"No, I understand. You would just be unhappy trapped down here."

Her arms were growing numb from the cold around her. She clutched her hands around herself, but it did little good. She was entirely underdressed for this kind of weather in her short sleeved, short skirted dress.

It didn't make much sense to her, however. How could it be snowing? Wasn't she underground?

Her blue eyes flicked up to the sky... or rather, merely above her, as she shouldn't be able to see open sky. It was difficult to tell what she was looking at. She expected to see stone, or some sort of ceiling, devoid of light. What she saw was very reminiscent of a white winter sky, only there were obviously no clouds, just a flat white expanse, from which snow was somehow falling and light radiated evenly all around. Perhaps she was under a sheet of ice?

The girl shook her head, unable to make sense of it.

Toriel had mentioned something about monsters and magic. Perhaps it had to do with magic?

Toriel...

At the thought of the kind goat-monster, her mind fell silent.

"My expectations... My loneliness... my fear... For you, my child, I will put them all aside."

The young woman felt as though she had repaid the she-goat rather poorly for all the kindness she had been shown. After all, Toriel had rescued her, protected her, taught her how to interact with the monsters of the Underground, had fed her, and given her sanctuary. Then she had begged her not to leave, had even fought with her in an attempt to deter her from her course. But the girl had been so... blastedly determined.

"If you wish to leave the ruins... I will not stop you. However, when you leave... Please, do not come back. I hope you understand."

"Goodbye, my child."

The feeling of Toriel's soft furry arms around her had comforted her, filled her with even more determination. But that feeling was now long gone. Ever since the heavy, physically immovable stone door had closed behind her and had found herself isolated in an illogical iceland, she had felt her strength begin to ebb away.

The burning coldness of the snow stung her legs as it melted on her skin. Her shoes were caked with snow and her toes were painfully numb. As far as she could see, there were no buildings and no monsters. She was truly alone now.

Tripping over a large branch that lay half buried in the white powder at her feet, she pitched forward into the snow. A cascade of frigid shivers wracked her body. She was chilled to the core.

She saw now, she probably should've just stayed with Toriel. Maybe she could-

No.

"Please, do not come back."

She could not go back, Toriel had specifically asked her not to. She was alone.

Tears began to swell in her eyes and run down her cheeks, stinging in the wind. Her resolve was wavering. Wrapping her arms tighter around herself, she knelt in the snow.

Shutting her eyes, she refused to see her impossible surroundings for a few moments. She didn't want to think about where she was going to go, or why it was snowing, or why there were trees underground, or what would happen to her, or what Toriel was doing at the moment. She didn't want to think at all.

But she was forced to a moment later when she heard the sound of crunching footsteps behind her. There was someone, or something, approaching her. She became paralyzed, knowing that she was in no condition to defend herself if need be. She could only pray that the one who approached meant her no harm. Too afraid to turn and look at whoever it was, she kept her eyes dead ahead and only closed them when the footsteps stopped inches behind her.

"Human." Came a deep, but soft voice. "Don't you know how to greet a new pal?" There was a brief pause. "Why don't you turn around and shake my hand?"

The intent behind the voice was hard to interpret. It was difficult to decipher whether they were playing with her before striking her down, or being teasingly friendly. Hesitantly, she twisted around and raised her eyes to the figure standing behind her. She couldn't contain the gasp the flew from her lips.

He was a... sk-sk-skeleton!

She had not been expecting that. From what she had seen and from what Toriel had said, the young woman had expected the monsters of the Underground to be talking animals or creatures whose forms were entirely new to her. But a skeleton?! It seemed a little too... stereotypical.

Also, it was simply alarming to come face to face with a living, talking skeleton when one isn't expecting to. She stared long and wide-eyed at his cavernous face and... well, skeletal body. Also, much to her surprise, he was wearing a blue parka, black sport shorts, and house slippers.

As seemingly impossible as it was, he was also staring straight at her from his sockets, floating white pupils tracking her every movement. Despite the fact that she knew he could have no eyeballs or pupils, he was undeniably staring at her. She also didn't understand just how he could seem to change facial expressions, but it he was doing that as well.

Magic, she lazily accepted after several moments of pondering.

Her shock at his appearance, however, was replaced by her concern for her safety once more when he extended a bony hand out towards her.

Oh, right. He had told her to shake his hand.

Could this positively strange stranger be trusted? Was he going to hurt or help her? And if she did shake his hand, would all of his phalanges remain connected? She didn't see any ligaments.

Tentatively, trustingly, she reached out and grasped his hard, slender digits, only to be surprised by a lengthy and rude sound.

Plblblbblbllblblblblblblblb...

The unexpected sound of flatulence met her ears, her confused and wary mind was thrown into utter incredulity.

"Heheheh..." The skeleton's laugh sounded immature and childish, though somehow goodnatured. He placed his other hand over his face as he continued to chuckle. "The old whoopie cushion in the hand trick... it's always funny!"

His laughter continued for a time until he realized that the girl was simply sitting in the snow, staring at him dazedly, her hand still in his.

"Anyway you're a human right?" He asked, grinning down at her widely.

Unsure of whether her voice would respond properly, she simply nodded, still completely confused.

"That's hilarious," he sighed. He pulled her gently to her feet."I'm Sans, Sans the skeleton. What's your name, kid?"

"A-Arianna."

She still wasn't sure if she trusted him yet, but she was beginning to get a bit more comfortable in his presence. At the very least, she didn't think he meant her any real harm. His tone, demeanor, and way of speaking seemed very casual and laid-back, almost lazy. It was very curious to her.

"Nice," he complimented offhandedly. "Y'know, this is pretty unexpected. I'm actually supposed to be on watch for humans right now. And I actually find one!" Again, he chuckled. "Papyrus would flip his lid if he knew!"

She tilted her head of long brown hair at him quizzically at the odd name.

"Oh, my brother, Papyrus, he's a human-hunting fanatic," he explained, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "He thinks that catching one will be a one way ticket into the Royal Guard."

The discomfort was returning again. How was she supposed to react to this information? Staying silent, she darted her eyes away from the skeletal figure in front of her.

As a brief silence ensued, a violent shiver wracked her body and she was reminded of her frigid limbs. The skirt of her dress had been soaked when she fell into the snow and now clung to her legs. The wind seemed to ignore the little clothing she had on.

"Hey, you alright, kid?" Sans inquired. "Why're you shaking?"

"I-I'm c-c-cold," she stated, clutching her arms.

"Aw, jeez," he mumbled, scratching his skull. "You should've told me sooner, instead of letting me gab on an on." After a slight moment's pause, he began to strip himself of his blue parka, leaving him in a grey shirt and his black shorts. He held it out to her. "Here, kid. Put this on before you turn into a human-sicle ."

"What about you? Won't you be cold?" She asked, surprised at his sudden kindness.

He chuckled.

"Heheh, kid, I'm a skeleton. I don't even have skin! Don'tcha snow I don't get cold?"

He chuckled at his pun, but wasn't able to elicit a laugh from the girl.

Arianna pulled on the parka and pulled the hood up over her head. As it's donor didn't give off any body heat, it didn't offer her warmth immediately, though it did shield her from the wind. The blue sleeves almost came down to cover her hands and the soft fringe of fur around the hood brushed her cheeks comfortingly. She offered Sans a grateful smile. At this, he seemed to grow a bit bashful and she almost thought that she saw his cheekbones tinge blue, like a blush. But she knew that that was impossible.

"You feel better now, kid?" He asked.

"Yes, thank you," she answered, beginning to soak up the warmth that it offered.

"Hey, you have a place to stay?"

She shook her head in response and looked away awkwardly. Was this skeleton trying to offer her a place to stay?

"C'mon," he said, turning and trudging through the snow. "Follow me. You can stay with me and my brother for the time being."

Arianna stood stock still.

"With you and your brother?" She asked skeptically. "The one who likes to hunt humans?"

"Ah, heheh," Sans scratched his cranium and gave a nervous laugh. "Don't you worry about him. He's a big pushover. Seeing you might rattle his bones a little," he turned and winked, "but I think it'll do him some good."

She still wasn't sure. Could she trust her safety to a couple of strangers? What if she was walking into a trap? Sans seemed harmless enough, but what about his brother?

"So? You comin' or not?" Sans looked over his shoulder at her and gave a wide grin. "I understand you havin' cold feet and all, but you can trust me, Ari. Besides, you'll freeze to death if you stay out here, even in my jacket."

She knew he was right; staying out in this weather could be deadly. And she was wearing his coat. After a moment of biting her lip, she nestled her chin down into the fur lining of the parka, shoved her hands into her pockets, and marched through the snow after the skeleton. With a gentle smile, he waited for her, then walked beside her.

"Hey," Sans began, getting her attention. "What kind of a dog does a magician have?"

Confused, she glanced over at him.

"What?"

"What kind of dog does a magician have?"

"Er... I don't know."

"A labracadabrador," he told her with a grin.

She stared at him for a moment, before giving a snort or laughter. Sans seemed satisfied with his accomplishment.

"That was terrible," she told him good-naturedly.

"Aw man," he sighed, then grinned again. "I really wanted it tibia a good joke," he said motioning to the lower half of his leg for effect.

This time, his pun brought a genuine smile to her lips and she chuckled. After this, a more comfortable silence ensued and Arianna felt more at ease. Maybe she could trust this skeleton after all. She really wanted to.

His kindness filled her with...

Determination.