Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Frisk papped their hands all over Papyrus's skull, a deep and concerned frown on their tiny little face. The tall skeleton was lying on the floor with Sans sitting and observing close by.

“You've bested me, human,” he said, trying in vain to keep the happy tremors from his voice. “The Great Papyrus falls before your might.”

The human child stuck their tongue out at him. Sans gave a hissing laugh from where he sat with his back against the couch. The air was warm and peaceful. They'd decided to keep the enchanting little human they'd found near the Ruins, and even though neither of them were really 'parent material' the way the child would snuggle close to their chests or teeter and fall on their butt was just too much to say no to.

“Pah...” they mumbled, a tiny hand resting on the monster's face. “Pah.”

“Papyrus,” the skeleton said, but then the hand went to cover his mouth and he snickered.

“Bro, you're letting this kid walk all over you,” Sans said with laughter in his voice. Papyrus looked over to his brother, perched nearby, and saw a rare and blissfully contented spark of happiness in his usually-empty eye sockets.

“Saass,” the child babbled happily. Papyrus had never been around somebody so young before. They used their little hands to explore his face, but to his surprise they were gentle and careful not to poke or prod anything too sensitive.

Sans scooted close and watched the encounter unfold. The human reached out to touch Papyrus's eye, but when they found there was nothing physical there they drew away again. Their bob of brown hair shifted and suddenly Sans was met with their chubby little face. They cooed something that sounded worried.

“We're skeletons, kiddo,” Sans said. He lifted up his hand and stuck it in his eye socket for emphasis, drawing it out again a moment later. “It's all good.”

Concern dealt with, the toddler went back to Papyrus and hesitantly stuck their hand into his skull. He smiled, but the human was too busy being amazed by the wonder of not having eyeballs. They were reaching their hand into the socket, pulling it out again, and cooing to either Papyrus himself or turning to Sans to show off their cool trick.

“Impressive, human!” Papyrus said. He sat up on his elbows and the human crawled onto his chest, still looking intently at his face.

“Oh man, Paps, you got yourself a fan...” Sans said. Frisk turned to him, then, and reached their hand out to the shorter brother's face. They nearly tumbled from Papyrus's chest in their urgency to test out the trick on the other skeleton.

Sans caught them with his magic and floated them over to his arms. Papyrus sat up and watched as he let the pinpricks of magic light fade from his eyes. Frisk mumbled something before they stuck a single finger into the opening. When the same principle that applied to Papyrus applied to his brother as well, Frisk gave a little squeal of delight and proceeded to gently inspect the strangeness of the skeletons.

“Jeez kiddo, eye didn't know you were so interested in skeletons,” Sans said. Papyrus would've usually groaned, but he just smiled and watched his brother play with the human. Sans looked happy for once, genuinely pleased, and that was all Papyrus really cared about.

After a moment the small human stuck a finger up Sans's nose. They pulled it out again and looked at it, face scrunching up in worry when they found nothing on their finger. Papyrus moved over to sit beside the two of them, and Frisk hurriedly crawled to him and repeated the process.

“Lookin' for boogers, I see,” Sans said. He ruffled Frisk's hair and the child giggled. Sans's eyes all but lit up with stars at the golden noise, and Papyrus felt warmth blossom in his chest.

“Papyrus this kid is fucking amazing,” Sans whispered as the child squirmed in his brother's arms and laid a tiny hand on his jawline.

“Sans, watch your language,” Papyrus scolded, and when the child felt his jaw move they grinned up at him.

The child was set down and proceeded to teeter over to Sans and pat his shirt. Sans watched with a warm smile lingering on his face as they put their adorable hands around his ribs and looked up at him in deep-rooted concern.

“Don't worry, pal, it's supposed to be like that,” Sans said. He lifted his shirt up to reveal his ribs and pelvis.

The child was absolutely fascinated. Their previous hesitation forgotten, their hands explored Sans's ribs and spine, gentle as always but eager to find out new secrets. After a little while they went to Papyrus and demanded to see his as well, as though to confirm Sans was indeed well. He obliged them with laughter and got a thorough rib-tickling from their tiny human fingers.

“Man, I didn't think we were this interesting,” Sans said as the child poked their head into his ribcage. He'd sat back to lazily allow them to inspect the foreign concept that was a skeleton.

“I was unaware myself, brother!” Papyrus said happily. The noise made Frisk come over and put a hand on his forearm, feeling the bone. They tugged off his glove and demanded to see his fingers.

“Hey, Paps... I know that turning them into the King would probably land you in the Guard, but, uh, what do you think-”

“Brother,” Papyrus said, and Sans paused. The human stopped inspecting the taller skeleton's hands long enough to look up at him with their big red eyes. Papyrus couldn't help but smile.

“We can't turn this child into the King! Just look at them- they're much too young and soft. I think we should raise them and teach them to be kind, like monsters!”

Sans stared for a moment, eyes shifting to the kid, and then back to his brother. He grinned.

“You're always so smart, Paps.”

“Pap!” Frisk cooed. Papyrus's breath caught in his throat as they said it. He scooped them up in his arms with a delighted laugh.

“Sans! They said my name!” he nearly shouted.

“Pap! Pap!”

Sans had stars in his eyes.

Chapter Text

The first time that the skeletons took Frisk out into the snow to play, the child’s immediate response was to cling to Papyrus’s boot and whimper.

    “Aw, kiddo, it’s just snow. It ain’t gonna bite.”

    “Frost bite is a very real and valid fear, brother,” Papyrus said softly. The toddler stepped into the thin covering outside of the house before they made a fussy noise and went back to standing on Papyrus’s boot.

    “Paps, if the kid is going to live here they can’t be scared of snow,” Sans said.

    “I know that! But look at them brother- they’re so small and scared…”

    “Bruhver!” Frisk said, slapping the taller skeleton’s leg happily. “Bruhver…!”

    Sans looked at his ‘bruhver’ for a moment, then he knelt down beside the toddler who was now beginning to test out the soft ground a little more.

    “Hey kid, you know who likes the snow?”

    Frisk cocked their head. Sans wasn’t certain that they understood him, but he pointed to Papyrus anyways.

    “Paps loves snow.”

    “Pap! Pap!” Frisk chirped. Sans’s heart squeezed in the best way possible and he smiled. Papyrus took the cue and gathered Frisk up in his arms before getting to his knees beside his brother.

    “I do indeed, human! Observe-” Papyrus reached down with his free hand and grabbed a handful of the white covering, picking it up and then letting it slide out again. “See! Perfectly harmless and super duper fun!”

    The child looked down suspiciously, but as they watched Papyrus and Sans lazily play in the snow they eventually squirmed out of the younger brother’s arms and landed softly on the ground.

    “Ooh!” Frisk babbled as their boots crunched the snow underfoot. They began to stomp around. They giggled happily as each boot fall made a new crunch, followed by their footprints being left behind.

    “There, you got it,” Sans said as he watched them carefully. He felt a youthful happiness bubble up as he witnessed the little child stomp around and grinned. Papyrus looked over at him, saw the expression, and then looked back to Frisk.

    “You know, Sans, this human is going to take a lot of responsibility to look after. You’ll have to be a little less ‘nappy’ than usual if you want to help take care of them…”

    Sans knew what his brother was doing, and he just smiled idly as Frisk fell on their butt and began taking handfuls of the snow and throwing it into the air.

    “Brother, are you even listening to me?”

    “Yeah, of course, Paps. This kid is just way too silly. Look at ‘em go.”

    “They are thoroughly enjoying this,” Papyrus remarked. His words drew Frisk’s attention back to the two brothers, and they stood, teetered, and then waddled back over to them.

    “Paps! Paps!” they cooed happily. They reached up their arms and jumped a little.

    “Human! You’ve only been playing for a few minutes! Don’t you want to play a little longer?”

    The child stuck their tongue out at the taller skeleton and turned to Sans instead. They fell into his lap and he had to catch them to make sure they didn’t get hurt on any bumpy bones.

    “Sssss… San!” they said, repeating the action and demanding to be held.

    “Oh my god brother they said your name,” Papyrus whisper-shouted as both gloves reached up to cover his mouth.

    Sans looked down at the child before he bent down and picked them up in his arms. They gave a delighted squeal before snuggling against his chest. They blinked up at him.

    Sans stared down in wonder. This child was incredible. He smiled at them and they giggled, reaching up a stubby little hand to stick into his eye socket for a moment before drawing it back out and showing it to him with a grin on their face.

    “You’ve got that down pat, don’tcha kid?” Sans asked.

    Frisk babbled happily.

    Papyrus carried Frisk on his shoulders as they made their way out of town and through the various parts of Snowdin’s forest. Frisk smiled all the way, taking advantage of their view and slapping Papyrus’s skull anytime something exciting came into it.

    They reached their destination and Frisk went silent for a moment. Lesser Dog was standing close by the lever-trap, lazily watching for anything suspicious. The monster looked over as the three approached.

    “Puppy!” Frisk squealed in delight. Papyrus barely caught them as they struggled to get off of his shoulders, but once they were on the ground they ran over on their unsteady legs and stared up at the guard.

    Lesser Dog looked quizzically at the child, and then back at Sans and Papyrus, and then to the human again. Their armor creaked as they bent down to take a closer look at the strange creature and-

    Frisk’s clumsy hand found the monster’s head and they gave it a pat, giggling and squealing all the while.

    “Puppy!” Frisk cried again, and just like the skeletons, the guard’s eyes brightened at the attention of the adorable little human.

    “Be careful, Frisk,” Papyrus said, but he really didn’t need to. He watched, giddy, as Lesser Dog gave a happy bark and flopped into the snow, craning and stretching their neck for the human to pet them. Frisk did so happily, hugging the monster and giving them lots of pets and kisses.

    “Woof woof!”

    Lesser Dog barked in return, tongue lolling out of their mouth.

    “Woof?” came the uncertain noise from behind Sans and Papyrus. The skeletons turned away from the dazzling sight and saw Greater Dog standing behind them, head cocked to the side in confusion. Then he caught sight of Frisk and Lesser Dog and his eyes lit up. He hopped out of his armor in a second and ran over to the petting session, and Frisk gave a delighted cry as the small dog hurried over and licked their face and demanded some TLC.

    The shrill barks and happy squeals eventually drew all of the Royal Guards posted in Snowdin to the area. Dogaressa and Dogamy stopped to talk to the skeletons for a moment before the captivating eyes of the little human drew them to the pile of white fur in the snow. Doggo was more suspicious of the activities, remaining a good distance away before Frisk caught sight of him and teetered over to babble up at him in wonder.

    “Puppy,” they said happily.

    “It’s Doggo,” the sentry replied, watching the child hesitantly.

    “Doggy,” Frisk said, and their small little hands reached as high as they could go. “Woof woof.”

    “Aw come on, Doggo, let ‘em pet you!” Dogamy barked from where he watched, having been thoroughly patted down himself.

    “Aren’t humans supposed to be dangerous?” Doggo asked, taking a step back as Frisk continued to try and reach way past their limit to pet the dog’s head.

    “Do they look dangerous to you, Doggo?” Dogaressa said happily, and at her voice Frisk turned, a little miffed that Doggo wouldn’t let them pet him, but soon they were giving Dogaressa’s head a happy and gentle pat.

    The skeletons watched in amusement and wonder. The child was like a happiness generator, and soon even Doggo allowed the kid to reach up and scratch behind his ears.

    “I can’t believe how cute they are!” Dogaressa exclaimed, picking Frisk up and holding them at arm’s length for a moment. Dogamy stood closeby and watched with big stars in his eyes.

    “Ressa, we should have some puppies soon,” he said quietly, and his wife laughed.

    “Puppies!” Frisk cooed, and Dogaressa hugged them close before she looked at the happily observing skeletons.

    “Are you two taking care of them?” she asked, holding Frisk on her hip as the child scratched her chin.

    “Yeah, found ‘em out in the forest a few days ago,” Sans said.

    “Well, if you ever need help with them, let us know,” she said before she leaned down and gave Frisk a kiss on the forehead, which made the little human babble with joy. “They’re adorable. I know you’ll take good care of them.”

    Both skeletons smiled a little sheepishly, but Frisk had seen them again and stretched out. Papyrus took them from Dogaressa and held them, and they cuddled into his scarf and held on with their wonderfully tiny hands.

    They went home soon after. All of the petting and scratching had tired the poor human out, and they were asleep in Papyrus’s arms before they even made it back to town.

    “Sans, do you think I’ll be a good big brother?” Papyrus asked quietly. He looked down at Frisk, curled gently in his arms. His eyes were soft.

    “Heh, you’re already the best brother ever,” Sans said happily.

    “You’re right… but, I’ve got a pretty great role model, too,” Papyrus said, giving his brother a sincere grin.

    Sans returned it in full.

    They were gonna be awesome big bros.

Chapter Text

    “Human! I will avenge my fallen brethren and take your soul!”

    “No!”

    “Don’t defy me, vile human!”

    They giggled and ran behind the couch, where Sans was already watching with a sword in his hands. By sword, Papyrus meant paper towel tube.

    “This is bad, kid, he’s got us cornered,” Sans said, using his free arm to hold Frisk against his chest for protection. “What’s the plan?”

    “I can hear everything you’re saying, humans!” he said loudly, creeping towards the couch. “The fight is over! Give up now and I, the Great Papyrus, may grant you mercy!”

    “Never!” Frisk said. “We’ll never surrender!”

    “That’s the spirit, little dude, my fellow human being,” Sans said, but he laughed. Frisk hit him in the head with their paper towel tube before they pointed it at Papyrus and gave him a firm glare.

    “Attack!”

    They both ran from behind the couch and charged the taller skeleton. He feigned injury and fell, swatting Frisk away when they smacked him with their weapon, and grabbing Sans’s before he could hit him more than a couple of times.

    “No! How can this be? I, the Great Papyrus, have been defeated by two lame and very smelly humans!”

    Frisk stuck their tongue out at the defeated monster and hit him in the face with the paper tube, but he was busy dramatically dying. Sans stood up and put his foot on Pap’s chest as he lay dead on the floor, and Sans crossed his heart with his toiletry sword.

    “Let this day be remembered as the raddest of all days for us humans,” he said. Papyrus cracked an eye open and saw Frisk standing to mirror his brother’s pose. “This victory was, uh, completely fair in every way, because me and Frisk are shorter. Let’s celebrate with gross human food and other things that humans celebrate with.”

    “Alcohol,” Frisk whispered.

    “Kid, I think you’re still a bit too young for that. Let's wait till you’re at least eleven.”

    “Sans!” Papyrus said, breaking character as his brother laughed and patted Frisk’s head.

    “Oh come on, it was a joke, bro. Besides, aren’t you supposed to be dead?

“Yeah, dead things don’t talk,” Frisk added. “They just are dead.”

Sans snorted, but nodded. “You heard the kid. Dead things just are dead.”

Papyrus laughed but sat up. Sans sat down beside him, and Frisk fell across the bigger monster’s lap like a dog.

“That was a very intense battle,” Papyrus remarked, putting his hand on the human’s head. “If I’m not mistaken, there’s going to be an MTT special on in just half an hour.”

    “MTT!” Frisk cheered, but didn’t move from their position half on the floor and half on Papyrus’s bony legs.

    “I’m down to clown,” Sans said, and Frisk giggled.

    The human had been with the two brothers for a few years. They were just as energetic as most monsters of the same age, which was nine, and they enjoyed going on sentry duty with Papyrus and his brother. They’d even made friends with Kid, the monster child who was one of Undyne’s biggest fans.

Everybody in town loved Frisk. When the skeleton went to the shop to buy spaghetti ingredients, the shopkeeper always gave them a free cinnamon bunny. Grillby would slip them lollipops and other candy when nobody was looking, and they’d come home with pockets full of half-melted chocolate and unpackaged gummy worms. They’d only recently begun to trust the townspeople when their skeleton guardians weren’t around, but they seemed very happy. The thought of anybody hurting them made Papyrus cringe, and he swore to himself that he’d protect them from anybody who tried to harm them. He’d told Undyne about them, but didn’t trust her yet to be around Frisk. She was both annoyed and impressed that he loved his new human friend so much.

“Pap, can I have a juice box?” Frisk asked from their position on the floor. He looked down at them with a look of scrutiny.

“Considering that you just murdered me in cold blood, I’m not partial to answering that…” he said, and Frisk stuck out their tongue and papped him in the face with their little hands, reaching into his eye socket for a second. It was something they did frequently. It was his only weakness.

“Heh, before you two start another war, I’ll go get some juice boxes,” Sans said. He was still snorting a little, and it made Papyrus giddy to see him so happy. He hadn’t been this happy in years. He used to sleep all day and wake up in the middle of the night crying. Now he and Frisk shared a bed, because it kept Sans’s night terrors away and Frisk refused to sleep anywhere else, aside from with the other brother in his race car. Sans took the human with him on sentry duty and they went bug-hunting in Waterfall during his breaks.

Frisk may have been the best thing that had ever happened to either of them.

All three pals drank juice boxes and settled in for the MTT marathon. Papyrus put on his pajamas while Sans simply took off his jacket and slippers. Frisk went to Sans’s room and came out again in their PJ’s, which Papyrus had gotten for them. It was a onesie with the words “cool dude” on the front, just like his fancy shirt.

They crawled up on the couch and snuggled between Papyrus and his brother.

    Papyrus leaned down and gently touched his skull against Frisk’s forehead. They giggled but pulled it closer and gave him a little smooch, before turning to Sans and giving him a kiss too.

    “Love you,” they said. It was so sincere and kind, coming from somebody so young. Papyrus swelled up with warmth, as did Sans, and the human smiled.

    “Love you too, ya stinker,” Sans said with a grin, leaning in and giving the human a big old skeleton kiss. They shoved him away with another giggle.

    “I love you as well, human,” Papyrus said.

    It was a good night.

Chapter Text

Papyrus was up at his usual time, just like he was every morning. As the responsible member of the household he had to make sure that his lazybones brother got up in time for work, and also make sure Frisk got something to eat before he himself went out on duty.

That morning was a “re-heated spaghetti” kind of morning, so he divided out two portions and left a third in a container and put a sticky note labeled 'sans' on top. His brother usually went to Grillby's in the morning, but every once in a while Papyrus would come home and find the container empty, so he always put it there just in case.

After each plate had taken its turn in the microwave, the esteemed sentry gathered forks and a few napkins and set the table. The small add-on that had been built upon Frisk's decision to stay with them led off from the dining room downstairs, so he got things ready with a little hand-clap in praise of his work before he strode over and knocked on the child's door.

“Frisk! Breakfast has been prepared, and gets cooler with each second it goes uneaten!”

There came a muffled noise from beyond. Papyrus paused for a moment before putting his hand on the doorknob and taking a step into Frisk's dimly lit bedroom.

They were lying in their bed, wrapped up tight in blankets. Odd, he thought, Frisk was usually hungry and eager for breakfast in the mornings.

“Is everything alright, human?” Papyrus asked as he made his way over and took a seat on the edge of the twin-sized bed. He laid a hand on the lump of blankets approximately where the human's shoulder should be. With a sniff, Frisk turned and looked at the skeleton.

Papyrus blinked. Their brown eyes had bags under them almost as big as Sans's, and their skin looked pale. Their tired eyes lost focus after a moment, but then they reached out their little hand and shooed Papyrus's away.

“don't feel good,” they mumbled before turning back over and covering themselves with their blanket again.

Papyrus looked at Frisk's nightstand and found it devoid of the usual glass of water they got up to get most nights. They also hadn't put their clothes away from the day before. Concern blossomed in his non-existent stomach immediately.

“What does not feel well, human?” he asked, putting his hands in his lap and watching them closely.

“I dunno. 'm tired. My nose is stuffy,” they murmured into their pillow.

“Oh... is this, uhm, normal for humans?” Papyrus asked. He tried, but couldn't quite keep the worry out of his voice.

Frisk shrugged their shoulders, a gesture that couldn't be seen very well from their mound of blankets.

“Frisk, I think you're getting ill,” Papyrus said.

“mmf,” was all they replied.

“You should come out and get something to drink- you didn't get any water last night, it appears.”

They groaned, but were compliant in letting the skeleton ease the blanket off of them. They really did look awful- their hair was even messier than normal, which was truly impressive, and they kept sniffling. When Papyrus went to pick them up, they coughed hard enough for it to wrack their entire body.

Papyrus held his breath and waited for them to finish the little fit. Frisk laid back when they were done, but reached out and took Papyrus's hand.

He lifted them gently. They curled up against him and shivered while he carried them out to the table and sat them down in one of the chairs, going back to retrieve their covers a moment later.

“Perhaps spaghetti is not the best choice for breakfast...” he said. Frisk nodded gently, and he rustled their hair. “I've got all this tea for Undyne- would you like some of that?” Another nod.

Papyrus put the water on to boil before he headed up the stairs and to his brother's room. His gut was twisting in worry, Frisk had never been ill before, and a sick human looked nothing like a sick skeleton. Stuffy nose? What the heck was that?

He only knocked once on Sans's door before he stepped inside. As expected, he was sleeping on his bed curled around his horrible wad of bedding, still fully clothed. Papyrus walked over and shook his shoulder.

Sans stirred with bleary eyes before looking up at his brother. “ugh, bro, what time is it? Why ya gettin' me up so early?”

“Sans, the human is sick,” Papyrus said, and immediately Sans opened his eyes and sat up.

“Are they okay?” he asked.

“I think so, but they don't look well. They couldn't even bring themself to eat my delicious breakfast spaghetti!”

“Yeesh, me neither, but the kid loves that stuff.”

“I know!” Papyrus said.

Sans huffed before he rolled himself out of bed and stretched. “Alright, I'll be down in just a minute, gotta do my morning stretches 'n shit.”

“Language,” Papyrus reminded him, but he frowned and rubbed his hands together. “Oh, brother, what if they they don't get better? What if-”

“Hey, Pap, I'm sure they just have a case of sore-bones. Don't get too rattled,” Sans joked, but he wasn't really in it. Both skeleton's knew that Frisk was very important to them, and seeing them unwell was never a good thing. Papyrus left with a mumbled goodbye and hurried back to the sick human downstairs.

Frisk had their head on the table, but they looked up at Papyrus as he entered. They'd picked at the pasta, but it had barely left a scratch on the mound of noodles.

“Sans will be down in a moment,” he informed the child as he pulled out a chair and took a seat beside them. “Is there anything else I can get for you?”

Frisk shook their head and idly touched the fork to the plate to make a little 'ding' noise.

“Should we take you to the Innkeeper for a check-up? She might have some medicine.”

“Sure,” Frisk mumbled, “m' just tired.”

“You're leaking,” Papyrus commented, and Frisk gave a raspy laugh, but it turned into a cough.

Sans came down a moment later, still yawning and rubbing the sleep from his eye sockets. He plodded over and took a seat at the table, giving the newest member of his family a once-over.

“You look awful, kiddo,” he said. Frisk smiled at him but pulled the blanket around their shoulders.

“Papyrus said 'm sick,” they said. They sniffled.

“Well my bro knows what he's talking about. He's the smartest person I know,” Sans said with a wink.

“It's true! Sans doesn't know very many people because he doesn't have ambitions of popularity like I do.” Papyrus said. “But, right now, lets take you over to the Innkeeper and see if she has any medicine that would work for humans, hmm?”

He lifted Frisk up, blanket and all, and gave them a gentle bonk on the head.

As it turned out, Frisk had what humans and some monsters referred to as a 'cold,' which was oddly enough not caused by being cold, but rather from a viral infection. The bunny was quick to assure the worried skeletons that colds were nothing to worry about, and that most humans got them a couple times a year. She gave Frisk some honey and medicine and sent the three on their way.

“Hey kid, even if you're sick, try not to give us the cold shoulder, alright?” Sans joked. Frisk, still in the taller brother's arms, giggled, but Papyrus groaned.

“Sans, please! Frisk is ill, this is no time for your terrible jokes!”

Sans opened the door to the house and hurried inside so Papyrus could carry the sick child back into the warmth. The cold had woken them up a little, but they still looked dead tired and ready for a nap.

Papyrus sat them down on the couch and watched as Sans took a seat beside them, giving their back a reassuring rub.

“Ya wanna take a nap, kiddo? You look like you need one.”

Frisk nodded and leaned against Sans's shoulder.

“That is well and good, human and brother, but first Frisk must take their medicine. It will help you feel better! And, by extension, it will make my brother and I feel better, too.”

Frisk made a face, which Sans laughed at, but Papyrus was already hurrying off to get the sick little human something to drink. Pills weren't fun, he knew. The few times he'd gotten sick, he'd had to take pills, and they were neither tasty or easy to swallow.

Papyrus came back to see Sans with his arm around the child. He grinned at the sight- Sans had never been so motivated and responsible.

“Here, human- take your medicine and then you and Sans can take a nap. He usually isn't up for another hour and a half anyways, because he's a lazybones.”

“Guilty as charged, bro,” Sans said. Frisk huffed in amusement but accepted the glass of water that Papyrus handed them. They took a few moments in swallowing the medicine, and made a face when they did, but then they leaned back against Sans and closed their eyes.

“Hey, Pap, why don't you take the day off with me? We can't leave Frisk here all alone, right, Frisk?”

The human nodded.

“Brother, don't use the human's illness as an excuse to take off work,” Papyrus said, but the offer was truly tempting and he didn't want the human to be lonely when they weren't feeling well...

“I know you want to, bro, you've got the worst poker face. Just call Undyne and tell her Frisk is sick- she'll probably force you to stay home and send some kind of aggressive Undyne-style 'get well soon' card.”

Papyrus huffed. “Fine, fine... I suppose the Underground can go without my meticulous sentry skills for one day,” he said. Frisk opened their eyes to smile at him, seemingly happy at the prospect of both brothers staying home with them.

“Heck yeah. Movie marathon, Pap, Frisk gets first choice,” Sans said.

“Nap first,” Frisk mumbled as they snuggled into the shorter monster's side.

“Shoot, you're right. Nap first, then we watch movies all day.”

“Brother, you are a horrible influence.” Papyrus plopped himself down on the other side of Frisk, planting a skeleton kiss on their warm forehead as he did so. “But! Undyne sent me some movies she and Alphys found at the dump last week that I have yet to watch. I'm sure they will be great.”

Frisk sniffled. “M'kay. Nap first, though.”

“Nap first,” Papyrus repeated, getting up to put Frisk's uneaten pasta in the fridge as they snuggled into Sans's fluffy coat and nodded off.

Frisk was such a good child. Papyrus shared a meaningful look with his brother as they slept against his side.

They were both very glad that Frisk was in their lives.