich people camps. She’s seen a few interior remodels since then, but the structure itself was all him.”

The sight of them all reacting to this human would be near comical if it wasn’t for the fact that it wasn’t funny at fucking all. Edge had placed both Sans and Papyrus behind him while Stretch casually stood beside him, keeping the confused Blue behind him while Blue was trying nervously to see past his arms full of suitcases. 

Fox had a hand tight on his brother’s shoulder, while Mutt defensively shifted his stance. Red stood in front of them all, nervous sweat starting to cover his skull once more. 

“Councilor… Honey?” Red asked uncertainly, eyeing the human. 

“Yes indeedy!” She chirped excitedly. “And you must be the Serif family I was told about!” She walked up to Red directly and held her hand out to his without faltering, even though Red seemed to tower over the already tall woman. 

Red looked surprised in even himself as he was suddenly shaking the excitable human’s hand. 

“It’s so nice to meet you! Any friends of Mrs. Grizzly are friends of mine! I’m Melissa Honey, Councilor Honey as you know, or Ms. Honey, or even Lissa or Honey if you prefer!” 

She let go of Red’s hand and looked curiously over at the rest of them. 

Sans fought the urge to step back. He worked with humans on the daily, but this… alone. In the woods. For three months… with a strange human they knew next to nothing about. Who had a weapon. 

Holy shit maybe he could actually bring himself to go back to being mad at Red. 

Slowly, the smile began to drop from her face. “Are y’all okay? You seem a bit surprised?” 

“We, uh…” Stretch began slowly. “We weren’t expecting-“

“To Be As Hungry And Thirsty As We Are!” Fox suddenly chirped up, stepping slightly on Stretch's foot as he stepped in front of him. “You Said There Was Food And Refreshments?” 

Blinking for a moment, Ms. Honey suddenly brought her hand to her forehead softly, “Oh yeah, the food! I knew I forgot to grab something; you folks feel free to settle here! I’ll be right back with the crockpot, and then we can do proper introductions and chit chat, and talk housing arrangements! Hope y’all like chili and cornbread!” 

“THAT SOUNDS DELIGHTFUL?” Blue spoke up, still confused by the others silence. 

They all watched in unison as Councilor Honey made an excited, yet hurried exit towards the large cabin. 

The silence lasted all three seconds before-

“Nice going Red. There goes the vacation,” Mutt sighed. 

Red turned rapidly to face Mutt. “Look here you lil shit I had no idea-“

Fox scoffed disapprovingly, “You Never Thought To Ask?”

“I DON’T REALLY SEE WHAT THE ISSUE IS?” Papyrus spoke up, confused. 

“THE ISSUE WITH WHAT?” Blue huffed, finally done enough to set down the bags. 

“Councilor Honey is a human, not a monster.” Stretch clarified awkwardly. 

Blue stiffened, “OH.”

Papyrus huffed at being ignored, “AGAIN, I’M NOT REALLY SURE WHAT THE ISSUE IS HERE. SURE, HUMANS HAVE THE CAPABILITY OF BEING REALLY AWFUL AND MEAN, BUT ALMOST ALL OF THE ONES I’VE MET HAVE BEEN GREAT! I HAVE NO IDEA WHY YOU ARE ALL REACTING LIKE THIS.” 

“BECAUSE MOST OF US DON’T TRUST HUMANS, AND ONE OF US OUTRIGHT DOESN'T LIKE HUMANS,” Edge said bluntly. 

Papyrus blinked, “MY BROTHER AND I LIKE HUMANS.” Papyrus turned to look at Sans. “RIGHT, BROTHER?”

Sans had felt Edge’s gaze at those last words, and suddenly he was back on that mall bathroom floor. 

Edge had taken a careful step towards Sans but froze in place as Sans took two back. “SANS. YOU SAID ‘AGAIN’. DID… DID A HUMAN HARM YOU?”

“If a human harmed him, he’d be dust on the ground,” Mutt had spoken, looking at Sans. He was certainly Checking him to confirm his single HP. 

Edge had remained determined. “HIS CURRENT HP DOESN’T MATTER. HP CAN FLUCTUATE FROM MORE THAN JUST GAINING LV… SO I REPEAT, SANS, DID A HUMAN HARM YOU?”

He had told Edge no, that day. He hadn’t really expected Edge to not believe him. 

Looking up at Papyrus, Sans lied through his teeth, thinking about how best to maintain Papyrus’s faith in him. “Yeah, it’s just like Pap said. I’m not bothered that Councilor Honey is a human at all.”

Papyrus nodded firmly, not doubting Sans words for a second. Welp… guess he’d just have to worry about keeping this lie up for three months. If they lived that long. His eye lights couldn’t quite look away from the axe she had left against the wall.

Well, at least he could take a break from worrying about that damn machine…

——— THE MACHINE

> …

> LOGIN REQUIRED.

> wd_g AUTHENTICATED SUCCESSFULLY.

G:\Users\wd_g> start world_merge.exe

> …

> …

> BOOTING…

> INSUFFICIENT POWER. RESTARTING…

> …

> …

> BOOTING…

> UNABLE TO TRIANGULATE <w,x,y,z> COORDINATES. RETRYING…

> INSUFFICIENT POWER. RESTARTING…

> …

> …

> BOOTING…

> UNABLE TO TRIANGULATE <w,x,y,z> COORDINATES. RETRYING…

> …

> …

> COORDINATES TRIANGULATED. <10463, 296, 271, 42> LOCKED.

> LINKING…

> INSUFFICIENT POWER. SAVING COORDINATES TO G:\Users\wd_g\world_coordinates\world_5.txt

> …

> …

> SAVE SUCCESSFUL.

> RESTARTING…

> …

> …

> BOOTING…

> COORDINATE LOCK RELOADED FROM world_5.txt.

> LINKING…

> …

> …

> LINK SUCCESSFUL.

> OPENING WORMHOLE…

> …

> …

> INSUFFICIENT POWER TO INITIATE void_connection.exe. MINIMUM 66.3 MW REQUIRED.

> USER INPUT REQUIRED. [ABORT/CHARGE/CONTINUE/OVERCLOCK/PROBE]

G:\Users\wd_g> charge

> INPUT RECEIVED.

> CHARGING INITIATED. FULLY CHARGED IN 1825.283 HOURS.

G:\Users\wd_g> 01001100 01100101 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100101 00100000 01110100 01110010 01111001 00100000 01101111 01101110 01100101 00100000 01101100 01100001 01110011 01110100 00100000 01110100 01101001 01101101 01100101

> ‘01001100 01100101 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100101 00100000 01110100 01110010 01111001 00100000 01101111 01101110 01100101 00100000 01101100 01100001 01110011 01110100 00100000 01110100 01101001 01101101 01100101’ IS NOT RECOGNIZED AS AN INTERNAL OR EXTERNAL COMMAND, OPERABLE PROGRAM OR BATCH FILE

> …

> FULLY CHARGED IN 1825.282 HOURS. OPERATE IN BACKGROUND? [Y/N]

G:\Users\wd_g> y

> STANDBY MODE…

> …

Chapter Text

Possibly being an axe wielding murderer aside, Councilor Honey made some regretfully baller chili. 

After everyone had dished up and some brief name exchanges were made, Honey had brought out some note cards and sheepishly stood in front of them with an almost bashful tone. “Normally we’d do this on stage with a microphone, but I figured for a group this small, it would seem a bit overkill.”

Which was probably the first time in Sans’ recollection their group had been referred to as small. 

“Now what I’m about to go over is a mix of information: some of it is meant for camp employees, and some of it is meant for campers. In this instance y’all are kind of fulfilling the roles of both, so I felt that bits of information from each would be needed. Please bear with me, it might be a lot,” she winked playfully, before diving straight in. 

Everyone sat dutifully quiet while Honey read from the cards, hardly needing to glance at them as she went over the camp rules. 

To Sans’ surprise, she had started off by going over the basic rundown of the camp directions. She went over where maps of the area could be found at the camp, which paths led to where the cabins were, the locations of various outdoor restrooms, which paths to take for the lake, where the start of the trails were, and other location markers. 

Honey then moved into explaining how the main cabin housed a lot of communal facilities, such as showers, a kitchen, a recreational room, and even a back area where they kept a few recovering wild animals she was rehabilitating. 

She then admitted that a lot of emergency procedures for the camp followed the pattern of reporting to assigned camp leads, but since she was the only one present, their best bet would be to locate her and to be aware that the main cabin was where most if not all emergency supplies and aid was kept. She also promised she would show them the locations of the backup generators and give them the emergency phone numbers kept on hand. 

From there, it was a surprisingly thorough walkthrough of locations for garbage disposal, and a request that there be a respect for nature and the others who live in it. She made sure to warn them not to consume any wild plants, no matter how certain they were what they thought they were. 

The list of rules seemed endless and tedious, but Sans could see the logic behind them all, so he listened carefully while eating. Everyone else seemed to be of a similar mindset, finishing their meals silently while she spoke.

“-aaand that should get most of the painful tedious stuff out of the way,” She finished with a sigh of relief, setting the cards down. “And now we can move into the fun part!”

“Showing Us To Our Cabins?” Fox asked, looking, what Sans assumed, as eager as the rest of them to get a moment away from the human to process.

“Drawing for cabins!” She corrected cheerfully. “After that we can get you all settled, then I can give that tour, and we can end the day with a good ol’ fashion camp fire. Play some introduction games and the like if y’all are up to it.”  

Drawing? Like… oh stars no. 

“Drawing?” Fox echoed his thoughts, only much dryer. 

Grabbing a nearby bucket, she brought it over to their table with another sheepish grin, “Camp tradition usually has campers of their age range draw for their camp buddy and their cabin group. Since it’s a smaller group, I thought it might be fun for you all to pair up. Add some friendly competition to the summer.” 

“WOW,” Edge said slowly, “THAT SOUNDS…”

“DELIGHTFUL!!!” Papyrus cheered, clapping his hands eagerly. “I WANNA GO FIRST!”

Stretch glanced uncertainly to Blue - whose careful blankness was nearly identical to Fox’s - then spoke up, “We already kinda come in pairs, maybe it would be for the best if we-“

“I… ALSO, THINK IT IS A GREAT IDEA,” Blue interrupted slowly, as cautious expression came back to his skull. He peered curiously at the human, a soft certainty in his next words. “I’M ALL FOR IT, ACTUALLY.”

Well good for Blue, cuz Sans already hated the sound of it… Papyrus looked so excited though… 

Sans blinked as he noticed Stretch looked just as enthused as him, while the Fell and Swell brothers seemed mildly indifferent. 

Regardless, Honey continued her oblivious warpath over their daily lives, passing the bucket over to Papyrus. 

“SANS, THERE ARE GOLF BALLS IN HERE!!!” Papyrus blinked. “I’M UNSURE HOW THAT’S RELEVANT.”

“I wrote two of each of the cabin numbers on the balls. The number reflects which one you’ll be in,” Honey explained.

“AH, I SEE,” Paps nodded before again turning to Sans. “BROTHER, OUR CABIN NUMBERS ARE IN HERE!!!” 

Papyrus swiftly snagged a golf ball, holding it tight to his chest to hide the number, quickly passing the bucket to down the table. 

Everyone uncertainly claimed their golf balls, leaving Sans staring at the two written on his with looming dread. 

“Alrighty folks, who got cabin one?” Honey asked pulling out a clip board. 

Papyrus eagerly lifted his golf ball high, “THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS ONCE AGAIN CLAIMED THE SPOT OF CHAMPIONS AND HAS RISEN TO THE TOP! I HAVE THE GLORY WHICH IS CABIN ONE! SPEAK NOW WHOEVER SHALL SHARE THIS GLORY WITH ME!!”

Damn it. 

Fox showed a matching one on his golf ball, “The Finest Champions, Truly.” Fox’s expression twitched into the slightest smile as Papyrus excitedly reached across the table with a high five. 

Only for the mask to fully go back up when Papyrus added, “I LOOK FORWARD TO FINDING REASON TO FORGIVE YOU, WHILE WE LIVE IN SUCH CLOSE PROXIMITY!” 

Mutt glared at Papyrus from where he sat, while Papyrus shoved an entire cornbread muffin past his teeth, seeming wholly unbothered.

“Cabin two?” Honey quickly asked after marking cabin one down. 

Sans uncertainly held up his hand, “Right here.” 

“Same,” Red spoke, showing the matching ball. 

Huh… Well… that could have been worse? Honestly, Sans wasn’t really sure what he expected. That was fine, honestly. As long as there wasn’t a TV in the cabin, Sans was sure he could survive that. 

“Cabin three?” 

Stretch and Edge both silently raised their hands, looking over each other warily. 

Which left cabin four to be…

Mutt looked over at Blue as if realizing for the first time ever that Blue even existed. Meanwhile, Blue gave Mutt an encouraging smile that caused Fox’s jaw to twitch. 

Ohhh boy. Sans really lucked out to not be a part of that particular drama. 

“Alllllrighty Campers,” Honey announced after finishing her scribbling on the clipboard. “Since y’all seem done eating, let’s get yah to your cabins! I’ll clean up the mess while you are getting settled so feel free to leave your bowls.” 

Sans watched as Papyrus jumped up and sprinted to grab his bags, “ONWARD TO GREATNESS!!!” only to pause once he had his bag and stood still patiently waiting by the door. 

Damn his bro was great. Well-mannered and confident. If there was gonna be a competition between them all, Sans figured they might as well save some time and just name Paps the winner now.

Following Papyrus’ lead, albeit a lot slower, everyone else grabbed their belongings once more and headed to the door. Blue and Edge were the last to join as they seemed determined to at least stack their bowls and utensils for easy clean up. 

Honey thanked them both brightly, causing Blue to slightly twitch and a slight red to spread across Edge’s cheek bones.

 “THINK NOTHING OF IT, HUMAN.” Edge tried his best to sound dismissive. “IT IS SIMPLY SHOWING THE PROPER AMOUNT OF CURTESY REQUIRED AFTER A CHEF HAS PROVIDED AN ADEQUATE MEAL, AND NOTHING MORE!” 

“We’ll thank yah regardless, Edge and Blue,” Honey thanked them both, making Edge turn away sharply to join Red’s side. 

“I Think Edge Wants To Be This Human’s Friend,” Papyrus stage whispered to the rest of them. 

Mutt snorted and Stretch poorly disguised a laugh as a cough, earning them both a seething glare from Edge. 

Come to think of it, that actually wouldn’t surprise Sans that much. Everyone else had gotten jobs or at least had plenty excuses to leave the house. Edge mostly only left home to go for drives or go to therapy. 

Until the whole “Sans activities” Edge probably had gone out and interacted with humanity the least, outside of a few unfruitful job interviews. 

While Sans couldn’t quite imagine Edge excitedly building a fake sentry post and eagerly checking the ruins doors daily for humans like Papyrus had, Sans couldn’t help but wonder if Edge had been as curious about humanity as Paps used to be. 

While Honey began to lead their group towards the cabins, talking more about the camp’s history as she went, Sans let his thoughts wander.

Outside of some general information, he really had no idea what everyone got up to in their individual undergrounds. He knew Fox had been Captain of his Royal Guard, and knew their undergrounds were dangerous enough places that the Swells and Fells all had LV, and that Swaps came from a world where folks’ personalities and occupations were all traded around seemingly at random. 

He knew that Red, Stretch and Mutt were Judges, yet he had no clue what the title meant in their worlds. Was it a fake job for them too? From the way Red and Edge spoke about it, it sounded just as real as Sans had experienced it in his genocide timelines. 

Sans couldn’t imagine a world in which monsters could harm each other as easily as humans did with each other. Did Red have to stalk sinners down to enact Justice? Was Red like a vigilante in his world or something? … That was a bit hard to imagine, but it’s not like he had ever bothered asking. 

Then there was Stretch. The Swap world was supposedly as peaceful as this one: the only difference was jobs and personality. What use would a world like that have of a Judge? Did Stretch ever even have to fight? 

Sans watched Stretch almost trip over a stick on the path and struggled to see him providing any kind of real Justice. Sure, thanks to Undyne, his Papyrus could fight like crazy, but Stretch had Sans’ lazy streak, and Sans hadn’t so much had been in an encounter - even just for fun - until he had met Frisk for the very first time. 

Stretch’s stats read the same as Sans’ even. Weakest monster of his underground. He hadn’t seemed that weak when he threatened Sans upon meeting him. 

Slowing his stride, Sans found himself trailing behind the rest of his group. 

They all walked spaced apart in silence, either listening to Honey or lost in their own individual thoughts. Yeah, everyone seemed united in their determination for this whole camping thing to work, and they were kinda the same guys… but… 

Truly, outside of their brothers, they still really were a group of estranged strangers. 

He had lived with them, fought with them, risked his life for one of them, and for some reason cared about them. Yet he knew next to nothing about who they really were. 

He let that settle in his skull as Honey came to a stop before a painted blue cabin with the number one carved into the top, alongside an empty plaque. 

Papyrus started to rattle with excitement. “MS. HONEY HUMAN, WHAT IS THAT BLANK SPACE?”

Honey put her hands on her hips with a fond smile, “It’s where we’ll put your cabin name for the summer once you and Fox agree to one.”

“I WAS SO HOPING THAT’S WHAT YOU’D SAY!!!” Papyrus cheered eagerly grabbing Fox by the arm and tugging him towards the cabin. “COME ON FOX, WE NEED TO SEE THE SPOILS OF OUR VICTORY!” 

Eye lights wide, Fox let himself be pulled by Papyrus into the cabin. 

Honey followed after them saying she’d be right back, leaving the rest to themselves for a moment. 

“So…” Stretch began slowly. “We really going along with this?”

Edge raised a bone brow, “I THOUGHT WE ALL AGREED TO THIS BEFORE ARRIVING.”

“That was before we knew about the whole human councilor thing,” Stretch defended. “We just had an incident with violent humans, and now we’re playing camp with one?” 

“It’s not really playing camp if it is one,” Mutt corrected. 

Edge scoffed at Stretch, “YOU WEREN’T EVEN INVOLVED THAT DAY. NOW IF MUTT OR SANS ARE UNCOMFORTABLE, THAT HOLDS MORE GROUNDS, BUT FRANKLY, MUTT SEEMS UNBOTHERED AND SANS ALREADY SAID HE WAS FINE.” 

“ARE YOU BOTH OKAY WITH THIS?” Blue asked, glancing towards the two of them. 

Mutt shrugged, “My lord wants to be here. Even if I was bothered by humans, which I ain’t, it wouldn’t make much of a difference.” 

Honestly Sans could get that a bit. Papyrus also wanted to be here, and that was that. “Like I told you all earlier, I’m good.” 

“Then that’s that.” Red settled firmly. “Human or not, I’m still trustin’ the doc’s opinion. We suck it up, and try this whole thing out.” he stretched with a yawn. “Worst case scenario we take a bone attack and shove it-“

“And I’m back!” Honey spoke exiting the cabins causing Red to freeze. 

“- in the ground as a walkin’ stick.”

Smooth. Smooth as broken glass. 

They continued to the next cabin of similar size and shape as the last, only with a two instead of a one. 

Blue waved them both goodbye as Honey showed them inside. 

The interior was a lot simpler than Sans had expected, but the few decorations that were there seemed to clash in odd ways. 

The main room had two beds, one on the left and one on the right, with dresser drawers built underneath each bed. Hanging from the ceiling was an old fishing net with a loose volleyball caught inside. A rug in the center of the room was shaped like a lineup of old VHS movies Sans had never heard of. 

The back of the room had empty shelves on both sides, and two whiteboards with ABC magnets, framing an archway that led into a separate smaller room. In there was what looked to be a couch crammed into the space with smaller filled bookshelves lining the walls, and a large bay window showing off the forest just behind the cabin. 

Sans went to the bookshelves trailing his hand along the odd mix of worn book spines. Jane Austin novels, Daredevil comic books, Little House on the Prairie, Goosebump's books by the dozens, with an absurd amount of Dr. Seuss mixed in. 

“This cabin has been the temporary home for many of our teen councilors over the years,” Honey spoke, her expression softening as she touched the door arch. “It’s had a lot of names, and all the current decor was gifted by past residents for the next.” 

“It doesn’t look in need of much fixin’ up,” Red noted, placing his bags on the left side bed. “Looks perfectly functional.”

Honey nodded slowly, “… Yes… As a loved summer camp cabin this one is alright, but…” Taking two papers off her clipboard, Honey used the magnets to put one on each whiteboard. “According to my real estate agent, a more modern look could be great to help attract future buyers…”

Sans blinked, stepping away from the books to look at Honey. She didn’t seem excited or sad by that from what he could tell. Just factual and thoughtful. 

“You’re trying to sell this place?” 

Honey fiddled with her clipboard. “Sell it, update it… I’m not quite sure yet. There’s a lot to consider.” 

“So instead of repairin’ broken cabins, we’re gonna be tearing walls down, and painting everything fuck’n eggshell white?” Red asked. 

“No!” Honey defended. “Absolutely no, my grandfather would crawl his way out from his grave to run this camp again himself if that was the case.” 

Red looked only mildly consoled at that. “Then what work exactly will yah have us doin’?”

Honey gestured to the two papers she left behind, “Well, one of those is a list of fun activities you could do this summer, but I’d need to know what types of things you’d be interested in so I can arrange the events. Marking which one of those fit your individual interests helps out a lot with planning, and I’d love another year of monster feedback on how to possibly improve activities for monster participation.” 

Honey moved her hand to point directly at the other, “That one is a list of things that I need help with preparing or fixing this summer. The cabins I’ve set up for all of you are obviously the nicer ones, but some of the larger ones need a lot of help. New paint, some new flooring, old wiring that should be updated before it becomes a fire hazard, checking the pipes in the main building, and adding better insulation to the farther out cabins to make them livable for cold weather use.” 

“Sounds like a lot of big fixes,” Sans noted. 

“Some expensive fixes,” Red added. 

Honey nodded, “Yep. Was planning on handling a lot of it myself, outside of the electric stuff, but when Grizzly informed me of your unique skill sets, I was over the moon.” She looked at Red, “You fix cars for a living yeah?”

“… Yeah?”

Honey grinned, “Well I got an old riding lawn mower from 1986 that I’d love to know if she’s fixable or scrap. That’s also a way I might have yah helping out.” 

“Out of curiosity,” Sans began inquisitively. “Without Grizzly’s recommendation or our working discount how much exactly would this place cost for an entire summer experience?”

“For all eight of you? Hmm…” Honey thought for a moment before scribbling a quick 5-digit number down and showing the two. 

Sweat instantly began to form over both their skulls. 

Sans turned to Red, “Yeah you’re fixing that lawn mower.”

“We are fixin’ that thing,” Red corrected. He turned to Honey. “I thought this wasn’t a rich kid camp?”

“It’s not,” Honey added. “Or well it wasn’t ever supposed to be.” She sighed, “But between what the normal labor costs are for the other workers, modern inflation, the electric and gas bill, and food supplies it’s been harder to keep prices down.” 

“Just more things I’ll have to think on I suppose…” Honey looked towards the door. “Well, I’ll let y’all get settled while I get back to the rest. Think on a cabin name, and we can officially give this beauty her summer name at the fire tonight.” 

Sans grinned tiredly and gave her a wave on her way out.

That left him and Red… 

“Welp.” Red yawned, “Nap time.” 

Sans turned to Red with a glare to clarify that he didn’t need a nap, only to see Red who already seemed to have unpacked his bedding and tossed it haphazardly onto his bed. Red flopped onto the crumpled sheets and was snoring within seconds. 

Oh. Nap time cuz Red was tired, not cuz Sans was… a kid… Yeah that made a lot more sense. 

Sans stared apprehensively at the slumbering giant for a moment, before beginning to unpack a few things himself. He managed to get his bedding mostly spread out and his own pillow out, opening his drawers and pouring clothing directly inside. 

Hopping on his own bed, Sans couldn’t fight off his own yawn… deciding to lay back for just a moment or two, Sans closed his sockets… just a few… moments wouldn’t hurt…

———  Red

Red couldn’t keep the grin off his skull when he began to hear Sans breathing even out into the unmistakable sounds of slumber. 

It was great to know that some of his tricks he used to get Edge to nap could still be useful. Stupidly mature for his age or not, young skeletons needed their rest. 

Rolling over, Red propped his skull up on his arm, seeing Sans already looking to be passed out hard. 

A strange peace settled in his soul as determination burned inside him. 

The human was unexpected, but Red was Determined to make this the best damn camping experience of Sans’ life. 

Reaching into his pockets, Red pulled out his phone and began typing. 

——— Papyrus 

Maybe being number one wasn’t always a good thing. 

Papyrus stared back into the mirror of the vanity curiously, wondering why someone would want to fill the extra room with two chairs and tables and mirrors.

Maybe they just loved reflections? The posters all over his newly acquired cabin were also puzzling. Never had Papyrus seen so many collections of hunky humans. Were these past campers? 

Why were they so insistent on going in ‘One Direction’? So many questions with so little time. 

“I THINK,” he began swiveling the chair he was on to look back into the other room with Fox in it. “IF WE WERE TO DRAW CABINS AGAIN, I WOULD BE ALRIGHT WITH NOT BEING IN CABIN ONE.” 

Fox looked up from where he was neatly folding clothes into his drawer. “Oh?” Fox gestured to the pink walls with dainty flowers hand painted along the archway. “Not A Fan Of Pink?” 

Papyrus hmmm’d thoughtfully. “PINK IS ALRIGHT, I JUST CAN’T HELP BUT THINK SOMEONE ELSE WOULD ENJOY THIS CABIN MORE.” 

Fox looked at Papyrus curiously. “And Who Would That Be?”

Papyrus shrugged. He wasn’t sure, it was just an odd feeling. Undyne had once told him he had ‘killer intuition’ like that. “I DON’T KNOW, MAYBE STRETCH?” 

Papyrus watched as Fox seemed to suppress some kind of emotion at that. Amusement? Excitement maybe? Heck, maybe judgement. It was so hard to tell and frankly was incredibly off putting. 

A Sans who hid himself from Papyrus was a Sans Papyrus couldn’t comprehend. 

Fox seemed to settle for shaking his skull slightly and returning to his unpacking. Whatever possible emotions and expressions he might’ve been hiding would have to remain a mystery. 

Perhaps Papyrus had been too quick to shut down Fox’s previous joy of rooming together? Finding the balance of testing the waters with the others, while holding firm in his beliefs that they needed to prove themselves worthy of forgiveness, was looking to be a difficult task. 

Impossible? No. Annoyingly difficult? Yes. 

Already Papyrus had been pushing himself to remain optimistic about this trip for the sake of Sans. He desperately hoped together they could all find reason to get along. 

He had been hoping that he could share this information with Fox too… Only he had no idea how.

Before Sans’ birthday, Papyrus had thought Fox to be understanding. Even when Papyrus had been unreasonable in tricking Fox and Mutt into seeing his brother hard at work, Fox had simply asked Papyrus, “Is this important to you?” and complied when Papyrus had nodded. 

Then his trust had been shattered when they had made Sans cry. 

He hadn’t been mad. He had been furious. 

Furious enough that he hadn’t really cared all that much when he pushed Fox and Red down the stairs for Sans’ trap. That had actually been terrifying, because Papyrus knew he was supposed to care. Everyone kept saying he was the good one, and the only thing they all previously agreed on had been treating him nicely. 

He needed to keep being the good one so he could get them to all work together. To change and improve. 

So he decided to channel his emotions into something else, because being furious felt genuinely awful and was helping no one. 

So he had started by targeting Stretch. Stretch reminded him of Sans, and Papyrus liked to think he knew his brother and himself well enough that it would go smoothly. 

The others though… Edge and Mutt… Mutt avoided Papyrus like the plague, and Edge… Edge wasn’t a bad guy at all. He just represented a lot of things Papyrus hadn’t known was an option for him to be. 

Then there was Fox, Red, and Blue. Versions of his brother all so different that a small part of Papyrus wondered what parts his brother perhaps kept hidden. 

It was all so complicated and overwhelming to think about when he looked at them like a puzzle. He loved puzzles, so you would think it would make this scheming of his fun. 

But instead, it just made him feel… rather sad. 

He wanted them to improve and be better, and he needed to be firm… but perhaps he could be a little less harsh about it. 

“HEY FOX?” Papyrus spoke up cautiously. 

“Umhm?” Fox replied not looking up from his folded shirts. 

“I’M SORRY ABOUT PUSHING YOU DOWN THE STAIRS WITH RED.”

Fox froze. Blinking his sockets slowly, he put down the shirt he had been holding, and gave Papyrus a wide-eyed look. “Why?”

Papyrus scratched his cheekbone nervously, a habit born from copying his own brother. “BECAUSE IT WASN’T REALLY A NICE THING TO DO?” 

Fox was silent for a moment before closing his suitcase. “Frankly, Looking Back On It, It Was Rather Deserved.” 

It was Papyrus’ turn to blink. “WHAT?”

Fox sat on his bed, and smoothed out the corners of his comforter. “Papyrus, We Had Just Made The Fumble Of A Life Time With Our Ignorance, And Your Reaction, Though Unexpectedly Violent, Was Justified.” Fox offered Papyrus a small hesitant smile that Papyrus hoped with all his soul was genuine. 

“I Do Not Blame You For Defending Your Brother From Us. Though We Come From Very Different Worlds, And Are Much Older, I Can Relate To The Feeling Of Wanting To Protect Someone Who Has Been All You Have,” Fox admitted. “Truly, I Would Do, And Have Done So Much Worse To Protect My Brother. Though I Am Starting To Understand Violence Isn’t Fully Required In This World… I Shall Never Forget The Lengths In Which I Would Act To Defend My Family.”

Fox looked at Papyrus directly, and for once Papyrus didn’t feel the need to look away from the damaged skull of this version of his older brother. “Truly, It Is I Who Has All The Reason To Apologize To You And Sans.”

“THEN WHY HAVEN’T YOU?” Papyrus asked, more curious than accusing. 

“It Doesn’t Come Naturally To Me,” Fox stated bluntly. “Apologizing In My World Meant Admitting To Failure. Failing At Anything Could Be Enough Grounds To Get Yourself Killed.” Fox looked away. “I Am Not Use To Apologizing In The Same Way That I Am Not Use To Being This Open About My Feelings On, Well, Any Matter.” 

“THEN WHY ARE YOU BEING SO OPEN WITH ME RIGHT NOW?” Papyrus asked, delicate hope continuing to bloom. 

Fox chuckled softly, “Because, Despite It All, It Is Like You So Abruptly Put It Earlier. You Are Giving Me An Opportunity To Prove Myself, To Give You Reason To Forgive Me, And Perhaps If I’m Lucky, Trust Me. I Intend To Earn It, As Long As You Truly Shall Allow Me The Chance.” 

“I… WANT TO BELIEVE YOU,” Papyrus said slowly. “AND I REALLY AM GIVING YOU A FRESH CHANCE. I… I AM UNCERTAIN I COULD FORGIVE YOU IF THIS GOES POORLY THOUGH.” 

Fox nodded as if understanding entirely. “Then I Suppose I Will Have To Give It My Best.” Fox summoned a bone attack, using it to help himself stand up from the bed. “Now, I Think I’d Like To Take a Brief Walk Around The Cabins If You Wish To Join Me.”

“SO THE LESSER MONSTER CAN GAZE UPON US ENVIOUSLY?” Papyrus asked, quoting Fox. 

A startled laugh escaped Fox, making Papyrus almost get why his brother strived for laughter with his horrible puns. 

“Mweheh, No, No, In The Spirit Of New Beginnings And Honesty, I Will Admit. I Genuinely Do Just Appreciate The Fresh Air.” 

“WELL IN THAT CASE,” Papyrus spoke getting up from his seat. “YOU CAN COUNT ME IN.” 

Chapter Text

“HAVE YOU CHECKED HER SOUL YET?” 

Edge was lounging on the yoga mat in the secondary room when he abruptly asked the question to Stretch, who was laying on his back on the bean bag chair next to his bed in the main room. The query seemed to startle Stretch enough that he dropped the magazine he’d been reading directly onto his face.

Stretch clumsily sat up and set the outdated tabloid aside, a near-panicked energy to his body language. It was rather funny actually. “What? Wh- why would you ask that?” 

Honestly, did Stretch think he was a dunce? Rolling his eye lights, Edge decided to let the question hang in the air for a moment while he continued to find more abandoned possessions in their Eye Spy book of a living space.

Their cabin was filled with a mix of fake and real crystals, dream catchers, sun catchers, pool noodles, and a small array of workout equipment. Old issues of National Geographic, Vogue, and Highlights magazines looked to be stashed in every nook and cranny that wasn’t a proper shelf. 

Edge wasn’t certain just yet if he was going to enjoy organizing everything or embrace the chaos. 

The secondary room seemed to have been some human’s place of zen and tranquility. Though frankly it was missing a bone painting for perfection in Edge’s opinion. 

“BECAUSE I AM AWARE YOU ARE YOUR UNIVERSE’S JUDGE?” Edge spoke, bringing his full attention back to the conversation. He had let Stretch to sweat long enough.

“IT CERTAINLY ISN’T BLUE, AND FOLLOWING THE PATTERN OF ONE OF EACH OF US BEING THE JUDGE - AND THE FACT RED TOLD ME - YOU SHOULD HAVE ALL THE SAME ABILITIES GIVEN TO A MONSTER WITH THAT POSITION.” 

Stretch side-eyed Edge warily, as if he had just admitted to dissecting live froggits for fun. “Red talks to you about that stuff?” 

It was actually one of the very few things his brother refused to talk about. Nearly everything Edge knew about the Judge position came from his Undyne, or seeing the aftermath of Red’s work. 

His brother’s depression had always flared quite badly after an execution was held, and he had pieced it together. Finding out the small oddities his older brother could do from there had been a bit of a hobby ever since. 

Edge had only pieced together that Red could see souls and stats without someone knowing about it, like… hmm, probably two decades back? Oh wait, maybe three? Regardless, it had taken a while to notice and it was rather embarrassing. 

“THE HUMAN HONEY’S SOUL,” Edge stated once more, bringing the conversation back to his original question. “HAVE YOU CHECKED IT TO SEE WHAT KIND OF THREAT SHE IS YET?” 

Stretch continued to look rather uncomfortable, “If the others say she checks out, there isn’t really any need for that.”

It was almost adorable that Stretch still had hope that any of them would mind their own business. 

“A JUSTICE SOUL, THEN?” Edge guessed, hoping Stretch would give him more information if he was wildly off. 

“No, she’s int-” Stretch cut himself off with a pointed glare. “Look, sharing that information isn’t really cool.” 

Edge crossed his arms, “NEITHER IS CHECKING SOMEONE’S SOUL WITHOUT THEIR KNOWLEDGE, SO IT APPEARS THIS HONEY HUMAN IS THE ONLY ONE OF US WITH ANY INTEGRITY.” 

Stretch groaned, putting his skull in his hands, “Look Edge, I really don’t want us to start rooming together on a sour note.” 

Edge blinked his sockets in confusion. “AND HOW EXACTLY IS THAT HAPPENING?”

“Your interrogation right now doesn't really spark confidence man…” 

“INTERROGATION???” Edge couldn’t help but voice his confusion. This was nothing like interrogation, they were simply having a conversation. Interrogations involved so much more violence. 

The idea of putting any of his household through what his Undyne taught him was interrogation made his soul uneasy. Truly, he was just sparking conversation of interest. It wasn’t his fault that Stretch seemed easily pressured. 

“Do… you really not know?” Stretch asked slowly. 

“KNOW WHAT?” He asked with narrowed sockets.

“How threatening you look and sound, constantly.” Stretch stated bluntly. 

“OH, THAT,” Edge replied, relaxing slightly. “OF COURSE I KNOW THAT, I AM THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE EDGE, HOW ELSE WOULD I PRESENT MYSELF?”

Stretch shifted slightly in the bean bag chair, moving to sit up the best he could in the impractical seat. “Well, aren’t you the most like Papyrus? I figured the tough guy act was just cause, like… necessity?”

… Tough guy… Act? 

Oh wow. There was so much wrong about what just came out of Stretch’s mouth that Edge could feel the unmistakable surge of LV induced rage.

He contemplated, very genuinely, giving a demonstration by shattering the wall with his fist alone. Only, they were here to fix cabins, not destroy them. 

So instead, he decided in the spirit of the yoga mat he sat upon, instead of knocking Stretch’s teeth out, he’d be mindful and only read Stretch to filth. 

For the sake of dramatics, he adjusted more clearly into the easy pose, Sukhasana. 

Namaste, You Ignorant Fucker. 

“OH, I AM SO SORRY, I DIDN'T KNOW WE WERE CLINGING TO THE BAREST INFO WE STRUNG TOGETHER OF OUR COLLECTIVE WORLDS TO GIVE THOSE OF US WITH THAT BURNING DESIRE TO CONTINUE OUR CONTROL FREAK TENDENCIES A WAY TO CLASSIFY EACH OTHER.”

Stretch looked genuinely torn between anger and begrudging shock, which wasn’t really any fun for Edge. So, he upped the ante by clasping his hands together as if in prayer, giving Stretch the classic arch of a condescending bone ridge.

“THE HOLY SCRIPTURE OF THE INFORMATION WE GATHERED IN THE FIVE MINUTES AFTER WE EACH ARRIVED IN THIS WORLD HAS BEEN QUESTIONED. TELL ME, JUDGE, SHALL I ATONE FOR MY SINS BY PRAYER TO THE ANGEL OR BY DUST?” 

“Stars above, what is wrong with you?!” Stretch snapped, irritation finally gracing his tone. 

“NOTHING IS WRONG WITH ME.” Edge said steadily, needing to drive this point home. “I AM GREAT AND TERRIBLE. I AM TOUGH, NOT FROM NECESSITY, BUT SIMPLY BECAUSE I AM A BEING MADE INTO EXISTENCE WITHIN THE FORGE OF DETERMINATION AND DUST.”

“You’re being a dick is what you’re being.” Stretch snipped, standing abruptly. 

“INCORRECT, I AM NOT BEING ANYTHING. I AM A DICK.” Edge spoke, standing to meet Stretch’s growing anger. Magic tugged in the air causing a bit of glee to spike within his chest. Would Stretch actually get mad enough to attack him? He knew Stretch held himself back, but this was getting interesting. 

“So you’re taking it out on me?!” Stretch asked, throwing his arms out in exasperation. 

“WRONG AGAIN! USE YOUR CLEVER SKULL AND LISTEN!” Edge poked determinedly at Stretches chest. “I AM ANGER AND EVERY IRRITATION THAT SCRATCHES INSIDE YOUR BONES. I AM THE EMBODIMENT OF SPITE THAT REFUSES TO BE IGNORED. THE VERY WORDS I SPEAK ARE KNIVES AND RAZORS, AND I REFUSE TO DULL MYSELF FOR THE SAKE OF ANY MORON WHO WISHS TO SWALLOW BLADES.”

“So what?!? You’re trying to tell me you aren’t trying to piss me off?!?? That you are, in fact, just an asshole with a shit personality and I shouldn’t take it personally?!?!”

Fucking finally. 

“YES.”

Edge could pinpoint the moment his words processed in Stretch's skull. Repressed anger was slapped with a wet washcloth of confusion. 

Stretch actively recoiled in surprise, “What?”

Edge took a step back and sat back down on the yoga mat. “YES. I AM NOT A YOUNG LOVABLE PAPYRUS. I AM MEAN AND BLUNT. KINDNESS IS A SKILL I AM STILL IN THE PROCESS OF LEARNING AND IT HAS PROVEN TO BE RATHER DRAINING. WHILE I WILL CONTINUE TO PRACTICE MINDFULNESS AROUND OUR YOUNGEST, I DO NOT SEE THE NEED TO DO SO AROUND ANOTHER ADULT WHO CAN PIECE TOGETHER THAT I MEAN NO ILL WILL. IF WE ARE GOING TO BE LIVING THIS CLOSE TO EACH OTHER, YOU SHOULD BE AWARE OF THIS.”

Edge stretched his arm behind his back, appreciating the slight strain in his arm socket, “I AM GOING TO PROBABLY SAY NUMEROUS THINGS THAT MAY UPSET YOU IN THE FUTURE. THINGS THAT, TO ME, WILL SOUND FAIRLY TAME AND REASONABLE.”

Stretch stared at him. Then, slowly, his look of befuddlement turned to begrudging understanding. Running a hand over his skull tiredly, Stretch let himself flip back into the bean bag chair. “Why couldn’t you just say that from the get go then?”

“I DIDN’T THINK I HAD TO,” Edge replied honestly. “I FIGURED YOU TOO WOULD UNDERSTAND THAT, JUST BECAUSE OUR TRUE NAMES ARE PAPYRUS, DOESN’T MEAN WE ARE PAPYRUS.” 

“Yeah no, I’ve gotten the point,” Stretch sighed tiredly. “I mean, thanks for the warning, I guess? I’m gonna be real though, you definitely threw me off because that was probably the rudest way to get those points across.” 

Edge had a very mature point of argument to that. “YOU STARTED IT.” 

“I did,” Stretch conceded easily. “You’d think after the whole Sans situation, the lessons of assumptions woulda stuck better.”

“WOULD… YOU LIKE A REDO?” Edge offered, a strange nervousness trying to creep its way into his soul. Mentally he tried stabbing it with a bone attack. 

He had never gifted a Mercy like this before. His underground was not one of second chances… 

Stretch processed the words, then… smiled. At Edge. As if he could possibly have any idea of what a generous offer that was on Edge’s part. 

“Yeah, I think I would.” Stretch leaned his lanky bones forward towards the arch with an arm extended in greeting. “Hey Edge, I’m glad to be rooming with you, and despite the fact we both aren’t great at this, let’s try to get along.” 

Edge, actually having no idea what customs are normal for a Redo, leaned across to shake Stretch’s hand. 

“I LOOK FORWARD T-“

PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFPTTTTTTFTFFFFFFFffffffppt…

Looking down at the whoopee cushion that Stretch had placed in his hand from his inventory at the last second of bone contact, Edge blinked his sockets in shock. 

“AH…” Edge spoke looking up slowly from his hand to Stretch’s face. “SO YOU HAVE CHOSEN DEATH.” 

Stretch grinned, “Nah, I choose getting to know you, fuck ups and all. You don’t gotta pretend I didn’t say anything bad or that we aren’t gonna inevitably step on a few bones in this situation. You can even attack me later for this if you wanna blow off some steam. Can’t promise I’ll just stand there and take it, but the least I could do is give up a nap or two to make up for this.” 

Of course, if he was going to be rendered speechless by anyone, it would be by a variant of himself. 

Stretch took his hand back and returned the Whoopee cushion to his inventory. “Look, you just gave me an entire speech about how you want to be true to yourself and don’t think things should be based on assumptions.” He glanced to the side, “Sure, I was angry in the moment but, you saying all that was actually rather cool. I don’t want you to have to go back on your stance just cuz you think it’s the only way we can move past the argument on good terms.” 

Cool. Did… Did Stretch just call him… Cool?????!

“SO… HOW DO WE MOVE ON?” Edge asked slowly. 

Stretch shrugged, “Well, I guess now that we got our feelings out, I should let you know I don’t hate you and we move on.” 

Well, this would be awkward. “I… ALSO DONT HATE YOU???”

Stretch nodded like that was that. “Cool.” Yawning, seemingly worn out by their conversation, Stretch spoke as if the whole affair had been as casual as discussing the weather. “Anyways, what are your thoughts on cabin names?” 

The sudden change of conversation topic nearly caught Edge off guard. Then again, he hadn’t really known what would come of his conversation with Stretch, and yet it had turned out better than he anticipated. Perhaps this next topic would also lead to more pleasant surprises. This world was proving to hold many small wonders like that.

This was no harsh hellscape like his underground had been, but so far it was proving to have a lot more lessons for him to learn from and unexpected challenges to overcome. Edge could confidently say he liked that. 

He could only hope that stupid machine would stay broken so he could continue to learn and grow past who he had been. Even if it could only stay broken for a little while longer. 

Until then, he was going to make this world, and his new life to live, his bitch. 

“I’D LIKE TO HAVE A WEAPON IN THE NAME.”

———— Mutt 

“I’m sorry the what?” Mutt had asked, nearly dropping the rings in his hands.

“HOW ABOUT THE JAIL HOUSE!” Blue excitedly chirped, jumping onto his own chosen bed. He reached out and grabbed the cabin’s acoustic guitar, previously resting in its stand. “IT FITS PERFECTLY!” 

Well, maybe for Mutt it fit perfectly, seeing as he was trapped here, but considering Blue seemed to think this cabin was ‘SO COOL’, he was really curious how Blue got that idea in his skull. 

The entirety of their cabin screamed “theater kid” energy to Mutt, but based on the gasp Blue had had when walking into the building, it looked like his current roommate didn’t mind in the slightest. 

Hell, Blue’s eye lights had become star lights over the back room. The secondary smaller room had bright red theater curtains and a small, old TV crammed on one side with a huge stack of VHSs and DVDs. Honey had said the last resident of the cabin was big on “retro recordings” and that they were probably home videos of some plays put on by the campers. 

The main room walls were crowded as hell. Several framed posters for either Broadway or cult classic movies were only outnumbered by the sheer amount of vinyl records hung on the walls.

Actual furniture outside of the beds and built-in dressers seemed rather sparse, really drawing attention to the guitar stand, and a comically large, inaccurate, yet cool treasure chest next to Mutt’s chosen bed. 

Mutt was half tempted to toss some gold he had kept in his inventory into the chest, just to keep in theme, but figured it would only be funny if he also had an impressive amount of chocolate coins to hide under the gold. 

Unfortunately, the chest was already filled to bursting with old props and costume pieces. Though he highly doubted he’d get a chance to go back to his world, considering Fox had him rig the machine to explode if it hit another power surge, he could envision the perfect place to keep a chest of chocolate coins in his old room. 

It really was too bad. 

Anyways. 

Mutt was currently laid on his bed looking through the costume jewelry he’d found, wondering how much of the jewelry could pass well enough to an untrained eye to be worth something. 

He had thought that Blue was still in the other room, looking through the old videos, but apparently the older skeleton was quieter than Mutt had expected. 

Thus, Mutt being startled as shit when Blue had snuck up on him like that. 

“How exactly does Jail House fit the cabin perfectly?” He asked when he realized Blue wasn’t going to look away without a response of some kind. 

Blue looked delighted by the response and quickly began plucking at the strings and weird pegs on the instrument as he spoke. “OH NO NOT THE CABIN, IT FITS US PERFECTLY!” 

Mutt’s fascination at Blue’s tuning of the instrument faltered slightly at his use of US. Mutt wasn’t an ‘us’ with anyone. Not even his lord. Last he checked, Fox hadn’t loaned him out to Blue for him to be so casually throwing words like ‘us’ around. At least, not in the context or way Blue said it. 

Oblivious to Mutt’s thoughts, Blue strummed the instrument in some sort of twangy combination of cords. “WELL, YOU ARE MUTT, A HOUND DOG IF YOU WILL. AND I’M BLUE, KIND OF LIKE THE MUSIC GENRE OF THE BLUES. TOGETHER, OUR NAMES MAKE SOME JAIL HOUSE BLUES.” 

Oh. So, he was just playing with the meaning of their nicknames. A lot less presumptive. That… was okay, he guessed. Though he only understood half of the conclusion. 

“How exactly does a hound dog relate to blues music?” He asked skeptically. 

Blue paused his idle strumming to look up at Mutt, and blink his wide sockets. He opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it thoughtfully, before settling with, “I TAKE IT MUSIC WASN’T BIG IN YOUR UNDERGROUND?”

Mutt shrugged. “It was a luxury to be able to enjoy things like that.” A luxury he supposed him and Fox could have partaken in if they had had the interest, or time, but they just never had. 

He expected some sort of ‘awww that’s so saaad’ or maybe some kind of whiney answer. He knew next to nothing about Blue except that he was a lesser version of Fox, and well. Apparently, he knew guitar. 

Instead of saying anything pouty and annoying though, Blue just nodded. “WANNA HEAR IT THEN? THE REASON HOUND DOG AND BLUES GOES HAND IN HAND?” 

“You’re offerin’ to play me a song?” Mutt asked. 

“WELL, YEAH.” Blue grinned, a mischievous glint to his eye lights. “I CAN PLAY FOR YOU; I COULD EVEN TEACH YOU TO PLAY IF YOU WANT.” 

“You think I’m going to like your song enough to want to learn to play it?” Mutt asked dryly, mostly to hide the fact that the idea of learning the instrument was mildly appealing. 

The way Blue had effortlessly tuned and played the instrument with hardly a glance showed a level of expertise that made Mutt itch to step up to the challenge. 

Blue plucked another quick twangy cord, watching Mutt’s expression, while Mutt was well distracted by the pattern of Blue’s phalange placements. 

“HMM, I THINK I’M CONFIDENT ENOUGH THAT I’M WILLING TO MAKE A BET ON THIS. IF YOU LIKE THE SONG, NOT ONLY WILL I TEACH YOU TO PLAY IT, BUT WE WILL ALSO NAME THE CABIN, THE JAIL HOUSE.” 

“Sounds like I get more from that bet then you,” Mutt noted. “I could hate the song, not care about the name, and lie saying that I like it, and still get free lessons out of it.” 

Blue shrugged, “EITHER WAY, THIS IS THE MOST YOU'VE EVER TALKED TO ME BEFORE. IN THAT ALONE, I THINK I’M WINNING.” 

For a moment, Mutt could almost imagine Fox saying those words to him. See a Fox who could smile sincerely at him as easily as Blue had offered it. The very reason he had always avoided Red and Blue to begin with. 

He’d get confusing, unrealistic thoughts of Fox being anything like his counterparts. It left an uncomfortable, hollow feeling in Mutt’s soul. Fox would never look at him the way Blue looked at anyone. 

He had come to the conclusion that when Fox had come to pick him up at that diner, he had read too much into Fox’s mannerisms. Looked too hard for something that wasn’t there. It wouldn’t be the first time. 

Mutt could still remember when he had first discovered Echo. He had had spent a week in Waterfall stoned and burdened free.

Then Fox had called him. 

For the briefest moment, he had been certain he had actually worried Fox. That Fox had feared for his safety and wanted Mutt to come home safely. 

Then Fox had told him that if he was so determined to waste the time and effort Fox had put into training him, to not come home at all. 

Mutt had returned within the hour, his soul trembling with relief over the fact that the locks hadn’t been changed. Fox had never changed the locks on him, but Mutt could still vaguely remember that foggy memory of a time before Fox. 

His small hands pulling desperately at a door knob. Begging someone to let him in. 

He didn’t like to think of before Fox. He had been so small it really didn’t matter much anyways. 

The point was, even if Fox had said that he had been worried over Mutt, it didn’t mean that he had meant it the way Mutt wished he had. It just meant that, yet again, Mutt had come close to disappointing his lord. 

That he was still just a bad investment. 

On principle, he should refuse this bet. Fox would probably disapprove of Mutt interacting with the lesser versions of him. Only…

No one had to know. 

He was already expected to be spending a lot of time around Blue now that he was shoved in a cabin with him. He could easily excuse the extra time spent in his company. Blue would never be Fox, but maybe there would be some sort of closure by getting these interactions out of his mind. 

It could be an experiment of some kind. Tolerate Blue’s smiles, honesty, and endless encouragement, then he could go about life again knowing that repressed desires for such things from his lord were merely unfulfilling drivel. 

“DO YOU ACCEPT THE BET?” Blue asked curiously. “OR SHOULD I PUT THIS AWAY NOW THAT SHE’S ALL TUNED UP AGAIN?”

Even the dramatic ultimatums were similar… 

“Why not,” Mutt shrugged. “Show me what yah got.”

——— Sans 

It was rare when the nightmares didn’t come. Even in short bursts of rest, he’d grown accustomed to the flash of a blade or the feeling of his own dust slipping away. 

Something was different now. Even half asleep, he could tell that.

Every time his mind conjured that familiar golden corridor, a deep rumbling growl crumbled it away in his mind’s confusion. 

What the heck was that sound? It was low, like some kind of animal, but the reverberation was crazy. Then his center of gravity had shifted and something warm, nearly burning but not quite seemed to prod at his magic. 

He wanted to slap it away and drift back into that safe place with the sound he’d been resting in. 

He could almost feel laughter. Not hear it, but feel it in the same way he could feel Papyrus was happy through his magic alone. Sans had always loved the sound of laughter the most. It’s why he knew so many puns. Told so many jokes. 

Was he having a good dream right now? How unexpectedly nice. Even if the laughing magic was warmer than he was used to, it still felt nice against his. He let himself relax into it. 

Only for his mind to sway closer into awareness at yet another sensation. It was that kind of rocking motion that he was actually familiar with. He was being… carried? 

Oh. Papyrus was carrying him somewhere? That’s cool, less walking he had to do. Now where was he getting in those nice sleepy thoughts? It was so rare to feel this comfy he was reluctant to leave slumber. 

That is, until he heard Papyrus’ distant angered yell. 

“YOU AREN’T HOLDING HIM CORRECTLY!!!”

The person carrying him stopped walking and Sans’ mind quickly began to catch up to the situation. 

Papyrus just yelled at whoever had him, which meant the person holding him wasn’t Papyrus. And if that didn’t wake him up instantly, nothing fucking would. 

Before Sans could even begin to scramble away from whatever fucking stranger had the audacity to pick him up, he was grabbed by the arm sockets and pulled protectively against Papyrus’ rib cage. 

Sans was now being held by Papyrus like some sort of teddy bear while he faced the equally surprised face of Red. 

“How the hell was I holdin’ him wrong?” Red asked, more amused than angered as he grinned at Sans’ expression. 

“HE’S A SANS, NOT A RUG TO TOSS OVER YOUR SHOULDER!!!” Papyrus argued adamantly, while Sans processed his own mortification. 

Stars above, could Paps maybe put him down right now? He’d run and live in the woods and never have to talk of this again. 

“I see yah carrying him like that all the time? I figured it was fine. Heck, even my bro drags me along like that.” Red countered, rubbing at his skull. 

“LITTLE BROTHER PRIVILEGE,” Papyrus stated firmly. 

Red held his hands up in defeat. “Alright, alright, my bad, I didn’ know.” 

Finally common sense caught up to Sans as he swung his feet a little and shortcut to beside Papyrus instead of in his bro’s arms. 

“HOW ABOUT WE ASK BEFORE WE PICK ANYONE UP?” Blue asked from behind Sans, causing him to turn sharply and see the other skeletons and Honey all seated around what appeared to be a huge burning campfire. 

Blue continued, looking all too sympathetic, “PERSONALLY, I HATE BEING PICKED UP. BEING A SMALL TO AVERAGE SIZE MONSTER IS HARDLY AN INVITATION TO BE GRABBED.”

Stretch looked away from where he had been staring up at the night sky with an accusing glance at Blue, “And yet that doesn’t stop you from jumping onto my back every chance you get.” 

Blue grinned mischievously, “SURPRISE HUG ATTACKS ARE AN EXCEPTION.” 

“And a pain in the spine,” Stretch sighed dramatically, all while leaning against Blue. 

“Sans! Red! So glad you two decided to join us after all!” Honey greeted. “We’ve got roasting sticks and hot dogs if you boys wanna help yourself!” 

Red shrugged to Honey but looked to Sans, “Figured you didn’t wanna miss dinner. You were passed out pretty deep though, so figured I’d just bring yah out here.” 

Sans could feel a stubborn wave of blue magic staining his cheekbones. Great, so everyone had seen that, and Red had woken up first. Cool. 

“Thanks,” he spoke, hoping Red would get the dry unamused tone. 

He wasn’t mad, but it was a lot easier to pretend he still was than acknowledging how not awful Red carrying him had been. Sure, he could argue he’d been half asleep, but embarrassing was embarrassing. 

“No problem, bud,” Red replied genuinely, patting Sans’ shoulder as he passed and made his way to sit next to Edge. 

Stars damn it. 

Well. At least there were ‘dogs. Joining the rest, Sans began the process of roasting his dinner while Honey spoke up. 

“Welcome to the first night fire, campers! Tonight, we celebrate coming together for one heck of a good summer!” Honey looked to each of them, the fire casting a certain gleam in her eyes. “Let me be the first to say, things here at Camp Honey Hive, have only just begun!” 

Something in his soul told Sans that that was the understatement of the century. 

Chapter Text

Honey hadn’t been kidding when she said the furthest cabins were in rough shape. 

The further away from their cabins they had gone, the more nature appeared to reclaim itself. Weeds and wild grass spilled onto the path, while the trees seemed to loom overhead. 

Turns out the camper cabins were a LOT bigger than the teen councilor cabins. These large, imposing structures got progressively worse for wear as they continued forward.

So naturally they had decided to check out the oldest and worst first to see what they were getting themselves into. 

The building looked mildly horrifying; the surrounding bushes were overgrown and clinging to the walls, and both outer windows housed just as many spider webs as cracks. Most notably, the outer paint was peeled, chipped away, and sun-bleached to the point that Sans wasn’t sure what the original color had been. 

The conspicuous lack of door meant that the interior was clearly damaged by the elements, and it had been packed to the brim with random crap and garbage that everyone had spent all morning clearing. Thanks to that hard work, old bunk bed frames and empty dressers now littered the outside of cabin 13, making it look like some janky backwoods yard sale. 

Honey had cheerfully thanked everyone and presented them with a list of other tasks to be split between them, promising a fun activity for tomorrow and a hardy meal at the end of the day. 

So, the majority of them had split up to do their individual tasks, while Sans and Red had been left to inspect and take notes on the building’s interior structure. 

The inside wasn’t much prettier than the outside, even with all of the crap removed. The damp smell that clung to the cabin made Sans grateful for his lack of lungs, while he and Red carefully tested the flooring and documented its stability as they took in the inside. 

“They actually let kids stay here, huh?” Sans asked, looking at a rather sizable hole in the flooring and multiple moist spots that hinted towards a leak of some kind. He could see why Honey was hesitant to think that this one was worth fixing up at all. 

“Not for a while if that Hubba Bubba pop can we found had anything to say about it. That crap got discontinued in the early nineties.” Red grumbled, flicking his flashlight to look up at the ceiling. “Found the leak.”

“Oh?” Sans asked before noticing the water dripping from the dangling light fixture that Red was pointing to. “Oh. Yeah, that doesn’t look right.” 

“Stretch is gonna have a field day when it’s time to fix wiring, and I do not want to deal with that pain in the coccyx,” Red muttered. 

“So, salvageable?” Sans asked curiously. Sure, they owed Honey big time, but they weren’t exactly miracle workers. 

Red clicked off his flashlight. “As long as Mutt and Blue come through with the lumber, we should be good. Gonna be a bitch and a half for sure, but nothin’ a little magic and bone work can’t fix.” 

“The roof needs patched and the entire floor has to go,” Sans deadpanned skeptically. 

“Fine, two whole bitches.” Red scoffed. He froze momentarily, hearing his own words. He turned to Sans sharply, “Wait, was that-“

Oh stars, not this again. Sans resisted the urge to groan. “No, that wasn’t-“

“I cursed twice, so was that-“

“No, it isn’t like that it’s more…” Sans sighed, his skull slumping into his hands. “No, you can curse, you don’t gotta-“

“I know Edge don’ think I can, but I could try dialing the cursing down.” 

“Red!!” Sans snapped, the sound echoing slightly in the empty building. Red paused, eye lights flicking to Sans as he spoke firmly. “It’s chill.”

Red eyed him warily, “yeah?”

“Yeah.” 

Red’s shoulders dropped, but he seemed to accept Sans words. “‘Aight…” Red sighed. “Fuck’n good, cuz I’ll be real, my vocabulary is mostly profanity.”

Looking momentarily persuaded, Red bent down to examine the broken floor boards, grumbling too low and soft for Sans to fully make out. 

Stars help him, this truly was his new reality. 

He would have never played Honey’s devious games last night if he knew what hell it would unleash. 

The fire had cast ominous shadows over all of them in the late night, but Sans hadn’t seen the harm in a game as simple as what she had described. 

“You say your name, and three true facts about yourself!” Honey had grinned. “It’ll help me put names to skulls better, and you never know what you might learn about each other!” 

It wasn’t an unreasonable request either. To all of them, it was fairly obvious who was who, but to a human unfamiliar with skeleton monsters or their individual style preferences, it could be rough. 

Blue had started them off. 

“HI! I AM THE MAGNIFICENT BLUE!” He grinned as he looked at them all, only faltering a bit as he looked to Honey. “I LOVE TO LEARN NEW SKILLS, I’M FAIRLY GOOD AT BAKING SO I WORK AT A BAKERY, AND MY LIFE GOAL IS TO INSPIRE OTHERS!”

Inspire others, huh? Sans had struggled to find much inspiring about Blue in the moment. If inspiration was Blue’s goal, he certainly had a way to go in Sans’ opinion. 

Stretch had naturally followed after Blue with a tired yet content yawn. “I’m Stretch. I like riddles and mystery novels, I dabble in art, and I’m pretty much an open book.” 

Mutt had snorted at that, catching everyone’s attention. 

Stretch looked over defensively, “What? It’s true.” 

Mutt had shrugged casually, a sly smirk starting to grace his teeth. “I’m Mutt, I’m a fast learner, I like sweet things, and I know Stretch’s secret.” 

Stretch had chuckled, sitting up at that. “Oh really? And what would that be?” 

Sans had watch curiously along with the rest as Mutt moved over and whispered something directly to Stretch. Judging by the way Stretch’s eye lights shrank to pin pricks and his lazy grin nearly faltered, it had looked like Mutt actually must have known something. 

Stretch turned sharply to look at Mutt, but Mutt had shortcut his way back next to Fox with a self-satisfied grin of his own. 

Fox looked to his brother, not exactly disapprovingly but as if asking ‘Was That Really Necessary?’ with his expression alone. When Mutt only shrugged, Fox quickly spoke up before any further questions had been directed at Stretch. 

“My Name Is Fox,” he stated as blunt as ever. “I Am Skilled In Many Various Things, I Enjoy Embracing New Challenges, And My Own Life Goal Is Going Fairly Well So Far.” 

Holy Shit. Sans had blinked at that, turning to look at Blue. Fox, knowing or not, had just gone for Blue’s cervical spine with that one. 

Sans had looked between the two speculatively. He had had a feeling drama would bloom between some pair in their group, but for it to happen on the first night? It certainly had caught him off guard. Maybe he had put too much faith in Fox, given how civil he had been?

 … Then again…

Fox had been trying to be responsible and kinder to him and Papyrus… but Sans couldn’t recall Fox ever making the same pledge to the others. The real question is how did Blue, a skeleton set on them all getting along, already set Fox off???? 

Sans had noticed Mutt making a point to avoid Blue’s searching gaze. He had wondered just what had he and Red missed by showing up to the fire last. 

Blue, in response to Fox’s words, leaned closer from where he sat to more obviously peer in Fox’s direction. “I LOOK FORWARD TO LEARNING FROM YOUR SUCCESS.” 

Fox had stared Blue down. “I Am Not As Fool Hardy As To Share The Secrets To My Success.”

Blue smiled not so sweetly, “CLEARLY.”

“My name is Red!” Red firmly spoke up, sweat already gathered on his skull. He glared at both Fox and Blue. “I’m the eldest one here, and the one who asked the good Doc to set this all up.” His glare intensified as the other two seemed to reluctantly shrink back. “And I’m the one who is gonna foot the bill if our behavior makes this trip go sideways.” 

The unspoken ‘So knock it off’ was so loud Sans had wondered if the Fells could do anything subtly. 

Edge had deftly jumped in next. “YOU MAY CALL ME EDGE. I LIKE COOKING, I INFORM THOSE I HAVE ISSUES WITH WHEN I DO, AND I DON’T HATE ANYONE HERE.” 

Also not great, but practically poetry in comparison to how quickly this game was going downhill. Honey hadn’t seemed distressed at all by their responses, perhaps even enthralled as she watched with wide eyes.

Following Edge’s example, Papyrus had gone next. Only his bro looked nearly as done with the fossils as Sans felt. Papyrus appeared to be addressing Honey directly instead of the group. “HOWDY! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! I AM AN AVID PASTA LOVER, ONCE I LEAVE STRIPES I HAVE A JOB AWAITING ME IN THE ROYAL GUARD, AND I HAVE NEVER BEEN TO A SUMMER CAMP BEFORE!” 

Sans had felt a great deal of pride in the fact that his bro was the only one to play the game right. At least in his opinion. He looked to Honey to see how she’d try and salvage the failure of her game when he suddenly felt seven pairs of eye lights and one human’s gaze hit him. 

Oh yeah, he had to do the thing too. Welp. 

“My Name is Sans, I’d say I’m known to be full of Love, I’m Compassionate and I’m Hopeful.” 

There. Three things. 

Papyrus had sharply turned to him, “BROTHER, NOT ONLY IS THAT INCREDIBLY LAZY, BUT I ALSO THINK THAT IS CHEATING.”

“Nuh uh, that’s three true things.” Sans shrugged. 

Papyrus frowned, “BUT THAT’S SO…” He narrowed his sockets disapprovingly. “THAT REALLY SHOULDN'T COUNT.” 

“I wouldn’t really call you ‘hopeful’.” Mutt had added, looking strangely at Sans. 

“Thanks for noticing,” Sans had said dryly thinking Mutt was referencing his low HP again. 

“HOW IS THAT CHEATING?” Edge asked Papyrus curiously. “HE DID LIST THREE THINGS, ALBEIT UNEXPECTED AND SHORT.”

Papyrus had sniffed and crossed his arms in a pout, “SOUL TRAITS SHOULDN'T COUNT.”

Blue frowned at that. “HE DIDN’T SAY SOUL TRAITS THOUGH, HE SAID HE WAS KIND, COMPASSIONATE, AND HOPEFUL. NOT FULL OF DREAMS, CREATIVITY, AND WONDER.” 

Fox’s hand had flown to his own skull as of in pain, Mutt wincing not long after as looks a pure disbelief had crossed everyone’s skulls. “Sans. Papyrus. What Do The Words ‘Wisdom’, ‘Ingenuity’, and ‘Curiosity’ mean to you?” 

Edge also seemed to catch on looking at Fox and Blue with blatant dread in his expression. “YOU BOTH BETTER TELL ME YOU MEANT TO SAY DETERMINATION, COURAGE AND PASSION, RIGHT FUCKING NOW.” 

Stretch groaned into his hands. “No fricken way… That would explain so damn much…” 

Even Red had turned and looked at Sans and Papyrus in surprise. “Your soul traits are… Love, Hope, and Compassion??!?” 

Sans nodded slowly, looking around at everyone with just as much shock spiking through his soul. Dreams, Creativity, and Wonder??? Wisdom, Ingenuity, and Curiosity? Courage, Passion, and stars damn Determination!? 

Determination was lethal in high doses to monsters, and the Fell brothers came from a world where monsters were MADE from it?!?! No wonder Red’s magic had felt warm: his very being was made from a trait that melted monsters. 

Stretch chuckled a humorless laugh. “We are so bad at this. How did we… we never asked????”

Honey blinked, looking between them all, her brows furrowed in confusion, before a type of understanding seemed to sink in. “Oh! Is this a whole ‘being from different universes’ thing?”

A night breeze rustling through the nearby trees had been the only sound as eight skeletons turned to Honey in unison, all of their eye lights gone in shock. 

To her credit, she seemed more amused then terrified at the sight. 

Despite appearing to be at a loss for words, Red had certainly found them, “How the fuck did you know that?!?”

Out of all the reactions she could have had, Honey had giggled, her red curls bouncing with her shoulders as she laughed. “You had to get your king’s permission for y’all to come here, yeah? My camp had to get vetted for being safe for monsters the summer Grizzly Paw worked here. Asgore came and visited way back then.” 

Honey used a stick to shove a log closer into the fire. “When Grizzly told me you were a rather special case, I wasn’t too surprised when Asgore reached out as well and gave me the scoop on your unique situation.”

Either Asgore had a lot of faith in this human, or was becoming incredibly senile in his old age. Probably both.

“And you were sworn to secrecy, yeah?” Stretch had inquired, warily watching the human. 

It was one thing for the Fell’s Monster therapist to know, and another thing entirely for Asgore to tell a random human. 

Honey had nodded eagerly, “Well of course. Not that I would spill the beans on this for yah. While I’ll admit to not having a clue on how something like this is possible, I gotta say, after the news of Monsters and magic being real a few years back, I'm not sure much could be too surprising anymore.” 

Blue had looked to Honey as if in awe, “YOU TRULY DON’T FIND THIS STRANGE?”

“More like incredibly fascinating!” The human woman had grinned. “Now enough about me, you are all made of different, what did you call them? Soul traits?”

A brief silence had overtaken the group; some processing, others warily watching Honey. To no one’s surprise, Papyrus was the first to speak up. 

“IT’S NOT EXACTLY A SECRET THAT MONSTERS ARE MADE OF NOT ONLY MAGIC, BUT ALSO LOVE, COMPASSION, AND HOPE. IT’S JUST NOT A THING A LOT OF MONSTERS LIKE TO SHARE ABOUT OURSELVES.”

“Why not?” Honey had asked innocently enough. 

Papyrus had turned to Sans, looking for once hesitant. 

It was Fox who had spoken up, looking alarmed by his own words as he said them, “Because Going Against Soul Traits, Or Being Surrounded By The Opposite, Can Be Painful To Monsters… To Put It Simply…” Fox turned to look at Sans, his expression softening into something regretful and pained. 

“Cruelty Hurts You, Doesn’t It?” 

And that. That had been the start of his current situation. 

After a brief but hesitant explanation of, “Yeah” on his part, Sans could see the expressions of pure guilt cross over nearly every skull there. 

Honey had tried to liven the mood with the reveal of cabin names, but everyone’s souls hadn’t really been overly into it, and had just gone to bed shortly after. 

No one had really needed to voice what they were thinking. Sans could tell by the way Red had trailed behind him back to their cabin, that most of them were probably trying to tally up every single thing he had said or done that might have caused Sans’ soul deep discomfort or pain. 

Meanwhile, Sans had been contemplating what his housemate’s soul traits said about them. 

Stretch and Blue being made of Creativity, Dreams, and Wonder… It explained a lot about how the two seemed to be constantly jumping from one thing or another. To them, boredom must be agony. 

No wonder Stretch had often checked in on Sans’ progress with the machine, even back when he hated him. Thinking outside the box and looking for new solutions was baked into who he was. 

Same with Blue’s darn craft projects. Had he been trying to nurture a soul trait he had thought Sans had by presenting him opportunity to be Creative and express himself? 

Fox and Mutt were Wisdom, Ingenuity, and Curiosity. Stupidity, even their own, could hurt them. It explained why the two seemed to jump every chance they got to be the smartest in the room. If someone was wrong, they’d probably prefer it be them, so that way they could learn from it. That itself would be an act of Wisdom. 

Their constant prodding at the household was in fact them looking to see what would happen. They were too Curious to really leave things alone. And not to mention the fact that neither were the type to back down from any kind of intellectual challenge. 

Narrow escapes and clever tricks were probably one heck of an adrenaline rush. Mutt must have been entirely certain he could have outplayed Michael, and probably hadn’t accounted for how Sans would have more Compassion in his soul than Curiosity about the results. 

Then there was Edge and Red. Determination, Courage, and Passion. Traits so far from his own that Sans truly should have noticed sooner. 

Back in the mall, Edge had said his endurance for tolerating Michael should cancel out any cowardice. Edge had thought Sans would be worried about cowardice because it would go against a soul trait that he didn’t have. 

The Fells never backed down or did anything in half measures, because it went against their very souls. Retreating, or simply not giving their all, wasn’t in their nature. 

Sans could see how a whole underground filled with monsters like that could cause conflict. Was their underground so violent because of their soul traits, or had their soul traits evolved to be that way due to the harshness of their surroundings? 

Could Sans’ Compassion hurt Red the same way pure Determination could have negative effects on Sans? 

He had wanted to ask, but Red had spoken up before Sans could ask when they had reached their newly named cabin. 

“… You don’ like horror movies do yah?” Red had asked, still standing in the door frame warily. 

Sans had stared at Red, trying to read the expression on Red’s skull, but finding it too layered and himself too tired to get a good read. 

Sans had nodded. “Not really... They tend to only show the worst in people... and they don’t ever really have happy endings.” 

Red had nodded at that, moving fully into the cabin and laying down without another word. 

Sans had thought that finally being able to say that would feel rewarding. But instead, he had felt tempted to ask why Red liked them. He had always just assumed it was for the violence.

He had assumed Red liked violence. 

There was something to that thought though that kept him from asking. So instead, he had silently removed his jacket and tried to sleep. 

His mind had been reeling too much though, and he hadn’t found sleep easy. He had instead gotten up halfway into the night, and sat in the bay window of his cabin. He spent at least an hour or two just looking at the stars, and occasionally noticing the contemplative look on his reflection in the glass. 

He must have fallen asleep at some point, given how he had woken up in his bed. Red had probably moved him again… only Red had been nowhere to be seen. 

Sans had gone in search of breakfast and found Red just outside their cabin talking to Edge in partially hushed voices. 

“-think I’ve said anything like that so far…”

“WELL, IT’S BETTER TO PLAY IT SAFE JUST IN CASE.” 

“Look, I’ll be caref- Oh! Heya kiddo!” Red had said, a forced grin on his skull. 

Sans had ignored the kiddo comment and instead asked, “What are you two talking about?” while watching them almost nervously begin to straighten themselves. 

“Oh you know… Sports.”

Sans had been grateful he didn’t have Truth as a soul trait, because that lie had already been rather painful to watch. 

He had let it slide though, going about his morning. Everyone had met up for a breakfast of cinnamon honey pancakes, and the only notable thing about that had been the fact that Stretch and Mutt had easily eaten ten each. One plate smothered in more honey, and the other drenched in syrup. 

Then they had gone to work. Split into their cabin groups, Sans had seen Red pause and fumble with every curse that slipped past his teeth, glancing nervously at Sans the entire time. 

It was like Red had gotten it in his skull that Sans would burst into dust if he heard even a bit of profanity. Had Red already forgotten how Sans also occasionally cursed? 

Or maybe he mostly cursed in his skull? 

Either way, it had gotten to the point that something had to be said. 

Watching Red finish his inspection of the hole, Sans took a steadying breath. “Hey, Red.” 

Red looked over, pocketing his flashlight. “Yeah? Ready to head out?”

Sans shrugged. “Well, yeah that too.”

Red patiently looked at Sans. “But that’s not it?”

“Not really,” Sans admitted. 

Red nodded, “‘kay. Walk and talk it is.”

They carefully exited the building, avoiding any floorboards with a bit too much give. Sans sighed as he tried to find the words. “You don’t have to go overboard with this, you know?”

Red glanced to him, with irritation of all things in his tone as he spoke, “Actually, I think we really do. You’re forgivin’ us all a lil’ too easily on this, ‘nilla.”

Sans shrugged, looking away as his crocks crunched on the gravel path. “Maybe you think so, but I’ve probably held this grudge longer than most monsters in this world would.” 

Red scoffed, “Yeah, well monsters of this world don’t do shit to make you hold a grudge over them. But us? With the amount of shit we’ve put you through? I wouldn’t be surprised if you turned to dust before you gave us another chance.” 

True. But what could he say to that? 

Luckily Red spoke again, “Look, I can probably get that you might not like how bad we all feel right now, but honestly? Last night was for the best. It’s really shitty, Sans, that we needed to hear how much us being jerks hurt you to really get how awful we’ve been. Like, we knew but we didn’t know. And to top it all off, you never signed up for any of this. We just showed up on your doorstep like a bunch of spoiled fuckin’ milk.” 

Red shook his skull, “The fact that you put up with us hurting you like that for so long really puts into perspective how much stronger you are then most of us give you credit for.”

… 

Sans briefly wondered how to put into words how much of his endurance came from having faced so much worse than a house full of cruel jerks. That he had made himself push past the loss of so much worse pain in his soul timeline after timeline. 

‘Yeah, well when you’ve dealt with a murder-y kid killing your brother, killing your king, and killing every other monster you’ve ever known, then waking up to the same kid smiling and eating Nice Cream, then watching them kill everyone all over again, over and over and over, you kinda get used to bullshit.’ he wished he could say.

He wondered what Red would have to say about him then. Sans wasn’t strong. Just kinda… Tired most days. 

“You don’t have to go watching what you say around me though.” Sans eventually said. “Cursing isn’t really an act of cruelty. At least, not the way you and Edge do it.”

Now that Sans thought about it… Red and Edge had said mean and nasty things before. Been dismissive, and loud. Yet… Were they ever really trying to be cruel? 

That one, he had to ask. 

“Did you hate me?” Sans asked, clearly startling Red from the abrupt question. “Before you knew my age,” he clarified. 

Red grimaced, but his words were firm and steady. “No.” 

Sans eyed him skeptically. 

Red snorted at the look. “I mean it, I really didn’t hate yah. I related to you. Or well, who I thought yah were.” Red rubbed at his skull as their cabins slowly started to come into view. “I wanted you to be better, because I thought you were like me. I was a bit rough with yah because I thought you deserved it, because instead of just asking yah who you were I assumed you were…”

That Sans was like him. 

That was… a lot. Shockingly honest, too. Sans was prepared for a deflection, for avoidance, or an outright lie, but he didn’t really know how to respond to actual sincerity. Not now, anyway.

They fell into silence, Red seeming to get Sans was caught up in his own thoughts and needed a moment. 

Eventually, they passed Blue and Mutt’s cabin, and Red snorted. “How the hell did Mutt convince Blue to name that thing The Jail House?”

Sans shrugged, looking at Stretch and Edge’s cabin. “Maybe it was a compromise, like Stretch and Edge’s.”

Red chuckled, “What? Schrödinger’s Razor? I’m fairly certain they just wanted to show off they could spell.” Red shook his head. “What’s wrong with good ol’ Occam’s Razor?”

Sans grinned, unable to help himself. “Too simple.” 

Red blinked. Then started laughing loudly, while Sans couldn’t help but chuckle at his own joke. 

Eventually they stopped in front of their own cabin, Red wiping a red tear from his socket at how hard he had laughed. “At least they didn’t get Cabin One’s name.” 

Sans nodded, “Oh yeah, Papyrus was either messing with Fox or challenging him. I can’t see any other way Fox would let the name Oxymorons slide.”

Red chuckled again at the reminder. Gesturing up at their cabin, Red pointed to where Honey had added their cabin’s new name. “And what you think of this beauty? Didn’t really get a chance to get your opinion much on it last night.” 

Sans looked up at the sign, surprisingly glad he had left the choice entirely to Red. 

The plaque on their cabin now simply read: 

Cabin 2: Cabin 2

Sans couldn’t have picked better himself. 

“Honestly?” he said in appreciation. “I think I love it.” 

Chapter Text

The vented magic was so thick in this particular district, it manifested itself into a dense fog. The wisps of energy moved with near-sentience, clinging to the cobbled roads and hovering over the rivers of Waterfall. 

Acting like the water it surrounded, the heavy fog swirled before evaporating slowly, collecting as moisture on the cavern ceiling. It then dripped down to the ground below, creating iridescent puddles of pure, unfiltered energy. 

Neon lights from the various towering buildings glowed and illuminated the remaining fog and newly-formed puddles with various vibrant colors. Each sign promised that this, no wait, ‘this!!’ was the hottest spot for monsters to gather. 

There had been a time where this district was once packed full to bursting with monsters all the time, yet now it stood nearly empty. Only half of the buildings were currently occupied, and the few monsters there had already gathered inside their preferred clubs for the day, leaving the streets uncharacteristically quiet. 

Today, like every day, the Waterfall residents were drowning the ever-present dread of their inevitable end away in booze and heat-induced pleasures. 

The click of a bunny monster’s heels echoed in the silence, reverberating against the stone as she approached the familiar illuminated building. 

White and pink spiraled around her fur pattern, while one of her ears remained stubbornly cocked off to the side. 

With a steady, determined stride, she entered, paying little attention to the neon umbrella and digital rain drops that fell from it on the building’s digital sign. 

The interior of the building flashed blue and pink as music thrummed through the air. A trail of fog clung to her as she strolled casually past the sleeping bouncer, patting his head as she passed. 

“Look alive, Doggo!” she spoke, startling the dog monster from where he had been snoring. 

Doggo nearly stumbled from his stool, turning to look over his shoulder and squinting at the moving woman. “I’m up!! I was just resting my- Swirl??!?”

“Sansy’s in the back, right?” Swirl responded, not sparing him another glance. 

“Yeah, but you ain’t supposed to be here!!” he shouted back, only to huff as she ignored him. Adjusting his shutter shades, he grumbled while he settled back in to finish his nap. 

She practically skipped to the back dressing rooms. The fire elemental behind the bar chuckled and shook his head at the sight. 

His flames flickered orange with a vibrant blue at the top, his mesh shirt helping shape his form into a muscular figure. 

Grillby was glad at the sight. Stars knew Sans needed some good news. 

——— Trix

Another day, another pound of fucking glitter in every single one of his sockets. 

Sitting in a dressing room lined with mirrors, flowing fabrics, and tables, the skeleton known as Trixis Californica, Trix, Yo’ Bitch, Sansy, but mostly just ‘Sans’, sat. 

The loud vibrations of the deep thrumming bass had Trix’s drink shuffling its way across his dressing table. His lavender eye lights slowly follow the soda can until he caught his own reflection in the mirror staring back.

His expression cut through the vibrant haze of his surroundings. Every inch of his skull was smooth, flawless bone and intense self-scrutiny. He didn’t speak his thoughts aloud, but all the same his expression seemed to scream, ‘really dude? we doin’ this again?’

Ugh, the audacity of that bitch made him scoff and prop his head up on his elbow. “Who exactly are you judging, Hun?” he asked his reflection. “You had all the time to go back home for your lunch break, but nah, didn’t wanna bother Papyrus on his day off.” 

Trix looked down at the rapidly cooling, mildly burnt fries with a near frown on his teeth. “Would it be great if Hot Stuff could make food half as great as his drinks? Sure, but yah sure did this to yourself, Sans.” 

His reflection didn’t reply, but it seemed a lot more tired. This was a feat in itself given how much magic circulates through the air on a regular basis, leaving him hyper aware of the constant excess burning through him. 

Sighing, he pushed the basket of fries out of his way and grabbed a makeup brush, and with careful strokes he painted the smallest bit of discoloration under his eye sockets away. 

“There you go, gorgeous! Can’t be looking tired, you’ve got three more sets,” he halfheartedly joked, feeling the silence of the room heavy on his shoulders despite the vibrations of the music and hint of voices just past the door. 

Trix playfully poked his reflection with his brush. “I mean you’re a lil’ flushed babe, but what else is new?” he added wryly. 

‘What are we even doin’ man?’ his expression and soul asked. He was trying too hard again. The reality in which he actually felt as great as he looked was stretched so thin he could feel it to his very core. 

This wasn’t him. He had no idea who him even was anymore… but like, who did really? The last non-hopped-up-on-magic thoughts anyone ever got ended when they left stripes. 

Trix felt his shoulders slump. Placing a hand under his silk top and over his rib cage, he spoke, chiding yet gentle, “Can’t even lie to myself, huh? Come on, soul, let me pretend I’m not tired for like a moment, please?”

His soul didn’t reply, only continuing to thrum with Love, Passion, and Truth. 

“SANS!!!” 

Trix all but leapt from his chair at the sudden intrusion of a familiar bunny monster. She was wearing a beaded skirt that swayed as she sashayed her way into the shared dressing room. 

He immediately ripped his hand away from under his shirt, an even deeper flush covering his skull. “Stars above Swirl, a warning please!” 

Swirl paused her frantic energy, glancing at Trix’s hand before bursting into cute squeaky giggles. “Pffft, Soul fondling, are we Sansy? A lil self-love over there, honey?”

Trix grinned, but rolled his eye lights as he used his magic to flick a fry at her, causing her to squeal and jump away with a huff. 

“Sansy!!”

“I very well might have been, Swirl. I gotta lotta love to give, yah know? Gotta snag a bit for myself from time to time,” he teased. 

Placing her hands on her hips, Swirl inspected her short crop top for fry grease. “Well, Mr. Lazy Bones, you might need to start thinking of sharing that love with others, cuz I’m outta here!!!”

Trix blinked, “Outta here? Like for the night, or-“

Swirl had turned her back to him, her arms crossed and a fake pout on her lips, but at his words she looked over her shoulder with too much joy in her eyes to truly be upset. 

“I may or not be outta here for a few mandatory months Sa-“

Trix stood up abruptly, his chair falling out from under him. “YOU. ARE. NOT?!??”

Giving up her act, Swirl nodded excitedly and met Trix halfway as he ran over to her. He reached out, only to falter, unsure if a hug was an appropriate reaction, but nonetheless looking at her with open awe at the news. 

Confident yet gentle, she grabbed Trix’s hand and placed it on her chest. Sure enough, he could feel the magical signature of her soul sing from within her, along with... the start of something else. Someone else. 

“Holy shit, Swirl,” he whispered, looking up at his stage sister. “You’re actually pregnant.” 

Looking close to tears herself, she grinned, “Rocky and I just found out this morning, you have no idea how excited we are!” 

Trix nodded seriously at that, “I really couldn’t comprehend.” Smiling warmly, he removed his hand from her chest and gave her fluffy paws a reassuring squeeze. “This is amazing! I knew buns had a higher chance, but you’ve only been in The Program for like a year.” 

At that, Swirl’s expression softened, “It’ll be your turn soon enough, I can feel it Sansy!”

Oof. This again.

Politely pulling his hands back, Trix resisted the urge to fidget. “I’m not so sure ‘bout that, Swirl. That last decree has the program putting more focus on the faster reproducing monsters. Long-lived monsters historically have, like, the worst birth rates. So, I’m still pretty low on the priority list.”

Swirl narrowed her pretty pink eyes into a fierce glare, “Yeah, but how long have they kept you at the bottom of that list, Sansy? Fifty years?”

Well, he had applied for The Program fresh out of stripes. One hundred and wide-eyed, he had been eager to help with the underground population crisis.

He could still remember exiting The Facility, eager to see what possible family would be waiting for him, ready to see the proper adult he had grown into, only to discover that the last skeleton - besides his younger brother still in The Facility - had died off years ago.

It had just been him, and continued to be just be him for fifty-three more years until Papyrus had aged out of the Youth Protection and Education Facility.

“More like, one hundred seventy-five years and thirty-four days, but, like, who’s counting?” he admitted. 

Swirl was kind enough that her fur fluffed up in indignation, “Well that’s just not right! Don’t you have that whole compatibility thing to offer?”

“Well yeah…” Trix frowned. Skeleton monsters were physically and soul compatible with almost every single monster type, due to their unique adaptable ecto and soul strength, but… 

“Unfortunately, it’s more like, why put a monster you know will give you results with one that rarely produces anything? It’s much better to just put the best with the best, yah know?” Trix sighed. 

Seeing the pitying look on her face, Trix quickly brought that catty smirk of his back to his face, “Besiiiides, I’m like the display cake in a bakery. Everyone wants a slice and stops by cuz they know I look good,” purposefully omitting that display cakes are fake AF. 

Swirl slowly nodded, “You and your brother do great work promoting monsters to be more open with The Monster Repopulation Program. I never would have met Rocky without you introducing us!” 

“Exactly!” Trix exclaimed, nudging her softly. “You don’t gotta sour your happy news worried about lil’ ol’ Sansy. You just enjoy the time you get with your little souling.”

At the reminder of her child, Swirl put a hand to her chest with a soft fondness, bordering on pure wonder. “I know it’s cliché, but I’m excited to meet them, Sans.”

Trix could feel his smile grow even more forced. “How long do buns get with their-“

“Three weeks,” Swirl answered solemnly. “Three weeks after birth before The Facility can have ‘em. But damn will they be the best three weeks of my life.” Her smile nearly broke his soul as she added, “I’m gonna have a family again, Sans.”

Trix watched Swirl’s expression shift to something so... hopeful it took all he had not to look away. 

She probably already knew he’d give every bone in his body to have something like that. He didn’t need to make this about him. He had his bro, and one day, The Program might take pity on a short sack of bones like him.

Then he could be paired off with some monster dedicated to helping him instead of his usual heat-motivated flings. He wouldn’t have to worry about if he was capable of returning someone’s feelings. 

No need for dates, or leading someone on when things would be clear cut and simple. It would take a century for them to age out of The Facility, but he’d make damn sure he’d be waiting for his kids at the Snowden doors when they finally left. 

Their house would be full of laughter and love. His subspecies would be saved, and maybe he’d be able to shut his sockets at night knowing he’d have a family bigger than Paps and Grillby that wouldn’t die of old age before he even hit middle age. 

Until then, there was only one thing he could do. Just... be happy for her. 

“I’m so happy for you, Swirl,” Trix voiced the thought aloud. It was the truth, but his soul practically burned from all that was left unsaid. 

Luckily, he was used to the sensation, and could still grin with practiced ease. What kind of stage performer would he be if he couldn’t put on a lil’ show?

Swirl returned his grin, plopping down at what - up until this news - had been her makeup station. “So, how has work been today?”

He perked up, picking up his fallen chair and taking a seat himself, “Oh baby girl, don’t even get me started.” 

Leaning back, he energetically began regaling her with all the saucy coworker drama of the day that he could recall. 

He grinned and let the lighthearted energy that the excess magic pulled out of him take over. 

They fell into an easy conversation, full of catty jabs and excited quips. To his credit, Trix managed to only glanced at his own reflection once. Despite the visibly vibrant joy on his reflection’s face, he couldn’t help but feel that just below the surface, it was still judging him. 

The nearly forgotten soda can had finally shuffled its way to the edge of the table. Giving his reflection one last roll of his eye lights, Trix grabbed the can with a wave of magic, right before it could clatter to the floor. 

The only thing he planned on spilling in this moment was The Tea. 

——— Sweetpea 

It shouldn’t be this hard to get a little bit of attention. At least, Papyrus - stage name Lathyrus Odoratus, or more simply known as Sweetpea - thought so. 

The stage light blinded Sweetpea as he arched his spine seductively while he picked up the stage microphone. 

The crowd’s reaction was lackluster to be certain. They gave a few whistles and cheers, sure, but it was hardly the roaring appreciation he had rightfully received the first time. 

Thirty years ago, the audience had gone crazy when Sweetpea had added singing to his routine. Now, ever since that hack of a robot had stolen his act, every monster with half-decent breath control in this or any other club had added singing to their performances. 

To be a trend setter had long since lost its appeal, especially when everyone else’s poor performances had made his once clever show stopper seem like yet another cheap ploy for attention. 

Well, this all was for attention, but at least he was putting in real effort to earn it. 

Pulling himself up onto the pole, Sweetpea sang without a single quiver to his voice, smooth and controlled in a way he knew for a fact none of these amateurs had mastered. Judging by their lack of raucous applause, they definitely didn’t appreciate the skill it took either.

How could Sans be satisfied with this life? Entertaining the same rotation of people, stationed at the same club. He wanted more. He needed more. And if it took having to leaving home on his day off to audition for a part in the Royal Harem Guard, then so be it. 

At least there he could help other monsters through heat sickness and actually get some recognition. Heck, just by being in the Royal Harem, Sweetpea and his brother would skyrocket up The Program’s priority list!! 

… Though he didn’t think the idea of that was honestly much better…

Yes, the monster population was going extinct and it was all hands-on deck in whatever ways you could help… 

But damn, was it really worth it? Monsters were rarely surviving souling birth these days, and even if you or your partner did survive the birth of the child, you wouldn’t get to have them for long before they’d be shipped off to the Queen’s Facility. 

Then whatever offspring you produced would still be trapped in whatever shitty cycle they were all stuck in right now. 

If he didn’t know how badly Sans wanted a family, Sweetpea would complain about the stupid Program, day and night. 

Everyone knew they were done for. They had been pumping liquified and vaporized magic throughout everywhere past The Facility in the Ruins to trigger the near constant heats for generations. 

Had it saved them for a while? Yeah. He existed, didn’t he? Some brave skeletons had managed to reproduce, knowing they would probably not make it long enough to see their offspring. 

And yet now, things were different. King Asgore had switched the priority of his Harem from protecting, to… to entertainment. 

Their own King no longer thought they would make it… And was just trying to make things nicer for them while they faded to dust. 

“Okay, that’s enough of that!”

Sweetpea blinked, freezing mid-routine. He was currently supporting himself upside down on the pole by one arm alone. They had cut the music he had been singing to as well. Damn it, he was just about to get to his killer high notes too. 

“Papyrus,” Undyne called from where she was sat. Her legs crossed as she lounged just off the stage against a velvet sofa. “What are you doing here?” 

Of course, his audition is the one day Undyne would actually show up for her job. 

Masking his irritation behind a carefree smile, he reminded himself that a calm skeleton was a sexy skeleton. He had to be very demure, very mindful. 

Sweetpea adjusted his grip on the pole, gracefully flipping himself over before sliding his way down.

He even made little jazz hands as his heeled boots hit the ground. “Tada!” 

Undyne’s glare didn’t falter as she flicked her long red bangs out of her face. Her ear fins being flat against her head showed that she wasn’t amused.

He pouted, gesturing back to the pole, then back at the crowd, “Can I at least get my pity applause before you dismiss me without a second thought?” 

The few spectators present glanced at Undyne, hesitatingly following her lead as she narrowed her eyes and began a slow clap. 

It was horribly condescending, but Sweetpea bowed nonetheless. “Thank you, Thank you. You’re too kind.” 

“Papyrus.” She stated more firmly.

“I’m auditioning like everyone else does, Undyne.” He clarified, crossing his arms. 

Undyne threw up her hands in exasperation, “You already have a job, Papyrus! You, Sans and Grillby are recruitment and sentry for Snowden AND Waterfall.”

Sweetpea winced, “Yes, but you see, Snowden has basically been abandoned, and the majority of the crowds are really in The Capital, or Hotland at least, and-”

“Only the Royal Harem operate in The Capital, and Muffet and Mettaton run Hotland, you know this.” Undyne scoffed, getting up and dusting nonexistent dirt from her bikini top. 

Sweetpea sighed, “Well maybe I thought your assessment could be, I don’t know, reviewed? As you can see, I am, In My Humble Opinion, Capable Of So Much More!”

“Yeah,” Undyne said dryly, looking at her nails. “In your loud opinion.” 

He shut his jaw with a clack. Holding back a hundred million things he could say, he clenched his hands into fists. He remembered Queen Toriel’s exact words from back in The Facility. 

“Not too loud, young Papyrus, most monsters don’t like to be yelled at. You won’t be able to find a suitable partner like that. Being softer will give you much better results.” 

“Don’t be a bitch.” Sweetpea said evenly. 

“Snowden escort duty it is!” Undyne laughed boisterously as she turned to leave. 

Oh no she didn’t. Swiftly, he put down the microphone and jumped off the side of the stage, determined to follow after her. “I’m being serious, Undyne!” 

“And so am I, Sweetpea!” She all but sang, flicking her long ponytail over her shoulder as she pushed open the doors and stepped out into the Hotland heat.

He pushed after her, following with determination, but before he could speak up, she turned to him, her sickly-sweet smile replaced with an irritated frown. “You think my old stomping grounds isn't good enough for you? You can go back to the frozen woods where you started.” 

“Just one show!” He pleaded, clasping his hands together. “Let me at least perform once in The Capital and you can shove me with the elders working at The Facility for all I care!” 

She stared at him incredulously, “Working in the Harem is so much more than just erotic shows, Papyrus.”

“I know that!” he argued. “But if you won’t let me join, at least give me a chance to be seen! Even Mettaton got to perform in The Capital!” 

Undyne shook her head with an irritated scoff, “Mettaton is a robot! He only performed there because the king knows he can’t help the population problem any other way.” 

“And the people loved him!” Sweetpea stated. “He’s the closest thing we have to a celebrity down here!”

“And you actually want that?” Undyne asked dryly. 

“YES!!” He exclaimed, startling a few other monsters leaving the Hotland theater. His skull flushed even more than usual. “Yes,” he repeated softer. 

She stared at him for a moment, before a deep sigh escaped her. Tugging at her hair, she grumbled to herself. “Of course you’d...”

Oh?? 

“… nghh…” she glared at Sweetpea. “A week of escort and sentry duty in Snowden, just so you remember that all of this is a job, not just fun performances. Then… Maybe it’s just something in today’s heat mist but… if you can take your Snowden time with minimum bitching… No promises!!! But...  I’ll see what I can do.” 

YES!!!!

As calmly as he could manage, Sweetpea nodded, trying to keep his joy inward. Calm is sexy damn it, and he was sexy. He could easily be calm. 

Undyne narrowed her eyes, “Don’t cry.” 

“Not even close,” he lied. 

This!!! This was the best day of his li-

“You gotta tell Sans though,” Undyne deadpanned, shattering his joy in an instant. 

“F-.”

——— Trix 

“-uck,” Trix muttered darkly, looking down at the stain on his top. He knew fries were a bad idea, and now he had gotten grease all over the thing... 

Was it his fault for initiating an impromptu fry fight with Swirl on his break? Totally, but in between costume changes between sets, he hadn’t noticed the stain on his home clothing. 

“I guess it’s crop top season,” Trix grumbled, briefly reminded of the last clean shirt in his room. He could probably spice it up with that long vest with the fur collar… but to do that he had to do laundry soon. Only, it was Papyrus’ turn for a laundry day. 

When you and your brother lived together in constant heats, laundry days were a private and sacred affair. Respecting laundry day secrets was just as important as soundproof walls and private bathrooms for that kind of thing. 

Taking his house key from the lock, Trix stepped into their shared home. 

It was a smaller place via preference. The Snowden family home they’d inherited felt too big for just two skeletons. 

At least their shared living space was tidy, despite the sheer amount of stuff they had collected over the years. A plush, overly stuffed couch took up the most of the living room, along with a fluffy pink carpet tossed over the smooth wooden floors. 

The small mirrors that came in a variety of shapes hanging on the walls had been all Papyrus. His younger brother loved to preen over his own reflection, and Trix was more than willing to help him indulge, gifting him as many as they could scrounge. In return, nearly all the vases, on nearly every shelf, were filled to the brim with paper flowers Papyrus had made for him. 

Despite having spent about fifty-ish years of time in The Facility together, the Queen had placed them in different age groups. The most he and his brother had ever gotten to interact growing up had been brief passes in hallways. 

Toriel hadn’t meant to isolate them, but she had strict rules she enforced for the safety of all the stripes. Even if they weren’t well thought out, in Trix’s adolescent opinion. 

Communicating with his brother had been hard… but Trix hadn’t offered to weed the garden for nothing. Every time they would see each other in passing he had made sure he had a flower to pass on to his brother. Just so Paps knew he cared. 

Then, after a while, flowers and their meanings had just kinda become a thing between them. Even after Trix had been caught and scolded for picking all of Toriel’s flowers, he had found a way forward. 

Even if it was simply writing “sunflower!” on a scrap of paper and hoping Paps caught the meaning. 

He’d hidden full letters in a book called “The Language of Flowers” in Toriel’s library for Papyrus constantly. 

The letters had kept disappearing, but he’d never gotten a response by the time he left stripes. At the time, he hadn’t known that Papyrus kept every single one. That Papyrus had been labeled a special case that Queen Toriel herself watched over very carefully. 

Papyrus hadn’t been able to reply while Trix had been in The Facility… but Papyrus definitely could once he got out. 

Near the front door was Trix’s favorite possession in the world. Displayed proudly in its own small vase, positioned to be the first thing he would see when he got home, was the first flower Papyrus had made him.

Trix had arranged it so he would be the one to greet his bro on his bro’s first day out of The Facility. He had excitedly brought a bouquet of echo flowers to show ‘I’m glad for your return’, only to almost drop them as his bro had hesitantly presented him with a single paper flower. 

Narcissus Pseudonarcissus. A daffodil. 

It was hastily made, and not very accurate. Stars knew Papyrus had gifted him so many more of much better quality since… but the roughly made symbol of new beginnings continued to be Trix’s favorite. 

Touching the little thing fondly, he took note of the fact that Papyrus’ house keys were in the key bowl with a grin. His bro was home! 

“Heeeeey Paps, guess who has some great news to share!” Trix called as he rounded his way into the kitchen. Only to pause at the sight of his brother. 

Trix had seen Papyrus in many rough states before. He could still remember how sick Papyrus had gotten when first getting used to the excess magic outside of The Facility. How Paps had fainted in dizzy spells as his soul had adjusted to constantly absorbing ambient magic. 

His lil bro was 223, not 100 anymore, and he hadn’t fainted in years… but it didn’t stop Trix’s soul from nearly leaping out of his rib cage at the sight of Papyrus slumped dramatically over the table. 

“Yo, bro!?!” Rushing over to his brother, Trix could feel instant relief at how his bro tilted his skull to the side to look at him. 

“I’m wallowing,” Papyrus groaned. 

Trix faltered right before he reached him, relief rushing over him instantly. “Stars above, Sweetpea, say that a little faster next time. I thought you fainted, dude.”

Papyrus scoffed, looking mildly offended. “I haven’t fainted in over a century, brother.” 

Trix pulled up a seat at the table across from Papyrus. “That is why I’d be concerned as hell if yah had, bro.”

Papyrus huffed, but seemed to accept the response as his skull hit the table again. “Fair.” 

Trix shook his skull at the sight, before grinning and also laying his skull on the table dramatically. “So, what are we wallowing in and/or over?” 

Papyrus glanced at Trix, an almost smile on his teeth, before he shifted slightly and sighed, “I’m a bad brother.” 

Trix frowned, sitting back up. “I hope that stung like a bitch to say, because that just isn’t true.” 

“In this instance, it is,” Papyrus mumbled. “I went to audition for a spot in the Royal Harem.” 

“Oh?” Trix asked, like he hadn’t noticed how the audition had been marked on the calendar for weeks. “How’d it go???”

“Well, Undyne was there.” 

Oof. Talk about bad luck. Despite being much younger than Papyrus, Undyne had a bit of a… history with Paps, while still being fiercely protective of him. 

When Undyne had aged out and left The Facility, due to some cosmic bad timing, her escort had dusted of age on his way to get her. They had still lived in Snowden at the time and Papyrus had found her half-frozen and dusting. So, like a true hero, Papyrus had brought her to Waterfall himself. 

A few years later, she had shown up on their doorstep as the Captain of the Royal Harem, asking if they wanted to turn their club with Grillby into something a little more sanctioned and official. 

Papyrus, of course, had slammed the door on her, saying he didn’t accept charity. The two had become catty bff’s since. 

They’d gone from common exotic dancers to enlisters for The Program and the sentries of Snowden and Waterfall. 

Everything had been good for a while… Then Undyne’s girlfriend had built that damn robot.

Alphys must have trained it with a recording of one of Papyrus’ performances, because his starring debut at The Capital had been an exact reenactment of one of Papyrus’ best sets.

Papyrus had fucking lost it, and Undyne had sided with Alphys while she promised she had never programmed Mettaton to do that. 

Calling someone a liar when monsters’ very souls were made of Love, Passion, and TRUTH??? 

Let’s just say Paps had been on Undyne’s shit list for a hot moment. The two settled firmly on being frenemies. 

“Didn’t get in, I take it?” 

“She’s going to give me a chance,” Papyrus admitted softly. 

Trix blinked his sockets owlishly. “Wait, really???”

Papyrus nodded, still frowning. “Yes.”

“And that’s a bad thing… why?” Trix pushed. 

“Because now I have to go do escort duty in Snowden for a while, and I know you don’t like the Snowden house, and I know you also don’t like being alone, so either I’m a bad brother for dragging you some place you hate because I hate being alone too, or I’m a real jerk by-“

“Papyrus Lathyrus Odoratus Serif.” Trix interrupted sharply, causing Papyrus to freeze. 

Yeah, that’s right. He had the Toriel tone down to an art. 

Papyrus looked at him, as if expecting the scolding of a lifetime, but Trix pushed his own anxiety down, a familiar ache in his soul that he masked with a smile. 

“I’m gonna go pack, then call Grillby to let him know I’ll be out for a bit,” Trix said, grinning. “We’ve got a promotion for you to win.” 

His favorite Sweetpea lit up like a neon sign, and Trix couldn’t bring himself to regret anything. 

Who cares if they were going back to the house he’d almost fallen down in? For his bro, he’d relive that day a hundred times over just to keep that joy on his bro’s skull. 

After all, he’d do anything for what precious family he had left.  

Chapter Text

The sound of shhhk, shhhk as Sans carefully pulled the mattress across the morning grass had him cautiously glancing at Red the whole way to the lake. 

A part of him wasn’t really surprised by the fact that the eldest skeleton was still dead to the world, snoring into the early morning air while the sun slept below the horizon. 

He hadn’t wanted it to come to this. Sans had given Red so many chances the past few days; he told him every chance he got that the phrase “kiddo” had to go. 

Sans could only take so much of Red’s careful language watching, avoidance, and that damn nickname. Sans may admittedly be young as hell compared to the rest of them, but he wasn’t a “kiddo.” 

Kiddo is what he called Frisk, or what he called the Goat Squad of Stripes he used to babysit. Sans had survived way too many genocides to be called “kiddo.” Hell, he’d even tolerate “Vanilla” or “‘nilla” at this rate. 

Honestly, he’d been generous in allowing the nickname to go unchallenged for as long as it had. Last night at dinner, while Sans had watched Red stumble over the fact he had said “deadass” and then say, “sorry kiddo” in the same breath, Sans’ grin had twitched ever so slightly.

“Not a kiddo,” he had said, casually swirling his fork in the air to point at Red. 

Red had laughed at Sans, saying, “I’ll watch my language for yah kiddo, but you can’t make me stop that one.” 

Now Red might not have believed him when he said “Bet” with a casual shrug, but luckily an unlikely ally had. 

“YOU KNOW,” Edge had said as they all left dinner, tailing back just long enough to catch Sans’ attention. “MY BROTHER MAY JUST BE ONE OF THE MOST SOUND SLEEPERS I’VE EVER MET.”

Sans had halted, looking curiously at Edge. “Oh?” 

Edge had nodded seriously. “HE’S INCREDIBLY REACTIVE TO MAGIC FLARES AND UNFAMILIAR MONSTERS APPROACHING HIM, BUT WHEN IT COMES TO PHYSICAL TOUCH OR JUST BASIC NOISE, HE MIGHT AS WELL BE A CHEAP HALLOWEEN DECORATION.” 

“And you’re telling me this… why?” Sans had asked skeptically. 

“I AM JUST STRIKING CASUAL CONVERSATION,” Edge said steadily, looking over his older brother who, at this point, noticed them trailing behind. “BUT IT IS WORTH MENTIONING THAT I ALSO HAD TO EARN MY WAY OUT OF THAT DREADED NICKNAME, AND I FIGURED THE METHODS OF HOW I HAD TO DO SO MIGHT NOT OCCUR TO SOMEONE AS COMPASSIONATE AS YOU.”

Sans had shrugged casually, “I may be compassionate, but some good old Justice is usually a good enough exception.” 

Edge had nodded, narrowing his sockets toward Red, who looked more nervous when he realized they were talking. “GOOD. GOOOOD. STOP BY MY CABIN AS EARLY AS YOU CAN TOMORROW. STRETCH AND I SHALL GIVE YOU EXACTLY WHAT YOU NEED.” 

So, Sans had. Edge had brushed right past Sans walking into Cabin 2, while Stretch had grinned wickedly as he had presented Sans with a filled inflatable mattress. 

“Stars save you if he wakes up early,” Stretch had chuckled after laying the mattress outside. “But if it works, take this.” 

Stretch had tossed him an older looking polaroid camera. “Please show me how it goes down.”

Sans had raised a bone ridge, “Why not just come with?” 

“Because I like living, Sans. Red won’t kill you or Edge, but I’d be dust. This is child soldier work right here.” Stretch joked, not even knowing the half of it. 

Edge had returned shortly thereafter, a snoring Red tossed over his shoulder. He threw his brother onto the mattress, and to Sans’ complete surprise, Red didn’t so much as stir. 

Stretch smothered a snort. “He really is used to being around us, huh?”

“HE’LL WAKE UP INSTANTLY IF YOUR MAGIC SPIKES, SO TRY TO REMAIN CALM,” Edge coaches. He turns to Stretch, “YOU GAVE HIM THE CAM-”

Stretch rolled his eye lights. “yeah I gave him the camera we found.” 

Edge looked delighted, “GOOD. IF THIS GOES WELL, I’M THINKING IT WILL MAKE A SPECTACULAR GIFTMAS CARD.” 

“You hate Giftmas, though, don’t you?” Sans had said, remembering the last Giftmas the Fells had been around for. 

“YES, BUT I COULD FIND REASONS NOT TO HATE IT TOO.” Edge had chuckled. “YOU HAVE AN HOUR BEFORE SUNRISE WAKES HIM.”

Stretch had also given him a tired lazy wave as Sans started the slow tug and pull of dragging Red to the lake. 

There had been a few times where Sans was certain Red would wake up, only for the older monster to barely shift and continue his snores. 

Reaching the waterline before sunrise was a victory in itself, given how heavy Red was. Sure, the guy was all bone with his magic dormant in sleep, but Sans didn’t exactly have much strength to himself without flaring his magic and waking Red up. 

The plan was simple enough. Set the big guy adrift. He wakes up, panics, and falls in the water. He comes back drenched, and knows that Sans means it when he says BET.

Carefully, Sans stepped into the lake and began guiding the air mattress off the shoreline. Assured the thing would float, Sans grinned and used his foot to push it off onto the water. 

He even gave the SS Red a salute as she set sail. 

——— Fox

Red was suspiciously absent this morning, and it took Fox all of thirty seconds to figure out why. 

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE DIDN’T WAKE UP?!??” Edge screeched from where Sans had approached him.

A blue flush darted across Sans’ skull as he tugged Edge down by the shirt and said something softly to the looming monster. 

Edge groaned and face palmed, “JUST GREAT…”

Sans and Edge scrambled over to the Swaps’ preferred table. Stretch had half a second to frantically shove three pieces of bacon past his teeth before Edge grabbed him by the hoodie. 

Stretch gave a baffled Blue a rushed wave as Edge dragged him outside of the pavilion. Sans trailed behind with what Fox once would have assumed was Curiosity, and now wondered if concern was more fitting. 

Fox looked over to his brother. “Do You Have Any Idea What That Is All About?” 

Mutt, who had been pouting over the lack of pancakes this morning, hadn’t even glanced up from his scrambled eggs. In between bites, he deadpanned, “Red’s sleeping on the lake.”

He blinked his sockets. “What?”

Mutt shrugged half-heartedly, “Stretch and Edge gathered this morning with Sans, Sans dragged Red to the lake, and now I can sense his magic just floating out there.” 

Ah. Japery. A twist of irony and a hint of karma that such a simple plan would fail so spectacularly.

Truly, he shouldn’t be surprised, as he had observed the playfulness of stripes in this world. While Stretch and Edge were adults and should be long past such things, given Fox’s opinion on the skeletons who raised them, some things couldn’t be helped with how they turned out. 

Fox certainly wouldn’t let himself be caught so unaware as to be sent adrift in his sleep. And as for Blue…

As if sensing Fox’s thoughts, Blue glanced over. 

A deep feeling of dissatisfaction filled Fox at the sight. An irrational thought made him want to turn and block Mutt from the skeleton. 

Brother stealer. His soul sang in accusation. Granted, it was an untrue accusation, but feeling was proving to be quit a hinderance these days. 

Logically he knew his Mutt would never betray him and abandon him for another, less damaged guardian… but there had been something about the sight of them at the fire on the first night that had hurt Fox. 

Mutt had been smiling while Blue had been teaching him how to hold that cursed instrument. Blue had no idea how rare it was for Fox to earn something as genuine as a smile and had no idea how much he had stolen from Fox in that moment.  

Mr. Perfect Teacher and Unfaltering Smile cocked his skull to the side. 

Fox frankly hadn’t cared enough about Blue to wonder what exactly his deal was before, but now he practically itched with the need to know. 

Knowledge was power, and he knew next to nothing about the skeleton his younger brother was currently residing with. 

Mutt nudged him, startling Fox enough to turn away from Blue. “What?” he snipped.

Mutt shrugged, “You were staring. Yah told me to point it out to you if you do that.”

Oh yes, he had. He had mostly wanted to be prevented from disturbing the Honey human, but that was on him for not being more specific with his orders. 

“What Were The Swap Soul Traits Again?” he asked, quizzing Mutt. 

“Dreams, Creativity, and Wonder.” Mutt recited dutifully. “Why?”

Fox nodded, “Why Indeed…” 

Such abstract soul traits… Creativity was the use of imagination or original ideas. It was fairly close to Ingenuity in its own right, but Dreams and Wonder??

Was Wonder like Curiosity? Was Dreams the aspect of projected thoughts during rest, or perhaps it is a yearning for something more? There was already something about the Swaps that set them apart from the rest, and learning about their differing soul traits solidified that fact. Sure, everyone was close and protective of their individual siblings, but Fox could understand why for each pair so clearly except for the Swaps. 

Sans and Papyrus were both so young, made of Hope, Love, and Compassion. Of course they would latch tightly onto each other, especially when there had been no proper guardian for either of them. 

The Fells were from a world as cruel as his own, but where monsters apparently lacked tact and ruled through brute force alone, rather than with the killer cunning he was used to. Determination, Passion, and Courage was practically begging for only the strong to survive. Fox could easily imagine how culling the masses of the weak was probably expected in a world like that. Of course your one trusted alliance would be your family. 

The Swaps though… it was near laughable. A peaceful world. How could monsters made of Dreams, Creativity and Wonder experience anything other than a fanciful existence?

No, no, a monster raised in such a world had no right to be anywhere near his brother. 

And he wasn’t just thinking that because of how Mutt hadn’t properly looked at him since he scolded him that night. Of course not. Mutt surely knew that Fox’s reaction had simply been him looking out for Mutt as he always had. 

Blue was an unknown and dangerous variant. He should count himself lucky that Mutt hadn’t ordered a room switch between them. 

Fox would certainly show that soft, weak version of himself who was the superior. 

“FOX!”

Fox turned, annoyed at yet another interruption to his thoughts, but quickly soothed at the sight of his current roommate. 

Ah yes, the other reason he wouldn’t be changing cabins. Young Papyrus and his constant challenges. 

Mutt huffed from beside him, seeming to slouch even further into his breakfast, but Fox paid the dramatics no mind. Mutt would have to get used to Papyrus, for they would have a long life of living together to go. 

“Yes, Papyrus?” he asked as pleasantly as he could muster. 

“MS. HONEY SAYS SHE HAS A WAY OF MAKING SHIRTS WITH OUR CABIN NAMES ON THEM. I TOLD HER SHE COULD SHORTEN OUR CABIN NAME TO SAVE ON SPACE IF NEEDED? HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT A SHIRT LABELING OURSELVES AS CABIN ‘MORONS?” Papyrus challenged. 

It was truly adorable how Papyrus was choosing to test Fox’s ego this way, as if he hadn’t seen the set up for this when Papyrus first picked the name. 

Normally, he’d rather consume glass than have anyone truly think him a moron, but he wasn’t one to give into such an obvious test against his character either. 

Mutt, on the other hand, seemed offended on Fox’s behalf, his magic spiking ever so slightly. 

Fox placed a firm hand on Mutt’s shoulder, sending a firm wave of magic laced with Desist towards his brother. 

Mutt’s magic gave, and Fox smiled pleasantly, or at least he hoped it came across pleasantly, at their youngest. “Sounds Delightful.”

Papyrus narrowed his sockets, “IN BRIGHT PINK LIKE THE REST OF OUR CABIN.”

Ah, so he had picked up on Fox’s dislike of the color. Very observant. “Naturally.” 

Papyrus looked him over, obviously pleased at Fox passing his test. “AWESOME SAUCE! I DON’T ACTUALLY WANT TO BE CALLED MORONS BUT YOU WERE VERY SUPPORTIVE! THAT IS EXCELLENT BROTHER POTENTIAL!”

Fox preened, unaware of the sudden stillness from Mutt beside him. 

“Anything Else Today?” Fox questioned patiently. 

The stripes shrugged, “JUST THAT WE ARE ON KITCHEN DUTY TONIGHT.” Papyrus paused, looking around. “HAVE YOU SEEN SANS?” 

“I Believe He Is Currently By The Lake,” Fox explained casually. His bones were feeling rather stiff this morning and his femur ached a bit more than normal, but he began to stand anyways. 

He felt tempted to brush the dirt from his clothing - the black shirt and shorts were new after all, and he had no ‘outdoor’ clothing before this trip - but he let it slide in an attempt to appear more laid back. “I Can Show You Where,” he offered. 

Papyrus beamed, and Fox allowed himself to relish in the light of it. “SURE!”

Mutt coughed, muttering something under his breath disapprovingly. 

Fox turned back curiously. “Do You Have Something To Say Mutt? Or Did You Wish To Join?”

Mutt looked between the two of them, and Fox waited patiently for his brother to voice his opinion. 

Eventually, his brother sighed, getting up as well, only he turned away from them rather than joining. “Nah, Honey has my cabin on tree duty again… I’ll report on it tonight.” 

Ah. There was a slump to Mutt’s shoulders that informed Fox he had misplayed somehow. 

Unfortunately, Mutt had shortcut away before any correction could be made. 

“YOU SHOULD TELL HIM HOW MUCH YOU LOVE HIM,” Papyrus spoke abruptly, nearly startling Fox. He was staring at Fox rather blankly.

Fox turned back to the tall youth incredulously. “Why?”

Papyrus shrugged, and they began to leave the pavilion. “IT ALWAYS MAKES ME FEEL BETTER WHEN SANS REMINDS ME HOW MUCH HE LOVES ME. MAYBE MUTT JUST NEEDS TO HEAR IT?”

Fox could feel that unnatural uncertainty boil within his soul. Of course he had feelings on this… feelings feelings feelings. If given the choice, there would be no way in hell he’d return to his LV induced numbness, but to have such strong feelings about nearly everything was getting tiring. 

“There’s No Need,” Fox replied confidently. “I Am More Than Certain He Already Knows.” 

——— Sans 

“RED, YOU BIG OAF WAKE UP!!! CAN YOU HEAR ME!?!? I SAID WAKE UP BEFORE I SWIM OUT THERE AND STRANGLE YOU MYSELF!!!” Edge yelled out towards the lake. 

Sans watched, mildly impressed, as the spot that was Red floating in the middle of the lake only spun lazily in response. 

Stretch shook his skull in disbelief. “I mean, I know I can nap hard, but I’ve never slept that damn soundly before.” 

Sans scratched his cheek bone, “He’s too far out for my magic to reach him. Any bone I throw would dissipate before it gets to him.” 

“That’s not stopping Edge,” Stretch noted as he watched the aforementioned skeleton slung a magic attack out towards the lake. Predictably, it vanished halfway to Red. 

“Can Edge swim out to get him?” Sans asked curiously. Last he checked, bone don’t float. At all. 

Stretch shook his head, “Not unless he summons ecto, and that stuff is a bitch to hold for long periods of time. Drains your magic like crazy.”

“Ecto?” 

Stretch waved a hand dismissively. “So, like, you don’t gotta worry about that until-” he paused, watching as Edge picked up a rock and pitched it full force toward Red in the distance, only for it to freeze at the same point the magic fizzled out then drop abruptly into the lake. 

Stretch and Sans turn to look at the rapidly flushing skull of Edge. Physics didn’t work like that; if Edge had actually thrown the damn thing, it should have…

Stretch grinned, “You guide your throws with magic to look cooler, don’t you?”

Edge looked ten seconds away from tossing a boulder. “NYEH!!!!”

“It’s okay, we won’t tell,” Sans quickly chimed in, nudging Stretch. “Right?” 

Stretch looked away pointedly. 

Sans glared. “Right?” 

Stretch sighed, “Does telling our brothers count?” He paused thoughtfully. “Or maybe Mutt too, he’d find this hilarious.”

“NYYYYYYYYEEEE-”

Stretch held up his hands in surrender. “Okay okay, geez I won’t tell.” 

Instead of looking soothed, Edge irritably began tossing his arm bands off and removing his boots. 

“Uhhh, whatcha doing Edge?” Sans asked, despite having a feeling he knew exactly where this was going. 

“SKELETONS MAY NOT BE ABLE TO SWIM,” he said, tossing his boots towards the tree line. “BUT WE DON’T HAVE TO BREATHE, EITHER. I’LL BE DAMNED IF MY CLEVERLY THOUGHT-OUT PLAN TURNS INTO RED GAINING AN EXCUSE TO NAP ALL DAMN DAY!!!” 

Sans turned to glance towards Stretch, but the other skeleton looked to be already removing his hoodie. “You don’t gotta go with,” Stretch consoled easily. “Water in the skull can feel weird as hell.”

“How do you know that?” Sans asked, looking around to see if anyone else was seeing this shit. 

Stretch grinned, “Same way I know we can’t swim. You coming or what?”

What the hell even was today? How had things ended up like this? He was fairly certain his day plan hadn’t included impromptu scuba diving with Papyrus variants… and yet… he wasn’t having a bad time? 

And it was sorta his fault Red was stuck out there. He really did think Red would wake up before he drifted that far out. 

“SAAAAAANS!!! ARE YOU ALRIGHT??!” 

Looking up the hillside path, Sans could see the sight of Papyrus and Fox watching them warily. 

Sans glanced back to where Edge was already grumbling, sloshing his way into the water with Stretch not far behind. 

Papyrus yelled again, “DO YOU NEED HELP???!!” 

“We’re good!!” He called back before he knew what he was saying. Sans blinked. Was he? 

There was no danger or anything here. Worst case scenario, Red would wake up and fall into the water like they planned, and honestly, he was a little curious what being fully submerged was like. 

It’s not like he’d ever had a reason to try before, and at least here there would be two other skeletons to tell him if there was danger… you know what? 

He was actually all for this. Removing his jacket, Sans walked to the water to join Stretch and Edge, waving back to Papyrus on the hill. 

“HAAAAAVE FUUUUN!!!”

For once… maybe he would. 

——— Blue 

Should they be having fun with this? 

Probably not, but it was so rare that Blue actually got to use a summoned weapon!!! 

“TIMBER!!!” Blue yelled with an eager grin. Summoning a bone axe, he swung hard against the tree. With a single deafening CRACK, the blade of the axe, made entirely of cyan magic, split cleanly through the trunk.

Mutt, just like he had with the last three trees, stood exactly where the tree would fall. Blue’s soul lurched each time, despite Mutt coating them in gravity magic as they fell and effortlessly tossing them into their growing lumber pile. 

A frown tugged at Blue’s teeth. Taking a seat on the newly cut stump, he yelled over, “HOW DOES PUTTING YOURSELF IN DANGER COUNT AS AN ACT OF WISDOM AGAIN?”

“It doesn’t,” Mutt said, shortcutting next to Blue. The younger skeleton pulled a lawn chair from his inventory, setting it up and joining Blue for an impromptu break. “It satisfies Curiosity like no one’s business though.”

Blue shook his head in pure disbelief. “HOW???”

Mutt shrugged, “Yah ever Wonder how a tree looks as it’s falling right at yah?” 

A startled laugh escaped Blue as he shook his skull, “N- NO I HAVEN’T. IT’S NOT THAT KIND OF WONDER.” 

“Well, the angle is different every time,” Mutt smirked, taking two mysteriously blue sodas from his inventory and tossing one to Blue. “What kind of Wonder yah got then?”

Catching it, Blue looked at the bottle curiously. What kind of drink was a Jones? Cautiously he tapped the side of it, hoping to settle the carbonation inside. “IT’S A BIT LIKE… THE SENSE OF LIGHT-HEARTED BELIEF IN THINGS. THE AWE OF SOMETHING. WANTING TO BASK IN SOMETHING INCOMPREHENSIBLE, YET SOUL LIFTING?” 

Mutt opened his soda, looking entirely unbothered by the overflowing fizzy drink. “So like a bastard child between Hope and Curiosity?”

Blue scrunched his face, “I MEAN… SORTA, BUT NOT REALLY. IT’S LIKE THE FEELING YOU GET WHEN YOU WAKE UP ON GIFTMAS MORNING, MEET YOUR FIRST CRUSH, PET A PUPPY, OR HAVING THAT THING YOU’VE ALWAYS DREAMED OF FINALLY IN YOUR ARMS.” 

The disbelieving snort made Mutt’s feelings fairly clear to Blue what he thought about that. “Can’t relate.”

“BET YOU CAN,” Blue challenged. “THOSE WERE JUST A FEW EXAMPLES. I KNOW FOR A FACT I’VE SEEN YOU EXPERIENCE WONDER.”

If he wasn’t Mutt, Blue would say the younger skeleton looked almost excited as he leaned forward. “Oh yeah? Well this is news to me. Tell me, not-so-wise-one, when did you see me in a state of Wonder?”

“YOUR FIRST DAY ON THE SURFACE,” Blue stated confidently. “YOU AND FOX SAT OUTSIDE FOR HOURS THAT DAY. STRETCH AND I HAD DONE THE SAME THING WHEN WE ARRIVED.”

Mutt hummed thoughtfully in response, as if caught in the memory. Got him. Memories of Wonder were always the ones you wished you could live again. 

Blue could remember his first time viewing the sky clearly. Even just the memory of looking up at the vast endless sky made his soul warm and fuzzy. 

The rest of the skeletons had left them alone, allowing them to relish their first exposure to the surface after a lifetime underground. He and Stretch had watched the colors shift and change with the sunrise. The real sun. Blue wasn’t made of Hope like Sans, but he had felt it so strongly in that moment. Sure, they had been taken away from everything they knew, but he had Pappy, they were safe, and the sky was wide and filled with the potential of a new day. 

Stretch had even seemed to relax, as if seeing the possible second chance they had been given. If this world had made it to the surface, then they could return to their universe with the knowledge of how to free the others as well. 

Everything had felt perfect… Until the mailman had pulled into the driveway, and of course Blue had ruined it all by-

“So, what’s up with you and Honey?” Mutt abruptly asked, startling Blue enough he almost dropped his drink. 

“EXCUSE ME?” he asked, genuinely unsure what the heck Mutt was asking. 

Mutt snickered impishly, as if knowing exactly what his tone had implied. “You get all weird around the human. I know she’s a human, but even Edge and Red don’t look at her like she’s a walking death trap.” Mutt leaned back in his chair, looking contemplatively at Blue. “You act like you’ve either won an Olympic medal or survived a near death experience anytime you speak to her.” 

Rather than answer, Blue deflected by asking, “WHAT’S UP WITH YOU STILL TALKING TO ME AFTER WHAT FOX HAD TO SAY ABOUT YOUR GUITAR LESSONS?” 

Back on their first night, after Mutt agreed to their cabin name, Blue had been eager to share his knowledge with Mutt. Since they had been the first ones to show up to the unlit fire, Blue had jumped on the opportunity to teach. Having Mutt quickly shortcut to get the guitar, Blue had shown Mutt the basic position and how to summon a bone guitar pick. 

Apparently, Mutt hadn’t ever summoned bone-made objects before, instead focusing on just infusing bone attacks with raw energy. Blue had been excitedly going off on how, while bone was the easiest summoned material for them, they could theoretically summon other materials as well, though the amount of magic that would take would even make a boss monster nauseous. Instead of manifesting all kinds of different materials, it was more energy efficient to use what you could naturally conjure and adapt it as you needed!

It could be as simple as summoning a basic bone… then reshaping it until it could be used how you envisioned… yet still entirely bone! Eventually, once you got used to the mental process of it all, you could regularly make about anything with enough creativity and practice. 

The axe he had used today was a fine example of how bone could make an amazing handle, and that shaping raw energy into the blade could give more UMPH. A solid bone base with a rechargeable blade. Magic crafting at its best!

He had even taught Papy to do something similar for a scythe once. Not that the lazybones used it for more than a costume prop. 

Blue had been praising Mutt over his first guitar pick attempt when Fox had appeared, asking Blue just what exactly he thought he was doing. 

Blue had tried to be polite with his explanation of how he was teaching Mutt a new skill. He could see how bothered Fox seemed, and figured it might just be overprotectiveness. 

Fox and Blue had never really interacted directly before. Blue was a stranger to Fox, and Blue had taken a wild guess based on his own feelings on how much Fox liked strangers. Even if that wasn’t the case, it would always be best to play it safe just in case… considering how the whole Sans thing had gone. 

Determined to be better, Blue had decided that gentleness was the obvious approach. 

Fox had no intent on returning that particular sentiment. 

“I Don’t Try To Teach Your Giant Of A Brother The Manners He Obviously Lacks.” Fox had snapped irritably. “Do Not Believe You Can Overstep Your Bounds Simply Because We Must Share This Time Together.” 

Blue had startled, irritation of his own gathering in his soul. Fox was obviously lashing out to hurt, given that Blue didn’t think Fox had any real issues with Stretch, but that was just plain rude. “MY BROTHER KNOWS HIS MANNERS! HE IS JUST USUALLY TOO LAZY TO USE THEM.”

Fox had sniffed dismissively, turning away from Blue as he spoke. “Clearly.” Fox had gestured flippantly over his shoulder, “Now Leave My Mutt Alone And Go Bother Someone Else.” 

It had clicked for Blue a bit in that moment. Despite Fox being 64 years older than him, an adult, the second eldest, the captain of his stars damn Royal Guard, and usually the most calculating of the household… 

Fox was an absolute BRAT.

No one had ever taught Fox to share, and his attitude in the moment certainly showed it. If this was the personality Fox kept beneath his blank skull, then Blue didn’t blame the guy for keeping it hidden. 

Blue watched as Mutt scrambled to Fox’s side, but had to contain himself when he had overheard Fox say, “Honestly Mutt, You Should Know Better Than To Interact With-” Fox had faltered slightly, but Blue had heard the phrase ‘Lesser Monsters’ come from Fox enough that the last minute change of “The Others,” hadn’t won him any points in Blue’s good graces. 

Just because Fox didn’t want to say the phrase for whatever reason, it didn’t mean he didn’t still believe it. 

Then Papyrus had shown up with Honey, and Blue pieced it together from how their youngest glanced at Fox. Papyrus had given Fox a small hopeful smile and Blue just knew Fox had played Papyrus for a fool. 

Some sort of, “I’m Going To Be Better!” line that Fox may or may not believe, but had said to win back favor with Papyrus. 

Paranoia had itched from within Blue as he remembered how easy it was to fall for lies at Papyrus’ age. At Sans’ age… at… at 24. How easily he had trusted someone he shouldn’t have. How easy they had played his optimism against him. 

Controlled him. 

Just like Fox seemed to be trying to control Mutt and Papyrus. 

Somewhere in Blue’s mind he could almost hear his Muffet trying to comfort him, reminding him that not everyone was like that deranged elemental. That monsters were not inherently bad and he could trust others. 

He hadn’t known his eye lights had gone out until he had felt the familiar brush of Stretch’s magic against his. 

Good? 

The magic was sleepy, but with a fizzle of energy hidden under the lethargy of it. Blue had relaxed and put on the bravest smile he could. Stretch was no stranger to hearing Blue’s anxious worries, but that didn’t stop Blue from wanting to shelter Stretch from the worst of it. 

So, Blue had given his bro a soothing pulse of magic back in a ‘YEP’ to soothe his worries, and had managed through the night. 

“Fox never forbid me from talking to you,” Mutt said, calling Blue’s focus back to him. “He just made it clear he disapproves.” Mutt shrugged. “Fox disapproves of a lot of the things I do. He knows if he gives me too many small orders, I’ll eventually grow lax in how much I listen, so he uses orders strategically. Sparingly. Only demanding or forbidding things when it’s really important.” 

Blue felt incredulous. “SO, HE DOES CARE, JUST NOT ENOUGH TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT?”

Mutt nodded, pointing with his soda in emphasis, “Exactly. That actually sums him up perfectly.” 

“I CAN’T SAY I REALLY UNDERSTAND THE DYNAMIC BETWEEN YOU TWO,” Blue sighed, trying to find the best way to voice his opinion on Fox without shit talking about the man to his little brother. 

“What’s there to get?” Mutt scoffed, looking off to the side at the pile of freshly cut lumber. “He saved my life. Now it’s his to have.”

Blue had so many questions, but there was something in the nervous way Mutt shifted that let him know that now wasn’t the time.

Instead, Blue set the bottled soda aside and pulled the guitar from his inventory. 

“WELL… SINCE WE SEEM TO BE ON A BIT OF A BREAK, WANNA REVIEW? YOU’RE PICKING THIS UP REALLY FAST, AND IT’S VERY IMPRESSIVE!”

Mutt seemed to relax, shifting from embarrassment at the praise. “It’s not really a big deal.”

Yeesh, Mutt didn’t seem to know how to take a compliment. Given how Fox treated him, Blue couldn’t really say he was surprised. 

“MAYBE NOT TO MOST PEOPLE,” Blue admitted. “BUT I THINK YOU’RE PRETTY COOL FOR IT, MUTT.” 

——— Sans

After he got used to the weird pressure in his skull, Sans had to admit… This was pretty sick. 

The water got darker as they descended, their eye lights clearly visible as they walked. Looking up, Sans could see the sun rays shining down into the water, while Edge guided them past clumps of tall water plants and slick rocks. 

Stretch had somehow managed to keep enough air in his skull enough to occasionally blow little bubbles to the side, mimicking his usual smoking habit.

Large and small lake fish seemed to occasionally swim by and gawk at the sight of three skeletons walking the lake bed. 

The best part to Sans’ utter delight though, was discovering just how buoyant his crocks were. Each step was lighter than he expected, giving his usually short stride just enough extra length to keep up with the tallest as they trudged forward. 

He felt light as air in both his soul and his stride. Passively, he wondered why he had never tried this before. If he had thought Waterfall looked like outer space as a small child, he could almost imagine the joy he would have felt if he knew all it took was water and a pair of sweet kicks to have a fun approximation of zero gravity. 

Eventually they must have reached the middle of the lake as Edge paused, pointing upward. 

Edge seemed to summon some sort of red coating over his arm bones as he pushed himself upward. Ecto, Stretch had called it. 

Removing his crocks, Sans held one out to Stretch, who gave him finger guns in reply. Sans let his crock float upward, using magic to lessen his own weight with a shift of blue magic. 

As they breached the water’s surface, Edge’s cry of distain was the first thing Sans heard. 

“STARS DAAAAAMN IT!!!”

Stretch also surfaced, his sockets glancing over to what Edge was looking at, only to begin laughing his coccyx off at the sight of Red’s inflatable mattress washed back up on the lake shore. 

——- Red 

Blinking his sockets into awareness, Red yawned wide and toothy as he sat up. 

It took him a moment to notice he wasn’t in fuck’n Kansas anymore. 

From the looks of it, he was on the lake shore, laying on some sort of inflatable mattress. 

Well, that explained a fucken lot. He had dreamed of napping in a hammock, swaying with the breeze, while the others were hosting a barbecue or some shit. 

He was half tempted to push himself back out onto the water to continue the dream when he noticed the sight of Edge, Stretch, and Sans sloshing out of the water, absolutely drenched to the bone. 

Edge was fuming mad. Stretch was shaking water from his skull and ended up stumbling back against Edge. Not expecting the sudden weight, Edge stumbled backwards into the water with a splash. Emerging last, and laughing at the two of them, was Sans who- holy shit, Sans was grinning up a storm. 

He’d never seen the kid grin like that before. Not genuinely, at least. He actually looked his damn age for once. 

Looking off to the side, Red noticed a camera laying on the sand next to where he had washed up. 

Not questioning the luck of it all, Red shook his skull in disbelief, grabbing the camera and pointing it at them just in time for Edge to lock sockets with him. 

“OH, NOW YOU WAKE UP!!!!”

Red grinned, his gold tooth flashing wickedly in the sunlight, “You kiddos are hundreds of years too early to pull one on me. Say cheese, motherfuckers.”

He pressed the shutter just in time to capture Edge’s yell, Stretch’s peace sign, and Sans’ groan. 

Now this was going on his Giftmas card. 

Chapter Text

It was the same room that had been hers since childhood. 

The furniture was all cherry wood and carved by hand, from the bed frame to the rocking chair in the corner. Light shined through the open window, and cotton-white curtains rustled in the early morning breeze. 

Every inch of the room had been designed and made with so much love that, while Honey couldn’t feel it quite like a monster could, she knew with soul-deep certainty that it was there. 

Her grandfather was never a man to cut corners. Where most folks would be content buying a growth chart or indenting a doorframe to mark a child’s growth, her hands painted along the walls, marking each summer with her height and his favorite memory. 

Honey bee learned to climb trees this summer! 

Lil Missy jumped off the dock on her own! 

Honey bear's first animal rescue! 

Each written memory was rounded off with four words filled with admiration. His familiar looping cursive repeated his standard phrase, like the distant echo of his voice, every year. 

She makes me proud! 

More than ever, she wished she could hear those words just one more time. 

She hadn’t really appreciated it as a child. It had been just another way the old man was larger than life in every aspect of himself. 

He’d passed away about two years ago from an unexpected fall. Stringing up Christmas lights of all things. Stubborn old man. It hadn’t really been a surprise to anyone in the family that he had left the camp and the rest of his worldly possessions to her. 

He’d only been telling folks that he would since the day she was born. 

Finishing her last hiking preparation for the morning, Honey laced up her go-to hiking boots, smiling softly at the bronze-tinted memories that haunted her in the most bittersweet way they could. 

Her grandfather had loved this camp with everything he had, letting her know whenever doubt crept into her mind that the only thing he treasured more was her. 

Leaving the room, she avoided the pile of paperwork stacked up on her dresser and instead let her hand softly brush past the cursive painted walls. 

She had no idea if this would be her last summer with the camp, but even if it was, she knew he’d support her in whatever decision she made. 

“Bee true to yourself!” He joked and laughed in her moments of indecision. Grandpa Honey stood tall as a mountain, his red beard flecked with silver. “Can never go wrong with that, when you’re such a good kid!”

She wasn’t exactly a kid anymore, but she lived by those words. When she felt something was right, she would go for it with all she had. Just like Grandpa Honey.

It’s how she knew Grandpa would be just as determined as her to help these boys. No matter how… odd the situation was.

Why the King of all monsters would trust her with the knowledge of other universes was beyond anything she understood. After all, from his perspective, she was just some human who had been nervous enough just getting his approval for getting the camp monster certified.

A family of skeleton monsters, made entirely of the same two brothers from different worlds! The idea alone made her head spin. The King had said that if Grizzly had faith in her, and she had already been approved for hosting monsters at her camp, he was happy as could be to give her the information she would need for success.

Now, she wasn’t fully sure why Grizzly was confident that a summer here would help them, but she had an inkling.

She’d seen it happen every year. Kids who began not knowing anyone else there would leave the camp behind in tears over having to part with their new best friend, swearing to return almost every summer they could.

Camp councilors would sign on for the summer job of leading cabins, then end up thick as thieves by the end, exchanging numbers and promising to stay in touch.

It was hopelessly optimistic of Grizzly to think they would all find their way closer due to the camp.

Sure, it did draw some closer, but it also had ruined friendships and exposed a lot of uncomfortable truths just from the forced proximity.

She’d already seen as much with Stretch and Mutt.

Honey was fairly certain the two had been friends, at least of some kind. Outwardly, they certainly still acted like it. She’d see Stretch tease and joke to the lax younger Skeleton, but there was an underlying tension since that first night after the bonfire.

And not just because of that crazy discovery of their different soul traits either.

It made her ears burn red with shame to admit it, but she had overheard a thing or two passed between that particular pair.

She’d been out in the early morning, on her way to check the bait hive for any new swarms of honey bees, when she’d spotted the two talking. She’d been about to call out in greeting when the normally lax tone of Stretch had… changed.

“I’m s e r i o u s, Mutt,” Stretch had spoken, firmer and alert than she’d ever guessed he’d sound.

Before she’d even been aware of what was happening, she had pressed herself back against a tree, tucking herself just out of sight from the pair.

Mutt, for his part, hadn’t sounded bothered at all. “I know you are, but my stance still stands. I’m not sure why you even keep it a secret.”

Stretch scoffed, “It’s not exactly something I’m proud of. No monster should be.”

“Maybe not in your world,” Mutt challenged.

“Or this one,” Stretch spoke, low and cold.

It made Mutt’s delighted laugh feel all the more off-putting.

“… How long have you known?” Stretch asked after a brief moment of silence.

“About your LV?” Mutt asked coyly. “Since the day we met.” There had been the distinct rustling of movement, and Honey had pictured a wolf, circling his prey. “You think I didn’t Check you the first chance I got?”

A low sound had come from Stretch's direction, but Honey couldn’t find the right words to describe it. Could bone make a sound close to a growl? Or was it some sort of magic manifestation? Her imagination had run wild at the thought.

“My stats say-“

“Yeah, yeah,” Mutt interrupted. “I know what your stats say. That you’re the easiest Monster to fight in your underground. Just like Sans. But unlike Sans, you change it to say that shit somehow… When you’re awake to do it.”

“You Checked me when I was asleep??”

“Like it’s hard to, when you sleep just about anywhere.”

“Dude.” Stretch scolded, “Still not cool.”

“You have LV despite being from what you and Blue described as a peaceful world and you’re still Judging me?” Mutt snorted. “Hypocrite.”

Stretch sighed, deep and tired. “Look, I know it looks bad, but just don’t fuck’n tell any-“

“Woah woah, who said I was gonna tell anyone?” Mutt asked, sounding amused. “Your LV is part of the reason I’ve liked you since the beginning.”

“What?!”

“Honestly, it’s the version of us without LV that I can’t comprehend,” Mutt said, the sound of his voice starting to move away. “Besides, why would I tell anyone?”

Stretch’s voice had also begun moving away, “To cause trouble in the group? Make Sans dislike Blue even more because he won’t believe me if I tell him Blue doesn’t know?”

“Nah.” Mutt scoffed. “Unless Fox asks me, I won’t be tellin’ anyone. It’s common practice to not piss off a monster with more LV than you.”

Honey had stayed there for a good minute after she was sure they were gone. Her heart pounded in her chest, and she could practically hear her grandfather scold her for eavesdropping.

She had no idea what LV was, but she desperately hoped it was some kind of trading card and not an illicit substance of some kind.

The next few days she had watched the two carefully throughout to make sure nothing else seemed off with their behavior. No matter how much she observed them, Stretch seemed to continue to just be an easy going goofball, and Mutt an angsty teenager.

In fact, they acted so normal that if she hadn’t heard their fight, she truly would believe those two were still probably as good of friends as they had walked into camp being.

Time moved on, and the skeleton monsters worked hard on rebuilding Cabin 13. She had given them free time to adjust during their first week of summer camp before pulling out any big organized activities, and was surprised to see how easily self-entertained the group seemed. 

They explored the grounds and random items left behind in their cabins. At the recommendation of Grizzly, Honey had added a bunch of puzzles of various difficulties to the main cabin’s rec room. Sure enough, her latest residents had run through them with surprising vigor! 

And as of yesterday, she was fairly certain a good chunk of them had spent their day playing in the lake. Sure, she had a few big activities planned, but like any true summer at the camp, it always seemed to be the little things that campers enjoyed the most. 

Red and Edge were certainly the most open-minded of the bunch. Red could be found - with grumbling curses that lacked any true bite - pushing the others into doing tasks, while Edge - certainly prickly in his own right - was most helpful. 

When not dragging his brother (and now surprisingly Stretch) around, Edge seemed more than eager to offer her assistance in cooking and setting up their daily meals! 

She had hesitantly asked Edge one morning during meal prep if Mutt and Stretch used recreational drugs. Flustered, the taller skeleton had sworn that they had made the two leave any and all “echo flower” at home. 

Confused, she had clarified that she had heard Mutt bring up “LV” and was worried it was some sort of street drug. 

Edge had stilled his potato peeling, a frown firm across his teeth. She had just begun to regret asking when Edge had admitted, “LV IS A SICKNESS. ONE THAT AN UNFORTUNATE NUMBER OF US HAVE AND ARE STILL RECOVERING FROM.”

Her eyes had gone wide in concern, which led Edge to hastily add, “IT ISN’T CONTAGIOUS, SO YOU HAVE NO NEED TO FRET.” 

At a loss of what to say to that, she eventually settled for, “Are you all going to be alright?”

Edge hadn’t been soothed at the words. If anything, he had seemed even more surprised at her concern. His face began to shift - the unsettling sight of bone emoting was one she was slowly getting used to - and while she was doing her best to get accustomed to reading their expressions, her best guess as to his reaction was appreciation.

“YES. ONE DAY.” 

From there, he had assured her that Mutt bragging about LV was just how the younger skeleton coped. That one day, when he was better, he wouldn’t feel the same. 

Guilt had nearly overwhelmed her at the idea that she had been suspicious of Stretch and Mutt over what was apparently a shared illness. While she had no idea why Stretch would want Mutt to hide it from the others, she could respect medical privacy. 

From that day onward though, she had made sure to add pancakes to the breakfast rotation a bit more than normal for the two of them. A silent apology on her part. 

The only two to really pick up on the minor special treatment seemed to be Blue and Fox. Even Stretch and Mutt seemed to be blissfully unaware, indulging themselves on starchy heaven. From opposite sides of the pavilion, Blue and Fox would watch her warily as she’d cater to their brothers’ tastes for sweeter breakfast options. 

Blue and Fox… Nearly identical in many ways, and yet like photonegative versions of each other. Willfully ignorant of their similarities, they looked to agree on nearly everything, even down to what foods they prefer, and yet if given the opportunity they’d differ just to spite the other. 

There would be a pair like them every year, so she couldn’t say she was surprised. She was just grateful that, given the circumstances, the two of them hadn’t ended up in a cabin together. 

Those two were either going to leave this camp sworn rivals or best friends for life. 

She wasn’t sure what had set them off on each other, but with each passing day she could tell it was only a matter of time before their ongoing feud reached its peak. 

Just like the summer heat, these types of conflicts tended to burn hot and bright, eventually dissipating with the ending of the season.

When not glaring towards Blue, Fox was easily distracted by his current games and challenges he’d established with Papyrus. From repainting cabins to doing dishes, Papyrus found ways to turn everyday chores into tests of character for Fox. 

Fox was more than eager to embrace each task head on, a certain playfulness to him she hadn’t observed the skeleton have with any of the others. 

Papyrus grew more elated by the day as his new dynamic with Fox grew. With Sans and Red busy with technical repairs, Papyrus seemed to be a fan of the new attention he had gained. Unfortunately, that meant he appeared near oblivious to how much distress he was causing Mutt.

Keeping himself occupied, Mutt seemed to bounce between his tasks with Blue and messing with Stretch, Edge and occasionally Sans. Sometimes, Mutt would even track her down out of his own curiosity. 

Because of that, Mutt was the only skeleton to have gotten to meet the rescues she was currently rehabilitating. He’d stare at the barn owl, guide the confused tortoise out of the way, and had even helped bottle feed the squirrel kit. 

She wasn’t fooled for a second though. His favorite by far had been chosen the minute he’d seen the elderly fox with the broken leg. His name was Tod, and he was a grumpy old thing. 

Mutt adored Tod, no matter how much he growled at the skeleton. Mutt would talk to the animal when he thought she couldn’t hear. It wasn’t anything overly interesting from what little she’d catch, mostly just about his day and growing skill with the guitar thanks to Blue. 

Ah. 

Blue. Blue seemed to be the second most wary of humans in the group, so Honey tried her best to give him space. It seemed to be the correct answer of what to do, given how he’d been slowly warming up to her. Blue had even asked her for the best paths for morning runs. 

She had a feeling, with how sociable he seemed with the others, it was only a matter of time before he asked her to join, given how he’d hesitantly waved at her each time he’d spot her up in the early morning. 

Blue looked like he would adjust. 

Sans, though? The one who looked to trust her the least? Not so much…

Honey could tell it would take longer for that one. Whoever had hurt Blue had done their harm long enough ago that Blue seemed to be trying to heal. Whoever had hurt Sans must have done so recently, and that made her heart ache. 

She wasn’t sure what human or monster had hurt Sans, but she could recognize the fight or flight in his gaze, even with the differences in human and monster expression. Blue had the look too, in odd moments. It was that same heart-breaking way she’d seen campers from rough households act, wary and uncertain. 

Are you going to hurt me too? 

She hoped that whoever or whatever hurt Blue and Sans was long gone, unable to harm the two sweet monsters ever again. 

At least she was certain it was no one in their family, not with how protective they were of each other. 

She didn’t know all of their exact ages, but she could spot the obvious family dynamics. 

Blue, Fox, Stretch, and Edge were all adults who watched on from the distance and corrected as needed. 

Mutt was like any other teenager she’d seen walk into her camp. Moody, good at his core, yet seemingly allergic to showing he had genuine emotions. 

Papyrus and Sans were the youngest, and apparently the only two from this universe. Seventeen and twenty-two years old, though according to the rest they were quite young by their subspecies’ standard. 

She had asked around, trying to get a human age equivalent for the two. There had been some minor grumbling of how that would be difficult because they were monsters that were unique even among their kind, and certainly not comparable to humans, but they eventually relented. 

While the guesses were mixed and incredibly uncertain, the average they collectively achieved put Papyrus around ten and Sans at twelve. 

She’d voiced her surprise to the maturity of Sans and the advancement of Papyrus being in high school, only to get a shrug from the eldest skeleton. 

“They’re prodigies,” Red had informed her during dinner one night.  “I’m pretty certain we all were.” 

As far as family patriarchs she’d come across, Red seemed to be fairly standard, considering the unnatural circumstance of the group. He fell asleep everywhere, told bad jokes, and wore an unbuttoned red Hawaiian shirt over a tank top to be in “vacation mode”. 

Most telling was how he seemed to watch over them all. She’d caught it more than once, seeing Red do a silent skull count every morning and night, seeking out any absent skeleton with almost bored sounding inquiries. 

Honey wasn’t sure if any of them had picked up on how responsive they were to Red, Red included. 

The eldest skeleton was unable to voice his words without emotion bleeding from every slang-filled syllable. His anger, his joy, his pride, and even his concern was easily discernable. The others listened when he spoke, even if their opinions differed. They seemed to collectively agree that, for success of some kind to come of this, they would have to follow his lead since coming here was his plan. 

Simply stated, he would be the first to act and expect the others to follow. And follow they did. Some curiously, some hesitantly, and some begrudgingly, and yet they did all the same. 

It was why she was hesitant about what was to come. It was the morning of their first big group activity, and Red was too sick to participate. 

Yesterday, Red had apparently fallen asleep floating on the lake for hours, and now had all of the classic signs of minor sun poisoning. He seemed to be overheating with a headache, nausea and chills, and while skeleton monsters didn’t have skin to burn, apparently they could bleach. 

All of last night, everyone had ogled at the way Red’s skull seemed practically blinding white compared to their own. 

Papyrus even going as far to admit, “HE’S LIKE A LIGHTBULB,” which had caused a chain reaction of snorts, coughs, and skulls turning away as Red glared them all down. 

Edge had guided a grumbling Red away to Cabin 2, and everyone had gone to bed, unaware how Red would be stuck in bed and out of commission for the rest of the day. 

Edge and Sans had shown up at her door earlier that morning, asking if she had advice for sun exposure. 

Bed rest, water and the reserve of monster candy she had added to her first aid kit had been her advice. 

She had thought that that would be the end of it, and that Red staying in bed instead of joining them on the hike would be obvious.

Apparently not. 

As she approached the pavilion, now equipped in her worn yet sturdy hiking boots, she spotted all eight of the skeletons ready and waiting. 

Grinning as sunnily as she could, Honey glided past the others without a glance, beelining for the sweating, hunched over giant currently sat at one of the tables. 

“Where yah think you’re going, big guy?” She asked, sweet as pie. 

Red looked truly miserable, as if barely containing his breakfast, yet he glared up at her quite fiercely. If she hadn’t seen him gently coaching Sans through fixing the riding lawn mower the other day, she might actually think he was dangerous. 

“Hikin’ ‘parently…” he grumbled each word with a wince, clearly not over the headache Edge had said Red described as “skull shattering”. 

“Nope.” She smiled sympathetically, “You are going to be staying back in your cabin and resting. We are going on a hike up a short beginner trail, which I have lead hundreds of human children through before, so that I can introduce everyone to what to expect on an average hike.” 

Despite her best effort, Red didn’t look pleased. “First big group activity an’ your tellin’ me I gotta stay back and rest?” 

“Oh, Do Calm Down Red,” Fox spoke up dryly. “Do You Truly Believe We Are That Incapable?” 

Red began to reply, but was quickly cut off by Edge, who sidestepped Honey to stand directly in front of Red, leaning down with narrowed sockets. “FOX HAS A VALID POINT BROTHER. TELL ME, IF I PICK YOU UP AND SHAKE YOU LIKE A SODA CAN, WILL YOU OR WILL YOU NOT VOMIT HALF ABSORBED FOOD OUT YOUR SOCKETS?” 

Red looked ready to hurl at the very idea, yet he began to speak stubbornly, “Edge, I’m-”

“AH. YES. LIE TO ME AND UNDO MONTHS OF THERAPY, SANS.”

Everyone stilled, Honey included. She knew they all were versions of Sans and Papyrus, but it hadn’t occurred to her in the slightest that they probably had once shared the names. 

Any protest died in Red’s sockets as he warily said, “It’s Red now, bro.”

Edge didn’t budge. “THEN ACT LIKE IT.” 

Red ran a hand over his skull, grumbling before looking back to Honey sternly, “If anything, and I mean anything, happens to a single bone on anyone during this hike, then you’re in for one hell of a bad time, doll.”

“Or, how about we don’t threaten the human?” Sans spoke up nervously. 

Honey on the other hand was too busy nodding seriously to properly hear Sans. As reassuringly as she could, she consoled, “Don’t you worry, Papa bear! I’ll have your cubs guided and back home to yah in no time!” 

Stretch seemed to choke, and nearly every skull turned to her with looks of shock or pure disbelief at what she had just said. 

Red’s skull was very quickly turning the exact shade of his namesake while he spluttered wordless syllables. 

Ah, that should diffuse the tension a bit. 

Grinning cheekily, she turned away from Red, her hands finding their way to her hips. “Alrighty! Come along now, Serif family. We have a hike to get to!”

With a few more words of encouragement, eventually she had seven skeleton monsters following her out towards the mountain trail, Red warily watching them depart. 

The skies were clear, the sun was bright, and the smell of pine and earth was strong in the soft breath of the wind as she led them into the shaded trees of the forest line. 

Confidence filled her in her ability to lead the hike, and she was certain that nothing would go wrong. As they walked, she explained the importance of sticking together and what to do in various scenarios while hiking. 

She had been describing the local flora that acted as excellent path markers when her eyes darted to do a quick skull count and her words died in her throat. 

Six skeletons. She had started with seven and was now down to six. 

At some point, without anyone noticing…

Papyrus had gone missing. 

Chapter Text

Undertale Brothers

PAPYRUS LV 0 ATK 20 DEF 20

Song inspiration: if i were a fish (feat. Olivia Barton) – corook, Olivia Barton

Vehicle: A race car bed, a driver’s permit he really shouldn’t have, and a dream 

Age of leaving stripes: N/A

Favorite Book: He’s torn between two. The first is Peek-a-boo with Fluffy Bunny. He learned to read with this book, and was really upset when he could read it himself. Sans had been making up the story every night. He had always wondered why the book was so small but so long. The second is Advanced Puzzle Construction for Critical Minds. It’s just a good read.

Favorite Food: Spaghetti!! He’s unsure about meatballs given that’s not how he had spaghetti in the underground but to each their own. He used to like plain butter spaghetti but Undyne convinced him that tomato sauce is just as delicious! A glass of milk for his bones and he’s set for the day!

Hobby: Running track! Papyrus loves his track team and getting to show off. Running relay with his team is the best thing! 

SANS LV 0 ATK 1 DEF 1

Song inspiration: I’m Still Here – John Rzeznik

BONUS SONG: I’m Still Standing – Elton John, Recommended by JinxMeOneMoreTimeIDareYou

Vehicle: Riding his cart like a scooter and a tricycle he pushes with magic to go zoom 

Age of leaving stripes: 7

Favorite Book: The Smithsonian History of Space Exploration by Roger D. Launius. Sans would read this book under the covers with a flashlight. 

Favorite Food: “Anything Papyrus makes,” is what he says, but actually it’s just any well-made burger with a cheeky swig of ketchup.

Hobby: Working on the machine, because it gives him an excuse to learn new challenging things within his existing interests. 

Swell Brothers

MUTT LV 14 ATK 60 DEF 10

Song inspiration: I Really F**ked It Up – girli

Vehicle: Fox’s car

Age of leaving stripes: Unknown

Favorite Book: Transformers Fanfiction. His Undyne accidentally sent him a link to her fanfiction instead of a lab report he asked for. He never told her about the mistake, but he got incredibly invested in the characters. He’s never seen any source material but he has strong opinions. He also never got that lab report.

Favorite Food: Pancakes drenched in maple syrup as of chapter 15. He has a major sweet tooth and had just recently discovered maple as a flavor. Bro would probably go nuts for a maple bar donut. He may also drink pure maple syrup if/when the thought ever crosses his mind.

Hobby: Extorting strangers for money and/or favors.

FOX LV 9 ATK 40 DEF 30

Song inspiration: All These Things That I’ve Done – The Killers 

Vehicle: A motorcycle and car (but Mutt drives the car), and occasionally the company hearse

Age of leaving stripes: 11

Favorite Book: All Systems Red by Martha Wells. It’s relatable in ways he doesn’t feel ready to address. 

Favorite Food: Hasn't found a favorite food yet. Such trivial things never really mattered before, but if pressed he’d admit that grapes are convenient for an on-the-go snack. Water is also healthy.

Hobby: Watching courthouse and murder mystery shows is a small guilty pleasure, but other than that, he isn’t really sure what to do with any spare time he has. 

Underswap Brothers

STRETCH LV ?̸̭̊̓̃̎̒̽̒̕͝?̶̟̜̩͌̈́̌̈́̀͆̽͝?̶͈͈͎̳̦̫̹̌̂͜͝͠ͅ ATK ?̸͚͖̯̼̩̗͕̈́̌̎̍̄͐?̶̳̝̳̭͙̜̭̐̒̋͗͐̾͊͗̋̒͠?̵̡̧̜̭̻̳̳̦̳̦̐̃ DEF ?̸̧̧̰̼̙̯̤̳̫̀͒̆͛͒̆̉̅̑̎͝?̴̗̬̪̥͔͔̙͖̳͓̙̂̌͑̒̅̊̍̓͛̕?̸̪̩̫̖̰̐́͂͝

Song inspiration: Hell of a Ride – Bo Burnham 

Vehicle: Side car in Blue’s motorcycle

Age of leaving stripes: 100 and a week

Favorite Book: This man tears through mystery novels like no one’s business. He tries to read everything in one go and will walk and read, bathe and read, and eat and read until it’s done. 

Favorite Food: A tie between a nice pizza (the toppings preference changes every time) and Honeycomb cereal, dry and by the handful at 2am. Frequently drinks honey straight from the bottle as well.

Hobby: Drawing. It’s a hobby of his that Blue has encouraged him to do since he was small. It helps him sort his emotions out when he’s uncertain what he might be feeling. 

BLUE LV 0 ATK 50 DEF 20

Song inspiration: Lemon Drop – Raynes

Vehicle: Motorcycle 

Age of leaving stripes: 32

Favorite Book: The Seems – The Glitch in Sleep by John Hulme and Michael Wexler. Despite being a children series, the story and themes fill Blue with Wonder. He also loves stories filled with unexpected bravery.

Favorite Food: Taco de barbacoa with sour cream, lettuce, cheese, salsa verde, guacamole, lime juice, and onion. If it’s from an authentic food truck, all the better. ¡Dos Jarritos, por favor!

Hobby: Collecting hobbies. Blue’s father would leave him a ton of activities for when he was left home alone. Blue mastered a lot of skills rather young because of this, and likes the feeling of mastering new skills.

Underfell Brothers

EDGE LV 5 ATK 40 DEF 40

Song inspiration: all-american bitch – Olivia Rodrigo. Even when he’s trying to be nicer, his true self always shines through.

Vehicle: Black Cadillac 

Age of leaving stripes: 8

Favorite Book: Gordon Ramsay’s Ultimate Home Cooking. 

Favorite Food: Lasagna with at least four layers. If that bitch don’t got ricotta and a shit ton of garlic then you are wasting his time. A nice red wine might win back some favor, though.

Hobby: Learning to cook. He’s been trying his best to get better, and is incredibly motivated to make Stretch eat his words about Edge’s cooking. 

RED LV 1 ATK 1 DEF 50

Song inspiration: Growing Up Too Fast – Cody Ray 

Vehicle: 1950’s classic Chevy pickup truck. Truth be told, it’s an undrivable rusty frame at the moment. He saw a picture of the finished product on a magazine in the Waterfall dump and it has been his dream ride ever since.

Age of leaving stripes: 16

Favorite Book: The owner’s manual to the truck he’s fixing up.

Favorite Food: Corn dogs drenched in mustard. He likes to chew on the stick when he’s done with the corn dog. He’s never actually drank mustard straight before, but he has considered it.

Hobby: Trying to fix up his truck.

Underlust Brothers

TRIX LV 0 ATK 1 DEF 10

Age: 275

Occupation: Exotic Dancer, Snowdin Recruitment and Sentry

Soul traits: Love, Passion, and Truth.

Song inspiration: ANYTHING 4 U – Naethan Apollo.

Age of leaving stripes: 100

Favorite Book: Any really badly written romance novel. The more inaccurate and unrealistic, the better. He likes to write in his books, annotating and making himself laugh. 

Favorite Food: He has no special drink that he’s aware of, but food wise he’s certain his favorite is nachos, but like the kind you dream of when you’re super drunk. He’s the only Sans who doesn’t mind sharing his food to the point of wanting others to try some of what he’s having. Nachos are the perfect sharing food!

Hobby: Self-care. A nice lazy day in a warm bath with a bad romance book, a red pen and a tray of snacks. After his soak, he’ll put his coziest clothes in the dryer to make them warm, change into them, then sleep until the next day. 

SWEETPEA LV 0 ATK 1 DEF 10

Age: 223

Occupation: Exotic Dancer, Snowdin Recruitment and Sentry

Soul traits: Love, Passion, and Truth.

Song inspiration: Pink Pony Club – Chappell Roan

Age of leaving stripes: 100

Favorite Book: Fashion magazines are more his style. He loves a good novel full of drama, but he’d much rather analyze the current trends and compare them to trends from years past to try and stay on top of the “Next Big Thing”. 

Favorite Food: Shrimp scampi with a nice light-bodied white wine. He knows what he likes.

Hobby: Making origami flowers and singing. His Toriel gave him strict vocal training to help manage his volume control, and now he’s determined to make the most of it.

SONG BONUS BONUS!!!

Kenny - In Color – Jamey Johnson. (Remember this guy from chapter 15? I do <3)

Grizzly - GOOD MORNING SUNSHINE – The Narcissist Cookbook (This song is specifically the Grizzly that Red hears in his skull, correcting him as he goes throughout his day.)

Honey - Island Song (Come Along with Me) – Ashley Eriksson [from Adventure Time]

Grillby - Piano Man – Billy Joel

Sans’ dad (whoever that was) - Mr. Forgettable – David Kushner

Chapter Text

You can only live in a nightmare for so long before you realize you’d do about anything to wake up. 

Even when there’s nothing to wake up from. 

The kid had done that to Sans a few times. A rapid fire burst of resets, each more horrible than the last. Almost nothing would change, except for small core details or who they sporadically decided to spare. Frisk always swore that Chara was the reason the resets kept happening, but he had a nagging feeling in the back of his skull that curiosity was all there was to it. He didn’t want to believe it, so he avoided thinking about it as much as he could, against his better Judgement.

It was somehow so much worse when he wasn’t the only survivor. 

Grillby, who knew Sans was the judge, would beg him to hide deeper in the tunnels, and inevitably dust trying to protect him. 

Toriel would remain blissfully unaware. She’d happily make knock-knock jokes on the door, ignorant of Sans clutching Papyrus’ dust-coated scarf on the other side, magic staining his cheekbones as he silently cried. 

Undyne never made it long, even if the kid wasn’t trying to kill her. She’d rather dust protecting others than accept a human’s supposed Mercy. Sans had learned the hard way to avoid Undyne during a genocide timeline. Monster Kid had better survival rates when Undyne wasn’t torn between protecting them both. 

Alphys was almost always ushering monsters to evacuate to the deeper tunnels, but she had stayed once or twice, begging Sans to shelter with her in her lab. She would helplessly apologize for not looking out for him and Paps like someone had asked of her, muttering requests of forgiveness for forgetting who had even asked her in the first place. 

Papyrus would be terrified, assuring Sans that everyone must be confused, that the human who he had shown Mercy to would never be the cause of such violence. 

No matter who was left though, they would always do their best to console him. They’d say “everything is going to be fine” and then disappear before his eyes as everything reset. Again. And again. And again. 

It almost seemed like this was all just to see how it would break Sans apart in new satisfying ways.

Nothing was ever fine. 

Then there would be moments of reprieve. He’d wake up, Papyrus would be alive, and it would be Frisk. Frisk, who would laugh and joke and show Mercy. The nightmare would be fucking over. 

It never mattered if the peaceful timelines would last because at least he was awake. At least no one was dead, and no one placed their dust upon his shoulders to carry all the way to the hall of Judgement. 

The nightmare was over. Until it would inevitably start again. But damn it, at least for a moment, it was over. 

He hadn’t known how long he had been awake until Honey’s words plunged him right back into his waking nightmare. 

“I’m going to need everyone to remain calm. It looks like we lost Papyrus at some point, and-”

The rest of what she said fell silent to Sans. He lost Papyrus. He’d been so busy playing with the stupid camera from his failed prank against Red that he hadn’t even noticed Papyrus was no longer at his side. 

How hadn’t he noticed? Why hadn’t he been holding Paps’ hand? At least then he would have been able to feel his magic next to him and know what was going on in his brother’s skull a bit better. 

Why hadn’t he done anything?!? 

Timelines flashed through his mind of all the times Papyrus had gone to fight the human and how eventually he couldn’t bring himself to watch anymore. 

He’d gone from pacing just out of sight, to sitting on the floor by his front door with his skull in his hands, to all but hiding at Grillby’s with mumbled excuses of having a late breakfast while he stared into the wooden countertop. 

He just had to endure it. 

It was a nightmare and he just had to get through it and then everything would reset and everything would be okay- but, well, this wasn’t the underground. 

There would be no more resets. Frisk promised there would be no more-

A pulse of gravity magic strong enough to coat his soul suddenly brought Sans to his knees. 

A wave of pure calming intent settled within him. Unlike the warm ambient comfort he could vaguely remember from Red’s magic, the instant impact he felt here was tremendous. It crackled and sparked so fiercely, and yet where Sans expected the energy to culminate like a lightning strike, it instead dampened itself immediately upon contact. The magic settled protectively in a bubbly – and mildly fizzy - weight. 

Sans’ mind briefly balked at the sudden certainty of his own safety. 

“Blue!” Fox’s voice snapped angrily. Fox was just off to the side of Sans. Sans blinked his gaze into focus as he slowly tried to grasp reality. 

Fox was barely in his peripheral, but he couldn’t see much else with Blue’s skull directly in front of him. Blue’s eye lights were fixed on Sans, unwavering. 

“HE WASN’T LISTENING, HE NEEDED TO BE GROUNDED FIRST.” Blue spoke firm yet calmly, his focus not moving from Sans, as Sans could feel his soul’s previous trembling slowly begin to settle from the weight of Blue’s magic. 

“I Fail To See How-” Fox began.

“Grounding is a sensory thing,” Stretch's voice spoke from somewhere. “Helps calm yah down enough to bring your attention on the now and not the thoughts in your head.”

Edge made a noise of agreement, adding, “COMFORTING TECHNIQUES WEREN’T REALLY A COMMON PRACTICE IN MY WORLD, EITHER. I ALSO ASSUMED HE MEANT THE PUNISHMENT BEFORE I REMEMBERED.” Edge added like an afterthought “THAT’S PROBABLY NOT WHAT FOX MEANT THOUGH, STRETCH.” 

Fox replied something quick and sharp, but Sans was still too caught up in the warring sensation of his own panic against Blue’s magic. 

IT’S GOING TO BE ALRIGHT, SANS. 

Words. Not just magical vibes and intent like he did with Papyrus, but actual words rang clear through Blue’s magic. 

He knew Blue and Stretch were magical powerhouses, but actually voicing through intent alone was fucking crazy. 

Sans’ soul sputtered one last anxious tremble under Blue’s steady magic, and Blue nodded in front of him, as if Sans had spoken anything in return. 

Out loud, Blue said, “MUTT CAN TRACK MAGICAL SIGNATURES, REMEMBER? FOX SENT HIM OFF A MOMENT AGO. HONEY WASN’T HAPPY HE WAS GOING TO SPLIT OFF, SO SHE TOLD- WELL MORE LIKE ORDERED- US TO STAY HERE WHILE SHE GOES WITH MUTT. THEY SHOULD BE BACK MOMENTARILY, ALRIGHT?” 

Right. Right… Mutt would find Paps. 

It didn’t make his urge to short cut across the entire forest looking for Papyrus lessen any, but Blue had a point. How little he thought of Blue really hit him for a moment, considering it felt surprising that Blue was the one to make a valid point. 

Out of everyone, he really hadn’t found much reason to fully forgive Blue. Sure, he regretted being as rude as he had been, really, but seeing how Blue had started it, Sans admittedly hadn’t put much effort into giving Blue any chance. 

Blue winced slightly, as if hearing Sans’ thoughts. Reading his…

Reading his soul. 

Okay yeah, Sans needed Blue’s magic to let go like right now. 

Then, to his growing horror, Blue let go instantly, responding to Sans’ thoughts before he could even begin to lash his magic back at Blue.

“SORRY, SORRY, I DIDN’T THINK YOUR SOUL WOULD BE SO RECEPTIVE TO MY ATTEMPT OF FAMILIAL MAGIC LIKE THAT.” Blue looked both incredibly apologetic and... sad as he explained, “EXPRESSING YOUR NEEDS TO A GUARDIAN IS A NATURAL REACTION AT YOUR AGE. TRULY, I JUST NEEDED A BRIEF CONNECTION TO CALM YOU DOWN WITHOUT MY MAGIC ACTUALLY HARMING YOU.” 

“Think of it like... he was trying to nerf his magic to automatically soften to yours so he doesn’t crush you like a pancake,” Stretch explained while still eyeing Blue in surprise. 

“And the soul reading?” Sans snapped, unsure if the anger in his tone was from himself upset by the entire situation, or the fact that the memories of death and helplessness that always lingered just on the edge of his soul… had briefly silenced under the weight of Blue’s magic. 

Regardless, he channeled his panic into a fierce glare at Blue. 

Blue looked away, “LIKE I SAID, I DIDN’T EXPECT YOU TO RETURN THE CONNECTION. WHEN NOT RETURNED, IT TRULY WOULD HAVE JUST BEEN A BIG WEIGHTED BLANKET OF SOME CALMING INTENT.” 

“Still Incredibly Rude To Do Without Asking,” Fox snarled, then added the warning, “Give Him Space.”

Blue stepped away from Sans, but leveled his gaze upon Fox. “HE WAS SHAKING. WHEN SOMEONE IS DISTRESSED, YOU COMFORT THEM.” 

Fox took a step toward Blue, “Well Maybe You Shouldn’t Assume What Others Need And-”

“REMEMBER MY PLACE?” Blue asked in mock curiosity. “I KNOW YOU PREFER FOOTWEAR TO MAKE UP FOR YOUR LACK OF HEIGHT, BUT YOU ARE HARDLY TALL ENOUGH TO WALK ALL OVER ME, FOX.” 

Fox tilted his skull, “I Don’t Need Height To Show You Why You Shouldn’t-”

“MESS WITH WHAT YOU THINK IS YOURS?” Blue asked again. The air sparked with magic that Sans could now recognize as being from Blue. 

Fox’s left socket twitched, “Stop Interrupting Me.”  

Blues freckles glowed ever so slightly with excess magic, “SAY SOMETHING WORTH LISTENING TO.” 

“THAT’S ENOUGH,” Edge snapped, getting between the two. “HOW YOU TWO MADE IT TO BE THE ELDEST ONES PRESENT RIGHT NOW, I HAVE NO DAMN CLUE.” He turned his skull 180 degrees to look at Stretch. “AND AS THE ELDEST PAPYRUS, YOU UNSUMMON THOSE BONES RIGHT FUCKING NOW BEFORE YOU GIVE US A BAD NAME.” 

Fox, Blue and Sans all turned to see Stretch, who had gone mostly untouched in the escalating argument, lazily leaning against a long bright orange bone attack.

Stretch shrugged, making it disappear. “Was more of a prop to back up Blue anyways.” 

Edge turned his skull back with a huff, “HOW AM I THE REASONABLE ONE RIGHT NOW? I AM GREAT AND TERRIBLE, NOT CALM AND RATIONAL.”  

Edge put a hand on his hip bone, pointing at Fox. “YOU HAVE LV BUT YOU ARE NOT YOUR LV, CHILL THE FUCK OUT.”

He pointed towards Blue, “FOX WAS RIGHT. YOU NEED TO ASK BEFORE YOU DO SHIT LIKE THAT. WE ARE ALL UPSET RIGHT NOW, BUT ANTAGONIZING FOX WON’T CALM ANYONE OR BRING THE OTHERS BACK FASTER.”

Edge turned his upper body 180 degrees again to glare at Stretch while pointing just over Fox’s shoulder. “I SAID ALL OF THE BONES! SERIOUSLY, WHICH ONE OF US HAS LV HERE!?” 

Fox startled, stepping aside to reveal where another bone attack glowed softly. 

Stretch looked startled. “Oh, dang, how’d that one get there? My bad, Fox,” he apologized, casually dismissing the bone. 

Edge huffed, turning back around and throwing his hands up in exhaustion, “UNBELIEVABLE. ALONE FOR A FEW MINUTES AND WE’RE ALREADY AT EACH OTHERS CERVICAL SPINES.” 

“Yeah, but isn’t that just normal for us?” Sans voiced dryly, finally finding his words. 

Edge frowned, lowering his arms. “UNFORTUNATELY, YES. ARE… YOU ALRIGHT?” 

Not really, but again, par for the course. 

“Once Paps is back, I’ll be fine.” He answered instead. “Blue?” He asked, gaining the others attention. 

Blue winced, but turned to him, “NEVER AGAIN?”

“If possible, yeah,” Sans replied, more automatic than anything. 

Blue nodded, disturbingly sincere. “I’M SORRY. IT WON’T HAPPEN AGAIN.” 

Good. He had forgotten what being safe enough to feel awake truly felt like.

He didn’t need a reminder of how far from fine he truly was. A reminder that the true nightmare would probably never end. He just needed to sit and wait for Honey and Mutt to return with Papyrus. 

Then he could go back to pretending. 

——— Papyrus

Nothing was more frustrating than when a particularly difficult trap didn’t go according to plan. Papyrus had put so much effort into this one as well! 

He had gotten up before anyone else for several days in a row, and had found out the exact spot on the hiking trail to place his trap.

A true test of caring and affection for Fox. Or perhaps a test of perceptive awesomeness for Stretch! Maybe even a chance for Sans to fret over him just a little bit, because frankly, he missed his older brother’s attention. 

Just a few feet or so off the trail, while looking for a spot for a trap of his own, Papyrus had found a hole in the ground. The perfect size for someone to trip over, or even perhaps get their foot caught in it. 

He’d fall and get stuck, then someone would swoop in and rescue him. He’d be spoiled in attention and care, and his rescuer would feel awesome. Everyone would be united in his rescue then continue with the hike and it would be a fabulous day! 

Only… he forgot to inspect the darn hole with more than a cursory glance. 

While everyone had been walking and listening to Honey, Papyrus had let himself trail behind everyone else, eventually getting everyone used to the fact that he was simply taking his time without dawdling too much. 

By the time they reached the hole, no one had even noticed him trail slightly off the path and swing his foot into the hole, ready for a point or two of cursory damage for the sake of others’ personal character growth! 

What he hadn’t expected was for the earth below him to crumble beneath his very feet. Too shocked to even yell, Papyrus had fallen backwards and down.

Down, Down, and even deeper DOWN than he even would have guessed he fell, until eventually everything went dark. 

. 

. 

.

_

——— Mutt 

Shortcutting with a human was a pain. Having to look for the baby bones just because he decided to wander off for attention was an even bigger pain. 

Irritation sparked in every bone of his body as he traced the magical signature of Papyrus. 

Papyrus’ magic, like all of the other Papyri’s magic, had a base similar to his own. A twinge of something nearly metallic. Edge was rusty with a hint of spice, Stretch was a well-oiled engine and parchment, and his own was cold and sharpened steel that embarrassingly grew sweeter by the day. 

Papyrus was all copper wires and electricity. Not ozone like Blue’s stormy signature, but a steady buzz one would expect of gizmos and gadgets. 

Honey looked shaken as Mutt had ‘cut them to the closest spot on the path he could find to the scent. 

She glanced around frantically, taking in her surroundings like one of the animals she rehabilitated. 

He ignored her mutterings, and could vaguely see her in his peripheral as she reached in her pack and put a stake in the middle of the path. 

Something something marker. Yadda yadda contact help. She was a sweet human, but her fussing wasn’t needed at the moment. His lord had given him a task, and it would be done as soon as he could drag the baby bones back by the skull.

Walking off the trail towards the faintly lingering magic, he paused. Not because the human loudly told him not to go off without her, but because, just barely obscured from the path by a bush, was a large fuckin’ hole in the ground. And as luck would have it, the trail of Eau de Papyrus went straight the fuck down.

Shit. He couldn’t see the bottom. 

“Hey, uh, you got any rope in that big ol’ pack of yours? Maybe a flashlight?” Mutt asked while carefully stepping away from the hole. 

Instead of answering him, Honey gasped, her hands flying to her mouth, “Good Lord that’s- I need to contact the local ranger ASAP.” 

“Or just give me your flashlight and I can go get him.” Mutt deadpanned rather dryly. 

Honey glared, “Mutt, this is serious. I won’t put anyone else’s life in jeopardy while Papyrus could be hurt or missing.”

“You wouldn’t be,” Mutt argued with a roll of his eye lights. “All you’d be doin’ by getting a ranger involved is stirring up even more negative attention for your camp. Yah saw how I got us here in a second, right? All I gotta do is get down there, then pop back up.” 

He eyed the flashlight in the side pocket of her backpack while she stood her ground. “I don’t think you know how dangerous this situation is, Mutt.”

“Probably not,” he agreed. Shortcutting behind the human, he felt a twinge of remorse as he grabbed her by the arm. “But if yah aren’t gonna let me go, you’re gonna have to SIT.” 

With a firm wave of magic, he coated her soul blue. The increased gravity magic brought her to her knees and locked her body in place. 

Carefully, he removed her backpack and slung it over his shoulder. “Sorry Ms. Honey, but I promise I’ll be back in a second. It’s just, mi’ lord gave me orders, and I’m not gonna start disobeying now.” 

Her jaw twitched and she made a noise that was probably her attempting to speak. It was almost enough to make him feel bad. 

The concern in her eyes made him near certain, though, that he had endeared himself to her enough, and that any serious consequences for his actions would be near nonexistent as long as he came back safe with results.  

He’d just have to endure a scolding or two, then he’d be back in her good graces just fine. 

Patting her head, he quipped a quick, “Stay.” as he headed for the hole. 

——— Stretch

Thirty minutes. They gave Honey and Mutt thirty minutes to return before Stretch, and everyone else, lost all patience. Even if he had been alone in his concern, he wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep sitting around waiting. Thankfully, it seemed like the rest of them shared his opinion.

And so, they began back tracking down the path, the once relaxing summer day now feeling overly isolated and eerie. Stretch strained his hearing trying to catch any sound of Papyrus, Mutt, or Honey in the distance. 

All he heard was a crow call, the wind shaking the leaves, and the sound of their own footsteps crunching against gravel and branch. 

No one said anything until they saw the trail marker in the middle of the road. No Honey, Mutt or Papyrus to be found. 

Fox broke their uneasy silence with a low frustrated growl. “Edge. Go Get Red. We’ll Need Him To-”

“ARE YOU ACTUALLY BEING SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?” Blue snapped, cutting Fox off. “WE JUST LOST MUTT AND HONEY AND YOU THINK SPLITTING OFF MORE IS A GOOD IDEA?!?” 

From the way Fox’s hand was already holding his skull as he glared at Blue, Stretch figured Fox knew exactly how irrational what he just said was. The guy was probably just panicking, something Stretch figured he wasn’t exactly used to.

Damn, he really wished all the different Sans going against their soul traits wasn’t a universal constant. They could really use some Wisdom right about now.

“Go Ahead Blue. Interrupt Me Again.” Fox challenged, cold as ice. The spike in magic made Stretch desperately itch to step in. Someone had to have a level skull though, and stars help them if Stretch lost his cool. 

“ACTUALLY, SPLITTING OFF MIGHT BE JUST WHAT WE NEED.” Edge stepped forward with a snarl, “WE HAVE ENOUGH ON OUR PLATES WITHOUT YOU TWO BEING AT EACH OTHERS’ THROATS. IF YOU CAN’T GET ALONG, THEN GO BACK TO THE CAMP WHILE WE INVESTIGATE. MAYBE AFTER YOU CALM THE HELL DOWN AND DECIDE TO ACTUALLY BE HELPFUL, YOU CAN FIND THOSE EMERGENCY CONTACTS HONEY MENTIONED.”

Fox bristled, “My Brother Is Missing And You Expect-”

Stretch’s full attention shifted rapidly to the movement by his side as Sans began to walk off the path, his gaze fixed on- ah. Shoe prints in the dirt. 

Kid was a true detective. Or well, maybe he was just so done with their shit that he was taking things into his own hands. Stretch didn’t blame him if it was the latter. 

What he did have issue with was the idea of Sans trying to shortcut somewhere where they couldn’t keep track of him. 

“Whatcha find over there, Sans?” Stretch asked, watching him abruptly stop. 

The others stopped their bickering at this, but Stretch was too focused on Sans to pay attention to anyone else as he closed the distance between them. 

The giant hole in the ground was beyond worrying. The broken rope anchored to a tree was even more unsettling. 

Sans’ empty eye sockets and surging magic though? Fucking terrifying. 

With a panicked, “Get help.” Stretch grabbed onto Sans just in time to tag along the kids’ shortcut. Within the second, he was met with sudden disorienting darkness followed by the sensation of an uncontrolled freefall. 

——— Sans 

Sans had a plan in mind when he shortcut. A plan that didn’t involve the extra weight of the tallest skeleton of the damn lot next to him. 

Fuck, he’d have to think fast. So first he’d summon a-

Stretch pulled Sans close and summoned a blaster over twice the size of anything Sans had ever managed to make himself.

It aimed downward and fired bright orange, illuminating the wet stone walls until the blast hit the bottom with a loud splash. The blaster dissipated as quickly as it appeared, leaving the two of them in both absolute darkness and a newfound cacophonous echo from the concussive energy of the blast. 

Stretch held him tight, and Sans instantly recognized the tug of a shortcut that cleared the rest of the distance for them as water was suddenly rushing over his skull. 

The first thing Sans felt after being submerged was tumbling end-over-end with the skeletal cocoon of Stretch absorbing the brunt of the impact. He could feel Stretch wince as they scraped against stone, at the mercy of the current’s overwhelming force. He had no choice but to simply hold on until the river widened all at once, slowing the pull and steadying the two enough for them to get their bearings.

Remembering the lake, Sans lightened their gravity, his crocks pushing them to the surface. Stretch’s arms suddenly glowed a dull orange as he pulled them to some sort of rock edge. He helped Sans out of the water first, before shakily pulling himself up as well. 

A river. They had found an underground river. Honey had told them there were a few natural rivers that fed into the mountain’s lakes, but it hadn’t occurred to him that some of them might be underground as well. It might have existed for so long that it had hollowed out the very earth into… well, whatever this place was. 

The rushing water echoed loudly off the cave walls - a bit too similar to Waterfall for Sans’ liking - although the lack of magical plant life made it much harder to see more than the glow of Stretch’s freckles, his vague outline, and his eye lights in the dark. 

Stretch’s incredibly angry eye lights. 

“Well,” the manic buzz of anxiety that had gotten him this far began to grow, as Sans joked instinctively. “That could have gone wetter.” 

Stretch didn’t say anything for a long moment, but his eye lights didn’t leave Sans. The orange slowly dimmed, and he could just make out Stretch’s posture drooping.

His voice held an audible tremor as he spoke, clearly shaken, “You have one HP, Sans.  I took damage on the way down. That could have killed you.” 

A startled laugh escaped Sans as his soul shook, frantically wondering how much damage Papyrus might have taken. Distantly, he became aware that he genuinely couldn’t tell if he was truly awake right now.

“It wouldn’t be the first time,” he heard himself say. Or maybe he thought it? Everything felt so distant, and his soul ached. 

It didn’t matter though. He had to find Papyrus. 

Stretch didn’t seem to share the sentiment as he slowly, purposefully, said, “What Did You Say?” 

“It doesn’t matter.” Sans repeated the thought aloud. 

“Like hell it doesn’t!” Stretch nearly shouted, reaching out to hold Sans by the shoulders. “Sans, I swear to you, on my own dust, that we’re going to find Papyrus, but don’t you ever speak like your life doesn’t matter.”

Sans pushed himself out of Stretch’s grasp. “I appreciate the sentiment, pal, but weren’t you the one who threatened to rip my soul from my rib cage and crush it in your hands?”

Stretch recoiled further, but Sans continued to glare, willing the older skeleton to remember one of their first interactions. 

How Stretch had threatened his life so casually before he had even really known Sans. How all of them had hated him so much that his HP was now at one again. Yeah, he had one HP, but whose fault was that? He wouldn’t even be in this situation if it weren’t for these fucking jerks. Papyrus was lost because of them.

Words that nearly burned his soul as they left his teeth came tumbling out before he could stop them, “You all wonder why I don’t trust you? Why it took me so long to give any of you a chance?!” Sans threw his hands up, “It’s because you all keep doing this. Forcing your way into my life, taking away what little I have, and now what!? Feeling like you’re entitled to everything about who I am!? None of you actually care about me or Papyrus! You just care about the fact that you feel guilty. Like I’m some sort of kid you think needs rescuing, when buddy, you wouldn’t believe the things I’ve survived.” 

Stretch stared at Sans in shock, but like a bursting dam, Sans couldn’t bring himself to stop speaking, “Any chance I had of being a kid died so damn long ago I don’t even remember what safety feels like. I’m supposed to be made of HOPE, Stretch, and yet the closest I can even bring myself to it is Hoping that my brother won’t be taken from me again. I have one thing that keeps me going. One person and one fucking Hope Point, Stretch. I don’t matter, because the one person who does is missing, and without him, I have Stars Damn Nothing.”

Sans took a shaky breath that he didn’t actually need, and which did fuck all at actually calming his trembling soul. He tried to will the magic gathering in the corners of his sockets not to spill. Screw his age, he wasn’t going to cry like a child. He couldn’t. He just… He needed to keep going. 

“So, I don’t want to talk about this, Stretch,” he eventually managed to say. “I just want my brother back.” 

Stretch stared at him. Then, eventually, he spoke. 

“I… didn’t know you called them Hope Points.” Stretch looked away. “The rest of us call them Hit Points, or Health Points, but the fact you call them Hope Points just…” He looked back to Sans glowing magic gathered in his sockets, as Stretch too tried not to cry. “It fuck’n breaks my soul, kid.” 

Stretch quickly rubbed at his face, wiping his tears aside with a sniff. “Okay.” A shaky breath escaped Stretch as well. “Okay…” he repeated a bit stronger. “I won’t ask. I’ve got stuff I don’t wanna talk about too, so like, I get it. And we can go look for Papyrus right now, I just… I’m so sorry Sans.”

Then, before Sans could properly react, Stretch hugged him. 

Stretch’s magic didn’t reach out to him as if he was holding it back, and Sans didn’t return the hug, but to Sans’ utter mortification, his soul called to Stretch. 

The reply was fucking instant. Warm, metallic, and somehow looming, powerful like an iron giant, Stretch’s magic was there. Not covering him like Blue’s magic had, just… there. 

Anything more than being just, there would have been too overwhelming, and yet just this… He couldn’t hide the fact that he was too tired to fight the pure desperation in his soul.

Sans reluctantly relaxed into the hug, exhaustion warring with his fear and winning. “I didn’t ask for this,” Sans said, surprised by all the meanings that simple sentence held for him. He didn’t want to be in a nightmare anymore.

“I know,” Stretch apologized.

“I can’t lose him again,” Sans admitted, no longer caring that the true meaning of it all was lost on Stretch. He wanted to feel awake again.

“You won’t,” Stretch swore like an oath. 

Sans laughed, hollow and empty. “I want to believe that. I want Papyrus to be okay.” 

He wanted to be okay again.

Stretch let go of the hug, certainty as steady as the very mountain they were under in his voice. “Then let’s go get him.”

Chapter Text

He wasn’t sure how long he’d been tracking Papyrus. His clothes were sopping wet from when the rope had snapped on the last few feet of his descent down into what was, apparently, a river. He nearly regretted ignoring Honey when she advised everyone to dress in proper hiking clothes. Wet skinny jeans clung awkwardly to his bones, further irritating an already miffed Mutt.

Luckily, he had put Honey’s bag in his inventory for the climb, so nothing in there had gotten wet. His shoes, regretfully, were not as fortunate as he squelched his way forward. 

At first, he had been certain that Papyrus had dusted from the sheer drop. For the briefest moment, he hadn’t been able to pick up Papyrus’ magic, and the thought of the youngest skeleton being mere silt in the water had nearly sent him into an unexpected panic.

Then he’d felt it. Weak, and slowly drifting farther and farther away, yet still present.

He’d wasted no more time, using his flashlight to illuminate the distance and shortcutting to speed up his pursuit. 

There were parts of the cavern where he had to wade through the water or where he would have to crouch to not scrape the ceiling, but luckily nothing was fully submerged, and remained wide enough for him to traverse. Even if he didn’t need to breathe, and theoretically could shimmy through narrow crevices, the idea of being stuck and/or waterlogged in this hell pit wasn’t exactly his idea of self-care.

The water was just starting to deepen, with the tunnel opening up into a wider cavern, when he spotted it. 

A red scarf floating lazily in the current, the river desperately trying to pull it further down, only for it to remain anchored to a limp skeletal form. 

Fuck. 

Sockets going wide, Mutt splashed his way to the younger skeleton, an unfamiliar emotion tugging at his chest as he took in the scene. He had snagged on a stalagmite which halted him from being carried away to wherever the fuck the river ended.

What… what did he do now? When Fox told him to return with Papyrus, he had thought it would be something trivial, not… not this. 

He didn’t know what to do. In his underground, injured monsters were either left to dust or killed as a kindness. Saving monsters wasn’t in his wheelhouse at all. He was never trained for this. He was a killer, not a healer. He- 

His mind whirred as he briefly thought of how Honey handled her rescues. It wasn’t much, but it was something to go off of. 

Kneeling down, Mutt gently lifted Papyrus into his arms - making sure the scarf didn’t tear - and moved him out of the water and draped across his lap. He swept his flashlight over the unconscious skeleton, checking for chips, cracks, or breaks in Papyrus’s bones. 

It wasn’t great. It thankfully wasn’t terminal, but he’d need a bit more than the two monster candies Honey had in her bag to heal his wounds. Papyrus now had several cracks along his arms and legs, and a singular long crack down his left eye socket, reminiscent of the three gouges over Edge’s right socket. 

No bones were missing, and there was nothing actively dusting, but Papyrus was still hurt. Badly. Shit, was this his fault? Should he have had more urgency once he found the hole? Why had he been so certain he’d find the baby bones just pouting and stuck in some corner down here? 

The thought struck him with a wave of dread nearly strong enough to make his bones rattle. He hadn’t felt this guilty since his week-long echo bender.

Fox was going to be so mad at him. 

He didn’t want that. He couldn’t stand the thought of it. Fox cared about Papyrus, and if he dusted, then it would be all Mutt’s fault. 

He wasn’t sure what expression was on his skull, but he quickly rushed to appear neutral and Fox-like when Papyrus began to stir in his arms. Given the fact that his resting bitch skull was usually powered via indifference, and he currently gave more that his usual lack of fucks, he wasn’t sure how effective it looked.

The younger monster’s sockets fluttered, and he seemed to wince as his eye lights slowly grew brighter with focus. “M… MUTT?” 

Now, he knew he wasn’t usually one to comfort anyone, but he was fairly certain his base reaction of growling out, “What. The fuck. Is wrong with you?!?” was not the way to go about it. Apparently, apathetic was not in the cards at the moment.

Papyrus’ eye lights locked in on Mutt and a look of pure relief crossed his expression, “MUTT! IT IS YOU!” Papyrus exclaimed as he attempted to turn his skull, only to wince.

The baby bones made a particularly pathetic whimper of pain, and Mutt cursed softly, stopping Papyrus from reaching to touch the newly formed crack in his skull. “Don’t fuck’n touch it.”

Papyrus listened, only to reach out and touch the smaller fractures along his right arm instead. Predictably, he cringed at the pain. “OUCHIE… I REALLY GOT MESSED UP HUH?” 

He gets a crack in his skull, several fractures along his arms, and lost over half his HP, and all the kid can say is OUCHIE??? Even more than before, Mutt wondered how the fuck they were both ‘Papyrus’.

He went to touch his other arm, but a low growl from Mutt froze him in his place. 

“What. Were. You. Thinking.” Mutt pressed, suddenly desperate to know just how the fuck things had gotten this bad. 

“WELL, I WASN’T PLANNING ON THE VERY GROUND BENEATH ME CAVING IN AND SUPER SONIC DUNKING ME IN A RIVER, IF THAT’S WHAT YOU’RE IMPLYING.” Papyrus shot back, pushing himself away from Mutt, barely supporting himself up with shaking bones. 

“Then what were you planning, exactly?” Mutt asked bluntly, “‘cuz you and I both know that you didn’t just randomly decide to stray off path without tellin’ anyone.” He narrowed his gaze into a fierce glare, “I swear to The Angel, baby bones, if this was just for attention-”

“I AM NOT A BABY BONES!” Papyrus defended. “AND YOU ARE BEING INCREDIBLY MEAN RIGHT NOW, INTERROGATING ME WHILE I’M INJURED.” 

Mutt huffed. “First of all, you have no idea what an interrogation is really like. Secondly, how could you be so stupid!? Because of your idiotic stunt, the rest of us are up shit creek without a paddle! Do you even know how much you’ve stressed our lord over this?!”

Papyrus spluttered incredulously, “I AM NOT- WHA- WHO?!?!”

“Fox!” Mutt snarled, straightening to glare downward at Papyrus. 

“JUST SAY YOUR BROTHER, YOU FRIGGEN WEIRDO!!!” he yelled, exasperated. 

“Fox isn’t my broth-“

“YES HE IS!!!” Papyrus all but screeched, his voice echoing loudly off the stone. “YOU TWO ARE BROTHERS AND EVERYONE KNOWS IT, AND I’M SORRY I FELL DOWN INTO WHEREVER THIS IS, AND I DON’T LIKE YOU YELLING AT ME, AND I’M SORRY THAT THIS WAS MILDLY FOR ATTENTION, BUT CAN YOU BLAME ME?!?”

Papyrus’ breathing began to pick up into a panic as he spoke, “IT’S ALWAYS JUST BEEN ME AND SANS, AND YES IT WASN’T PERFECT BUT WE MADE IT WORK, AND THEN OUT OF NOWHERE THERE ARE SUDDENLY A BUNCH MORE SKELETONS WHO ARE KIND TO ME, PROMISING TO TAKE CARE OF ME AND I THINK MAYBE I CAN FINALLY HELP MY BROTHER, BUT THEN EVERYTHING GOES SIDEWAYS DESPITE EVERY MOVIE I’VE SEEN OR BOOK I’VE READ SAYING THAT THIS IS WHERE SANS AND I CAN FINALLY HAVE A FAMILY. BUT NOW HE’S UPSET ALL THE TIME, AND EVERYONE IS FIGHTING OVER HIM OR ME AND I JUST WANT EVERYONE TO GET ALONG OR TO GO AWAY SO THINGS CAN GO BACK TO US BEINGOKAYBUTNOTHINGWASOKAYWASITBECAUSESANSWASNEVEROKAYWASHEANDHE-”

Papyrus cut himself off, breathing sharply and rapidly as if he actually needed the oxygen.

Mutt stared, wide-socketed, as he tried to find a proper response to the situation and falling entirely short. The rage in his soul was ever present, but it almost felt overpowered by something else as big orange magical tears began spilling from Papyrus’ sockets. 

“A- AND- AND NOW- YOU JUST KEEP YE- YELLING AT ME- AND, AND, I- EVERYTHING HURTS, AND I ALREADY SAID I’M SORRY- AND I JUST- I NEVER MEANT TO MAKE YOU HATE ME…” 

Then Papyrus was just crying. “NYOOHOOHOO”‘s and everything. And Mutt… 

Mutt was so angry. He was so angry all the time and it was exhausting. He knew he’d do this. He knew he’d make Papyrus cry. He knew he’d snap and snarl and break the kid and he’d be no better than-

“Let me in! Please!!!” Mutt had yelled, banging on the cold wooden door. 

The memory was more of a blur than the snowstorm he had been outside in, more fragmented and chipped than his very bones.

“Don’t hate me, Father!! Please!!!” he had begged. “I’ll be good, just please don’t leave me out here!!!” 

Mutt had seen the light from inside from the window go dark. Then the porch light. Yet he didn’t stop knocking. He hadn’t stopped begging until his voice was nothing more than a soft, tired whisper. “please don’t hate me… i can be good. i promise i’m good.”

He had called to be let in. Then eventually, just for anyone. 

He called for help. 

But nobody came. 

Mutt wanted Papyrus to stop looking at him like that. 

Mutt needed Papyrus to stop looking at him like that. 

“I don’t hate you.” Mutt finally spoke aloud, stiff and awkward as he held in his anger with every ounce of control he had. 

Papyrus continued crying and Mutt sighed into his hands as he repeated, “I don’t hate you, Papyrus.”

“TH- THEN WHY, ARE YOU BEING SUCH A- A JERK TO ME,” Papyrus asked, wiping at his face and trying to calm himself.

Mutt shrugged helplessly, “Cuz… I don’t know. I’m just a bad dog, I guess.”

“YOU’RE A- A SK- SKELETON Y-YOU FURRY.” Papyrus sniffed, his voice quavering but growing steady. 

“That too,” Mutt agreed, unsure how any of this was helpful. “I’m…” had he ever said this to anyone? “I’m sorry.” 

“YOU SOUND SO ANGRY THOUGH…” Papyrus stated, looking at Mutt warily in the dark. 

“I’m always angry.” Mutt admitted. “I’m angry when I wake up, when I can’t stay up late, when I can’t sleep in, when there aren’t any pancakes at breakfast, and I’m angry that there’s no real internet access out here.”

Papyrus didn’t reply, but he seemed to have calmed down listening to Mutt ramble, so he kept going. 

“I’m angry that the animals Honey rescued got hurt in the first place. I’m angry that there’s still so much that I don’t understand about this world… I’m angry that I have to play nice when the world hasn’t been nice to me. That Fox keeps telling me to behave like I’m not actin’ the way he taught me to.”

Pulling his knees closer, Mutt rested his skull on them as he continued to voice his thoughts. “I’m angry I’m never gonna see home again. That I won’t be able to cash in all the favors I collected up in Snowdin. That Stretch hates what we have in common. I’m angry that you all get to be brothers with your Sans’s. That you apparently get to be brothers with my Sans.”

Sighing, Mutt looked to the side, trying to avoid looking at Papyrus. “I’m not actually angry that you are so good. It’s alright that you’re happy and innocent and spoiled rotten by stars damn everyone but me. That’s… good… I guess.”

“I’m just so damn angry that I know that will never be me. That I’ve long lost every bit of you I maybe once had in me. You make…” Mutt taps a quick nonsensical pattern on his knee until his nerves settled enough for the rest to tumble forth. “you make Fox happy. You are the version of me he wishes he had met.”

He opened his teeth to speak the last few words on the brink of his soul, “I guess I’m just upset that I know that could never be… me.”

There was a long deafening silence. Papyrus wasn’t audibly freaking out anymore, but Mutt was uncertain what to say from here. 

His… inadequacy was out there now. He couldn’t take that back. Honestly, he wouldn’t blame Papyrus for laughing. He was truly the funniest joke in the universe right now.

“THAT’S….” Papyrus spoke, slow yet much steadier than it had been. “I’M SORRY MUTT, BUT THAT’S ABSOLUTE TEMMIE SHIT.”

What.

Papyrus reached out and turned Mutt’s skull to look at him. The youngest was glaring at him. “FOX LOVES YOU. HE LOVES YOU SO MUCH THAT THE VERY IDEA THAT YOU DON’T KNOW HAS NEVER EVEN CROSSED HIS MIND.”

“That’s not-“

“SHUT UP.” Papyrus snapped bluntly, near Fox-like. He looked exhausted, yet his glare remained firm. It appeared he had no intentions of backing down from their continued confrontation in the slightest.

It was the most spine he’d seen from Papyrus yet. 

Papyrus let go of Mutt. “YOU YELLED, I YELLED, YOU SPOKE, NOW I GET TO SPEAK.” 

Mutt remained quiet, habit and instinct screaming at him to listen. 

“THANK YOU.” Papyrus stated after a moment of silence. “FIRST OFF, OF COURSE YOU’RE NOT LIKE ME, YOU’RE LIKE SANS.” His hands flew up dramatically, “WHO, FOR THE RECORD, IS A VERY LOVABLE MONSTER AND MY FAVORITE PERSON IN THE WHOLE WORLD.”

Paps shook his skull, “HONESTLY… YOU ARE SO MUCH LIKE MY BROTHER THAT I REALLY SHOULD HAVE HAD THIS CONVERSATION WITH YOU SO MUCH SOONER…”

“SECONDLY.” Papyrus straightened and poked Mutt squarely on the ribcage. “I’M NOT TRYING TO STEAL YOUR BROTHER, MUTT.” Reaching out, Papyrus firmly grasped Mutt’s hands in his. “I WANT TO BE YOUR BROTHER.”

What.

…

No, like seriously, w h a t. After how Mutt had avoided him, bitched about him, glared at him, and had just yelled at him, there was no damn way. 

Mutt nearly recoiled from the very thought, the question tumbling out before he could stop it, “Why?” 

It was Papyrus’ turn to sigh deeply, “INITIALLY I JUST WANTED SOMEONE TO HELP TAKE CARE OF SANS, BUT NOW…” Papyrus stared stubbornly at Mutt. “FRANKLY, I CAN NOW SEE THAT ALL OF US ARE IN DESPERATE NEED OF FAMILY.” He paused briefly, gauging Mutt’s reaction.

Papyrus squinted at Mutt, “AND NOW YOU ARE MAKING A FACE LIKE I SAID SOMETHING CRAZY. YOU THINK I’M BEING CRAZY ABOUT THIS.” Papyrus chuckled humorlessly, his voice cracking slightly. “WELL, PERHAPS I AM. TODAY HAS BEEN AWFUL AND THIS WAS NOT HOW I WANTED THINGS TO GO AT ALL, BUT STARS DAMN IT, IF FOX WON’T TELL YOU I WILL.”

Papyrus shook Mutt’s hands firmly in emphasis. “I WANT TO BE YOUR YOUNGER BROTHER MUTT. AND… IT’S OKAY IF YOU’RE NOT READY FOR THAT YET, BUT… I FIGURED YOU SHOULD AT LEAST KNOW.”

How the fuck was he supposed to respond to this? 

“But… I’ve been a complete ass to you.”

“I KNOW,” Papyrus shrugged tiredly, and yet a small smile still graced his teeth. “WHAT A DOUCHEY OLDER BROTHER THING TO DO.”

That couldn’t be it. That… There was no way that way that… he didn’t deserve that. Not really. Mutt didn’t even know what being a brother meant and Papyrus seriously wanted someone like him as one? He was violent, moody, and manipulative, and caused nothing but problems.

The very idea of even considering that offer was… Papyrus wanting to be Fox’s brother made sense, but him??? What did you even do with a younger brother? Play catch??? Or was that fathers?

Mutt had never even played catch with anyone, only fetch with the Snowdin canine unit, and Fox had always chased them off before they could teach him to catch sticks with his teeth.

Unknown to him, Papyrus’ smile only seemed to grow. “JUST… THINK ON IT.”

“I-“

“Mutt!!! Papyrus, is that you two?!?!” 

Stretch? 

“Paps?!?” 

“SANS!” Papyrus instantly moved towards the sound, Mutt reaching to catch the younger skeleton before he could fumble his way into further injury. 

Instead of blindly trudging back into the river’s current with an injured skeleton, Mutt used his flashlight to shine it back towards the way he came from, illuminating a large figure sloshing waist high through the water. 

Stretch appeared to flinch at the direct light, blinking his sockets rapidly. Sans was revealed to be on Stretch's back, perhaps avoiding potentially being skull-deep from his lack of height, or maybe just exhausted. 

“We’re over here!” Mutt shouted out, moving the light away from directly pointing at them to illuminate himself and Papyrus instead. 

Mere moments later, Stretch and Sans had shortcut next to them, Sans fumbling away from Stretch and stumbling over desperately to Papyrus. 

“Stars, Pap!” Sans all but sobbed, reaching for Papyrus’ skull. 

Papyrus leaned into Sans’ touch, tears returning to his sockets, though his expression softened instantly. “I’M ALRIGHT BROTHER, MUTT FOUND ME, I’M ALRIGHT.”

Mutt watched as the two brothers touched the tops of their skulls together with a gentle clack, obviously relieved beyond words to be reunited. 

“You guys good?” Stretch asked, placing a hand on Mutt’s shoulder. He looked nearly as worn as Mutt felt. 

“Papyrus is in rough shape,” Mutt reported. “There’s no dust falling off of him, so it might just look worse than it is, but…”

Stretch sighed, quietly taking in the sight of Papyrus. “That eye crack is going to scar, huh?”

“Yep.”

“He’ll own it.” Stretch stated, surprisingly optimistic. 

“He shouldn’t have to,” Sans cut in, sharply turning from Papyrus despite the younger’s instant protest.

“SANS, IT’S F-”

“What the hell happened to him?!” Sans demanded, his glare burning into Mutt’s skull.

“There was nothin’ I could really do when I found him, Sans.” Mutt explained matter-of-factly. “He fell, and the river-”

“Don’t give me fucking excuses, Mutt.” Sans spoke, his sockets growing cold. “There were seven of us up there counting the human, and now my brother might be scarred for life. One of us should have-”

“SANS, I SAID I’M OKAY,” Papyrus argued, moving to block Mutt from Sans’ sight.

Sans turned to Papyrus, “No, you’re not, Paps, you’re- I can’t-”

Stretch cut in unexpectedly, placing a firm hand on Sans’ shoulder and kneeling to make eye contact with him.

Mutt was certain that Stretch encroaching on Sans’ personal space, as unintentional as it might be, was a fast track to getting a blaster in the face from Sans’ rage. And yet, he seemed to still at the touch, staring blankly at Stretch as he spoke.

“He’s right, Sans. You’re right too, it’s not okay that Papyrus got hurt, but he’s still here. Your brother is still here and right next to you. He’s hurt, but he’s going to be okay. Okay? You’re trusting me right now, remember? It’s going to be okay.”

Mutt frowned. Since when was Sans trusting any of them, let alone Stretch?

“I don’t trust you,” Sans spoke dully.

Ah.

“Well… Can you try, just this once?” Stretch pleaded softly. “Just until we get out of here. Then you can not trust me all you want. Just… Take a break. You didn’t ask for this, yeah? None of us did. So let me handle it until we get back. Please?”

The silence stretched on, both uncomfortably long and somehow deafeningly loud.

Eventually, a word broke the stillness.

“… Okay.” Then Sans collapsed, the stress and exhaustion finally taking its toll.

Stretch nodded seriously, “Okay.”

Leaning down, Stretch slung Sans back onto his back, where he appeared to hold on without a word. Stretch turned to Mutt. “Where’s Honey?”

Mutt blinked, the shock from everything he just witnessed still processing in his skull. “Um… Somewhere up top, right? She never followed me down.”

Stretch sighed, rubbing at his cervical spine, “We didn’t see her up there, so she probably went to go get help.” He turned to Papyrus. “Can you walk?”

Papyrus moved to stand, then winced. “NOT REALLY… SO… HOW ARE WE GOING TO GET OUT OF HERE?”

Stretch nodded, leaning down to gingerly pick up Papyrus in his arms, carrying both brothers with surprising ease. He nodded towards Mutt’s flashlight, “I couldn’t really see much without that, so let’s try backtracking and seeing if that light makes a difference. Between Mutt and I, maybe some sort of blaster-shortcut combo could help. That is, if the others haven’t returned with rope yet.”

Papyrus hummed in agreement, “THAT COULD WORK.” He still seemed a bit frazzled, though much calmer than he had been just a bit ago.

“What the fuck even is all this?” Mutt muttered softly to himself, seemingly unheard by the rest as they continued to discuss their options.

Within minutes, Stretch had Mutt leading the way with the flashlight while Stretch quietly shared ridiculously easy riddles with Papyrus as they walked.

Sans didn’t say a word. And Mutt… fuck, Mutt wasn’t sure what to say to any of this either.

Maybe it was watching Sans with Stretch, or the way Papyrus kept glancing back to Mutt, but something like dread and what felt uncomfortably close to hope began to grow within him.

Damn it.

Papyrus was going to get his way again, wasn’t he? After watching all of that, Mutt had no idea how the hell it was going to happen, or if any of them actually deserved it… But fuck.

For better or worse, he could almost see a future where eventually, they might actually end up as something bastardized enough to, in very dim lighting, resemble…

A family.

Chapter Text

Edge was going to lose his shit. This wasn’t hyperbole. Just factual. He had given the two stupid Sansi - he still wasn’t fucking sure what to call more than one of them - multiple chances to keep their shit together, yet they seemed determined to take their helpless frustrations out on each other. 

Once Stretch and Sans had disappeared down The Hole of No Return™, Edge and Fox had lunged for Blue to stop him from diving in after the two. 

Stretch had yelled to get help, and Edge had worked in the Royal Guard enough to recognize an order when he heard one. Leaping haphazardly into danger would help no one, especially considering the only ones capable of “shortcutting” were either in The Hole of dubious origins, or sick in his cabin. 

They needed to get more rope, to call for help from trained professionals, or hope that Red was recovered enough to be of any damn use.

So, you would think that would mean hurrying back to the cabins in silence? No. He wasn’t a lucky monster in any regard, and the frustrated growls of Fox and snarky tone of Blue were destined to grate on his nerves. 

“Well, That’s Just Fucking Perfect.”

“WHY DID YOU STOP ME?! I COULD HAVE GRABBED THEM IF I HAD JUST-”

“Jumped? You’d Be A Moron Leaping Into Danger, Like Stretch.”

“MY BROTHER COULD BE HURT AND YOU’RE MOCKING HIM!? YOU KNOW HE ONLY DID THAT FOR SANS’ SAFETY!?”

Was this what he and Red used to sound like? No, surely not. Grizzly had proven that, at the core of all his issues with Red, they had at least held some understanding and care. 

These two were just being so fucking petty. 

Finally, he could see what Red had planned by dragging them all here. Alone, he would not have been able to stop Blue from jumping, but together with Fox they had easily dragged him back. Strength in unity. 

Only they weren’t actually the fucking united states of brotherhood. They were, for lack of better terms to describe the lot of them:

Spaghetti.

An absolute jumble of sauce, noodles, and protein, lacking any semblance of structure, served together in a chaotic pile with no fucking foundation to rely upon. 

They were a damn mess. All it took was one punch to their hastily built dynamic and they had turned on each other like rabid dogs. 

They couldn’t just keep saying that they wanted to change without putting the work in. Insincerity and empty smiles would get them nowhere. What they needed to do was start from scratch, only this time build sturdy layers of trust, communication, and other things of real substance baked in the fires of true kinship.

Like a fucking lasagna.

Not. Goddamn. Fighting. Every. Single. Day.

Was he sympathetic to their plight? To worrying over their brothers? Yes, of course. He was absolutely terrified for the three youngest bones, and had no choice but to rely on Stretch to keep an eye on them. 

The lack of control they had over any of this was horrible. 

Blue and Fox snapping at each other like starving vultures was something he wouldn’t stand for any longer. 

Luckily, he had experience with dealing with a traumatized older brother who refused to act his damn age. 

Red had taught him many things after Edge had killed their father and Red was forced to become his caretaker, teacher, and brother.

He taught him how to stand his ground to bigger monsters, how to face the things that scared him, how to use every aspect of yourself in a fight instead of just relying on bone attacks, how to strike fear in your opponent's hearts to win a battle before an encounter ever began, and most importantly, how to make your shithead older brother listen to you. 

You. Make. Them. 

Red and Blue were adults, no baby bones by any measure, with their souls fully settled and their physical forms having a great deal of solidity. Even so, Edge regularly threw his brother around, and these two were hardly Red’s size. 

Being mindful that Fox would be the most likely to resist what he was about to do, Edge strode up to them, grabbed them by their arms - it was quite easy considering how they both were gesturing rather dramatically - and flung them backwards over his shoulders and sent them crashing into the dirt. 

For a blessed moment, they were both frozen in a state of shock at what he had done. 

Darkness consumed them all as he pulled them into an encounter, a courtesy most monsters hadn’t gotten in his world. Formal encounters were the only way you could possibly harm one’s soul directly, so most monsters resisted such encounters.

Unless taken by surprise. 

EDGE BLOCKS THE WAY.

“EDGE?!?” // “You Are To Release Us This Instant.”

Swinging a bone attack into existence, Edge pointed it at the two in a swanky condescending way he had admittedly copied from when he had seen Fox do with his bone cane. “OH, I’M SORRY, BUT YOU TWO MADE IT VERY CLEAR THAT DESPITE THE PRESSING SITUATION, WE HAD SOMEHOW GAINED TIME ENOUGH TO FIGHT AMONGST OURSELVES.”

His turn was over. 

Blue looked aghast, yet chose to ACT, speaking, “YOU’RE RIGHT EDGE, THIS ISN’T THE TIME, SO DROP THE ENCOUNTER AND WE CAN GO RIGHT NOW. I DON’T WANT TO FIGHT WITH YOU.”

Honestly, what a waste of a turn. No no, talking would do no good right now. They had pushed him to this point, and he was certain in something that he had never thought of any monster but Red before. 

These two weren’t going to hurt him. Honestly, he would give them the luxury of MERCY if this wasn’t the only path forward to take. 

Fox CHECKED him, and Edge felt faint satisfaction over whatever it was Fox saw that made him both angered and nervous in the same moment. 

Oh lookie, his turn again. 

Sharpened bones jutted out of the ground, zigzagging towards them with frightening speed. On any other day, Edge would have appreciated the expert levels of acrobatics Blue displayed as he cursed and dodged the onslaught Edge threw towards the duo. Fox, with less grace and more precision, flipped over the bones while tactically jumping ahead of Blue in turn order. 

It was a nifty trick Edge hadn’t considered. 

Fox, like the clever bones he was, RAN. 

Blue was apparently more stubborn as he summoned a bone of his own in defense, ACTING once more, “EDGE, THIS WILL HELP NO ONE. WE CAN WALK DOWN THE PATH AND GO GET HELP. WE DON’T HAVE TO FIGHT!”

Oh please, this was hardly a real FIGHT. If anything, he was trying to MISS.

“YOU HAD YOUR CHANCE, BLUE,” Edge spoke, spinning the attack in his hand, summoning several other bones to spin beside it. He called this attack the Bone Blender: his Special Attack. He’d give Blue one more chance before he’d get to see if it lived up to its name. “YOU BOTH SQUANDERED MY OFFER OF FINDING A PEACEFUL SOLUTION AND CHOSE TO FIGHT. I’M NOT FEELING PEACEFUL ANYMORE.”

Blue looked to him nervously, then at the bone in his hand before cursing, “DAMN IT EDGE,” and Blue too RAN. 

The blackness of the official encounter faded away as Edge watch the elder skeletons flee. Edge didn’t throw his attack after Blue, but he didn’t un-summon the blender either. Who knows when it might prove useful.

Thank fuck they had both ran like he expected.

Edge hadn’t wanted to hurt them, but he truly didn’t have time for their misplaced resentments. They needed to get the hell off the trail and go get help. If that meant he had to throw bone attacks at their heels to keep them moving, then so be it. 

He hated having to resort to this. 

Or well, he hated how good it felt to resort to this.

His LV had drastically decreased not long after coming to this world, but even after all this time, the bit that remained still thrived inside of himself. How could he not find sickening comfort in the way that anger fueled him? It got shit done when stupid dipshit skeletons made him be the responsible one. 

Memories of Red’s neglect and absence, no matter how unintentional, made him particularly angry. The way his brother would shut down and leave Edge to take care of them both, after having made Edge love him enough to care, filled him with rage in a way few other thoughts could. 

Edge hadn’t known how to be there for a loved one. He’d never been taught. He had been taught how to threaten and push and be oh so greatly terrible. So that’s what he’d done to keep Red alive. That’s what he had to do. 

It was the only way he knew how to protect those close to him. To make use of the rot inside his bones. 

Therapy had revealed to him that his brother’s depression played a big role in why Red was the way he was. Angry and fuming one moment, then shut down and lost to the horrors of his own mind the next. Edge had no such excuse. 

Or well, not one he could accept yet. Grizzly kept trying to convince him that Red wasn’t like him because he had been raised by their father and mother. Edge had only ever known their father. 

His… Father… GASTER… That filth had been a top bastard among bastards. When remembering him, the only thing Edge could recall in perfect clarity about his father’s skull was the hate that had burned within that monster’s sockets. He wasn’t sure his… That he could have felt anything other than hate.

Nothing Edge had ever done had been enough for him. No matter how smart or fast he was or how strong he tried to be, Gaster always found ways to make him feel small and insignificant. He found ways to break Edge physically and mentally, purely for the crime of existing after their mother had died and Red had left them. If Edge had been a weaker monster, he would have given up.

No one but his therapist and his brother would ever guess that even he, the Great and Terrible Edge… had a point in which he had felt like his entire life was completely pointless.

And it had all been thanks to the man who had no room in his life for pointless things. Who he had been forced to call father.

Gaster had been a poison. His ideology and patterns of behavior were toxic. Anger had bled into everything Gaster touched. Every damn invention he had made was built with rage, including his greatest weapon that hadn’t even needed to be made in the lab. 

Edge. 

Maybe it was because he was tired of being a punching bag, or maybe it was because he knew, even then, that the only one who could bring about change was himself. 

Red thought that Edge’s first LV came from the day he had killed their father. That it was all because of that day he had been forced to fight back, when his father had turned his blasters on Edge and demanded that his youngest son learn the true meaning of KILL or BE KILLED. 

Edge could never tell Red that it had been there before Edge had even spilled his first dust. 

He had wanted to make Gaster feel the pain for once. With every broken bone in his body, he had hated him, and had wanted to end that man long before he was faced with an ultimatum. He had wanted to make him suffer. He had wanted that violence. He’d needed that violence. He was violence. 

Edge had told Honey that LV was a disease, for he had no other words to describe a soul wound that deep.

No matter what world he was in, he could never forget that his LV was a part of him. He couldn’t let go as easily as Red had. He wasn’t even sure it was possible for a monster like himself to let go of a scar that so fundamentally shaped him.

So, he would do as he had done before, and use this darker bit of himself in what useful ways he could. 

And yes, if that meant chasing Fox and Blue down the trail with very real threats of bodily harm, then so be it. 

Yeah yeah, they could have a talk later about boundaries and attacking each other being off-limits or something after everyone was safely together. Probably around the same time they all sat the fuck down to talk about- well, truthfully…

They had a lot of things they needed to talk about that they’d all been avoiding. That he’d allowed the others not to talk about. 

He could stand for it no longer. Not when the cost of their silence had led to their tenuous relationships shattering upon impact. 

It was time to do something. And unfortunately for everyone else, he only had one way of fixing things. 

Very, Very, Violently. 

“RUN WHILE YOU CAN,” Edge called out towards them as he began his chase. 

Because once this whole fiasco was over, there would be no escape from his true wrath, more potent than any bone attack. 

They were going to talk. 

——— Blue

Edge had lost his stars damn mind.  

Blue leapt over a spinning bone attack that had nearly rammed straight into his spine. 

He could nearly hear Alphys’ excited shouts at himself in his head. “If you want to run while I train you then you better run fast dweeb!” she had once shouted, throwing magical attacks at him in near identical ways to how Edge was currently chasing them back to the campgrounds. 

Truly, Blue had no idea what had set Edge off at this point, but his bone deep certainty that Edge would never actually harm any of them became less certain by the second. 

He didn’t have much time to react to the snarl of pain and irritation in front of him, but Blue certainly did notice when suddenly Fox was running alongside him, roughly yanking a broken tree branch from his socket. 

“I Hate Forests.” Fox growled, tossing the thing to the side. 

“I THOUGHT- ALL OF YOU GREW UP IN SNOWDIN?” Blue asked, nearly stumbling over a rock while trying to ignore the sound of bone attacks embedding the dirt behind them. 

“I Did Once,” Fox shockingly replied, darting off the path only long enough to dodge a pinwheel of bone, rolling where he once ran. “That’s Why I Refused To Live There And Moved To Hotland Instead.” 

Blue laughed, mildly hysterical at the sight of the camp in the distance. “OPPOSITE FOR ME. GREW UP IN HOTLAND, WAS BRIEFLY A CAPITAL GUY THEN SETTLED IN- STARS EDGE, COULD YOU STOP?!?”

The bone attack embedding in the ground next to him, slowly dissipating, was the only response he got. 

Why did he even bother? 

Stars, why was everything going wrong today? First Red being sick, Papyrus going missing, Fox being a dick, Honey and Mutt going missing, Papy and Sans disappearing in a shortcut, and now this? 

It sounded like his luck, but it sucked a lot more than he wanted to admit. 

The stress of it all had his soul swirling inside him in discomfort. Alphys would chase him for hours if she saw how sloppy his dodging had gotten. He was great at running, but Edge was no slouch either, easily keeping pace despite their head start. 

He tried to conjure anything to distract himself from panicking, so he could focus on running. Cinnamon Bunnies, a Kawasaki Ninja with custom decals, bungee jumping, how much he hated Hotland, how much he hated-

“Running, are we?” 

The intrusive thought of his voice nearly brought Blue to a screeching halt. His hesitation was all it took for a bone attack to nearly collide dead on with his skull. 

It took him a second to realize he wasn’t sent flying via bone to cranium. Instead, he had been pushed aside by Fox, only barely stumbling to right himself and keep moving. The other met his sharp stare with a seething glower. 

“We Are In The Last Stretch Of Making It Back And You Decide Now Is The Time To Lose All Capability?!” Fox snapped sharply in that same tone that had been causing Blue to snip at him all day. 

Damn was Fox arrogant. Blue should say as much and let Fox know he wasn’t going to be bullied by a spoiled brat. Or maybe the right move was to ignore him entirely to yell back again and confirm Edge planned to stop attacking once they made it back.

But the memory of flame was already ignited, burning all his carefully built mental defenses to cinders. This always happened when he panicked, this was why he had to keep distracted, to avoid situations like this. He was as good as useless if he let his quirk get the best of him. 

How could he be anyone’s hero if he ran away from the first bit of danger he saw? If he froze in fear at the sight of a stranger. At the memory of the crowds. The applause of unknown monsters all staring at him expectantly. 

“… Blue?”

He couldn’t let himself freeze just like he had under the gaze of the tall monster watching him just offstage. He had to keep moving. 

“Where else would you go, Sans?”  

“I’M FINE,” Blue heard himself say, pushing himself forward. Running was incredibly grounding to him, and by all rights he had no idea why he had thought of-

Another fire bone attack slung past his shoulder, causing Blue to tense. 

Oh. Edge’s magic glowed red like fire. Alphys’ had always been too yellow to mistake for his. That was why. 

“You chose this, remember? Your father would never take you back.” 

Stars, he didn’t have time for this today. 

“You’re my best friend, Sans.” 

Oh, if telling the memory to shut up would work, he definitely, definitely would. Blue hadn’t done hours of research into this camp, the neighboring camps, and who Honey was to end up panicking because of some dumb intrusive thought. 

Stretch had been so impressed with him when he had actually thought Blue was as surprised as the rest of them over Honey being human. 

Sure, he still didn’t know her well enough to actually trust her, but he was interacting with someone new, and that’s what had probably been worrying impressive to Stretch. 

Hoo boy, this was so not the time for this. 

He’d gotten so much better since arriving in Sans’ world. He had a job that he’d gotten on his own, he left the house, he ran for health instead of just Alphys chasing him. 

He was better, damn it. He might not be ready to meet the King of this world, or this world’s version of him, but he had been able to hear them talk from afar without too much panic. 

Damn it, why did trying not to panic only make him panic more? 

He had to be better than this. His worst nightmare was happening: of Stretch and Sans and Papyrus and Mutt and who knew who else was all being taken from him. 

He had to focus. He had to be better. He had to-

“You’re all I have, Sans.”

———- Fox 

Something had happened. Well, besides the obvious of Edge going completely batshit and deciding to run them down the mountain. 

He had thought of calling Edge’s bluff at first, but after Checking Edge, he had quickly concluded that the best course of action was getting back to the cabin as swiftly as possible before something painful - or worse, emotional - occurred.

EDGE LV 5 ATK 40 DEF 40

Doesn’t want to fight, but isn’t sure what else he can do. 

Indulging Edge to his fullest, Fox had ran, rather impressed by the skill Edge had to throw magical attacks while running in such precise ways. Or perhaps the youth had incredible faith in Fox’s ability to dodge? Or maybe he truly was just trying to hit him.

It was best not to linger on that thought.

The three of them must have made quite the spectacle, yet Fox tried not to spare any unnecessary glances towards Blue outside of steadying the man after a near fatal stumble.

That being said, he wasn’t sure what had caught his attention enough for him to notice Blue’s expression. Fox had assumed that Blue, as annoying as he was with his interruptions and verbal sparring, had also properly read the situation.

One look at the skeleton’s distant eye lights confirmed the opposite. 

“Edge!” He had called back as soon as they had passed the trail’s starting point and back into the camp. “We’ve Lost Blue.”

“HE’S RIGHT THERE!” Edge yelled, pointedly gesturing to where Blue ran beside Fox. 

Slowing to a stop, Fox decided to no longer indulge Edge’s desperate attempt at control over the situation.

Predictably, Blue kept running, his eye lights vacant as he passed. 

Edge was beside him in an instant, his gaze untrusting, “DO I HAVE TO FORCE HIM TO STOP?! WE DON’T HAVE TIME AND MUST GET HELP-”

“Yes, I Understand This,” Fox stated clearly to Edge, frustration in his tone. “And I Understand You Are Done With The Fighting And Want Results Now, But Unfortunately We Are All Complex Skeletons With Issues We Continue To Uncover As We Go, And While I Understand The Frustration That Led To Your Actions, I Think You May Have Just Set Off Blue And Whatever His Issues Are.” 

Edge stood agape, “YOU TWO WOULDN’T STOP FIGHTING! WHAT ELSE WOULD HAVE GOTTEN US BACK HERE IN MERE MINUTES?!”

… that far in minutes? Alright that was rather impressive, but beside the point. 

“All Of That Is Unimportant Now,” Fox clarified, admittedly underplaying how poorly he had acted… by a lot.

“Especially If We Want To Avoid Losing Yet Another Skeleton,” he continued regardless. “I Shall Go Grab Him Before He Too Becomes A Burden To The Situation. You May Grab Red And Then We Four Shall Contact Help As You've Stated And Retrieve The Others.”

Edge looked like he would much rather bludgeon Fox across the skull than let Fox wander out of sight, but like it or not Blue was quickly disappearing, despite his jogging pace slowing to a staggering walk. 

It was a sound argument, and he could see Edge ruefully acknowledge it. 

Was it also minor manipulation on his part knowing Edge was probably desperate for the comfort of Red, and Fox desperately wanting to know Blue’s deal so he would have the upper hand against him? 

Well, obviously. 

“SO HELP ME, FOX,” Edge growled warningly. “WE ARE ALL GOING TO TALK AFTER THIS. IF YOU DO ANYTHING TO DISRUPT THINGS EVEN FURTHER, I WILL BE LIVID.” 

“Edge,” Fox placed a hand over his chest, not exactly lying, but perhaps stretching the truth about the good intent behind his motives. 

“You Can Count On Me.” 

Chapter Text

The crunching sound of Fox’s footsteps approaching Blue were as unwelcome as the bombardment of memories he was actively forcing down in his soul.

He could still feel the heat of Hotland. He could almost hear the voices, all speaking in a low murmur, wanting to see his latest project. Something New and Exciting. 

Someone to inspire their dreams, no matter how much it scared him to-

Nope. Nope. Nope. Time to stop that thought. 

Honestly. He needed to get it together. It hadn’t even been that bad. Normal monsters didn’t break down over a bone attack looking a bit too much like a fire whip. Truthfully, the two attacks didn’t even look similar, so he really needed to calm himself.

It had to be the stress of the situation. He just needed a moment. A moment, and then he’d be fine. 

“Blue?” Fox spoke from behind him in a tone Blue could almost mistake for concern. Almost. 

Blue had met several stage performers in his life, and yet Fox continued to be one of the biggest actors he knew. Perhaps even a bigger actor than Blue himself. 

“G- GIVE ME A MOMENT,” Blue spoke as he stumbled to a halt, crouching down and desperately trying to focus on his surroundings instead of- 

“Isn’t this what you wanted, little star?”

And yep, there went his soul sputtering again.

Damn it. Okay, square one. Five things.

The ground under his feet, the wind on his skull, Fox’s footsteps stopping in front of him after having circled to face Blue-

Even with his sockets clenched shut, Blue could practically feel the weight of Fox leering over him as he disrupted his attempt at calming himself, “Is Something The Matter, Blue? I’m Afraid We Don’t Have Time For Whatever This… Issue? Is.”

Screw this guy.

Forcing his sockets back open, Blue managed his best glare up at his dark reflection. “SCREW YOU FOX.”

Fox blinked before managing a sharp bark of laughter. “Screw Me? Oh Wow, I Hadn’t Known You Had It In You To Use Such Mean Words. That Was Nearly A Swear, Blue. I’m Almost Impressed.”

“CAN YOU NOT BE A BRAT FOR A MOMENT AND LET ME BREATHE?” Blue managed to utter, sharp words which were surprisingly steady.

Fox blinked owlishly for a moment, taken aback before glaring. “I Am Not A Brat, And You Don’t Even Have To Breathe.”

Blue shook his skull joylessly, “YOU ARE A BRAT. YOU’RE PICKING AND PRODDING AT ME BECAUSE YOU THINK I’M VULNERABLE RIGHT NOW. THAT IS A JERK THING TO DO.”

Fox cocked his skull to the side. “Making Assumptions About What I’m Doing Is Also A Jerk Thing To Do. You Seem Awfully Determined To Paint Me As Some Kind Of Nefarious Fiend, Only Here To Satisfy My Curiosity.”

“CONFESSING WHAT YOU ARE ACTIVELY DOING AS A WAY TO MAKE ME OUT TO BE THE CRAZY ONE IS BOTH A FORM OF GASLIGHTING AND SIMPLY TOXIC AS HELL.” Blue steadied himself with his increasing frustration. “DON’T PRETEND YOU CARE, FOX.”

Fox stared silently, as if thoughtfully weighing his words. Blue expected something out of left field, though it was still surprising to him that instead of something well-thought and full of barely hidden resentment, Fox instead simply stated, “Fine.”

Tutting softly for a moment, Fox kneeled down to Blue’s crouched form to meet his eye lights directly. “While I Don’t Necessarily Like You, And Have No Idea Why You Felt The Need To Involve Yourself In My Brother’s Life, I Have Found Myself Caring About A Lot Of Things I Usually Would Feel Are Unimportant And Beneath Me.”

Fox’s eye lights narrowed as he continued, “Your Current State Is One Of Those Things.” His bone ridge furrowed, his eye lights briefly distant. “And While Curiosity Is A Large Part Of It, I’d Rather Not Waste Time Or Effort Playing This Game Much Longer.”

“THIS ISN’T A GAME,” Blue corrected. “LIFE ISN’T A GAME.” The words that escaped his teeth were well rehearsed, though not for his current audience.

“Then Why Are There So Clearly Winners?” Fox mused aloud, then shook his skull at Blue’s expression which boiled down to ‘fucking really’.

“Never Mind, That Thought Isn’t Important,” Fox interjected before Blue had a chance to respond. “What Is Important Is How Incredibly Irritating You Have Made The Sound Of My Own Voice Become With Your Use Of It. That The Mere Sight Of You Makes Me Feel Discontent And Violent In A Way I Don’t Fully Recognize, When I Am Normally Perfectly Well Versed In The Ways Of My Own LV. The Fact That I Now Even Have An Opinion Of You Is An Incredible Burden That I Do Not Wish To Carry.”

“THEN RID YOURSELF OF THE BURDEN AND GO AWAY.” Blue snapped, stumbling away from Fox and standing. “AND TREAT YOUR BROTHER BETTER WHILE YOU’RE AT IT.”

Fox remained kneeling, gazing up at Blue fiercely. “You Voicing On Matters That Do Not Involve You Is Exactly What I Am Referring To. How Is It You Even Became This Way? Is A Coddled And Sheltered Life Truly All It Takes To Turn Someone Like Myself So Soft And Weak?”

Blue ran his hands over his skull in frustration. “JUST BECAUSE I WASN’T FORCED TO KILL DOESN’T MEAN I WAS CODDLED, AND JUST BECAUSE I’M KIND DOESN’T MEAN I WAS SHELTERED. IF ANYTHING, IT JUST MAKES YOU SEVERELY TRAUMATIZED. HOW YOU AND MUTT MANAGED TO AVOID THE MANDATORY THERAPY THE FELLS GOT IS BEYOND ME.” 

“By Having Manners And Courtly Behavior, Clearly,” Fox answered, also standing, brushing dirt from his patella. 

“STOP ANSWERING ME. I DON’T WANT TO TALK TO YOU.” 

Blue was done. He needed distance from Fox now, or this was going to get ugly fast.

Arguing really was the last thing he needed to be doing. He had tried to give himself a moment to calm himself, and now he needed to find help for his brother. Sure, he wasn’t actually all that calm now thanks to Fox, but some much-needed distance would help with that.

With a determined stride, Blue turned towards the cabins. Edge was probably getting Red, so he just needed to get to the emergency phone, find Honey, call for help, and not punch Fox square in the fucking teeth.

“Well I’m Afraid Now Is The Only Time That Works For Me,” Fox called after him. “Because After This Discussion, I Think We Can Finally Return You To Being Unmentionable And Barely There. Someone We Both Know Sans Dislikes, And Is Hardly Noticeable To The Rest Of Us.” 

Blue stopped, taking a deep breath. Fox wasn’t worth this.

“I Mean, Just Watching You Day By Day Be Such An Obvious Tryhard Is Frankly Embarrassing To Watch. At This Point, Even Your Brother Is-”

Blue had never struck anyone out of anger before, but he would bet everything he had that Fox was no stranger to pissing people off. He proved as much when Blue lashing out, magic coating his fist, resulted in Fox effortlessly ducking out of the way, swiping at Blue’s legs with his own and knocking him to the ground.

Blue fumbled to stand, glaring, as for the second time today he was thrown into an encounter. 

THIS STORM HAS BEEN BREWING

Blue wasn’t sure which of them had technically started the fight, or whose turn it even was, but it was like a dam of tension had exploded as he summoned his axe, gripped it in both hands, and charged. 

It looked as though he wasn’t the only one who could summon bone weapons though, as Fox met him in stride, conjuring an ivory rapier glistening with purple magic in his left hand.

Fox was nothing like Alphys, who charged with unrelenting brute strength behind every hit. He was more dexterous, swiftly lunging with near fatal accuracy.

Blue swung wildly, which gave Fox the opportunity to parry the blow and catch the blade with his own, holding it in place with a strength he didn’t expect from wielding a singlehanded weapon. He also didn’t expect to see Fox summon another bone in his off hand and strike for his rib cage.

Instinctively, Blue released his weapon and jumped UP, lightening his gravity to speed his ascent.

He couldn’t shortcut like Stretch, but he could avoid being hit in other ways. 

Fox, while good at dodging, didn’t seem to expect the sudden absence of Blue. The force behind his sword and bone attack slammed together, cleaving Blue’s axe in two.

Fox regained his footing and glanced up just in time to notice Blue increasing his gravity drastically, bringing his heel down across Fox’s skull with a smashing blow Blue called ‘The Meteor Strike’. Fox skidded backwards through the dirt, colliding with a thwack against a nearby tree. 

Adjusting his gravity that much drained a lot of his magic reservoir, and yet Blue still felt charged with crackling energy as he stood his ground, daring Fox to stand. 

Unfortunately for him, Fox did. Brushing bark and leaves from his shirt, Fox tilted his skull as a purple sheen of magic briefly flashed over Fox’s sockets. He adjusted his stance and looked Blue over analytically. “Ah, So That’s The Play… If I Were You Blue, I’d Surrender Now. I Had No Intentions Of Escalating This.”

Picking up his broken weapon, Blue channeled another burst of magic into the split halves, turning the once large axe into smaller hand axes of similar power. “LIAR,” Blue accused with a grimace. “THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANTED.” 

Fox grinned, a soulless joy to it that sent a shiver up Blue’s spine. “Maybe.” 

And with that, he charged. 

——— Edge

Watching the bright colors of blue and purple magic flash across the campground, Edge shook his skull in exasperation. 

Yeah… that’s about how he expected that to go. If this was a video game, he could probably even hear the battle music from here. At least they were out of the way and in a place he could easily locate now. 

Knocking on the cabin door, Edge kept his words short and precise. “BROTHER, WAKE UP.”

A grumbling rumble spoke something unintelligible from inside. 

“THE CHILDREN FELL, RED.” 

A loud and heavy THUMP sounded, and within the next second, Red - shirtless, sweating and still blinding white - threw the door open, horror in his sockets. “The fuck you mean they fell?!?”

Edge crossed his arms, “THEY FELL INTO A HOLE AND WE NEED HELP GETTING THEM OUT.” 

Red blinked, then his posture slumped and his hands ran over his face. “Fuck… lead with that next time bro, I was about to lose my shit.” 

Edge sighed, “YOU STILL MIGHT, IT’S AN INCREDIBLY DEEP HOLE. STRETCH WENT IN AFTER SANS WHO WENT IN AFTER PAPYRUS, AND MAYBE MUTT’S DOWN THERE TOO, IT’S HARD TO SAY.” 

Red stepped back into the cabin, presumably getting dressed. “And Honey?”

“SHE LEFT WITH MUTT, SO SHE’S EITHER IN THE HOLE OR GETTING MORE HUMAN HELP.” Edge supplied, watching as a rather large bone attack soared wide in the distance. 

“And Blue and Fox?” Red asked, stepping back outside, shoes and shirt now equipped. He still looked awful, but at least he knew how this version of his brother could be helpful. 

Edge snorted, gesturing to the magic attacks in the distance, “THE INTERNALIZED SELF HATRED AND JEALOUSY FINALLY GOT THE BEST OF THEM.”

Red frowned, “Damn, I thought we’d at least have another week before that train wreck crashed.” He glanced at Edge, “I’m surprised you didn’ knock their skulls together for that.” 

“CONTRARY TO POPULAR BELIEF, I DON’T ACTUALLY LIKE BEING HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR EVERY IRRESPONSIBLE SKELETON MONSTER THAT STUMBLES INTO MY LIFE,” Edge sniffed, offended. 

Red looked Edge over uncertainly, “You already tried, huh?” 

Edge threw his hands up, “IT GOT EMOTIONAL, AND YOU KNOW I’M BAD WITH OTHER MONSTERS’ EMOTIONS!!!” 

“Blue or Fox?” 

Edge stared at Red as his brother winced under the sunlight. “WHAT?”

Red shrugged, stepping away from the cabin to look at the fight in the distance. “Who got emotional first? Blue or Fox?” 

“BLUE,” Edge answered warily. 

Red stared at the flares of light that informed them both that blasters had now gotten involved. “Eh, it’ll be fine then.” 

“FINE? JUST LIKE THAT, YOU SAY IT’LL BE FINE???” Edged gaped. “YOU AREN’T PISSED IN THE SLIGHTEST?”

“Oh, don’ get me wrong bro,” Red chuckled darkly, his eye lights briefly disappearing. “I’m f u r i o u s.” Then Red scratched at his skull with a sigh, “But like, time and place. I had a feeling those two were gonna duke it out eventually, and hell, at Blue’s age I woulda lost it a lot sooner.” 

“AND FOX’S AGE?” Edge asked knowingly. 

Red shook his skull, “Yah can’t compare Sea Tea to Glamburgers.”

Edge was lost. Did Red see Blue as closer to him than Fox? He’d thought Fox would be- you know what? Sea Tea to Glamburgers. Sure. Why the hell not? If Red was certain it would be fine, then fine. 

Pinching his nasal ridge in frustration, Edge sighed, “OKAY, THAT’S FINE. WE REALLY DON’T HAVE TIME TO GET INTO THAT... LET’S JUST GO TO THE MAIN CABIN AND GET SOME RO-”

“Edge!!! Red!!!”

The voice was clearly Honey calling out to them, but as Edge turned to face the human, he found himself absolutely captivated by the majestic beast carving its path towards him. 

Sure sure, there was Honey on a brown mare with some strange human riding a pinto horse beside her, but charging towards them, muscles flexing powerfully as its hooves impacted the ground leaving only a dust cloud in its wake, was a pure black stallion. 

The horse’s rider appeared to be a human, dressed in dark riding clothes as if to match the natural beauty and aesthetic of their unparalleled beast. 

The horse slowed to a trot and was dismounted, yet Edge was transfixed by the stunning creature. 

A noble steed who flinched not in the face of danger and panic. Its dark eyes displayed the heart of a warrior and the intelligence of the finest general. 

How unworthy they all must be in its gaze, but surely, its rider knew that this creature allowing them to sit upon it was the highest honor a living being could be granted. 

This dark and terrible and- 

“Bro?” Red spoke, nudging him. 

Edge blinked. “WHAT?”

Red glanced at Edge, then at The Horse. “…yeah, I should have seen that coming,” Red muttered. 

Honey patted a large duffel bag strapped to a saddle before scurrying towards them both, with the other humans following in tow. She looked to Edge with furrowed brows, “I thought I told y’all to stay put?”

Snapping out of his revery, Edge narrowed his sockets. “WE BECAME INCREDIBLY CONCERNED BY THE LACK OF COMMUNICATION SENT OUR WAY. UNFORTUNATELY, ON OUR WAY DOWN WE SAW THE CAUSE OF THE SITUATION AND STRETCH HAD TO PURSUE SANS DOWN THE HOLE.” 

Honey swore quick and sharp, running a hand through her hair. “Shit. Tell me the rest of y’all are accounted for?” 

Red nodded, gesturing towards the attacks in the distance. “Blue and Fox are uh… letting off some steam at the moment.” 

Her brows nearly shot sky high, “They’re fighting?! At a time like this?” 

“Just sparring!” Red lied quickly.

The Prince of Darkness and Destruction and Radiance’s rider spoke up. They had brown skin and long dark hair, and a rare androgynous look that Edge hadn’t seen in many humans. Surely, they had been chosen by the beast to compliment its appearance. “Perhaps someone should inform them help has arrived?” 

The secondary human still upon his horse was a rounded, blonde, and soft-looking man that Edge instantly clocked as the ranger. He glanced to where Red had pointed, frowning, “That looks quite violent, are you sure it’s just sparring?”

“Yep.” Red spoke firmly. “Nothing to worry about at all huma- uh…” Red cut himself off, looking uncertainly at Honey. 

Honey gestured quickly, “That’s Ranger Morgan, and Counselor Quinn from a neighboring camp. Luckily the Ranger had been at their camp for a check-in when I left for help, and Quinn lent us horses to get up the trail faster. They also offered to come help us out.”

“Well, what are we waitin’ around for?” Red gestured to the rest. “Let’s get this show on the road!”

Honey held a hand up, “Red, I’m gonna have to ask you both to stay put. You are still sick, and this could be a potentially dangerous rescue.”

“THEN MORE REASON TO BRING US,” Edge chimed in. “HAVING MAGIC IN AN EMERGENCY SITUATION CAN BE VITAL.” 

Red nodded, “I ain’t gonna get any less sick here or there. We’ll stand back and everything if you need that, but like hell am I not goin’ with.” 

Honey bit her lip, glancing between the two humans with her before cursing. “Fine. Get on.” Red’s sockets went wide as Honey dragged him to her steed. “But you’ll be keeping your distance with the horses when we get close.”

Red replied something, but Edge was lost to the absolutely wonderful sight which was Councilor Quinn mounting their horse again, and offering their hand to Edge. 

Fighting the sudden butterflies in his rib cage, Edge suppressed his urge to yell ‘HOLY FUCK’. This was serious. 

Though as he was pulled up onto the beast by the human, he simply had to ask. “WHAT IS THEIR-”

“We call them, Apocalypse,” Quinn answered with a smirk. 

… life was so unfair. 

Edge had never been more disappointed in his whole damn life. Papyrus had been right. The equestrian camp would have been so much cooler. 

——— Fox 

Blue was a surprisingly skilled opponent. It was probably the closest Fox had ever been to being fully convinced that Blue was indeed a version of himself. 

Blue flung magic attacks with a grace that spoke of training, but with a wild edge that reeked of fear. 

Just another thing that was, frankly, pissing him off. His LV burned from within him, reminding him of who he truly was. Of the way he had fought so many times. 

He would goad his opponents into making sloppy moves, not just to win the fight, but to savor it. There was a certain brand of cruelty that he had reveled in. He would remain calm while the person he was fighting would slowly cave in to their panic, then he would give them just enough signs to realize he could have ended them at any moment - even if it wasn’t true - just to see the hope drain from their eyes. 

Fox had once treasured fights like these… That is how he knew that something fundamental inside him had changed. 

He had wanted this. He had wanted to say whatever it took to get Blue to finally snap. To see what was behind the perfect star lights in his sockets and his devoted brother act. To see how this peaceful version of himself could bare his teeth and snarl. 

Only… Blue wasn’t snarling, and now that he thought of it, he hadn’t seen stars in Blue’s eye lights for quite some time.

Instead, it had nearly shook him to his core to notice the tears that fell from Blue’s sockets. What was more shocking was how bad it all made him feel. 

Blue’s attacks slowly became sluggish, and while Fox had held the upper hand in this fight for a good while yet, he couldn’t bring himself to end the encounter. 

Purple magic grew in strength the longer a fight continued, made one faster, made them stronger, or with how Fox used it, helped him see clearer. 

Stats, move patterns, and yes, if a fight lasted long enough, his opponent’s Soul. 

He hadn’t expected to see Blue’s soul shaking beneath the bone, nor the fracture straight down the center. 

Blue was blocking the swing of his rapier and Fox could nearly see the ghostly images of two paths before him: 

He could see himself take advantage of the shake in Blue’s right grip, disarming at least one of Blue’s weapons and plunging his blade through his ribs and straight into the cracked soul until nothing but dust remained. 

He could also see himself sidestepping Blue, grabbing Blue’s wrists and squeezing his weakened hands until both the weapons fell and forced his surrender. 

He was reaching a crucial point where he had to decide. 

The delusion of being justified in his wrath, or the truth of what he was doing. Of what he had to face. 

Damn it. 

His body reacted, but thankfully not in habit as he disarmed Blue and the axes fell to the dirt. 

Blue struggled in his grasp, and tugged against Fox’s grip. A spluttered shout escaped Blue, “LET GO OF ME!” reminding Fox instantly and painfully of just what he was doing. 

He never claimed to be a good monster. The evidence was clear in the way he felt all too much his father’s son in this moment. He remembered how The Hands of Death dealt with threats and was caught by his own immaturity. 

He was disgraceful. Hardly better than his father. 

“Yield.” Fox growled. This fight had been his fault, his prompting, but he was too vain to admit that truth aloud. 

“I HATE YOU,” Blue’s voice warbled. It didn’t matter that Fox was nearly certain the words weren’t just for him, but the ghost of whoever or whatever had placed that crack into Blue’s soul.

“Get familiar with hatred, it will serve you much better than any other,” his father had said.

Fox hated that he had just proven that man right. 

They were still in a formal encounter, but Blue made no other use of his turn. 

Fox CHECKED him, needing to see the damage. 

BLUE LV 0 ATK 50 DEF 20

Just wants to feel safe. 

… 3/250 HP. Fox had brought Blue down to 3 HP. Sure, Blue had brought Fox down to 20 HP, but Fox’s last attack would have killed him. It would have fucking killed him.

“…”

Fox let go of Blue, taking a step back. He didn’t want to FIGHT anymore. He had started this, but his coward soul couldn’t face what he had done. 

“…”

He SPARED Blue. 

“…”

And the encounter faded them back to light. 

“… WHY DID YOU SPARE ME?” 

Because Fox had been ignoring his own soul for so damn long that he knew that if he pulled it out, the cracks it held would outnumber Blue’s tenfold. 

“Shame, Mostly,” Fox answered softly. “I Shouldn’t Have Done This.” 

“THEN WHY DID YOU?” 

Fox limped a few steps on shaking bones. His femur ached. Where normally he could tolerate the pain of where Mutt had once injured him as a badge of honor, the guilt of this whole encounter made the chronic pain too much to bear. 

Fox sat, his new shorts once more coated in dirt, breaking the tense silence. “Because I Love My Brother More Than Anything In This World Or The Previous,” he confessed. “And Encountering The Fear That Perhaps I Might Lose Him To Someone Who Had More To Offer Had Never Occurred To Me Before.”

“…”

“…” 

Footsteps crunched the soil as Blue was suddenly sat beside him, scuffed and mildly dust coated himself. Fox didn’t need to look at him to know Blue was staring. 

“WHY DID YOU JUST TELL ME THAT?” Blue asked, distrust and weariness in his tone. 

“Because I Prompted You Into Fighting Me Because I’m, As You Put It, ‘Traumatized And In Need Of Desperate Therapy’.” Fox mused tiredly. 

“… I ATTACKED YOU. THAT WAS MY CHOICE,” Blue spoke firmly. 

Fox shook his skull, “You Were Having A Panic Attack And I Jumped At The Chance To Use It Against You When Truthfully…”

Oh hell, Fox was... He was stupid, wasn’t he?? 

Fox placed his skull into his hands, “I’ve Never Had Reason To Dislike Any Of You, Have I?” Why was this so groundbreaking? Why had it taken this long for him to realize you don’t need a reason to treat others fairly?? That maybe Blue hadn’t had nefarious intentions of stealing his brother? 

His mind was fixated on what Blue’s stats had said. He just wants to be safe? That was all Fox had wanted once. To be safe. Yet somewhere he had gotten it in his skull that the only way he could do that was through control. Having the upper hand before someone else could take advantage of you. Steal from you. Hurt you. 

In the process, Fox had become the very monster he had tried to protect Mutt from. 

“You Didn’t Deserve That…” Fox confessed. He was a coward who ran from his emotions, ran from the warnings of his soul, and yet still preached like he knew better than most. Yet… He owed Blue this much. 

“i’m sorry,” Fox spoke quietly… The words were foreign in his mouth, but they didn’t burn his soul as he nearly feared. For the first time in forever… It almost felt a milligram lighter. 

Blue said nothing to him, and he didn’t blame him. He was older than Blue and really should have-

“I’M SORRY TOO,” Blue said, causing Fox to look over in shock. 

Blue’s skull was scuffed with dirt from their fight, and his freckles held no glow due to magic depletion amplifying his exhaustion. 

“Why?!” Fox asked incredulously. 

Blue looked away, sighing softly, “BECAUSE YOU AREN’T WHO I THOUGHT YOU WERE, EITHER. DON’T GET ME WRONG, I’M STILL INCREDIBLY UPSET RIGHT NOW… AND I WILL PUNCH YOU INCREDIBLY HARD IF YOU EVER TALK BADLY ABOUT MY BROTHER AGAIN-”

Fox held his hands up in surrender, “I Actually Don’t Mind Stretch Outside Of His Shared Drug Habit With Mutt. I Truly Just Wanted To Upset You Into Combat.”

Blue frowned, “I HAD A FEELING, BUT MY STANCE STILL STANDS. INSULT HIM, WE FIGHT. PREFERABLY NOT THIS BADLY EVER AGAIN THOUGH…”

“Agreed,” Fox easily concurred. 

They sat in silence for another brief stretch of time. 

“DO…” Blue spoke up again, nearly startling Fox. “WOULD YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT THIS MORE ON A RUN SOMETIME?”

Fox blinked, “I Nearly Killed You, And You Are Inviting Me To Your Morning Routine?”

Blue chuckled, low and tired, “YEAH, I GUESS I’M TAKING THE PAPYRUS ROUTE OF THINGS… YOU AREN’T WHO I THOUGHT YOU WERE AND… I GUESS IF YOU WANT TO SHOW ME YOU’RE ACTUALLY SORRY, I KIND OF WANT TO GIVE YOU A CHANCE.” 

“You Mean Saying I’m Sorry Once Out Loud Isn’t All There Is To An Apology?” Fox asked curiously. 

Blue glared at him. 

“I’m Joking,” Fox clarified hastily. 

Blue sighed, then surprising Fox even further, leaned tiredly against him, practically collapsing against his side. 

“I THINK WE SHOULD LEAVE THE JOKING TO OUR BROTHERS,” Blue snorted. 

And something in the way Blue said ‘OUR BROTHERS’ scratched Fox’s skull, and sank full understanding into his soul. 

Ah. It appears that yes, Fox was in fact…

Rather dumb. 

——— Red 

The world felt woozy in a way Red had thought only eight shots of fire whiskey could make him feel, but he had managed the feat of not only staying on the horse, but also not throwing up all over himself.

Never, ever, ever again was he going to let the guys out of his sight if this was the shit that they would get into. And if that meant he spewed chunks out of his sockets over all of them, then they would just have to deal.

Watching from beside the horses, Red warily kept an eye on the humans as they secured mountain climbing gear in place and yelled down the hole, supposedly shouting to Stretch and the others below.

Edge stood beside him, still petting the black horse with R.B.F. fondly as he too observed the humans’ work.

“SHOULD WE HAVE LEFT THOSE TWO BACK THERE?” Edge asked, interrupting their tense silence.

Red shrugged, pushing back another wave of nausea, “Fox is oblivious as hell, but if Blue is that close to breaking, he’ll figure it out soon enough.”

Edge raised a bone ridge skeptically. “FIGURE WHAT OUT?”

Red’s reply was momentarily delayed by the sharp breath that escaped him at the sight of Honey pulling up the skeletal hand of Mutt. One by one, Red’s soul settled with the feeling of ‘Thank the fucking stars’ as he saw his boys exit from the hole.

They looked tired, and soaked, and hell did Papyrus look… beat the fuck up in ways he would process later, but they were alive and safely back above ground.

Relief like nothing else Red had ever known caught in his soul, but he tried his best to push it aside for just a moment to answer his brother.

“Nothing sucks more than making your brother cry.”

——— Stretch 

Halfway back to camp, Sans had passed out stone cold, and Stretch reluctantly handed him over to Edge, who boldly and bluntly stated that Stretch “LOOKED LIKE SHIT.”

Papyrus, much to his delight had been moved onto Honey’s horse, a mare apparently named Buttercup of all things. While seeing Papyrus scratched to all hell and wincing with every jerky movement of the horse was rough, it was at least comforting to see a smile on the kid’s skull.

They traveled back in silence, with Honey sternly informing them that there would be one hell of a talk for all of them later tonight, but Stretch knew it was needed.

The sight of Blue and Fox walking together outside of the main cabin talking softly nearly sent Stretch running to them. They both somehow looked in even worse shape than Stretch. It was only the smile Blue had brightly on his skull when he spotted him that kept Stretch in his place.

Blue didn’t seem to be in any current danger… Okay, that was good. He didn’t have to absolutely kick the shit out of Fox… Maybe.

At least they were all safe now… Stretch was so relieved that he didn’t notice what was wrong until it was too late. He watched Blue stiffen, staring towards them in absolute terror.

“Shit.”

Blue had spotted both Quinn and Morgan beside Stretch as they approached. Blue stumbled backwards for only a moment before panic froze him in place. Fox turned to look at Blue in confusion and growing fear, seeming to speak something to him.

Stretch shortcut to his brother’s side just in time to catch him as his brother fainted in fright, his HP, as it tended to do at the sight of most strangers, dropping automatically to 1.

Chapter Text

Story 1: From The Void

In the space between worlds, you’d think there would be nothing. One would assume that the seemingly endless empty that ranged from dark, darker, and even darker yet would be devoid of life. 

And yet there were those that lingered and carved out sections of their own. Entities that held no true home, except for this vast space. 

There are entities of good and evil in the void. They vary greatly, from deities to parasites to souls abandoned by their worlds. The full extent of what looms, calls, and slithers its way, unseen by the rest, is unknown. 

Things that should not exist… so they do. At least here. 

One such being is more awake than he ever has been, as he plucks at the wall of a world he cannot fully cross his way into. His… hand, for lack of a better term, tugs at the fabric of this reality, trying to comprehend the sight before him. 

Somewhere in that universe, one of his sons collapses, while another son cries out sharply in fear. A younger son lifts the collapsed one. 

Three sons? 

He was fairly certain he had only had two…? Oh no, wait, that was THAT universe. He had almost forgotten again… That would not be good. It had taken so long for HIM to surface the last time. 

Fragments of himself ooze on top of each other, and five of them begin to align. Black and white substance drips, coalescing into an indecipherable amorphous mass. It had been Ages-Eons-Lifetimes since they cared to keep track of what belonged to whom. Clothing? Bone?  Whose clothing? Whose bone? 

It doesn’t matter, it all drips and merges regardless. 

His… his sons. Yes, he remembered those ones. Eight sons, soon to be ten. The ones he had wronged the most…  all of those ones were…. Hurt-Fractured-Abandoned-Confused-Lost. 

Because of him? Yes… because of them. 

A part of himself cried. Not enough of him to cry outwardly of course, but that was normal. Thank goodness the majority had to agree for true sorrow to surface, otherwise there would be no end to the torment they inflicted upon each other.

Endless screaming proves fruitless when they had yet to discover an end. 

Splatting flat against the barrier to the reality they now rested on, he pondered on how rare it was for them all to agree, least of all with the original. The one who had done this to them. Ripped them all from their points of time, from life and from death, only to become… t h i s. 

It had taken them Always-Forever-Never to get to the point they had reached now. 

The screaming and thrashing when they had realized they were trapped in the  v o i d  between worlds had lasted twice as long. 

Stuck. Stuck. And stuck. They looped loudly, and violently snatched their claws onto random points in time and space, grasping helplessly at the empty, and violently destroying nothing at all as they lacked the solidity to touch. 

They had snarled at those who also lived in the void, only to be ignored and avoided. Unable to create, or truly feel emotions; merely thousands of crystallized, morphing memories of a soul variant in a singular form. Corruption contained. Not even to be registered as an error in need of purging. Self-embodied contradiction. Simply, there-not-there.

They had been formless, loud, and desperate. 

Until all-at-once-yet-never, He had settled. 

Motivation - built of what had once been Love, Compassion and Grief - had made one of them louder than the rest, and the others fell into place. 

He had left something precious behind. Almost all of them had, but He refused to let their apathy let Him forget. 

So many of them screamed for release, but few had been ready to settle for the alternative. 

It made no difference what they thought, though. The once-four-now-five were now one…  Desire became a powerful force that, united, they now used to sway the rest.

Five against thousands weren’t normally amazing odds, but each of them held dominion by the sheer fact they could agree. That they had a plan. A deal. Love. Hope. Determination. 

They watched, as they tried to do as often as possible. So many sons… hurt and lost. Four of Him melted back to focus on controlling the rest of themselves, leaving only one to be their sight. 

A sound escaped the poor creature as he tried to reach out of the void, his magic merely flickering the lights instead of reaching his unconscious son. 

“. . . ♌︎●︎◆︎♏︎♌︎♓︎❒︎♎︎ . . .”

He wasn’t a fighter or scientist. He had been a father. 

A low growl reverberated, loud and threatening, until He realized it was coming from himself. 

HE was right. Now was not the time for sorrow. 

Soon, they would be united. 

Soon, their plan would be complete. 

Soon… They could collapse under the weight of the others. And return to being all there was remaining in any universe, of W.D. GASTER. 

Until then… he would wait. 

Sounds distinctly neither human nor monster echoed into the void as the wretched creature keened. 

Loud, yet unheard. Thousands, yet entirely alone. 

Story 2:  Blue and the Mad Piper’s Flame

Once upon a time, there was a young charming skeleton who, one day, would be commonly referred to as Blue. 

Blue grew up living in a peaceful home by the river in Hotland. He lived with his father, his mother, and someday soon, his darling little brother Papyrus. 

His father was a wonderful man who had the very important job of carrying monsters from all over the underground across the river. Which regrettably meant that, since Blue’s mother was with souling and needed his father’s passive magic, Blue would more often than not be left alone. 

His father dressed in a cloak of patchwork colors and patterns, would pack up early in the morning with Blue’s sleepily star-cloaked mother, and give Blue a cheeky grin. 

Blue had heard his father say his next words so often, he could recite them in his sleep. 

“Don’t fly too far away, my little Bluebird,” his father would warn, nuzzling Blue’s skull. “We’ll be back before you know it.” 

“HOW LONG UNTIL PAPY CAN STAY HOME TOO?” Blue had asked, like the lonely child he had been.

“It Will Be A Few More Years Before Your Sibling’s Soul Is Ready To Greet The World,” his mother would admit softly, resting her hand above her upper rib cage. “But They’ll Be Here Before You Know It. Then You’ll Be Yelling At Them To Leave You Alone.”

Blue would puff out his cheek bones in a magical pout. “NUH UH! PAPY AND I WILL BE BEST FRIENDS FOREVER.” 

His parents shared a fond look, secretive and knowing. “We’re glad to hear it Sans… Now remember-”

“DON’T TALK TO STRANGERS, DON’T LEAVE THE YARD, AND DON’T FLY AWAY,” Blue had repeated dutifully. “I’M NOT A BABY BONES ANYMORE.” 

“Of course not!” his father would grin. “You are the Great and Magnificent Sans.”

“EVEN THE GREAT AND MAGNIFICENT SANS DOES GET BORED THOUGH…” Blue admitted with a sigh. 

His father’s face would grow fuzzy over the years, but Blue would remember the frown of concern in detail. His father wasn’t a frowner. “Perhaps you have schoolwork-”

“I GRADUATED ALL THE SCHOOLING IN THE AREA ALREADY.”

His mother would reach out to comfortingly rub his skull, “Maybe You Could Have Friends Over-”

“THEY LEFT THEIR STRIPES AND LEFT FOR COLLEGE IN THE CAPITAL A FEW YEARS AGO, MOTHER… THE NEW STRIPES SAY I’M TOO OLD AND LAME TO PLAY WITH THEM.”

His mother frowned, clearly displeased, while his father would huff, “Well that’s just plain rude of them.”

Blue could only shrug, “IT’S JUST HOW THEY ARE. I’ll BE FINE AS ALWAYS, FATHER.” Reaching out for the both of them, Blue attempted to hug them simultaneously.  “JUST COME HOME SOON PLEASE?”

Without hesitation, they both would return the hug tightly, “We will certainly try, Bluebird.”

And then Blue would wait.

Like usual…

Blue was an expert at waiting, really. Waiting for his parents to return, waiting for his friends to come back cooler and more mature than him, waiting for the true depth of his isolation to hit him, and most of all waiting to grow up. 

His parents had done all he could to prevent Blue’s boredom. Their home was a haven for any monster made of Creativity, Dreams, and Wonder. The halls of their home were a canvas for Blue to paint in any swirl of colors his soul desired. Their guest room had long ago been turned into a music room, and Blue’s room was near to bursting with puzzles from all over the underground. That wasn’t even mentioning the fact their living room housed shelves of every kind of book, craft supply, and game his mother could get her hands on… only…

Blue had done it all. There was no more space to paint, he’d read every book they had, learned every instrument his father had brought home, and had made every craft at least fifteen times. 

He could only knit so many scarfs, fold so many cranes, bead so many bracelets and draw so many pictures before even his most unique designs would feel… the same. Predictable. Boring. 

He missed his mother being home. She had always known what to do to keep him occupied. She had made everything feel fun, and never had he felt lonely with her by his side. 

But she was gone constantly now, and every time she left, she would take all the fun and joy in Blue’s life with her. 

All he could do was wait for them to come back… and of course Blue was… the best… at waiting. 

“SIGH…” Blue had said aloud sitting on the short fence around his home. The fence was technically part of the yard so he hadn’t counted it as leaving. A taste of freedom without any consequences. 

Or, well, it shouldn’t have had any consequences. 

It was the cute little toots and twees that caught his attention first. A singular shrill whistle that heralded the rest echoed across the cavern, signaling the start of other such adorable sounds. 

Leaning forward on the fence, Blue had rubbed at his sockets in shock as he saw fire. Or, more specifically, a bunch of tiny fire sprites marching down the road in front of his house in an actual parade of multicolored flames and noises. The tiny wisps would bend and twist in the unmistakable snaps of dancing. Their round forms were only vaguely humanoid, reminding him of teddy bears with overstuffed tummies and smaller legs and arms. 

“HUH,” he had said. That was new, and when you were as bored as he was, new was everything. 

He had grown so absorbed in the tiny parade that he had entirely missed the larger monster approaching, until shined polished shoes casually stepped on a sprite, absorbing it into the larger flame in an instant. 

Eye lights growing wide, Blue’s gaze trailed up from the shoe to the well-dressed fire elemental bent down inches away from his skull. Spiral glasses could barely contain the heat of the fiery presence fixed upon him.

“Boo~” the elemental had spoken in a crisp crackle. 

Blue had huffed, acting as if he was unimpressed. He was incredibly impressed, but there was no need to show it. “YOU ARE HARDLY SCARY.” 

The fire elemental cackled in a sharp popping hiss of a laugh as he straightened. “Is that so, little bones?”

“I AM NOT THAT LITTLE, EITHER,” Blue corrected dryly, leaning back. 

“Oh~? Do excuse me for being incorrect then, cuz you do look little from way up here.” 

Blue sighed, turning to look away from the strange monster. Oh yes, a short joke. Like he hadn’t heard those before. “HARDLY LITTLE ENOUGH NOT TO KNOW THE RULE OF ‘DON’T TALK TO STRANGERS’.” 

The stranger in question tilted his head curiously. “What wise advice that is! Truly, how lucky we are that you and I, little star-” the elemental leaned closer, conspiratorially, “-are not strangers at all!” 

It took effort for Blue not to snort. “I THINK I’D REMEMBER BEFRIENDING A GIANT FIRE ELEMENTAL.”

Removing his top hat, the monster fiddled with the ribbon around its base as if suddenly disinterested in the conversation all together. “Oh, you probably wouldn’t,” he consoled. “Now, how about a small elemental? Constrained to a mere lantern as he was bravely protected from the perils of Waterfall?” 

Blue blinked his sockets owlishly. Now, that did sound familiar. A lantern? Waterfall? 

He could remember it like it was merely yesterday. His Father once would let Blue travel with him in the boat for special trips. 

A fire elemental crossing Snowden to Hotland had been such a case. Blue had been tasked with holding the striped lantern while his mother held the umbrella for Mr. Heats Flamesman and his father steered. 

Twenty-four and happy to help, Blue carefully protected the lantern from every drip-drop and splash Waterfall had to offer. “DON’T WORRY FRIEND!! I’VE GOT US!!” Blue had cheered to the small flame. 

Upon arriving safely to Hotland, Mr. Heats Flamesman had thanked them all, opening the lantern for a small shapeless flame to bound out and circle Blue energetically. 

The ball of fire had hardly stayed still long enough for Mr. Flamesman to wrap a red and yellow scarf around it fondly. 

“MAMA, CAN WE PLAY?!” Blue had yelled excitedly. His mother smiled sleepily and had waved the two off as he and the flame had raced and hid around the nearby area. Blue created a fun world of make-believe for them, where Blue and the flame were knights, then superheroes, then waiters, and even royalty, until their guardians called them to go home. 

A year would pass before Blue would find his friend again. 

A sharp and fast knock at his bedroom window would wake him, causing Blue to peer blearily from his window. A vaguely humanoid shape in overalls, small and glowing orange, had peered back, beckoning for Blue to join him. 

Without sparing any more thought, Blue had crawled from his first-floor window to join his friend. 

His friend had mirrored him, momentarily showing his new skill in shaping his form. The limbs were incredibly undefined, and sometimes would flicker out, but it was incredibly impressive for his age! 

Only… 

Blue had noticed instantly what was missing. “WHERE ARE YOUR STRIPES?” 

His friend couldn’t speak yet, but Blue could somehow tell from how the flame smoked he’d upset his friend. They had gestured to Blue’s striped pajama shirt, signing that Blue should throw it away. 

“BUT WE CAN’T DO THAT,” Blue had gaped in mild horror. “YOU GROW AS SLOW AS I DO. STARS, I’M OLDER THAN YOU!” 

His friend had laughed at him, crackling and tugging at Blue’s shirt and gesturing deeper into Hotland.

He had wanted to show Blue something, and would only do so if he removed his stripes. 

“I’M REALLY NOT SUPPOSED TO…” Blue had tried to reason, but the idea of his friend leaving him behind had been even worse. Maybe if he played his friend’s game, then he wouldn’t be gone for so long again? 

It would be nice to be friends with a monster that grew as slow as him. Who wouldn’t leave him behind… 

“OKAY,” he’d sighed. “I’LL BE BACK.” 

One of his mother’s shirts had been turned into a tunic with the help of a belt, making him feel like a knight from a fairy tale. 

Then together, they had taken off. Running into the Hotland night. Jumping through vents, running on conveyer belts, and exploring puzzles that between the two of them. It was child’s play. 

They had almost made it to wherever his friend had been taking them when Blue’s father had called out. 

“Sans!” His father had yelled, rushing from an elevator. “What in Toriel’s name are you doing out here all alone?!? Where are your stripes, Bluebird?!?”

Irritated at the interruption of his game, Blue had huffed exasperated, “I’M NOT ALL ALONE, FATHER, I’M WITH-”

Only his friend was gone, and Blue had been left alone to face his father’s - and eventually his mother’s - scorn. 

They hadn’t remembered his elemental friend, and had lectured him about his stripes. Telling him that make-believe was a fun game to play, but to not try and pin the blame on a make-believe friend. 

They hadn’t believed in-

“GRILLBY,” Blue gasped, taking in the sight of his friend in shock. He was 32 now. It had been 7 years since he had seen him last. 8 years since they had met. 

Grillby’s flames flickered purple at the top of his head and he gave an off-balance bow. “I’m glad you still remember me, friend.” 

“WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!?” Blue shouted, clambering off the fence to be closer to Grillby. “HOW DID YOU GET SO TALL? WHAT’S UP WITH THE SPRITES? WHY ARE YOU DRESSED SO FANCY? YOU CAN TALK NOW?!?” 

Blue was having a hard time letting the words escape while remaining coherent, but he couldn’t help himself. His waiting had paid off. Finally, a friend had returned. Grillby was real and he was here and-

“I’ve come to retrieve you, of course!” Grillby supplied with a hissing laugh. 

Blue froze. “RETRIEVE... ME?” 

Grillby nodded seriously, “I’m here to rescue you, Sans!” He gestured to Blue’s sweater with clear distaste. “We had been so close to freedom last time, and now look at you!” Grillby swayed dramatically, pretending to swoon. “They forced you back into those dreaded things, didn’t they? 

“YOU MEAN… MY STRIPES?” Blue asked, having nearly forgotten about Grillby’s weird thing with the stripes. 

“Did you even try to fight it?!” Grillby suddenly spat, sparks flickering from him unexpectedly. 

“I DID!” Blue found himself answering in a near panic. His friend had JUST returned to him; surely, he hadn’t made him want to leave already. 

“I TOLD MY FOLKS I DIDN’T NEED THEM ANYMORE LIKE YOU TOLD ME TO, BUT THEY DIDN’T SEEM TO LISTEN… MY MAM- UH MOTHER, LETS ME WEAR SOLID COLORS INSIDE THE HOUSE SOMETIMES, BUT I HAVE TO WEAR THEM OUTSIDE.” 

Grillby still flickered, but his sparks calmed, “So, you do have solid color clothing then?” 

Simply happy his friend was appeased, Blue nodded, “YEAH. IT’S NOT MUCH, BUT I GUESS IT’S THEIR WAY OF COMPROMISING.” 

“Compromise…” Grillby scoffed. “It should be your choice. Well… at least it’s something…” Rolling his hat along his arms on its brim before deftly catching it, Grillby tipped it at Blue before placing it back atop his head. “You should hurry and get changed. We don’t want to be late.” 

“LATE?” 

“Late.” Grillby confirmed. “I’ve put a lot of effort into setting things up for us, we can’t miss your first show.”

Blue was entirely lost, but Grillby stared at him expectantly. “GRILLBY, YOU HAVEN’T ANSWERED ANY OF MY QUESTIONS, AND I CAN’T JUST LEAVE HOME LIKE LAST TIME. MY PARENTS WERE TERRIFIED WHEN I LEFT WITHOUT TELLING THEM.” 

Grillby tilted his head, “And yet they left you alone again? Abandoned in some place where a stranger could come and take you? You are incredibly lucky, Sans, that it was me who stumbled across you first.” 

“MY FRONT YARD IS HARDLY THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE,” Blue argued. 

“Yet are you any less alone?” Grillby questioned pointedly. “Funny how much time goes by and nothing has changed… Tell me, Sans, aren’t you even a little bit… bored?” 

“I’M GOING TO BE A BROTHER IN A FEW YEARS,” he supplied. “THAT’S NEW AND INTERESTING.”

Grillby’s flame shifted blue. “We may be long-lived, Sans, but you and I both know that years still feel like years.”

Blue opened his teeth to argue again, but couldn’t find the words.  How could he? Grillby was right. He hated being alone, and he hated feeling so bored. His father and mother at least had each other.

He didn’t want to wait years to not be alone. Not when he had a friend right in front of him. One that wouldn’t outgrow him like all the rest…

Grillby bent to one knee, making Blue the taller of the two. “You can leave a note if you wish, telling them where you’ve gone. When we arrive at our new parlor you can send them a letter of where you are. That way, if they want to come and get you, they will.” 

“YOU SEEM AWFULLY CONFIDENT I’LL WANT TO STAY.” Blue muttered, unable to look away from his friend. 

“You’ll be able to leave whenever you want,” Grillby swore, placing a hand over his chest where his soul resided. “Flamesman’s honor.” 

If he could leave whenever… and his parents knew where he was, and could come get him… then maybe it wouldn’t be bad at all. They might not like Blue being out of stripes, but… He was practically grown, wasn’t he?  He was just as smart as all of his friends who graduated. 

Heck, there were adults who thought romance was gross too, so he wouldn’t even have to worry about avoiding dating stuff. He’d just tell them it wasn’t his thing. Him and Grillby could go be adults together, get exciting jobs, go to bigger schools and create and have fun. 

“YOU PROMISE TO TELL ME WHERE WE’RE GOING THIS TIME?” Blue asked warily. 

“I promise.” 

“AND ANSWER ALL OF MY QUESTIONS?”

“Without question.”

Blue sighed, smiling slightly at Grillby, “OKAY, I’LL GO WRITE MY LETTER AND CHANGE. DON’T LEAVE WITHOUT ME.”

Grillby had glowed brightly, and the fire sprites Blue had nearly forgotten about all chirped and whistled in celebratory fanfare. “I wouldn’t dream of it, little star.” 

Blue began to leave, but hesitated, “WHAT’S UP WITH THE LITTLE STAR THING, GRILLBY?” 

Grillby hummed happily, “It’s because you, my friend, are going to be truly, Magnificent.”

Blue left a note for his parents right outside the front gate, and with a nervous smile to Grillby, bid his home farewell. 

As he left, rushed along by Grillby and followed by dancing sprites, he just barely missed the sight of a singular flame sprite lingering behind. 

Jumping up with a popping crackle, it ignited Blue’s letter to cinders as it vanished out of sight. 

Hotland felt twice as vibrant that day; the reds, oranges, and yellows illuminated them. Despite having gone this way with Grillby once before, the experience still filled Blue’s soul with joy and Wonder. 

The clanking of metal gears and the hiss of lava was nostalgic and soothing, but paled in comparison to the sound of happy pops of flame and rattling bones as the two travelled. 

Grillby explained to Blue that he is taller because he is stronger, he speaks now due to wanting to communicate better with others, he dresses fancy because he has taste, and the sprites are not sentient but manifestations of his magic much like a skeletal blaster. 

Eventually the duo arrived at the place Grillby had described to him as The DeLightful Parlor. 

Large doors framed by velvet red theater curtains opened wide into a massive tiered hall. 

Monsters of all shapes and sizes were seated at circular tables, draped in table cloths of glimmering fabric. They chattered among themselves, but occasionally glanced expectantly at the empty stage in the center of the room. 

With a dramatic clap of his hands, Grillby summoned a host of fire sprites that began flitting about, grabbing glasses and bottles of sparkling fluid. 

Blue marveled at the magical control Grillby displayed piloting the sprites. They were clumsy, but not a single glass, bottle, or drop of liquid fell as they began to serve. 

Blue was entranced by it all, so much so that he nearly missed Grillby instructing him to join the rest of the crew. 

“CREW?” he asked with wide eye lights. 

Grillby’s flame flickered mischievously. “Every star deserves a supporting cast, does it not?” 

Blue was guided to a room of monsters, who hurriedly passed a ‘script’ of seven words to him: 

You Are the Hero of Their Dreams

Nervously, he asked the feathered snake monster beside him, “UM, I’M NOT SURE WHAT EXACTLY THIS PLAY IS ABOUT…” 

The snake grinned a sharp fang-filled grin, “That’ssss Up To The Audience’ssss Interpretation. All We Do Isssss Try Not To Get Hit. Think Of It Like Mix’ssssss of Fighting And Danccccccing.”

Blue began to sweat, glancing back to where Grillby stood watching. “I’VE NEVER FOUGHT A DAY IN MY LIFE…” 

The monster hisses an amused laugh, “Then Good Luck, Sssssskeleton.” 

Next thing he knew, Blue was ushered into a costume. He couldn’t tell if he was supposed to be a superhero or a knight… it was definitely armor, but the cape was a vibrant cyan. 

Together, he and the rest of the cast were ushered center stage. 

“My dear citizens of Hotland, and you rapscallions of New Home,” Grillby’s voice echoed through the great hall. “The moment you have all been waiting for has arrived!!!” 

The sprites, which had been all moving about busily, all froze, nearly vibrating in place. The seated monsters all began to cheer, and Blue felt anxiety spike in his soul. 

Just what had he gotten himself into? 

“The hour has struck, and I’m afraid I have lost control of our wonderful servers tonight. Fear not, dear patrons! For we have heroes in our midst to face the flames!” 

Blue’s eye lights shrank to mere pinpricks as he saw the sprites began to double in size. 

Grillby chuckled, low and almost sinister, “Enjoy the show.” 

All at once, the flame sprites flung themselves at the center ring in a mass of fireballs. 

Blue’s soul seized in his rib cage as they careened towards him with seemingly lethal precision.

Despite never having had a proper encounter before, his mother would often play FIGHT with him, teaching him how to ACT with MERCY and avoid getting hit should the need ever arise.

While he didn’t think this was an encounter, his instincts still kicked in as he dove to the ground just in time to see three flaming spheres fly past his shoulder and explode barely a foot away. 

That had almost hit him. He had just evaded it. The stage - no, arena - was a mass of jumping fire and dodging monsters. Blue picked himself up from the ground, panicking, only to see another ball of fire leap towards him. 

Fear froze him in place as he watched the fire plunged straight for him - only to slip past him in the last moment. 

“Put in some effort, little guy!” a minotaur called from beside him wielding an axe. “The boss hates if it’s unrealistic. Fake a wound if yah gotta, the crowd loves that!” 

Blue blinked as realization hit. Grillby still controlled the sprites. This was still pretend. They were still playing. 

Testing his theory, Blue summoned a simple bone like his father had shown him, and charged the nearest fireball with a mighty swing. He missed by a mile, yet the sprite vanished in a burst of light like he had smacked it dead center. 

Grinning proudly, Blue looked towards Grillby with eye lights made of stars. 

This. Was. Awesome!!! 

From afar, Grillby gave him a thumbs up, and Blue grinned, adjusting his stance to look like an even cooler pose, then charged. 

The crowd called loudly as they ‘fought’, and by the end, the applause had been deafening. 

Blue and the rest of the cast rushed off stage, and he was met with even more excited chatter as they praised him for his first show of presumably many. 

“I COULD SLEEP FOR A WEEK AFTER ALL OF THAT,” Blue admitted, soreness creeping into his bones. 

“And miss the afterparty?!” a steel monster resembling scissors shouted. “Not after your first show, little dude!”

And so, he was gently herded to a backstage celebration and reverie the likes of which he’d never seen. Parties had always been birthday cake with candles and balloons. This was a buffet table filled with steaming foods, loud music, bright lights, and dancing. 

He could barely keep up with everyone, and his body was tired and desperate for rest, but he pushed through it as he was surrounded by monsters all wanting to know his name, if he was going to attend the nearby colleges, what his favorite foods were, and what inspiration he had used while acting. 

Someone even asked for his autograph. Woah.

The attention was all at once consuming and overwhelming, but it was New and Exciting. 

At the end of the night, Grillby found Blue, his suit jacket and hat long since removed, as he once more kneeled down to Blue. “Isn’t this perfect, Sans? Everything we ever dreamed of? You can do as you please during the day, then perform here at night, and we can have everything we have ever wanted.” 

Everything was perfect. Truly… only… 

“I’M SURPRISED MY PARENTS HAVEN’T FOUND ME YET,” Blue admitted. 

Grillby’s bright flame dimmed ever so slightly, but he merely tilted his head. “How about I show you to where your new room is, and you can write them a letter about this place? I’ll have it sent first thing in the morning.” 

Blue had yawned tiredly, “YEAH THAT SOUNDS GREAT… DO I REALLY GET TO HAVE A DAY LIKE THIS EVERYDAY?” 

Grillby glowed warmly again, “Forever if we wish it.”

And forever had indeed felt like the plan.

Blue wrote his parents the next day, and when they didn’t reply, he wrote them the week after that. Then when he was met with further silence, he wrote them nearly every month without fail, no matter that they never replied. 

True to Grillby’s word, Blue was given the freedom to do as he pleased during the day. Grillby shared his funds from the parlor to help Blue enroll in the nearby college, and by night he would perform. 

The crowd learned his name, and soon everyone cheered for the Magnificent Sans. He was popular and beloved, and admittedly… exhausted. 

One night during a particularly loud performance, Blue had barely enough energy to keep up with the rambunctiousness of the rest of the crew. He really had wanted to, but his magic felt strained and his soul screamed for more rest than he had been given since arriving here. 

Blue swung half-heartedly at a flame sprite, but instead of it disappearing with the strike, it lashed at him, the flames singeing his arm with a hiss. 

He had frantically glanced towards Grillby, only to find his friend pointedly looking away.

The next attacking sprite had been twice as hot but dispersed as it should have when Blue swung at it frantically. 

He wanted to excuse it as an accident, but even then, Blue could tell what it had truly been. 

A warning. 

The next day over breakfast, Grillby had informed him that Blue was being overly social. That if Blue spent less time with his new college friends, then he’d be less tired. That he could actually perform and not make Grillby do all the work. 

Blue hadn’t commented on how tired Grillby also looked all the time. He’d felt guilty because of how busy Grillby was, keeping The DeLightful Parlor running. All Blue had to do was perform, after all… if Grillby needed him to focus more on his performance, he would. It was only fair…

He’d stopped interacting with his new friends - he had even dropped a class or two - and Grillby had been pleased. 

Blue still wrote his letters, and still waited for replies that he feared would never come. 

Before Blue knew it, a year had gone by, followed by two, then three. He barely had time for studying anymore, only taking a class or two when he could manage it. Grillby assured him they’d find time for him to focus on school in the future, but for now, The Parlor needed their attention the most. 

It didn’t help that with each passing year, the cast grew smaller and smaller. Grillby said it was because of how expensive it was to pay them all, but Blue had heard the arguments from afar. How they all had had their fair share of warnings. 

“We don’t really need them,” Grillby had said one day out of nowhere. “You have always been the true Star anyways.”

“… THE OTHERS ALWAYS DID A FAIRLY GOOD JOB.” Blue defended. 

“The audience only watches you, Sans,” Grillby argued. “As a matter of fact, they might as well be obsessed with you. Have you noticed anyone watching you or following you lately? As a famous person, you should be careful about such things.” 

He hadn’t noticed any of that. It wasn’t until Grillby had mentioned it that the thought had even occurred to him. The crowd watching him suddenly became a lot less fun, as he realized just how little he knew of the monsters who watched him. The gaze of a room full of strangers was no longer a bunch of adoring fans, but with each passing night felt more like a weight as they all looked down upon him. 

One performance, Blue found himself alone on stage, and Grillby hadn’t made it easy on him. 

Blue had done his best to dodge and keep up with the amount of fire around him, and had been doing a manageable job. Only on the last swing, he had managed to fall flat on his coccyx as the sprite dispersed. 

The crowd had hushed, and Blue could feel his skull flush. 

“Well, what a way for a performance to fall flat.” Grillby had drawled, causing the crowd to burst into rounds of laughter. Embarrassed and mortified, Blue had fled to the dressing room, hoping that the public shame would be punishment enough for his failure. 

He had been wrong. 

“What Was That?!” Grillby had hissed at him later that evening, his fire sparking angrily. 

“I TRIPPED, ALRIGHT?!” Blue had argued back. “YOUR FIRE WAS TOO HOT AND I DIDN’T WANT TO GET BURNED AGAIN!”

Grillby had seethed, “Are you saying I can’t control my flames?”

“STARS FORBID YOU DON’T HAVE CONTROL, GRILLBY!” Blue yelled, regretting his words instantly as Grillby’s flames changed from orange, to green, then nearly blinding white. 

“Let’s play a game, Sans,” Grillby spoke, low and strangely calm. 

Despite this being his best friend, Blue found himself terrified. 

Grillby took a step closer, “Tell me five places where you feel safe Sans. Five places where you know, without a shadow of a doubt, that you are safe.” 

Blue didn’t like this game. 

“With My Parents,” Blue spoke softly, a quiver to his voice. 

Grillby shook his head, “They don’t want you, Blue. You’ve written how many letters? Hundreds? How many replies have you gotten?” 

“they’re just busy…” Blue whispered, trying his best not to cry. 

Grillby chuckled, “Ah yes, busy with their new child that they will replace you with.” 

“I Feel Safe At School,” Blue tried to reply at his normal volume, but found his voice lacking. 

“Do you?” Grillby asked mockingly. “You rarely go.”

Blue didn’t reply, because Grillby was right. He didn’t feel safe there anymore. He didn’t feel safe anywhere outside anymore. At least on the stage he knew how to avoid danger. What to do so he wouldn’t get hurt. 

Outside, he didn’t know anything. Not anymore… 

“The answer is with me, Sans,” Grillby answered softly, comfortingly. “You are safe with me.” Grillby slowly approached Blue, then gently leaned down to hug him, rubbing at Blue’s back while he cried to soothe him. “Isn’t this what you wanted, little star? To be adults together? To be safe with me?” 

Grillby tsk’ed softly with a hiss of flame, “Where else would you go, Sans?” 

All Blue could do was cry, and let Grillby win their game. The first of quite a few games that Blue would never win. 

He fully dropped out of school, and things were better for a while. He wasn’t sure how long because he stopped keeping track of time. Grillby was happy, and he and Blue excitedly scripted out New and Exciting performances together. 

The DeLightful Parlor became his backdrop of life, as Blue began to consider himself just another part of the decor. He never really left anyways. The last time he had apparently scared Grillby deeply because it had been uncharacteristic of Blue to leave. 

Blue had felt awful at causing his best friend such worry. So, he had stopped going out altogether. 

He kept writing. He used his letters like a diary so much that at one point, he had realized he’d forgotten to hand over at least ten of them to Grillby. Feeling particularly brave that day, Blue had decided to walk them to the mailbox himself while Grillby slept. 

Hotland had felt different then he remembered. It wasn’t warm and welcoming. It was loud and intimidating, and every hiss of lava sent his soul fluttering. 

After depositing his letters in the box, Blue had run back so fast, he wondered if perhaps he had broken the sound barrier. Hell, maybe the actual barrier too!  

While crying and shaking against the inside of the parlor’s doors, Blue had laughed to himself in the empty silence. Monster kind could be free now due to his cowardice! What a funny… funny… thought. 

Blue was performing a week later on stage when unexpectedly, something tugged inside him, causing him to look up. 

On a table near the back, holding a small wrapped bundle in his arms, was his father. 

Blue looked away fast, forcing himself to focus on the show so Grillby wouldn’t notice. His soul thundered so loud he heard it in his skull. 

At the end of the show, Blue headed towards the dressing room until he noticed Grillby look away to speak excitedly with a patron. 

Ignoring his shaking soul, Blue charged for his father. He ran through the crowd, certain that if he was fast enough, they wouldn’t get the opportunity to grab him. 

Tears filled his sockets before he could stop himself as his father, looking more tired than Blue had ever seen him… smiled at his son.  “Hello Bluebird… You did really great out there…. I… I know you don’t want anything to do with us, but… I have some…” He cleared his nonexistent throat nervously. “I have some news… and I thought you’d want to meet your new brother.”

Blue didn’t know what to say… his… His… Brother? 

Torn between running into his father’s arms and not wanting to crush the sleeping baby bones, Blue found himself only capable of noticing the missing piece, and asking softly, “Where’s Mother?” 

His father shut his jaw hard, and tears gathered in his sockets. Blue had never seen his father cry, and the sight of it struck terror deep in his soul. “Dad, Where’s Mama?” 

Blue took his father and… and Papyrus… backstage the moment his father started openly weeping. 

Blue felt… Empty as he held his brother while his father explained everything. How they had never seen a letter on the gate. How they had searched everywhere for him, only to get a single letter years later from him claiming that he hated them and never wanted to see either of them again. 

His father went on to say how his mother had changed after that. How they had both grieved him, but his mother had taken it so much harder. 

“She held on for as long as she could to bring Papy into the world…” his father whispered. “But losing her eldest son had just been too much for her soul to bear. I… It’s just been me and Papyrus for the past week.” 

Blue’s soul was overwhelmed with grief yet managed to echo, “… a week…” 

If only he had sent his letters a week earlier, his mother would be- 

The baby bones shifted in his arms, causing Blue to look down. Papyrus… Papy… his little brother. 

Papyrus’ arm bones escaped his swaddle and stretched wide with a small yawn that once again sent tears falling from Blue’s sockets. His stretchy happy baby bones brother of joy… he yawned just like their mother. 

His father stayed with him for an hour as they grieved, and Blue tried to piece together what truly happened the past few years. Eventually his father had to go, and he begged Blue to return with him.

Blue opened his teeth to reply, but from the corner of his peripheral he spotted a fire sprite. It was watching him. 

“I… I CAN’T JUST YET… I’M SORRY, DAD.” 

His father squeezed Blue’s hands, leaning over to gently touch Blue’s skull with his own. “It’ll be alright Bluebird… I love you, and… We’ll… we’ll figure this out.” 

And with that… his father left… The last time Blue would see his father again. 

Within minutes of his father’s departure, Blue had fought with Grillby about the letters. 

“He’s lying to you!” Grillby growled. “His wife is gone, so he’s doing everything in his power to bring you back to babysit.” 

“I DON’T CARE!” Blue argued back just as loud as he began to gather his things. “MY MOTHER IS DEAD, GRILLBY! I WANT TO GO HOME.” 

Grillby threw up his hands, “This is your home! You chose this, remember?! Your father would never take you back. Not truly! Not when you’re the reason his wife died!” 

Blue snapped. “NO, GRILLBY! YOU ARE! YOU’RE THE REASON THEY NEVER GOT MY LETTERS, YOU’RE THE REASON I LEFT, IT’S ALL BEEN YOU!!! I HAVE NO IDEA WHY YOU ARE SO OBSESSED WITH ME, BUT IT’S RUINING MY LIFE, GRILLBY. I DIDN’T EVEN CARE ABOUT MY STRIPES AS MUCH AS YOU DID, YET I REMOVED THEM SO YOU WOULD FEEL BETTER, I CAME HERE BECAUSE YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE MY FRIEND!!” Blue grabbed at his skull. “AND SOMETIMES EVEN THOUGH I KNOW I SHOULDN’T BECAUSE YOU ARE MY FRIEND, I CAN’T HELP BUT FRICKING HATE YOU!”

Silence heavier than gravity magic sat between the two. 

Blue turned from Grillby, determination building in his soul. “I’M LEAVING. MY FATHER NEEDS ME… AND I NEED HIM.” 

Realizing he didn’t really have much that wasn’t bought for him by Grillby, Blue decided to leave it all behind. 

He turned to leave when he heard it. The fizzling drop of fire against flooring and the crumbling crackles of… of fire tears. 

“You can’t go…” Grillby sobbed from behind him. “You’re my best friend, Sans.” A few more of Grillby’s tears sizzled onto the floor behind him as he trailed off softly. “You’re all I have, Sans.” 

That was all it took. Blue hated that that was all it took for his soul to crack. Pain that should have make him cry out, but instead made Blue feel every bit of exhaustion his bones held. 

Yet again, this was a game that Grillby had won. Blue truly felt older now, and with that age, he felt tired… he was so tired. 

Turning around, Blue ran to Grillby, hugging the sobbing elemental. He consoled him until eventually, the tears subsided and they sat in silence as the weight of what occurred sank in.

“You’re Never Going To Let Me Leave, Are You?” Blue asked softly. 

Grillby was silent for a long time before he eventually nodded against Blue’s shoulder. “Even if you do… I’ll always find you.”

Blue wanted to say that they didn’t fall into their usual routine after that. He wished he could pretend he really was the Great and Magnificent Sans. 

But truthfully… he was just a kid who didn’t know what to do. Until he lost any chance he had left of being a kid. 

A spider monster, old and dressed all in black had come to the parlor to give him the news in person when his father died. She asked him bluntly if he was going to continue the schooling his father had told her he was away doing, or come collect his younger brother. 

He had… He was now the sole guardian of his brother. His brother Papyrus. The stretchy baby bones of joy… 

He’d never let Grillby meet him. 

That night, he gave his best performance yet, as loud and bright and as cheerful as he could. He made sure Grillby was as happy as he could be, and then…

He stood outside the doors of The DeLightful Parlor, and let them close behind him. 

The noise was terrifying, the colors too bright and his soul shaking, held together by the idea of saving the last remaining family he had. 

He was the Great and Magnificent Sans, who… who wanted to make his dream come true, and right now, that was going to get his brother. 

It was as close to a happy ending as he could think to end his childhood on. There would be no living happily ever after to this story. Hopefully he could see to it that Papyrus got his happy ending, but it was too late for Blue… After all, his life wasn’t a fairy tale.

He was a cautionary tale, that he would do anything to avoid making someone else’s reality. 

Chapter Text

Story 3: The Boy Who Cried LV

The Snowdin school house was smaller than the one in The Capital, but the young skeleton boy who would one day be called Stretch had planned to handle it just like his old one. 

“Hi,” Stretch had mumbled in greeting towards his new classmates. He all but drowned in the striped orange and white sweater his brother had knit him. Stretch, to his new teacher’s dismay, had stubbornly refused to remove the matching gloves, scarf and hat all morning. 

Luckily, he had gotten his teacher to admit defeat after Stretch pointed out that, as a skeleton, he wasn’t going to overheat any time soon.  

That little scuffle had barely bought him any time, because before he knew it, he found himself stood dead center of the classroom like a prize on a pedestal. Oh boy… Well, time to get this part over with. 

Moving the scarf away from his teeth to be better heard, he addressed the room as seriously as any twelve-year-old skeleton could.

“My name… is Papyrus, and…” 

Rows of monster kits, puppies, drakes, cubs, pebbles, fawns, ice cubes and guppies all watched him wide-eyed and attentive. 

Good, good… so far so good. 

Trying to make direct eye light contact with as many of the other stripes as possible, Stretch spoke low and serious, “And I have LV, which makes me a dangerous and unstable monster that could hunt you all down for sport at any moment.” 

The sharp intake of breaths from the other students around him was almost drowned out as multiple chairs began to move backwards. Various sets of eyes began to dart back and forth, seeming to look for the nearest exit. Some student in the back even started to cry.

“Now children, children!” Mr. Flutter, his snowdrake teacher, quickly called out soothingly. “That is not true! You are all safe here!!” 

Stretch watched with mild disinterest as his new teacher soothed the classroom. After they all appeared to calm down from various forms of tearful fear, Mr. Flutter turned sternly to Stretch. 

“Now Papyrus, I have been informed of your… unique… situation, but there is no need to tell tall tales about it.” 

The funny part was how much he didn’t even need to exaggerate what he had said… Sure, no one could see his stats, but Stretch knew what was truly there. 

Looking downward at his red snow boots Stretch fought the desire to tell the teacher he hadn’t been lying. That he was dangerous. Even if no one but himself could prove it… 

“m’sorry…” he mumbled into his scarf, “… they should know though… in case I hurt them or somethin’…”

Like he’d hurt his father. Killed his father. No matter how much everyone said he hadn’t, he just... like… it was kinda obvious?

Father and son in a boat going down the river. Only the son returns, coated in his pop’s dust. Case closed. 

Mr. Flutter sighed and waved a wing over his beak. After a moment he kneeled down to Stretch, giving him a kind smile. “How about we give that one more go, kid… Literally any other fact about yourself.” 

Well… there was ONE thing he should probably also tell them. He nodded to Mr. Flutter, taking another deep breath. 

“Also…” he started again, trying to find the words. “My favorite person in the world is my big brother Sans.”

Mr. Flutter clapped his wings, “That was perfect, Papyr-”

“-And he has severe social anxiety. That means he is scared of strangers, and gets really nervous around new people,” Stretch shrugged unapologetically. “Having friends around would just stress him out, so fair warning, I’m not really interested in being friends with any of you.” 

“Papyrus!!” Mr. Flutter scolded.

Stretch puffed his cheekbones out, muttering quietly to himself, “but you said ‘literally any other fact’…”

Mr. Flutter continued, undeterred, “That’s not a very nice thing to say… I’m sure your brother would want you to make a ton of friends for him!”

Stretch could see it. His brother had actually even said “MAKE FRIENDS PAPY!!” as he had left that morning. He just didn’t really want any friends. His reasoning was as plain as the words he’d said. 

Blue couldn’t handle strangers very well, and Stretch was a monster killer. Having no friends was only logical, really. 

“Isn’t everyone a stranger if you haven’t met them yet?” a brave wolf pup spoke up, confused. 

“Yep.” Stretch replied popping the P for emphasis. 

“If he doesn’t meet people because they’re new people, how does he make new friends?” a rabbit kit asked, seemingly shook. 

Stretch shuffled on his feet, huffing out an annoyed breath. They obviously didn’t get it. “Sans and I don’t need any.” Stretch corrected as simply as he could. Despite feeling annoyed, he was trying to at least not be rude about it.  

Maybe if he phrased it in a way the bunny would understand better. “I look out for him, and he looks out for me… it’s just what you do for family.”  

An hour later had Stretch staring at his first ‘caught being bad’ slip. Maybe if he buried it, Sans wouldn’t see it? Uh… nah his bro was mad good at finding out his secrets. One sad look and Stretch would just tell him outright. 

Stretch walked on top of the snow with his arms held out, pretending to walk a tightrope as he went. Snowdin currently had almost a foot of snow, and for once he was feeling kinda lucky he didn’t weigh enough to sink down into it. 

Blue had just scrubbed the floors of their new house, so he wanted to track as little water inside as he could when he got home. 

“Almost there…” he mumbled, carefully stepping, “almo-”

Only for a tree branch from above him to give under the weight of the piled snow on its branch, and send white powder cascading down upon him. 

And just like that, he was a bone-sicle.

“Drat.” He was hit. Monster down. He looked at his cold and wet arms with remorse. “Goodbye, cruel world.” 

And then he died. Falling onto his back, he barely made an impact in the frosty landscape around him. He even tossed in a, “Nyeh…” as he let his skull lull to the side. 

He was dead for about two minutes before he heard the crunching of footsteps and a woman sigh in sheer disappointment. 

“Papyrus… whatever this is, go do it at home, please.” 

“I’m dead, Muffy…” Stretch spoke, sockets firmly shut. 

An amused scoff could be heard as he felt Muffet nudge his boot. “Dead stripes don’t get to take donuts home.”

Stretch sat up instantly, “It’s a scientific miracle! I’ve survived death!” 

In her black fur-lined coat, his second favorite monster, a nice spider lady named Muffet crossed a pair of arms, while another hand flew to cover her fangs while she giggled. “Ahuhuhu~ Surviving death is quite the feat, young skeleton.” 

Stretch perked even further at her laughter. “Muffy, Muffy, in Hotland I’m a treat you’ll seek. I’m frozen and sweet but can’t stand the heat. Even melted I stick around. What am I?” 

The elder spider shook her head fondly as she reached to help him up, “It’s Muffet, Papyrus. Not Muffy.” 

“Actually,” Stretch corrected. “It’s a popsicle.” 

She rolled her eyes, but Stretch knew she thought he was funny. Muffet was a cool old lady like that. He’d dined and dashed several times from her cafe and she hadn’t called him out on it yet. 

Snatching her basket of goodies, he gave her a cheeky wave while yelling. “Add it to my tab, Muffy!” as he continued his way home before she could do something crazy like charge him for once. 

“It’s Muffet!!!” she called after him. “And tell that brother of yours I’d love to chat soon!” 

“I won’t!” He promised, as he picked up the pace.

Oof, running sucked. He put the pace back down and walked once he saw home come into sight. 

Much better. 

Unbolting the door, putting in the lock code, and doing their secret knock, Stretch entered their home. 

“Saaaans!” He called while stepping inside. He paused to set all the locks back properly, but yelled again, “I’m hoooome!” 

Huh… that was odd. He was sure his bro would greet him at the door. 

Stretch peered curiously into the living room. “Sans?” 

“SURPRISE SUPER HUG ATTACK!!!!” 

And with that, Sans seemed to appear out of nowhere, scooping Stretch into his arms with a mighty spin. 

Caught off guard, Stretch futilely tried to push his brother’s skull away as Sans pressed his teeth to Stretch’s skull top saying “MUAH! MUAH! MUAHAHAH!” while Stretch couldn’t help but laugh at his brother’s antics. 

“Saaaaaans!!” Stretch managed to yell through his laughter. “Why are you like this?!” 

Giggling himself, Sans held Stretch happily. “BECAUSE DESPITE YOU BEING SUCH A FUNNY BONES, IT’S SURPRISINGLY HARD TO MAKE YOU LAUGH.” 

Sans released him, placing his hands on his ilium. “DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY SILLY FACES I’VE WASTED TRYING TO GET YOU TO LAUGH? YOU AREN’T EVEN TICKLISH!” 

“I’m built different,” Stretch agreed with a lazy shrug. “Sorry I’m soaked, tree got me.” 

Sans chuckled, plucking at his own shirt where he had hugged Stretch. “I NOTICED.”

“… sorry ‘bout the floors.” Stretch added, looking at the puddle trail he’d left from the front door. 

Sans waved off Stretch’s concern with an easy grin, “EH, I’LL CLEAN IT UP LATER. WHAT YOU GOT THERE, THOUGH?”  

Grateful he hadn’t dropped the basket in the hug attack, Stretch held it out proudly. “Spider donuts from Muffy.” 

Sans tilted his skull. “NEW FRIEND?”

“Spider lady.” 

“AH.” Sans frowned as if struggling to remember something. “THE MORE YOU TALK ABOUT HER THE MORE I WONDER IF SHE IS THE SAME PERSON I-” he shook his skull. “NEVER MIND. DO YOU REMEMBER OUR RULES ABOUT NEW PEOPLE AND STRANGE ADULTS?” 

Stretch nodded, “Yep. No one’s getting me to a secondary location.” Just the first location. Muffet’s cafe was frickin’ awesome. 

Blue patted Stretch’s skull. “GOOD JOB, LITTLE BROTHER. NOW, HOW ABOUT WE DRY OURSELVES OFF, THEN YOU CAN PLAY WHILE I GET A QUICK DINNER GOING.”

Stretch held up the donuts. “Dinner.” 

“MORE LIKE DESSERT,” Blue corrected, gesturing for Stretch to hand him the basket. Stretch complied easily. 

An hour later, Stretch was dried and happily fed in the living room in his favorite striped pajamas. Orange and blue stripes. Orange for him, blue for Sans. 

Stretch, laying on the ground, had just finished drawing the crime scene. All he had to do was finish positioning his small wooden monsters on top of the drawing. 

Sans entered the room with two spider donuts on a plate, sitting down with an OOF, as he offered Stretch his dessert. 

Stretch grinned, pausing his set up to eagerly scarf down his donut. 

Sans hummed happily, before glancing at Stretch’s project. His smile faltered. “UH, WHAT’S GOING ON HERE?” 

Wasn’t it obvious?  

“The baker killed a whole bunch of people, so now he’s gonna be banished forever.” 

Sans’ bone ridge furrowed in concern. “ARE YOU SURE?” 

“Yep,” Stretch nodded seriously. “He had dust on him. Case closed.” 

Sans looked around at Stretch’s assortment of wooden monsters, and picked a dog with a hat up. “I DON’T THINK HE IS GUILTY!” Sans said in a high pitch voice. 

Stretch narrowed his sockets at Blue, grabbing a wooden bird monster. “Yes, he is! Case closed! He’s guilty!” 

“WELL, I AM THE GREATEST DETECTIVE IN THE WORLD AND I SAY I CAN PROVE YOU ALL WRONG!”

Stretch grabbed another monster figure, “Oh yeah? Prove it!!”

Sans hummed thoughtfully, making the dog pace across Stretch’s map. “YOU SEE, I HAVE THOUGHT LONG AND HARD ABOUT HOW THIS LOOKS. IT ISN’T GOOD, BUT I CAN PROVE THIS MONSTER INNOCENT, AND THIS WAS ALL A HORRIBLE ACCIDENT WITH ONE CLUE THAT CHANGES EVERYTHING.” 

Stretch stared expectantly with baited breath. 

Sans grinned, “A BANANA.” 

He blinked. Then squinted at his brother. “A banana? How does that prove anything?”

Sans shrugged, putting the wooden monster back on the map and standing up, declaring in his normal tone, “I HAVE NO CLUE, I’M NOT A DETECTIVE.”

Stretch gaped. “You can’t just add to the story then leave!” 

Sans snorted, “TOO LATE, I RAN OUT OF IDEAS. I GUESS YOU’LL JUST HAVE TO FIGURE IT OUT FOR ME.” 

Stretch frowned hard, staring at his toys. That wasn’t fair. The game didn’t work like that. The baker was supposed to be banished! 

He picked up the detective, and glared as he tried to salvage his story. Maybe the detective was just… Dumb? Or… well… 

“I think…” Stretch said, in his best imitation of Sans’ detective voice. “… Okay this is going to sound wild but-” 

And like that, his game continued. Sans watching on with a smile, as Stretch’s creativity bloomed into a story proving the baker’s innocence, with yes, a banana. 

After the story finished, Sans guided his sleepy bro to bed, with promises of more fun to come in the morning. 

Stretch held onto his detective though. He’d never played detective before, and he couldn’t help but smile sleepily at the figure that once meant so little to him. 

“Sans…” Stretch said as his brother tucked him in. 

“Yeah, Papy?” Sans asked, smoothing out Stretch’s blankets. 

“I… I got a bad kid slip at school… I tried to warn them all that I could hurt them, and I scared everyone.” 

Stretch couldn’t bring himself to look at his bro. He didn’t want to see him disappointed. 

“OH PAPY…” Sans mumbled, his magic reaching out to Stretch’s. Stretch could feel the tension loosen in his shoulder joints as he relaxed. 

“PAPY, YOU ARE THE MOST TENDER-SOULED MONSTER I KNOW. YOU WOULDN'T HURT ANYONE,” Sans soothed. 

Stretch shook his head, “That’s not what my LV says.” 

“PAPYRUS…” Sighing, Sans pulled out a mirror from Stretch’s bedside drawer. Looked like they were going to do this again. 

Sans held Stretch’s hand as he pointed to the mirror. “CHECK WITH ME, PAPYRUS, TELL ME WHAT YOU SEE.”

Together, they did. 

PAPYRUS  LV ?̸̭̊̓̃̎̒̽̒̕͝?̶̟̜̩͌̈́̌̈́̀͆̽͝?̶͈͈͎̳̦̫̹̌̂͜͝͠ͅ ATK ?̸͚͖̯̼̩̗͕̈́̌̎̍̄͐?̶̳̝̳̭͙̜̭̐̒̋͗͐̾͊͗̋̒͠?̵̡̧̜̭̻̳̳̦̳̦̐̃ DEF ?̸̧̧̰̼̙̯̤̳̫̀͒̆͛͒̆̉̅̑̎͝?̴̗̬̪̥͔͔̙͖̳͓̙̂̌͑̒̅̊̍̓͛̕?̸̪̩̫̖̰̐́͂͝

A very sleepy little monster. 

“It says I’m sleepy.” Stretch answered. 

“AND?” Sans asked expectantly. 

“And the rest looks staticky…” Stretch gave in. 

“EXACTLY. AND WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?”

It meant his soul was dumb and broken and so was he… but Stretch had a feeling his bro wouldn’t like that answer. “It means that we don’t know, and not knowing doesn't mean LV. It just means I’m different.” 

Sans smiled proudly down at Stretch while he placed the mirror back into the nightstand. “Exactly. Being different isn’t a bad thing either. You are still just as capable and lovable as anyone else. Now get some rest, brother. Your school year has just started, and I have a feeling we have a long ways to go.” 

Stretch silently thought on that… Anyone else he’d probably call a big liar… But never Sans. He trusted Sans so… He could try to keep that in mind.

“Goodnight Sans…” Stretch mumbled with sleepy sockets. “I love you.”

“I LOVE YOU TOO... YOU STERTCHY HAPPY BABYBONES OF JOY~” Sans teased.

Never mind, his bro was rude. He sat up, throwing his pillow at Sans’ skull, “I’m not a babybones!”

Sans just laughed at him, gently tossing it back.

And things continued that way for many years to come. Stretch could never get himself to believe he hadn’t killed their father, and Sans would fight for his innocence every second of every day. 

Years blended together in a giant pile of warm and fuzzy memories as he grew up. Between Sans cheering him every step of the way from home, and Muffet watching out for him everywhere else…

Everything, for at least a while, was perfect.

Until one day, Stretch found himself old enough to realize just how much he’d failed to provide that same peace of mind to Sans.

Stretch was in his eighties, hunched over at the bar top in Muffet’s cafe. 

“Sans hasn’t left the house in two months, Muffy. That can’t be good for him,” Stretch vented. 

Muffet scoffed softly, pushing her grey-streaked bangs from her eyes. “He’s been shut in much longer than that before, dearie. He’ll come back outside when you both get low on gold and pester me for some more prep shifts.” 

Muffet had introduced herself properly to Sans way back when Stretch’s tab had begun to hit five too many digits. It had been an awkward meeting for everyone which left Stretch grounded for a week and Sans surprisingly happy to see Muffet. 

His bro claimed they had actually met once before, making Muffet forever earn the spot of Stretch’s second favorite monster. 

“How long was he shut in before?” Stretch asked, concern laced heavily in his tone. “How come I never noticed?” 

Muffet sighed, adjusting her black apron. “Years, and because you were simply too little back then.”

Stretch choked on his sip of spider cider. “Years?! How many???”

“Well… Let’s just say your parents left a LOT of gold to the both of you, and Sans used his half to support you both for a good few… decades?” 

“He stayed inside for decades?!?”

“Well, if we’re not counting grocery trips or your doctor’s appointments then yes. His record for not leaving at all is five months.” 

Stretch was floored. “No wonder dinners got creative… I… I can’t believe I never really noticed.”

Muffet hummed sympathetically, “I mean, we all knew. Even you, you just understood a much simpler version of your brother’s… let’s call it a quirk.” 

“How did you understand it, Muffy?” Stretch asked curiously. 

Muffet paused in thought, a frown growing across her face. “I understood that your brother was terrified of everyone. Early on, when you first moved here, so many monsters wanted to help you both. It was only when we noticed how deeply frightened Sans was of all of us that we tried our best to help… from afar.” 

“He’d run away from you all?” Stretch asked.

Muffet giggled, “Ahuhuhuh~, not at all. He’d glare at us while his bones rattled. Everyone only stayed distant when we realized that the longer we were around while he was that scared of us all, the more his Health Points would just start… dropping.” 

Stretch felt cold. “… did he ever drop low enough to-”

“He’d always pass out by the time he hit 1,” Muffet whispered. “But for obvious reasons, we never wanted to test if that would always be the case.”

Stretch sat with that for a moment. “… so, what do I do to help him, Muffet?”

Muffet smiled sadly, and poured Stretch more cider. “Keep being a good kid, dearie. Pursue your passions, and be excited for the Queen’s visit coming up. It won’t fix your brother’s situation, but you having a happy childhood will help him more than you will ever know.”

Stretch frowned at that. “So just... Do nothing and hope things get better?”

Muffet patted his hand, “I know it might not sound like great advice, but just… Give things time. Learn and grow. You’d be surprised at how much clarity age can bring.”

Stretch scoffed into his drink. Yeah, right…

“You know…” Muffet spoke up, nudging him slightly. “The Queen is an ace with magic. Maybe while you wait… you can look forward to her being able to fix your stat problem right up.” 

Queen Toriel hadn’t been able to fix his stats. 

The Queen had told Stretch that his stats were a reflection of his soul, and how he viewed himself. He’d argued that he’d view himself a lot better with a mirror made of solid gold if she was offering, making her laugh loud and unrestrained. 

She said she’d keep thinking of ways to help him, and somehow, just like that, Stretch had befriended the Queen of all monsters.

That hasn’t seemed to matter though, as Sans had stayed inside for another two months. 

Stretch took Muffet’s advice and didn’t ask his bro about it… but he watched, and what he saw he remembered. 

Sans was so happy and cheerful and perfectly fine most days. But as Stretch got older, he’d see cracks in the façade. The way his brother would stare at the door for a bit too long. How he’d run from the mailbox. How his bones rattled at the sounds of strangers walking past the house. 

How he could never look a monster in the eyes, no matter how good of a day he was having. To be honest, Stretch wasn’t sure how he hadn’t noticed before.

Muffet and Stretch appeared to be the only exception to this. And that worried Stretch more than he would ever say. 

Becoming an adult was scary for Stretch. He had planned on asking Sans that day to hear the truth of it all. To tell Sans he had loved every part of growing up with his brother, but now that he was an adult, he wanted nothing more than to help Sans carry whatever burden haunted him. 

When Sans had so cheerfully presented Stretch his first solid color shirt and had nervously suggested going to Muffet’s together, Stretch couldn’t help but burst into tears. Mumbling some sort of excuse about he thought Sans was kicking him out, Stretch had clung to his brother, unsure how to proceed. 

Sans was better than he had been. He was willing to keep trying to be better. What right did he have to dig up his brother’s past like that? Sans was willing to go outside for Stretch, and that fact alone only made him cry harder.

He loved his brother so much. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt him by being selfish. 

So, Stretch left it be. He let Sans comfort him, and a week later they celebrated Stretch’s adulthood at Muffet’s. Sure, Sans had left a bit early when more patrons arrived, but the fact his brother had gone at all, was amazing. 

Sans was getting better. 

Until the damn note on their door. 

They had just gotten back from shopping together when Sans had frozen at the sight of a paper placed on their door. Stretch had read it before Blue was able to tear the thing to shreds. 

Boo. I found you, little star.

Sans had pulled them both into the house, locking every lock on the door, bolting every window shut, and checking every room methodically until he had collapsed into a sobbing mess. 

Stretch hadn’t known what to say, but he’d known exactly what to do. 

His magic reached out to his brother, and he had held him as Sans had done for him with every nightmare or scraped bone he had ever had. 

“You’re safe, bro.” Stretch swore. “I promise, we’re safe.” 

“He- If He Found Us, We Need To Go, I Can’t See Him Papy, I Just Can’t-” Sans whispered frantically.

“Sh, shhh,” Stretch soothed. “We’re okay, it’ll be okay…” 

Things continued like that for over an hour until Sans had regained his composure, and Stretch slowly processed that all of his older brother’s fears apparently stemmed from a singular source. Some monster that went by ‘he’. 

“Who is he, Sans?” Stretch had asked softly… 

Sans was quiet for a long, looong moment, but before Stretch could apologize for asking…

Sans started his explanation like every bedtime story he had ever told Stretch. “ONCE UPON A TIME…” Sans had spoken, as they sat together and his brother told him Everything. 

Stretch woke up early for the first time in his life, and made sure his brother was soundly asleep when he snuck out of the house. Stretch went to their shed, found the very same dusty old boat that haunted his nightmares, and left down the river. 

He crossed straight through Hotland the fastest way he knew, and didn’t hesitate when he passed through The Core. No one stopped him on his path to the Queen, and something felt disturbingly correct in his soul as his footsteps echoed down a golden corridor on his way to her garden. 

To her credit, Toriel hadn’t flinched at all when Stretch had flung the doors wide open and had only stared at her while he caught his breath. 

He still wasn’t a runner, but he had gotten here as fast as he could. 

Toriel had watched him curiously, standing and guiding him to a bench where they could sit side by side. 

She spoke conversationally while he calmed enough to speak. “Papyrus, what a delightful surprise. I’ve meaning to stop by Snowdin for some time now. I think I may have found a way to at least cover your stats so that others may perceive-” 

“Your majesty?” Stretch cut off his Queen as he finally found his words. 

“Yes, Papyrus?” She asked seemingly unperturbed by the interruption. 

“What happens to monsters that hurt other monsters?” Stretch asked, his hands clenched and shaking. 

Toriel’s bright demeanor shifted uncomfortably as mild confusion seemed to crossed her face. “Well, I’d like to think we’ve advanced past such cruelties-”

“But in the case where we haven’t?” Stretch interrupted again. “What do you do when you know a monster has hurt someone you care about… someone you know.” 

It was her turn to be silent. He expression slowly, very slowly becoming more and more solid. Concerned. “… In that specific instance…” she began hushed. “We would call upon the Judge to gaze upon the monster’s soul and to deliver Justice.”

“Who is the Judge?” Stretch asked, his own tone one he didn’t recognize. 

“We don’t currently have one,” Toriel admitted. “Not since the death of your mother.” 

“Ma was the Judge?” Stretch asked in mild surprise. 

Toriel smiled small and soft, “A long time ago, yes.” Despite her smile, worry still filled her gaze. “As the years went by, her focus certainly shifted to the more important matters in life.”

Stretch snorted, “Helping pops with boat rides?”

“Her family.” 

… It wasn’t fair. What Sans had gone through. That his brother had lost his parents. Stretch could barely even remember the outline of their father, but he had been able to tell from his brother’s story, they had meant everything to Sans. 

Toriel and Stretch sat in silence for an indiscernible amount of time before he finally spoke up. “… Can I do it?”

“Do… do what?” Toriel asked carefully, though Stretch knew she probably understood exactly what he meant. 

“Be the Judge,” Stretch asked candidly. 

“… Is there a reason for this?” 

Stretch didn’t hesitate. “Yeah.”

Toriel stared at her hands for a good solid minute, and then slowly turned to Stretch, her expression somber. “What kind of reason?”

Now Stretch wasn’t as eloquent or poetic at telling stories like Blue was. At least not when he was this pissed off. Yet, as he finished telling her Everything, and they sat in heavy silence… 

Stretch couldn’t help but add, “If it has to be someone… let it be me, Your Majesty. Outside of our elders who fought in the war, I’m the only monster down here with any LV anymore. Let me use it for good.” 

His Queen didn’t correct him about his LV, nor did she correct what he said. Toriel simply stood and called for the guards to begin preparations for a Judge’s knighting, and the swift capture of one Grillby Flamesman. 

Two hours later, Stretch stood with his Queen as the Judge of his underground. Magic ancient and powerful burning inside him calling, no - demanding there be Justice. 

“Grillby Flamesman,” Toriel spoke voice steady yet detached as she glared down at the bound monster before them both. 

“You have been brought before the hall of Judgement on multiple accounts of trespassing, kidnapping, child endangerment, assault and battery, and cruelty beyond mention against your fellow monster. How do you plead?”

“… Sans is my friend,” the pathetic monster spoke, low and confused. “I’d never hurt my friend. There must be some kind of mistake.” Stretch could see the deranged fuck actually believed that. 

It was a shame he just didn’t care. 

“Judge?” Toriel intoned stonily, as she looked to Stretch for his final verdict. 

Stretch could easily Check Grillby’s soul. He could look for LV or read this monster’s stat without Grillby even noticing now. He could give a fair verdict that might just lead to Grillby one day being a better monster. 

He didn’t do any of that. What he did instead was summon his scythe. The very weapon his brother taught him to make years ago for a costume party. 

It was the same technique as it was back then, but the weight of it sat heavier in his grasp. He answered his Queen as he stared the elemental down. 

“G  u  i   l  t  y .”

Toriel turned her back to the two, and began to leave the room. The doors were held open by her magic as she left, but they closed slowly behind her, as her parting words echoed with the sounds of bird calls from her garden down the hall. 

“Do with him as you please.” 

The doors clicked shut with finality, and Stretch looked down at the filth before him. 

“Heya Grillby,” Stretch cooed softly as he approached, his scythe dragging along the stone floor. “Let’s play a game.”

Grillby said nothing as Stretch loomed over him with a lazy grin. 

“Give me five reasons to let you live.”

.

. 

.

.

.

Stretch came home late that night. Tired and depleted of all magic. 

Sans fussed over him for the rest of the night, asking frantically where he’d been all day. 

“Tori found a way to fix my stats,” he says half-truthfully. “Everything looks just like it should now.” 

He lets Sans Check him, focusing on his magic the exact way Toriel had shown him to do. 

PAPYRUS LV 0 ATK 1 DEF 1

The weakest monster in the underground. 

It’s exactly what it should be now. It’s not correct, but this was easier than explaining it all to his bro anyways. 

Another hundred years or so and everyone would forget the truth of it all. The truth was he still couldn’t read his own damn stats. Even now, after what he’d done, they remained distorted. Fuck if he knew why.

The only thing he could be sure of was that Sans had been right. Stretch hadn’t had any LV growing up… because he could feel the difference now. He knew what he’d do to anyone who hurt his family again. 

And despite not being able to see his own stats, he could still feel his LV  b u r n. 

Chapter Text

If he didn’t know better, Red would call the quiet awkward as hell. Unfortunately, he was well-versed in the expression of a heavy soul on the brink of overflowing. 

He’d break the silence into a thousand grains of powdered glass if he could, only… it really wasn’t his to disrupt. 

Fox sat staring at the dimming embers that flickered and crackled in the night. Fox looked dirty and scuffed, but most notably defeated in a way Red had seen in his own reflection for a good number of years. 

It would be nostalgic… if the sight of it was pleasant. It wasn’t. It was, as Mutt would put it, a fuck’n mood. 

Everyone had separated to their cabins for the night, with the exception of the two of them. Fox had volunteered to make sure the fire went out properly, and Red had lingered with the excuse of showing Fox back to the right cabin. 

Sans and Papyrus were sharing cabin one for the night, leaving Fox as Red’s temporary roomie. It was a very obvious excuse to stay and chat, away from the others, but everyone had been tired enough to not really press them. 

Now, Red was certain Fox could have smothered out the flames at least 20 minutes ago, following the safety procedures to put out any stray embers. 

Yet here they were. Sitting like two jackasses in the night as they watched the remaining heat slowly fizzle out, the glow steadily diminishing. Only the sounds of crickets, wind rustling the trees, and some distant loon calling in the dark were heard. 

Red had been in the middle of wondering how he could prompt Fox into speaking his thoughts aloud when he finally spoke. 

“I’m Surprised She’s Letting Us Stay After A Mess Like That. I Was…” Fox paused long enough that Red worried they’d be standing out here all damn night, before adding, “I Was Expecting Something Much Worse Than What We Got.”

Ah, there we go. A start! Not exactly a great start, considering it was about how Honey had lectured them all good for breaking safety procedures, but at least it was something. 

Adjusting his position so he could better look at Fox in the dark, Red shrugged. “I think with the kiddos injured, and Blue out of commission, she went easy on us.” 

Really, Red was surprised she had been as patient with them all as she had. She’d helped the best she could with patching up the kids, then double checked with Stretch that Blue would be fine. Honey had even trusted them when they had assured her that they didn’t need to leave for a hospital. 

Physical damage had certainly left its mark on Papyrus and had fucked up Stretch, Fox and Blue, but their souls were intact enough they would recover just fine with rest and a shit ton of magically dense monster food. 

Councilor Quinn had been more than eager to offer the surplus they had from their camp. Their camp had recently been monster-approved but hadn’t gotten any monster campers this year, so they stated it would be put to better use with them than sitting in storage. 

The councilors had both been calm and helpful while the monsters had regrouped, and caught each other up on everything in hushed, cautious tones. 

What Red was able to overhear had hardly enough details for him to feel satisfied, but enough to piece together how desperate they’d been for rest, and how much they all needed to talk shit out. 

Sans looked like he’d seen actual hell, while Papyrus looked like he’d lived it. Blue had been scared shitless enough at their return for his soul to drop to 1 HP, and Stretch hadn’t explained fuck-all about it, while assuring a nearly shell-shocked Fox that Blue was fine. Mutt refused to meet anyone’s eye lights, and Edge had been grinding his teeth in silent fury. 

Red, of course, still felt like someone had rung his skull like a stars-damned gong. His skull was pounding and the lights felt too bright, but that hadn’t been important in the slightest when compared to the way everyone else looked. 

Honey had talked to the ranger for much too long for Red to feel confident that everything was going to be fine. The guy kept gesturing towards their group, then back towards the trail, while Honey replied with enough determination rolling off of her for Red to feel it. 

He had been tempted to Check her, but focused his efforts back to getting the kids and Blue settled. A whole fucking hour later, Honey had Red, Edge, Stretch, and Fox seated in the main cabin. 

“What were you all thinking?” She had demanded firmly yet without raising her voice. “I understand emergency situations can be difficult, but because there was a break in procedure, we went from one injured monster to several.”

Red had the answer. They hadn’t been thinking. It was the only answer that made sense. He was feeling fucking furious himself about this whole situation, and the last thing he had wanted to do was defend their stupidity. 

But of course, someone had to, so Red had begun to speak up, only for Fox to beat him to it. 

“We Weren’t Thinking, Ma’am.” Fox had straightened and sat forward, as if… putting himself in front of the others. 

…Oh?

Red stared in open surprise, along with everyone else. 

Fuck? Had Blue damaged Fox’s skull in their fight? He couldn’t see any holes or cracks from here, but he had felt tempted to shine a light through Fox’s skull to check the inside. 

Fox kept his gaze fixed on Honey as he continued speaking. 

“We Were Frightened And In An Unfamiliar Situation, And That Alone Should Have Been Enough For Us To Default To Your Expertise.” He paused for only a moment, but long enough for Red to notice the slight tremor in Fox’s hand as he casually placed it upon his chest. It seemed to still his barely noticeable shaking, and it made him appear sincere. “I Am Aware That I, In Particular, Acted In Ways Lacking Of Any Decorum A Proper Monster Should Hold… Especially To The Extent In Which My Behavior Led To Prompting Further Issues And Irrational Responses.”

“… Please Ma’am, If Any Ramifications Are To Be Had Because Of Anyone’s Lapse In Judgment, I Will Happily Bear The Brunt Of Any Due Punishment If It Means The Others Are Free To Continue Their Stay For The Remaining Agreed Upon Time.” 

Oh hell. From selfish prick to martyr in one day? Fuckin’ yikes, Red should have spotted a mental break like this from a mile away.

With a quick tug on the back of Fox’s shirt, Red had pulled Fox back into the couch while he leaned forward, catching Honey’s attention, “What my buddy here means to say, is that while obviously yah aren’t intendin’ to kick any of us out, cuz this was all a big accident that none of us saw comin’, we understand we coulda handled it better and we’ll all be on our best behavior goin’ forward.” 

Fox blinked in silent offense sitting forward again, “No Red, That Is Not-”

Edge, from the other side of Fox, also pulled him backwards, interrupting him and speaking, “AS YOU CAN SEE, THE STRESS OF IT ALL HAS MADE SOME OF US PRACTICALLY NONSENSICAL. WHILE WE ARE INCREDIBLY REMORSEFUL OF OUR ACTIONS AND WILL DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO PROVE OUR WORTH, PUNISHING AN INDIVIDUAL FOR THE ACTIONS OF THE WHOLE WOULD BE ASININE AS HELL, AND ENTIRELY UNLIKE YOU.”

“It’s been a really shitty day, Honey,” Stretch chimed in. “If yer kicking us out, at least let us stay the night?” 

Honey blinked, startled. “Woah, woah. First off, I’m not kicking y’all out.” She shot a concerned glance at Fox, “And I’m certainly not punishing y’all for a horrible unlucky accident that occurred and put your family in danger.” 

“WELL, WHY ELSE WOULD YOU GATHER US HERE?” Edge asked. 

Honey sighed, “Because as the adults of your family, and the guardians of Sans, Mutt, and Papyrus, I’m going to need y’all to step up. These kids just went through a really scary event, and they are going to need y’all more than ever.

“As camp counselor, it is my job to make sure you have a safe and fun experience at my camp, and in that way, I have failed you.” Honey frowned. “For safety reasons, all hiking trails are now considered closed, and we’ll have to rework some summer plans and outings…” 

The human had paused, but Red could feel it buzzing in the air again. Determination. Softer than a red soul would have, but just as potent in intent. She… really wanted to do right by them. 

She was no Grizzly, and maybe Red had really just needed a nap if he saw a human like this, but damn, in the moment he could see it. 

Honey was kinda hot? 

She had nice character and a good rack at least. Maybe a bit too naive for his taste, though. Good to know he at least could be attracted to humans. It certainly helped his chances statistically. Who woulda thought? The idea he wasn’t against the idea of pursuing humans just opened a world of possibilities, but, like, maybe wrong time and place. 

Oh shit. She’d been talking again and he hadn’t been listening. Given Edge’s unimpressed stare, there was a good chance his bro had caught him distracted. Yeah, he’d have to unpack this shit later. 

Red had watched Honey pull out a stack of papers and hand them each what felt like a small novel as he paid more attention to what she was saying.

Her words, still laced with determination, had shifted his focus back to the more pressing issues fairly easily. 

“…Will we learn from this mess and make the remaining time together the best summer trip those kids could ask for? You’re darn right. What we will not do, though, is fail those who are depending on us.”

From there she had - in great detail - reviewed proper emergency procedure with them. It was long and tedious information, and had taken so much time to go over everything that it took conscious effort for Red to not begin dozing off. 

Edge had shown him enough mercy that, when they all briefly separated for making dinner and setting up the evening fire, Red had been given the all clear to sneak in some shut-eye. 

Even in slumber, he had felt restless and bothered. He had too many thoughts and feelings fighting for dominance for anything remotely peaceful to settle in his soul, but the sleep had at least eased the pain in his skull to a dull throb.

They’d woken him up just in time for Honey to regroup with them and wrap up their chat before they’d called the kiddos for dinner.

Dinner itself was a tense and silent affair, and Blue was still noticeably absent. It felt like a game of emotional chicken that no one really had the bones to end without the whole graveyard present.

Apparently, Honey had more spine than the seven skeletons combined. She broke the silence as they all began to disperse for the night, if only to explain her plan of lightening the workload for the next week or so to focus more on recovery and relaxation for their family. 

Family. She really liked to use that word a lot for them, and honestly, Red was getting maybe a bit too used to the sound of it.

Like… well, he was here with Fox, wasn’t he? A year ago, if he felt this shitty, he’d be in bed and not get his coccyx up for anyone but big boss. And now? 

Well… It was a simple as that. He was here. 

Could he dig into it and bring up all those deep personal connections that would make Grizzly proud of him? Yeah, but it was so much easier to just go with that pull in his soul that pushed him to be here and leave it at that. 

“How Did You Handle Losing LV?” Fox softly asked, turning Red’s focus to the present moment. 

“Handle it?” Red echoed. He was surprised this was where Fox wanted to start, but he supposed he shouldn’t be. Fox’s blunt nature would at least make this shit easier. 

“There was nothing to handle,” Red replied honestly. “I let that shit go first chance I got.” 

Fox turned to look at Red, his eye lights wide. “You- What Do You Mean You Just, Let It Go?”

Red shrugged, watching a single ember fly high with a pop before sizzling out. “Just as I said. I let it go.”

He could see Fox’s guard rising as he looked to Red in disbelief, “LV Doesn't Work That Way.”

“Why not?” Red asked, turning to Fox. “Like, genuinely, why not? I’m big, I’m old, and I’m angry, but yah wanna know somethin’?” Red let his shoulders drop from the defensive posture he had begun to adapt. “I never really liked that I had to kill, and the fact I don’t gotta now is a huge weight off my back.”

It was the truth. Even if Fox looked like he was struggling to see it. Actually, Fox still looked like he thought Red was entirely full of shit. 

Eh, that was fine. Red would explain it all for him someday if he wanted. Right now wasn’t really about him though. So, Red asked, “Did you enjoy it?” 

“Well, Ye-” Fox began to speak, only to cut himself off, bone ridge furrowing in thought. “Hmm… I… I Thought I Did.” 

Taking a page from Grizzly, Red stayed quiet while Fox pieced his words together. 

“I Could Have Killed Blue.” Fox confessed. “I Thought Maybe I Wanted To For A Moment. He Was Interfering With My Life, My Brother, And He Was… I Saw Him As A Threat To Everything I Knew… Which Obviously Turned Out Not To Be The Case. I’ve Come To Realize That The True Threat To The World I’d Known And Everything I’d Believed To Be True Arrived In My Life Before I Even Entered This World.”

Ah. Here we go, the heart of it all. 

Fox clenched and unclenched his hand nervously, “I Was Such A Cruel And Selfish Monster, Red. I Had Thought The Universe Had Left Me Alone Because It Understood That I Was Incapable Of Being More Than The Weapon I Was. I Had Ruined and Ended So Many Lives That I Thought Meeting Him Had Been A Joke Of Cosmic Proportions. I Was No Better Than A Soulless Husk, And Suddenly, I Was Expected To Be So Much More.”  

Red didn’t need to ask who the “him” was. He got it. He remembered what it had felt like when he had been sent to take care of his “him” too. 

“I’m… Highly Unqualified To Be Anyone’s Brother,” Fox confessed into the night. 

“I’ve Hardly Had Mutt In My Life As Long As Any Of You Have Known Your Brothers. I Haven’t Even Managed The Task Of Getting Him To Proper Adulthood, And Now I Find Myself In A Situation Where, Once Again, My World Has Shifted... Not Because Of Those I Now See As Being In My Care, But Because - Outside Of Basic Care And Providing - I Have No Clue How To Do Any Of This. The Laws Of My World No Longer Apply.”

Red could also get that. Kill or be killed weren’t really laws that helped anyone. 

He could see so much of himself in Fox in that moment. From the defeat in his posture to the conflict in his magic that sat so close to Red’s own. 

“I’ve Always Known I’m Not A Brave Monster, But I Had At Least Been Certain That I Was A Clever One.” Fox chuckled lowly, “And Now I’ve Lost That Certainty Too. Truthfully… I Have Realized That I Am Entirely Out Of My Depth In All Of This, And, For Once In My Life… I Don’t Really Know Anything.” 

… 

Fuck. Yeah, he got that too. 

Red shifted, catching Fox’s attention as he raised a hand slowly. Fox tensed, watching Red warily but made no motion to stop him, as Red placed his hand on Fox’s shoulder. 

Fox was still as a statue, and his eye lights darted around as he tried to get a read on Red’s expression. Pfft, good luck. Red wasn’t really sure what expression he might have had. He just knew what he had to say. 

A tired grin tugged on his teeth, “So yah finally pieced together how much you still gotta learn, huh? I guess that’s a pretty good start.” 

“A Start?” Fox asked dryly. “How Does A Confession Of Utter Defeat Come Across As Even Slightly Hopeful?” 

Red scoffed, passively noting how Fox was slowly relaxing into the touch. “Ah, don’ be dramatic. So you fucked up. So you don’ know much and got a shit ton of catchin’ up to do. It ain’t the end of the world, you know?” 

Fox bristled, “It’s Not That I Don’t Know Much, It’s That I Know Nothing.” 

Fuck’n drama Queen. 

“Do you love your brother?” 

Fox stared at him. A familiar blankness. 

“Do you?” Red pushed. 

“… Obviously.”

“Do you regret beating the shit outta Blue?”

“Yes.”

“Do you wanna help Sans and Papyrus?” 

“Alright, Yes I See Your Point-”

“Do you really intend to give up just cuz shit isn’t gonna be easy?” Red continued regardless, his words now less playful and more intense. “You said it yourself. You used to be cruel and selfish. When we met, you called yourself Glorious and Maleficent. My first impression was that you were a wicked and cunning bastard who would do whatever it takes to get what he wants. That you wouldn’t let anyone or anything get in your way, and I respected that.” 

Fox nearly recoiled, but Red kept his grip firm. “I Wa- I Am- I-” 

“Then why the fuck are you acting like you plan on not getting back up?” Red asked. “So what if life taught you to be ruthless? It’s alright to acknowledge you don’t know how to be something new, but to give up without even trying? Now that’s just bullshit.

“You only know how to be selfish? Fine, then selfishly be happy or pursue the goal of learning to be better. Do what you can, and when you don’t know what the hell else to do? When you want to run away because you don’t know how to face shit?” Red held back a growl of frustration. “Fuck’n ask for help.” 

Ask for help, yell for help, throw shit for his attention if fuck’n needed. Giving up was something Red did. He did it all the damn time, and gave up on practically everyone and everything at least once in his life and it fucking sucked. 

He wasn’t gonna let this lil’ shit make the same damn mistake. He’d have to get creative and make his own. 

Fox stared at him. His eye lights remained, and Red swore he could almost see traces of purple magic lingering just behind the sockets. 

“Why Are You Here, Red?” Fox asked with a quaver in his voice. It held more hesitant emotion in his tone than Red had ever heard. Fox sounded like Blue. Like Sans. 

Like him. 

Red almost didn’t wanna say it, because if he did, then there was no going back. No matter the fact that he was already in way too deep. 

Part of him wanted to joke and say it was due to being sick, or say it was only cuz Edge was busy. Laugh and say the first therapy session was free, or lie and say it was cuz of how pathetic Fox was being. He wanted to hide the genuine emotions in his soul with a wall of insincerity and bravado. All that fun deflection shit Grizzly had tried to get him to talk about since they met.

Though doing that would be admitting that even a monster made of Courage could be cowardly. 

“Because I want to be,” he admitted. Red let go of Fox’s shoulder and rubbed at the back of his skull. He had to look away from Fox for this. Saying it was groundbreaking enough. “I’m here cuz… I don’t really know much either. I know how to fight, drink, yell, and be a brother… but that’s about it.” 

He was here. Here to be a brother. Cuz fuck if that wasn’t the one thing he knew he could be right now. 

The small part of him that hoped Fox might not pick up the meaning of his words was crushed as he saw the slight fuzzy quality in Fox’s eye lights. 

Could… Could Fox have star-lights? 

“Oh…” 

Fox closed his sockets before Red could tell. Fox wiped at his skull for a moment, before looking back at him. Sure enough, the light specks were back to normal, though the slight purple stain under the rim of his sockets was noticeable. 

“I See,” Fox murmured. “I Guess I Do Have A Lot To Learn.”

Then the worst thing in the fuck’n world happened. 

Fox, uncertainly yet genuine, smiled at Red. It was small, awkward, hopeful, and Red could feel the same determination from when Edge had been small settle in his soul. 

Red was going to look after this mess of a skeleton. 

He was going to look after all of them, actually. It was a horrible idea that would probably end him, but damn everything if he wasn’t going to do it.

For as long as that machine stayed broken, and for as long as he could fight his way to remain with them all. 

Red was going to be their brother. He had seven younger brothers now. 

Fuck, that would be a lot of Giftmas presents. Red had gotten Edge a Barbie pink pepper spray last year cuz it was their first time celebrating a peaceful holiday and it was funny. The others actually liked Giftmas and he’d have to put effort in. Shit. 

Welp. Lotto tickets and scratchers would probably work right? …He’d figure it out later. 

“We’ll get there,” Red said to both Fox and himself. 

Feeling particularly emboldened, Red threw an arm over Fox’s shoulder with a brief flare of his magic. 

Fox stilled again, but after a brief pause, he sighed, and Red could feel the tired and soul-weary brush of Fox’s magic. 

Alliance? It seemed to ask. 

Family. He tried his best to express back. 

By the way Fox finally let himself relax, Red hoped he had actually gotten the message. 

The fire seemed pretty damn out now, and soon the two of them would have to walk back to the cabins. 

Fox would express his concern and observations about Blue, while Red would share his on Sans. Together, they’d agree to confront their concerns in the morning. 

A cabin away, Sans would sit awake and watch over his injured brother, memories of loss tugging sharp pains in his soul. A creature in the void would watch the pain on his son’s skull, just out of sight and knowing they were running out of time. 

In cabin three, Edge would sit in silent grief and fury as Stretch explains in nowhere enough detail Blue’s fear of strangers, and Sans’ fear of losing Papyrus ‘again.’

Cabin four would be silent, as Mutt sits by Blue, Papyrus’ words on replay in his mind as something dangerous and new would try to creep into his soul. 

And somewhere, back in Ebbot, a blue-finned, sharp-toothed monster would grin in irritation, her phone screen cracking in her grasp and obscuring the web search of ‘Camp Honey Hive.’ 

But for the moment, the night was quiet, and Red wondered just how much Determination it would take to make up for all the soul traits he didn’t have. 

It filled him with Hope.

Chapter Text

Dreaming of complete nothingness was a first. It would be one thing to not dream at all, but this was distinctly a dream about, apparently… nothing. 

Well, there was him. 

Sans could distinctly see himself as he walked through the black void. It reminded him of walking underwater, so much so he could practically imagine something large and looming swimming around him. 

It was odd, the things one’s mind conjured when deprived of stimuli. He was dreaming, right? It was odd to be so lucid. 

“Sa—-s!”

Sans paused, his skull tilting to look behind him. He knew that voice. 

Steps faltering, he tried to peer at the strange, amorphous shape in the distance. 

Something? So, not just nothing. 

As he stepped closer to the shape, the voice called to him again, more frantic but still indecipherable. 

“-n—la!!! Sa—-s! —ake—- p!”

The thing in the distance… it was moving towards him. 

It was moving towards him fast. 

Sans stumbled backwards, his soul aching in his chest. He moved to run, only to feel paralyzed. 

“—-ns!!!”

He was frozen again. He couldn’t move, and that thing was- 

He closed his sockets and braced for his end, but not before a single unexpected Hope fluttered weakly in his soul, begging him to call- to ask- to yell for-

Sans bolted awake, his hand flying to his rib cage where his soul sputtered frantically inside. 

Red. 

Where was Red? Where… was… wait…

Why was he looking for Red? 

Looking around the dimly lit, pink-covered cabin Sans blinked his sockets as he took in his reality. 

He was in the Oxymoron cabin. He had been sleeping here to watch over Paps after… stars, after everything that had happened. 

Red was still in Cabin 2. Sans must have just been instinctively looking for his roommate out of habit… yeah. That was probably it. 

It made a lot more sense to Sans than calling out for Red after a nightmare. His magic had probably just noticed the lack of the Determination furnace that he’d been sharing a sleeping space with and his mind had played some kind of trick. 

Yeah… 

Sans ran his hands over his face. 

… yeah.  

After a moment of staring emptily at his own hands, Sans looked across the room. A mere bed away, Papyrus was sprawled out in his striped pj’s and Lighting McQueen sleeping cap, sleeping soundly. 

Despite the horrors of the previous day, Paps looked to be sleeping with a soft smile on his teeth. 

Because damn if that wasn’t just his bro. 

Sans couldn’t help but stare at the new long crack down Paps’ left socket. It looked like Stretch had been right.

It would scar. 

That deep bitterness at the bottom of his soul, acrid and burning, rose suddenly and nauseatingly. 

Getting up from Fox’s bed, Sans snagged his hoodie from the floor and shortcut himself to just outside the door. 

Bracing himself against the outer wall of the Cabin, Sans closed his sockets trying to focus on the mixed feelings within his own soul. 

tired  lost  angry  sad  scared  helpless  alone

It hurt. His soul hurt so dang much today. 

So much for being Hope-acetic. Ha… ha…  damn. It wasn’t funny, huh? 

Looking around, he noted that it was early as heck- o’clock. The sun was just barely starting to hit the horizon and lighten the morning sky. 

Sunrise… the first year on the surface, he and Pap had tried to get up early to watch every sunrise they could. He couldn’t remember when they’d stopped doing that. When he’d stopped seeing them the same way. 

His soul begged for the hope sunrise had once given him, before everything had become… just so exhausting. 

Had it ever truly stopped, though? Or had everything just been slightly less shitty for a minute? 

Chuckling dryly, Sans couldn’t help but find himself utterly worn out. Maybe he felt worse now than before he had fallen asleep watching over his bro. 

He ignored the small voice in his mind that encouraged him to go back to sleep, to lay back down and just try to escape the pain with a rest so soothing that nothing could ever hurt him again. 

Instead, he stared at the shape of the pavilion in the distance. 

Sunrise. He really wanted to see it. 

The view probably looked amazing from inside the pavilion. Maybe it would fill that need for…  Something positive in his soul. He would curl up in one of those wicker chairs and watch the sunrise, and then maybe the pain ache in his soul would lessen just a bit. 

He’d be back before Paps would even notice. 

On bones shakier than Sans would like to admit, he took a few steps forward before shortcutting himself directly inside the geodesic structure. 

He hadn’t expected his magic to strain from such a small jump, and he nearly stumbled forward against a table normally used for meals. 

His vision was swimming, and a dull, tired part of him muttered darkly in his mind. The words sounded like him, but he wasn’t sure when he’d have uttered his soul’s deepest thoughts aloud. 

why even try? 

just give up. 

i did. 

It all sounded right. After all, he had given up… He’d felt so lost in the time loop that he nearly hadn’t made it. 

Then some determined kiddo had promised there’d be no more resets. No more loss. No more Chara. Frisk had looked at him, their soul burning red, and Sans hadn’t been able to resist cheering for the kid. 

It was as close to Hopeful as he could get at that point. Loving his bro, and trusting the very kid who haunted his nightmares had been just enough to cling on.

And now? 

Sans had gotten tired again somehow. 

He’d held grudges. Was cynical. Even now, he was too afraid to care or let himself be loved. A monster in this state was hardly a monster at all really. 

Sunrise. He needed to see it. 

There was a comfy bench nearby that could do the trick. He could lay there and rest his bones, and he’d see sunrise or take one hell of a nap. 

Fumbling his way forward to the bench, Sans froze as his destination came into view. 

Blue was occupying half of his bench. He, too, appeared to be looking towards the creeping sunlight. A frown tugged at his teeth and darkness lingered under his sockets. A star-covered blanket was slung over his shoulders while he hugged his legs to his chest. 

Why… Why was Blue here? 

Sans could vaguely remember hearing that Blue had passed out yesterday. Something about Fox and him fighting? Or was it that Fox was worried because Blue passed out after they had fought? 

It was horrible to admit, but he hadn’t really been paying attention after he woke from being carried. He’d eaten dinner, then holed himself up in Paps’ cabin fussing over his bro. 

He hadn’t even bothered to see if Blue was okay. 

Another sharp stabbing pain hit Sans strong enough that he must have exhaled a bit sharply, because it seemed to catch Blue’s attention. 

Blue looked to Sans, and the frown on the elder’s teeth was instantly hidden behind a welcoming, yet tired smile. “AH, GOOD MORNING SANS. YOU’RE UP EARLY.”

Sans faltered, unsure who had interrupted whom in their moments of sullen isolation. “Uh… ye.” 

Blue chuckled softly, his eye lights flicking swiftly over Sans, before looking back out the windows. “I’D BE VERY SURPRISED IF YOU HAD BEEN LOOKING FOR ME, SO I’LL GUESS YOUR EITHER HERE FOR THE SAME REASONS AS ME, OR,” he gestured to the window with a growing grin, “TO SEE YET ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL SUNRISE!” 

Sans didn’t mean to stare, but he must have stared long enough that Blue’s grin slowly died down. 

“OR UM… I COULD LEAVE IF THAT’S BETTER?” Blue began nervously. 

Sans blinked his sockets in an attempt to clear his skull. Something about Blue’s grin at him had thawed something in his chest just a bit, and the fact he’d shut it down felt nearly worse than before. 

“You can stay,” Sans found himself mumbling, his feet taking him a step closer, before he stopped warily. 

Blue’s skull tilted slightly in confusion, before his smile returned hesitantly. “DO YOU WANT TO JOIN ME?” he asked, shifting to the side and patting the bench next to him. 

For reasons unknown to him, Sans could feel his shoulders sag. Maybe in exhaustion? Or- 

Oh, who was he kidding? Piecing that together would just be too much right now. He was tired and not okay and sitting next to Blue didn’t sound completely awful right now. 

A day ago, he probably would have gladly given Blue the cold shoulder, but everything hurt and he was too tired to straight up pretend he didn’t want to. 

“Okay,” he caved, unable to look at Blue while he let his feet take him to the bench. Sitting up on the cushion, he glanced to Blue, hoping not to see anything smug or condescending. 

Blue wasn’t looking at him at all; instead, he was looking back out the window thoughtfully. 

Great. Now Sans was the weirdo who was staring. 

“ISN’T IT JUST… BIGGER THAN YOU’D IMAGINED?” Blue asked.

“The sun?” 

“THE WORLD.” Blue confessed. “MY UNDERGROUND FELT SO LARGE TO ME WHEN I WAS YOUNGER. I MEAN, IT WAS ALL I’D EVER KNOWN. TO THINK THERE WAS SO MUCH MORE THAT WOULD MAKE US ALL FEEL SO SMALL.” 

Sans could kinda get that. After all, he felt very small right now. Not exactly in the way he liked, but he got that. 

“… in diameter it’s 1.4 million kilometers.” Sans spoke, gaining Blue’s undivided attention. “The sun, that is. 865,000 miles in freedom units, and approximately 93 million miles, or 149 million kilometers, away.”

“AND THE EARTH?” Blue asked curiously. “HOW BIG IS THAT?”

“7,926.2 miles or 12,756 kilometers if recent study is to be believed,” Sans answered after a moment of recollection. He’d always found the other planets and stars more interesting than Earth, but their planet was still unique enough to be worth remembering. 

Blue’s smile grew, as if Sans had just said something impressive or cool. “YOU MUST REALLY LOVE SPACE.” 

… he really did. 

“I do,” Sans confirmed, nodding his head towards Blue’s blanket, he asked, “Don’t you?” 

Blue chuckled, “YES, THOUGH PROBABLY MORE ABSTRACTLY THAN YOU. I DON’T KNOW ANY OF THE ACTUAL SCIENCE BEHIND OUR SOLAR SYSTEM, BESIDES MAYBE THE BASICS, BUT I LOVE HOW INSPIRING IT IS. TO THINK THAT BY A SCIENTIFIC MIRACLE THE ORBITS OF THE PLANETS DON’T CAUSE THEM TO GO CAREENING INTO EACH OTHER… IT’S LIKE SOME SORT OF COSMIC DANCE OF ANCIENT GIANTS. THE LOST STORY OF EACH WORLD A MYSTERY THAT MAKES MY MIND SPIN LIKE SATURN. SPACE IS VAST, AND FILLED WITH SO MUCH POSSIBILITY THAT I CAN’T NOT LOVE EVERY INCH OF IT ALL.”

“Constellations have a lot of creative stories about them,” Sans added. “I don’t know many, but I know a few.” 

Blue’s eye lights practically sparkled, “I’D LOVE TO HEAR THE ONES YOU KNOW. I KNOW A FEW OF THEM MYSELF, SO MAYBE WE CAN SHARE OUR STORIES?” 

“Maybe,” Sans answered uncertainly. He wasn’t sure if he’d have the energy later, but there was something to the way Blue seemed genuinely interested that had shifted Sans’ answer away from a hard no. 

“What do you think of the sun?” Sans asked, shifting the conversation back to sunrise. 

“BIG WARM NICE.” 

A snort escaped Sans before he could help it. From the way Blue looked oddly smug, it seemed he’d been aiming for that kind of reaction. 

The sun was more than peeking past the horizon now, covering them both in its golden rays. 

Blue was right. It was big warm nice. The thought almost got a full chuckle from him. Almost. 

“So…” Sans broke the silence. “What’s the reason you’re here?” 

Blue stilled. “AH. OH, UM… HIDING MOSTLY.”

Sans furrowed his bone ridge, “Hiding?” 

“HIDING.” Blue stated more certainly. “I JUST… I DON’T REALLY FEEL LIKE TALKING TO EVERYONE YET ABOUT THE WHOLE…” he waved his hand in a so-so motion. “FAINTING THING.” 

Ah. So Blue did faint. 

“Was it that bad?” Sans asked, wondering how rough the fight must have been between Blue and Fox. 

Blue shrugged, “MOSTLY JUST… AWKWARD.” His hands moved to grip the side of the bench as he looked away from Sans and back to the golden light. 

“I… I NOW UNDERSTAND HOW MY BROTHER AND I ARE VIEWED.” 

How they were viewed? Sans’ frown deepened. “Like Swap versions, right? The inverse personalities of me and Paps?”

Blue turned to look back at Sans, slight disbelief to his gaze. “THAT’S HOW YOU VIEW US?” 

“Eh, mostly.”

“WELL…” Blue spoke thoughtfully. “I GUESS I JUST FEEL LIKE THE OTHERS SEE MY BROTHER AND I AS… WEAKER, GENTLE MONSTERS WHO ARE WELL PUT TOGETHER, HAPPY, HEALTHY AND GREAT, PRODUCTIVE MEMBERS OF SOCIETY.” 

Sans nearly choked on thin air at the words, unable to hide his blatant shock. Who the heck thought that???

Blue and Stretch were magic powerhouses. Not weak by any measure. Sure, they came from a world like his own, and Blue sure tried to come off that way, but his illusion of the two actually being “put together” had long since shattered. 

Stretch had a cool tech job, but seemed to enjoy being reclusive, choosing to confine himself to only the household. Not to mention that, despite his recent reliability, he had a dark streak to him that Sans couldn’t bring himself to forget. Blue was a go-getter like Papyrus, but he was still an alternate version of Sans. His luck was probably as rotten as it got. Heck, Blue even had to deal with the brunt of Sans’ negativity lately, hadn’t he? 

“Oh?” Sans managed to stumble out, trying to hide his utter disagreement with the statement behind a blank expression. He was no Fox, but polite indifference couldn’t be that hard.

Blue nodded, “YESTERDAY WAS… REALLY AWFUL FOR MANY REASONS, AND THE BEHAVIOR I DISPLAYED BY FAINTING, FRANKLY, ISN’T THE MONSTER I STRIVE TO BE ANYMORE.” 

The smile across Blue’s teeth felt too small and sad to be Blue as he added, “I KNOW MY BROTHER IS GOING TO FUSS, I KNOW FOX AND MUTT ARE GOING TO ASK, AND I KNOW EDGE AND RED ARE GOING TO HOVER.”

“And Paps and I?” 

Blue chuckled, “I DON’T THINK YOU TWO EVEN KNOW WHAT FULLY OCCURRED, AND TRUTHFULLY? I PREFER IT THAT WAY.” 

A frown made its way back to Sans’ teeth. “You think I wouldn’t care?” 

He shook his skull. “MORE LIKE… IT BRINGS ME PEACE OF MIND TO KNOW THAT IT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT. THAT ENCOURAGES ME TO BE EVEN BETTER, ACTUALLY.”

Blue paused uncertainly, looking to Sans with hesitant eye lights. “I… I HAVE A FEELING THAT PERHAPS YOU HAVE HAD THINGS OCCUR IN YOUR PAST THAT HAVE BROUGHT YOU GREAT PAIN.” 

Sans stilled, his posture tensing ever so slightly. 

Blue rushed to continue speaking, “AND I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW YOU DON’T HAVE TO TELL ME ANY OF IT. I MEAN, YOU CAN IF YOU WANT, BUT IF IT IS SOMETHING TOO HEAVY OR PAINFUL TO BRING UP, OR YOU JUST NEED TO BE AROUND SOMEONE YOU KNOW WON’T ASK OR PRY… I CAN DO THAT TOO.”

“WE LIVE IN A HOUSE WITH… QUITE A FEW SKELETON MONSTERS WHO MEAN WELL, BUT DON’T KNOW HOW TO SHOW THEY CARE WITHOUT ACTING… AND YES, PERHAPS THIS IS UNEXPECTED COMING FROM ME, GIVEN THAT I’VE BEEN PART OF THAT VERY PROBLEM, BUT… IT CAN BE A BIT EXHAUSTING SOMETIMES.” Blue admitted. 

He gestured towards the window. “IT’S AMAZING TO KNOW THEY WANT TO BE THERE FOR ME, AND PROBABLY WILL BE THERE WHEN I NEED THEM. BUT FOR NOW, I…” Blue sighed heavily. “I THINK I NEED A BREAK. A BREAK TO WATCH THE SUNRISE, AND JUST… FEEL THINGS.” 

… there was a lot to take in there. A lot Sans hadn’t thought Blue was capable of doing. Screw Blue’s disillusion of himself, Sans was starting to doubt how well he knew him. 

“So… even a Sans who is Great and Magnificent needs breaks?” Sans asked, thinking over Blue’s words. 

The older skeleton chuckled, readjusting his blanket, “HONESTLY? THE MORE THE BETTER.” 

Blue looked over at Sans, and after a brief moment of hesitation, offered him part of his blanket. 

“MAYBE ONE DAY YOU CAN TELL ME IF I’M RIGHT OR WRONG ABOUT YOUR PAST… BUT FOR NOW, HOW DOES SYMPATHETIC SILENCE AND A GOAL TO TALK EVENTUALLY, BUT NOT NECESSARILY NOW, SOUND?” 

Sans stared at the blanket. 

Honestly? It sounded like a trap, but maybe only because of how much he kinda wanted it. 

Sans was so tired… and after all, who was he to say no to a break? 

Blue had this bad habit of treating Sans like a child. He didn’t call him “kiddo” or “kid”, but he kept giving Sans chances to be young. He kept encouraging him, and offering Sans outs, and even offering magical and emotional support that Sans had refused time and time again. 

As an adult, it was embarrassing and offensive as hell.

But… if he was taking a break from the whole adult thing… maybe just long enough for the sun to rise and his soul to calm, then maybe… 

Blue wasn’t so bad. 

——— Edge 

Edge used to love puzzles. Or well, jigsaw puzzles to be exact. When he was small and relatively innocent, he had found incredible joy in the simple act of assembling broken pieces to create a bigger picture. 

It was apparently something nearly every Papyrus had in common. The desire to pick and pluck at a mystery until the truth played its song loud and clear. 

He had been given so many pieces to a puzzle his mind couldn’t comprehend. Had he grilled Stretch for nearly every detail he could give him on Sans’ exact phrasing? 

Absolutely. 

Had it helped him make a cohesive image in his mind? 

Honestly? He felt close. The simplest answer was usually the correct one. He felt so damn close, but the obvious answer didn’t make any fucking sense. 

Sans had said he, “Couldn’t lose Papyrus again.” 

Sans had highly advanced control over his magic for his age. Even to the point of having incredible reflexes and being able to summon a number of blasters well past his age’s expectation of zero.

Stretch had told Sans he could have died, only for the younger skeleton to say, “It wouldn’t be the first time.”

Despite being a young skeleton, Sans apparently could actively defy the soul traits he was supposed to possess constantly. Something no monster should be able to do without having experienced a severe amount of trauma.

Sans didn’t like humans.  

The way the pieces came together, the solution to the puzzle was that a human had killed Papyrus, then fought Sans. That Sans had then died. He had died and then had somehow returned with his brother in tow. 

That was the simplest answer, and by Occam’s Razor, that should be the correct explanation. But looking at what it left him, it just made fuck all sense.

Only… Sans seemed incredibly aged, and perhaps even intelligent beyond his years. Especially for a monster who hadn’t even gotten an underground general degree of education. 

Stretch, of course, had been the one to say the solution. To joke, “Time Travel?” with a shrug of his shoulders just before he’d gone to sleep. Unaware of just exactly how much he had rattled Edge’s bones to the core. The answer fit everything. Well, everything but the damn logic of the universe. 

Though… Edge was here, wasn’t he? In a universe outside of his own, and that also defied logic in very mind twisting ways. 

Because why did that fit his puzzle so perfectly?

Sans was such a small monster, with such a tired soul. 

A soul that had perhaps lived way too many lives for a monster that young. 

It was so much easier to focus his mind onto the puzzle of Blue instead. That answer had at least made sense. 

Edge was unemployed, damn it. He had seen how much Blue was constantly home, and only ever left for work in the early hours of the morning. A bakery prep shift? How fitting that a monster with agoraphobia would find a job that works while the rest of the world slept. 

Though, given how willing Blue had been to leave for the trip, perhaps Edge should have also guessed it was the people, not the outside, that Blue was scared of. 

Stretch had refused to budge on the “Why” of Blue having such a difficult social challenge, but honestly Edge didn’t need that information. Rather, now that he had the definite answer, he could at least plan accordingly. 

Time travel… 

Damn it, he wished logic would swipe that particular solution away. 

Surprise surprise. Wishful thinking was a load of horse shit. 

Edge remained upsettingly wide awake by the time Mutt had come knocking at their cabin to inform them Blue was gone. Stretch, only half awake, had been mumbling a reminder about Blue’s early as hell run routine when he was interrupted by Papyrus’ nervous arrival. 

It only took one, “… HAVE ANY OF YOU SEEN SANS?” to send the rest of them on Red alert. 

Yes, Red alert. As in Edge had run for Cabin 2, only to be beaten by Stretch’s shortcutting. 

Red and Fox were dressed and ready in mere moments of being informed they had achieved yet another day of missing skeletons. 

“Pavilion, Then Honey?” Fox had asked Red like a monster on a mission. 

“I could go look?” Mutt volunteered, struggling to keep up with the surprisingly fast pace of his brother. 

Red’s gaze snapped to Mutt’s firmly. “You go shortcuttin’, yah gotta take me or Stretch. Just tell us if you feel ‘em close by. It’ll be faster.” 

Mutt glanced to Fox, only for Fox to be looking pointedly away. 

Huh… Fox was… Fox was apparently now under Red’s jurisdiction. Fucking weird, but okay. 

It wasn’t that Red couldn’t take charge, but Edge certainly hadn’t foreseen anyone, least of all Fox, listening to his brother like some sort of royal guard. 

It looked like the sight of that had shook Mutt a bit too, as he stared with raised bone brows at Red. 

“CAN YOU FEEL THEM BY THE PAVILION, MUTT?” Edge cut in, hoping to speed things along. 

Mutt blinked, then slowed his pace a little as he focused, nodding shortly after. “Yeah, they’re there.” 

“MAYBE THEY JUST WANTED EARLY BREAKFAST?” Papyrus asked, still in his pajamas trailing after them. 

Edge doubted it, but he wasn’t going to pop Papyrus’ illusion that Sans didn’t dislike Blue. 

Oh no. Instead, reality would pop Edge’s illusion as they all clambered into the pavilion only to spot the sight of the two missing skeletons. 

Blue and Sans were both dead asleep, propped up against each other on a bench, with a star covered blanket draped over the two. 

At first, Edge guessed Sans must have fallen asleep first, given the fact that there looked to be a paper on the side of the bench that was clearly stationery from Blue’s inventory. 

Only to Edge’s utter bafflement, the writing was in near perfect comic sans. It read simply: 

Do Not Disturb.

And wasn’t that just yet another puzzle that Edge had no damn clue how to begin solving.

Chapter Text

The worst part of Trix’s dreams was how damn lonely they left him.

Sitting up from bed, one hand moved to rub at his sleep-heavy sockets, while the other clung to his blanket, trying to drag the fluffy comfort closer.

In his half-asleep mind, escaping deeper into the warmth would take him back to his fuzzy and fading dream. The sound of laughter. Their laughter.

His family.

Stars… Despite being entirely unfamiliar with the sound, he craved it desperately.

He could still barely remember the conjured image of himself sitting at a table, loud and raucous with skeletons. His brother was sitting to his right, laughing in that unapologetic way he only could when truly happy. The other monsters were shaded and blurry, but they had all talked over each other.

They shouted variants of, “pass the potatoes!” or “Oi, save some for me!!” and even calling out for him to solve a petty squabble.

Trix might have even been laughing with them in his dream. Or maybe just happily watching as he sat at the impossibly long dining table full of good food, good jokes, and even greater loved ones.

Someone had been knocking on the table, setting Trix up for his world-famous knock knock jokes (second only to his terribly funny pick-up lines), only instead of answering, “who’s there?” They had just said, “Brother… Brother?? We need to…Sans??”

And it was that set-up that had awoken him to the real punchline. Himself. Dreaming of unrealistic fantasies again.

Another knock sounded at his bedroom door, perhaps a bit more nervous in its expediency. “Brother?” his bro called again. “Are you awake yet? We need to get going… You are all packed and ready to go, right?”

Sitting up with a jaw-popping yawn, Trix stretched. “I’m up Pap…” he grumbled, trying to shake the dream from his skull. Geez, could he have sounded any more like such a grumpy Jerry?

Patting his cheek bones, he tried again a bit louder, reaching inside himself at the heat-hazed excess in his soul for a bit of extra energy. “I’m up!”

There, much more pep for Pap. Heheh.

A relieved Sweetpea replied from behind the door. “Oh good, I was starting to worry. You’re packed?”

“Uh…” sweat began to form on Trix’s skull as he took in the multitude of shirts, skirts, shorts, pants, British pants, boots, coats, scarfs, pillows, blankets, and other random “not approved for his bro’s eyes,” crap all piled and tossed around his room. “Yep!”

Jumping from his bed, Trix quickly grabbed one of the moving boxes his bro had left him and started throwing as much as he could into it, then tossed the “Box of Room Stuff” in his inventory.

Shit. He still needed to get dressed too. Nearly tripping over another box, Trix quickly stumbled his way into a cute fit. Or well, it was his clothes, and he tried to only get things that paired easy with everything he already owned, so theoretically it would be hot as hell no matter- okay, no. He needed to check.

He stumbled back to his bedroom mirror after having jumped his way into some tight black pants.

He flashed his reflection finger guns at the sight of one sexy as hell skeleton. He’d been right, crop top and sleeveless jacket was a vibe.

“You don’t sound ready!” his bro teased on the other side of the door.

Throwing the mirror and another box into his cell phone’s Dimensional Box B, Trix only then began to mildly panic at the lack of slots remaining in his inventory. “Nah, nah, I’m good!”

Waaaaait. Oh, fuck yeah, that would work.

Closing his sockets to concentrate, Trix focused on the ambient magic in the air. Now, he’d never been great with fire magic like Hotstuff or Matron Toriel, but after a ton of surprise room checks growing up in The Facility, he had picked up a bit of elemental magic that was his style.

Opening one socket to aim, he could feel his eye light glow with energy, as wind formed in his room and began circling. Once his mini tornado had enough traction, he swiped as much of the remaining items into it as he could.

With a flick of magic, he shoved his Vibrating Vortex into his inventory with a satisfied grin. There. Packed.

Looking around the room with a relieved sigh, he opened the door to see his bro leaning against the frame.

His bro was look’n snazzy as hell. Yellow snow-boots, leggings, a bunch of thin golden belts, a sleeveless pink knit sweater, and that black half-jacket/half-cape uniform piece Undyne kept trying to insist was uniform for ANY royal station. It was totally just some anime shit.

Like, his bro could pull it off, but that weird cape thing made Trix just feel like an awkward tiny Batman. He’d constantly be tripping all over that shit.

“Not rocking your ecto today?” Trix noted, pointing to his brother’s sweater. Normally Paps was King “Body Positivity” about showing ecto around his midriff. It was a great way to expend magic, and could be hella eye catching to certain monster types.

Sweetpea rolled his eye lights with a dismissive wave. “Oh please, unlike some skeleton, I actually care about getting snow in my ribs. I can dress practical, you know.”

Trix smirked, “Five gold says that thing’s backless.”

His bro opened his teeth, then closed them with a pouty huff. Trix laughed, causing Sweetpea to scoff in response. “Well okay bitch, but at least my jacket has sleeves!”

“I had sleeves,” Trix began teasingly, while Paps narrowed his sockets.

“Don’t you dar-”

“But they were a tear-able purchase. A complete rip-off if yah know what I mean!”

“GET NEW MATERIAL!!!” Sweetpea slammed the door, only to groan from the other side upon realizing his words. “Wait! I didn’t mean-”

Only it was too late. Trix was already in stitches snickering over his Bro’s accidental pun.

“We are leaving in five minutes, Sans!!!!” Pap firmly informed him. He sounded horribly disappointed, which let Trix know his bro was definitely smiling behind that door.

Stars, he really did have the coolest brother in the world. If Matron Toriel had ever raised the perfect monster, it would be his bro.

Trix’s soul hummed happily in his rib cage at the amount of pure Love he could feel. Maybe he’d never have a huge happy family, but damn if Trix wasn’t thankful for the family he did have.

For a brief second, pure dread flared out of nowhere, sharp and deep in his soul. Like a drowning monster who had surfaced for just a moment before being plunged back to the depths.

They were going back to the house. The place where he’d learned what the magic being distributed through the underground was made from. The place where he had found the-

Trix blinked, his hand reaching under his shirt and over his ribs in seconds. He grounded himself from the ache of it all by focusing again on his overflowing reserves.

The sheer amount of energy needed a good release. It always did, but at least it was good for something.

Leaning into the frantic buzz of it, he could feel the subtle mood boost he was looking for. “There yah go, soul. Too much stuff today for all that gloomy shit.”

Trix felt ready to run a mile if needed. Nah, three miles! Which was great, cuz they had a ton of walking to do today. He tried to overpower the part of himself that already felt exhausted by the idea.

He had this. Today was going to go smoothly and be amazing! For his brother’s sake, he wouldn’t let himself blow up over the small details.

Today was going to be perfect.

——— Sweetpea

To anyone else, Sweetpea supposed his brother looked to be in rare yet excellent form today. Alas, in his professional opinion, his older brother looked an absolute mess.

Their footsteps crunched as they walked in the fresh layer of powder pink snow on the ground. The sled carrying two Boxes ™ of their furniture left a trail in the snow behind them. 

The artificial draft blew more of the magically saturated snow around them, fluttering Sweetpea’s cape. 

Sans, of course, was being an absolute goof, dancing around Sweetpea and holding his favorite paper flower as they walked. He was humming while twirling, a bubbly laugh escaping him.

Sans was clearly buzzing with enough energy to power The Core.

Maybe they should have stopped by the club on their way out to blow off some steam? Personally? Sweetpea was fine, if perhaps a bit tense, but his brother always tended to… well, get the damn zoomies when there was too much magic in his bones.

It wasn’t uncommon for monsters to expend magic in small ways to help relieve tension in everyday activities. After all they couldn't release it in the obvious ways twenty-four seven. They’d get nothing done. The haze in the air was always there. So, monsters had to either get creative or get used to the constant uncomfortable itch in their souls.

Sans liked to let loose by converting it into sudden bursts of mania or performing impossible feats. Thus, the lazy bones was able to put on a spectacular show of unparalleled skill, then be snoozing in mere minutes.

When Sans had this much energy, though? It wasn’t his brother trying to do any of that just so he could nap as soon as possible; it was him absorbing more than normal to give himself an unnecessary boost.

Like five energy drinks and eight shots of fire whiskey straight to the soul.

It was a twisted and perhaps dark mirror of how Sweetpea could vaguely remember seeing Sans in The Facility. Sans had always seemed so relaxed and laid back. Not shaken by anything as his brother had slipped him small signs and trinkets of affection.

Well, he was still technically the same monster. Just… changed in the ways they all were upon leaving The Facility.

Even Sweetpea felt drastically different. The Matron had spent so much personal time with him, teaching him how to handle his more energetic nature. She’d been convinced that the only way he’d survive the heat mists was by having a strong sense of control over himself and his magic.

So, she’d been very… Strict with him. Strict enough that even now, decades later, he could still hear her warnings and her advice in his skull like it was yesterday.

It was a horribly embarrassing, yet useful, skill. 

“Sans?” Sweetpea asked, watching his brother spin to a stop curiously. 

“Wassup bro?” Sans asked, pausing his flower waltz. 

Sweetpea stared Sans down. His best impersonation of the Queen. “Burdens are lighter when-”

Sans groaned instantly, catching what he was doing, “When shared together.” Sans gave a brief chuckle, looking to Sweetpea with a small smile. “Alright, alright, no need to get all matronly on me.” 

Recalling Toriel’s gentle voice, Sweetpea politely demanded, “Speak your Truth, brother. You’ll feel better.” 

“What if I don’t want to burden you with my Truth?” Sans asked bluntly. “This trip is for you, Sweets, and I don’t want to-”

“What absolute pick me nonsense!” Sweetpea cut off dryly in a way their Matron would likely frown upon. 

Sans froze, jaw agape. “You did NOT just call me that.”

“I did, because that’s what you’re acting like,” Sweetpea fluttered his hand out dramatically, “I know I’m the greatest, hottest monster around, but my ego is hardly frail enough that I need someone catering to my every emotional need, least of all my big brother.” 

Sweetpea struck a dramatic pose, one of his originals. “Who do I look like, Mettaton?” 

His brother stared, then, as he tended to do, laughed. Sans laughed deeply, wiping a single pink tear from his socket while Sweetpea grinned smugly. 

As much as his brother liked to act indifferent, no one liked messy judgmental comments more than Sans. He lived for drama. Which was great, because Sweetpea always somehow found himself with plenty of drama to share. 

They balanced each other out like that. 

“Now,” Sweetpea turned his skull away from his brother to hide how much he was smiling. “Spill. I’ll be offended if you aren’t disgustingly vulnerable right now. All the emotional goop you can muster! Does that help you overcome that people-pleasing drive of yours?” 

Sans gave another strained laugh, but he at least looked much more like himself. “You’re such a bitch.” 

He was, wasn’t he? How delightful. “Thank you.” 

Sans was quiet for a long moment, but Sweetpea gave him time to piece his thoughts into words. 

“I don’t know…” Sans began kicking his heeled boot at a snow poff. 

“Strike one, first lie,” Sweetpea teased, earning a nudge from his older brother. 

“Okay Mr. Pedantic, I do know! It’s just hard to put into words! I just…” Sans rubbed at the back of his skull. “The house just feels haunted as hell, and despite the fact that I’m a thousand percent committed to us doing this for you, I can’t shake the feeling that something bad is gonna happen.” 

Haunted? What a way to put it. 

Sweetpea tilted his skull, “Oh, you mean you don’t look forward to being in a big ol’ creepy house filled with the dusty belongings of our ancestors, that we’ve only ever heard about through the writings they’ve left behind? The very place where you had to live alone for fifty-two years, never redecorated out of respect, and nearly fell down from how depressed it all made you, before I moved in and we cleared that creepy shit all into the basement???” 

“Yep. Got it in one.”

Sweetpea sighed, feeling the Truth of it all, “Brother… I know you want to be here for me, but if it’s at the cost of your mental health, maybe you should-”

Sans arched his bone ridge, “Stay with you and support my baby bro? Excellent idea!” 

Sweetpea stopped walking and let go of the sled lead. He placed his right hand on Sans’ shoulder. “Sans, I don’t need you to put yourself through something like this to know you love and support me.”